A History of RCT3 Machinima

OK, so I feel like I am off to a bad start with my March Madness postings, seeing as how it has been 2 days since I announced it, but hopefully I can make up for the lost time, eh?

So, this post is titled "A History of RCT3 Machinima," because I wanted to talk about the early days of RCT3 Machinima: how (and where) it all started, what it was like back then, and what it has become today. Here we go!

The earliest true RCT3 Machinimas were before everyone posted their videos on YouTube. The Atari forums were at that time the main venue for RCT3 Films. Video authors would share their creations via download links! Yeah, I know, it sounds like a hassle, right? Well, it apparently was not too much of a hassle for all of the people who left positive feedback! Some of the RCT3 Machinimas posted in the Atari forums around 2005-2006 have the most insanely positive reviews that I have ever seen. The Atari community really had a passion for these RCT3 productions.

A separate outgrowth of RCT3 Machinima has occurred in the past few years with the popularity of YouTube. YouTube superseded places like the Atari RCT3 Forums, because it provided the all-in-one ability to distribute and discuss videos. Here Death Parks and Peep Bowling videos found huge audiences. Millions of people watch, rate, and comment on these popular videos. However, the same passion abundant found on dedicated message boards like the Atari forums is missing, due to the somewhat shallow nature of these videos, and more importantly, YouTube its self. I am NOT bashing coaster crash videos (heck, I have made them myself). But the fact is that mowing over people with derailed Roller Coasters does not stimulate the kind of intense discussion and careful critique that would be more suited for, say.... short films.

Now introduce RCT3 Machinima to YouTube. RCT3 Productions published on YouTube tend to get much more exposure than if they were only posted for download, like in the olden days. On the other hand, they also tend to get less detailed reviews, because of the aforementioned "shallow" nature of Youtube. Youtube comments are also limited to 500 characters or less. That's not very encouraging to those wanting to deeply critique a film, is it?

The natural solution to this problem is to post your videos on YouTube AND share them on forums. Unfortunately, for the past few years this revelation has evaded me, and I have used YouTube as the only place in which I post my videos. Fortunately, a very small band of YouTube RCT3 Machinimators have taken residence at LordG1gabyt3's RCT3 Machinima community, which has started to provide the kind of deeper discussion that filmmakers long for. Of course, the Atari forums are still a great place to post Machinima creations as well.

Now let us consider how RCT3 Machinima has progressed technically since it's conception at the Atari RCT3 Forums. The best works of those days came from BitterJeweler, Klinn, Vodhin, and DarkSim, among others. For the most part, these tended to be lacking in detailed stories; they were definitely Machinima, and were definitely very creative and technically amazing (for their time). However, many only had general themes. One exception to this was the nearly 30 minute Machinima "A Midsummer Nightmare," which I believe was a collaboration between Vodhin and DarkSim. This had a plot and voice acting, but was only semi-entertaining, in my opinion. Some modern RCT3 Machinimas, such as "King Kong" by Birou006, blow the classics away in technical terms. The modern trend is also to include more complex story lines. I have always wondered what creators like BitterJeweler would do if they used the kind of techniques found in these more modern Machinimas, but I suppose that this scenario is a pipe dream, since most of the classical creators have been dormant for some time.

This may seem like a fairly fruitless rant to some, but I personally love the way in which RCT3 Machinima has matured, and I just wanted to share my thoughts on the classic RCT3 Machinimas of yesterday, and my hopes for the exciting advances of the RCT3 Machinimas of tomorrow.

If you have anything to contribute to this "History of RCT3 Machinima," as it were, or if you feel I have made any inaccurate statements, or left out some important point, please feel free to leave your comments. I believe that the encouragement of the community is the greatest tool we have in our quest for creative awesomeness!