Well guys, it finally happened.  The Binding of Isaac has now officially claimed my soul.  I've been playing it non-stop for the past couple weeks, and I don't see that changing any time soon.  I literally can't muster the will to stop playing.

Nonetheless, I was able to crank out this week's episode of WiR, barely.  Hope you guys enjoy!  ;)

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The best structure of the week is a clock.  Not just any clock, mind you.  This is a special clock.  It’s called The Eighth Hour, and it was created by goCreative.



Rather than measuring the time of the day, this clock measures something else.  This clock measures the reign of civilization in its entirety.  Each hour head represents a pivotal point in the history of this planet.



At one o’clock, the dinosaurs reign.  Lush jungles and giant theropods dominate the plains of the earth.  At two o’clock that reign ends, and the age of man begins.  By four o’clock, the Roman empire has sprouted, and medieval castles can be seen at five.



At eight o’clock is us.  Us as we are now.  It’s the reason the title of this project is ‘The Eighth Hour’.  That hour is the present, or at least the present as we see it in 2015.  By eight o’clock, the planet has been marked by far-reaching skyscrapers.



As the dial approaches ten o’clock, the buildings become more sophisticated, culminating in what appears to be a space station.  Perhaps this marks the hour that mankind leaves the Earth, in pursuit of new resources.



The last few hours detail calamity and destruction.  A massive aircraft carrier appears to be rundown and decommissioned, surrounded by ashen mountain ranges.  Midnight represents the apocalypse, and the ultimate and inexorable demise of the planet.



But the cyclical nature of this project adds more depth than just that.  It implies that the cycle continues past armageddon.  It implies that once all worldly life is extinguished, the chain of events starts all over again.  Like the dinosaurs, the end of man kicks off the start to a new reign.



The conceptual genius of The Eighth Hour is further augmented by a stunning array of structures, terraforming, and organic work.  Each era has an expertly crafted build style, suitable and historically accurate.



It takes a great depth of knowledge and skill to execute such a wide variety or architecture, which is why having an elite build team helping you along the way is especially helpful.  Combining the raw terraforming ability of Gabersid with the structural and organic techniques of Knuckles527, Florian Funke, corengames, and Necrosys is a foolproof way to create something of this mind-blowing nature.



It’s still too early to speculate on what the best build of the year is, but I’d say this is amongst the top tier.  The Eighth Hour is an example of the peak potential Minecraft can be used to achieve, as long as it’s put into the right hands.

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Remember The City of Gallitzin?  That mega city in WOK that won the structural category last week?  Well, the best terraforming of this week was Highways interchange Clermont-Gallitzin, created by john_sauve.  You see WOK is made up of so many cities, and due to the ultra-realistic nature of said server, there has to be a highway system linking all the cities together.  This is a sample of one such highway.



This isn’t terraforming as usual.  It’s not a landscape dominated by rolling hills or frosty tundra regions.  This is a simple, flat terrain with some trees, rivers, and a mild mountain range.  What’s special about this map is the complex highway system running through it.



The elaborate curves, road markings, and ramps give this map and exceptionally realistic feel.  This honestly looks like something you could find on ‘Google Earth’.  The terrain is simple, yet looks like something you would actually see while driving on a highway.



It’s tremendous to see people on WOK who put so much time and effort into designing the filler space between cities.  It’s a testament to the level of seriousness and professionalism that the builders actively engage in.

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And finally, the best organic work of the week is Panty & Stocking - Angel, created by Divici.  Let me start by saying I don’t watch anime.  I don’t know what this is, or what show it’s referencing.



However, even though I can’t talk knowledgeably about the subject matter, I can talk about something else.  Divici understands human anatomy and pose-ability better than anyone I’ve ever seen on PMC.  Time and time again, he has shown adept skills in creating humanoid figures, and he does it at an enormous scale and with pin-point precision.



This is, without a doubt, art.  The facial features are perfect.  The limbs are scaled well and all the joints bend the right way.  The hair is fluid and has an illusory degree of movement.  And don’t even get me started on the clothing.



These are factors that most people have a difficult time executing.  I rarely see organic figures with facial features that don’t look, at the very least, slightly off.  But here, it couldn’t be any more spot-on.  I also don’t know many people who could create a human hand gripping a fork with the degree of elegance seen here.



As far as Minecraft goes, you can’t sculpt any better than this.  More and more it seems that Minecraft is being put to use doing things that are normally reserved for museums.  It’s work like this that transcends playing a video game and becomes an art form.

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Thanks for stopping by!  I have to go try to beat Hush and Mega Satan on hard mode with The Lost.  My god . . . what have I gotten myself into?  o_o