Quraish

I came across an article by coincidence about the first Real Time strategy game in Arabic, called Quraish. The game is made by a Syrian multimedia and technology company called Afkar Media Productions. Quraish is a 3D real time strategy game about the first 100 years of Islam. The name of the game is based on the name of the chief tribe used to live in Mecca, Saudi Arabia. There is a contradiction between the name of the game with the content of the game, which focus on Islam rather than on a tribe.

According to the makers of the game, it is not about war and conquest, but more to manage and administrator like any real time strategy game of that kind, such as Command & Conquer Generals, or Age of Empires series, or even Red Alert, so no need to explain more how these games are supposed to be played with! The game consists of four campaigns, with more than 30 levels. The player can play the role of Bedouin sheik and “earn your tribe respect”, or command an army “as the only hope of the new born Moslem state, defeat the gathering tribes round your capital and push them back through the burning sands of Arabia”, or simply follow the conquer routs of Muslim heroes and generals like Khaled Ibn Al Waleed and Abu Ubaida Al Jarrah. The game has been made in a way to reflect every detail of each culture each character the players takes; this includes buildings, custom, military and war tactics…etc

The main goal for the makers of this game is to answer questions such as: how Islam and Muslims spread their religion to the different countries? Where they any different from any other military force around history? How did Muslims deal with other cultures, religions and societies they met? It is not only about leading an army to victory, but the game also expands for the player to perform other tasks such as the preservation of water resources, ensure safe trading routes and maintain good economic situation for the tribe or the nation.

The official website of the game is very well designed but it has not been updated since October 2006. However, it seems that the makers of the game and the designers of the website wanted to ensure that anyone from any country in the world can be familiar with the timeline, the characters, the battle names and events, and even with tribes. In addition, there are plenty of information on the way the game was made, with many pictures and screenshots. The game can be played in both Arabic and English (with help of American-Muslims). There is also a discussion forum where people already gave feedback and many offered their help and suggestions to improve the game in many ways.

As usual with discouragement factors in the Arab world, there are two common problems: first is marketing, especially with the advert of seeking international distributors. The other is budgeting, which is also plays a role in improving everything! In addition, I wished there was a kind of a demo can be download from the website, so a portion can be seen of the game and this in itself can be as a marketing tool for the game itself.



The official website is: http://www.quraishgame.com/

Tribute To Nazik Al Mala'ika

The least I can do to commomerate another legend in Iraq's history, here

Bruce Take A Tumble

Bruce Dickinson, the singer from the legendary Iron Maiden taking a tumble onstage while singing Wrathchild. The footage is taken from the Download Festival at the Donington Park, UK on 10 June 2007

This Attack is the Key...

I don't want to sound weird with such a title to this post, but I will start with this question "wasn't everyone expected last year when the dome of the shrines in Samara was bombed that THIS will happen again?". I am not getting old or my memory is betraying me, but I still remember the talk by many people, on the internet and on TV that the same location will be targeted again due to its importance and due to its signifance to the Shiite community in Iraq, which makes it as the igniting spot for an overall secterian violance. Well, it happened again!


The second thing which became so obvious is about the guards: Last time they arrested a number of people including some who were working as guards for the shrine - this time I don't remember how many, but never heard about the conduct of the envistegation! This time again, the sabotage took place from inside the holy shrines, and we hear the same record again of arresting a number of people including guards!

Most of the reactions I read on the internet about the situation and what happened yesterday was described in one word "disgusting"! Will this apply to the event or is it that the situation of the position the Iraqi governement (as the protector and servent of the people) became so disgusting? I am not a military analyst or a political expert, but the attack on the holy shrine took place in Samara, why the curfew on whole Baghdad? Allow me to put the question in different context: why everytime an attack on Samara or Najaf or Karbala or anywhere else a full curfew is imposed on Baghdad? Is this some kind of a show off? or is it a matter of act of desperation?

Some says that it is the gangs of Saddam and al Qaeda who committed this crime, others accused Iran and others the U.S. because this will ensure their control over Iraq - what control do those mean? nothing is under control, ah, they meant ensure that all kinds of chaos remain intact. In either way, whenever I look at the pictures on the internet of the al Askari shrines in Samara without the two minerates I always reach the same conclusion... I am sure many reached the same: The attack proved last time to be the key to a bloody secterian conflict in Iraq, attacking it for the second time will enrich such tragedy.

Coma

One of my relatives is going through coma since yesterday evening. This is the latest news I received today morning from Baghdad. The 70 years old man was ill for sometime now, in the last three days he stopped eating and drinking, and yesterday night he lost his consciousness completely. After receiving this news, my family contacted another close relative, she is considered as the mother of all young and old in the family. She told us that she is planning to go and be with the other family while they are going through this hard time. She asked other relatives about who can drive her to the other family’s house, but no one seems willing to go! The problem is that “no one want to take me there, because the road is too dangerous”!!!!!!!!!

Even show of mercy and solidarity need second thoughts these days in new Iraq!!

Update: He died later in the afternoon!