New console and computer underground gaming community website encourages new members to join for free and share their knowledge.
Detroit, MI (PRWEB) July 17, 2006 -- The Internet boasts an impressive collection of websites tailored to specific tastes, and finding a website geared to any particular liking is not difficult. Very few websites offer viewers a chance to directly become part of the growth of the site, but one administrator hopes to change how surfers become involved with their favorite sites by revolutionizing how content is created and passed to others.
Enter Eric Hinchman, creator and administrator of http://www.uuddlrlrbas.com. The website looks at first like any other video- and computer-game news and technical information source. However, in an attempt to distance this site from competitors, Hinchman adopted a number of policies, such as allowing any member the ability to add content to the site. Hinchman admits that his ambitions did not start out as grand, stating “something that started out as [a hobby] is growing into much more”.
Most of the content on the site can be viewed without registering, and at no point does reading or contributing cost money. According to Hinchman, the key is catering to newcomers that may be scared by highly technical writing without betraying the core audience of the website. Hinchman adds that "we have been modding and taking things apart our entire lives. We didn't realize that there were so many others out there interested in what we do. Sometimes it's hard to talk about this kind of subject with your family or neighbors, so you can find like-minded individuals online."
Pending approval from editors, registered users could add an article about modifying computers, review a recently released console or computer game, or simply share thoughts on recent developments in the mainstream or subculture. Other members would in turn vote the article up and down via a sliding scale to increase the author’s standing on the site. In his own words, Hinchman believes that he has created a hub where technically- and artistically-minded people can come together, stating that “the site has so many possibilities. There are many things planned for the future.”
The articles are not limited simply to technical information. Humor articles, emulation, Flash games and even a web-based comic are all currently in production. One such entry written by Hinchman himself, entitled “The Most Addictive Video Game Ever”, has already begun to circle the “nerd underground”, exposing an attempt by the Marlboro cigarette manufacturers to market their product to children by publishing a motor sports game on the Atari Lynx handheld console. The purpose of the article is not to overtly muckrake, however. Hinchman’s humorous candor explores the eccentricities of the Marlboro game makers’ attempts to appeal to children. After a round of biking is won, the “Marlboro Adventure Team” congratulates you, and a screen appears reading “Respect! That’s pretty tough.”
Even the website’s URL is a throwback to video game culture. “UUDDLRLRBAS” is an abbreviation for “Up-Up-Down-Down-Left-Right-Left-Right-B-A-Start”, a sequence of button presses used during the days of the Nintendo Entertainment System. Appropriately named “The Konami Code”, this string of command gave the player an advantage in early games released by Konami, and is still recognized by gamers today as a symbol of “nerd culture”.
Hinchman himself is no stranger to the underground. He spends much of his time working on numerous websites and mixing music in Detroit-area clubs as a disc jockey.
About http://www.uuddlrlrbas.com:
www.uuddlrlrbas.com is a free online community for individuals who like to take products apart, put them back together, making them better than the manufacturer intended.
Press Contact: Eric Hinchman, President
Company Name: Up+Up+Down+Down+Left+Right+Left+Right+B+A+Start!
Email: email protected from spam bots
Phone: 1-(248)-742-9369
Website: http://www.uuddlrlrbas.com
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