And there we are! The 2020 Yearly AARland Year-end AwAARds are complete!
All winners have been announced and they have been added to the first post for posterity (I will add these also to the fAARq post for this when I get the chance as well.) I wish to thank each and every one of you that took the time to vote and offer up our nominations. I am certain that anyone given nomination also thanks you. A project like this does not work without your participation. As I always do, I'd please suggest that in future you would/should link to these voting threads within your own work so we might get the word out as far and wide as possible. That said, we accomplished our goal with near numbers that we've seen in the past three years. Four years in all, and I think these have been a success. But as always, the more voters we have, the more accurate the results will be.
Much as all of these works have done over this past year, the work you have all done for this project is much appreciated and proves that AARland thrives. Especially this past year. We have all been through quite a lot and in very many ways. Some have seen more than others in terms of life impact, but to be sure we have all dealt with things we never expected. That we have AARland to entertain us is a Godsend. I may mention this too often, but I've been a member of this forum for 19 years and followed it even before that. With that said, I may be more proud of our efforts in this past year than any other. For all of those impacted by "the plague", for all of those impacted by all else...I hope this place remains a respite and an outlet to continue our attempts at writing, gaming and general friendship. We all need that. I know I do.
[Sidenote: Most especially I've needed it within this last year. Part of the reason for my lowered profile has to do with death, sadly. Not just COVID related, though it has been there, but also this - we lost my brother-in-law nearly a year ago to this day in a motorcycle accident and my best friend of 35 years died January 3, 2021. My mind has not been on writing as much as I might wish it. Much like the rest of you, I'm sure, I've just attempted to KBO. That this place remains an outlet and circle of friends is a reason I will always be a part of it.]
As to do some fb-fb:
Random thought, and I know I've brought up these bits before, but I also see quite a lot of ballots that are just one or two AARs. I know for myself that going through and hunting down contenders for me can be a bit of a goose chase, so I'd wonder if we couldn't compile a list of some "nominated" AARs from those nominated for WritAAR of the Week, AAR Spotlights or those listed in the various ACAs. Not that it wouldn't prevent write-ins, but would maybe expand responses by working an "easier" accessible way to get cross-pollination.
While I would prefer to see full ballots over 1 or 2 vote ballots, there is little I can do about it other than spend far more time on the project than I have at any given moment. I do recognize that voting here can be daunting, especially trying to remember all that has gone down over the past year and memories are short. That said, those voters we have seen over these past 4 years have done a more than fair job of finding those AARs and writAARs that deserve distinction. No issue at all with a voter considering those various lists (ACAs, WoW, etc.) but I'm not interested or able to offer up a recommendation list. I don't want to impact the voter with something I might deem "important." In truth, that is why I did not vote this year myself - I had not read enough to think I had an informed opinion.
Frankly, the voters already do a great job at giving recommendations in their own votes, and once more, thank you to all that have gone out and attempted to find those works that are worthy of nomination. Part of the process is putting in a little time and work to hunt down these excellent AARs. I know it's not easy, but it is worth it for those given nomination. And while it is a lot of work for me to compile the vote and/or hunt down the links needed and put out these threads, I will trade fullness and completeness over ease every time. The pain is part of the pleasure because I love this place. I'd love to see more cross-pollination, but frankly that comes from the lot of you to get the word out. I do my part by placing threads in each subforum but the fact remains that if one wishes to venture into this area, they will find riches. If they don't, nothing I do will compel them to do so. Years of research (read:activity here) proves it.
End point - read, comment and get involved. It's as simple as that. It takes some work, no doubt. But it's worth it.
* * *
So we've completed 4 years of these awAARds and all told, I think they have been a major success. To be sure, the LP category needs a rethinking and I am now inclined to follow the above advice on such. In future, I will leave it to the voter if they so wish to include them in their respective categories - gameplay, history, etc. If one wishes to place it in graphics, that is fair too. I will try to outline this once more when we begin the process for the 2021 awAARds (which will come, sooner rather than later so start thinking about them now!) I am truly pleased to have seen so many of our membAARs given nomination and wins in this process and I hope that everyone involved has, if nothing else, found something new to read. Maybe even something that prompts you to comment on an AAR. After all...that is the lifeblood of this forum and frankly, the real reason I run these.
So thank you all for your efforts, both at voting and in writing. And hopefully in commenting. Congratulations to all of our winners and nominees and huge kudos to all of you that participated. We are well into 2021 and I promise that the YAYAs will continue. I hope that you will too, so get ready!
