Makaveli,
What a video and list of players! It makes me sad to see you go. You are always a worthy adversary and ally; you understand that being friends with someone doesn't mean that you can never take opposing sides to enjoy being on the receiving end of their skills. You are not just an extraordinarily competent player, but you are one of the rare breed that doesn't carry the associated ego, mainly because you have nothing to prove. You laugh and complement when others get petty and angry.
Meeting your brother (WooG?) underscored who you really are-- he was similarly concerned by the toxifying culture of the server and the fairness of the game, even though he, like you, was one of the best players I'd seen here (I was amused to see that you still remembered my brother, Chauffeur). You are an exceedingly competent person and I know you'll do well in life, if you aren't doing so already.
There are few other past and present players with your talents and values. If only we'd had a majority of the server who shared at least the values, things might be turning out differently. I hold out hope that our beloved server might come back. It was too damn good to lose. I'm hoping that PTP outlasts the others and gets an infusion of the remaining diehards, hopefully most of whom are like you. For anyone out there who develops games, use the glory days of Protect the President as a model and make a killing selling a game. You've already got my money.
I'm 24 now, and like you, this game has been a part of my life for the past half of it. Not only did I learn some entirely useless skills (flying cartoon planes and riding cartoon bikes), I've had experiences and made friendships here that I will likely remember for the rest of my life. Wherever we end up, we'll still remember where all the NRGs are, casino stunts in LV, which walls aren't solid, how to lag shoot... the list goes on.
For all its problems, I've never found a gaming community that could hold a candle to this one. Hell, this has even been better than many real-life communities I've been involved in. Although your point of light in this once blindingly bright community may have faded, as have many others, know that as a fixture of PTP you made a positive impact on many lives, and the fire isn't out yet. It may be just be a game, but it is our game.
For you and my other friends here: Old friends never say goodbye. I'm going to try to keep my YouTube account (
YoMama PTP) up so people can see what we had here and so I'm still reachable. I still play from time to time; maybe I'll see you around. I hope to see you playing the future blockbuster based on this gamemode. If you find the next game and community like this one before I do, tell me about it. Let me know if you ever find yourself in California.
- YoMama
The Ink Spots - We'll Meet Again (set to the streets of San Francisco Fierro) 