A Gamers’ Introduction to Tek-Gnostics

This may be before your time, but when I was younger, I spent hours in front of my 486 PC playing classic side-scroller games like Duke-Nukem and Commander Keen. Never mind the productivity “killer apps” of the era, such as word processing and spreadsheets, those old DOS games were the software that sparked my interest in personal computing. Navigating each level, while dispatching enemies… usually by jumping on them… it is hard to believe that those “good ole days” of computing occurred in the last century… my how time flies when yer having fun.

It was back in the 90s when the first glimmerings of what would become Tek-Gnostics began incubating in the form of an art/science project called “The Center for Exploration of Inner Space.” This archaic mimeographed hard-copy zine marked the entry into a brave new world of the electronic alternative underground press. We explored the “inner” landscape of consciousness expansion, using the available tools of the era. These were the days of Smart Drugs, Sound-light Machines and Mondo 2000.

In those days, on-line activity took the form of bulletin board-driven networking on that granddaddy of virtual communities, the Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link… more commonly referred to as The Well. Cyber-punk visions of a digital noosphere, whose landscape was visualized to a great extent by a scrappy young Sci Fi writer, William Gibson. These were the days… the formative days… where Sci Fi became prophecy and our modern era was envisioned, both technologically and philosophically.

Much has come to pass since those early days… miracle and wonder, as well as nightmare. Things haven’t gone down exactly as we had envisioned them, but such is the fractal nature of universe.

Tek-Gnostics continues to be a labor of love, born of those transformative times. Much has evolved since the “Inner Space” days and we continue to have fun with the medium.

In the spirit of those days of yesteryear, Tek-Gnostics Media has produced an old-school platformer game. This is definitely an indie… really a modest, home-made project. We titled this retro-action game: Path of the Tekgnostic. Now you can explore the “inner space” of Tek-Gnostics while you feed your “inner child” at the same time.

“Path of the Tekgnostic” is essentially an adjunct apprenticeship format for the aspiring hedonic engineer & tekgnostic shaman. The systems of Tek-Gnostics become available to pursue within an electronic side-scrolling game environment. The intrepid gamer can now explore a vast virtual world, including the tekgnostic monastery and surrounding grounds... in search of the secrets of Tek-Gnostics.

Pursuing the path of the tekgnostic within an electronic gaming environment is a perfect metaphor for the "Gnostic" world view. Wearing the "mask of the Avatar," you pursue the game within a game... the path of the tekgnostic... within an illusory world that only exists as data, pulsing within an electronic device...

Maya indeed.

Game within a Game

As in a traditional Role Playing Game, you assume the role of the tekgnostic Avatar... the seeker of wisdom... that has made his/her way to the gates of the tekgnostic monastery. As in a traditional platform game, you explore our fanciful world of wonders... and dangers... by jumping from platform to platform, advancing from level to level, navigating the many obstacles and pitfalls that make up the realm of the tekgnostic. Each level holds at it's successful completion one of the eight "inner secrets" that make up the core of the Tek-Gnostics teachings. Each level contains it's own unique series of puzzles, traps and dangers that the intrepid tekgnostic apprentice must overcome in order to proceed to the next level.

You are not alone in your journey, however. Seek out the master of the tekgnostic monastery... Sensei... for advice and assistance in your virtual quest for knowledge. Should Sensei decide to accept you as an apprentice, his advice will be invaluable.

As you advance within the game, new and powerful attributes become available to you... attributes that you will need... as each successive level is more difficult and dangerous than the last.

Currently, a demo of our platform software... "Path of the Tekgnostic - a gamers' introduction to Tek-Gnostics" is available for download. This small title will give the intrepid traveler a taste of the vast world that awaits…

Once you download and launch the program from our Website, you too can embark on the virtual path of the tekgnostic…

Download: Path of the Tekgnostic