Metagamers

Metagamers.com would like to thank Ciji Thornton (Starslay3r) for taking the time out of her busy schedule to speak with us yet again. We hope you enjoy the interview and be sure to check her out on WCG Ultimate Gamer which airs on the Sci Fi network Tuesdays at 10/9C

Metagamers: Hey Ciji, thanks for taking the time to talk with us again (for those of you who did not notice Ciji aka: StarSlay3r was featured on metagamers way back when). So get us up to speed, last time we spoke you were in the G4 Gamer Girl GotCast promotion. What was that experience like (it really seemed like an outpouring of support came from the community for you) and what have you been up to since then?

Ciji: Since last year I competed in a ton of Guitar Hero tournaments and claimed top 3 in just about every tournament I entered. Summer of 2008 I competed in the World Cyber Games and dedicated about 5 months to practicing for the event and competing. I attended many conventions like PAX where I hosted a Guitar Hero: World Tour “Beat Judy and Win” contest, where contestants could try to beat me for their shot at an ultimate game system and Guitar Hero Prize pack. I faced off against over 50 competitors and obtained a 56/4 Win/Loss ratio. Wrapping up 2008 I competed along side 11 fantastic gamers for the chance to win $100k and the title of “Ultimate Gamer” on a Sci Fi reality show called WCG Ultimate Gamer that airs this March 10th. Needless to say, I have been quite busy!

Metagamers: Still shredding away on Guitar Hero/Rock band we’ve noticed, what’s been your most prized accomplishment thus far?

Ciji: Although I’ve won many tournaments my best accomplishment was actually claiming the rank of 5th worldwide for Guitar Hero: World Tour. It took me 2 weeks of practicing 10-11 hours a day to get that ranking but once I made top 5 I was more proud of myself then I’ve ever been.

Metagamers: After all this time playing “music/band” games do you ever get tired of them? What keeps you motivated to play them?

Ciji: I have a passion for music and video games that will never die, so combining the two into a game like Rock Band or Guitar Hero is awesome! I’ve been playing rhythm games for a total of 10 years now (ever since Konami’s DDR and Guitar Freaks) and don’t think I’ll ever stop as long as Rhythm games keep being produced. As long as the music selection is one that I can rock out to, and the note tracking is something that challenges my skills and can help me to become a better player, I will continue to play.

Metagamers: What do you think about the idea of expanding this genre to other areas? DJ Hero comes to mind.

Ciji: I’ve always been a fan of Konami/ Bemani games and they’ve already expanded into that area years ago so I know what to expect and am definitely open to the idea of DJ Hero. I love music games in general so as long as the music is good the peripheral doesn’t matter… I’ll keep playing and pwning noobs at all of them.

Metagamers: We always get to see you as a hardcore gamer but many want to know, outside of gaming what are some of your favorite pastimes?

Ciji: I love to go to metal/ industrial concerts, anime/game conventions, roller blading, bowling (even though I suck), and going to theme parks. (I especially love Cedar Point in Ohio)

Metagamers: How’s the sponsorship gig coming along? Are you currently affiliated with any group at this time? Any events you have planned coming up?

Ciji: At this time I have only one sponsor and that’s Coffin Case. I am affiliated with many groups but am leaving myself free to any offers that may potentially arise for future gaming events. I unfortunately don’t have any events coming up so far due to the lack of sponsors and the fact that many of the events I had previously planned to attend now have canceled. (Wizard World, LA for example)

Metagamers: This year marks the “hopefully” triumphant return of E3. When looking at the event what are you looking forward to seeing? Any plans on being there and if so can we expect to see a Judy Nails performance?

Ciji: I do plan on attending E3. I am in the final stages of getting my industry pass as we speak. I am looking forward to seeing everything as I’ve never been able to attend an E3 before. As far as a “Judy Nails” performance goes, I have pretty much dropped the Judy Nails thing in order to be taken more seriously in the gaming community. Many people don’t realize that I’m not just a cosplayer, but a hardcore competitive gamer. It is very likely you will, however, see me rocking out somewhere at E3… if I see Rock Band or Guitar Hero at a booth I can’t resist the urge to show off.

Metagamers: This coming March 2009 the debut of WCG Ultimate Gamer airs on the Sci Fi network which has you competing against other gamers to win $100,000, the ultimate electronics package and the honor of traveling the globe with the WCG. Knowing you are limited on what you can talk about is there anything you would like to share with the viewers about yourself and/or the show before it airs? Can we expect to see any onscreen rivalries?

Ciji: This show will definitely be interesting. Many of us know each other from prior tournaments and clans so there are already some friendships and rivalries going into the show. Living with 12 people for an extended amount of time is just asking to start drama and most likely you will be seeing the result of that in the future episodes however I can not be specific on who does or doesn’t get along with who. All I can say is… what do YOU think happens when 12 HARDCORE gamers are put in a house to compete for the same $100k?

When there can only be one winner… you know things can get vicious.

Metagamers: Finally, any update you can give your fans on www.starslay3r.com? What can we expect to see when the site re launches?

Ciji: I’ve already been adding updates to StarSlayer.com every chance I get. I’m trying to make the site a more exclusive place to get all of the updates as to what’s going on with me. Right now I am on multiple sites and it’s hard to maintain all of them and keep them current. With starslayer.com being the main area of interest everyone can contact me more directly with questions, see my videos and pictures, view my recent matches and my upcoming events all in one place. Hopefully once I get some sponsors going I can start running my own matches through the site against people and give out prizes for people who are able to beat me.

Metagamers: As always it’s been a pleasure talking with you and we hope to have the chance to speak with you again at the conclusion of the WCG Ultimate Gamer show to learn more about some of your experiences behind the scenes.

Keep gaming and best of luck Ciji!

Jonnymovgamer: Hello Chrom (Xchrom0someXX) for those not familiar with Chrom. Thank you for taking the time to be interviewed.

Xchrom0someXX: I am happy that you chose me, so thank you.

Jonnymovgamer: How long have you been a member on Metagamers, and how did you find out about Metagamers?

Xchrom0someXX: I have been a member since April 2006. I found out about Meta through myspace. I got a message to tryout the forums and it turned out I really like Metagamers.

Jonnymovgamer: We’re glad you like Metagamers. Really, we are. What’s the aspect you like most on Metagamers? Is there an area you want to see improved?

Xchrom0someXX: I like the support girl gamers can find at Metagamers. Nobody judges and everyone is here because they are a gamer. There are a few areas I would like to see improvement, but the biggest thing I would like to see is more general forums and more PC related topics.

Jonnymovgamer: I’d like to see more PC related topics, but I don’t create many topics in there, because unfortunately I’m not a PC gamer. Hopefully PC gamers that read this will start creating some more topics. As for more general forums, what kind of general forums would you like to see added? We’re always looking for ways to improve.

Xchrom0someXX: A politics forum, a movies forum, an art forum, a books forum, and an introduction forum. Those would be better off as forums instead of threads and would do well outside of the general forum.

Jonnymovgamer: Those would be good additions. We always thought it would make the forum looked cluttered, but you’re not the first to request such forums. Perhaps it would be a good thing.

Jonnymovgamer: Moving on

Jonnymovgamer: What was the first game you ever played, and what’s the first system you ever had? [...]

The questions were answered by Jon Chang, President of Echelon Software. (Thank you for the interview).

1. How is Black Powder, Red Earth coming along?

We’re doing fairly well. It took a bit longer than expected to add the polish we wanted to the demo level but we’re finally there. The Unreal Engine tools are pretty amazing, but like any new tool, it takes a bit of time to really push the capabilities to their limits and there’s always more to learn ^_^

The integrated social/commercial networking elements have also evolved quite a bit as well. We are really tuning and adding elements to make us more than a game where you can buy guns online. The web component of our game is a fairly rich experience and in some ways, a whole other game to itself.

2. Is there an estimate as to when this game might be available?

It really depends on when we get funded. For the time being we’re still 4 guys working on it and taking in outside work to keep the lights on and pay rent, feed ourselves, etc.

3. How many developers are working on Black Powder, Red Earth?

4 full time and 4 part time. We’re also working with some partner studios to provide assets in areas where we couldn’t find local people that shared our vision. Most notably Production IG and Simply Dynamic Tactical. [...]

1. Dementium: The Ward looks like it’s going to be a great Mature themed first person shooter game. What inspired you to make this game?

Renegade Kid are huge fans of the horror genre and survival horror games, and realized that no one had really nailed the genuinely spooky and often genuinely scary feeling of the classics of the genre on the Nintendo DS. Someone had to step up to the plate, and they felt if no one else was going to do it, then they had to.

2. How challenging will the game be?

Depends on the player, I suppose. We consider the game to walk that fine line of challenging enough to keep you going without crossing over into the territory of frustration. On top of that, it’s not just a straight shooter, there’s exploration of course and some really cool puzzles to figure out that are designed to be fun, but never make you throw your DS down because you need Steven Hawking to figure out the answer.

3. Is there any plans to bring Dementium: The Ward onto the Wii? It looks like it would make good use out of the Wii’s Remote.

That’s best left for Renegade Kid, but if the game does well enough on the DS, I suppose anything is possible… [...]