I’ve been nominated for this by both Frostilyte, and Red Metal, so I’ll be answering both of their questions, respectively. Since I’m answering more questions than normal, I’ll try to shorten my usual novel-length responses so this post doesn’t get too long. As always, thank you to these two great bloggers for the nomination, I love doing these posts. Here we go!

Frostilyte’s Questions:

What is a game coming out in 2020 that you’re excited for?

I think Persona 5: The Royal, and Animal Crossing: New Horizons are the two that I’m most looking forward to.

Ninjas, or Pirates? Why?

Gotta be Ninjas. I love pirates for their punk rock attitude, but you can’t pass up on the elite, stealthy, trained-for-their-entire-lives Ninjas. Skills over scurvy any day.

You won a life time supply of the last thing you spent money on. What is it, are you excited, and how do you intend to use your comically overstocked collection of this commodity?

Yikes, I guess I have a lifetime supply of dice now? I’ve been a little bit obsessive about expanding my D&D dice collection recently, and honestly it’s already comically overstocked. But in my opinion, you can never have enough dice, so…

God almighty above. They were right! AI took over the world and started building mecha-style enforcers out of the factories. Which billion dollar software company is responsible for ending humanity and do you submit to our AI overlords, or rebel against them?

For sure the unholy trinity of Google, Apple, and Amazon are taking over. As much as I love the convenience of all of these services/styles, I don’t think I’m ready to sell my soul to the heartless mechanisms of capitalist enterprise just yet – I’ll be rebelling.

What was the reason you started your blog? Feel free to be as detailed as you see fit with this one.

I really enjoy talking about games, but don’t know a lot of people in my personal life, or friend group, that play what I do. I also find it strange that the majority of reviews seem designed to convince you to buy/not buy a game – I’m more interested in the actual stories/characters and how well everything comes together. Because of the spoiler-free nature of these reviews, they’re just not interesting to me. I started a blog because I wanted to write more of what I wanted to see. I was also interested in finding other people who might share in some of my unpopular opinions, or generally just be willing to engage in some good ol’ vidya game conversation. At the end of the day, I really enjoy writing – so whether 50 people read what I write, or none at all, I’m just happy to be working on my writing more regularly. I’m really pleased with how my blog is shaping up so far!

You wake up one day and find that you are now your least favorite character from your favorite television show (use a video game if you don’t watch TV). Who are you and how do you feel about it?

Funnily enough, all the characters that immediately pop into my head are from The Legend of Zelda: Navi, Kaepora Gaebora, Fi… Any of these would do. I think I would be okay, because all of these characters have great design, and it would be nice to be the annoying one, rather than on the receiving end of their ridiculous advice/speeches for once. I could go with an Unpopular Opinion™ and say that I might wake up as Chloe Price from Life is Strange (in which case I would hate my life) but I don’t want to get jumped. I think she’s an awful character, but I don’t think many people share this opinion.

What’s a skill you wish you had, but can’t find the time in the day to learn or master?

Not sure it counts as a specific skill per say, but I’ve always wished I knew more about cars. My dad has taught me enough to be able to change the oil, and maybe a tire, but after that I’m tapping out. He takes care of his car, and does 100% of the work on it himself, and I would love to have the skill to do that as well.

Red Metal’s Questions:

Have you ever watched a film in theaters that featured an intermission?

Can’t say that I have! The longest one I ever watched was probably The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, but that didn’t have an intermission.

What is the most expensive ticket you’ve ever purchased?

I go to a lot of concerts, but the majority of the bands I see are small-ish rock/punk bands so the tickets are never more than the $60-80 range. I saw the play, Dear Evan Hansen, over the summer and loved it so much that I went 3 times (yikes) and the most expensive ticket for that show was around $120 when I went the second time. The other two were cheaper, but all three together are more than I would like to acknowledge…

If you had to trade in fluency of your first language for another, which one would you choose?

French would be handy for me, living in Canada, but if I had a choice of anything, I think I would probably take Spanish or Japanese.

If you could appear on any game show (including ones that have ended), which one would you choose?

I’ve always loved Jeopardy! for some reason. My favourite is always the “teen” or high school week because I can actually answer the questions – sometimes they even had a video game category!

As someone who has watched many classics over the past few years, I’ve concluded that old films are overall better than recent efforts. What do you think the current generation of filmmakers lacks that allowed their predecessors to shine?

Not to sound super cynical, but I feel a lot of movies produced now are sell outs – they’re designed to make as much money as possible, by having the widest appeal possible. They’re made to be fun and entertaining, without much substance. When I think of my favourite older movies, they’re just shot so creatively, and performed so well, often with small budgets, or limited space. I always think of 12 Angry Men – almost the entire movie takes place in a small jury room, where 12 jurors (most are never even given names!) debate the fate of a man accused of murder; Henry Fonda tries to convince the rest that the evidence isn’t sufficient to find him guilty. The film is shot incredibly well, and manages to do so much with so little. Others, like The Breakfast Club (probably overrated) I loved simply because they tried to communicate a message that I identified with. It was simple, yet still felt somehow profound. I find that too few movies try to do these things nowadays. Maybe too much pressure to make money, and not enough to create art.

How do you like your eggs prepared?

I don’t. Eggs are gross.

How do you like your potatoes prepared?

Coming from an Irish family, potatoes were pretty much a staple growing up. I will eat anything potato, but my favourites would probably be mashed, my mom’s scalloped potatoes, or good old fashioned fries (sweet potato are better).

If you found yourself directing films, which genre would you want to specialize in?

I’d like to tackle horror! It’s a genre that’s quickly become very by-the-numbers and stale, and I would try and do something different. I think it’s hard to balance genuine fright/creep factor (that doesn’t rely on cheap jumpscares) with a compelling story and characters.

What is your favorite band/artist with a limited discography (i.e. no more than four studio albums)?

Definitely one of my newer favourites, State Champs. I’ve seen them live several times now, and they’re super talented – their music is great, solid lyrics, and tons of energy. In a genre (pop punk) that can feel very samey at times, I think this group really stands out as something exceptional. They currently have three studio albums.

There are many stories over the years of projects or ideas never getting off the ground or being canceled mid-production. Which one would you bring into reality if you could?

I know there are a bunch of video games that were supposed to be turned into movies – I’d love to see some of those come to life. I know an Uncharted movie is kind of, sort of, happening. The most prominent one I remember being excited about was BioShock. I doubt it will ever happen – and maybe it’s for the best. Video game movies are usually terrible.

What series do you feel managed to be consistently good for an extended period of time?

In terms of video games, I’ve always felt that, despite its long run, The Legend of Zelda series has always maintained a high quality in both game play and narrative. I also feel that Pokemon is still going strong – they’re adding new elements, while still maintaining the basics of what everyone fell in love with (National Dex controversy aside). Pretty basic answer, but I can’t think of another series that has consistently grabbed my attention. I don’t really watch enough television to comment on a good TV series.

I’ll nominate some bloggers with my own questions, and as always, don’t feel obligated to answer if you don’t want to! My questions tend to be a bit involved, so feel free to pass. These are my questions:

1. Give a rundown of a good book you’ve read this summer! (or, any book you’ve really enjoyed lately)
2. Sometimes people talk about having a spirit animal. If you were to have a spirit Pokemon that represents you, which one would it be?
3. You’re stuck in a horror-movie scenario, and a murderer is after you! Are you: a) the mom friend (taking care of everyone, keeping the group together), b) the scaredy cat (you’re definitely clumsy, and probably dying first) or c) the “everyone for themselves” strategist (you’re taking off on your own)?
4. What is your favourite seasonal food and/or drink? This can also be food/drink that is technically available year-round, but you just associate with a certain time of year.
5. A lot of video games allow you to customize your character, including their name – what’s your go-to name when starting a new file? Or do you have a different one every time?
6. What is the most memorable vacation you’ve taken, or time spent travelling that you can think of?
7. Pick one of your favourite film/tv/book/video game characters and describe which D&D class you think they would be, and why. (This may take some research: here’s a link to D&D Beyond with a list of the classes)

Instead of the 7 nominees, I’m only gonna nominate a few bloggers, because I think a lot of people have been tagged in this same thread recently. So my nominees are @ Kathy (Pages Below the Vaulted Sky) | Stephen (Honest Gamer) | Nathan (Gaming Omnivore) | Michi (Michi’s World)

Anyone else can feel free to answer my questions in the comments below, or on your own blog if you want to! Thanks for reading!