Hey, so let's talk about the day my life changed forever, because I made a video about
a meme.
That's a bit of a weird thing to admit honestly, but it's what happened.
On this exact day, one year ago, I made a video about a higher version of Hightower.
Now the idea of TF2 joke maps isn't something new, but last year the concept exploded within
the community.
Wacky map after wacky map – maps based purely on memes – maps which elongated features
for no discernible reason whatsoever – maps designed to be completely unplayable, and
even maps designed to instigate players into the cult of our glorious lord and saviour
Harry Hill.
The joke map isn't for the average player that wants to play a noice ol' pub.
It's for person who wants a refreshing break from TF2's core gameplay, something fun
and silly to tide you over and create some memories with.
Not everyone wants to just play the game – some of us want to try out dumb stuff and have
a laugh.
And the wacky map scene is almost the perfect medium for this in TF2.
Here is something ridiculous that shouldn't be in the game, here's a lobby of 24 people
playing: good luck.
[Do I push the cart, do I try take the high ground- how long is this even going to take?]
So why did the wacky map scene absolutely explode this time last year in particular?
Memes.
Honest to God memes.
Memes have been about for ages, even predating internet culture.
Seriously, there's an entire field of study dedicated to researching them that spawned
in the 1980s, look up memetics.
But they've taken on new unprecedented relevance in mainstream culture, dominating social media.
Even politicians and companies market themselves today through the use of memes - looking at
you Sonic Twitter, you loveable shitposter.
The quality varies drastically, but they're a cool thing in culture.
Memes spread like wildfire, spawn variants, and escalate dramatically until we know we're
truly on the darkest timeline, and there's a reason why aliens haven't contacted us.
The same thing happened in the mapping scene last year for TF2. 50ft Orange Tower, with
the freaking nerd Surny making a video on it.
And then Hightower, but it's an even Higher Tower.
Yours truly made the original video on that one.
The popularity of these two maps and their videos spawned variants and iterations, all
with similar joke premises.
The result was a complete explosion in the TF2 mapping scene, even spawning a new type
of custom server specifically for wacky maps.
Highertower is now one of the most popular TF2 maps ever made on the Steam workshop.
And although the meme has started to peeter off, as is the case with all memes, because
culture is constantly changing; they still form a large part of TF2's history of the
past year.
Wacky maps are still being made, but they're not as big of a phenomenon now.
Which is probably for the best to be honest, as some of them were getting a bit too obscure
or tame in their concepts.
There's still gems and diamonds in the rough – a freaking hand-drawn Cuphead boss fight
map released this month, and it's actually amazing.
But wacky maps are not as dominant as they once were.
I know for myself I only try to make videos on the more interesting ones I find.
Seriously, go check out the Cuphead map.
So much work went into making that.
So did wacky maps only explode in popularity because memes were a thing?
Not quite.
See around this time last year, TF2 was experiencing its longest content drought to date.
The last substantial update for the game had been Meet Your Match in 2016, and there hadn't
been much new since, bar a handful of game changing cosmetics - oh hell yeah, this, this
completely revolutionizes everything-
TF2 was in a bit of a bad place.
And there was a lot of fear and uncertainty regarding the future of this game.
It's a good point to mention that historically, TF2 has always received a big summer update
that adds a huge batch of new content.
Except this didn't happen in 2017.
We didn't receive the first big update of the year until the very end of October which,
if you look closely, might need your glasses for this one – isn't summer.
We went a full year and a half in the end with no new content of note.
Wacky maps filled the void for the lack of new content.
So when the scene started to take off following the two tower maps, and there was still no
new updates in sight, people flocked to them.
It was something new and exciting taking place within the community, and at the time it felt
quite fresh and original.
Meme-y as hell, but it was great.
It was a good reason to keep playing the game during this time, as not much was happening
on Valve's end.
Wacky maps were the unofficial community update of last year, providing us with something
new to experience while we worried about the game's future.
And because so many iterations were being made at a regular pace, there was no shortage
of new content to play.
And it was genuinely funny and so outlandish when compared to the base game that the scene
continued to grow and grow.
This resulted in more content creators making videos on the maps, propelling the maps'
popularity even further.
So why are wacky maps not as common now?
Well, it's just like any meme.
They spread like wildfire, spawn iterations and variants, until they become oversaturated
and obscure.
This results in a small handful of the maps being celebrated and elevated above the others
as quality wacky maps that stand out and are still entertaining to this day.
Let me put it another way – people still play Highertower.
But no-one really cares about Highertower, but it's twice as tall.
Or Hightower, but there's no tower.
Or Highertower, but there's multiple towers, and It's capture the flag, and Noel Edmonds
is a rare spawn when questing in the Arathi Highlands.
The original, creative wacky maps are celebrated, and the rest sort of faded away.
It's the same reason Badwater, but the cart moves ten times faster is celebrated, and
none of the other faster maps receive as much attention.
The idea with Badwater was the first of its kind, creative and funny as hell.
The rest were just iterations following the same gag.
We sort of have a collector's DVD boxset of the best wacky maps available, with only
the occasional new ones added in.
When I was making my videos last summer showcasing these maps, this is what I tried to bear in
mind.
I didn't want to make videos on literally every version of Hightower – I wanted to
find the small handful of maps that I found genuinely entertaining in their own way.
The challenge was to find the DVD boxset maps that I'd want to play again in the future.
To this day, Fastwater is a map I genuinely love to throw into server rotations, alongside
things like Traingrid.
The concept and creativity in these maps is the part I enjoy the most.
And sometimes it doesn't go as well – Hightorangemillbine is an absolute abomination that tries to splice
multiple maps together, and is broken as hell.
Thundermountain, but the floor fills with lava every 10 seconds is also broken as hell.
It literally crashes your game every 10 seconds you try to play it.
But the concepts behind these maps were hilarious and entertaining to me.
It's the kind of community content I love to see in this game, and it only seems possible
within the framework of TF2.
No other game has this kind of scene, and it's genuinely cool to see.
Can we put Ocarina of Time's overworld into TF2?
Sure feck it, let's do it.
That's not even a possibility in most games, but TF2 somehow finds a way.
It's weird to look back on the impact of the wacky map scene critically like this.
I mean of all things, wacky is in their name, it's hard to take them seriously.
But for a time, they were something big and celebrated within our community.
They filled the void during a time of content drought, as the Jungle Inferno update appeared
to be missing in action.
And there's no doubt been many critics – some TF2 folks bemoaned their popularity, as if
it was the end times, almost similar to those stories where Pokemon GO is destroying our
humanity, and society as a whole.
Someone, please think of the children!
But the community at large remained rallied together and appreciated their novelty.
And if you didn't like them, you just didn't have to play them – simple as.
So it's a weird feeling looking back on the scene.
And this is something I never really talked about, but my video on Highertower was supposed
to be one my last.
I had made videos on Youtube for six years by that point, continuing them all through
my years at university.
I thought then that I'd given Youtube a good shot, and I thought I'd have to leave
it behind now that I was finishing my degree.
There was a sense I had to enter the real world now, and start settling down to find
a normal working job.
I was originally planning to move to Europe and teach English at a summer camp to try
and get my bearings.
And then on the day I had my very last exam, my video on Highertower exploded.
I remember watching it in Youtube analytics, and the point where it reached 12,000 views
in the span of an hour.
By the end of the day, it was sitting at close to 200,000 views.
And I remember thinking what I should do, and if it was right for me to still quit and
move on with life.
And I remember deciding, feck it, I may never have another shot at this.
So I went for it.
I made another video, also on custom maps, and it exploded as well.
And the rest is kind of insane.
My channel exploded, and I found a sizeable community after six years of making videos
that enjoyed what I made.
It was a crazy summer, to say the least.
From that one video and the reception it received, and the following support on from that, I
didn't give up on one of my dreams to entertain people.
And as it rolled on, RTGame became an actual thing in the TF2 community.
I got partnered on Twitch, I got partnered on Discord.
I went to organize the Blapature Co.
Summer Jam, we raised 14 grand for kids.
There's even an item in TF2 from that now, which I actually wrote the description for.
The thing about avocado jam is something I actually wrote, and it's kind of a weird
crazy reminder of what the past year has been.
The reason I'm saying all of this is because I've a personal history with this wacky
map scene now.
And even though the scene is settling, and I myself am moving on to different video formats,
such as the How To Really Play series, the maps still have a special place in my heart.
They, the community surrounding this game, and the support I received last summer – it
all changed my life in a way I never anticipated.
Doing this is my passion in life, and I thought I'd have to give it up before.
I never really got to mention all of this on the channel, to this degree.
But I want to say thank you, to everyone that found out who I was from that one video, who
became a part of the channel.
Who subbed.
Hung out with me on the livestreams.
It's insane.
My life has changed dramatically now.
From that support, I'm now currently living out another dream of mine I had in life – I
freaking moved to Japan for this year.
That's another thing I never thought I'd be able to do.
And now I kinda living over here and still playing games on the internet somehow.
My life's kind of weird when I think about it too much.
But thank you.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you.
Wacky maps, ladies and gentlemen.
Jesus that got freaking heavy at the end, I was just expecting a dumb Highertower variant.
That's where you're wrong.
Because we're pulling out all the stops tonight, ladies and gentlemen, Highertower,
but it's an even Higher Highertower
It's so tall, I can't process this!
The ultimate pinnacle of TF2's mapping prowess, taking literally minutes to copy and paste
the central tower, and to put it on top of the first one.
This is the best thing I've seen.
Daniel, you've done it again, this is the best map.
Lose actual years of your life as you attempt to capture the objective, questioning your
poor life decisions.
I need to spend my time better, and to value what's important.
I love this!
Highertower, the sequel: It's an even higher Highertower.
Coming soon to a cinema near you.
I'm going to be first in line, this changes everything-
Ohh nooo
Oh my God Daniel, I love the custom maps!
Did he say custom maps? He said custom maps!
We have Medics vs. Scouts in the first round.
All these contestants are the best of the crop.
It's going way too quick.
It's barely even keeping on the track.
Nintondo Witch – it's finally back!
Why is there like a Danger: Keep Out sign next to Harry?!
Ohhh it came from the other side!
Wait, no!
What?
Whaaaattt?
We have to honour the memory of Cactus Canyon- the fuck do you think you're doing with
a crossbow?
Oh God you can just catch glimmers of it.
Oh God!
Violence is okay under certain circumstances as we've learned.
"This is the most intense TF2 gameplay I've ever seen."
I mean, this is like a slaughterhouse.
Is the cart also a spire?
Oh no.
The idea was to reproduce each year of TF2's lifespan.
This is base vanilla TF2.
You may notice that no-one has any hats.
That's a lot of projectiles down the corridor!
If anyone played Love and War at launch, this is what it was like.
Everyone get ready to say cheese as time collapses.
You're still here?
It's over.
Go home.
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