Discovery
I discovered Ark: Survival Evolved while listening to a relatively new podcast that was focused on World of Warcraft. That podcast was Chics That Click, hosted by Esmerelda Sky and Jaygurrl. Esmeralda had purchased the game after watching a hilarious YouTube video. As the episodes were pushed out, I practically begged her via Twitter for more stories from the Ark. What more could you want, a great host telling hilarious stories about DINOSAURS chasing and devouring her, her meeting up with a friend wearing "pornstar glasses" on his tricked out raft and her crawling on her belly without knowing it.
After a few weeks I could stand it no longer, I NEEDED to join her and her pals on this amazing game, then I found out that they had started their own private server, away from any form of PvP. I purchased the game from my phone, right there at work... Without checking hardware requirements.
It took a full 3 days to download and install on my parents' 100KB/s internet, my only concern was that the temporarily boosted 20x rate Esmerelda (ESME as I referred to her then) had advertised would end even before I could log in, let alone have enough time to catch up and not get left behind in what they considered old content (safe to say I'd been playing World of Warcraft for years and didn't fully understand the idea of a sandbox game).
Growth
Within a few short weeks, the group, headed by ESME, began recording the only podcast exclusively about Ark: Survival Evolved at that time (that would go beyond 3 episodes anyways). The host count grew swiftly in the early days to include many of the names you think of today when you think of Rated Ark. There was ESME, Luminin, Sity, Rocket, Kole and Turk to start, Goon (one of my coworkers, who took a [permanent] break from WoW and joined me on TheIsland to build the now fabled Cereal Box) joined before long. Then along came FoeRender and LeeHarvey, followed by Felloon. Things shifted, the group grew and evolved and the hosts began to rotate between episodes.
After a few months the group had really started to shape up, new members flooded in, the podcast was growing in popularity exponentially and the family dynamics really started to set in. The once small gaming group swelled, and so Cross Realm Rebellion really began to feel like a community of gamers from all imaginable backgrounds, experience levels, ages and cultures.
Upgrades
I purchased a new computer, which opened up an entirely new view of the world that I had thought that I knew so well. It seemed like everyone began looking into better headsets, better mics and the quality of the podcast was increased due to the diligence and care we all shared.
The group continued to grow together, to learn together and to share what we could through the podcast. A fact that remains a constant to this very day. We're proud of our Cross Realm Rebellion in the same sense that you are proud to be a member of your family. We care for one another, we tease one another and maybe, occasionally, "accidentally" kill one another, or not so accidentally if it leads to a good screenshot!
That's the story of how I came to reside here in CRR as well as the early days of Rated Ark from my point of view. Thanks for reading, listening and oh! Have a flower! 🌸
~Luminin
