We remember Reward
On 7th August, Reward (Sami Vanhatalo) passed away, only 47 years young.
I was shocked to hear of this in the many posts paying respects and didn't know how to write an appropriate article here, and yet I felt I had to.
I remember Reward as a graphics artist who set high standards for himself and inspired others, not least Uno. To close friends, he was much more than the graphics artist we admired, of course.
I think he wanted the best of everything in life, and was not ready to leave yet. He talked with me about expensive tastes, attractive women and fast cars. Some of my last conversations with him was about an article for the book "The story of the Commodore Amiga in pixels", in which he is featured.
And Reward was part of that story. We can still appreciate your pixels.
Perhaps his most influential time was when Scoopex Finland raised the stakes and rose through the ranks of demogroups with productions such as Seven Sins, Mental Hangover, and fine crack intros for a barrage of rapid-fire cracks.
But yesterday, Finnish Gold wanted to commemmorate him with a production of its own, with scrolltexts written by his friends in many groups.
Together, we remember you. Rest in peace, Sami.