Newsletter 18 September 2006

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Tomorrowland Arcade

Check out the new prizes that are being awarded in two of the Tomorrowland Arcade games.

TRON

Tron month is here! Look for new and exciting items on sale now!

Yavn Speaks

Welcome again to this week's Newsletter!

In additional to general questions about VMK, players also ask me about things that bug me. So this week I follow up last week's Q&A session with a feature I like to call:

What Bugs Yavn?

1. Hacking Tools and Cheating

Nothing, and I do mean nothing upsets me more than a cheater or person who uses a tool to cheat or exploit VMK. Hacking and cheating unbalances the game and gives cheaters unfair advantages. You have them to thank for more non tradable items. If you're one of the people using a cheat or hack to take advantage of the game, watch out, we will find you and ban you. Plus, just because you find a bug in something does not make it OK to take advantage of it.

I have to also call out players who cheat other players out of rare items. I can't tell you how many incidents we've reviewed about Magic Pins that were less powerful than advertised. We're about to update the trading system so it will show the power of all magic pins, but until then beware of these cheaters and follow our guidelines for safe trades.

2. Posting Quest Answers

Sometimes it takes us weeks to research, build and test a Quest. There is nothing worse than watching all of this hard work go down the drain when the Quest answers are posted online just a few minutes after the Quest has gone live. It's fine to offer hints, but many players instead take the easy way out and just look them up before they even try to perform the Quest. You can thank all posters that reveal Quest answers for forcing us to add minimum score requirements to Quests. Sure, it would be easier for us to just sell the items but I believe many people enjoy the feeling and satisfaction that comes from completing a Quest.

3. Mules

A Mule is an account that is created and used just once or twice to gain items or credits. While it's OK to have a few different accounts/characters to play with, there are some players who have hundreds of characters, and rarely use them. If you are a player that has lots of Mules (more than 50) beware, we're now cracking down on these players and will start banning accounts.

4. Not Informing Staff of Player Issues

I've seen too many players (and even some CL's) who are aware of something they don't inform staff about. One example that comes to mind is seeing a player back in the game that was previously banned. If you see a player who was banned but is back under a new name, please inform the staff immediately. Players are banned for a reason and we don't want them back. Another issue is knowing about a cheat or exploit and not saying anything -- even if you personally don't take advantage of the cheat. To those players that DO INFORM US of these issues, I say thank you.

5. Players Not Helping Others

As VMK grows, we have more and more new players that are unfamiliar with the game. New players don't know exactly what to do and sometimes ask lots of questions. Please, do me a favor, help them out. Because by doing so, you make VMK a better place.

Wrapping Up...

There's nothing worse than to have our hard work or your game experience spoiled by cheaters or people who don't care about the VMK community. You CAN make a difference.

With that in mind I can tell you about a new program we're getting ready to roll out that rewards good deeds in the game. That's right, if we see a player do something special or out of the ordinary to make the community better you may just win a VMK Gold Star. I've asked all the hosts and mods to keep an eye out for players that go above and beyond the call of duty, the Gold Star award is our little way of saying thank you.

Now onward and upward! We have some major changes coming just around the corner, and as I mentioned before, improved trading is just one of them. You want to know more? Sorry, you'll have to wait till next week, but I will say this... how about being able to wear more pins? Would say, 15 make you happy?

VMK Happenings

As for Tron Month, that awesome MCP Poster is on sale now and the next Tron pin will be released this Friday. I have to get back to work and finish that Halloween Quest -- you should continue reading the Newsletter, be sure to check out the new sections too, like Push's Trash Trivia and Dear Yeti! OK, until next week...

See you in VMK,

Yavn

Welcome to the world of TRON

Without Tron there would be no Toy Story - John Lasseter, Pixar

Tron is the world of Kevin Flynn, a computer programmer and arcade owner who is pulled into a virtual video game world he creates. Tron was one of the first computer-generated movies ever made and it set a standard for the brave new world of computer animation to follow.

Film Fact: To get the signature electronic 'look' the movie has, the live action that occurs inside the computer world was filmed in black and white, and then colorized in post production with photographic and rotoscopic techniques to give the characters that unique 'glow.'

September is Tron month at VMK, click here to learn more about this amazing film.

Push's Trash Trivia

Hey dudes! I'm back and better than ever! I've been rolling around the Disneyland Resort, Walt Disney World and VMK for a good while now and during that time I've not only learned my way around the parks, but I've learned some fun facts and tantalizing trivia too! The guys here at VMK would love me to share this info with you, so starting next week I'll post a weekly Disney trivia question here in the Newsletter.

If you know the answer to the trivia question send it in through the Contact Us section at the bottom of this or the main VMK webpage. Be sure to have your VMK registration info with you and select "Push's Trash Trivia" from the drop down menu. Out of all the correct answers, I'll randomly draw three players as winners and get a cool new prize. Keep your eyes peeled for the first edition of "Trash Trivia" coming soon!

Future trivia topics might cover anything from Disney music to Disney movies, games or parks and resorts -- so brush up and get ready to test your Disney Factoid skills!

In honor of Tron month, let's get trivia rolling with some inside info on the movie...

Tron Trivia

Did you know (like most Disney films) there is a Hidden Mickey in Tron? It's true! As Tron, Flynn and Yori escape from Sark aboard the Solar Sail they fly over The Sea of Simulation. If you look closely at the landscape below the Solar Sail (and it's not too hard to spot) you'll see the silhouette of a smiling Mickey Mouse. See for yourself on the Tron (20th Anniversary Collector's Edition) DVD.

Dragon's Dungeon

Tips, Tricks Hints and How To's

Check here every week for a new tip or hint on VMK Games and room building.

TIP: When playing the Haunted Mansion on a quest, in order to move on to the next task, you must capture the required amount of ghosts. Here's the trick: ALL of those ghosts need to be the ones haunting the mansion. If you capture one of your opponents after they have turned into a ghosts, they don't count towards the quest amount.

Dear Yeti

You've Got Questions, Yeti Has Answers

Dear Yeti,

What was Walt Disney's favorite attraction?

-Sparky

Dear Sparky,

That is an excellent question! Of course Walt enjoyed all of the attractions but his favorite is still very popular today.

In 1966 Walt was at a press conference, one reporter asked what was Walt's favorite attraction at Disneyland. Would it be one of the originals like the Jungle Cruise? Or one of the more recent arrivals, like the Matterhorn? Or perhaps one of the attractions that had been brought over from the New York World's Fair?

Walt answered without missing a beat. He described a ride that featured pirate ships and treasure chest. The crowd couldn't figure out what attraction he was thinking of. Of course, it was for an attraction the public hadn't yet got to see - Pirates of the Caribbean, which didn't open until March 18, 1967.

Little did Walt know that his attraction would be reborn with the popularity of the movies "Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl" and "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" and that notorious Captain Jack Sparrow!

Arrgh! Keep it Cool Matey's!

Yeti

Do you have a question for the Yeti?

Send it to me through the Contact Us section at the bottom of this page. Be sure to have your VMK registration info with you (the email and information you registered with) and select "Dear Yeti" from the drop down menu. Each week I'll answer two questions and post them here in the Newsletter.

VMK Cards

Have you ever wondered what cards you are missing in your collection. Well there is now a great new way to discover all the cards for VMK. Check it out!

Awards and Top Players

What makes a Guest Room award-worthy?

Guest or Game Rooms that stand out show originality in concept and design. It could be a use of conventional furniture in unconventional ways, the use of a theme or color, or humor. Game rooms that get the nod offer a new game idea or a new twist on an old favorite. In all rooms we look for room owners who welcome everyone with a smile and show a willingness to answer questions about their room.

Check out this week's Best Guest Rooms and Best Game Rooms.

New feature! Click on the name of the room to view an image of the room!

Best Guest Rooms

WOW! If you have time come and check out Totallykittycat's version of a New Improved Sci-Fi Dine In. A VMK movie studio! Drive in for some of the latest movie releases.

Hello and welcome! Come in and enjoy BluBoyWonder's Grand Tiki Tiki Festival. There are many things in here to enjoy, a pool, pirate ship, and an eating area.

Best Game Rooms

AdventureBradster wants you to help him stop the Tron Crash System bugs from doing damage. Clean up the water so that it does not get to far into the system.

Now did Bestlittlelauren just say Red Light Green Light? Well depending on what she says you need to race from the rugs you are on to the others across the room. Good Luck.

Best Player Quests

CL_RobertSDCA would very much like you to come and take part in his Golden Quest. Search some of his favorite rooms for golden Mickey's as well as answer some trivia questions.

Safety Corner

With summer ending and school beginning, we here at VMK just wanted to be the first to teach you a good rule to follow: it is never a good idea to give out any of your personal information (such as your grade, school, and where you live) to anyone while in the game. Have a safe back-to-school!

Scam Alert

Trading!

When trading, make sure that you get a fair deal by double checking the trade window. You can see what you are giving and what you are getting. Always make sure what you are trading for is in the trade window. If you think a trade isn't fair, please don't trade. There are plenty of opportunities to find what you need.

In-Park Quests!

Going to Disneyland® Park or Magic Kingdom® Park? Play the in-Park Quests! Learn more here.

<strong>High School Musical Quest</strong>! Watch the movie, visit the Parks and answer all the questions to win cool stuff!

Get the <strong>Thrill Seekers Ques</strong>t for the Walt Disney World® Resort here!

The Tomorrowland Quest is still available: Download it here.

Contact Us Tips

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