   Sleeping dogs
  Well blow me down if I didn't just remember my Shakespearian prose from earlier in the year. I hope no one objects to a slight edit and re-publishing for the Christmas season, (thats right 2% new material).Tom, Jim and Bob.  InMMORPG's That Don'tNow an unpopular series!With twelve years of age and one half a mind.Little Jimmy set out to make a design.With pen and best friend he scribbled away,Till late at night the moonlight turned day.After a breakfast of kings, they gathered their folio,Five pieces of paper, one smudged with blue polo.Boarding the school bus, a triumphant affair,They greeted Tom Quazbie, a director of hot air.They looked'a one another and smiled in delightAnd presenting Tom the papers proclaimed: "We did it in one night!"A sturdy young lad, Tom knew how to design,He'd played a good MMORPG called Anarchy Online.He'd been a fine Soldier all the way through,But on Sunday just past his subscription was due!Money was short and grandma said no,He threw a small farewell, but no one did show.But things would change now he was in charge,A game of 50,000, surely not so hard?And with pace and panache he put them to work,His dedicated minions Jimmy and Bob Jerk!So sitting now, in their bright yellow bus,The presentation began, shush hush hush!Smiling with glee their artist in lead,Presented the hero, complete with great steed,Legs like a rabbits and the head of a goat,Featuring three horns and a blue overcoat.The knight rode tall, back straight and true,His feed scraped the ground and helmet was huge!Done and dusted with only one smudgeBob folded his work and looked to Jimmy BludgeAssociate producer, just like the movies,No video game guru, Jim shifted uneasily.His work was quite good, he knew it for sure,But time was a factor, he knew the score.If production began that afternoon,Chances were good they would be online by June.His notes were presented to rapt applause,Two whole unlined side of recycled A4.It detailed, in-fact, less than the pictureBut omens were good, they now had scripture!And so the bus, laden with promise,Pulled in to school and stopped with a grimace.Three hero's unloaded and made their first call,The IT suite down the main school hall.Stopping to log with their old id cards,they chose the team name, "Om3g4 M4ch1n3 G0r3!"Each taking a chair, they gathered around,Tom typed the address, he couldn't fail now!http:// ... www. ... game...dev ... .netIn a moment it loaded, like a magical spellThe news page was updated, he clicked through to hell...His own user account was already logged in,A special feature known only to him.In a moment he way typing an advert to allHelp wanted on a project, No money - what gall!Now I ask you most humbly, you reader of this,Grant me a short pause, I must take a piss.Allow my friend Tom a moment of pride,As he makes his first post to the lounge of this site...Dear freinds thank youfor reading and please join my tam. i am making a new game like Ragnorak and arnrcy online  with so mnay players there are more than both of them caled GRAWL  and i will be adming or (gods) wihr my frend0s  and you when you join me our tam. i now that  you lke to see mmorpg desgn documents from beinghere are at  we ahve writne bur its all for when you join because  ther is to much and secreet world in my groin. please joinm when we can begin makng it my frends  time is to shrt no messig!!Now as you can see, young Tom didn't fitHis typing was basic, he sounded quite thickAll noble intention flown like a bird,The forum did sour and muttering was heard.For two long hours no comment was postedUntil later that day a single image was hostedA silly reply of no value or grace,Merely a picture divided four separate ways,"Abstract art" of "no consequence" tom said,"People like this get flamed and then bled"By happy chance a moderator stopped by,The post was quite brief, he then said goodbye.The news was good, a promotion, it seemedFrom lowly Lounge rats, to 'Help Wanted' queens.The topic was moved - in line with Toms plan,He now had endorsement, a high ranking man!Some minutes passed, Jim looked pasty,The project itself was not going gracefully.But then a post, quite helpful indeed,By a wise man of vintage two thousand and three.His language was sharp, but Tom understoodMore information was needed, the prognosis was good!Turning to Jim, designer of GRAWL,He laid out his plans, capital letters and all.To emphasize the details, about ogres and elvesWas surely the way to get the game on the shelves!Bob piped up and offered his artwork,The one with the dwarf riding a blue aardvark.The cover of the box should surely cost extraA title in bold, embossed with a texture!So on they went, plans laid on plans,Five more sheets were ruined and canned.But the production schedule called for action,So Tom began typing, he was ready for traction...All ovido games are he same, like all mmorgp EQ and arnrcy online but GRAWL is diffnrt bedcaus it s not like EQor arnrcy onile. We are using game engin to have BIG monsters that are FLYNING to! and i need a programmer(5) (althosh i do some to) ma Bob can do artwork but for cities we NED MAP MAKER!! important to work harrd with us, we noslackers! thank you freinds. He finished his post with the witty retort...p.s. does games cities like arnrcy use diffnrt from eQ?!? haha!Which he was certain would gain him a plus and good mark.In the time it had taken to write his short piece,The number of posts was on the increase.He looked either side to Jim and to Bob,Who stared in confusion, faster readers than TomThe replies were coming now, some thick and some thin,On second appraisal most were quite grim.Many were rude, one was unkind,One called Toms writing style simply sublime.As the content sunk in, Toms face slowly fell,Message on message invited him to go to hell.------------------------------------------------------------------I advice 30 minutes meditation between each episode to fully contemplate the deeper meaning and structural metaphors leveraged in the text.------------------------------------------------------------------Tom, Jim and Bob.InMMORPG's That Don't #2Now an unpopular series!The trio of losers, known as Tom, Bob and Jim,Went home that evening to a defending din.The forum was alight, their post in ruins,No one understood that GRAWL was a shoo-in.But our heroes three, did not loose hope,They still had a noose, and a good length of rope.Revising their plans on the bumpy ride home,An agreement was struck, they needed a tome!So off to capital library they did lope,Their bus long gone in a cloud of black smoke.Tea would go cold, supper and drinks,Left on the side board, cooling in sinks.Their parents would worry, this kind of lark,Was beyond any joke found on Fark.But the mission was on, no time to call,A forum was angry, one and all!Now silence descended as they entered the hallsA halloed place, just like St Pauls.Here, stacked in rows, ten columns thickWas surely a book on making a game quick!They split up and searched, for title unknownA step-by-step plan to take on home.As daylight faded and night closed inThe peace was shattered by a defining din!Tom ran in joy to the head of the hall,Brandishing a tome as big as a maul“Sams Teach yourself”, was titled in bold“In 24 hours!” was printed in gold!C++ the language of choice,A miracle of syntax, easy as Joyce.“This” he said, holding it high,“Is what the angry people had shouted, but why?”Upon closer inspection, all became clear,The book had a CD, they leaped in the air.And 24 Hours wasn't that long,Only one day, they'd do it anon.So home they went, one copy in hand,Back on track, to building a new land!Each slept soundly that cold winter night,With dreams wrapped in fantasy covered in delight.Then, with the day break, and morning routine,They gathered once more in their yellow submarine.And chugging with gusto right to the school door,The bus unloaded and went off for more.Straight to IT, the mission was on,The losers sat down, Tom began to hum,The book was brought out, CD insertedThe egg-timer spun, the CD was dirtyTill some minutes later, a dialog openedAdvising Tom Quazbie the CD was broken!Hours of planning straight down the plugTom lost his nerve and kicked the hub.But having been reading, now on the third pageJim piped up, he had something to say...“The CD is pointless,It says so right here,All that is on itIs source code for stuff we aren't going to build, Tom, so...”Bob lept in the air, and smudged his new drawingAn Alligator or something, eating an orange.Now it was on, they could start their project,A magical world on a monthly budget.Taking their places, they huddled in close,Tom typed the address with flamboyant key strokes!http://www.gamedev.netIn a moment it loaded, like a magical spellThe news page was updated, he clicked through to hell...Tom navigated deftly to his old post,Now two pages back, but still smoldering smoke.Clicking with ease, he opened their request,The help wanted add, from my fist jest.Now three pages long, interest was high,But their man on this inside had stopped all reply.Not fazed in the slightest, Tom started again.This time he was ready, his typing began...Hello feinds thanks. im a programer and am lerning in C++ so i need help with my GRAWL! please join now to help in programers(7) and a levl designer for HUGE FCITY. our busines plan is Jim and we have art for monster and player of 200.000 to be in it. I don not care oif you do not like our game just leave and shut up, we are serious at this so ples no noobs!!Four whole lines was surely enough,To silence the haters who love to rebuff.But language, we know, was not his forte,And finishing like that was just not the way!The replies soon began, including the picture,This time respondents were a different mixture.Some suggested FAQ'sOthers were rudeEveryone laughedToms post was moved.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Tom, Jim and Bob.    InMMORPG's That Don't #3Now an unpopular series!“Now is the winter of our discontent”Muttered Bob as he scratched his name into a bench.Our trio of heroes, now just empty husks,Sat staring in anguish at Sams C++.The project was doomed, And GRAWL was dead,Shot down in a firestorm of brutal contempt.But they were not beaten, though terribly scarred,They vowed to continue, no matter how hard.So sitting now quietly, they studied the pages,Each thinking the same thing "This is going to take ages".But study they did, and when they got tired,They went home to sleep, and dreamed of compilers.A new day dawned and the buses rolled in,The morning routine, the usual din.Straight to IT, one of their favorite places,They logged-on in silence, concern on their faces.“The plan today is to learn all we can”Said Jim as he typed, with only one hand.“Some articles", he mentioned, "might help us out""I''ll find some more websites, they must be about.”All through that day the three of them learned,Not stopping for lunch, not even a turd.They surfed all the sites, but flipcodes' no more,They downloaded cool demos, and source code galore.Bob found free software, and began to designA car like his fathers, with fine racing lines.And when the long day, came to an end,They went back home, three wiser young men.The following day, a weekend break,They gathered with friends, down by the lake.Bob wore his anorak and Jim was in tightsA stranger collection, you never did sight.The sun was low and snow covered the green,They forgot all their worries, Tom started to dream....A world of ice and reindeer and penguins,With a jingle bells tune, looped never ending.He woke with a start, then realizing slowly,Holy intervention had blessed him most nobly.Now charged with a quest, to make it a seasonal game,A far simpler affair, but still a good strain!He turned to Bob Jerk, and waving his arms,Flapped like a bird, Bob stared in alarm.Jim, who was nearby, noticed the fuss,He readied his Biro and arrived in a rush!Speaking in tongues, with uneasy plurals,The outline Bob gave them was beautifully tuneful...And so it was on, a much smaller project,More fitting to people on a rather tight budget.Bob drew some penguins, a magnificent feet,They wore colored waistcoats and had bendy beaks.The landscape was quite stunning, to be viewed from above,Three hours of work and only one smudge.And Tom got to work on a design document,Presenting in detail, his plans for developmentEven Jim chipped in with a production schedule,A system, he new, would increase their potential!And then they were ready, with everything planned,Nothing left to do but take matters into hand...Now four months have passed... and I would be wrong,To say it was easy, that it didn't take long.Times were hard, and problems were plentifulBut they pulled together and have done something special.Not a full game by any respect,Or even that close to the original spec.But they do have reindeer, and moving ice.Its good fun to jump, from place to place.And now they are ready, for the help wanted pages,Responses are likely, polite ones with praises.Each taking a chair, they gather around,Tom types the address, they wont fail now.Http://.www.gamedev.netIn a moment it loaded, like a magical spellThe news page was updated, he clicked through to hell...But now things were different, he had a design,And a demo to show their resolve in hard-times.Respondents were few, but better than none,A private message agreed their game was fun.The old project once burning, now covered in dust.A sleeping reminder, of dreams we can't trust.But from the old wreckage, a new design grew,Built on sound knowledge, and experience too.A tale of daredevil reindeer and dangerous penguins,Traveling with Santa to deliver new playthings.And far to the east arenas can be seen,And ten thousand hockey players screaming with glee.-----------------------------------------------------------------And that's your Christmas present too. I know I know, you wanted a pink cardigan, I'll try harder next year I promise.   
  No rejection! Happy Holidays mate!   ;  I love happy endings.  I nominate you for Gamedev.net poet laureate.Quote:And far to the east arenas can be seen,And ten thousand hockey players screaming with glee.Classic.  Happy holidays!   