35 replies to this topic

[valkyrie]

(pardon the mess, I'll clean up the OP later when I have a better idea of what info I should have here)

Quote

"The proper way of looking at it is that we're more of a group of friends sharing in a collective stockholm syndrome experience rather than a group of people who have any real competitive/serious desires out of this game. Except Norris, who is hellbent on buying out Comstar." - Harabec

Hey MWO - we're Kong Interstellar Security Solutions. There's really not a lot that needs to be said, or for that matter, that can be said. I understand that we have a bad reputation on these forums, and I want to try and fix that. This thread is meant to help us build that bridge by providing information on our group as well as a way to communicate in a civil manner with myself and other Kong members.

I won't say I'm doing this on behalf of Kong as a whole, because there is no "Kong as a whole." Our members are from all over the world, and we all have our own unique quirks and opinions on things. About the only thing we seem to agree on is that there's no real way to define Kong aside from "group of people on Ventrilo who like blowing things up." However, I personally think it's important to try and show that we do like this game, we do love the franchise, and most importantly, we do want to see the game get better so it can be a success. We just have a weird way of showing it sometimes.

So, what I'd like to do here is open up a dialogue with the MWO community as a whole. I can't say I'm the be-all, end-all ambassador for Kong, but I do want to try and help us get along better. This is going to be something completely new for me and Kong, and I have my hopes that this will shed light on a side of Kong people aren't used to seeing. This is an experiment, but one that I'd like to see succeed for the sake of the game and the community.

If you have civil questions or comments for myself or Kong, feel free to leave them in this thread, and I'll do my best to answer them in kind. Note that what I say may not be fully representative of Kong's members, nor can I guarantee that anything I pass along to them will change their ways. We're diverse and untamable - a product of our origins - but I do think that we can help build a better MWO for us all.

Alternatively, you can reach us here (don't be an jerk though or we'll throw you out):
Kong Ventrilo:
konginterstellar.typefrag.com
Port: 13270

And before someone asks, no, this is not a joke, nor is it thinly veiled trolling. I look forward to hearing from you all.

-Valk

Edited by valkyrie, 05 March 2013 - 06:45 PM.

[Accurs3D]

Ur bad kid I pwn joo in game

Edited by Accurs3D, 01 March 2013 - 02:33 AM.

[Writer]

I'm always fascinated by how Kong's gotten such a "nasty" reputation. The only remotely consistent attributes of KONG stem from its contrarian voice within the community, and a marked distaste for "etiquette".

There is no structure or organization, and there are no leaders or "kings" of Kong. You choose the KONG LIFE because you choose to associate with whatever you perceive Kong to be.

Edited by Rhenis, 03 March 2013 - 12:30 AM.

[Moromillas]

A friend of mine and myself made the same mistake a long time ago when we started our own guild (in another game).

We got pretty successful, but managed to garner a bad name.

What you need to do is check the forum posts of applicants, and discuss weather or not they coincide with the guilds virtues and ideals. Don't just recruit any old gun, if they aren't what the guild is looking for, then say no to them.

Edited by Moromillas, 01 March 2013 - 03:30 AM.

[LaserAngel]

I should be able to step in as deputy ambassador if Valkyrie is unavailable.

[Tabrias07]

Moromillas, on 01 March 2013 - 03:26 AM, said:

A friend of mine and myself made the same mistake a long time ago when we started our own guild (in another game).

We got pretty successful, but managed to garner a bad name.

What you need to do is check the forum posts of applicants, and discuss weather or not they coincide with the guilds virtues and ideals. Don't just recruit any old gun, if they aren't what the guild is looking for, then say no to them.

We don't recruit, and afaik we've never asked anyone to leave (except you kevin).

If you have a problem... if no one else can help... and if you can find them... maybe you can join... Kong Interstellar.

Edited by Tabrias07, 01 March 2013 - 10:17 AM.

[valkyrie]

Accurs3D, on 01 March 2013 - 02:32 AM, said:

Ur bad kid I pwn joo in game

i no I shuld get gud ;_;

Rhenis, on 01 March 2013 - 03:12 AM, said:

I'm always fascinated by how Kong's gotten such a "nasty" reputation. The only remotely consistent attributes of KONG stem from its contrarian voice within the community, and a marked distaste for "etiquette".

Being contrarian is one of our greatest strengths. Call it a product of experience but a lot of us have seen games we love get killed off, so a big part of our presence on these forums is trying to get others to see things from our point of view before any ill effects can take their toll on the game. Etiquette on the other hand is just a product of our normal environment and the fact that we don't really police our own.

Moromillas, on 01 March 2013 - 03:26 AM, said:

A friend of mine and myself made the same mistake a long time ago when we started our own guild (in another game).

We got pretty successful, but managed to garner a bad name.

What you need to do is check the forum posts of applicants, and discuss weather or not they coincide with the guilds virtues and ideals. Don't just recruit any old gun, if they aren't what the guild is looking for, then say no to them.

To expand on my previous point, we don't recruit, there's no roster, no unit listings, nothing like that in Kong. It's different things to different people - to me it's a reliable group I can basically pub with, to others it's something more. We don't have any set ideals or virtues, nor could we enforce them even if we did or wanted to.

Think of it this way - Kong doesn't do things so much as Kong doesn't stop it's members from doing things (in most cases, Kevin's botting being a glaring exception). I'm probably not the best person for this "ambassador" thing given my reputation for being quick tempered, but I'm doing it anyway because I offered to and I didn't get an overwhelming no. Kong is extremely diverse and unpredictable like that, but for the same reason I think it's worth me trying to take the lead to go out and build bridges so people realize all our opinions and motivations for posting are different. It's kind of unfair that everyone in our group gets ignored due to people thinking we're all out to troll the game into oblivion when a lot of us are trying to make it better by being critical or practicing good consumerism.

Of course, on the flip side, I'm not going to apologize for nor condemn the actions of other Kong members (again, in most cases), but people need to understand we aren't a hive mind or anything and its worth giving each of our posts some respect and a readthrough before writing it off. I want our posts judged for their content rather than the name in the signature, like everyone else here, but I do realize that we first need to make it clear we're just like other MWO players. At the end of the day, we're all here to play the game, and hopefully make it better.

Edited by valkyrie, 01 March 2013 - 10:54 AM.

[Moromillas]

valkyrie, on 01 March 2013 - 10:50 AM, said:

To expand on my previous point, we don't recruit, there's no roster, no unit listings, nothing like that in Kong. It's different things to different people - to me it's a reliable group I can basically pub with, to others it's something more. We don't have any set ideals or virtues, nor could we enforce them even if we did or wanted to.

Think of it this way - Kong doesn't do things so much as Kong doesn't stop it's members from doing things (in most cases, Kevin's botting being a glaring exception). I'm probably not the best person for this "ambassador" thing given my reputation for being quick tempered, but I'm doing it anyway because I offered to and I didn't get an overwhelming no. Kong is extremely diverse and unpredictable like that, but for the same reason I think it's worth me trying to take the lead to go out and build bridges so people realize all our opinions and motivations for posting are different. It's kind of unfair that everyone in our group gets ignored due to people thinking we're all out to troll the game into oblivion when a lot of us are trying to make it better by being critical or practicing good consumerism.

Of course, on the flip side, I'm not going to apologize for nor condemn the actions of other Kong members (again, in most cases), but people need to understand we aren't a hive mind or anything and its worth giving each of our posts some respect and a readthrough before writing it off. I want our posts judged for their content rather than the name in the signature, like everyone else here, but I do realize that we first need to make it clear we're just like other MWO players. At the end of the day, we're all here to play the game, and hopefully make it better.

For therein lies the problem.

What you have there, is a powder keg. All it takes is one disagreement for it to be split down the middle, one psychopath, one manipulator. You'll see what I mean later, hopefully much later rather than sooner.

No, if they wave the banner, they represent, there's no two ways about that. You can't wave a banner and say you only represent yourself at the same time, it doesn't work.

[Accurs3D]

Don't listen to Kong, those guys are notorious hackers and trolls from 4chainz. They're worst than the goons. I was watching Fox News the other day and apparently these guys can hack your computer and make it explode. They also make vans explode.

Stay away for your own safety.

[valkyrie]

Moromillas, on 01 March 2013 - 05:01 PM, said:

For therein lies the problem.

What you have there, is a powder keg. All it takes is one disagreement for it to be split down the middle, one psychopath, one manipulator. You'll see what I mean later, hopefully much later rather than sooner.

No, if they wave the banner, they represent, there's no two ways about that. You can't wave a banner and say you only represent yourself at the same time, it doesn't work.

A lack of structure doesn't mean it doesn't work. We've had disagreements in Kong, but it's never touched off the powder keg. It's hard to explain, but our system works for us. Kong members have a incredible amount of independence to do whatever they please since it's not a rigid group. But, if you do something to really screw with everyone, they get pushed out pretty quickly, as happened with Kevin, who created the AFK bot macro for farming C-Bills in Closed Beta. It's a different kind of social dynamics at play compared to units with rigid structuring and organization.

Still, I don't see why it's so far-fetched to think people should not judge an entire group by it's members but rather by the individual. There's certain groups I'm not a huge fan of but I'll at least give their members enough respect to sit down and read what they have to say. If I still disagree, I'll at least try and make a decent argument as to why.

Edited by valkyrie, 01 March 2013 - 09:08 PM.

[Moromillas]

valkyrie, on 01 March 2013 - 09:07 PM, said:

A lack of structure doesn't mean it doesn't work. We've had disagreements in Kong, but it's never touched off the powder keg. It's hard to explain, but our system works for us. Kong members have a incredible amount of independence to do whatever they please since it's not a rigid group. But, if you do something to really screw with everyone, they get pushed out pretty quickly, as happened with Kevin, who created the AFK bot macro for farming C-Bills in Closed Beta. It's a different kind of social dynamics at play compared to units with rigid structuring and organization.

Still, I don't see why it's so far-fetched to think people should not judge an entire group by it's members but rather by the individual. There's certain groups I'm not a huge fan of but I'll at least give their members enough respect to sit down and read what they have to say. If I still disagree, I'll at least try and make a decent argument as to why.

No. I completely understand it, more than you realize. Perhaps, when it all falls to pieces, you'll remember my warning.

There's no escaping that, it's the exact same thing if you put on a uniform. You're viewed as being a part of 'that group,' you can't stop people from thinking about it that way. As Bruce Hornsby once said: That's just the way it is.

[valkyrie]

Moromillas, on 01 March 2013 - 09:19 PM, said:

No. I completely understand it, more than you realize. Perhaps, when it all falls to pieces, you'll remember my warning.

There's no escaping that, it's the exact same thing if you put on a uniform. You're viewed as being a part of 'that group,' you can't stop people from thinking about it that way. As Bruce Hornsby once said: That's just the way it is.

We'll see about that. There's no real "middle" to split it all down, no cohesive whole to fracture, so I think we'll be ok. I am aware of the power of reputation though - that's why I'm here trying to put a better face on our group.

[Moromillas]

valkyrie, on 01 March 2013 - 09:25 PM, said:

There's no real "middle" to split it all down, no cohesive whole to fracture, so I think we'll be ok.

We made that mistake too, we also thought we would be ok.

[LaserAngel]

We're talking about this over on our thread. We find it rather amusing since there really isn't rank or structure to our group to take over. If you want the attention, named and tripcode users are already a shunned group 4chan. People look down on you for taking up a name/code and you can get filtered out if they hate you that much Fame is easily taken away and there is nothing to gain from it.

Otherewise, yes we do have defacto leaders but we seem to call them our leaders more than anything else. Valkyrie and I just seem to fall into the public/external relations department. If you want to talk more about it we can do it here or on the Mechwarrior Online General.

[Rather Dashing]

THE INHERENT FLAW IN MOROMILLA'S ARGUMENT IS THAT THERE IS NO POWDER KEG THAT COULD BE SET OFF. UNLIKE AN ACTUAL CLAN OR COMPETITIVE GROUP KONG ITSELF IS NAUGHT BUT A PUG FOR PEOPLE TO JOIN AND PLAY TOGETHER WITH. WE SHARE A SINGLE VENTRILO SERVER AND SEVERAL THREADS ON 4CHAN BUT BEYOND THAT THERE IS LITTLE, IF ANY, STRUCTURE. GROUPS ARE MADE ON THE SPOT, THERE ARE NO LEADER OR LEADERS, THERE IS NO HIERARCHY OR POLITIK.

WITH KONG IF YOU WANT TO PLAY MECHWARRIOR ONLINE ALL THAT YOU HAVE TO DO TO JOIN KONG IS JOIN THE VENTRILO SERVER AND PLAY WITH KONG. EVEN THEN THAT DOES NOT QUALIFY YOU AS KONG, YOU HAVE TO IDENTIFY AS A MEMBER OF KONG YOURSELF. WE CANNOT DO IT FOR YOU, IT SITS ON YOU AND YOU ALONE TO PARTICIPATE. BECAUSE OF THIS THERE ARE NO LEADERS, WE HAVE DEFACTO SPOKESMEN AND POSTERS WHO BRANDISH THE KONG NAME IN THEIR SIGNATURES BUT BEYOND THAT THERE IS NO FACE OF KONG. EVERY SINGLE MEMBER HAS THEIR SAY, AND IF THEY DON'T AGREE THEY JUST PLAY WITH DIFFERENT PEOPLE IN KONG.

THERE IS NOTHING PETTY IN KONG, THERE ARE NO FORUMS WITH NAMES ATTACHED AND REPUTATIONS TO UPHOLD, IT SIMPLY IS. YOU PLAY WITH KONG ONLINE AND THAT IS ALL YOU DO TO PARTICIPATE WITH IT, THERE ARE NO OTHER ACTIONS NECESSARY. IF YOU VIE FOR POWER YOU HAVE NO MOUNTAINS TO CLIMB BECAUSE THERE IS NO STRUCTURE TO OVERCOME. EVEN THE MOST VOCAL MEMBERS OF KONG ARE CRITICIZED ON A REGULAR BASIS. EVERYONE ARGUES, EVERYONE BICKERS, EVERYONE HAS FUN PLAYING WITH ONE ANOTHER BECAUSE THAT'S ALL KONG IS, A GROUP FOR PEOPLE TO PLAY THE GAME WITH. IF IT WERE ANYTHING ELSE IT WOULDN'T BE KONG INTERSTELLAR, IT WOULD BE A REAL CLAN.

THE MISTAKE YOU MAKE IS ASSUMING THAT THERE IS ANY DEPTH TO KONG. THERE IS NONE. YOU TAKE IT AT FACE VALUE AND JUDGE IT ON THE MERITS OF THE INDIVIDUAL POSTERS AND PLAYERS, NOT ON THE GROUP ITSELF. THERE IS NO GROUP REPUTATION BEYOND WHAT OTHER COMMUNITIES APPLY TO IT, BUT WITH KONG BEING ANARCHIC AS IT IS ALREADY THOSE ARE HONESTLY INAPPLICABLE INSOFAR AS JUDGING THE GROUP AS A WHOLE.

[valkyrie]

I think you forgot to preface that with "HI, BILLY MAYS HERE FOR KONG INTERSTELLAR," Dashing.

[Rather Dashing]

BILLY MAYS IS THE PATRON SAINT OF CAPS-LOCK, I WILL NOT DISRESPECT HIM.

[QuantumButler]

Rather Dashing, on 02 March 2013 - 11:29 PM, said:

THE INHERENT FLAW IN MOROMILLA'S ARGUMENT IS THAT THERE IS NO POWDER KEG THAT COULD BE SET OFF. UNLIKE AN ACTUAL CLAN OR COMPETITIVE GROUP KONG ITSELF IS NAUGHT BUT A PUG FOR PEOPLE TO JOIN AND PLAY TOGETHER WITH. WE SHARE A SINGLE VENTRILO SERVER AND SEVERAL THREADS ON 4CHAN BUT BEYOND THAT THERE IS LITTLE, IF ANY, STRUCTURE. GROUPS ARE MADE ON THE SPOT, THERE ARE NO LEADER OR LEADERS, THERE IS NO HIERARCHY OR POLITIK.

WITH KONG IF YOU WANT TO PLAY MECHWARRIOR ONLINE ALL THAT YOU HAVE TO DO TO JOIN KONG IS JOIN THE VENTRILO SERVER AND PLAY WITH KONG. EVEN THEN THAT DOES NOT QUALIFY YOU AS KONG, YOU HAVE TO IDENTIFY AS A MEMBER OF KONG YOURSELF. WE CANNOT DO IT FOR YOU, IT SITS ON YOU AND YOU ALONE TO PARTICIPATE. BECAUSE OF THIS THERE ARE NO LEADERS, WE HAVE DEFACTO SPOKESMEN AND POSTERS WHO BRANDISH THE KONG NAME IN THEIR SIGNATURES BUT BEYOND THAT THERE IS NO FACE OF KONG. EVERY SINGLE MEMBER HAS THEIR SAY, AND IF THEY DON'T AGREE THEY JUST PLAY WITH DIFFERENT PEOPLE IN KONG.

THERE IS NOTHING PETTY IN KONG, THERE ARE NO FORUMS WITH NAMES ATTACHED AND REPUTATIONS TO UPHOLD, IT SIMPLY IS. YOU PLAY WITH KONG ONLINE AND THAT IS ALL YOU DO TO PARTICIPATE WITH IT, THERE ARE NO OTHER ACTIONS NECESSARY. IF YOU VIE FOR POWER YOU HAVE NO MOUNTAINS TO CLIMB BECAUSE THERE IS NO STRUCTURE TO OVERCOME. EVEN THE MOST VOCAL MEMBERS OF KONG ARE CRITICIZED ON A REGULAR BASIS. EVERYONE ARGUES, EVERYONE BICKERS, EVERYONE HAS FUN PLAYING WITH ONE ANOTHER BECAUSE THAT'S ALL KONG IS, A GROUP FOR PEOPLE TO PLAY THE GAME WITH. IF IT WERE ANYTHING ELSE IT WOULDN'T BE KONG INTERSTELLAR, IT WOULD BE A REAL CLAN.

THE MISTAKE YOU MAKE IS ASSUMING THAT THERE IS ANY DEPTH TO KONG. THERE IS NONE. YOU TAKE IT AT FACE VALUE AND JUDGE IT ON THE MERITS OF THE INDIVIDUAL POSTERS AND PLAYERS, NOT ON THE GROUP ITSELF. THERE IS NO GROUP REPUTATION BEYOND WHAT OTHER COMMUNITIES APPLY TO IT, BUT WITH KONG BEING ANARCHIC AS IT IS ALREADY THOSE ARE HONESTLY INAPPLICABLE INSOFAR AS JUDGING THE GROUP AS A WHOLE.

OPTIMUS PRIME APPROVES OF THIS MESSAGE.

[Majorfatboy]

A thread meant to reach out to others, in the outreach sub-forum? Good show, gentle sirs, but let's get down to the real nitty gritty:

There's a war out there. A war that started elsewhere, but spread across the globe, consuming all in it's path. Even here on this forum, there exists conflict. One side praises it's virtues and insists there's nothing wrong with it. The other side utterly hates it and wants it gone at any cost. It is a war over a work of fiction. Who could have predicted that a piece of light-hearted entertainment that features bright colors, fanciful characters, and an original soundtrack would bring on such a polarized reaction.

I am, of course, talking about the 1980 movie "Flash Gordon".

As a rabid fan of this movie, I will of course think less of you, and by extension, Kong, as human beings if you diss it. My mommy says I still have to be nice to you and give you punch and pie, however.

Where does Kong stand on this great and powerful matter?




(just in case everyone's BAP is malfunctioning today, I'm not trolling, I really do dig this thread. Just thought it could use some lulz)

[Rather Dashing]

AN INDIVIDUAL STATEMENT FROM A SINGLE POSTER CANNOT REPRESENT KONG INTERSTELLAR, BUT IF YOU WERE TO JOIN THE VENTRILO SERVER YOU COULD DISCUSS THESE MATTERS AND REACH A CONSENSUS ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS WITH THOSE ONLINE AT THE TIME.

PERSONALLY I ENJOY THE FILM, THOUGH BRIAN BLESSED CLEARLY MADE THE MOVIE WHAT IT WAS AND WITHOUT HIM I FEAR IT NOT WOULD HAVE SOARED HIGH INTO EVERYONE'S HEARTS. QUEEN WAS ALSO A BIG FACTOR TO WHY I LIKED THE MOVIE. GREAT SOUNDTRACK.