How Horrific - Interview | Nicky

Nicky

What's your favorite character/game/genre of all time?

I would say in games...my favorite character/game has and always will be the Metroid Series/Samus Aran. The game itself has the action elements of shooting bad guys...the perfect balance of adventure finding your next powerups..and the creepy atmosphere. Also there's the mystery of samus aran....she's the coolest character ever!

Do you enjoy mystery and creepy atmospheres more than other types?

Definitely. They engross me in the game more. In fact...most of the games I buy are meant to be "scary"

Are you a screamer? Or fearless?
i am definitely a screamer. i don't scream though...but i do make low guttural grunts when I'm scared! heh. when playing games like resident evil I usually pause every like 2 minutes and go downstairs and talk to my family because it freaks me out!

What types of characters do you enjoy in games?

Well...it's usually the same kind of characters I enjoy in movies or tv or comics....to sum it up in a corny catch phrase "girls who kick ass."

Do you feel that you connect with these "girls who kick ass"?

well connect in that I worship them and wish i could be them...then yeah! i do put them on a sort of pedestal though...so i don't identify with BEING them. Y'know?

Yeah, I kind of picture myself as a sidekick when playing games.

Exactly. Like i could NEVER be like that. I'll just be the "robin"

Is it different playing a female character?

for me it actually is. If it were a Male lead in the resident evil series. I don't think I would have liked them as much as I do

What is it about strong female characters? Does it have to do with the situation in part? Or is it something else?

well for me....females always just look cooler... Doing everything...saying the lines that a hero says

What types of reactions and emotions do you experience playing as or with a character?

fear...anger at losing. sadness if it's an rpg and their love is impossible... Happiness when i'm about to die in an impossible situation and another character saves me

Are there certain kinds of characters that you just can't get into or take seriously? If so, why?

i really don't get into "bad boy" type lead characters

Any particular reasons why?

the whole clint eastwood...which side of the law am i on...type characters. They're usually so self absorbed.

How do you feel about the treatment of female characters in games?

well. sometimes the boobs get a bit out of control and ridiculous...and i HATE when the only thing they animate in detail are the breasts because it's really grotesque... but for the most part...i think female leads in games are pretty well balanced.....they show a more human side usually. if they are "human."

What other types of characteristics do you feel differ from the eyecandy ladies and female leads?

usually the way the story is told...if the part of her being female even plays a role in the story. that's what's so great about metroid... you play the whole game....assuming (at least i did during the first metroid...because that's what all leads were in video games up to that point) that it was a man. and boom...you pass it! and she takes off her helmet and it's green hair everywhere. :p

Shiny moments in video game herstory.

yes yes!

What do you think of the damsel in distress, save the princess storylines?

Well...in the strictest sense...that storyline isn't so much prevalent in video games anymore....it's weird. the princess usually joins your party as some kind of magician or warrior. it's usually the world in peril now. i think gamers got too desensitized to just a single PERSON being in danger.

Where do you think games are headed?

The same old stories have really gotten boring...even the classics usually have crazy plot twists. I think video games will only go further in how they meld "telling the story" with "playing the story." With all the non-linear games out...you're not just propelling the events of the story forward. You're deciding their order and all the effects that has

Okay, one more question. When creating a character, do you give them personal attributes or do you prefer to build them in some other image? What's your ultimate character?

well...i tend to name characters regardless of their gender after my favorite pop stars. so it's usually bjork...or tori...or damon. i feel too egotistical playing games where i name the character after myself. My ultimate character is catwoman. they really need to make a catwoman game, but until they do...then I'd definitely have to say Samus Aran.