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This is the first of (hopefully) many such Promotional Interviews that Infoceptor will present. For our inaugural interview on this new Infoceptor Feature, I interviewed Smoke'n'MirrorZ, of AlterNet Dimension.
Different text colors will be used to differentiate my questions/comments and Smoke's answers/comments. The color codings are demonstrated below:
- ZealotOnAStick
- Smoke'n'MirrorZ
<ZOAS> Ok, let's start with the basics - Where do you get the name "Smoke'n'MirrorZ?"
<Smoke> It's a long story. *checks watch*. It started out as just "Smoke" from my Warcraft 2 days and the uncanny ability my towns had to spend all their time on fire. I used to lose a lot. (sorry no MK references here) Smoke continued all the way up to Starcraft when I lost my B.net name in a server crash and was going to switch to MirrorZ as a parody on mirror download sites. I liked the combination so much I never finished the change.
<Smoke> There's also the 'magical' conotations I don't mind either ;)
<ZOAS> What do you do for a living?
<Smoke> I'm a computer programmer by trade, Working for a little company called Cel Corp doing a lot of mainframe stuff.
<ZOAS> How long have you been playing computer games in general, and multiplayer games specifically?
<Smoke> I've played computer games ever since an uncle of mine got a Commodore 64. Started really getting into it when i was about 12 or 13. Multiplayer it's hard to remember exactly when I started.. There were a ton of good 3 or 4 person games you could play before 'online' gaming started up but I started online about 4 years ago I believe. Was Co-sysop for a small BBS service running text adventures.
<ZOAS> What's your favorite computer game of all time? If you don't have a definite one in mind, just give it your best go.
<Smoke> I'll have to go by most memorable, Space Quest 2 was the first game to really blow me away so I'll have to name that my reigning adventure king. Star Control series was some of the best design Up untill they ruined it with #3 in my opinion and I'm a diehard Descent fan for FPS games.
<Smoke> Did I forget RTS? Starcraft of course, No other game has quite captured as much of my imagination, or given quite such a creative outlet for me.
<ZOAS> Not even Diablo?
<Smoke> Diablo is a great game, But I can't put it as one of my bests. I'm still addicted and still play but it does have it's quirks. I suppose in the RPG catagory it's come the closest.. and I very much expect Diablo 2 will take the crown in at least one area.
<ZOAS> If you were stuck on a desert island, and somehow mysteriously had power, and a computer, what are the three games you'd most like to have with you?
<Smoke> Are upcoming titles allowed?
<ZOAS> Only if they're in gold/shipment stage already. :P
<Smoke> ahh.. (stupid Island mail system)
<ZOAS> CD's don't fit in bottles very well.
<Smoke> hmm tough one.
<ZOAS> Sid Meier included Starcraft on his top 3. I was sort of surprised at it.
<Smoke> yeah. I'd want the Brood war edition though for the better ballance of units.
<Smoke> As I said before though.. for creative posibilities and cinematic beauty of play I'd have to take SC.
<Smoke> At least one of the Descent Series would be there to hone my pilot skills and practice vertigo.
<Smoke> Lastly. . . shoot just one huh.
<Smoke> OK I'll Take StarControl 2 as my 'non action' game. Good story, Comic relief and enough variety to be replayable.
<ZOAS> Ok, which upcoming game title are you looking forward to most, other than Brood War?
<Smoke> Toss up between Diablo 2 and Descent 3.
<ZOAS> Quick quizzes: Favorite Actor, Favorite Movie, Favorite Book, Favorite Author, and Favorite Musician/Group?
<Smoke> Favorite Actor, Cary Elwies (sp?) he can't always stay in character but that's cause his own shines through. I love the scamp attitude.
<ZOAS> *grin* Elwes. Princess Bride, Kiss the Girls, and I can't remember what else.
<Smoke> Favorite Movie, It changes all the time. Long term i'd have to go with a classic like probably Star Wars.
<ZOAS> Currently?
<Smoke> Currently, The Saint. I'm a sucker for a good spy film.
<Smoke> Favorite Book, Favorite Author, Doug Adams and the Hitchhikers guide of course.
<ZOAS> Favorite Musician/Group?
<Smoke> Ahh yes. A little U2 please or maybe Newsboys
<Smoke> for reliable good listening
<Smoke> Favorite song, "It Ain't over till the fat lady sings" - EnVogue.
<Smoke> I just know I'm gonna take flak for that one :)
<Smoke> It's 'unique', Actually I don't have a current favorite, I like a lot of music but my favorites really depend on the time of day. I change them that often.
<ZOAS> What do you think about the proliferation of SC websites?
<Smoke> In general, I have a few I look to for news. The rest are 'carbon copy' it seems. I really don't care if I ever see another clans list of the terran units or another description of the zealot rush build order. I don't think proliferation is a bad thing.. In fact I LOVE seeing a great game get popular and spread to new people. I just don't care to visit a lot of new sites.
<ZOAS> What's the WORST game you've ever personally played?
<Smoke> HAH! Good Question.. And you know I've blotted the name from my memory but I have one in mind.. A terrible little action game that was super popular in my high school. A text thing (Started with a G I think) where you chase this little asterix around a maze of lines trying to hit all the lines before it hits you. It was a completely mindless, repetitive experience that completely had me stumped why people liked it. And showed me there are two ways to sell a game. ONe mindless simplicity, two Real quality. I haven't played Deer Hunter but I get the feeling it might steal the title from that line beast.
<Smoke> On a side note since then I've discovered a third way to sell games... Ultra new technology, which again is different from real quality some times but still seems to sell.
<ZOAS> That leads in a way up to my next question, actually . . .
<ZOAS> If you could choose a classic arcade or computer game to remake with 1999 technology, 3d acceleration, or whatever, which would it be?
<Smoke> Rampage.
<ZOAS> *grin* Cool choice. I LOVED Rampage.
<Smoke> If you call that a multiplayer game It's gotta be one of my first.. and great fun
<Smoke> it was such a tongue in cheek game I don't think there was anybody that didn't like it.
<ZOAS> Do you have any opinion on 1) Site Merging in the SC community and 2) The SCL-SC.ORG fiasco?
<Smoke> 1. Site merging in general I think is a good thing... Anything that can get more creative minds working together, concentrate and condense some good info without having to search more URL's is a good thing to me.
<Smoke> 2. The SCL SC.ORG fiasco, I let them have their war. It's a shame they do so much of it publicly and this kind of rivalry gets so heated but mostly I'm just visiting for the info.
<Smoke> I visit 2 kinds of sites actually, my friends sites for the 'people' and some news sites for the 'info'
<ZOAS> What's your biggest peeve/annoyance in gaming sites?
<Smoke> Truthfully not much annoys me when people try to do right.. but the one thing that always ticks me off is misinformation. You'll ALWAYS get angry email from me if you post something without disclaimer that I know is wrong or bad guessing.
<Smoke> I like to get excited about games, i like to discuss them with other people. I HATE having to disprove wierd rumors that people have started and somehow become fact. Oh yes.. and second place to 'bad' guesses is uninformed flames.
<ZOAS> That second sounds more like a Forum gripe.
<Smoke> yeah. It usually is. But I can't really list it first since there's no way i can expect the young gaming crowd to be reasonable all the time.. I reserve my anger for sites that pretend to be respectable and then pull that guessing we're right stunt.
<ZOAS> You're in the Brood War beta - what are your impressions of the "big name" SC players?
<Smoke> Who writes these questions? Zoas?
<ZOAS> I make most of them up as I go along.
<ZOAS> Yeah, what do you think of that ZOAS guy?
<ZOAS> :P
<Smoke> ;) I have a lot of respect for .. oh Zoas? he's a nut. As for the big name players I respect their skill a lot but some of them stretch credulity with their oppinion of themselves.. not so much that but their absolute faith in their 'ideas'. I like them though and have resigned myself to the fact that a small amount of ego and confidence is necessary to become a 'big name' in the first place.. so I let them fight eachother and slowly steal their strats in the mean time ;)
<ZOAS> Heh. uhm, do you think that the players at that level (beta tourney players as an example) are that good from practice, or is it just innate talent/skill that allows them such a disparate skill level?
<Smoke> I think a lot of it is skill, Not necessarily strategic skill but the skill to consistenly reproduce highly successful tactics. I won't name names. Some are excellent technical players.. some are excellent addaptive players.
<Smoke> All of them do share one thing though, When they decide to do something they do it all out.
<Smoke> That I would say is why they are so far separated from the majority.
<ZOAS> What do you drink most, and how old are you?
<Smoke> Drink most. Coke. by far and away, I single handedly support several vending machines in the area. I'm 23.
<ZOAS> Married, single, involved?
<Smoke> Single and uninvolved at the moment.. :)
<ZOAS> Then I can safely steal a question from Muon - If you could have any girl in the world on that desert island with you - who would you want?
<Smoke> Heh. weeeelll. I hadn't thought of that honestly.. hmm This concept of limits is just no fun at all ;)
<Smoke> Sandra Bullock, looks and personality.
<ZOAS> Do you think the BW Medic looks like her?
<Smoke> no
<Smoke> maybe I should submit that as a bug
<ZOAS> You have your own web site, AlterNet Dimension. Tell us about it.
<Smoke> Alternet Dimension has been an idea in my head for a while and finally just got the shove it needed with Brood War.
<Smoke> The idea being a site that I would want to visit myself. No pushing anything on the main page except easy navigation and information. No junk links, no repeat news, no cruddy 'this is my house, this is where I live, these are my friends.'. JUST good fun and good info. I also wanted somewhere to share my excitement for some hot new titles with people who are similarly inclined. To that end I'm trying for quality instead of quantity. It's not always encouraging that I don't get new stuff up every day but i figure there are tons of sites that do daily news better than I ever could, and the last thing we need is another site with 'half' the news. Instead i put a little bit of my 'life' into a web site, Its Designed to be different by focusing on new articles and complete topics and not getting flooded in news everyone else arleady has. A little humor, a little off the beaten track info on whatever games I happen to be watching, and eventually a collection of what I have found good on the net.
<Smoke> That pretty much covers the three sections I've got running now.
<ZOAS> What surprises do you have for us in the future? Any hints?
<Smoke> Well if I told you.. they wouldn't be suprises would they? Immediate plans are to add a bit more content to what i've got now, I'm trying to stick to only the best quality stuff so the going is slow. (If you want lots of nothing go somewhere else) Beyond that I'll be branching into some game specific sections.. If you look back at the interview you can probably figure out which ones ;)
<Smoke> In short that's it. Between game playing, correspondence and RL I don't have the time to run a huge site on more than a few games
<ZOAS> If it were offered to you, would you be interested in site hosting at something like Warzone or GameGurus?
<Smoke> It's a question I've gone over a few times actually, At the present time no I wouldn't be interested, My site serves the needs and by being an independant site I can feel free to take as long as I need to satisfy myself on quality. As soon as I felt obligated to do updates for a hosted site It looses a lot of the 'spontaneous enthusiasm' charm. Also this way I don't get caught up in the site wars, All of them have equal right to link anything good I put up, and I'm not obliged to dump links to my host into every page I do.
<ZOAS> What web sites do YOU regularly visit?
<Smoke> I have a few monitoring programs that watch the major game homepages for me. Personally I make the rounds to SC.org, Infoceptor, Tech-Base, Diabloii.net , Diablo 2 Graveyard, and about 15 of my friends sites every day.
<Smoke> I also spend a lot of time in the Battle.net forums searching for information and dodging spam
<ZOAS> Is there any message you want to say to the world, and/or what is one sentence you'd say to summarize yourself?
<Smoke> To the world, I'll quote a saying that's not mine but I think applies and would make a lot of things go smoother "There is not one single shred of evidence that life is serious"
<Smoke> To summarize myself, There's a lot of people in the world with a lot of strange ideas, not all of them are right, not all of them are wrong. The trick of it is to keep an open mind, so I get both learning and entertainment.
<ZOAS> Question I forgot earlier: How good of an SC player do you think you are?
<Smoke> I think I'm average, perhaps slightly above. I'm sure i could practice and become really good but I'd rather relax and enjoy the game than risk making a huge competition
<ZOAS> Favorite cartoon character (non-Anime)?
<Smoke> Ohh.. toughy. Clasical.. Marvin the Martian, Recent, The Tick,
<ZOAS> My keychain is Marvin, and I have a plastic Marvin perched on my Right computer speaker.
<Smoke> Yeah marvin's cool .. plus he gets bonus marks in my book since he's the only voice I can reasonably imitate ;)
<ZOAS> Final question: How do you feel about being interviewed like this?
<Smoke> You mean the method, the idea, or the general state of interviews currently?)
<ZOAS> Yes.
<Smoke> hah!
<Smoke> I think Interviews are a good idea in some senses, they can bring a face to the online masses if that's what your looking for, Personally I don't really see it one way or another as informative but it was kinda fun to do ;)
<ZOAS> Thanks for the Interview, Smoke.
<Smoke> No problem.. Think I'll go see about some Earth shattering Kabooms.
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