What is 9 to UGC? I am sure the first thing that comes to mind are the 9 stars on the UGC flag. Well if that didn't come to mind first, who cares. It is what I am talking about. Those 9 stars represent 9 names. Those names were BlewByU, Eliminator, Jena_blist, Lonestar, Oldman, Redbeard, Sharkpool, SS2, and Thorn. Those 9 names are the names of the ones who decided it was time to put together a gaming group for friends who wanted nothing more than to have fun. Long before those stars were put on that flag, those 9 laid the foundation to something great. They did not know at the time that what they had started would grow and eventually others would join them on their quest for friendship, fairness and fun.
So I mentioned the stars on the flag. This day, our 9th birthday, is a great day to go over the flag. The UGC flag came to us during our 4th year. I had made a video of our 3rd anniversary and in it had mentioned that the video was dedicated to all those who had ever flown the UGC flag. One problem; we had no flag. Through ideas and discussions, a member named Lynx presented a design that is very near to our current flag. A few tweaks and UGC finally had a flag and I must say that I was very impressed and I am still impressed by it.
Look at it closely. Each part of the flag has a special meaning. I already told you that the 9 stars represented the founding members. Notice the background of the entire flag. It is a map of the world on a circuit board. That symbolizes the connection of UGC through the wonders of the internet.
The two swords symbolizes our committment to be the best. Most of the time we are in combat games and we always strive to be the best warriors online. Those swords reminds us of our desire to be great.
In the center is the globe. With the circuit board we symbolized our connection through the internet. With the globe, we symbolize that no matter where we are from, we are one, we are UGC.
If you notice, there are 3 rings around the globe. Each ring is part of our official motto. The first ring is the interior ring which is yellow. This ring symbolizes fun. This ring is around the globe and is the symbol that all of us are here for the fun. The middle ring symbolizes fairness. This ring connects the inner ring of fun to the outter ring. That outter ring touches each of the 9 stars and that ring symbolizes friendship. For it is friendship that brought the 9 founders together, it is friendship that is connected to fairness that allows us to have fun and it is friendship that encircles our UGC globe and keeps everything intact.
Now you see why I have such a strong attachment to the UGC flag.
This 9th birthday of our gaming community is a day to remember that we have been together for the purpose of friendship, fairness, and fun. We have strived to exemplify the ideals of friendship, fairplay, honesty and hard fought competition. We have had our ups and we have had our downs. Through it all, we can proudly say that after 9 years we are still here and we are still going strong. Although the number 9 brings to mind the 9 stars on the flag, the best way to answer my question of what is 9 to UGC is to look at it this way. 9 is considered less than 10. 10 is considered perfect. A perfect 10. UGC is not perfect, but we can say that we are great. So UGC is a 9; less than perfect but still great none the less.
Happy birthday UGC. Happy birthday to all the members of the United Gamers Coalition.
Game On!
