PHWOnline
| PHWOnline | |
|---|---|
| Web address | |
| Commercial? |
No |
| Type of site |
Webcomics |
| Available in |
English |
| Launched |
2005 |
| Current status |
Defunct |
PHWOnline, originally PHWComics and also shortened to PHW, was a website and online community initially focused on comics created using games, mainly the Half-Life 2 physics-manipulation sandbox modification Garry's Mod, eventually expanding to podcasts and machinima.[1] It was best known for hosting webcomics such as Apostasy, Jeff, Kenny the Cop, Ravenholm Armory and My Last Night in Ravenholm, and for producing the machinima War of the Servers.
History[edit]
Michael "jian" Clements founded PHWComics (phwcomics.co.uk) on January 30, 2005, initially as a website to host his own personal comic series Public Health Warning, but soon adding more authors and comics.[2][3][4] By April 2005, PHWComics had switched domains to phwcomics.com.[3][5]
The first major breakthrough for the website was the addition of James "BrashFink" Brandt's Half-Life 2 online graphic novel Apostasy on April 15, 2005,[5] which brought mainstream attention to PHWComics.[2][4][6][7] Beyond those added officially to the archive, the PHWComics forums saw many more community-made webcomics published over the years.[4]
PHWComics officially became PHWOnline on Christmas 2005,[8] a name change signifying an expansion from just webcomics to also encompass radio (podcasting) and movies (machinima).[3][4] October 2006 saw the last major public redesign of the website and forums by staff member Filipe "StinkyJoe" Dobreira.[4] PHWOnline founder Michael Clements stepped down from the website on its second anniversary, handing over control to Jeff author and staff member Jeff "Clover" Eastman and the remaining staff.[9]
The next major PHWOnline project to be released was the long-gestating Garry's Mod machinima War of the Servers by Robert "Steinmann" Stoneman, which was released on PHW Movies successor Litfuse Films, co-founded by Michael Clements and Robert Stoneman, on June 23, 2007.[4][10]
Due to his attention being diverted to Litfuse, Michael Clements made the decision to replace the PHWOnline website with a page displaying the old website blown up and to disable the forums, with the latter being reversed upon pushback from the community.[11][12] Michael Clements handed over control of the forums to staff member Joseph "Slick" Shea, who remained in charge until the website's dissolution.[4]
By late 2009, a new version of PHWOnline was being worked on by Slick and the PHW staff, although work ceased by late 2010.[4][13]
Notable series[edit]
- Apostasy, by James "BrashFink" Brandt
- Jeff, by Jeff "Clover" Eastman
- Geremy Tibbles, by Robert "Steinmann" Stoneman
- Afro Zombie, by Lode
- Ravenholm Armory, by Waxx
- Kenny the Cop, by Mjolnir82991
- An Honest Living, by Waxx
- My Last Night in Ravenholm, by Richard "Major.Dump" Boisvert
- Worse than Life, by AJ Rimmer
Legacy[edit]
PHWOnline and its series Jeff and Apostasy were referenced by Concerned: The Half-Life and Death of Gordon Frohman, with author Chris Livingston admitting the latter was the reason he decided to do Concerned and calling it the "godfather" of comics created with video games.[14][15][16][17]
Rick Lane of PC Gamer called comics from websites like PHWOnline "wonderful artefacts that highlight the intense creativity that spun up around Half-Life 2 and Garry's Mod".[18]
Many of PHWOnline's webcomics remain available online through Metrocop.net, its spiritual successor.[18]
References[edit]
- ↑ About page (archived)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Staff page (archived)
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The New Member Guide (To the PHW Univserse) (archived)
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5 4.6 4.7 An oral history of PHWOnline
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 PHWComics website on April 19, 2005 (archived)
- ↑ Featured on G4TV's "Attack of the Show"... on BrashFink WebWerx (archived)
- ↑ Attack of the Show! #14: 04-14-2005
- ↑ PHWOnline.com homepage on December 29, 2005 (archived)
- ↑ "2nd PHW Birthday" news post on PHWOnline (archived)
- ↑ Litfuse Films homepage circa June 2007 (archived)
- ↑ PHWOnline homepage on October 18, 2007 (archived)
- ↑ "We Blew Up?!" thread on the PHWOnline forums (archived)
- ↑ PHWOnline's X account
- ↑ Chris Livingston of Concerned, 1Fort on The Irish Gamers (archived)
- ↑ Games + Comics = Gamics on The Globe and Mail (archived)
- ↑ Concerned issue #072
- ↑ The Concerned Interview: James Brandt (archived)
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 This neat website archives over 700 fan-made Half-Life 2 comics at PC Gamer
External links[edit]
PHWOnline (archived)
PHWOnline on Steam
PHWOnline on X- Metrocop.net
- An oral history of PHWOnline on Metrocop.net
