After a whole year, we are back! (I know, it seems like a habit.) Our second ever blog post is here to introduce some major updates about me, my life, and where we are going next!

Where have I been?

I guess (not even I guess, I know) I owe you all an explanation about that. After my last post, I had set up a calendar and schedule and everything was ready to go for my next big project.

Then the layoffs came. 

I was lucky, at least in the first round. My team was lucky, we were mostly spared from a loss in manpower, but there were other areas, areas that we worked closely with, that got hit hard, and we had to help pick up the pieces. It meant longer days and less time for the things I enjoyed, but I promised myself I would get back to it. I went back to school afterwards to finish my degree in Computer Science, with a job offer lined up after graduation. 

That offer never came. 

I was told they wouldn't be bringing me back. I was told it was the economy, and that it had nothing to do with my performance. It was a nicety in the whole ordeal. Yet, it still stung. This was in March, so if I wanted a job lined up for graduation, I needed to find one fast. I applied and applied and nothing came. I got busy with other work, organizing tournaments, planning events, and many other things to keep my mind off of it. I travelled to Virginia to spend some time with my family, and finally graduated! I even went to Montreal to watch the F1 grand prix and started working on some new tournament software. All of this is to say that life since my last post has changed a lot.

What does this mean for B3?

(side tangent, I hate the abbreviation B3, but its easy to abbreviate lol)

I sat down a couple of weeks ago and realized that I needed some time off, some time to relax and figure out my next goal. I started B3 to make board games, but ultimately it has transformed into a full blown studio to do really whatever I want. Board games are a huge investment, in both time and money, and while I have the time, the lack of solid capital is a big issue. As such, until we can raise enough capital to release Politichaos, we will be focusing on other endeavours. It sucks, and I really want to release this game, but as it stands until we know more about the future of manufacturing and our own financial situation, we need to make the best move possible. 

None of this has anything to do with the title. Explain!

I'm getting there! As some of you may recall from our first post, we focused on 3 branches: game design, consulting and streaming. Its in this third branch where we are beginning our next chapter. I took up streaming as a hobby because I play games a lot and wanted to share some of the ways I play games with the world. I love racing sims but I love analyzing the data from those sims. I love Assassin's Creed because I love the history of the Assassin's. I wanted to show people that you can learn while playing games, and thats what our channel is going to do! 

Overengineered Gaming is all about gaming in a techincal way, by using what we learn in the real world to make our strategies better, or take what we can from the games and apply them to the real world. We wanted to focus on engineering tangential learning, but also don't want to limit ourselves. We use the term overengineered to mean something that is overkill, something that should be simple and make it complex. Its not necessarily a bad thing but it is often used that way. Games can be played and on the surface be easy to understand, but when we step back and try and use our knowledge to get better, that is when we really strive. 

So how does this channel fit into B3?

Quite simply, B3 will act as the parent company of Overengineered Gaming. We will start by incorporating small stuff like our website and blog, and expand to other stuff like selling merch and affiliated goods. We have a vision for B3, but that vision will take a few years to implement. This radical change is the first step, and honestly I wasn't thinking about taking it for at least another year. Instead, we are taking it now because we can and I think that is the ultimate bonus of getting laid off. 

B3 will still run as normal, but we will be updating the website way more often, talking about our behind the scenes work, showing exclusive content and trying to build up this brand through the channel. Similarly, as we expand B3, Overengineered Gaming will also expand to a new scale and scope. 

How can you support?

I want to first preface this by saying that by reading this, you are supporting me! You are giving me the confidence that this plan is going to work! Of course there are other ways you can support me too, namely by getting involved in the channel. You can find it here, and we will also link it to our website properly. Come check out a stream or two, and if you have the means (and I really mean that) send us a sub. Of course by you just checking it out and dropping in its going to be great!

We also have an instagram where you can follow us there. This is where we will be posting a lot of our marketing materials, and major stream updates. 

Finally, we have a youtube channel. It's pretty empty right now, but soon we will be uploading our past streams and edited series.

We are starting a brand new chapter and need all the support we can get, so please support as best you can!