GTPlanet 2015 - The Year according to Us.

[Dennisch]

Thanks @everyone for making this place the way it is.
If I forgot to tag you, that will be because you suck.

Have a soddy Christmas and a crappy New Year!



Nah, just kidding. This is the best community an online person could wish for.

Edit.

Excellent stuff. First post on a new page.

 

[kikie]

Thanks @everyone for making this place the way it is.
If I forgot to tag you, that will be because you suck.

Have a soddy Christmas and a crappy New Year!



Nah, just kidding. This is the best community an online person could wish for.

Edit.

Excellent stuff. First post on a new page.

You just tagged everyone. Everyone is a GTP account.

 

[Dennisch]

You just tagged everyone. Everyone is a GTP account.

Are you sure? Have you clicked on it?

 

[Liquid]

2015

Not quite a Dunlop but it was a good year.

 

[Dennisch]

2015

Not quite a Dunlop but it was a good year.

I found it to be very Linglong

 

[Daniel]

I found it to be very Linglong

I'm getting tyre-d of your crap.

 

[kikie]

Are you sure? Have you clicked on it?

At least I was right about one thing. Everyone is indeed a GTP account.

 

[Dean]

I believe that @Dean mentioned me as well in this thread.

I did and, well, 2015 will definitely be remembered by me for finding out people actually wanted to meet me as well! But yes, as @Dennisch said, thanks to everyone who makes such a nice place that's definitely worth remembering. 👍

 

[Brend]

I made my own year.

Thanks me.



In all seriousness, thanks to everyone I've gotten close to this year: @Wolfe @RESHIRAM5 @Danny @SVX @MeanElf @Niku Driver HC @sems4arsenal to name those who come to mind. Apologies if I have forgotten anyone.

 

[Ken]

Thanks GTP for helping to get through a very hard year. I don't know what I would have done without @Akira Ishi, @Danny, @ImaRobot, @haitch40, @Liquid, @FoolKiller, @Slash, @ildd, and everybody I'm missing.

Thanks to @W3HS, @TB, @Whitetail, @Katiegan, @Daniel, @axletramp, @Dennisch, @Omnis, @Terronium-12, @sparkytooth, @FrzGT, @Swagger897, @GranTurismo916, @GTRacer22, @Angel for all the laughs and good times.

Thanks to @ECGadget, @TenEightyOne, and @LeMansAid for teaching me something new everyday.

@Mike458, @RedDragon, keep your beautiful chins up.

@Bo, you're just weird.

You all don't know how much I consider you all family. All of GTP is.

Oh, and TB. We just bought our third freezer and second fridge. I'm still preparing for you and T-12 to show up for dinner.

 

[LeMansAid]

Thanks GTP for helping to get through a very hard year. I don't know what I would have done without @Akira Ishi, @Danny, @ImaRobot, @haitch40, @Liquid, @FoolKiller, @Slash, @ildd, and everybody I'm missing.

Thanks to @W3HS, @TB, @Whitetail, @Katiegan, @Daniel, @axletramp, @Dennisch, @Omnis, @Terronium-12, @sparkytooth, @FrzGT, @Swagger897, @GranTurismo916, @GTRacer22, @Angel for all the laughs and good times.

Thanks to @ECGadget, @TenEightyOne, and @LeMansAid for teaching me something new everyday.

@Mike458, @RedDragon, keep your beautiful chins up.

@Bo, you're just weird.

You all don't know how much I consider you all family. All of GTP is.

Oh, and TB. We just bought our third freezer and second fridge. I'm still preparing for you and T-12 to show up for dinner.

Wow. To be honest, I instinctively assumed that you were being facetious. Then, noting the esteemed company, thought that unlikely. With genuineness logical, I still tended toward a self-protective, self-deprecating "Gee, you must have begun with a pretty empty head then" type of approach.

But that would have been a miserly response.

In reality it actually means a hell of a lot to me what you said there. I'm a very broken individual that has made accessing the true inner me extremely complex, and most find it's usually not worth bothering. This leaves me "protected", but lonely. I have so many written and half-written but unsent posts on this site. Sometimes the black dog starts nipping at my heels while I'm in the process of typing, and I just can't bring myself to hit send - given the manic fear and insecurity it can bring. It takes a lot of effort to be true to oneself when oneself is gnarled and opinionated, but also deathly afraid of being vulnerable. Knowing that there are people that can avoid plunging instantly to conclusions about character is utter gold for me. @Johnnypenso and I could figuratively slap each other in the face for two hours straight, then put our arms over each other's shoulder and walk off for a drink. @TenEightyOne and @Noob616 get me, they get that there is likely always another layer to the story of how I interact with topics, and are loathe to judge too quickly. @Dotini similarly allows for the not overtly apparent in people, which is refreshing in a world filled with knee-jerk response types. Then there's my respect for who @Danoff and @Azuremen are, and more again - but it will begin to look like something a little too far from miserly for comfort if I mention any more names.

A heart felt thank you to you @Ken.

 

[Ken]

@LeMansAid, I know that I've had very little interaction with you personally. However, I've always considered you one of our more intelligent and we'll spoken members. I throughly enjoy reading your posts in the opinions and current events. You bring a different perspective to the table which I welcome. I wouldn't be afraid to post that written and half written ideas that you spend your time, as I'm sure that they are more than fantastic read.

 

[photonrider]

I never realised how much this little end of year discussion would throw light on the many 'real' feelings we have about each other - and I'm extremely gladdened that some of you have taken the time to not only reach out to those you have had 'good' times with but also those who have stimulated you in other ways beneficial, and that you guys know that the bottom line is that we have each other's backs.
I'm proud and heartened to be a part of such a community.

Sorry for my tardiness in giving a shout-out to the other members who have lit up my life significantly in one way or another - and I am compelled to do this to make sure that these individuals know that I have special memories that include them.

This year was a year I missed hanging out with two sets of people with whom I have had an immense amount of fun in the years before - and while I touched base with them occasionally it wasn't enough.

First - the guys from the COTW Thread. @McClarenDesign is probably the guy I have raced online the most, a most wonderful personality (defies description) and I sorely missed the weekly meetings with him and the rest due to conflicting schedules - super guys like @Lewis_Hamilton_ , @JackRyanWMU and the afore mentioned @Vic Reign93 and @Baron Blitz Red , plus @basswerks1 and @OGGamer whom I also raced against many times, as well as the rest of the COTW reviewers - @MidFieldMaven, @sirjim73, @MustangManiac, @iainn, @SnakeOfBacon, @Obelisk, and @BAP_Shockz and the amazing @SuzukaStar (who, AFAIK has become someone else.)

Have yourselves a very Happy New Year - and may all your dreams be fulfilled in the coming year. I miss you guys - I'm not around for all the wrong reasons - so here's hoping that 2016 will have me spend more time with all of you, and many thanks for being so kind to me online.

The other group I sorely missed, though I did cross their paths in other discussions this year, was the gang of NASCAR fanatics I hung out with - especially when we together watching a live race. This was one of my favourite pastimes - watching a race live with these guys - always made everything more intense, so interesting and hours of fun. The posts would fly - and a page would go by in minutes!
@Jahgee, @Furinkazen, @Doodle, @GTPorsche, @RACECAR, @Johnny1996, @Carbonox, @Blood Eagle, @Earth, @TheBook, [USER=138511]@FireEmblem10, @RVDNuT374, @BKGlover, @Wilbur, @-Fred-, @DaveTheStalker, @LMSCorvetteGT2, @Dolph Drago, @Adamgp, @MustangRyan, and @Dotini come to mind right away, and I'm sorry to have missed out on much of the fun last year - I hope you guys had a whale of a time without actually killing each other - and I'm hoping that 2016 will have me dropping by again and catching up with all of you a lot more strongly.
Wishing you all the very best in the coming year - Happy New Year, guys! And here's looking forward to a great season![/USER]

 

[FoRiZon]

MidfieldMaven is SuzukaStar.......

 

[kikie]

Thanks @Jordan

 

[Cowboy]

I want to thank the people who have helped with the Duel of the Week Thread: @Ryk, @MrWaflz55, @MidFieldMaven, @Rotorist, @JDMKING13, @kolio, @lxmmy, @05XR8, @=drifting24/7=, and @ThrasherDBS. You guys have really helped that thread accelerate in the six months the thread has existed. And recently I created the GT6 Car Review thread, so thanks @cjr3559, @kolio, @lxmmy, and @Ameer67, and @SlipZtrEm for encouraging me to make that thread.

 

[kolio]

Pretty interesting year I have had personally. I do not go into any personal things really so... this year on GTP... hmmm.

Well, first of all I think I'd like to say thank you to @TenEightyOne, @W3HS, @prisonermonkeys, @Touring Mars and @Imari for some fantastic conversations in the opinions threads, full of respectable arguments and debates from which I learnt a lot. I'd also like to thank @Dotini for some of his amusing quips, particularly one referring to a duck in the UFO thread. And @R1600Turbo for sharing some fantastic imagary in the related Space thread. @Dennisch for just being an overall nice guy, with some pretty good posts in the Funny Pictures Thread too.
I'd also like to thank @Danny, whom I only got to know somewhat this year and I half regret, half do not.
@catamount39, @kikie, @Carlos, @FrzGT, @mister dog, @kolio, @Beeblebrox237, @haitch40 and @Furinkazen for being really cool guys, and @Angel and @Hollow for being super cool girls.

I'd also like to mention @JASON_ROCKS1998 for sharing a number of videos with me, as well as @ToyGTone and @FT-1. Always nice to talk to you guys, though I do not do it a lot.

@Johnnypenso for his gift and the lovely AC Challenge competition. Massive thank you there.

Let's not forget @lxmmy either, the master of hitting the like button a gazillion times

Who else am I forgetting? Oh yes, @TB and @Ken, for my time on GTPlanet wouldn't be the same without those two around, and @Terronium-12 for his fantastic work with the Spotlight; always enjoy reading those. And @Famine for those odd times he has replied to my posts to correct/clarify something I have been unsure about, which I really appreciated.


And of course, we have the man himself, @Jordan for all the work he puts into maintaining these forums and the site, and keeping everything smooth.

I've probably missed a couple of names out and I am sorry about that, but overall it's been very nice here and I look forward to another lovely year on GTP with all of you guys!

My year has been very good. I have met so many, and I mean many great people on this site and even on psn. The main people I want to thank are @Bowtie-muscle for getting me into tuning, @kolio and @Manasseh257NSX for being great friends on here, all the people I met on the RACE Fun Runs, and even the moderators that keep this site going. I could name a ton more people, but that would take to long to put into one post . Hopefully 2016 turns out to be just as great!

Thank you guys for the mention. Means more than you know!

I'll be posting a thank you post soon.

 

[BKGlover]

I got a mention? Ohh crap, what did I do...

The other group I sorely missed, though I did cross their paths in other discussions this year, was the gang of NASCAR fanatics I hung out with - especially when we together watching a live race. This was one of my favourite pastimes - watching a race live with these guys - always made everything more intense, so interesting and hours of fun. The posts would fly - and a page would go by in minutes!
@Jahgee, @Furinkazen, @Doodle, @GTPorsche, @RACECAR, @Johnny1996, @Carbonox, @Blood Eagle, @Earth, @TheBook, [USER=138511]@FireEmblem10, @RVDNuT374, @BKGlover, @Wilbur, @-Fred-, @DaveTheStalker, @LMSCorvetteGT2, @Dolph Drago, @Adamgp, @MustangRyan, and @Dotini come to mind right away, and I'm sorry to have missed out on much of the fun last year - I hope you guys had a whale of a time without actually killing each other - and I'm hoping that 2016 will have me dropping by again and catching up with all of you a lot more strongly.
Wishing you all the very best in the coming year - Happy New Year, guys! And here's looking forward to a great season![/USER]

Oh. Well, I think I may have been a bit active early in the year, but I abandoned the NASCAR thread, and the motorsports forum in general, before the season got going. Thanks for the mention though.

I guess while I'm here I'll give my input on 2015. GTP has been my primary interaction with the outside world on the internet, rivaling work and beating family in terms of time spent here. 2015 for me has been more up than down, but the downs have been incredibly visible. That said, 95% of my time has been in the Console & PC sub-forum because I'm in all the B-Spec series in one manner or another, so I've gotta mention the people who have made that worth while.....and not told me to 🤬 off yet. @Earth is a great guy who puts so much into his series, I always enjoy participating and look forward to what he has planned, no matter when he can get to it. @nascarfan1400 has probably thought of kicking me from competition on at least three occasions, but I keep coming back and he keeps letting me in. @rallymorten is half crazy, but fun to work with, his GTR2 series' are generally very entertaining, and those "Dank Memes" are good for laughs most of the time. @Angel has been great in the NASCAR series, and being in her Indycar series has already garnered more attention from me than Indycars have in reality. @BayneHamlin1121 ,@Michelin and @Jahgee give alternatives to the above, and of course their unique brands of humor make boredom inpossible. Of course, if you aren't into that there's @Grandea GTR and his GTP Wrestling Series that has taken on a life of it's own, moving into the second tournament right now so if you haven't taken a look at it, you should.

There have been a number of members who have helped me immeasurably over the past year+, a few have been mentioned already but the list is decent sized: Jahgee, Earth, Angel, nas, @Whitetail ,@Niku Driver HC ,@RACECAR (a lot of behind the scenes),@DurWinning , and many others that I'm forgetting at the moment (dammit). Hopefully I haven't been a complete burden to you all and perhaps even been slightly helpful.

Merry Christmas GTP, I'll hold off with the new year because y'all aren't lucky enough to be rid of me for a week.

 

[polysmut]

I don't have much free time at the moment but I've kept an eye on a few threads.

I enjoy being informed & entertained by the posts I read by @TenEightyOne @Liquid @Dennisch @ECGadget @Dotini @Famine @prisonermonkeys @Touring Mars & many others. Those are just the first few names that spring to mind.
I'm not up to speed enough to join in much with their exchanges but they've all taught me things.

I had the privilege of meeting @haitch40 this year & we had a couple of really good drunken nights.

I was in the same building as @Mrs. Famine recently but we didn't actually meet.

Good luck to @Ken for the year ahead.

Cheers too to everyone I race with, even @JockeP22.


Thanks @Jordan for creating & maintaining the internet, or at least the portion of it that I still bother to read.
The mods all do a great job & also write some of the highest quality posts I ever see.

This was written hastily while I'm at work so I will have forgotten some people. Forgive me please.

 

[Lizard]

I had the privilege of meeting @haitch40 this year & we had a couple of really good drunken nights.

We can do it again in March.

 

[polysmut]

We can do it again in March.

I might have a day off too, I need to check the arrangements nearer the time. 👍

 

[Mrs. Famine]

I was in the same building as @Mrs. Famine recently but we didn't actually meet.

I can't believe I ended up missing you by about 10 minutes

I want to take this opportunity to yet again thank the amazing GTP community for making a big difference in my being able to fund 75% of my new chair. I know a few got bored of me spamming and whatnot but extra thanks to those of you who put up with me. Love you all

 

[LMSCorvetteGT2]

I never realised how much this little end of year discussion would throw light on the many 'real' feelings we have about each other - and I'm extremely gladdened that some of you have taken the time to not only reach out to those you have had 'good' times with but also those who have stimulated you in other ways beneficial, and that you guys know that the bottom line is that we have each other's backs.
I'm proud and heartened to be a part of such a community.

Sorry for my tardiness in giving a shout-out to the other members who have lit up my life significantly in one way or another - and I am compelled to do this to make sure that these individuals know that I have special memories that include them.

This year was a year I missed hanging out with two sets of people with whom I have had an immense amount of fun in the years before - and while I touched base with them occasionally it wasn't enough.

First - the guys from the COTW Thread. @McClarenDesign is probably the guy I have raced online the most, a most wonderful personality (defies description) and I sorely missed the weekly meetings with him and the rest due to conflicting schedules - super guys like @Lewis_Hamilton_ , @JackRyanWMU and the afore mentioned @Vic Reign93 and @Baron Blitz Red , plus @basswerks1 and @OGGamer whom I also raced against many times, as well as the rest of the COTW reviewers - @MidFieldMaven, @sirjim73, @MustangManiac, @iainn, @SnakeOfBacon, @Obelisk, and @BAP_Shockz and the amazing @SuzukaStar (who, AFAIK has become someone else.)

Have yourselves a very Happy New Year - and may all your dreams be fulfilled in the coming year. I miss you guys - I'm not around for all the wrong reasons - so here's hoping that 2016 will have me spend more time with all of you, and many thanks for being so kind to me online.

The other group I sorely missed, though I did cross their paths in other discussions this year, was the gang of NASCAR fanatics I hung out with - especially when we together watching a live race. This was one of my favourite pastimes - watching a race live with these guys - always made everything more intense, so interesting and hours of fun. The posts would fly - and a page would go by in minutes!
@Jahgee, @Furinkazen, @Doodle, @GTPorsche, @RACECAR, @Johnny1996, @Carbonox, @Blood Eagle, @Earth, @TheBook, [USER=138511]@FireEmblem10, @RVDNuT374, @BKGlover, @Wilbur, @-Fred-, @DaveTheStalker, @LMSCorvetteGT2, @Dolph Drago, @Adamgp, @MustangRyan, and @Dotini come to mind right away, and I'm sorry to have missed out on much of the fun last year - I hope you guys had a whale of a time without actually killing each other - and I'm hoping that 2016 will have me dropping by again and catching up with all of you a lot more strongly.
Wishing you all the very best in the coming year - Happy New Year, guys! And here's looking forward to a great season![/USER]

Well just for this, I have to watch next season then. Even though I really don't want to after the end of this season. But thanks for the mention (as I'm sure the others are too) and happy new year, always nice to see a post like this.

 

[photonrider]

MidfieldMaven is SuzukaStar.......

There we go. 👍
Perfect publicity.

But thanks for the mention (as I'm sure the others are too) and happy new year, always nice to see a post like this.

Thanks, LMS - - thought I'd take time this year to touch base with all the different people that I've interacted with over the last year - and those I missed interacting with. I may have missed mentioning a few guys - don't mind me; slap me around the next time we meet up.

Well just for this, I have to watch next season then. Even though I really don't want to after the end of this season.

It''s the bloody Daytona Five that sets us off. Then we hope for a good season, and then we end up cussing a blue streak all year. Then we vow to never go back. Then around comes Daytona again.
But, of course, we all enjoy the cussing, and the in-depth discussions on the technicalities, and strategies, and so on - it's a vile addiction.
Wait. It's supposed to be a family affair. That makes it worse.

I can't believe I ended up missing you by about 10 minutes

I want to take this opportunity to yet again thank the amazing GTP community for making a big difference in my being able to fund 75% of my new chair. I know a few got bored of me spamming and whatnot but extra thanks to those of you who put up with me. Love you all

Happy to hear that many chipped in - just shows how loyal GTPlanet members are when the chips are down.
Hope that all goes well with the purchase and that your life will be hugely more comfortable throughout this coming year. This brings to mind the other wonderful ladies that grace our forums - @Mrs.Koios (who keeps Mr Koios in line) and @Mrs Wolfe (who entertains Mr. Wolfe at the door) - as well as long-time buddies @Hollow and @Katiegan - hope you guys are enjoying the very best of the season and have yourselves a Very happy New Year!
My wishes and good thoughts also to you young ladies out there who are playing incognito - I've seen the female population grow here over the last few years, and (even though I'm off the market) I'm happy to see that happen.

Talking about Mrs Wolfe and Katiegan brought to mind another discussion I plunged into this year and ended up rapping with a most interesting bunch of people - struggling writers! People after my own heart - @ECGadget, @ULTRAVIOLENZZ, @JKgo, @JohnBM01, @Grandea GTR and @HuskyGT - so very literate and stimulating to talk to, as well as @GTboyz, @Autofreak4986 and @C_R5_575TLR who throw in their two cents worth and not forgetting the fabulous @niky who not only protects us from trolls but adds far more than that to the discussion. Also in there - two of my favourite buds - @Daniel and @MatskiMonk - no mean writers themselves.
Happy New Year to all you folk - and here's hoping we have another great year together!

 

[ECGadget]

There we go. 👍
Perfect publicity.



Thanks, LMS - - thought I'd take time this year to touch base with all the different people that I've interacted with over the last year - and those I missed interacting with. I may have missed mentioning a few guys - don't mind me; slap me around the next time we meet up.



It''s the bloody Daytona Five that sets us off. Then we hope for a good season, and then we end up cussing a blue streak all year. Then we vow to never go back. Then around comes Daytona again.
But, of course, we all enjoy the cussing, and the in-depth discussions on the technicalities, and strategies, and so on - it's a vile addiction.
Wait. It's supposed to be a family affair. That makes it worse.



Happy to hear that many chipped in - just shows how loyal GTPlanet members are when the chips are down.
Hope that all goes well with the purchase and that your life will be hugely more comfortable throughout this coming year. This brings to mind the other wonderful ladies that grace our forums - @Mrs.Koios (who keeps Mr Koios in line) and @Mrs Wolfe (who entertains Mr. Wolfe at the door) - as well as long-time buddies @Hollow and @Katiegan - hope you guys are enjoying the very best of the season and have yourselves a Very happy New Year!
My wishes and good thoughts also to you young ladies out there who are playing incognito - I've seen the female population grow here over the last few years, and (even though I'm off the market) I'm happy to see that happen.

Talking about Mrs Wolfe and Katiegan brought to mind another discussion I plunged into this year and ended up rapping with a most interesting bunch of people - struggling writers! People after my own heart - @ECGadget, @ULTRAVIOLENZZ, @JKgo, @JohnBM01, @Grandea GTR and @HuskyGT - so very literate and stimulating to talk to, as well as @GTboyz, @Autofreak4986 and @C_R5_575TLR who throw in their two cents worth and not forgetting the fabulous @niky who not only protects us from trolls but adds far more than that to the discussion. Also in there - two of my favourite buds - @Daniel and @MatskiMonk - no mean writers themselves.
Happy New Year to all you folk - and here's hoping we have another great year together!

Did we win it?
That thread was an awesome thread to participate in! Perhaps next year I'll have more to add to it!

 

[kikie]

Did we win it?
That thread was an awesome thread to participate in! Perhaps next year I'll have more to add to it!

You will, once you met @kikie

 

[GTboyz]

Wait what ? I've been mentioned here ? I'm pretty 🤬 honored.

Thanks @photonrider ! , forgive me if i forget where do we talk or what are we talking about since i've never meet rude guys in here. I've met so many amazing people in this forum and you guys genuinely rocks !

I'm not going to mention anyone because if i do, i'm gonna have to mention the whole forum (and that's gonna be handful LOL) but i do going to mention one person and that is @Jordan. Thank you for making in what seems to be an automotive, gaming paradise in this wasteland called the Internet . Learned a lot from this site thanks to all of you so thanks to all of you too. Also, thanks to everyone for entertaining me with their status updates and posts (i think i've been mentioning this a lot in the past on how GTP is better than most social media in the web).

My best wishes to all of you guys on achieveing your goals for next year. Thank you for being the go-to group of friends when i want to talk about the things that i love, which are cars (duh), games, movies, music and *bowcikabowow* women

Have a great happy new year to all of you

 

[ToyGTone]

Pretty interesting year I have had personally. I do not go into any personal things really so... this year on GTP... hmmm.

Well, first of all I think I'd like to say thank you to @TenEightyOne, @W3HS, @prisonermonkeys, @Touring Mars and @Imari for some fantastic conversations in the opinions threads, full of respectable arguments and debates from which I learnt a lot. I'd also like to thank @Dotini for some of his amusing quips, particularly one referring to a duck in the UFO thread. And @R1600Turbo for sharing some fantastic imagary in the related Space thread. @Dennisch for just being an overall nice guy, with some pretty good posts in the Funny Pictures Thread too.
I'd also like to thank @Danny, whom I only got to know somewhat this year and I half regret, half do not.
@catamount39, @kikie, @Carlos, @FrzGT, @mister dog, @kolio, @Beeblebrox237, @haitch40 and @Furinkazen for being really cool guys, and @Angel and @Hollow for being super cool girls.

I'd also like to mention @JASON_ROCKS1998 for sharing a number of videos with me, as well as @ToyGTone and @FT-1. Always nice to talk to you guys, though I do not do it a lot.

@Johnnypenso for his gift and the lovely AC Challenge competition. Massive thank you there.

Let's not forget @lxmmy either, the master of hitting the like button a gazillion times

Who else am I forgetting? Oh yes, @TB and @Ken, for my time on GTPlanet wouldn't be the same without those two around, and @Terronium-12 for his fantastic work with the Spotlight; always enjoy reading those. And @Famine for those odd times he has replied to my posts to correct/clarify something I have been unsure about, which I really appreciated.


And of course, we have the man himself, @Jordan for all the work he puts into maintaining these forums and the site, and keeping everything smooth.

I've probably missed a couple of names out and I am sorry about that, but overall it's been very nice here and I look forward to another lovely year on GTP with all of you guys!

Yay I have been mentioned!

 

[SlipZtrEm]

@CowboyAce57 - Thanks for the mention! I'm glad you've gone through with that thread, as those types of threads are the exact sort of community-involving ones that go over so well. 👍

It's been an interesting year for me. It started off typical enough, and I was slowly moving back to my pre-GT5 levels of videogaming. A little LBP2 here, a little GTA there, but without any current-gen system – and a college course to finish – I just didn't put much thought into them.

Then, my girlfriend bought me the One for graduation. FM5 and FH2 pulled me back in hard, especially the latter. Right around that time, the writing team had shrunk a bit here, on the blog. I offered a hand to ease the load for the regular contributors, and due to a convenient work situation over the summer, I was able to cover breaking Forza news more regularly, as well as the more usual GT-related things.

It's been fun, and for me, the turning point was having to write about GT Academy winners. It forced me to get back into the research side of things, to read up not only on the pertinent press releases, but find more intimate knowledge of some of the secondary subjects. It's changed how I look at the news, really.

The tail-end of summer was another big step. I heard of a Microsoft event coming into Toronto, and thought it'd be worth going to get some GTP-exclusive footage of FM6. Once there, I noticed a guy in a T10 shirt overseeing the area, and struck up a conversation. It turned out to be Community Manager Brian Ekberg, and after a really informative talk – not even about the game, but just gaming in general – he offered to get me in on the media review early access. A man of his word, I got the email shortly after folks started playing the demo. It pushed me to try streaming on Twitch, and it was a little surreal to witness. Also, a little hilarious seeing people accuse me of stealing the game or other illegal activities!

FM6 has been fun. The community here is tiny, but they're good-natured folks. A big thanks to @Im_Lukas for consistently beating me in hotlapping and really pushing to find all the tiny nuances the game has. @ImaRobot for seemingly having such similar tastes as me (though I hope we agree DFA's long-awaited return was a bit flat ). @VXR for taking the idea of a simple Photomode gallery and making it must-read material. Oh yeah, and while we're here, @McLaren!

A little while ago, a friend very kindly gifted me a copy of Need For Speed. It's been fun enough as an arcade game, and it propelled me into writing another review for the blog. Shortly after that, @Jordan asked me to take on a more serious role here as EIC. I was surprised, at least as much as I was when he asked me to join the Mod team almost exactly five years ago. It's been a learning experience, and it will undoubtedly continue to be in the new year, but I think that's one of the best aspects. So thank you, @Jordan, for trusting me!

One of the other better aspects? The team. @Terronium-12 and I go a lot further back, working on the first issue of Rev years ago, and generally being pretty close ever since he joined the staff. We met up in NYC, along with Jordan, at the GT6-sponsored Jalopnik Film Festival back in 2013. He's a machine in the sense that he's so dependable when it comes to writing, and he's got the heart to really care about what he's writing, er, about. He's a good machine, like T800 in T2.

@Gravitron and @PASM deserve mentions too! They work tirelessly on the WRS, and the behind-the-scenes work they do deserves applause. That aspect of the blog just wouldn't be possible without their dedication, so thank you guys!

I've waited this long to mention him, but it's been on my mind the entire time. The Indigo One. The Author. The Postiest of Postwhores. @Famine is someone I look to for guidance, not just in this new role, but in the real world. He's out there test driving real cars, and writing about it! If that's not a sign of what is possible within the community dedicated to "just" a video game, I don't know what is. He really is irreplaceable.

On a similar note, @homeforsummer is a name I'll also stop at when scrolling through a thread. He's nabbed my dream job, and it's no wonder why. Posts from him are guaranteed to be insightful, well-thought-out, and just generally enjoyable. I learn something new with almost every post, even if it's on a subject I previously thought I was well-versed with. So thanks!

Right there along with the above, is @niky. Seems his family has had an effect on me, really: his brother was a major influence on getting me more involved in the old GT4 Photomode community, and niky's reviews were what got me interested in the written side of the games. That he too has turned it into a career is inspiring. Even when he's not writing about cars – like discussing the divisive topics in the O&CE section – his tone is at once both entertaining and inviting.

@TB is invaluable. He's un-rile-able, really. He keeps us all level. Always so friendly, I could learn a thing or two from him. He's also, by all evidence thus far provided, an outstanding dad. The same thoughts about @Ken - he keeps things light-hearted even in the face of seemingly problem after problem. He helps make the Infield feel like the family that it is. The perfect example to me will always be one of our first interactions: I had barely talked to him before, and after simply mentioning I owned PS All-Stars, he sent along a DLC code he had insisting I use it. That simple gesture sums up the giving nature of Ken.

@Noob616 has been the local support around here. Wise beyond his years, I was shocked to find out how much younger he was than me. Those that worry about the next generation and their selfish traits obviously haven't met someone like him. I'm sad I just missed him in Dover this year, but eventually, I'm buying this guy a beer.

Oh yeah, and thanks to @KudosM4 for keeping my detective skills from getting dusty.

I'm sure I've forgotten at least a few people. For that, I apologize, but this has grown far too big now!

GTPlanet has transformed quite a bit in 2015, and while I can't say much quite yet, you're all in for a treat in 2016!

 

[Ken]

@SlipZtrEm, I don't know what to say. Thank you. I can't really so much else without getting as gushy, so I won't. Just thank you.