[ Team: Hawaii Tetris ]

[ospin_double]

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If you're sitting in your grass hut in Honolulu running Nullpo (or Tetris game of your choice) on your coconut-powered PC, [a href=\\\"http://harddrop.com/groups/view/id_144/]join this team (Hawaii Tetris)![/b] We're at the epicenter of Tetris HQ, so let's represent the 808.

Hopefully we can use this team to organize some small, local IRL cash tourneys ($5 entry? Payout to finalists from pot based on tiered portions?) for amateurs (no Tetris Company employees or testers). These tournaments would be small and unofficial, mostly just to create some friendly competition and feed our addiction in a new way... and maybe even go home with some cash to pay the electricity bill that our hours of Tetrising eat up.

Local tourney play can be online or IRL. I figure there will need to be a meet-up component for payment, and maybe also to make sure internet connections are solid and/or to referee. Plus, from experiencing Tetris Cup at UH, playing with an audience face-to-face with an opponent can make the adrenaline pump (it's an addiction, and I need a higher high).

If you have any ideas for small Hawaii tournaments, post them in the team page after you join, or keep it in this thread. Hopefully we can have one Hawaii tournament before the end of 2011, and then regularly after that maybe once a month or every other month?

Shooots!

[DarthDuck]

Local tourney play can be online or IRL. I figure there will need to be a meet-up component for payment

Sounds like laptops would be needed for that. My Computer weighs about 70 pounds and so would be awkward to wheel into a Starbucks. I think an honor system would be sufficient for payment in RL meetings (get drunk and discuss strat)?

But the biggest problem I see are the irreconcilable skill gaps. Maybe odds/handicaps would make that fair.

Have you tried doing a TF search by region? That will give you the top 100 "best players in Hawaii" in each mode. But being on different islands would be a problem.

[kbr]

Take J_Mac off from the team, lol. He's not an amateur!

[ospin_double]

Sounds like laptops would be needed for that. My Computer weighs about 70 pounds and so would be awkward to wheel into a Starbucks.

I was originally thinking that we find some under-the-radar LAN cafe or some place with their own computers on solid internet (if those even still exist), maybe get them to sponsor us or something in exchange for our word-of-mouth/flyer advertising, and then just play it up. Here's a thread on a tourney in Texas that never really got established, but I think the logistics looked really interesting. But I'm not necessarily opposed to just playing from home...

I think an honor system would be sufficient for payment in RL meetings (get drunk and discuss strat)?

Getting drunk and talking Tetris is half the reason I wanted to do this! I figure the winner probably owes a round of drinks to everyone else, so at least losing $5 still gets me fun competition and a drink, maybe  !

I'm down with an honor system. There's something to be said about IRL games, though. Live spectators and face-to-face battles ups the energy and adrenaline, IMO. There's a huge Street Fighter cash tourney scene in Hawaii, and those guys meet regularly and push each other to be better.

But the biggest problem I see are the irreconcilable skill gaps. Maybe odds/handicaps would make that fair.
Have you tried doing a TF search by region? That will give you the top 100 "best players in Hawaii" in each mode. But being on different islands would be a problem.

Awesome idea with the TF regional leaderboard. I already invited all the Oahu-based people in HD to the Hawaii Tetris HD team (except for those who have labeled themselves Tetris Company employees/testers), but there weren't many (maybe 10). I figured everyone here is probably at least at a certain level of Tetris seriousness. I'll start reaching out to TF people immediately!

I would be in favor of a handicap system. I'm still a real amateur; I'm ranked 24 in Hawaii on the TF leaderboard, apparently, and I only started getting into modern Tetris in 2009. I figure we start with a small group of people who are at a certain level, with only a core group of Oahu people for logistics reasons, and we can do a few just-for-fun tournaments to get a feel of where each of us is in terms of skill level. We could make three separate tournament brackets based on skill level (silver, gold, platinum) or something, then just play people without handicap within our own skill bracket. I personally don't like when the handicap forces you to play at different heights (even when I'm in the advantage), since it makes a huge difference and makes a win much less sweet. But the good thing about having a small core group is that we can have small games and see what works through trial-and-error, having fun in the process. Transparency is key, of course, to make sure that no organizer is pocketing a profit and all non-pot entry costs are necessary and justified.

Take J_Mac off from the team, lol. He's not an amateur!

Haha, sorry, I'm relatively new to the "Tetris scene," so I don't know who are the big dogs. But as long as he's from Hawaii, he's alright. By amateur, I just meant not a Tetris Company employee or game tester (since HQ is here). DarthDuck was right in that we need some kind of handicapping/ skill-grouping system, but it will be fun to play with people of all different skill levels in Hawaii.

(FYI, this is a non-competing team for the most part. But if you guys want to compete in online tourneys on behalf of Hawaii Tetris, that's cool, too).

[kbr]

Haha, sorry, I'm relatively new to the "Tetris scene," so I don't know who are the big dogs. But as long as he's from Hawaii, he's alright. By amateur, I just meant not a Tetris Company employee or game tester (since HQ is here). DarthDuck was right in that we need some kind of handicapping/ skill-grouping system, but it will be fun to play with people of all different skill levels in Hawaii.

No problem. I'm from Hawaii too  I work "close" to J_mac. Can I join?! j/k I'm not eligible...
Keep me posted on the groups interest and I'll see what we could do from our side.

Love the Hawaii logo btw! AWESOME!!

[DarthDuck]

Awesome idea with the TF regional leaderboard.

Don't forget that the leaderboard for each game mode has different people on it for the most part. I think I'm actually on the Marathon and Survival ones somewhere. Maybe if you invite some of the people on the Nblox and 1989 leaderboard I could beat them  

[coolmaninsano]

J_MAC is TTC staff.

Also damn, props for the nice logo.

[ospin_double]

J_MAC is TTC staff.

Also damn, props for the nice logo.

I guess J_MAC can stay on the team if he wants to represent Hawaii, but he just can't compete in local tourneys if we organize any. Unless other Hawaii people object to his membership?

Thanks for the logo props. I do freelance design part-time. I was thinking about designing some Tetris themed posters; got any ideas? I could donate some to HD, maybe, for Blink to sell to support the site... I'll start a new thread or find a relevant one if anyone thinks this is worth pursuing...

[Tetris_Ernest]

I guess J_MAC can stay on the team if he wants to represent Hawaii, but he just can't compete in local tourneys if we organize any. Unless other Hawaii people object to his membership?

Thanks for the logo props. I do freelance design part-time. I was thinking about designing some Tetris themed posters; got any ideas? I could donate some to HD, maybe, for Blink to sell to support the site... I'll start a new thread or find a relevant one if anyone thinks this is worth pursuing...

Cool logo, you should try using a Monochrome set so the islands can look green.

Stay modivated and keep going.  we can help you along the way.