Sunday, May 6th, 2007
Issue: 22   Editor: MsNyxxie


Why is Bootleggers so Special? SexehKate
Recipe for an online Mafia game:


1. Make the front page look intimidating and "hard". Too much added sugar may take the edge off a bit, so be warned.
2. Add a dark, gritty background to haunt players in their dreams.
3. Make a pointless Arm Wrestling or similar online activity to try and reassure players that virtual excersise is good for you. Make it so that it has no real impact on the game and just a minority of users will use it.
4. Make a little newspaper thingy to create the illusion that users have some power and status in the game.
5. Make it so that they can steal cars- that's original, right?
6. Finally, serve up gambling on a plate to feed some hungry doomed addicts.

Let's face it, there are many online games out there, all fighting for our attention. I mean, Mafia games are ten a penny. Yet the hundreds of thousands of players who have experienced Bootleggers... come back for more.

I won't lie- I play other games myself. None of them, however, come close to the addiction that is Bootleggers, and I wonder: what's so different about Bootleggers? Somehow, thousands of people log on every day and want to come back the next day. I've seen other online games, some of which barely get more than 20 people logging on every day. They have exactly the same features, maybe even more- yet people get bored within 15 minutes and get their homework done instead, which is wrong.

Think of it: Bootleggers- full of hackers, cynical power-hungry adolescents in the forums, bug here, bug there, and a mentality that all newcomers are either not worth bothering with, or even worse, worth shoving on the hitlist for a joke. Then you look at another online game- it does the exact same thing as Bootleggers but with more active staff, no hackers, a helpful bunch of players and no bugs. Surely, the latter is better?

To be honest, I've dug myself a bit of a hole here, because I don't know the answer as to why we keep crawling back to Bootleggers. I can only suggest- and I only have one suggestion. I would actually appreciate any ideas, as its a mystery to me!

I can only suggest that the people of Bootleggers are the reason for Bootleggers' popularity- it's what's keeping me here, anyway. Sure, when you start out as a scum, a nobody, you'll get people spitting at you from every direction. On the other hand, there are some really good people on here. Novacaine, for one... sorry, it had to be said.

There are thousands of players on here, and the forums, in general, are buzzing with activity. Its this feeling that practically whatever topic you post, you will get a reply from somebody, and usually instantly. At the end of the day, I'm not on here for the crimes and auto burglaries that every game on the internet offers- I'm here for the forums and the private messages and the people, and as far as I can see, only Bootleggers is so wealthy in this area. The only thing that Bootleggers has over other games is the community. Everybody reading this, and everybody logging on- you make my stay so enjoyable. You are keeping half the players addicted to the Bootleggers drug. And you alone have the power to keep Bootleggers going. God bless! *inserts crying smiley*