Calvirick
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Posts posted by Calvirick
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I'm looking to buy a new hat! And I've seen a black hat with the typical logo font Trajan Pro "BIONICLE" written across the top.
Nothing is popping up on ebay or Amazon, can anyone help me out?
Not sure what this hat goes for.
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Hey everybody,
Little story about me, I've lurked on BZPower for years, and used to be part of the weird subculture that was Artwork III, a.k.a. the Comic section of the forums. I used to make sprite comics when it was popular.
I'm currently working on a secret project, and thought I'd just share with you a screenshot of my progress. It's been a long overdue project for me, and it's been too long since I've posted.
Honestly, after 4 years of marriage, one kid, and a couple of job promotions, I'm still passionate about pixel art, BIONICLEs, and BZPower.
Stay tuned for more of this project!
WIP Project title: Project Living Dead
For those wondering, I'm simply using MSPaint (left) to display the image references, while doing the pixel art on Aseprite (right). Aseprite is fantastic for doing pixel art if you haven't tried it! It's constantly being updated, and the toolsets are configured to be similar to that of Photoshop's keyboard shortcuts, so if you're already used to Photoshop, then Aseprite will come a little more naturally, skipping the learning curve (which is a huge plus if you're just starting pixel art for the first time seriously).
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Speaking to the topic's first initial questions (specifically in the parts themselves), I primarily want to respond with a question.
Are we restricted to using the parts provided by LEGO? Are they patent protected? (meaning that we can't just 3-D scan the parts presently and reproduce them again with 3D printing ourselves?)
My brain goes to, oh lets just reproduce the parts again ourselves and keep the systems alive, (hence keeping BIONICLE alive).
I'm legitimately wondering this and want your guy's input.
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Crainy, the creator for Bionicle: Quest for Mata-nui recently implemented Mata-Nui Online Game's (MNOLG) soundtrack into his game and it brought me to tears at my work while I was at lunch the other day.
MNLOG's original soundtrack hits somewhere deep in my soul deeper I think than most music. (my proposal and marriage song will never be topped, but MNOLG OST is up there.)
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Hi there,
I just want to tell you that you're such an amazing artist. =D
I also like this whole idea you have going on here. I've seen a bunch of amazing human conversions of BIONICLE characters over at deviantArt, so I'm really looking forward to this one
Hi! I greatly appreciate the compliment.
Some updates:
- I'm building a personal website for when the comic actually appears. In the long run it saved me a lot of trouble than attempting to post it in twenty different sites. I don't think there should be any issues with me linking it? If so I'll work something out with moderators.
- A short comic series should appear before the actual release of Catalyst. Mostly to dip my toes into the whole comicking business.
- I suppose it's apparent I'm behind on the actual release. Oops. Sorry guys. Health has been finicky. I really have no ETA now on release, but it will be coming out this year. Delays stink, I know.
- I think that's all the news I really have?
Anyway, here's some recent art:
The makuta head concepts give off this impression that I've seen before in Ganondorf appearance.
Thumbs up to you! Hoping your health doesn't linger forever. :/
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Gentlemen and Ladies, we must discuss the interest thing that is the Nintendo Switch!
This thread will focus on talking about anything relating to the Switch! *obligatory switch noise that sounds like a snap*
We can talk about the pricing, culture exchange, tech specs, usability, the fact that it's so strangely proportioned and cumbersome! I'm literally looking for people that find this piece of gaming goodness a worth while topic to discuss. Whether or not you have bought it, there's already an opinion arising in your beautiful heart! Because this is modern technology and a mark in history of gaming. That is so spectacularly cool to me to think that I, no, WE get to experience this console while we're alive!
Lets talk!
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It seems from my perspective that the comic section is officially dead. But does that also mean the rest of the forums are dead?
I'm very curious what everyone thinks about this. BZPower literally was the sole reason I found my passion in life. Whether it was in Graphic Design and creativity or just watching or reading awesome content. I felt like there were so many talented and cool people on here (I'm sure there's a lot lurking around still). I would love to find that niche again.
Okay so this part depresses me the most because I'm right there with you (by the way - hey Cal! It's Kahi! Long time no see!)
Comics, back when it was Artwork III, was my childhood. I have a lot of memories and made a lot of friends there. And no matter how hard I've tried, I can't seem to replicate that genuine subculture that drew me in so heavily back then. I've been in other fandoms - sprite comics just weren't a thing there like they were on here. That heyday has passed, and I think it's honestly been lost to time. So many series have been lost to time with the downtime of Maj and Brickshelf, anyways. I was fortunate enough to save a bunch of my favorites before the first downtime, but even still. Relic of a time gone past, you know?
yeah forums has a whole aren't really a...thing, anymore. places like tumblr have overtaken them. bzp is still moderately alive because it has a few diehards who can't let go of the site. bzp has a strange grip to it that's seemingly difficult to escape really. i feel like the site will continue to have some level of activity for some time because of that, and the fact that its name is still very well known amongst People Who Still Care About Bionicle
nothing lasts forever tho, and with bionicle's second cancellation i don't think bzp's gonna survive as long as it did during the four years bionicle was gone (unless it completely reinvents itself in some way).
Alright, fine. Elephant in the room. TTV Message Boards are doing well. Like, not BZP in its heyday well, but well enough that I'm pretty happy with it. Live stats on the boards are telling me that ~400 users have logged in and posted 1.3k posts in the last 24 hours. We've seen a bunch of growth in the past several weeks because we've started some new initiatives on our YouTube channel to get people on the boards and talking about stuff, but throughout last year we generally averaged 700 posts a day with an absolute low of 400.
Granted, it's a different place with a different audience. Our boards were made to engage our audience on YouTube, so there's a bunch of younger members with a different expectation of interaction, a more neo-millennial (I don't actually know the correct term? Basically kids born after 2001) level of instant updates. We have to moderate a lot more posts because the younger kids use chatspeak a lot more, and they're only recently learning how to do longer, essay kind of posts. They're also more highly critical than I'd like - I think it's a holdover from how everyone comes from a YouTube personality wishing point. And the fandom focus is different. A lot more people do videos now than stuff like sprite comics or like RPG Maker games (both things I miss about the old fandom). MOCs are still super popular, that's not changed; stories are kind of popular. Art is super popular, there's a lot more really, really good artists doing consistently amazing art stuff now than I feel like there used to be. That's a carryover from Tumblr and how artists are discovered nowdays. Oddly enough, text games are really popular, like the ones they have in Completely Off Topic. I would think that that's something that would fade away, but I guess that is a level of interaction with the other members that you can't really get on social media like Tumblr or Facebook.
I don't really mean this to be blatant self-advertising (only lowkey self-advertising
), but I'm seeing a lot of posts here that are kind of pointing towards social media as the reason forums aren't doing so well. I'm not so sure - and trust me, we've done a ton of investment into researching the Bionicle fandom on different social media outlets. They all have their own niche. Tumblr focuses mostly on MOCs or Art, stuff you can see, like artist stuff. Facebook is how a lot of people get their news. YouTube seems to be either stop-motion or MOC review based. Twitter is personality and comedy based (180 characters make it hard for anything else!) The engagement is spread upon different social media, and there's definitely aspects of the fandom that aren't being met anymore. For instance, fanfiction doesn't really have a one stop location or social media destination like it used to. But regardless, our social media engagement on all of these platforms (outside of YouTube) is distinctly much, much less than the direct engagement we have on our boards.I do think there's still some room for forums, based on how many people are using ours. And I think BZPower has a distinct place in the fandom that has definitely been shifted, but hasn't been lost. I definitely don't want to see this place die, it's very nostalgic for me and it's how I met some of my best friends online. There's still ways for this place to be more active.
So before you guys all write the activity here off as forums being dying, maybe there's another explanation for it? Just throwing my perspective in the mix.
KAHI! OH MY GOSH I MISSED YOU!
I think you bring up some extremely interesting points!
I think all of you bring up good points. This thread actually doesn't seem that bad than I initially expected. I was expecting some strange remarks about the end that was probably coming.
I think in my opinion one the decisions the forum makers need to consider is BZPower's future. An overhaul might take some planning, and I think it might be putting us back in the stasis stage again. (like the downtime)
But I think if the forum makers intentions are to keep the site around, they should think about it. One aspect I would say is really research how websites or writing/reading networks are currently working for the contemporary teenager/kid/college student that's into lego. I think they need more visuals and buttons. Keep the traditional BZPower feel and vibe for the old cronies like the rest of us, but design a little more for the younger crowd. The dynamics, just from reading Kahi's resourceful claims I think drive this point across pretty strong. I think one good decision BZPower made was allowing the forum users to discuss other websites, and sort of turn BZPower into the Living Room. Like for example, you got a kid that loves LEGO. He goes to Youtube because that's also where he watches Minecraft, which I think is a huge chunk of what kids do these days. They see youtube, and then if they are interested, they can find links to BZPower where they can write and discuss about it. (and in my opinion, discuss in a place that is MUCH safer than most Youtube or Tumblr communities.)
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Okay, so as spoken directly here, Terrible Comics is making a comeback!
oh right I forgot nobody cares :c
And here's the first comic! (multi-panel)
And here's the other first comic! (single-panel)
Also, I was specifically given permission to revive this topic by Akaku, so... Yeah. Plz read the comics and bask in the Terribleness
Sweet! Somebody is making comics again!!
I fully support this!
Onua looks like a beef cake.
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I think what really hurt BZP was the self-entitled bitterness that was on the boards after Bionicle ended, and even after Bionicle came back. This drove off the more optimistic members from BZP, and when the angry members got tired of being angry, they left too. Which leaves us. Maybe we could try networking with older members to come back? I dunno. Solving population problems isn't my strong suit. I think all of our forums and sub-forums still have active topics, just not as much as yee oldene dayese.
I can definitely sort of agree. I took a leave from BZP after Bionicle's end due to the bitterness and whininess that manifested when Bionicle ended, and even after things had settled back down I came back more to discuss new things than to continue mourning Bionicle's end (even to this day I'm much more interested in current or recent themes than wading into G1 topics that have been discussed to death.
That's part of why I do think that while Bionicle discussion should always have a place on BZP, its continued survival requires an emphasis on other ongoing Lego themes. I probably would never have come back if discussion had remained focused primarily on a theme that was no longer resulting in new content.
I've been thinking about that too. I would totally join discussions about other things related to Lego. If we could just keep going and talk about something else, then I would say it would flourish again.
I think I missed out on the whiny-ness back then because I was wrapped up in the comic section and trying to get through college.
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I guess its like the same feeling you get when you move to a different city and have to say goodbye to your best friends you hung out with for what seems so long. And you realize that you have to move on. I know it was just a forum, but I think we can all agree that BZP was a freakishly awesome place for teenagers at one point in time.
I didn't join until 2010, but I was lurking here for years beforehand, and it was indeed awesome. '09 in particular was a fun year, because story-wise it was completely new ground for everyone.
As a platform? Yeah. And the remarks about internet/forum culture are spot-on.
Doesn't mean there aren't some amazing people here still, though.
I've seen forums in much worse shape than BZPower. Have you been to Lugnet recently? It was once one of the central hubs of the online LEGO community. Currently, it's only had 29 posts in the past week and 28 of those were bot posts recording site statistics like this. Classic-Castle.com is also pretty inactive. I don't know if there's a page on BZPower that tells you how many posts it's had in a week, but looking at the "new content" page it's had posts in at least 29 different topics in just the past two days.
I kind of doubt BZPower will ever be as big as it was in 2006 or so. Even if Bionicle came back and became a mega-hit, the Internet just isn't the same place it was back then. People who want to discuss things they love have far more ways and places to do it than they once did. But that's not to say the site or community is likely to give up the ghost anytime soon.
Well this thread is mighty depressing.
I concur.
I guess its like the same feeling you get when you move to a different city and have to say goodbye to your best friends you hung out with for what seems so long. And you realize that you have to move on. I know it was just a forum, but I think we can all agree that BZP was a freakishly awesome place for teenagers at one point in time.
I didn't join until 2010, but I was lurking here for years beforehand, and it was indeed awesome. '09 in particular was a fun year, because story-wise it was completely new ground for everyone.
I only joined three years ago, way after G1 had already ended, and I can only imagine what this place was like back when BIONICLE was in full swing. I hope it doesn't go away anytime soon, I love reading the fanmade stories and seeing everyone's creativity. It's basically the nostalgia that's keeping me here to be completely honest.
I only joined three years ago, way after G1 had already ended, and I can only imagine what this place was like back when BIONICLE was in full swing.
Lots of Server Busy messages. So many Server Busy messages.
I think people who only see BZPower stuff online forget how big and successful BZP has been in recent years. After Bionicle was discontinued (the first time), things like the Convention Circuit program and BioniLUG popped up - both of which are beasts of their own that show no signs of dying out any time soon. We might be a fairly quiet online community, but all of the in-person stuff we've branched out into has been doing well.
I'll also reiterate what Aanchir said about other forums dying out - ignoring the social media cesspools, this is one of the more active places to discuss LEGO these days.
The answer to the topic title is yes.
However, it's not dead quite dead yet. There are still fans around, and I suspect the forums will remain active at least for a few more years.
Dying, but not dead.
I think it really depends which subforum you're looking at. Some places have gone rather quiet recently, others not so much.
In my opinion BZPower has been less active ever since the end of G1. It's going to take a major sponsorship with G3 to gie next generation fans a place to talk.
Since the lego board was closed...maybe we could consider switch to a name like "Lego Power" to promote a open lego forum to a wider audience.
I've seen forums in much worse shape than BZPower. Have you been to Lugnet recently? It was once one of the central hubs of the online LEGO community. Currently, it's only had 29 posts in the past week and 28 of those were bot posts recording site statistics like this. Classic-Castle.com is also pretty inactive. I don't know if there's a page on BZPower that tells you how many posts it's had in a week, but looking at the "new content" page it's had posts in at least 29 different topics in just the past two days.
I kind of doubt BZPower will ever be as big as it was in 2006 or so. Even if Bionicle came back and became a mega-hit, the Internet just isn't the same place it was back then. People who want to discuss things they love have far more ways and places to do it than they once did. But that's not to say the site or community is likely to give up the ghost anytime soon.
But how well has the neighbor site Eurobricks been doing?
In my opinion BZPower has been less active ever since the end of G1. It's going to take a major sponsorship with G3 to gie next generation fans a place to talk.
Since the lego board was closed...maybe we could consider switch to a name like "Lego Power" to promote a open lego forum to a wider audience.
I've seen forums in much worse shape than BZPower. Have you been to Lugnet recently? It was once one of the central hubs of the online LEGO community. Currently, it's only had 29 posts in the past week and 28 of those were bot posts recording site statistics like this. Classic-Castle.com is also pretty inactive. I don't know if there's a page on BZPower that tells you how many posts it's had in a week, but looking at the "new content" page it's had posts in at least 29 different topics in just the past two days.
I kind of doubt BZPower will ever be as big as it was in 2006 or so. Even if Bionicle came back and became a mega-hit, the Internet just isn't the same place it was back then. People who want to discuss things they love have far more ways and places to do it than they once did. But that's not to say the site or community is likely to give up the ghost anytime soon.
But how well has the neighbor site Eurobricks been doing?
Generally Eurobricks seems to be much more active than BZPower, but at the same time I'd say the Bionicle or constraction-specific activity on BZP still outweighs that on Eurobricks.
I think that BZP's still got some life in it. I think that if the members had something to collaborate on, there might be more activity. I hope that BZP doesn't go away, it's the best forum I've ever been on, and one of the few forums left. Social sites like tumblr, reddit, and so on (remember when we weren't allowed to talk about other websites?) just don't allow the same type of full discussions as forums, basically being designed as ad tubes and echo chambers.
I only joined three years ago, way after G1 had already ended, and I can only imagine what this place was like back when BIONICLE was in full swing.
Lots of Server Busy messages. So many Server Busy messages.
So true, lol.
So what I'm gathering is that the answer to whether the platform is dying or not is more relative than expected. (Like it's a a matter of opinion). It's a high possibility because of social media platforms taking over, but I guess this doesn't mean that the community is obsolete. I would agree that with the downtime, and G1 closing on us it pushed a lot of us off the forum to other places and helped branch out. But still we stayed connected (I didn't. haha)
Maybe what I should do, at least while the time is still at hand, is stick around the more public areas and stick to those.
I know we all miss the high traffic though. HUGELY! BZPower will always stay awesome in my mind.
So it sounds like the BioniLUG discussions, and other creative outlets are still in activity correct? Are there other cool places?
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Some of my comrades and I have tried to revive Comics, Epics, and Comedies, but to no avail. Otherwise, you're pretty much spot-on in your assessment: this place isn't doing so well right now. But I shall endeavor to remain for as long as I love LEGO.
there's activity but not nearly as much as there used to be, but tbh forums in general feel like relics of an older time on the internet with so many other options that are now available for everyone to use
even most tbrpg forums i was on died out or swapped to other formats, like Discord
yeah forums has a whole aren't really a...thing, anymore. places like tumblr have overtaken them. bzp is still moderately alive because it has a few diehards who can't let go of the site. bzp has a strange grip to it that's seemingly difficult to escape really. i feel like the site will continue to have some level of activity for some time because of that, and the fact that its name is still very well known amongst People Who Still Care About Bionicle
nothing lasts forever tho, and with bionicle's second cancellation i don't think bzp's gonna survive as long as it did during the four years bionicle was gone (unless it completely reinvents itself in some way).
Yes, it probably is. But I'm hoping that they'll be able to bring the archives back before it dies completely.
Well this thread is mighty depressing.
I mean, I think BZP will last a good long while, but with more or less the same low level of activity it has now. There are still cool things going on like the streams and BFA Plays from the site itself, and the forums while not particularly vibrant, are lively. There are still many new posts and replies each day, and like it's been said above, some of us are far too clingy - me included - to leave, even if the activity drops below what it is now.
Anyway, I sure hope the site and the community will be around for a good long time.
For those of you who remember the ridiculously long downtime in 2013 (or was it 2012?), you'll probably also remember that the only thing that "saved" BZP and jolted it back to life after that were the rumors that Bioncle was coming back. The chances of BZP reaching that level of interest again with Bioncle dead and buried are pretty low. Like Gigatron said, web forums are for geezers... outlets like tumblr reign supreme today, which is pretty tragic.
Yes, it probably is. But I'm hoping that they'll be able to bring the archives back before it dies completely.
That will never happen.
I guess when I put the pieces together, we've got a dying platform, and a dead topic. It also seems like there's more traffic in other places and Bionicle ending officially has essentially filtered out the old guys. The rest seemed to have moved on.
I guess its like the same feeling you get when you move to a different city and have to say goodbye to your best friends you hung out with for what seems so long. And you realize that you have to move on. I know it was just a forum, but I think we can all agree that BZP was a freakishly awesome place for teenagers at one point in time.
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I've been wanting to be more active on BZPower, but I honestly feel like there's not much to do anymore, what with Bionicle being finished officially.
It's been I think 10 years since I signed up for BZPower, and so much stuff has happened.
It seems from my perspective that the comic section is officially dead. But does that also mean the rest of the forums are dead?
I'm very curious what everyone thinks about this. BZPower literally was the sole reason I found my passion in life. Whether it was in Graphic Design and creativity or just watching or reading awesome content. I felt like there were so many talented and cool people on here (I'm sure there's a lot lurking around still). I would love to find that niche again. I also am feeling very nostalgic every few months or so about Bionicles. Being 23 means, kids stuff isn't cool anymore. (Even though I still think it's super cool!)
In a way, this is an open ended honest question for the BZPower community. I'm reaching out and legitamately wanting to know if BZPs still the coolest place on the internet.
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Very nice! You're shading looks great!
Is this drawn in Photoshop with a pencil imitation brush?
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I'm so utterly excited that even though Bionicle is over, people are still sticking to some of the old Kit creation roots by implementing the new sets.
This makes my heart happy, for real.
I'm about to get engaged, move to a new city, and Bionicles still make me happy.
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I'll definitely give you a thumbs up for your comics!
You have an interesting comic going on here! Are you hand pixeling every frame? Cause it's coming out really good!
I'm not usually big on critiquing comics on BZPower anymore, because I think some people over do it and it causes more confusion than anything, BUT I will say try to pay a little more attention to your writing, and make sure to fix any typos. It will make your comics stronger than they already are.
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Whoa! That's pretty cool!
Are these 3D printed? Judging by the grids, it looks like they were.
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These are utterly amazing. It's so modern I can't stand it!
And I would also like to remark that this topic deserve more credit (or up votes I guess.)
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Snazzy Kit
in Comics
Oh wow, this is pretty snazzy!
You know it reminds me of a fusion of rz and chrimoru.Is it called snazzy because you thought of it to be snazzy when you were finished?
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Hey this is pretty cool! I like your gold color you added on the notebook paper.
I know a lot of people are big on proportions, but I'm not gonna critique yours cause that'll develope over time. But in regards to that, the Lego pieces themselves are drawn very well.
Looks good!
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It's okay G2 Teton, all I have is Onua and Kopaka.
Onua is my favorite cause his Pakari still looks like the original Pakari. *swoon*
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I'll have my favorites displayed hopefully. I would love to keep them for my kids and show them what my childhood was like back in the day. Maybe my Bionicles will inevitably make my children into artists as it did for me.
I'll have my favorites displayed hopefully. I would love to keep them for my kids and show them what my childhood was like back in the day. Maybe my Bionicles will inevitably make my children into artists as it did for me.
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I last played Splatoon. And I've once again discovered that even without voice chat, FPSs frustrate the human sanity out of me.
BZPower's Best Bionicle Toa Bracket Round 2
in BZPower.com News Discussion
Posted
I never realized how much I loved Matau. If it wasn't for Matau, the Toa Metru would be such a downer party, and if it wasn't for Matau, Vakama wouldn't have changed his mind in WoS.
Tahu Nuva I remember that set being the moment I fell in love with Bionicle, and I just asked my mom randomly to get it. And I got it!