Antmeister
02-28-2008, 02:31 PM
Yay! It is finally here.
Who?
Godzilla Blitz. I used to be around a lot more, sometime after the fall of the Golden Age of FOFC but before it’s present era. I still browse a few times a week.
Did you know that I have not played even half of those games you gave me?
That’s ok, Sachmo, I didn’t play half the games I gave you either.
Can you speak Japanese?
Yes, I’ve been working with the language for a long time. I lived in Japan for a few years. My wife is Japanese.
Are you tempted to name a child Godzookie?
No. I wanted to name our son Testicles (pronounced to rhyme with Sophocles), but my wife was too crafty for me. She nipped that one in the bud.
Who was your favourite in the X-Com dynasties?
The thing that made the X-Com dynasty fun from a creative standpoint was all the extra stuff that people added to their characters. When I think back on the various characters, so many people put time into fleshing out their characters with hilarious comments. I honestly don’t have a favorite, but I really liked the twist that Raven Hawk was able to put on his soldiers. Kodos was also such a key part of the dynasty, especially at the end when I needed someone to help with some of the final episodes. Blade 6119 cracked me up as well. I just couldn’t wait for his character to die and see what he’d do. Good times!
Is X-Com a good game?
I sure liked it, but it’s not for everyone. Its strongest points are probably mood, strategy, variety, and depth. X-Com did some things that I don’t think any game has yet been able to successfully replicate. For example, one thing about the game that a lot of people don’t realize is that the game actually gets brutally hard if you try to powergame your way to victory. So if you continually revert to saved games because you lost some of your best agents in a mission, you’ll actually end up getting a base attack by the aliens much earlier in the game than you can handle it. Brilliant stuff!
Will we ever see a great anti-dynasty again?
Not sure on that one. The Notre Dame dynasty was such fun to do that I’d love to do something similar again, but at the moment I haven’t come across a game and a team that has inspired me yet. The Cowboys and the Yankees are hardly the great evils they were a few years ago. I’d also want it to be something different. The temptation would be that a follow up would be too similar to the old dynasty. With an anti-dynasty, I’m not sure that would be much fun.
Have you ever actually defecated on a Notre Dame helmet? If so, did you take a pic and post it on ratemypoo dot com? What was the rating?
Nope, sorry. I mainly use the toilet. Trying to be a good role model to my kids and such. Offer me money, though, and that might change.
How'd you come with your name? Ever wish you'd thought of another?
Someone found that post from the old thread about names, so I think this one has been answered, but yes, it was completely random. After using different names on a few boards, I figured I’d just keep using that one to make things simple. At times, yes, I do wish I’d picked a different name. Some boards won’t let me register under the “Godzilla” name because, well, it’s kind of already been taken by that big monster, and administrators get touchy about trademarks and such.
How often do you play FOF or TCY these days?
Sadly, I don’t even own the latest version of FOF. I keep telling myself that one day I’ll get back into it, but life has been brutally busy for the past two years. I probably have had enough time to play in spurts, but when I play FOF/TCY or any text sim I tend to get addicted and I don’t have long chunks of time to play now.
Best Godzilla movie made? Worst?
I actually haven’t seen many of them other than the first one and the Matthew Broderick one from a few years ago. I love the first one, though. I watched a lot of them when I was a kid, but they’re all kind of a blur now.
What food could you eat every day for the rest of your life?
Easy: sushi. Love the stuff. Can’t get enough. Any kind, all kinds. Breakfast, morning, and night. Yum!
Back in the day, me and some friends of mine used to attempt what we called "Operation Toastmaker" when playing X-Com. Here are the rules: You take 20 rookies to Mars. Each soldier is armed with a laser pistol and one gernade. Your soldiers can not wear any armor. No vehicles allowed. No saves. Do you think this mission is possible?
Good lord. Depends on the difficulty level, of course. And if you could learn the PSI ratings of the rookies and select accordingly, then that might be possible, but 20 random rookies? On Mars? Offhand I’d say no, but hell, I bet you’d start figuring things out after a while. You’d have to try a lot of crazy things, but I’d bet eventually you could get it. Maybe 1 in 100 tries, though? You ever succeed?
Why hasn't anyone been able to make a squad-level, turn-based PC game better than X-Com?
What a great question. This constantly baffles me. It’s been what, 17 years since X-Com came out, and no one has successfully captured those same elements in a game. So many of the clones leave off essential elements, or just plain screw things up by trying to add more, or make custom levels, etc.
What are the major changes/upgrades you would want for a new X-Com game?
At this point, I’d just love to see an X-COM game that runs easily on newer computers, at decent speed, with sharp graphics.
Other than Godzilla himself, who is your favorite Godzilla monster?
That Gargantua movie always cracked me up. If you watched it on a black-and-white tv, you could never tell the Brown and Green Gargantuas apart. To this day, I still don’t know who won. The Smog Monster was a pretty cool concept, too.
On a scale from 1-10, how bad was the Matthew Broderick "Godzilla"?
I don’t have the strong ties to a traditional Godzilla that many fans do, but even with that, I think I’d give the movie a 4. Never really went anywhere. Completely forgettable film.
Why did you feel the need to always kill me off on my first mission?
I know you’ll probably never believe this, Blade, but I really didn’t try to kill you off on missions. Toward the end, I actually was trying to keep you alive as much as possible. It was just that freaky stuff would always happen to you. It was like you were cursed or something. I’d keep you holed up in the Skyranger so you’d be safe and then some rookie in there with you would get PSI-attacked and go bonkers on everyone. It was bizarre how you would just die all the time. But I never tried to kill you. *evil laugh*
Any hopes of another dynasty, of any kind, gracing our boards again?
I think that a blog is a better tool for a full-blown dynasty at this point. This doesn’t mean that I think any less of this community, but forums are extremely limited by the technology as far as graphics and layout. For example, handling all the player ratings in the X-Com dynasty was a bear to do using forum software. On a blog, you could have all of those in one neat table on one page that would be simple to find.
Also, stuff on a forum fades away fast, and you don’t have control over the content. We lost a ton of stuff when FOFC moved before. Kodos saved the Notre Dame dynasty for me, which otherwise would have been lost forever. Even finding the X-COM dynasty stuff now is tough to do.
If I ever do a full-blown dynasty again long the lines of X-COM or FOF/TCY, I’d definitely post about it here first though, so that people could find it easily and get the jump on others if there were any signups.
Am i your favorite poster at FOFC, or am I your favorite poster on all boards?
Can I have a third option, Blade?
Do you miss me like i miss you?
Not sure how much you miss me, Blade, but I miss you more.
I know you speak (or at least read) Japanese. Are you of Japanese decent? Or from Japan originally? I'm sorry if there's a really obvious answer, I just realized I didn't know.
Not a silly question and not obvious at all. Nope, I’m not from Japan. I started learning Japanese on the plane to Japan, after college. I’m from New England originally.
So far in your Final Fantasy fun, which is your favorite game? Which are you most looking forward to? Least?
I think I liked Final Fantasy 3 the most so far. I really enjoyed the complexity of the combat system and the job options available. I think that system could get better, but in FF3 it was pretty good. Final Fantasy IV has a much better story, though. I think I might have liked FF4 better if I had been able to play it all in one stretch. Taking a five-month break in the middle of the game made it difficult for me to appreciate how good the game is.
I’m really looking forward to Final Fantasy Tactics, and of course Final Fantasy 7. At this point, however, I feel like I’ve been playing FF4 so long. I really want to move on to FF5.
As for the game I’m least looking forward to, I don’t think I have one. I’m a bit concerned about some of the less popular ones, like FF8. The games seem to get longer as the series goes forward, so if I hit a game I totally hate, I’m not sure what I’ll do.
What persuaded you to start playing through all the FF's in Japanese?
I knew I was in a particularly busy point in my life and that it would stay that way for a couple of years, so I was looking for some little outlet that I could hang on to as I worked through everything. The idea seemed to be a good way to encourage me to play a little bit, to write, and to maintain Japanese as best as I could during that time. It doesn’t take too much time to do (about ten to twenty minutes of playing the game before I go to sleep, and about ten minutes of writing during the day), so it’s been perfect for the past year. Even then it’s been hard to keep up at times.
I’d also been thinking more and more about the relationship between games and stories, and realized that one of the big reasons why I like games is for the stories they create. From that came the idea to start www.gamingtales.com (http://www.gamingtales.com/), which is where I think I’d like to collect any stories that I (or other interested individuals) write based on games.
What brought you to FOFC originally? What's kept you here?
I originally found FOFC by playing Baseball Mogul and posting on a forum for that game. There were several people there that mentioned FOF, and that led to me finding this board.
Godzilla as a Will linebacker on the blitz vs. Mothra as the weakside tackle tasked with stopping him. Who wins? If it helps, imagine Tom Brady is the QB.
Godzilla for the win. Mothra can’t block to save his life.
Who better, MechaGodzilla or Robot King Kong?
MechaGodzilla rules.
If you could eliminate (ban, not kill) one member of FOFC, who would it be?
I’ve killed so many FOFC members already. I don’t think I have the heart to ban or kill another. Nobody here ticks me off that much that I’d want to ban them. If I were around more, I might come up with a few, though. Usually, I just move on to the next post if I find something that I don’t like that much. Life’s too short to worry about that stuff.
Would you rather watch 24 hours of porn or 24 hours of Seinfeld?
Seinfeld. I’ve haven’t watched much Sienfeld, but I’ve seen tons of…oh, wait. Said too much. Next question.
Still running? Ever think you'll do another marathon?
After slowly getting heavier and heavier these past five years, I recently decided to try a “consecutive days of exercise” kick. The idea is to exercise at least 20 minutes a day every day, without missing a day. About ten years ago, I managed to get about 1500 days in a row without missing. Yesterday was day 21 on this new streak, so I’ve got a ways to go before I reach that again.
I’m too heavy (about 200 pounds on a 6’1” frame) to run every day, but I’m running every other day now. I haven’t run a marathon since 1994, but if I can get drop ten pounds, I think I’d like to give it a try again.
What do you do for a living? How did you get your current job, and what jobs did you use to have?
I teach in the mornings in high schools and work with teachers at some educational centers as a technology integration specialist in the afternoons. I really enjoy what I do. I got my current job when a friend told me that a school district was looking for Japanese teachers to teach via television. I’ve also done graphic design work in the US (self-employed), taught and modeled in Japan, and studied in Sweden.
What do you think made the dynasty "work" and be the success that it was?
I’d have to say that the interaction was the strongest element of the dynasty. It never was a one-person dynasty, but the collaborative effort of everyone who put energy into it. X-COM was such a perfect game for that, and I’ve yet to find a game that would work better than that one did.
What has you more away from FOFC these days? Anything interesting?
I took on some more work responsibilities a year ago, then got a teaching award that has me doing a lot of public speaking. In many ways, I’ve got two jobs now. Tack on a family with little kids and personal time has dwindled down to a few hours a week. In a couple of months, though, life will simplify quite a bit.
What is your dream job?
I wish I had enough money so that I could just develop ideas without having to be concerned about the financial consequences. I’d love to write some books, for example, but with life so busy that’s tricky at the moment. I’d also love to learn how to program and make a few educational games or text sims.
What did it feel like to get Kodos killed in that mission before you lost the dynasty save?
You know, I was fine with it. I promised myself that I would play X-COM straight up and accept whatever happened, and that policy made the dynasty so much more tense and fun for me. When Kodos and everyone else died, I figured I’d have to play better for us to win. I did think we were doomed, but that took off all the pressure to pull out a victory.
I was pretty relieved though, when the game messed up and I had to revert to a save before that disastrous mission.
On x-com, revrew was one of the longest, if not the longest-living characters. Got any secrets to eternal life in the real world?
I stumbled across a quote the other day that said, “I plan on living forever. So far it’s working.” Death scares me, though. I wish I had more religious certainty.
I think all I can do is focus on living each day well, taking risks— living the “strenuous life”, as Teddy Roosevelt used to call it.
I’m a big believer in the triangle of health, though: diet, exercise, and sleep. Three to thrive, two to function, one or none to wear out.
Can you start up a new xcom dynasty?
Never. Can’t even if I wanted to. Remember, we killed all the aliens in our first X-COM dynasty. Except for Kodos, there are no more aliens on the planet. What would we kill? Who would we fight? And the rumors that aliens have been sighted in the waters off Thailand are completely unfounded.
Is XCom like werewolf?
I never quite figured out Werewolf, but I don’t think the games are alike at all. Werewolf isn’t a computer game, right?
If you were another person, would you be friends with yourself?
I have to say, this is my favorite question of all of these. I’ve been thinking about this one off and on for the past month. At first I thought yes, but with work and family being so busy, I really get absorbed in my own life now. At the moment, I feel like I’m stretched so thin that it’s hard for me to have good friends outside of family. Which is kind of sad but true. The good thing is that my life will get simpler soon, as these extra work responsibilities end.
How honest are you? If you're in need of money and happen to find a wallet on the street with cash, would you take a few bucks?
I have found wallets on the street with cash in them. I’ve sent them back to the owners with all the cash in them. It’s just the right thing to do. I’d feel crappy if I took any of the money.
But I think honesty is something that we often don’t think about that much. Even the most honest of us lie all the time, and it’s usually the socially accepted, appropriate thing to do. If I go to an acquaintance’s house and they make a crappy pie for dessert, I lie and tell them I like it. We can be more honest with people we know better. One of the things I value most in my life is having a wife and boss who tell me when something I do sucks.
What are you best and worst qualities?
Best qualities: High energy, positive attitude, problem-solving skills, addictive personality.
Worst qualities: Disorganized, self-centered (at times, but better now), addictive personality, can’t friggin’ spell.
What is the first thing you notice about people you're attracted to?
Athletic grace. An efficiency of movement. Like a cat.
What is your favorite movie genre? Favorite movies in said genre? Which movies can you watch over and over?
Action movies by all means. About a year ago I started a small blog to review the ones I watch (www.kaboomreview.com) (http://www.kaboomreview.com%29/). I only add one or two a month now on average, so I’m still working on my list of favorites, but 300, Raiders of the Lost Arc, Batman Begins, Bourne Ultimatum, and the second Lord of the Rings movie are probably my favorites in the genre, off the top of my head.
I don’t watch movies over and over, but I’ll watch Tucker (the car movie) when I’m looking for inspiration. We watch a lot of kids’ movies over and over, too, but that’s more from being a dad than anything else.
Do you have a special talent?
In my life so far, I’ve met people that are better than me at everything I can do except one thing: I have some kind of freaky ability to pack things. It’s weird, but they’ll be five people trying to pack stuff in a car for about fifteen minutes, then conclude that there is no way they can fit all the stuff in. I’ll walk up and put in everything in thirty seconds. I have no idea how I do it. It just happens. I’ve even met a lot of people that think they have this skill, and I’ll totally own them when it comes to getting something packed. It really is bizarre, but I can just see how stuff fits together. The funny thing is that by nature I have the organizational skills of a tornado. My office and our house can look like a disaster zone at times.
Where would you rather be right now?
Hawaii. Japan. Cancun. I’d love to go bodysurfing on a beach. Winters here are kind of long.
Why are other people answering your questions?
Humm. Not sure, but I’ll let them answer this one too. ☺
Who would win in a fight, Pumpy Tudors or Hell Atlantic?
I’d bet on Pumpy Tudors. Hell Atlantic used to scare me with his vitriol. Since people on the net are often the opposite of what they are in real life, I imagine him to be pretty scrawny.
What are your favorite bands or artists? What song do you never tire of?
I totally suck at music. I can only remember the last song I heard, and barely a few lines of it. When I hear a new song, it erases whatever happened to be the last song in my head. Basically, I’m an MP3 player with about 35k of memory. I kid you not.
Earlier, when I’d hear a song I liked, I’d run out and buy it or download it, and then play it 100 times in a row. I’d be so sick of it that I would never want to hear it again. I decided this was ruining music for me, so I completely gave up trying to remember bands and songs. Now whenever I run into a song I like it’s a total and complete serendipity. I love it. Keeps everything fresh.
My tastes in music run all over the place, though. Mostly I like music that is fast-paced and happy. I like to work and workout to techno and pop. I like rock, international music, Celtic music, alternative, classical. In more reflective moods, I listen to Enya. I don’t like country and rap and heavy metal.
Mostly I listen to Pandora now, which is perfect for the way I listen to music. If I hear a song I like, I make a new station and see where that leads me.
Are you more like Jeff George, or Ryan Leaf?
Good grief! Neither? George always struck me as arrogant, and Leaf always struck me as lazy. I hope I’m neither, but if I had to pick one, I’d say I’m more likely to come across as arrogant than lazy.
Which is grosser, ketchup or mayonnaise?
Easy one. Mayo. Mayo rots faster and can make me throw up.
What better: microwave or crockpot?
It makes me sad to say microwave. I wish I was living a more crockpot lifestyle, but there is no way I’d give away my microwave at this point. I use it everyday.
If you were paid mucho dinero to create a video game based on an '80's movie franchise, would you go with Cannonball Run or Police Academy? There are no other acceptable answers.
Cannonball Run. A race would be hilarious, and has lots of potential. You could customize cars and courses, drivers, anything. It would be awesome. Police Academy would be too restrictive for my liking.
Who is that Kodos dude and why is he so much adoring you, Godzilla Blitz?
Kodos and I go way back. His Silicon Pirates Dynasty is the mother of all anti-dynasties, and inspired me to do the Notre Dame dynasty. There was a kind of synergy on the board back then in the dynasty section, and I think we fed off each other for quite a while. Good times.
Thanks, everyone!
Who?
Godzilla Blitz. I used to be around a lot more, sometime after the fall of the Golden Age of FOFC but before it’s present era. I still browse a few times a week.
Did you know that I have not played even half of those games you gave me?
That’s ok, Sachmo, I didn’t play half the games I gave you either.
Can you speak Japanese?
Yes, I’ve been working with the language for a long time. I lived in Japan for a few years. My wife is Japanese.
Are you tempted to name a child Godzookie?
No. I wanted to name our son Testicles (pronounced to rhyme with Sophocles), but my wife was too crafty for me. She nipped that one in the bud.
Who was your favourite in the X-Com dynasties?
The thing that made the X-Com dynasty fun from a creative standpoint was all the extra stuff that people added to their characters. When I think back on the various characters, so many people put time into fleshing out their characters with hilarious comments. I honestly don’t have a favorite, but I really liked the twist that Raven Hawk was able to put on his soldiers. Kodos was also such a key part of the dynasty, especially at the end when I needed someone to help with some of the final episodes. Blade 6119 cracked me up as well. I just couldn’t wait for his character to die and see what he’d do. Good times!
Is X-Com a good game?
I sure liked it, but it’s not for everyone. Its strongest points are probably mood, strategy, variety, and depth. X-Com did some things that I don’t think any game has yet been able to successfully replicate. For example, one thing about the game that a lot of people don’t realize is that the game actually gets brutally hard if you try to powergame your way to victory. So if you continually revert to saved games because you lost some of your best agents in a mission, you’ll actually end up getting a base attack by the aliens much earlier in the game than you can handle it. Brilliant stuff!
Will we ever see a great anti-dynasty again?
Not sure on that one. The Notre Dame dynasty was such fun to do that I’d love to do something similar again, but at the moment I haven’t come across a game and a team that has inspired me yet. The Cowboys and the Yankees are hardly the great evils they were a few years ago. I’d also want it to be something different. The temptation would be that a follow up would be too similar to the old dynasty. With an anti-dynasty, I’m not sure that would be much fun.
Have you ever actually defecated on a Notre Dame helmet? If so, did you take a pic and post it on ratemypoo dot com? What was the rating?
Nope, sorry. I mainly use the toilet. Trying to be a good role model to my kids and such. Offer me money, though, and that might change.
How'd you come with your name? Ever wish you'd thought of another?
Someone found that post from the old thread about names, so I think this one has been answered, but yes, it was completely random. After using different names on a few boards, I figured I’d just keep using that one to make things simple. At times, yes, I do wish I’d picked a different name. Some boards won’t let me register under the “Godzilla” name because, well, it’s kind of already been taken by that big monster, and administrators get touchy about trademarks and such.
How often do you play FOF or TCY these days?
Sadly, I don’t even own the latest version of FOF. I keep telling myself that one day I’ll get back into it, but life has been brutally busy for the past two years. I probably have had enough time to play in spurts, but when I play FOF/TCY or any text sim I tend to get addicted and I don’t have long chunks of time to play now.
Best Godzilla movie made? Worst?
I actually haven’t seen many of them other than the first one and the Matthew Broderick one from a few years ago. I love the first one, though. I watched a lot of them when I was a kid, but they’re all kind of a blur now.
What food could you eat every day for the rest of your life?
Easy: sushi. Love the stuff. Can’t get enough. Any kind, all kinds. Breakfast, morning, and night. Yum!
Back in the day, me and some friends of mine used to attempt what we called "Operation Toastmaker" when playing X-Com. Here are the rules: You take 20 rookies to Mars. Each soldier is armed with a laser pistol and one gernade. Your soldiers can not wear any armor. No vehicles allowed. No saves. Do you think this mission is possible?
Good lord. Depends on the difficulty level, of course. And if you could learn the PSI ratings of the rookies and select accordingly, then that might be possible, but 20 random rookies? On Mars? Offhand I’d say no, but hell, I bet you’d start figuring things out after a while. You’d have to try a lot of crazy things, but I’d bet eventually you could get it. Maybe 1 in 100 tries, though? You ever succeed?
Why hasn't anyone been able to make a squad-level, turn-based PC game better than X-Com?
What a great question. This constantly baffles me. It’s been what, 17 years since X-Com came out, and no one has successfully captured those same elements in a game. So many of the clones leave off essential elements, or just plain screw things up by trying to add more, or make custom levels, etc.
What are the major changes/upgrades you would want for a new X-Com game?
At this point, I’d just love to see an X-COM game that runs easily on newer computers, at decent speed, with sharp graphics.
Other than Godzilla himself, who is your favorite Godzilla monster?
That Gargantua movie always cracked me up. If you watched it on a black-and-white tv, you could never tell the Brown and Green Gargantuas apart. To this day, I still don’t know who won. The Smog Monster was a pretty cool concept, too.
On a scale from 1-10, how bad was the Matthew Broderick "Godzilla"?
I don’t have the strong ties to a traditional Godzilla that many fans do, but even with that, I think I’d give the movie a 4. Never really went anywhere. Completely forgettable film.
Why did you feel the need to always kill me off on my first mission?
I know you’ll probably never believe this, Blade, but I really didn’t try to kill you off on missions. Toward the end, I actually was trying to keep you alive as much as possible. It was just that freaky stuff would always happen to you. It was like you were cursed or something. I’d keep you holed up in the Skyranger so you’d be safe and then some rookie in there with you would get PSI-attacked and go bonkers on everyone. It was bizarre how you would just die all the time. But I never tried to kill you. *evil laugh*
Any hopes of another dynasty, of any kind, gracing our boards again?
I think that a blog is a better tool for a full-blown dynasty at this point. This doesn’t mean that I think any less of this community, but forums are extremely limited by the technology as far as graphics and layout. For example, handling all the player ratings in the X-Com dynasty was a bear to do using forum software. On a blog, you could have all of those in one neat table on one page that would be simple to find.
Also, stuff on a forum fades away fast, and you don’t have control over the content. We lost a ton of stuff when FOFC moved before. Kodos saved the Notre Dame dynasty for me, which otherwise would have been lost forever. Even finding the X-COM dynasty stuff now is tough to do.
If I ever do a full-blown dynasty again long the lines of X-COM or FOF/TCY, I’d definitely post about it here first though, so that people could find it easily and get the jump on others if there were any signups.
Am i your favorite poster at FOFC, or am I your favorite poster on all boards?
Can I have a third option, Blade?
Do you miss me like i miss you?
Not sure how much you miss me, Blade, but I miss you more.
I know you speak (or at least read) Japanese. Are you of Japanese decent? Or from Japan originally? I'm sorry if there's a really obvious answer, I just realized I didn't know.
Not a silly question and not obvious at all. Nope, I’m not from Japan. I started learning Japanese on the plane to Japan, after college. I’m from New England originally.
So far in your Final Fantasy fun, which is your favorite game? Which are you most looking forward to? Least?
I think I liked Final Fantasy 3 the most so far. I really enjoyed the complexity of the combat system and the job options available. I think that system could get better, but in FF3 it was pretty good. Final Fantasy IV has a much better story, though. I think I might have liked FF4 better if I had been able to play it all in one stretch. Taking a five-month break in the middle of the game made it difficult for me to appreciate how good the game is.
I’m really looking forward to Final Fantasy Tactics, and of course Final Fantasy 7. At this point, however, I feel like I’ve been playing FF4 so long. I really want to move on to FF5.
As for the game I’m least looking forward to, I don’t think I have one. I’m a bit concerned about some of the less popular ones, like FF8. The games seem to get longer as the series goes forward, so if I hit a game I totally hate, I’m not sure what I’ll do.
What persuaded you to start playing through all the FF's in Japanese?
I knew I was in a particularly busy point in my life and that it would stay that way for a couple of years, so I was looking for some little outlet that I could hang on to as I worked through everything. The idea seemed to be a good way to encourage me to play a little bit, to write, and to maintain Japanese as best as I could during that time. It doesn’t take too much time to do (about ten to twenty minutes of playing the game before I go to sleep, and about ten minutes of writing during the day), so it’s been perfect for the past year. Even then it’s been hard to keep up at times.
I’d also been thinking more and more about the relationship between games and stories, and realized that one of the big reasons why I like games is for the stories they create. From that came the idea to start www.gamingtales.com (http://www.gamingtales.com/), which is where I think I’d like to collect any stories that I (or other interested individuals) write based on games.
What brought you to FOFC originally? What's kept you here?
I originally found FOFC by playing Baseball Mogul and posting on a forum for that game. There were several people there that mentioned FOF, and that led to me finding this board.
Godzilla as a Will linebacker on the blitz vs. Mothra as the weakside tackle tasked with stopping him. Who wins? If it helps, imagine Tom Brady is the QB.
Godzilla for the win. Mothra can’t block to save his life.
Who better, MechaGodzilla or Robot King Kong?
MechaGodzilla rules.
If you could eliminate (ban, not kill) one member of FOFC, who would it be?
I’ve killed so many FOFC members already. I don’t think I have the heart to ban or kill another. Nobody here ticks me off that much that I’d want to ban them. If I were around more, I might come up with a few, though. Usually, I just move on to the next post if I find something that I don’t like that much. Life’s too short to worry about that stuff.
Would you rather watch 24 hours of porn or 24 hours of Seinfeld?
Seinfeld. I’ve haven’t watched much Sienfeld, but I’ve seen tons of…oh, wait. Said too much. Next question.
Still running? Ever think you'll do another marathon?
After slowly getting heavier and heavier these past five years, I recently decided to try a “consecutive days of exercise” kick. The idea is to exercise at least 20 minutes a day every day, without missing a day. About ten years ago, I managed to get about 1500 days in a row without missing. Yesterday was day 21 on this new streak, so I’ve got a ways to go before I reach that again.
I’m too heavy (about 200 pounds on a 6’1” frame) to run every day, but I’m running every other day now. I haven’t run a marathon since 1994, but if I can get drop ten pounds, I think I’d like to give it a try again.
What do you do for a living? How did you get your current job, and what jobs did you use to have?
I teach in the mornings in high schools and work with teachers at some educational centers as a technology integration specialist in the afternoons. I really enjoy what I do. I got my current job when a friend told me that a school district was looking for Japanese teachers to teach via television. I’ve also done graphic design work in the US (self-employed), taught and modeled in Japan, and studied in Sweden.
What do you think made the dynasty "work" and be the success that it was?
I’d have to say that the interaction was the strongest element of the dynasty. It never was a one-person dynasty, but the collaborative effort of everyone who put energy into it. X-COM was such a perfect game for that, and I’ve yet to find a game that would work better than that one did.
What has you more away from FOFC these days? Anything interesting?
I took on some more work responsibilities a year ago, then got a teaching award that has me doing a lot of public speaking. In many ways, I’ve got two jobs now. Tack on a family with little kids and personal time has dwindled down to a few hours a week. In a couple of months, though, life will simplify quite a bit.
What is your dream job?
I wish I had enough money so that I could just develop ideas without having to be concerned about the financial consequences. I’d love to write some books, for example, but with life so busy that’s tricky at the moment. I’d also love to learn how to program and make a few educational games or text sims.
What did it feel like to get Kodos killed in that mission before you lost the dynasty save?
You know, I was fine with it. I promised myself that I would play X-COM straight up and accept whatever happened, and that policy made the dynasty so much more tense and fun for me. When Kodos and everyone else died, I figured I’d have to play better for us to win. I did think we were doomed, but that took off all the pressure to pull out a victory.
I was pretty relieved though, when the game messed up and I had to revert to a save before that disastrous mission.
On x-com, revrew was one of the longest, if not the longest-living characters. Got any secrets to eternal life in the real world?
I stumbled across a quote the other day that said, “I plan on living forever. So far it’s working.” Death scares me, though. I wish I had more religious certainty.
I think all I can do is focus on living each day well, taking risks— living the “strenuous life”, as Teddy Roosevelt used to call it.
I’m a big believer in the triangle of health, though: diet, exercise, and sleep. Three to thrive, two to function, one or none to wear out.
Can you start up a new xcom dynasty?
Never. Can’t even if I wanted to. Remember, we killed all the aliens in our first X-COM dynasty. Except for Kodos, there are no more aliens on the planet. What would we kill? Who would we fight? And the rumors that aliens have been sighted in the waters off Thailand are completely unfounded.
Is XCom like werewolf?
I never quite figured out Werewolf, but I don’t think the games are alike at all. Werewolf isn’t a computer game, right?
If you were another person, would you be friends with yourself?
I have to say, this is my favorite question of all of these. I’ve been thinking about this one off and on for the past month. At first I thought yes, but with work and family being so busy, I really get absorbed in my own life now. At the moment, I feel like I’m stretched so thin that it’s hard for me to have good friends outside of family. Which is kind of sad but true. The good thing is that my life will get simpler soon, as these extra work responsibilities end.
How honest are you? If you're in need of money and happen to find a wallet on the street with cash, would you take a few bucks?
I have found wallets on the street with cash in them. I’ve sent them back to the owners with all the cash in them. It’s just the right thing to do. I’d feel crappy if I took any of the money.
But I think honesty is something that we often don’t think about that much. Even the most honest of us lie all the time, and it’s usually the socially accepted, appropriate thing to do. If I go to an acquaintance’s house and they make a crappy pie for dessert, I lie and tell them I like it. We can be more honest with people we know better. One of the things I value most in my life is having a wife and boss who tell me when something I do sucks.
What are you best and worst qualities?
Best qualities: High energy, positive attitude, problem-solving skills, addictive personality.
Worst qualities: Disorganized, self-centered (at times, but better now), addictive personality, can’t friggin’ spell.
What is the first thing you notice about people you're attracted to?
Athletic grace. An efficiency of movement. Like a cat.
What is your favorite movie genre? Favorite movies in said genre? Which movies can you watch over and over?
Action movies by all means. About a year ago I started a small blog to review the ones I watch (www.kaboomreview.com) (http://www.kaboomreview.com%29/). I only add one or two a month now on average, so I’m still working on my list of favorites, but 300, Raiders of the Lost Arc, Batman Begins, Bourne Ultimatum, and the second Lord of the Rings movie are probably my favorites in the genre, off the top of my head.
I don’t watch movies over and over, but I’ll watch Tucker (the car movie) when I’m looking for inspiration. We watch a lot of kids’ movies over and over, too, but that’s more from being a dad than anything else.
Do you have a special talent?
In my life so far, I’ve met people that are better than me at everything I can do except one thing: I have some kind of freaky ability to pack things. It’s weird, but they’ll be five people trying to pack stuff in a car for about fifteen minutes, then conclude that there is no way they can fit all the stuff in. I’ll walk up and put in everything in thirty seconds. I have no idea how I do it. It just happens. I’ve even met a lot of people that think they have this skill, and I’ll totally own them when it comes to getting something packed. It really is bizarre, but I can just see how stuff fits together. The funny thing is that by nature I have the organizational skills of a tornado. My office and our house can look like a disaster zone at times.
Where would you rather be right now?
Hawaii. Japan. Cancun. I’d love to go bodysurfing on a beach. Winters here are kind of long.
Why are other people answering your questions?
Humm. Not sure, but I’ll let them answer this one too. ☺
Who would win in a fight, Pumpy Tudors or Hell Atlantic?
I’d bet on Pumpy Tudors. Hell Atlantic used to scare me with his vitriol. Since people on the net are often the opposite of what they are in real life, I imagine him to be pretty scrawny.
What are your favorite bands or artists? What song do you never tire of?
I totally suck at music. I can only remember the last song I heard, and barely a few lines of it. When I hear a new song, it erases whatever happened to be the last song in my head. Basically, I’m an MP3 player with about 35k of memory. I kid you not.
Earlier, when I’d hear a song I liked, I’d run out and buy it or download it, and then play it 100 times in a row. I’d be so sick of it that I would never want to hear it again. I decided this was ruining music for me, so I completely gave up trying to remember bands and songs. Now whenever I run into a song I like it’s a total and complete serendipity. I love it. Keeps everything fresh.
My tastes in music run all over the place, though. Mostly I like music that is fast-paced and happy. I like to work and workout to techno and pop. I like rock, international music, Celtic music, alternative, classical. In more reflective moods, I listen to Enya. I don’t like country and rap and heavy metal.
Mostly I listen to Pandora now, which is perfect for the way I listen to music. If I hear a song I like, I make a new station and see where that leads me.
Are you more like Jeff George, or Ryan Leaf?
Good grief! Neither? George always struck me as arrogant, and Leaf always struck me as lazy. I hope I’m neither, but if I had to pick one, I’d say I’m more likely to come across as arrogant than lazy.
Which is grosser, ketchup or mayonnaise?
Easy one. Mayo. Mayo rots faster and can make me throw up.
What better: microwave or crockpot?
It makes me sad to say microwave. I wish I was living a more crockpot lifestyle, but there is no way I’d give away my microwave at this point. I use it everyday.
If you were paid mucho dinero to create a video game based on an '80's movie franchise, would you go with Cannonball Run or Police Academy? There are no other acceptable answers.
Cannonball Run. A race would be hilarious, and has lots of potential. You could customize cars and courses, drivers, anything. It would be awesome. Police Academy would be too restrictive for my liking.
Who is that Kodos dude and why is he so much adoring you, Godzilla Blitz?
Kodos and I go way back. His Silicon Pirates Dynasty is the mother of all anti-dynasties, and inspired me to do the Notre Dame dynasty. There was a kind of synergy on the board back then in the dynasty section, and I think we fed off each other for quite a while. Good times.
Thanks, everyone!