Who?

Govert Combée, aka Hoxolotl, aka Paul for the people who have trouble pronouncing the Dutch G without heaving up a lung.

What?

Lead Artist @ Catnip Games Catnip Games Boss @ GLOPOLY Glowing polygon Penningmeester Tkkrlab tkkrlab SFX hardware builder Seven Colonies Whatever really!

Specialities:

• LARP SFX and props
• Game Engines
• 3D (modelling, UV-ing, animating)
• "There is no box" thinking.

User manual

• Do not point at, might result in snapping noises towards finger.
• Complains and grumbles, does this solely for mental excercise, don't take it personally.
• Talks to self when solving problems.
  • Talks to others when solving problems.
    • Thankfully doesn't have that many problems.
• Brain takes (at least) 5 minutes to parse interrupt requests, please wait for conversation mode to engage.

Manifesto

Here is to the builder, the maker of worlds.

To those who want to make a better world, a nicer world. A place where people are allowed to have fun. Where risk is allowed, where one's responsibility is not in the hands of somebody else. Where elbow grease replaces apathy. When taking the time to think through a problem beats watching it. Where apathy and sloth are no longer an excuse for a subobtimal situation. Where consensus is broken in favor of a true solution. Where there are no deadlines to happiness.

For we can build it, we have the tools, we have the information, we have the will. All it takes is a little fun. We who make worlds, we who call these things into being, we are still calling those endaviours games. Augmented reality games, virtual reality, live action role-playing. All places where we can loosen society's bonds for a short while and try a foreign one. Without risks, with little rewards except our own leisure.

These worlds we create are sometimes enriched with truth about our own. Situations made clearer by their framing. We can try for perfection, for utopia. Scenarios can be run through to create a perfect society.

Then we could use those small parts of artificial reality, and bring them into ours. Merge, combine, make them true. All we need is to try them out, sift them through the game and keep the best parts. Refinement upon refinement will lead to a better world, hopefully to our world.

As fantasy becomes reality, like it did for technology, we should be able to apply the same development for society. We are not talking about utopia, we are talking about product development. Instead of developing a new gadget, we would develop a new world structure.

Of course there will be naysayers, those afraid we will make the wrong decisions. Let those people follow us in their own time. We will welcome them if they choose to join. As we will welcome those who want to leave to try out possible better places. We will not scorn, hate, or envy. We will adapt, change, keep and discard what we think is needed. And what is needed today might be discarded tomorrow.

I invite all world creators to expand their creations to the real world.

For it is a dreamers duty, to make dreams come true.

-Govert Combée AKA Hoxolotl.