Arok Party 13.

 

Nearly for thirteen years – that is for pretty much more than a whole decade – the lovers of the eight-bit machines repeatedly assemble together on a small party (the so-called Arok Party) to celebrate the surviving of their pets, and also their own creativity. (That name is a funny pun, playing with the English word party that resembles the Hungarian word parti in sounding; the latter means „of shore”, while „árokpart” means „bank of ditch”; thus they together sound like that „party on the shore of ditch” – referring to the growing desolateness of the abandoned eight-bit world. One of eldest of the less and less true European demo/compo parties still returning every year.)

Having overstepped the witchery of 13th number (which arises only from my overstressed and almost annoyingly outworn calendar obsession anyway, thus not too hard to overstep) the occasion of this year may rate as outstanding in more respects than the earlier ones. For example, the high spot of the evening – or at least one spot, I think – was said to be our little presence there: by the name of CoV Aszok Roundtable. (Another clouded pun, an only-clear-to-esoteric-ones: „CoV” was the abbreviation of the first and greatest, and by now the legendary Hungarian computer gaming magazine, and „ászok” is a kind of beer like „gauntry”, but also meaning aces as the English word; also „kovász” meaning leaven… etc. Not translatable at all, but CoV is tightly associated with beer and cows and cowboys, too… er… I do not rather continue. However, that was really just a „roundchairs” as not belonging to any table there.) Unfortunately, we had not too much time to prepare ourselves, since our organizing had just started hardly some one or two weeks before, but even as compared to the possibilities we succeeded to produce a performance. In the first place, of course, the ex-editor-in-chief (yes, the general editor of CoV about some twenty years ago) Lajos Rucz (alias 1.0) was the main organizer, and so thus the whole thing was mainly due to him: he was steadily trying summoning together all those elder ones who had ever anything to do with that notorious „book-series” (that’s a journal in real; that’s another story again…) called „Commodore Világ” (alias CoV – by the meaning „Commodore World”) and its predecessors/successors (SpV as „Spectrum World”, then CoV again as „Computer World” etc.) Both emblematic key-figures were present: Laszlo Kiss (alias CoVboy, or 0.75 – the other main author with authentic gonzo-style and unfamiliar mailing habitudes) and Mihaly Muller (alias Kis Getto™ – the mono-beer/cow-maniac home-draughtsman of CoV); and beside them one or two dozens of other characters. (Though some of us from only far and symbolically in-remote, e. g. „professor” Gogy Sotesz… so hopeless to translate/explain him again.) Lajos prepared with a slide show, a cowboy hat (for CoVboy) and a small bus, too. The latter was of use to us: some of the gathered nice set photographed and filmed along the ominous party, being made it well-documented. I mostly mention Jozsef Weigert who is furthermore an expert at these jobs – he made a whole film about the event (see on YouTube!). Another one to mention: Szilard Kun (Kunci) – he made a printed tableau of the whole brigade (see there on my website at the downloadable documents). Also came with us a few ex-Guru-members, too (another old gaming magazine), e. g. Tamas Turcsan (Shy) eventually acting as a second-leader beside Lajos now. They irresponsibly foreshadowed a possible 25th anniversary and jubilee CoV extra special „revival” edition becoming actual the next three years… Unfortunately, this promise must be kept somehow. (The performance was about the history of CoV anyway.)

Yet there was still another uncommon celebrity for the day: a very special computer game about to be finished and released (almost already… there was only one and little single bug left to fix in it – right after the development of about some twenty years): not other than the – by now we can truly say that – world-famous Newcomer. The original history of the game started in the first half of the ’90s (officially its first version was released by the Valhalla Paholy fantasy book-publishings in 1994, but its programmers had already been working on it a few years before), and nowadays it will also be a twenty-year old piece such like the above-mentioned Guru magazine. This project formerly started by Andras Lay, Zoltan Gonda and Csaba Foris (however the new version is already signed by entirely other names as Istvan Belanszky, Mihaly Szemeti and Zsolt Kajtar) must be beating more records at once: it probably may be one of the (if not the) longest – and both the longest-time made – latest and last Commodore game world-wide. (Yes, indeed: in the making of two decades. See it on its own website.)

The gathering kept now at the covered gymnasium of Ajkarendek (not far from the smalltown Ajka) previously began only like an unknown, little, intensive one at the very first years, but by now it nicely outgrew to become country-wide, moreover, even international. (As can be seen in subsequently published photo albums, videos: there is a various-aged, colourful company of growing size – a part of them are foreigners.) There are many fresh-made demos, compos every year; besides there was now a home-made C64 scanner, too; and another living show, a young gentleman who shaved a Commodore logo in his hair… (Fortunately he has still got enough such material to work with, because e. g. those bit elder, balding ones like me could only do the same show not more than in any sort of „Inglorious Basterds” way, which – we ought to realize that – would be far much less elevating, as well as not a drop of entertaining, no…) Furthermore there appeared Tamas Beregi (alias Berrr, the author of the Pixel Heroes gaming book published last year); and a new musical (rock) band SIDrip Alliance, excellently playing their whole repertoire selected of C64 classics in a modern style (see them, too). Before the Sun set down, we were even invited for a pleasant bean-feast and a tasty junketing of roasted sausages and like. (And the general store next door obligingly extended its opening hours until midnight, and as being not expensive, it became as frequently-visited as spontaneous, useful local snack-bar for the crowd.)

Finally, who didn’t come may regret coming not: namely it can be declared after all that they missed a real, concrete, palpable and tangible – and so in this respect definitely not „retro” – but absolutely being here and now – historical event (that even turned back the wheel of time a little anyhow).

 

Robert Olessak (2011)


  CoV Aszok Roundtable
08/03/2011
  
Arok Party 13. (Ajkarendek, 07/30/2011) by Jozsef Weigert (9 videos)
  

 

Arok Party 13. (2011) /2.

08/02/2011
  
A selection from Jozsef Weigert (source: (Picasaweb)) (40 pictures)
  

 

Arok Party 13. (2011) /1.

08/01/2011
  
My photos of the 13th Arok Party (100 pictures)
  

  Arok Party 13.
08/01/2011
  
Arok Party 13. (Ajkarendek, 07/30/2011) (2 videos)
  

  CoV Aszok 2011 tableau
07/31/2011
  
The photo album of the CoV faces collected for the 13th Arok Party (3 MB)
  

  CoV az árokparton

  
Some subsequent talking of the event on a Hungarian gaming blog (IDDQD)
  

  Arok Party

  
The Arok Party homepage
  

  Newcomer

  
The Newcomer homepage
  

  SIDrip Alliance

  
The SIDrip Alliance homepage
  

Notes, Blogging, Interviews