Myachi Moms

by Crazy Ivan

Since we've opened up the HQ I've spent less and less time in the city, less and less time at the Myachigon and less and less time meeting the maniacs that make this whole movement move.  That's just one of the negatives that come with sitting in an office all day.  The other big one, of course, is that you're sitting in an office all day.

That's why it means so much to me when fans of the game come all the way out to HQ to see us.  Had exactly such an occasion transpire about an hour and a half ago when one of our dedicated fanatics from Manhattan swung out (through the rain and snow) so he and his mom could check out the center of the Myachi universe.

I come in late on Wednesday's (because of the brawl) so I'd only been here for a half hour when they showed up.  I got an e-mail telling me they would be here today so I brought a few tradables in with me and looked forward to actually getting to be a Myachi Master for a little while.

They hung out for a little over an hour.  We did some trades, they bought a couple of semi-commons, I showed him a few tricks, they met Kid Myach and Pinky and then they took off with big smiles and a bunch of "thank you so much, we had so much fun" and the like.  Of course, we also had a bunch of fun and they gave us money so it really should have been Kid and I thanking them.

But while they were there, I got a chance to talk to mom for a while.  Now I'm not going to embarrass a fan of the game so I won't mention who it was, but his mom was incredibly cool (despite the fact that she referred to Noodles as "Doodles").  She was one of the moms that actually got it; she understood what we were trying to do with Myachi, she saw all the benefits to hand-eye coordination, flexibility, confidence, determination, etc., she saw the community that we were building and the commitment we had to our customers.

I'd love to say that every mom was like that, but that would be dishonest.  I've met a lot of really cool moms that really get the whole Myachi thing, but I've also met a lot of moms who things it's the stupidest thing on earth and look at me like I'm robbing their kids every time they want to buy a Myachi.

In truth, I think most moms start off closer to the last description than the first.  Moms are all about protecting their kids and most of the stuff that people try to sell to their kids is complete junk.  Video games that make them inactive and cost too much, food that's no good for them, toys that break, musicians that don't have any actual musical talent, TV shows that suck, the list goes on and on.  Moms are usually in the default mode of "what garbage are you trying to peddle to my kids?"

But more often than not, once a mom really sees what Myachi is all about, they wind up on our side of the fence.  It's less expensive than most toys, it encourages kids to be active and to work together, it helps with all that athletic stuff I mentioned above and it teaches them the most important lesson you can ever possibly learn (and my personal motto): "There's no such thing as something you can't do, just something you can't do yet."

In the toy industry, you know you've got a good toy if the kids like it.  You know you've got a great toy if the moms like it.

So a personal message to the mom I met today: "It's Noodles, not Doodles or Poodles..."

And another one to her and all the other awesome moms I've met over the past 7 years: Thanks for your support and your kind words.  Until we all start making some money off this thing, you're appreciation is the most valuable thing we've gotten from our business yet.