Come to The Darker Side. We have cookies...

First of all, I was thinking to invent a past for the present. But I didn’t need that for the Hattrick Master finalist. Words are useless, no need for extra presentations.

Darth_Hansen (552648) answered straight when I asked him what’s the weather forecast for tonight: d a r k.

The light doesn't always mean good, just as the dark doesn't always mean bad, so I thought it’s worth asking him a few more questions. It's already known that he uses to tell you simple things in a confused way in such a fashion as to make you think the confusion is your own fault. But that's why we all love Darth_Hansen, don't we? Let’s just read the answers first. ;)

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Zorbas: One quarter final, one semifinal and one final in Hattrick Masters for The Darker Side (552648). Am I wrong or the trophy is getting closer to you?

Darth_Hansen: You’re wrong (I can’t believe I find myself starting this interview by using a Catalyst2950 catchphrase…). I think the entire HM setup is a joke in its current form. There are so many things wrong with it that I can’t even be bothered to list them here – most of which could be easily fixed if the HT’s just gave the competition a bit of attention.

As it is, you can’t really ‘win’ HM. The community will inevitably see you either as an example of what is wrong with the game in terms of money-hoarding, day-trading, and kamikaze cup runs, or as a poster-boy for the people who think there is too much random/variance in HT. Until they change HM to a competition which is actually worth winning, I will hence continue to see HM purely as a money-making vehicle, which is also why I always play it using just my regular squad of players.



Zorbas: How did you plan for the HM final?

Darth_Hansen: I used pretty much the same approach as I used to for the National Team: (3789).

Zorbas: Why didn't you just equip your players with lightsabres?

Darth_Hansen: Who says I didn't?



Zorbas: The lack of injuries, but nevermind that. You seem to be a very mysterious person when it comes about yourself in real life. If I came to your home and looked in your room, what would I find?

Darth_Hansen: [breathing effect] I take my mask off for no man. [/breathing effect]



Zorbas: You’re playing the game for quite long now, almost everyone here is envying your prize shelf, loads of trophies are shining out there. What is your basic HT philosophy (apart from that black magic people are talking about :D)?

Darth_Hansen: Let’s just say that I find lots of people are confusing the means with the end in this game. Having a salary efficient squad for the sake of salary efficiency is a good example. Join the Dark Side, and I might tell you more…. Go on. You know you want to.



Zorbas: Let’s say your application for a team in HT has just been approved today. Would you go the same way you did or would you change something in your strategy? Is it harder nowadays to reach the top than it was a few years ago, after all these changes in HT?

Darth_Hansen: I think you are asking the wrong question. If I came across HT today as a potential new user today, it is pretty unlikely that I would actually even bother signing up, let alone sticking around for more than a few weeks if I did – and that, right there, is the main problem facing the developers at the moment.

Otherwise, I made the same newbie errors as everybody else when I first started out, and also wasted a couple of seasons messing around with making my squad as ‘Evil’ as possible. I still think starting out that way is actually more enjoyable than reading all the newbie guides or getting a mentor who will basically run the team for you, so it becomes a carbon copy of everybody else’s. Where’s the fun in that?

Whilst HT is still a very basic game, it has increased in complexity in recent years. If anything, however, this has surely made it easier rather than harder to make it to the top as a new user, compared to the early days of the game where virtually all teams were run along identical train, sell, rinse, and repeat lines, which basically made the amount of time you had had your team the only true differentiator.



Zorbas: Let’s talk fairy tales. “Once upon a time in Sweden there were 16 teams and every night at 00.30 the website used to close to perform all updates, complete transfers and play matches. When the website opened again in the morning the 16 princes were able to see their match results…”. From your point of view, how would you describe the way HT evolved and what do you think about its future?

Darth_Hansen: If I had to continue that fairy tale, I am not sure it would manage to obtain a PG 13 rating, and hence be appropriate for HT Press… It would probably contain at least one chapter dedicated to how the evil (*) Lord Flame from the mythical fiefdom of Ron – a place known to be impervious to logic – managed to put a spell on the princes which cast the kingdom of HT into a 100 years of darkness (*).

(*) but not in a good way….



Zorbas: Has there been any HT highlights so far that stand out in your memory, a specific moment, a special match, a challenging dialogue you will never forget?

Darth_Hansen: I offhand can't think of anything which stands out in a major way, but there has been lots of like little moments, such as managing to get elected as the South African NT coach with speeches like these: (13268730.1), (13962705.1).



Zorbas: What was the funniest thing you have ever experienced in HT?

Darth_Hansen: Funny? Certainly not. Hattrick is serious business…



Zorbas: Sometimes questions are more important than answers. So this is where you're asking yourself a question and – of course – you’re answering it. ;)

Darth_Hansen: What is this? Jeopardy?



Zorbas: Thank you for your time, it’s been a pleasant experience talking to you and I wish you best of luck, both in HT and RL. If you have anything more to say, do not miss the moment, shoot it out.

Darth_Hansen: Yes. I would like to take this opportunity to once and for all dispel the rumor that HT is really controlled behind the scenes by a secret society known as the Wingluminati. It isn’t. Trust me.

Link directly to this article (HT-ML, for the forum): [ArticleID=14018]