Why do you game?Because it has become a part of me. When I was little, I was home-schooled and had nothing else to do than play video games. Now that I'm out in the real world, going to college for a degree, and actually having a social life now, I find it interesting how much I still play video games. It has become attached to me and it's something I'll never let go. Achieving goals into video games is so satisfying and nothing else I've ever done brings about the satisfaction that a video game can--this could include speed runs, minimal item collecting, or shortcut/glitch-path taking. Thankfully, YouTube has welcomed my latest gaming videos so far and I intend to post more videos of me doing stunts and stuff.
How do you view the culture that surrounds it?I am slightly saddened by the expectations of gamers these days. There are many "hardcore" gamers--or should I say they call themselves hardcore--who play nothing but sports video games, and I think it would be best to expand one's tastes to play more than just your average Madden or NBA Street game.
When it comes to people who don't play video games, I am extremely saddened by their behavior; sometimes insulted even. I don't mean to generalize, but I can't help that those who don't play video games don't understand them, and are thus ignorant to what they are all about. I'm not just saying that they're missing out on a great form of entertainment, but that they can also harm the video game industry. Parents are always assuming that video games are
just for children and chances are they'd purchase anything that looks "appropriate" for their own children. Should the parents purchase something like Halo 3 for an seven year old, it could be harmful on the kid, and it's all because of the ignorant purchase they made. Parents need to be informed about what they're blindly purchasing for their children, otherwise they may be the ones we all have to worry about when they decide to sue Nintendo/Microsoft/Sony/Wal-Mart??? for making their child a raging killer.
Of course, I don't believe that most people aren't harmed that much when playing video games and that violence is just dramatized on the news. However, many non-gamers have fallen into a belief that most of the "teen violence" is being caused by the violent games that teens are playing, and thus have been brainwashed by the media. For example: I'm currently in an education class at my college that's filled with mothers--ranged from the ages of 25-45--and nearly most of them either believe that video games is causing so much violence or that they don't have a clue what they're buying their children. However, we must inform these non-gamers of how isolated this violence truly is, and how playing video games is worth so much more than the risks present.
What was your first game/When did you start gaming?My first game was Super Mario Bros. I was four years old. My very first memory of video games was World 1-4, seeing the gray bricks, the lava on the bottom, and the spinning flames. I saw my parents playing the level and I wanted to give it a shot. After a couple of times of asking to play, they eventually let me play. I've never been the same since.
How long/often have you been part of the competition scene, or is this your first foray into it?As far as competing goes, I've made music for competitions in the past, but for the most part I like to stay away from it and make music on my own time. In relevance to video games, however, I've never been competitive online before. I'm not even so sure if I'll actually be competitive here on this forum, but I know that--without a doubt--I am a huge supporter of what you all are doing here and I respect all of the awesome gamers you have here. I am drawn to "hang out" with awesome gamers, in hopes that I am able to share my story of video games and hear what they have to say about their own story.
With all the games you enjoy, would you consider yourself a pop gamer?I would love to, but I'm starting to realize that what I play isn't just what makes me cool, but rather what I do in the video games. Whether it be beating Resident Evil 4 in less than 2.5 hours, getting all of the achievements in Mega Man 9, or beating Metroid Prime without collecting a single energy tank/missile expansion/power bomb expansion, I feel as though my accomplishments in video games outweigh the games themselves, and I encourage everyone to do the same.
What Systems do you own?Nintendo: GameBoy Pocket, GameBoy Color, GameBoy Advance (first model), DS, NES, SNES, N64, GameCube, Wii.
Sony: PS1, PS2, PSP.
Sega: Genesis/Megadrive.
Microsoft: Windows XP, Xbox 360.
What are your planned gaming purchases for the next season?Sonic Unleashed, Dead Space, Guitar Hero: World Tour, Rock Band 2, Chrono Trigger DS, and so much more that I can't think of off the top of my head.
What games do you intend to compete in?If here, it might just be Sonic Adventure DS, Sonic Adventure 2: BATTLE!, and Sonic 2006 (Xbox 360). They're the only 3D ones that have attracted the most attention from me, and thus I have played them to the point that I feel competitive enough to tackle some challenges.
If anyone has any requests for me to tackle in those three games, please let me know! I have a camcorder and am willing to tackle anything from those three games. :D
Also: In bothering to look through my OCR archive, I couldn't find any tracks bearing Nario or Nick Hagman. Further, I couldn't locate you using OCR's search engine. Would you be able to link me to your works? I'm curious to hear how you hear the history is that Gaming!Sadly, I don't have any official releases at OCR. My music hasn't been accepted by the judges yet, but I'm getting there! I intend on submitting
a Super Metroid remix in the next few months, so we'll see how that goes!
