INTRODUCTION
Hello, everybody! I've long thought about just what impact playing FFR and Stepmania has had on me as a person: for a very long time, I thought of how I could write about it. I sat on the idea for a long time, but I'm finally getting the chance.
The super-dope music/art website Made of Chalk has allowed me to start a new column called SMASH, which focuses on the connections between music, games, and art through my experiences playing rhythm games for 10+ years. I covered this a bit in my very first edition, so I'll just leave it here:
This is the beginning of an exploration that I hope all of you can join me in undertaking. It’s about a realization that’s only now hitting me with full force: sometimes it’s the smallest things we do that leave the biggest marks on who we are. For me, it’s the story of how my ten-year-long pathological fascination with an obscure free-source rhythm game fostered my long-standing love for music, my worldview, and even my passion for writing–all things I consider essential parts of my identity today. For you, I hope it will be an argument for realizing the hidden profundity and joy in everyday acts of creation.
In essence, this will be an ongoing dialogue between you and I about how art can SMASH our lives and change us for the better.
In essence, this will be an ongoing dialogue between you and I about how art can SMASH our lives and change us for the better.
This series focuses on a variety of subtopics in Stepmania, such as music, philosophy, creation through stepcharting, and even interdisciplinary applications. The following is a tentative outline, but I could expand the series in the future. New installments will go up biweekly.
My hope is that this will be a place for all of us to be able to discuss this topic, and so I'm including discussion questions with each post. You can comment here or on the articles, whichever is more comfortable. I sincerely hope that I can hear everything all of you guys have to say.
Edition 1: Introduction: Lessons Gleaned From A Lifetime Of Rhythm Gaming.
Edition 2: Origin Story
Edition 3: Stepmania Music - progressive rock
Edition 4: Stepmania Music - chiptune
Edition 5: Stepmania Music - rhythm game/pop music
Edition 6: On Stepping (Part I)
Edition 7: On Stepping (Part II)
Edition 8: On Stepping (Part III)
Three-edition intensive on the art of stepcharting.
Edition 9: Philosophy – on genius
Edition 10: Philosophy – the value of the simulation
Edition 11: Philosophy – “subjectivemanias”
Edition 12: Interdisciplinary Work – on writing, visual and performance art
Edition 13: Interdisciplinary Work – practical applications (academic, scientific, social)
Edition 14: Conclusion
Thank you for your time and interest and keep smashing on!
Sincerely,
moches
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