Wednesday, December 21, 2011

BV has Star Wars The Old Republic Game Time Codes!

Click here to get the codes directly from BV via Shattered Crystal!

Thanks for supporting BV!

Hell On Earth, Next stop Hell! Backyard Monster style!



Fear bringing you the latest BYM news and information! This week Fear discusses Level 32 of the Wild Monster Invasion 2. Tips on how to complete this wave if your weapons are not up to the task of level 6 enraged monsters.

Monday, December 12, 2011

I got this! The Wild Monsters are going down!



Fear Bringing you the latest Back Yard Monster news every week! This week we discuss the next monster invasion and what Fear believes Kixeye is about to unleash on us in the next BIG update. Spoiler Info, My Spies have unlocked several monster names from the BYM secret data files that I can share with you here. Sabnox, Zagnoid, Spurtz, Grokus, Valgos, Maplus, Monarch, Bathezar, K. Wormer... More info as soon as we get it folks!

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

That's right I said it's BIG! BYM's next release?



Fear bringing you the latest BYM News - This week we speculate what the next big release will be for Backyard Monsters and what Fear's future gaming plans will be...

Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Xyon will not lay down for no stinkin' Wild Monster Invasion!



Fear bringing you the latest from Backyard Monsters. This time we have Fear's latest base design pitted against the sinister Wild Monster Invasion Wave 32... Watch as this level 4 Fomor and little fortification can still perform with Fear's engineering techniques.

Friday, November 25, 2011

Fear's Black Fortress... An In-depth Tutorial...



Fear brings you an in depth look at the Black Fortress Mark III Revision 3-3. This was the base that made it through all 32 Wild Monster Invasion waves. So many of you have asked for this, and now Fear brings it to you in this slow, easy to follow tutorial. The Black Fortress Mark III Revision 3-3 images for the yard, yard planner, and tower ranges are at http://www.facebook.com/battlevortex.

Friday, November 11, 2011

Epic Fail! The BYM Invasion wasn't ready for Fear!



(Spoiler Alert) Fear's base under attack from the Wild Monster Invasion. The final bonus wave attack from the Wild Monster Tribes. I told you guys they weren't ready for me. My monsters has skillz!

Monday, November 7, 2011



Fear bringing you the latest news about BYM. This week we discuss the new artwork for D.A.V.E.S. rockets, the new Facebook Credit promotion and of course this weeks Monster Invasion. Don't miss out!

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Killin' Wild Monsters, Like A Boss!



Fear is once again invaded by the evil Legionnaire tribe. This time Gorgo was on deck to meet the enemy head on.

Tuesday, November 1, 2011

Now you can choose what base is your favorite in BYM!



Commander Jay came up with this idea to share some of the best bases on the planet with all of you BYM Generals out there. Commander Jay, General Mai, Pokler, General Ray and Fear all pitched in and now you can have a level 8 base of your very own that is PRO caliber! All bases can be copied and changed as you see fit for your own base!

Monday, October 31, 2011

Best My Champion, or I'll best your head!



Fear's Black Fortress Mark III gets a visit from the nasty Legionnaire Tribe and gets a warm welcome from the master of BYM!

Sometimes you just got to get the cash!



Fear shows you the basic idea of how to farm a Kozu base with 2 Rocket DAVEs, a Zafreeti and a Fomor Champion. If you place the monsters fast enough, you will clear the base in one wave 90% of the time.

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Tower Defenses Upgraded!



Fear bringing you the latest BYM News! This week we talk about the new defense capabilities for all outposts and more on hackers and jumping!

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Cause Havoc, Not Grief... BYM Jumpers Fixes...

I am all for causing a rift in the space-time continuum, but let's not let it digress into pure "Grief Play". I made a video about "Jumpers" awhile back, to where I was a bit critical of their existence in game. I didn't fully understand the concept, but since my war with some lovely neighbors that spend 0 shiny, I have decided that Jumpers are a viable and even useful play style within the game.

My biggest problems with it right now is two fold. One, they still let you recycle your Map Room after you jump without the wait time and without a fee, and the instant "Drop" of outposts need to be addressed.

My feelings right now are this. The 7 day wait period to jump is too long. It is great for some people, but since they can recycle anyway, they really only need to wait for 4.5 days while they build a new Map Room 2.

My current suggestions are this:

1. (Curb the cheap jumping) If you want to jump to a friends outpost for 10k resources, then the delay to jump or recycle again should be about 48 hours unless you spend Shiny. (You may want to make this a little more expensive, up to 1,500 or 2k shiny just to keep things legit.) This facilitates a deterrent to rampant jumping, and allows Kixeye to monetize those that are in a hurry.
2. (Curb the Black Hole Effect) Once a Jumper or a Recycler leaves an area, then all OP's should fall to a "ownerless" state for 24 hours and all protection bubbles are cleared. (Maybe making a "Incoming WM's" user account that decays or jumps and drops the OP after 24 hours etc...) Meaning the OP's decay back to the WM's after 24 hours to where anyone can pick them up including but not limited to the original owner. This allows people to still clear areas of the map where the owner has vanished, but allows active members to choose to buy their land back or let it go back to the WM's. (Wild Monsters). It also allows friends or poachers time to pick up that land, which could be a cool aspect to see in the game.
3. (Open up inter-empire jumping) Another change I would like to see is that if you are moving yourself around your own empire, then there should be no delay in Jumping again. The cost is 30k resources to jump to your own land, and that cost may need to be raised at some point to slow down the huge empires, plus we can have up to 6 storage silos instead of 5, so maybe the cost should be justified by your TH level. but I think for now that's a pretty hefty price to spend and shouldn't impact anything. It also shouldn't clear any delays if they say jumped or recycled previously to go to a friends OP, that timer should remain in tact.

I believe that these changes will pick up the pace of playing, along with taking out some of the exploiting or circumventing the system to get shorter jump times. This way the Jump method is more desirable because it takes less then half the time of a Recycle.

This also gives the player a sense of urgency to log in every day which will help the numbers on the DAU. The feeding every day is just not enough incentive. If people feel like there is a chance that someone may have attacked them, they have a chance to regain their OP's, I think they would check every day to make sure they are still in tact.

I would also suggest that the "Radio Tower" also work on OP's. This little messaging system is crucial to Empire Builders to get the message that they need to log in and save the empire.

The number of strikes against an Outpost should be limited to once, or possibly twice a day but no more then that before it goes under DP. Making the Outposts more defended with weapons is great, but not when you get as many chances as you do with a full sized base.

I also think that all catapulting should be disabled with Outposts. There is no reason to allow the full force of a catapult loose on an outpost. All games that have Arena's or end game stuff like Empires, have serious restrictions to keep things on an even playing field. I would be open to allowing putty if you only get one attack, but twigs and pebbles need to go or be dramatically reduced for OP's.

These are just my opinions. Any comments, please post them below.

Friday, October 14, 2011

Crazy little thing called BYM. Level 9 Town Hall Released!

I decided that I may add a little more to the blog then just the usual news video. I actually like writing about games too, but I really enjoy just throwing down a video and testing things.

BYM is a very fun game, at times a little slow on the action, but I seem to gravitate towards it, and there is obviously a lot of people interested in seeing the latest and greatest from the "too old to play BYM" guy.

I am planning on getting in to a little bit more commentary as time permits. I know people are busy and I am busy too, but maybe I can bring my own brand of logic to this crazy world we call Backyard Monsters.

For now, enjoy the news!



Fear bringing you the latest BYM News, This week the level 9 Town Hall and all of the perks that go along with it. Sneak peak of The Black Fortress 2.3-SS.

Monday, October 10, 2011



From the guy that brought you the Ultimate Quadrant Base and The Flying Base of Death, Fear presents you with the latest base design known as the The Black Fortress. Not even the inhabitants of Krull can stop this mobile menace!

Thursday, October 6, 2011

The Champion Chamber! BYM News 30!



Fear bringing you the latest BYM News. This week The Champion Chamber and a quick start guide on how to use this new feature!

Monday, October 3, 2011

Jumpers Get Jumped by Kixeye! BYM News 29



Fear bringing you the latest BYM News! This week we discuss the new chat and quest windows, and their new changes. We also cover the Cycle Outpost or Jump Forward button, and the new limits on Jumping your Main Base.

Together To The Top! This week features video by Backyard Commander http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dcFJIw9x9rc&feature=mh_lolz&list=PL625...

Wednesday, September 21, 2011



Fear discusses "Jumpers" in Backyard Monsters...


When Fear started playing War Commander, he mentioned to Kixeye just how small the men are on the screen. See what Fear did about that.

Friday, September 16, 2011

BYM News for the Champions!

Fear bringing you the latest news. Pure speculation this week about what is going down at Kixeye HQ. We talk a little about the new Champion feed stuff and other issues.

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Fear's outposts ROCK!


Fear shows you his various Outpost designs and modified Kits. The First, Modified Large & Mega Kits, Mini Maze, Morning Star, Flying Outpost Of Death (FOOD), and Ultimate Mini Quadrant. Don't miss it!

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Fear shows you a basic first look at the new RTS game from Kixeye!

Monday, September 5, 2011

BV BYM Contest winner revealed! New Monster Lab updates!

Fear bringing you the latest in BYM News! New monster abilities available in the Monster Lab, and Fear reveals the winner of 1200 Shiny in this gripping BYM News episode!

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

75MPH and it's all about BYM!



Fear bringing you another 75MPH update. This time we learn that the best defense is a good offense. Commentary on the video sent by Athene, and introduction to V.E.N.O.M.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Together To The TOP! Athene visits BV!



The best gamer in the world, Athene sends out some props to Fear and Backyard Monsters! Thank you Athene!

I think my favorite part is where you hear the toilet flushing in the background and Reese comes back in the room. I hope you washed your hands man! I truly have learned a lot from These guys on how to make videos and Pnwning Scrub Nubs!

I do play WoW by the way! I am a level 82, Blood Elf Warlock and love to PvP!

Together to the TOP man! I'll see you guys in the GAMEZ!

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Over 1000 subs on the YT channel!



Fear's 100th video on this channel! We are going to show you how to gift Shiny, and Fear will show you his new FBOD, now FFOD base layout changes with a Yard Planner view... Thanks to everyone for your support of BV! Remember that the more subscribers I get, the more money I will spend on Shiny for you!

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

I can't drive 55! BYM Commentary at 75 MPH!



With an hour drive to work and an hour back each day, Fear tries to use that time to bring you more entertaining commentary. This time we talk about the Alliances in Backyard Monsters.

Saturday, August 20, 2011

New BYM News 24! Alliance Power-Ups!




Fear bringing you the latest BYM News. This week we go over all the new Alliance Power-Up options and various other additions and bug fixes!

Friday, August 12, 2011

Alliances Are Here! New BYM News 23!



Fear bringing you the latest BYM news. Alliances are here and it's about damn time! Fear walks you through joining an alliance and gives out information regarding the BV BYM Alliance on Rich's server.

Wednesday, August 10, 2011

The latest BYM News Episode 22!



Fear bringing you the latest BYM News. This week we go over the New level 4 Monster Academy, and find out which monsters can go to level 6. Find out more!

Thursday, August 4, 2011

New BYM News 21! Tips, Chat, Rails on the OP...




Fear bringing you the latest BYM News with the New Music, Chat system updates and the Railguns on Outposts. Fear also covers where you can find answers to the most commonly asked questions about BYM.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Railguns and the Pokey Rampage... BYM News 20!



Fear with the latest BYM News talks about the new defensive and offensive boosters, some of the bug fixes and the new Railguns. Also provided is a brief summary of the new gun placement and some mods to the Flying Fortress Of Death!

Monday, July 11, 2011

Monday Vlog with Fear. Gamers Never Die!



Going for morning coffee. Fear explains that being a gamer has no age limit and talks about how Fear knows David Scott of Kixeye.

Saturday, July 9, 2011

We've Got The Bombs! BYM News 19!



Fear giving you the latest and greatest BYM News. This week we cover all of the latest bug fixes and then give you a detailed look at the new Heavy Bombs.

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Are you ready to be dominated? Let's Rock!



Fear shows you a new RTS called Total Domination by Plarium. Gameplay and then a quick review of using Fears 28 point gaming score system.

Fear’s Game Review Score System (Beta) v1.0

Name of the game and what kind of game it is… MMO, Shooter, Etc…

Point system 1-5 on 5 points…

Help System (Simplicity)
0. No help system
1. Some help, but you want to scratch your eyes out.
2. Built in help by pressing F1 or some other key combination.
3. Help system or tips as you go. Still takes some work to find what you need.
4. Help system is text based, but fairly helpful.
5. Visual help as you go with the option to turn it off when you are ready.

Controls (Interface)
0. Controls are completely confusing
1. Controls are extremely complex and too many to map on a normal keyboard.
2. Controls are complex, but the main commands all fit nicely on your normal keyboard/keypad/mouse.
3. Controls are fairly simple and all work with a standard keyboard/keypad/mouse.
4. Controls are simple, but some mapping is required to make things comfortable.
5. Conrols are simple and easy to use with a standard keyboard/keypad/mouse.

Understanding the game’s menu system (Playability)
0. No one will ever understand this menu system. Delete this game!
1. The menu system is inconsistent and barely usable.
2. The menu system is usable, but should be re-vamped right away.
3. The menu system is usable. I hardly noticed any inconsistencies.
4. The menu system is fairly good. I had no real issues finding what I wanted.
5. The menu system is pristine! The team that put this together should be rewarded!

Grinding vs Emersion (How emersed will I be to keep the grinding off my mind)
0. The grind is so long, that I can not possibly play it.
1. The grind is long, and the emersion is boring.
2. The grind is not too bad, but you still want to shoot yourself after playing.
3. The grind is fair, but the emersion is less then exciting.
4. The grind is not an issue, I am excited to see where the game takes me.
5. What grind?

Replay Value (The time I will spend in this game)
0. I wouldn’t play this game again if you paid me.
1. I might play this game again if you paid me.
2. If I were bored to tears, I would play this game again.
3. I would play this game again given enough time to learn it.
4. I would play this game again because it has potential.
5. I can’t wait to play this game again.

Bonus points (Things I find important, that you may or may not find important)

A. Spam? Does this game encourage you to send unsolicited requests to friends?
0. Yes
1. No

B. Can you gain experience from multiple playstyles? (Quests, Dungeons, PvP, Crafting, Decorating, Auctions)
0. No - N/A (If the game only has one style of play or if I don’t know)
1. Yes

C. Does it have a castle for Fear?
0. No
1. Yes

My favorite thing about the game.

My least favorite thing about the game.

Total score: Max 28 Points!

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Diamonds Are Forever! The Latest BYM News!



Fear tells you the latest news from the BYM front. Top story this time is the new level 5 Black Diamond Block. Also included is a short demonstration of the Black Diamond power against the Eye-ra monsters!

Thursday, June 30, 2011

Building pure terror takes time. Flying Base Of Death!



Originally created for the Fomor, this aerodynamic design will give your champion the ultimate home! 300 Blocks, 2 Expands, and yes you can copy!

Tuesday, June 28, 2011

Mini Quad Base against Fangs and Brains! WIN!



Fear shows you the new Mini Quadrant Outpost and how it stands up to a mass attack of Fangs and Brains!

Monday, June 27, 2011

My Base Creating Skills Have No Limits!



Fear's second modification for the Quadrant Base. Showing you how to quickly get the bunkers inside and keeping your monsters from getting baited.

Fear is loose on the high seas!



Fear gets attacked by Francisco the pirate and demonstrates why you shouldn't attack when Fear is at home.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Avoid Backyard Mahem, Like Me!



Fear makes first contact with neighbor Frederico! The meeting went well, and for now, Fear is in charge of this empire. Join us for the exciting first episode of Fear and Frederico!

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Tame the Beast Within! BYM Quad Base Cage Mod!



Fear does a quick modification to the Ultimate Quadrant Base to include the Monster Cage and his Drull Champion!

Sunday, June 19, 2011

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Gotta love those healers! BYM's Rocket D.A.V.E. Video!



Fear show you how totally indestructable a few DAVE's and a couple of Zafreetis can be currently in BYM!

Monday, June 13, 2011

BYM Quadrant Base Secrets Revealed!



Fear tells the tale of how the Ultimate Quadrant Base video came into existence along with some other interesting information about what happened the week this channel went off the chain.

Friday, June 10, 2011

It's Alive! New Monster Laboratory in BYM...



Fear bringing your the latest information about BYM! This week we talk about Dave's latest creation, the Monster Laboratory! Gives Bolts, Banditos, Brains, Project Xs, Wormzers, Teratorns, & Daves special abilities.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

My backyard is better then yours...



Fear shows you that the Quadrant Base works quite well against Wild Monster attacks.
FYI: STD needs work!

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Sunday, June 5, 2011

New BYM News Episode 14!



Fear bringing you the latest News and Views for BYM! Kixeye puts one of the BYM videos on display on their Facebook page. Fear talks about the new fixes and changes to the game!

Thursday, June 2, 2011

My first Vloggin' video! What the hell am I doing here?



What's a good Vlog description look like? Anyways just shootin' the breeze about who I am, checking out the BV studio and why I am on YT. I also talk about how much cash can be made from making videos within 6 months if you work hard and spend your own money.

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

BYM: So many videos, so little time. Building a Quadrant Base!



Fear shows you how to build the quadrant base for your own backyard! Please feel free to copy and enjoy! Started with TH level 6 and 280 blocks. The final base is TH level 8 with 300 blocks. 16X speed for your viewing pleasure.

Friday, May 27, 2011

BYM Releases the Aerial Defense Tower!



Fear bringing you the latest BYM News and views! Aerial Defense Tower update, the Starter Kits Upgrade and the ADT in action. You don't want to miss this update.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

BYM: How to expand your resource capacity!



Fear explains how you can more than double your resources in BYM. Check out this short tutorial and subscribe, like, and rate!

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Commentary on the latest BYM updates from Dave!



Fear brings you the latest News and views from Backyard Monsters with Updates from the man himself, Dave. More Zafreeti information and plenty of Fear's special blend of commentary!

Friday, May 20, 2011

Zafreeti Shaman Healers in Da Hizzouse!



Fear introduces you to the new flying Shaman healer Zafreeti. New housing booster and more!

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Backyard Monsters Making Housing Easy!



Fear strips his base and builds it from start to finish and explains what he is doing along the way.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

BYM News 10! New Boosters, Crusaders, and more!



Fear talks about the latest happenings in the Backyard Empire universe. New boosts for weapons and monsters, new bank all feature and what's to come for the BV fans in the future. Don't miss the latest News and Views for BYM!

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

More about How To upgrade your Tanks in WoT!



Fear talks a bit about how to and when to upgrade your tank crew, consumables, and then gives you his pick for the best Tier 2 tank!

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Backyard Monsters - BYM News Episode 9 with Fear!



Fear bringing you the latest news from Backyard Monsters. Weapons updates and Super Monsters and more!

Friday, May 6, 2011

Backyard Monsters - BYM News Episode 8 with Fear!



Fear talks about the New BV Alliance. We also show one of the members what he should do with his yard to make it better. Casual Collective changes their name and what is in store for us down the road.

What the hell is a Kixeye?

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Thursday, April 28, 2011

Backyard Monsters - Migration Released! Bout Time!



Fear shows you the new Migration tool in BYM as well as answers a few questions and explains that some of the Shiny options have been removed from the game. Love that Fear! He rocks BYM!

Monday, April 25, 2011

World Of Tanks! Fear shows ya how to upgrade stuff.



Fear shows you the basics of upgrading your starting tier tanks and in what order they should be upgraded!

If you decide to buy gold to upgrade your account to premium or get better tanks, you can do that by clicking here!

Saturday, April 23, 2011

The Flight of the Teratorns Movie - George Lucas would be proud!



98 Teratorns vs Kozu tribe huge city map. Watch as the Kozu burn in a massive blaze of fireball goodness.

Yes, I really have enough housing and outposts to make 98 Teratorns.

Wednesday, April 20, 2011



Fear tells the story of the fall of his UO Guild Spanish Inquisition and the rise of SI's evil player run city of Grimoire.

Friday, April 15, 2011

BYM News Episode 4! Teratorn from Locker to Battlefield!



Fear's BYM news released about the new level 4 catapult and the new monster Teratorn. See these guys in action as Fear takes them from the locker to the battlefield! Love That Fear...

Thursday, April 14, 2011

If you don't want farmers, take the farming out of the equation.



In this episode Fear talks a little about farming and what we can do to limit that situation and encourage people to take over the outposts.

Monday, April 11, 2011

Fear, Adrick, and Evocare. The Legends Of BV!



Fear talks about how he met Pete "Adrick" Warner and Tom "Evocare" Chilton in Ultima Online back in 1999. We all started as enemies, but became good friends and made some wonderful magic happen on Battle Vortex back in the day. They are both alive and well working in the gaming industry on other games, but still two of the best gamers I have ever had the pleasure of killing.

Only 2 days left to win World Of Tanks t-shirt!



For those of you that watch the embedded video, you need to click the YouTube logo in the lower right hand corner to see the options you need to select in the video to win.

http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/index.php/world_of_tanks_north_america/~126289 - Click this link for exclusive WoT pre-order gold and tanks from Shattered Crystal. This offer only lasts until April 12th 2011. World Of Tanks is a Free to play MMO, but you have the option to spend money if you want to help yourself out and give a little back to those hard working folks that made such a great tank sim for us all!

Battle Vortex is giving away 1 World Of Tanks T-shirt to a lucky winner on the Official US launch date of WoT on April 11,2011. Tune in to the next World Of Tanks video to find out who the winner is. You must subscribe to this channel, like this video, and add to your favorites, and leave a comment to win a t-shirt. Winner will be contacted through YouTube, and will have to provide a mailing address and t-shirt size desired. Will ship to North America only on this particular giveaway!

Thanks to Shattered Crystal and Markee Dragon for the hook-up.

Monday, April 4, 2011

World Of Tanks - Winning with Fear - 4v1 Pzkpfw S35 (German)



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/facebook_credits/~126289 - Fear droppin it like it's hot in this short video of 2 of the 4 kills in a battle that was a sure to lose contest for our team. Fear carries them all for the win!

Monday, March 28, 2011

The Fate Of James - Backyard Monster Fans Voted!



Facebook: http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/facebook_credits/~126289 - You asked for it, you got it. James' fate as per the vote of the BV fans! Watch this thrilling adventure in 4x speed as Fear claims his empire and leaves James wanting...

Saturday, March 26, 2011

Rift first look with Fear




http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/rift/~126289 - Fear shows a little bit from the early levels of Rift. Starting out in an MMORPG can be a long process, but just the presentation from the beginning begs for more exploring to be done.

Saturday, March 19, 2011

Friday, March 18, 2011

Down with the Dreadnauts! Fear gets busy!



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/facebook_credits/~126289 - By request, Fear shows you how to take down a Wild Monster Base...

We now have two YouTube channels! Be sure to subscribe to both!

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Who Are We? We Are Battle Vortex!



Check us out, the new trailer for BV getting back into the GAMEZ! If you have any comments or suggestions, please feel free to comment below!

Battle Vortex Forever!

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

BYM - Fear's Commentary On The New End Game...



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/facebook_credits/~126289 - Fear tells Dave what he needs to fix in his new "End Game" Map Room level 2. Believe me, Fear always knows best!

Just some thoughts on the new system and what changes I think need to be made to make things work a little better.

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Announcement - BV now supporting RIFT!



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/rift/~126289 - A brief announcement for any of you playing Rift that BV will be in support of this game and have game related coverage very soon. I also include how to complete your installation of Rift if you choose to buy gamecodes through BV.

You can also buy your RIFT timecodes from BV at the same link above!

You can also purchase any codes you need for over 40 titles by clicking here: http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/index.php/~126289

Monday, March 7, 2011

The 23 Skeedoo Attack On Jungle Jim's Yard!



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/facebook_credits/~126289 - In this video Fear attacks Jungle Jim's yard and flattens all of his guns in less then a minute. This will show you the 23 Skeedoo (Project X) attack with 10 million putty.

Jim and I have been going at each other for well over 65 battles. In this one I show him just how vunerable his base really is!

Monday, February 28, 2011

World Of Warcraft BG's - Rogues, Warriors, Paladins all Cheat!



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/wow___world_of_warcraft/~126289#world_of_warcraft_cataclysm_north_america_and_oceanic_edition - Fear talks about what's comming soon to BV, and then moves on to accusing all Rogues, Warriors and Palidans of cheating in the WoW battlegrounds. Followed up by a little commentary about the new Battlestar Galactica game.

I was out with the Flu all last week, so hopefully we can get the train rolling again this week.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

World Of Warcraft - Vash'ir And The Blood Elf Warlock



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/wow___world_of_warcraft/~126289#world_of_warcraft_cataclysm_north_america_and_oceanic_edition - Fear talks about his adventures in the under water zome of Vash'ir. Please feel free to comment, subscribe or like this video. Check the end of the video for links to other great videos made by Fear of Battle Vortex!

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Win $100.00 Wallie Credit!

Shattered Crystal is giving away up to $100.00 Wallie Credits

You can click here to get your free entry: http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/wallie_card/~126289#free_entry___wallie_100_credit_sweepstakes

You can also get additional entries by purchasing Wallie game codes from the Wallie page at Shattered Crystal. You can visit that link here: http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/index.php/~126289#wallie_card

The winner will be contacted up to two weeks after March 14th 2011 when the contest ends.

If you want to know more about this contest, click the video below.

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

It's a Good Day to Die! World Of Tanks Commentary!



My American T-14 will destroy you!

I am having a lot of fun in this game, and I give you something to consider while waiting for the American release of this game.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Fear, A Legend In His Own Mind!



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/index.php/~126289 - Fear goes into the wayback machine to show you the games he he played to become the legendary Fear of Battle Vortex.

I have played so many games over the years, I couldn't possibly list them all. I found installation CD's from many of the games I played and show you in this short video.

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Want to add lights and sound to your videos? Two for Tuesday videos!

First up Fear shows you how to add some inexpensive lighting and how to aim them to make your video really nice.



Second, Fear demonstrates how you can use a mixing board to enhance your sound to perfection.



These videos also serve as response videos for Markee Dragons video challenge. You can see Markee Dragon's video camera video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pKHO60v-P0I

Sunday, January 30, 2011



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/code.php/facebook_credits/~126289 - In this video Fear talks about the best monsters to use in the game and why you should use them. Backyard Monsters.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Gettin' my epic battle on in Eye of the Storm!



This was probably my best battleground encounter ever! I describe all the tactics and information you need for this battleground as a Warlock...

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Bring your video game to the mass market through the user interface.



In this video Fear talks about the importance of the user interface in your games and how you can use that information to attract more people to come play that game. For those of you that prefer to read, I have a basic written version available below.

If you want to help a starving artist/writer out, check out Shattered Crystal's game codes and intagible items out and see if anything interests you.

Keep It Simple, Stupid. (The KISS Principal)

The interface to the game should not be an “afterthought”. You already know what you want in your world and maybe even how it will look. The most important thing is how the user will access it. Work with the interface and make it better over time because you will never know how people will actually play your game when it is released. Don’t get too hung up on your vision. Chances are, you are the only one that will see it the way you intended.

When I hear a game developer say we are writing a game that “We” would play, you are alienating your potential userbase. Make that game an option or “Hard” mode. Most of us don’t have months or years to figure everything out.

Tutorials and help should be active while you are playing your game. Additional tutorials are nice, but hands-on training is always more deserable to players. Having a friendly face pop up and tell you what you are trying to accomplish the best way I have ever encountered.

Make your interface simple to use. If you can’t convince Mom, Dad, your spouce or Grandma that your game is really cool, your interface may need some help.

Interfaces should be the same throughout the entire game. It should look to anyone playing that one geek wrote the whole thing. Not a mish-mash of different menus and designs.

Make your game easy to just jump in and start playing. You can have options to make things more difficult and brain tasking later on, but just let them jump in and start shooting or building or whatever.

Enjoy what you create, and also make it something as many people as possible can actually access, then you will actually create a new vision that both you and your customers enjoy!

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

How to install a laptop tripod & 1080p revealed!



The best video of the year award goes to none other then Fear of Battle Vortex. This weeks video solves the problem of my laptop camera being at eye-level. We also reveal the next evolution in BV's video production with 1080p!

Thanks to Marcus and all the SC guys for helping me with producing videos!

If you would like to help me make more videos in the future, then please visit Shattered Crystal and make a purchase of time codes or other special items!

Monday, January 24, 2011

World of Tanks beta - Let's get killed!



I have had a couple of runs in World Of Tanks, and without trying to learn too much, I decided to just jump in a tank and go out there and see what happens. As usual, your first encounter is most likely your toughest, and I promise to deliver a beautiful death.

Click here if you would like to get in the World Of Tanks beta.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

Way Back Machine: Ultima Online and Raph Koster...



http://www.shatteredcrystal.com/index.php/~126289 - One Interview To Rule Them All. BV Audio Episode #19 with Raph Koster who was the Lead Designer for Ultima Online when this interview was released on Jan. 25, 1999. This interview was the one that gave us the inspiration to create another 45 more shows before closing down in March 2002.

Thanks to Pete "Sir Adrick" Warner for this opportunity to make a difference in our game.

For additional "old school" audio shows please visit: http://ishare.sphorium.com/fb/link.aspx?id=de584b50-02cf-43e8-9665-3bfd8d19f3ec

Catch the latest from Raph Koster on his website: http://www.raphkoster.com/

"Back in the day" is very subjective, but I am talking about the one interview that made Battle Vortex a part of something larger then my own ramblings. The quality of the interview is not exactly up to par with today's standards. You will have to forgive me since I had to do this stuff before things like YouTube came along with easy to follow steps and built in streaming at your fingertips.

Raph Koster who is now a crazed super-conductor for online games, is really a very nice and gentle person who really wanted to create a "life-simulator" that doesn't get imploded by the people playing it. Maybe that is why he started his Facebook app business.

Raph said something to me once that always stayed in my head and that was the fact that I was playing his game right. That made me feel pretty darn good to know I could experience someone elses vision the way the intended for all of us.

Even though I haven't ever worked in the industry, I have been stalking these super-genious game designers around like glue since 1996. I have one-sided conversations with them on my blog, and up until recently, didn't mind falling off the face of the Internet. Well, maybe some day, Fear's name will return to the light, but for now, please enjoy my remix of Raph Koster as he was over a decade ago...

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

How to defend your base in BYM with the new Monster Bunker!



In this video Fear talks about his defensive layout and how that strategy works with the new Monster Bunker in Backyard Monsters.

This video is best viewed in HD and in Full Screen!

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

How to win in World of Warcraft Battlegrounds...



How to win in 5 easy steps is Fear's first in a series of helping people enjoy the battlegrounds in World Of Warcraft. If you are new to World Of Warcraft or a veteran who is not sure how to play outside of raiding or questing, then this video is for you!

Thanks to our sponsors: Shattered Crystal and Karaoke Crew

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Sith Reborn... Video from Lucas Arts on SWTOR...

Check out the latest video from Lucas Arts here: http://www.swtor.com/info/holonet/timeline/rebirth-sith-empire?sourceid=eag2916
Interesting story, although I am a bit confused as to when there were only 2 Sith vs an entire race of them.