I read though Paul Jeffries' article entitled "Why I Hate Fan Games", and I must say in some ways I agree but in MANY I disagree fully. I can only attribute his opinions soley on some sort of bias against klik newbies and their creations.

This article is in many ways a reply to his, but in part also a break down of the few reasons I believe fan games should be acceptable.

As it is, these days, very few active klik community members make fan games. Usually, it's groups of klik newbies (and not so newbies) based out of site forums and chat rooms that create them. As I see it, if it helps to spring board them into the community and later begin developing their own games why not? Everyone was once a newbie and I can come close to guarenteeing that every one of us at SOME point of our newbieness, have thought about making a fan game.

Many of us, members of the klik community, were introduced to klik&play as a tool to make games what WE want. I, for one saw the chance to create Nintendo games the way I want them rather then the way I was forced to play them. I grew out of it in time, but I still occationally think of making fan games if only to improove the graphics of certain games or add a better and more original story line.

That leads me into another point... I agree that when a gamer sits down infront of a klik tool and decides to make a fan game, 9 times out of 10 they don't turn out well and don't do the original game a quarter of the credit they deserve because half the time the newbie users try to make the games funny by adding in elements that simply don't belong or obviously don't have a full grasp of the software they're using.

What if... I mean, what if an experianced kliker sits down at his or her(lol) computer and trully plans out a fan game. What if they trully put effort into it? Paul Jeffries may argue that no effort is ever put into fan games because they're 100% unoriginal. I disagree. If true time is spent ripping graphics (environmental and character), an engine is set up to trully emulate the original, a continuing story line is constructed and honest time is put into the game, would it not still be worth the developer's trouble? If the fan game holds true to the original, then I say any amount of time spent by working on it is well worth it. Especially if the klik user finds making the game to be fun.

We need newbies. If not for them, member after klik member will either "grow out of it", give it up or graduate into higher coding languages leaving klik in the dust. That means extinction, people. Be nice to new guys. Let them do what they like so that they learn. Writing destructive articles like Paul Jeffries' will only drive away the few that surf DC.

It's not a bad thing to create fan games, nor is it a waste of time when done correctly by the right people. Paul Jeffries... if you're so set against fan games then do yourself a favor and don't make any. Leave it up to the newbies you so obviously loathe.