After a total of three thousand and two successful busts and a total prize pool of one hundred thousand dollars per bust finally reached and awarded in the hours of Monday, we then set about honouring the staggering competition with a Buzz article. In order to do this we caught up with both the organiser and chief donor for the competition, R2D2, and Moderator Sky, who also chipped in with a sizeable donation to take the total pot to over three hundred million dollars!
But what had inspired or whom has in fact motivated R2D2 to put on such a lavish competition? We asked him, and it turned out it had indeed been the previously record holder for biggest bust competition Aldarion, as he told us, "Thank you kindly. Aldarion is who inspired me with his massive 133 mill bust comp a few months back, when I saw this I thought to myself, would this not be awesome if a regular player was willing to give up his money like this knowing he could die at anytime, how exciting." Perhaps the inspiration which drove R2D2 to create his competition will not prove to inspire others to achieve similar feats, who knows!
But perhaps most importantly, was R2D2 happy with how his competition had turned out? He told us, "I was really happy to be honest, it turned out great I had more busters and donations then I thought I would. I just wish there was an easier way to have given out the cash as I know I missed a couple of players and some buster did die, luckily Sky was willing to help and get the money to the rightful new accounts." Indeed often the sticking point for prolonged bust competitions can be the awarding of prizes, especially in competitions with a set amount per bust is the prize, but this is something we would take up with Sky as we interviewed him later. Our next question for R2D2 asked what he had hoped the competition would achieve. Past giving away a lot of money, what other outcomes did he hope it would provide? He responded telling us, "Reputation for my amazing family and crew The Phoenix Rebellion. This bust comp was not really to up my bust stats or anything like that, I just got some money from gambling and had nothing to do with it, banking it till I die seemed pointless, so why not give it all away and earn it again?" A respectable and perhaps fresh attitude to the game as R2D2 now looks to continue earning back the money he has given away in a bid to further increase his own and indeed The Phoenix Rebellion's reputation!
We then moved on to interview Sky, whos interview as it turned out was a virtual tribute to R2D2 through and through, and rightfully so! We began by asking what had prompted him to donate the rough one hundred and thirty million dollars which he had done. His answer sung the praises of R2D2 as he said, "I was inspired by his initial generosity and wanted to help draw attention to it. $130 million is nothing to me, I didn't have to work to get it, but R2D2 had to work very hard to earn his $150 million and he just gave it away to his fellow players. That's generous. My hope was that by doubling the pot I'd encourage other players to take notice of the party and earn themselves a slice R2D2's generosity. Plus I hate uneven numbers." Seems fairly legit. In an article which looks to do the same as Sky's interview and pay tribute to the competition and R2D2 alike, this is not a time for scrutiny.
As for the success of the competition, how did Sky view that? Simple, "181 participants, 3,002 busts, and his bust total from 1,551 to to 5,510. I'd call it a success. For a couple of days 181 players, which is also the amount of players who are usually online at once, came together and tried to break him out of jail. The forum was abuzz with the contest and so was the jail. A total success, thanks R2D2." Little that can be argued with at the facts and figures are drawn out to emphasise the success of the competition.
We wrapped up our interviews by asking Sky what he felt the lasting impact and success of the competition could bring, and whether he felt it could have been done differently or had highlighted any areas fot improvement for the feature in general. He told us, "Those who are new to the concept of bust parties may have been encouraged to host one of their own as a result of this one. It must be said lately the number of parties active in the forum has been on the slide but since this one, there's always at least one on the go at all times. Not to mention R2D2 just found himself 181 new best friends." Continuing, "I can't really think of anything that should've been done differently. I think the system worked as it was designed to so certainly nothing from a developer's point of view. As for the contest itself, it was perfect. The reward was enough that even a novice buster was trying, and I think I saw that a Scum even managed to get a bust in, which is very impressive." This being said however, we then went on to ask Sky whether he felt the scope was there to implement a dollar or points per bust system for the awarding of competitions. His answer appeared to outline this as a work in progress as he said, "Dollar donations certainly, I'm looking at the best way to implement that but the last time I tried I sort of rage-deleted it. Points I don't really feel comfortable doing for some reason, there's just too much room for error which I'd rather not leave."
So that concluded all our interviews. Perhaps a new aspect of the bust competition feature in the pipeline from Sky and the prospect of more epic R2D2 hosted competitions on the horizon for the community to look forward to. With the disappointment concerning other areas of late set deep in the feelings of the majority such competitions and events bring a welcome distraction to what can otherwise be a bleak outlook. Congratulations to all the beneficiary, participants and donating parties for contributing to what was the most epic party of the round and perhaps one which may not be beaten!
