The Top 15 Board 8 Users of 2006

'by. Vlado:'''

15. maplejet
Mapes is a user who has been here a while before I first arrived, and had had a bad reputation before that period. However, he had already changed by SC2004, when I joined this board, and I have never seen him do anything particularly wrong, which is why I always wonder how the heck he has some people on his case almost constantly.

I have, however, seen the awesome projects he runs on the board. And 2006 was an awesome year for them. Best Character Period is a simply brilliant idea, it's interesting to see how video game characters (save for a select few) get completely whooped by characters from other genres. There isn't a single huge favourite in his contest, though there are several characters who always perform very well, and are almost universally liked on the board. His latest BCP was kind of a disappointment for him, as he didn't get the vote totals he desired, but it was understandable, as he wasn't around much and couldn't bump his topics enough. I sincerely hope he does run another BCP soon, next time I'm sure the participation would be bigger.

Of course, while his best, BCP is not the only project he runs. There are also Save my Female Character, which also extends to all genres of fiction, and the Board 8 Top 100 Bands and TV Shows. One of the latest cool things he did was rating YouTube music videos, which got quite a few people to see some videos they hadn't seen before. And he kept at it, though there were literally hundreds of videos for him to rate. His perseverance is commendable. Mapes also loves YTMND, and has linked the board to many, many hilarious YTMNDs. He claims it's been in a decline lately, so I guess he doesn't enjoy it as much as he used to, but we all know that YTMND has and surely will have its moments.

All in all, maplejet is an awesome user who did a lot for the board in 2006. In my humble opinion, he's perfect to open this list with.

14. FigureOfSpeech
Now, a bunch of you are probably saying "Who?" right now, but, well, it seems you just haven't been paying good enough attention if you don't know this man. FigureOfSpeech is easily the best "newcomer" (as a matter of fact, he's told me he's been around before, so he's really just returning) to the board in 2006, and I'll tell you why in short.

I'm not sure when exactly FigureOfSpeech joined, I think it was sometime during the series contest. But he managed to catch my attention immediately with his wit and intelligence. In a board where far too many people take things too seriously (and maybe I am one of them >_>), he immediately brought some much necessary humour, entertaining the users with some truly golden posts.

It's really no wonder FigureOfSpeech was the first user to have won three VAPEs. Even until now, just sephsblade has managed to do that in addition to him. The post of his that won him his first one on August 31st was what really made me remember his name. Soon after, I saw him contribute to other topics with his opinion, noticing that he was quite level-headed and would usually say things that matter, as opposed to the tons of pointless blabber we read on this board every day. That further strengthened my liking of him.

And finally, a fact that I believe not many are aware of. FigureOfSpeech is currently working on "Chaotic Worlds" - yet another Board 8 RPG. Up until this point, Smurf's "Rising Stream" is the only one of those that's actually been finished, but I think that FigureOfSpeech's project is one of the two that could actually become the second. Not many notice that, but he often posts updates on how the work on the game is going, as well as gameplay screenshots. It's made evident that he has impressive knowledge of the board and its antics, and "Chaotic Worlds" is definitely a game I would love to play, if it ever gets completed.

http://www.board8wiki.com/VAPE - here you can read all three of FigureOfSpeech's posts that have won a VAPE so far. I believe you won't be disappointed. As you saw, though, they're just a small part of what's made me choose him as one of the best 15 users on this board in 2006.

13. Sir Chris
Sir Chris has always played the arrogant gimmick, but, well, I can't say that's a bad thing at all. Sure, he's been harsh on people many times, me included, but I've never really taken it to heart, and he's given me useful advice sometimes. Even when he flames others, I don't think he really has bad intentions.

2006 has been a fun year for him. Of course, the first event that comes to mind is him refusing to close his account after losing a bet over Solid Snake/Mega Man. I wonder how the hell he even took that one, the writing was on the wall for a Snake victory. Either way, that failure isn't nearly as big as Heroic Mario's, who thought Ganondorf would actually win 2 matches, one of which against Sonic. It was namely Sir Chris who caused HM to close his account (sadly, the much better one, Tatsumaki Senpuu, went with it, too) over Ganon's logical defeat, after causing yoblazer33 to close his over the Mega Man/Mario Kart match in the series contest.

And so, we come to the day after Mega Man's elimination, where Chris made an awesome heel impression, telling people he wouldn't close his account. Everyone bought it, of course, and it's still arguable whether he initially planned on doing this or was actually for real and was persuaded to close his account later. Naturally, he claims the former, and I won't argue with that, as that's not the purpose of this. Either way, it was one of the most memorable events on the board last year and I liked it, as it was controversy caused by something actually fun, rather than the usual bull****. And one has to give it to him, Chris played his role perfectly. After the smoke cleared, he had to start posting under the name of DQ5 Hero and give up on his old alias, but I'd say it was worth it.

Chris' contributions to the board in 2006, of course, don't end with that. I would like to mention his awesome project - the Board 8 diary where he told people about how his day went. Of course, there were also many other projects Chris started, but gave up on quickly, like a fiction parody with users playing bigger or smaller roles, many "Sir Chris rates/talks about the users" topics, the Zune giveaway contest and such. Starting something and failing to finish it is a trademark of Chris', but that didn't make him any less valuable to the board in 2006.

12. PhantomLink
Another user that is surely unknown to most of you, PhantomLink is really one of the coolest and most agreeable guys around. He's one of the people who manage to make the board a much better place while staying comfortably out of the spotlight. You'll see a few more such people on this list.

Probably very few people here know this, but PhantomLink recently won the Board Brother contest, which lasted for like 2 months and was quite the tense and entertaining project. He managed to beat me in the final by 4 votes to 3, but I must say that he was one of the few participant who I'd have felt absolutely no regret losing to. Throughout the competition, he remained honest and true to his beliefs (unlike certain other people), and that was a major reason as to why he won it. This competition was where I got to know PhantomLink, and I must say that meeting him was one of my biggest gains from it, if not the biggest.

Near the end of the year, PhantomLink started an amazing project which definitely made the board a considerably more fun place. At least for the wrestling fans. Board 8 Wrestling is his wrestling fed, with the wrestlers created and the matches ran in No Mercy, much like Dr Pizza's Board 8 Baseball. Being a major wrestling fan myself, I can't say I wasn't intrigued with this idea, I welcomed it with open arms. While I'm still yet to create a wrestler and actually participate, as I want to use the vast customisation capabilities of No Mercy to their fullest, and I haven't found the time to boot up the game and create my entry yet, I must say that B8W is one of the best ideas to have been introduced to this board in 2006.

11. ExThaNemesis
User of the Year in 2005, ExTha stayed consistent in 2006 and proved that he's one of the most valuable users our board has ever had. A truly likable person, ExTha has a very important quality, which has made me respect him a whole lot - he's the one who drives things, not vice versa. He's never let the opinions of the board as a whole affect him in any way. There was a period when Sephiroth was among the most disliked characters on the board, but ExTha didn't care. He kept loving his favourite character and nothing could change that. He shines a lot in the way he treats people - he would be nice to you and ready to be your friend even if you're mistreated by others, even if his other friends are among those others. ExTha is straightforward and honest, which can't help making a good impression.

One of the best things he's been known for is randomly RKOing people, and was that quite the fad on the board early last year. Sure, it pretty much died down later, but we still have Mapes trying to own ExTha with his own finisher in trap topics. Which brings me to the next point - wrestling. ExTha is one of the dedicated fans on the board, along with a few others. ExTha is also a football fan who enjoyed the World Cup, quite a bit. It was a pleasure to have my favourite team, Italy, face his favourite, France, in the final. Italy winning made that even better. :P

2006 was also the year when we got to know more about ExTha's personal struggles. We had the hugely entertaining Bear topic, which, admittedly, attracted most people with its sheer shock value, but later, we also had the topic where he talked about his feelings towards the girl he loves, and how he was planning to do whatever it took to stay together with her, despite the circumstances taking a bad turn concerning their future. It was one of the most touching things I had read on the board last year, and I really hope that he finds a good solution and things turn out in the best way possible for him.

This is, of course, just a small part of what could be said about ExTha. While lacking in big projects or anything like that, he's one of the people who's always made the overall atmosphere on the board much better. 2006 was no exception.

10. CycloReaper
There's hardly a more kind-hearted person on the board than Cyclo... And I have been around a while, and seen many people post here. Cyclo is EASILY one of the most under-appreciated people on board 8. I don't really get the chance to talk to him much, but when I have, my impression that he's a really nice guy has only been confirmed. Having his own share of problems in life, he's still always there to help whenever anyone needs him.

A lot of people give Cyclo a hard time for being one of the few Sony supporters around, but they're completely wrong. I know I often tend to look down on Sony haters, Cyclo doesn't even do that. He simply explains to people where they're wrong and why what they're doing is ridiculous without even sounding condescending like I do, despite knowing how misguided they are. Yet, many people still dislike him just for being a Sony fan. That's just not right and tells you a lot about how blind some people on this board can be. Luckily, the vast majority recognise how cool Cyclo really is.

Much like ExTha, Cyclo isn't so much about running big projects or anything like that, but rather, he adds to the atmosphere and just increases the overall intelligence on the board by a good deal. Even though he has difficulties in his life, he never lets that get to him and treats others in the way they want to be treated. That means a whole lot on this board, because I've seen so few here practice it. Someone like Cyclo is a treasure at a board where JP fat jokes are still considered funny by most.

9. ZenOfThunder
Zen is one of the relatively new people, having arrived to the board in 2005 (or at least I don't remember seeing him around before that). However, he's made an impact quite quickly, and is easily one of the best liked people currently, and despite all that, he hasn't become an elitist who looks down on others, like some others have once they got recognition on our board. Zen's respectful behaviour towards everyone else is something that simply drew me to him, and he quickly became one of the people I'm most fond of here, without us even having communicated all that much.

Much like the previous two, Zen isn't one to run massive projects or something like that. Adding to the atmosphere with his awesomeness is what he does best. He's shown his talent on numerous occasions, though, and one that really stands out is the write-up of his, part of the Contest Fanfiction Project, that won him a VAPE in August ( http://www.board8wiki.com/VAPE#August_28.2C_2006 ). It was an awesome little story that proved that he's capable of quite a bit in entertaining others.

In 2006, Zen was also quite involved with Kosmo Radio, and he's the only board 8'er (that I know of, at least), who's ever introduced us to a parent of his. Zen's father was introduced to the board through Kosmo Radio and appeared to be a pretty cool person, much like his son. People took a liking in him just as quickly as they did in Zen.

Another truly entertaining thing he's done is giving out fishysticks for posts he likes. Sure, it seems silly at first, and sure, it's just a picture, but it's a nice and simple way to recognise others' good posts and, no doubt, everyone who's ever gotten a fishystick has felt nice to receive one. Recently, he's introduced the failsticks, basically an inverted picture of the Fishystick Captain, which he gives out for terrible posts. I must say that I chuckled when I saw him giving one to a posts that had a link to something disgusting or something like that.

All in all, much like the other two, Zen added a lot to the board in 2006 even just with his presence. A truly respectful person who has great moral values and will be your friend without asking for anything in return - that is Zen.

8. DSRage
I remember DSRage from the time when he first appeared. He took a user contest too seriously or something, and a lot of the board 8'ers treated him badly in turn. I really saw no good reason for that, as with most people who get mistreated on the board, and when the guy contacted me on AIM, I simply talked to him casually and found out that he was a pretty cool person. Later, we'd talk more and more, and while today he's made much more friends and we don't talk as often, I still consider him one of my best friends on the board.

But enough about our personal relationship. DSRage has definitely done a lot for the board in 2006. Throughout the year, he's run various interesting projects, and, sure enough, they earned him a lot of recognition. The most fun was easily the DS Giveaway Contest, which I got pretty far into, but sadly, it ultimately fell apart. I still consider that to be the best thing he's ever done for the board, even though he didn't actually send out the DS at the end. The prize didn't matter as much to me - it was the sheer fun I had with the various challenges. Sometimes it'd even require strategical alliances, and through that I met a couple more cool newcomers to the board, which were also participating in the competition.

Of course, I couldn't not mention also DSRage's RPG, named Saints of Crisis. It featured a lot of board 8'ers, and, while it died down when its length was still just 20-30 minutes, I have to give it to DSRage for making it pretty interesting for the short playtime it had in itself. He also seemed REALLY determined to finish it before and, while now it seems impossible, at one point I really believed he actually had it in him to finish it. Unfortunately, things turned out differently.

The last few months of the year weren't as stellar for DSRage, the only truly notable project being his current 1024 contest, but still, in the whole of 2006, he did much more for the board than approximately 99% of the other people posting here. Like PhantomLink, he was also in the Board Brother competition with me, and tried to use some Eddie Guerrero (RIP) tactics to win, but I managed to read him and swiftly put an end to that. :P

7. Holy Excalibur
Here we go. Another entry that I bet very few people will recognise. Holy Excalibur, however, has proven through and through that he's one of the most valuable people on our board. He's one to very rarely get involved in drama and that's a big reason as to why so few know his name. The ONLY thing he may be recognised for is his incredible project that I consider by FAR the best long-running project on the board - namely, the Board 8 Top 100.

Just one talk to the guy on AIM would show you, however, that he's a truly interesting person. His intelligence is a good deal above that of his peers, and he's a great friend. I first noticed him when he made a topic on the now-dead Tombolo board sharing his concerns about the girl he's in love with and his natural nervousness about getting to know her family. He said that he didn't post that topic on board 8 because he was afraid people wouldn't take it seriously, and who could blame him? Through that topic, I found out that we had had an awesome person posting on our board without me even having noticed him. Later, we started talking on AIM and the rest is history.

One would argue that Holy Excalibur doesn't do that much for the board, and one would definitely appear right at first sight. However, that's simply not the case. Holy Excalibur contributes a lot with his love for tri-Ace and great knowledge in more obscure RPGs. He's helped people playing through his favourite games many times, and he's definitely earned respect for that.

Two major projects that he's done on the board are the Board 8 Ladder, where people would play various games and post their scores, then get ranked in accordance to them, and the Board 8 RPG which he's working on. That's the second of the two Board 8 RPGs in progress that I actually believe can be finished, as the guys behind them are determined enough to do that (the other having been FigureOfSpeech's, as I have already mentioned). Holy Excalibur's RPG has a really awesome story that a lot of the people here would like. I certainly hope he manages to finish it eventually.

But of course, as I already mentioned, his Board 8 Top 100 project, that is already in its fourth edition, is the biggest thing he's done for us. And it's so big, even if I disregarded everything else, it'd be enough to earn him a high spot on my list. The Board 8 Top 100 is run every 6 months and keeps people here up to date with the board taste in characters and games, and we've already had three editions of it, the fourth one being in progress as we speak.

The format it's run in is really unique and awesome, as it eliminates the unpleasant possibility of anti-voting - people provide their top 20 lists, then a couple more rounds follow, where characters/games can earn more points in various ways, but still mostly through top X lists, this time by genre, generation, system, or another way Holy Excalibur comes up with. This project has shown that the board's taste is much, much better than it would initially appear. Winners so far are Magus - twice, Cloud and Solid Snake, for the characters, and Final Fantasy VII - thrice, for the games. The fourth installment of the Board 8 Top 100 Games is running right now and you can vote in it in these two topics:

http://boards.gamefaqs.com/gfaqs/genmessage.php?board=8&topic=32777951

http://boards.gamefaqs.com/gfaqs/genmessage.php?board=8&topic=32777951

6. sephsblade
One just can't not like sephsblade. Unless you don't know him. He's one of the people around here with the most positive thinking. And his wit and intelligence are unquestionable, especially if you are familiar with the project that has brought him not one, not two, but a whole three VAPEs! But, of course, his contributions to the board don't end there.

Sephsblade is one of the hardcore 2D Fighting game fans, which are so few on this board, it saddens me. That's why every single member of that small community is quite important and memorable. They all know each other and we've seen several online tournaments between them, with SythaWarrior proving that he's better than the others, most often. Sephsblade isn't quite as good as 2D Fighters as Sytha, but that doesn't make him any less important to that small and awesome community. If I could, I'd have included every single member of it in my list, and even now we have 2 people, PhantomLink being the other. So, I think the FG people here can be proud with sephsblade's position, as him being a part of their community is a major part as to why he's here.

It's no secret that the main thing that helped sephsblade place so high on my list is his Terry Bogard's Contest Analysis project. It was easily the most entertaining board project we've had in 2006, it made me laugh many, many times, and, as I already mentioned, it won the guy three VAPEs. Starting greatly, with tons of Terry's Engrish and many hilarious pictures, it stuck to the formula and added to it - later Mai, Dan and Chipp joined Terry in analysing the Character Battle V matches, and were they worthy additions, or what! Seph's work on this was truly brilliant, and is a big proof that some really talented people post on our board. He definitely deserves more recognition than what he gets, sadly, the loyal followers of Terry's analysis were not more than 10-15, while it deserved much more.

Lately, we've also had "Terry Bogard answers questions asked by the users", a cute spin-off, which, sadly, purged, but was quite entertaining in the little time that it lasted. Terry's Engrish just never gets old. Especially to those who are familiar with him from the Fatal Fury and King of Fighters pieces of brilliance from SNK. To both those who do and don't know Terry, I'm sure you'd have a nice time with this little flash video:

http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/337653

I believe it was sephsblade who first showed it to me. As for the parts of Terry Bogard's Contest Analysis that won VAPEs, well, you already know they're archived on the VAPE page of the Board 8 Wiki. Well, anyway, to finish this up, sephsblade is awesome, and in 2006 he definitely let more people know of that fact.

5. Zachnorn
It's unbelievable how much Zach has done for the board in so little time. He arrived during the summer contest in 2005 and I can easily say that he has singlehandedly changed board 8 quite a bit. Of course, "overrated" is the first word that one associates with him. Not because he is, mind you, if anything, he's UNDERrated, but rather, because of what he's known most for - ranting on why things are overrated. His rants are easily one of the most entertaining ideas to have appeared on the board in the last 2 years, and while they went from daily to a more scarce schedule in 2006, they are still as awesome as ever. Their formulaic essence is probably one of the funniest things about them.

In 2006, Zach also implemented an awesome idea that had never been done before on the board - broadcasting himself playing games through a webcam. So simple, yet so brilliant, this project of his quickly gained a hardcore following, and people saw him play games like OoT and TP, among others. It was really entertaining seeing someone play and chatting with others while doing it, and this is an innovation that many tried to follow, but no-one executed quite as perfectly as Zach originally did.

And last but not least, Zach is the creator of the Board 8 Wiki, an invaluable resource of information for our board, something that was really needed to identify us in the GameFAQs community. Zach delivered it, and he deserves nothing but praise for it. As questionable as all Ed Bellis lists were, him giving number 1 project of 2006 to the Board 8 Wiki is really something I could hardly argue with. Kudos to Zach for his work on that.

There's another thing that needs to be mentioned about Zach, as project isn't everything that makes a board user awesome. Zach is an example as to how a Nintendo fan should be. Despite being one of the most hardcore Nintendo followers on the board, Zach somehow manages to be respectful towards fans of other game companies - something that's apparently so damn difficult for many other Nintendo fans. I really have great respect for him for acting in such a civil manner, acknowledging that not everyone can have the same opinion and easily accepting that, instead of wasting hours arguing stupidly. Zach is really one of the most mature people on our board, and I wish more people saw things like him.

4. The Raven 2
Much like Holy Excalibur, probably not many will recognise him or connect him to much, but, if you're one of them, allow me to ask you where the hell you've been in the last few years. Seriously... The Raven 2 has been here for years (easily one of the people who have been here the longest) and, while he's never been in the spotlight (which is very often a good thing, actually), he has consistently contributed to the board, making it a more enjoyable place for everyone.

The Raven 2 is one of the people I communicate most often with, and, aside from the usual talks about games and everyday things, we often discuss an old passion of mine, wrestling, and its current state. It's really remarkable how we like pretty much the same wrestlers, my favourite ever Bret Hart being one of his two favourites. Our dislikes for particular wrestlers further bring us together, as there our opinions seem to match even more. Funnily enough, there's a slight physical resemblance between us, too. So yeah, The Raven 2 is easily one of the most dedicated wrestling fans on the board, and it's very entertaining to discuss the current WWE and TNA with him. Cena swallows.

But, let's focus on The Raven 2's contributions to the board, which is what's getting him on this list. He's been running the Board 8 NFL League for the longest time, and, even though I don't follow it, due to lack of interest in American football, I've seen the topics and I must say that he's doing a great job with it. In it, people compete in predicting the results of current NFL games, the winners moving on until the best predictor is crowned the champion. It's a really fascinating competition if American football is your thing, but I can't help recognising it even without being very interested in the sport.

The Raven 2 also runs the Board 8 Game of the Year contest, which takes place in the end of the current and the beginning of the coming year. First, he lets people vote on the Game of each month, and then the winners, the runner-ups for each month, and 8 additional games, as voted by the users, enter a tournament to determine the board's Game of the Year. It's one of the most exciting user-run contests on the board, and, much like Holy Excalibur's "Board 8's Top 100" series, is one of the contests whose results are actually a good representation of the board's opinion, even though, as a tournament, it can't avoid being affected by anti-voting, unlike HE's lists.

In conclusion, if you know The Raven 2, you're already aware that he's one of the most awesome people around. If you don't, though, read this and remember: he is one of the people to pay attention to!

3. Inviso
Aah, Inviso... Has a more fascinating person ever posted on this board? It's really hard for me to write about her, for well-known reasons. But I'll do my best to give an objective view on her odd self.

She's easily one of the most shy people I know... But once you get to know her, you discover many positive qualities, her loyalty, care and rich imagination being just a small part of them. Her wit and intelligence are really evident on the board, and I'm sure all long-timers and most of the new people are aware of them. When you see the way she posts, you can't help but wonder why she keeps those qualities hidden most of the time... But well, it's all up to her. As far as the board goes, she's a brilliant poster and, no doubt, she contributes a lot.

2006 started badly for her. The lie about her picture was exposed by Robazoid (sadly, I was deceived, too, but I just trusted her too much... Should've been more into Japanese models, I guess, as I might've come across that picture eventually), and board-wide chaos ensued. Many people hated her for lying, and specifically for deceiving someone who loved her, but, much like all the drama ever on this board, it died down in a couple days, and Inviso was able to redeem herself within a couple of months, for which she deserves nothing but admiration. She's yet to show us her true picture, but that's due to her self-confidence issues and I wouldn't hold it against her.

So, as I said, later in the year, Inviso was back to her old awesome self. And here we reach the most important point. Inviso has a true gift, which I would HATE to see wasted due to her self-confidence and shyness issues. She is an extraordinary writer, and she proved it once again to the board in 2006, with her Battle Royale 2014 project. It was EASILY the best project on the board last year, MILES ahead of the competition. And no, I don't mean to undermine the other projects, I've already mentioned many awesome ones here. But her Battle Royale was just that damn good, with a lot of violence (which I'm not very fond of, but she's really good at describing), many touching moments, and an extraordinary ending. And those who have read it already know how amazing it is. If you haven't, then allow me to direct you to its topic:

http://boards.gamefaqs.com/gfaqs/genmessage.php?board=8&topic=32334892

You won't regret reading it, trust me.

While more than enough to get her on this list, the Battle Royale wasn't the only important thing she did in 2006. Her "Best. . Character. Ever." series was a really awesome idea, though she gave up on it eventually, which is a shame. Maybe she'll decide to continue it upon reading this. All in all, Inviso is one of the most awesome people here, and while humies actually > furries, her charm and intelligence are impossible to deny.

2. Smurf
And here's another user who, I'm sure, every regular here would admit that belongs on such a list. Smurf was more than just an outstanding user in 2006 - to a great extent, Smurf MADE things happen on this board. Like him or not, one thing can't be denied about him - he contributes a great deal to this place and it would be quite different (and, might I add, worse) without him. From his trolling alts to his much needed topics criticising Nintendo and praising Sony, he's a user that one only needs to spend a day on our board to remember.

It would be hard to list everything Smurf is known for in a single write-up, so I'll stick to just the most notable things that come to mind. Smurf is someone with quite a bit of free time on his hands, as evident by his numerous trolling alts, which have caused a lot of controversy on the board, and made many newbies' board lives worse due to them being blamed of being Smurf alts. From the annoying teenage girl "Viper Vixen", through the pedophile "Internet Warbot", to the Ryoko-obsessed "", Smurf's alts really make one wonder if he doesn't have a multiple personalities disorder.

Many insist that he's not doing a very good job at that, as his alts are rather shallow, and I'm inclined to agree, as none of them could compare to Horatio's "Lady Miaow", but it's beyond doubt that Smurf's alts made the board more entertaining, as a whole. Even if it were through providing target for people to make fun of.

Smurf is also one of the very few users who support Sony and criticise Nintendo - something this board is really lacking. Much like me, he easily gets the Nintendo fans riled up with his topics, as truth hurts, and we're among the few to present the harsh truth to the board. When Nintendo does something stupid, the board quickly turns a blind eye towards it, but Smurf would expose and criticise it, attracting Nintendo fans to try and defend their company's decision and make themselves look like fools in the process. Truly golden moments.

Smurf also often lets the board know about Sony's excellence, something so many people want to pretend isn't there, just because of the thrashing Sony has been giving their favourite company since 1996. Lately he's sold out, bought a Wii and even praised it, but that's okay, I'd buy one too if I had as much money to waste. After all, we're gamers first, and then fans of specific companies. Well, that's true at least for the non-Nitnendo fans.

Another couple of things that must be mentioned here are that Smurf runs the only user contest that matters - User of the Year, which FFDragon deservingly won in 2006, and that he's the one who has created the only Board 8 RPG that's been finished so far - Rising Stream, and he's currently working on its sequel. I'd go into details about those, but that would make this too long, so I'll leave them for another write-up.

Bottom line, Smurf was awesome in 2006, and him being placed as the second best Board 8 user last year was well-deserved.

1. Edouble
Often called also "The Great Edouble", and rightfully so. There's a 99% chance that he can kick your ass at any game you name (that he plays) and there's a 100% chance he knows more than you about video games. Edouble knows how to entertain, too, as everyone who's been around knows really well. With his numerous qualities and an incredible posting excellence, Edouble proved to be the best Board 8 user in 2006.

It's pretty remarkable, isn't it? He couldn't even be called a regular here, though he posts quite often. What he's achieved is definitely impossible for anyone else who makes as few posts on this board on average as he does. But Edouble is Edouble. He has a perfect ratio of great to not-so-great posts, something I can't say about anyone else on this board. Has there ever been anyone else who has made nothing but awesome posts here, or on any board you've visited? For me, the answer is no, and I wouldn't even consider it possible at first. Yet, Edouble somehow does it.

He's the person who has enlightened the board about Alucard's Plan, one of the biggest current cults here, which only keeps growing, as more and more people realise that everything that happens in GameFAQs contests, on the board, or in everyday life, is all part of The Plan! Alucard's name may not have been announced as the winner of any contest yet, but doubt not, all the controversial matches, madness, and eventual outcomes we've seen so far have all been but small links (no pun intended) of that gigantic machine. Edouble is the only one that I know of who has truly been enlightened about it, but there are many, many loyal supporters, and I can proudly say that I am also one of them.

We didn't learn about The Plan in 2006, but last year Edouble was around to spread the knowledge and did his job perfectly. From the shocking Castlevania victory over Halo, through the illusion that it lost to Kingdom Hearts only for Alucard to take over KH's spot on the poll against Metal Gear, to the son of Dracula's apparent loss to Auron, which only led to Auron's destruction later on, Edouble was there to keep the spirit of the Alucard supporters high. To further prove the might of Alucard, Edouble kept not one, not two, but three spots on the Contest Leaderboard during almost half of the last Character Battle.

Edouble also provided news and screens from Alucard's upcoming games, Alucard Kart and Alucard Party 7, information almost impossible to obtain anywhere else. As we well know, those games will feature Konami stars such as Alucard himself, his daddy, Richter, Maria, Simon, and even Reggie and Kurt Angle. Here are some screenshots, which demonstrate the brilliance of those games:

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/97/alucardtimecopylr7pg7.jpg

http://img263.imageshack.us/img263/8756/alucardkartauroncopyeu04ck.jpg

http://img412.imageshack.us/img412/5823/alucardkartplancopyml3yc2.jpg

http://img115.imageshack.us/img115/5130/alucardparty7copydq3.jpg

http://img514.imageshack.us/img514/5349/alucardparty7copyge7wc3.jpg

As you can see, Auron is also in the games, though he doesn't seem to be doing too well, and The Plan itself is a usable item! The anticipation has never been bigger, especially considering that those two will release in limited editions and only a select few will be lucky enough to have them in their hands.

In one of the last brilliant posts that Edouble made last year, he pointed out how The Plan intertwined with the newest Zelda game, proving yet again that there are no boundaries for Alucard's power. I am certain that we'll see Alucard return in this summer's GameFAQs contest, of course, not there to win, or at least not to appear so, but rather, to ensure the perfect flow of The Plan for another year. And then we'll definitely be graced with Edouble's presence on this board again. But 2007 is still mostly ahead of us. 2006 was his.