01/02/14 10:48AM By Austin
2013: A Retrospectus
2013 was our second full year in existence, and it has been quite the wild ride for FTW. Nitro Type has gone from our little experiemental product to a full blown powerhouse of a website, complete with it's own vibrant and loyal community: you!
Here's a quick look back at 2013: The Year of the Gold
Wait, what about 2012?
Yes, the previous year was also a monumental year for Nitro Type. If you have not read it, take a look at last year's Retrospectus and see how far we have come. 2012 Retrospectus.
Some Memorable Moments of 2013
- Between events, new achievements, and random new cars, 22 new vehicles were added, including the new categories motorcycles and famous vehicles.
- Our current reigning activity champion @[TP]CarriePirc hit 20,000 and then 30,000 races, being the first to earn the coveted Pirc and Wach 6.
- Top 3 Scoreboard Champions feature added. It sure feels good having that badge next to your name.
- Nitro Type statistics added to the scoreboard, allowing the entire community to watch our growth.
- Our first Summer Event! New cars, new achievements, new track, new music.
- Nitro Type Gold! - This was a big deal here at FTW. Nothing shows you love Nitro Type like upgrading to Gold!
- We brought back the Nitro Type Forums, first for Gold members, and then later for all members over level 40.
- 2013 was the year of the crazy sessions. First, on January 3rd, @Vielle was the first to earn the hidden dual "Emperor"/"Empress" achievements with 1,000 session races. And then just a couple weeks ago @[NTF]Nightmare was the first to earn "Typing Nightmare", with 1,200 session races. And then just for kicks, because perhaps he's clinically insane, Vielle did a 1,500 session race!
- Nitro Type began accepting Bitcoins for Gold membership
- 2013 Xmaxx Event! - Our 2nd annual holiday event was a huge success this year!
- Did I leave anything out??
Make My Monster Grow!!!
2013 was quite the year for growth. Queen Rita would be pleased.
- New Players: 1,157,000 - 3.2x growth over 2012
- Achievements Earned: 13,650,000 - 3.2x growth over 2012
- Cars Purchased: 4,000,000 - Almost 4x growth over 2012
- Friend Connections Made: 6,000,000 - 21x because the list was new in 2012
- Races Completed: 46,214,000!!! - Over 3x growth over 2012.
- Gold Members: 1,602! Thank you all for your support!!!!
Epic Standout Players
No Retrospectus could be complete without pointing out some amazing standout players of 2013
A Quick Shout-out to 2012
- @[TP]CarriePirc - Even with her hordes of alt accounts, Carrie has remained queen of the boards, smashed 20,000 and 30,000 races, achieved Empress, and basically been a necessary staple of our fine community. We don't know what we would do without our Carrie!
- @≾ℕɎ♍≿☾☀★Vielle★☀☽ - Blazing fast, obsessively competitive, excessively outspoken, but always loyal, Vielle is here, pushing limits, challenging everyone, and in general being one crazy guy.
- @F4U-Corsair - Now who doesn't love Corsair? Consistent, friendly, has his own plane named after him (or vice versa?). Always fun to see on the track, and always with a kind word in the News. See him on the track!
Unbelievably Active
- @Lacan - The elusive Lacan. Mystery Man. Medican Student. Swede. Not-a-hacker. Lacan has only been a member since July 2013 and yet has smashed his way through the scoreboards. Truly amazing! Will he take the #1 spot on the Activity boards? Will he have his own car at 40,000? Only time (and carrie) will tell.
- @MidnightHauler - On February 2013, MidnightHauler first appears on the track, quickly becoming a Nitro Type icon. Between securing the #3 active spot, achieving the Wach 6, being the first member to spend $100,000,000, and in general always being around despite receiving many painful glares from the wife, MidnightHauler has definitely earned his spot as an Epic Nitro Typist.
- @Noelzt (noeltz, neoltz, noltzt.. or something) - And then there is the sweet, often mistyped, hard to pronounce, Noelzt of Team ZT. Racing with her son Zumere, steadily smooshing racers on the scoreboards, living the Nightmare with 1,200 session races, and just being an all around pleasure, Noelzt is an energetic yet calming force.
Speed Baby Speed
It can be hard to find fast and active, but we have some outstanding players at Nitro Type
- @{NTF}~✮Tachyon✮ - A top speed of 149 WPM and a Top 10 active racer, Tachyon, as his name suggests, is an impossibly fast particle who spends his days turning my bots to scrap metal!
- @[NTM]333stuip333 - Top speed: 162 WPM. Top 25 active racer. Stuip is inexplicably fast and active, and has earned his spot as a truly Epic Nitro Typist. And no, it is Stu IP, not Stu PID!
- @[NTM]andrew1167 - And last, but certainly not least, our trusty moderator Andrew. Fast as light with a top speed of 146 WPM, #6 on the scoreboard, achiever of all things, and yet so much more. We don't know what we would do without his tireless moderator efforts, keeping Nitro Type a clean and fun environment for everyone. You're the man Andrew!
What Will 2014 Bring?
Oh, who can really say... FTW has begun hiring! Programmers, designers, managers... We will be moving to a larger office space... Expand expand expand! That means a complete rewrite of Nitro Type, including amazingly huge new features. Skins. Multiple dealerships. Completely new garage. Things we have not even hinted at. Just wait and see! Even our sister product TypingWeb is being renamed Typing.com (that's right, typing.com - go ahead, try it)
And as Lacan once said, "See you on the circuit!"