Idealistic objective

With minimum fuss, trust and a healthy dab of sportsmanship, 1,000,000 players organise themselves into teams, arrange matches with one another on standardised Fortress servers, and through a process of knock-out, reaching the final where 2 teams grind it out for the grand prize of TRONIC CUP and the winning prizemoney.

The entry fee of £1 pays for:

• the server costs, not just for that day but for providing service throughout the year...
• programming developers who provided us with such fun and excitement: they didn't ask for money, but they deserve it...
• game-designers: people who contributed artistically to the look and feel of the game through its history, including Tron film credits...
• winning purse and those they competed against...

Players are primarily motivated by their enjoyment of the game, both their individual skill and teamworking.

registering

If you would like to register your name and support the idea now, click on the following paypal button AND ATTACH YOUR ARMAGETRON NAME IN THE NOTE TO PAYPAL. Closer to the final day, registration of teams shall be in place. How moneys are to be distributed is discussed here, and alternative for how the actual event is executed on the day are provided here.

how good is this game?

We all know how good this game is.. we all play it. The scale of the game is directly proportional to how hooked you are. Some players go the lengths of nominating themselves and ask teammates to kick them out of the game because they just can't stop themselves; this translates as breadth of population that may be affected by Armagetron.
One of the reasons this game can carry a popular international competition is because of its unique combination of simplicity of design and complexity of play. You can play this game with two keys -- two keys! -- albeit with a certain crimping of style. It allows people to think ahead, create mazes to trap opponents, and failing that, players can rely on their reaction times. In the little time that Fortress has been in existence, teamplay has evolved, creating the familiar launch and the crenellated defence for example. Techniques for penetrating a defence are varied, from rapier-fast attacks, torpedoes, and saw-tooth grinding. There is width for individual 1-to-1 play, and the first stirrings of real two-player combined attacks as fictionalised in the TRON film are beginning to emerge as players team up well. And then there's the stress of being the last player left alive, defending against two attackers for example.
Because of the game's simplicity, and the range of skills available to the player, and the depth of play suggested in these early days, Armagetron Fortress has the potential for being a global virtual game standard. And while computer games improve in terms of virtual-realness, this game becomes better merely as the technical net limit of PING reduces. This game is the virtual equivalent of CHESS or GO, combining strategy, competition, and adding teamplay.
And that's not to mention the way the game developed, with open-source developers working collaboratively.
If you have your own thoughts about why this game is so good, check out the page on ruminations.

the polemic of a million players

There are several reasons why a million-player competition has been suggested, amoungst them the excitement this creates, the ideal, the target which may inspire our minds to come up with means of achieving it. If this is not enough, and if there needs to be argument with those who think it impossible, then imagine a time closer to the date in a year’s time. People are registering themselves, and organising themselves into teams, for the price of a single pound £1. Why? Because if they win, they may win £10,000 each. That’s a reasonable amount of money to win in one evening’s play, if it is conducted all in one evening. And if it is possible to play 1,000,000 players in one weekend’s play... well... what about the following weekend...? Could it be possible that teams can win thousands of pounds, become professionals... or merely win enough to put themselves through college.... or set up a start-up company with ideas they have.... or school teams win enough money to furnish a new computer suite....? All these things become possible when enough players get together.
Now, the critic may suggest that not even an incentive like this can swell the numbers so high. Ultimately, a critic has to consider their own evaluation of the game. Is the game good enough? How deep is their enjoyment?
I, for one, think the game is incredibly well designed. Which is why I am so taken with it. I think the level of skill is potentially very high, and with teamwork, the game has depths like football. And it has the hallmarks of the best designed games – its simplicity. And, it is future-proof. I personally don’t think I will ever be in a winning team... I know the limitations of my play... however I enjoy it too much and am happy to explore how good I am against the best in the world, and I am happy to dream up new strategies for my team.... The game has depth, and so I believe it has appeal across at least 1,000,000 players globally. All that needs to be worked at, is how to get these players on line and playing together.... make sure the introduction for a noob is clean, and the technicalities invisible, to ensure that players can start co-operating in teams and competing against others as soon as possible....
We have a year to organise ourselves... and I believe that there is enough intelligence and wisdom to make this dream a reality, for we are certainly not lacking in technical skills nor in skill on the grid. What we need is a little trust, my friends, and together we can pull this off.... The dream is good... the reality could be even better....