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The best structure of the week was Putinland, created by Team Vaeron.  This wasn’t so much a build as it was a brilliant masterpiece.  Yeah, I think that wording is more accurate.  Putinland is one of those rarities that transcends an ordinary Minecraft map and becomes pure art.



The genius of Putinland lies not only in the size, detail, and complexity of the map itself, but also in the social satire that it exudes.  Nothing could be more fitting than depicting the Kremlin as a theme park.  Theme parks are lavish retreats designed to make money by enticing the middle and upper class’ need for occasional or outright perpetual exuberance, respectively.



Just as Soviet-era Russia evolved from cold war socialism to a modern day capitalistic machine, it seems all too parallel for the Kremlin to become such a profound symbol of capitalism.  It’s both a joke, and a representation of the harsh reality simultaneously.



And then there’s Putin, standing atop the tallest tower, fighting off fighter planes like King Kong.  A brash, apish creature beating his fists upon his chest, while overlooking the kingdom that he owns and oppresses.  That’s really not too far from reality, folks.



How this map was made is far beyond me.  Though it might have something to do with the long list of contributors.  Putinland was built by 8 people, and frankly I’m surprised it wasn’t built by more.  The tremendous detailing of the Kremlin itself, the precise and unbelievably striking representation of Putin, the exceptional terraforming, and of course the rides and attractions make this not only the best build of the week, but one of the best ever.



I’ve just learned that Putinland may be under siege by a tank/cathedral weapon of mass destruction that was angered to learn that it wasn’t included in this review.  Batten down the hatches, Putin.  This is going to be violent.


'Random tank with a gothic church on it' by Whisper974

The best terraforming of the week was Planet B-512, created by ParkVador.  This map gives us a break from the all too familiar dose of reality we usually see in terraforming.  The icy tundra, the cracked desert, the lush forests, and who can deny the coolness of an active volcano?  While these landscapes are indeed beautiful, and in most cases exceptional, they fail to capture one thing that Planet B-512 executes so well: Creativity.



Planet B-512 is something like a desolate wasteland of a planet, resembling a cross between New Mexico, Mars, and a temperate forest.  Half-buried in the center of the vast terrain, resembling a wad of play-doh thrown hard against a wall, is Earth.  That’s right, our Earth.



This is not only a brilliantly creative idea, but a hard one to execute.  If you’re looking for a storyline buried somewhere in here, there is only one scenario I can possibly surmise.  I guess at some point Earth was shaken loose from its gravitational path around the sun, and then hurled violently at another planet in another solar system.  I can only assume that the inhabitants of both Earth and Planet B-512 perished in the collision.  What a shame; if only Bruce Willis had been there.



Nevertheless, the result of this interplanetary exchange is a once free moving Earth now buried beneath the sands, like a kid whose mean older brother played a prank on him at the local beach.  This is a concept I like because it’s one I never would have thought of in a million years.  Raw creativity projected directly at someone’s computer screen; PMC needs more projects like this one.

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The best organic work of the week was NAMTARU, created by Craftological.  It was apparently based on a soon-to-be video game character.  Despite the fact that this isn’t an entirely novel concept, well, I really don’t care.  It’s so awesome, I don’t care that it’s not original.  Sue me.



Quite frankly, this may be the coolest thing I’ve ever seen on PMC.  It’s definitely up there.  Basically, what we’ve got here is what I can only describe as a half human, half spider mutant hybrid, complete with all the essential weaponry.  You’ve got fangs, claws, three heads, six legs, cleavage, pustules and everything a human-spider hybrid would need in an everyday situation.  Well, not everyday, but you get what I’m saying.



Combine that with one of the most amazing renders I’ve ever had the privilege of seeing (courtesy of MrFluffyCakes), and you’ve got the best organic project of the week.  Case closed.



And that’s saying a lot considering that this week there were butterfly cobras, demon wolf spirits, and dragons galore flying around.  Doesn’t matter.  Namtaru would kill and eat them all, without question.

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There you have it!  I hope you enjoyed the first installment of 'Week in Review'.  If you liked this review, please consider tossing me a diamond, and don't forget to give diamonds to this week's winners as well!  I'm going to include a list of qualifiers below.  See you guys next week!

-Gray Remnant