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Names: Mike Hendricks II / Sarah Blanchard

Status: Dynamic Duo! (Boy/Girlfriend)

Which one of you games? Both of us.

How often do you game?
Mike: I try to get in at least an hour a day, but it doesn’t always end up like that. Lame!
Sarah: It varies depending on how much free time I have, but usually about 3-4 times a week.

Do you prefer to play online multiplayer or locally?
Mike: It really depends on the genre. I love single-player RPGs and adventure games, local multiplayer for party games like Mario Kart 64, and online/local combos like Halo: Reach are awesome, because you get the best of local and online multiplayer.
Sarah: Locally, I always have a lot more fun when I play games in the same room as other people. I do love playing online multiplayer though because the people you meet online are usually so hilarious!

Do you prefer competitive or cooperative multiplayer?
Mike: I like co-op competitive myself, team-based games allow for much more strategy. Plus being MVP is more awesome when you’re on a team.
Sarah: I actually prefer competitive co-op games like Halo, especially when it comes to online multiplayer. I really enjoy the competition of online play and first person shooters in general but I’m pretty terrible at them. I like being able to work together with teammates, it’s the only way I stand a chance!

Fave game to play with others?
Mike: Locally – probably old school Super Smash Bros for N64, online I think it’s Halo: Reach so far.
Sarah: Just Dance for the Wii. It is impossible to NOT have a good time while dancing around like a crazy person to cheesy pop music.

Fave game to play with each other?
Mike: I like playing Warriors of Might and Magic for the DS with Sarah, she actually gives me some decent competition on that one. She always uses that stupid undead emo girl.
Sarah: At the moment, Halo Reach. Mike teases me because my kill-death spread is always in the negatives…but I’m getting a lot better!

Currently playing?
Mike: FALLOUT NEW VEGAS OWNS MY LIFE.
Sarah: Bioshock 2 and Metal Gear Solid. I also just got Fallout New Vegas which I’m very excited to start playing.

Do you consider yourself to be a hardcore or a casual gamer?
Mike: I guess I’m pretty hardcore, although that term has always bothered me. I’ve loved games forever, and it shows. I mean, I don’t act like a total douche online, and I try to curtail the bragging, but if you play with me, you’ll see that I let my gaming do the talking.
Sarah: I’d say I’m more of a casual gamer, although I do have hardcore moments when it’s hard to pull me away from my console.

What do you like about gaming with Sarah?
Mike: The fact that she’s right there next to me, so anytime I want to I can sneak a kiss in. I know that’s pretty corny, but my favorite parts of gaming with her are the little things outside the game. That and she always has some hilariously inappropriate commentary.
Sarah: I like that he’s very competitive and won’t just let me win if we’re playing a game together. If I do win I know it’s because I actually did well and not because he’s going easy on me. I also like that he has such a freaking huge collection of games that I can borrow. :]

What DON’T you like about gaming with Sarah?
Mike: I don’t like it too much when she thinks I’m upset. For example, if we’re doing poorly in a game, I might start dropping some F-bombs to myself and such, but not in a ragey sort of way, just the way you might spurt out an insult at a driver who cut you off. I think sometimes she might take it seriously and think that I’m upset when I’m really not.
Sarah: Sometimes he gets mad if I accidentally shoot him when we’re playing Halo, it’s not my fault you ran in front of me when I was shooting aliens!

What has been your most memorable gaming experience?
Mike: Jeez, there’s tons. The first thing that comes to mind for me was in the RPG Suikoden on PS1. At one point, a character named Gremio pretty much gets eaten alive to save you, after having been your family’s servant his whole life. But while it’s happening, he’s talking to you through the door about it and about how it’s ok and such. It seriously brought a tear to my eye.
Sarah: There have been so many it’s hard to name just one. In general I think the mutual love that Mike and I both have for anything video game related has allowed us to share a ton of great unique experiences. Just a couple months ago we went to E3 and Video Games Live which were a blast. I don’t think I would have had nearly as great of a time if I had gone with someone who didn’t enjoy that stuff as much as Mike does, and vice versa.

What has been your most frustrating gaming experience?
Mike: No specific event, but I think that being spawn-killed in any shooter game is an instant off-pisser for me. It’s like the developer just didn’t give enough of a crap to give you a fair chance.
Sarah: Any time I try to play the guitar or bass in Rock Band on hard mode. I get so thrown off by that stupid orange button!

Who is the better gamer and why?
Mike: To be honest, I think it’s me. Sarah’s catching up quick, she’s only been getting more hardcore with gaming maybe 2 years now tops, but she’s already got the addiction. I’ve gotta say though, that across almost any genre I can school her. To be fair, I’ve been playing avidly almost my entire life, so it’d be pretty sad if she were already better than me.
Sarah: Definitely Mike, he’s been playing video games since he was fresh out of the womb, there’s no way I even compare to that! Although I can totally kick his butt in a game of Tetris.

What is your system of choice and why?
Mike: My current one is Xbox360. The social aspect is much more streamlined, and I’m used to the controller. I was a Playstation kid growing up, but one of my best friends got me a 360 and Gears of War a few years back, and changed the game up. I’ve got a 60-gig PS3 as well, but I just don’t use it as much.
Sarah: PS3! I’ve grown up playing on PlayStation consoles, it’s what I love and what I’m used to. I will always be a Sony girl at heart.

Fave game of all time?
Mike: This one’s a supreme toughy. There’s so many types of games that I don’t know if I can pinpoint a single best. On the fly though, I’d say I’m feeling Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars.
Sarah: Final Fantasy VII. When I first expressed an interest in gaming Mike told me this was the game I absolutely NEEDED to play. He was definitely right, I loved playing it and it’s been my favorite ever since!

What do your gamertags mean?
Mike: Mine’s Unusanimus, it’s latin for Onesoul. I made Onesoul up back in middle school, it just seemed to fit. Than once that marvelous internet age picked up, I noticed people stealing it. So I loosely translated it into Latin and went with that.
Sarah: Mine is Sarahsaurusss, it’s actually the first instant messenger screen name I made when I was in the sixth grade. For the sake of my horrible memory I try to keep it simple and use the same log-in name for most things.

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Names: Joshua and Kay Burnham
Status: Married

Which one of you games?
Both

How often do you game?
Weekly

You have 2 kids…how old are they and do they game?
They are 9 and 11 and both are gamers. Both game more than we do.

If yes, what system(s) do they like to play?
WII, DS, Xbox 360

What is their favorite game?
Any Pokemon game

What steps do you take as (gaming) parents regarding mature content in games?
We make sure that we play any game that is rated mature before allowing them to either play or watch us play it. Some we deem OK, others they won’t get to play/watch until they are older.

What are they currently playing?
Spore Hero

Do you prefer to play online multiplayer or locally?
Locally

Do you prefer competitive or cooperative multiplayer?
Both, depends on the game and our mood.

Fave game to play with others?
Halo and Star Wars Battlefront

Fave game to play with each other?
Fairytale Fights

Currently playing?
Bioshock, Gears of War, Thrillville Off the Rails, Wii Fit

Do you consider yourself to be a hardcore or a casual gamer?
Casual

What do you like about gaming with Kay?
That we can play together or at least she doesn’t make me turn off my games when she gets home from work.

What do you like about gaming with Josh?
He helps me with the more difficult puzzles or tasks in a game so that I don’t get as frustrated.

What DON’T you like about gaming with Kay?
I switch games a lot during a gaming session and if I’m playing with her I generally have to stick to one game the entire time.

What DON’T you like about gaming with Josh?
He tends to go barreling through the games while I like to explore more.

What has been your most memorable gaming experience?
The day that our son finally could beat us at the games on his own.

What has been your most frustrating gaming experience?
Playing Guitar Hero for the first time and failing miserably, only to have our son pick up the Guitar and play a perfect round. (Of, course he had been playing the game for a number of years with his mother)

Who is the better gamer and why?
Josh, he has better hand eye coordination

What is your system of choice and why?
Xbox 360 cost and the Halo and ViVa Pinata games series.

Fave game of all time?
Oddworld Abe’s Odyssey

What do your gamertags mean?
Josh just uses his name (well most of the time he actually uses my gamertag), mine is my nickname, Kat, combined with my favorite state of being, laughing. ☺

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Names: Tommy Lawler, Kristine Macabuhay

Status: Dating

Which one of you games?
Tommy: We both game, but I game a whole lot more.

Kristine: Tommy and I both play games.  He is the more avid enthusiast, though I may pick up a controller every once in a while.

How often do you game?
Tommy: Daily

Kristine: I don’t do it too often unless it is with a game I really like, at which point I get morbidly obsessed and play at every chance I get.

Do you prefer to play online multiplayer or locally?
Tommy: I’m generally a local gamer these days. Nothing like playing with good friends in the same place.

Kristine: If I had to choose, I would rather play locally.  However… (See question below)

Do you prefer competitive or cooperative multiplayer?
Tommy: Coop for sure. That’s where the laughs are. Competitive can be fun, but I get a little… too competitive

Kristine: Neither.  For me, gaming is a solitary activity for two reasons.  First, I find gaming to be very relaxing and mind-clearing.  I take it up especially when I feel the need to de-stress and withdraw.  Also, I avoid playing with others for fear of sucking ass.  I will be the first to admit that I am a sore loser.

Fave game to play with others?
Tommy: Either Street Fighter or Rock Band

Kristine: Beatles: Rock Band.

Fave game to play with each other?
Tommy: Rock Band. I’d say probably other games but she stops and says “I’ll suck!” before even trying.

Kristine: Beatles: Rock Band, although Little Big Planet and Super Mario Wii are also fun.  We’ve tried playing Halo and Left 4 Dead together, but I do not have the penchant for shooting games so that did not last too long.

Currently playing?
Tommy: Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer, Assassin’s Creed 2, Dragon Age: Origins, Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia… I have no life.

Kristine: I’m currently playing Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, which was a Christmas gift from Tommy.

Do you consider yourself to be a hardcore or a casual gamer?
Tommy: These days, I don’t have the skill to call myself hardcore, but I also play too much to call it a casual thing. I will just shoehorn a term in there and call myself an Enthusiast.

Kristine: I am definitely a casual gamer.  I probably play a bit more than regular folks, but I don’t play a well-rounded enough selection of games and don’t keep up with industry news.

What do you like about gaming with Kristine?
Tommy: I have a pal to enjoy Beatles Rock Band with.

What do you like about gaming with Tommy?
Kristine: He is very helpful and patient when we play together, which is nice because I kind of suck most of the time.  He’s very encouraging with me when it comes to gaming in general.

What DON’T you like about gaming with Kristine?
Tommy: She’s better than me if it’s something she likes, and it’s a blow to the ego if ever there was one.

What DON’T you like about gaming with Tommy?
Kristine: He and I are both sore losers, which can be a bad combination.  Whereas I approach it by not even trying to compete at all, he is very competitive and has a short fuse when it comes to losing.

What has been your most memorable gaming experience?
Tommy: With Kristine? Probably when she actually sang in Beatles Rock Band

Kristine: Guitar Hero 1.  I was introduced to it at friend’s house.  I liked it so much that I bought my own copy the very next day and played for seven hours straight—I went from being an easy-level player to expert all in one night.

What has been your most frustrating gaming experience?
Tommy: She passes some songs on Expert guitar before me! HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE!?

Kristine: The whole concept of Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow eludes me.  I can never get past the stupid first boss.

Who is the better gamer and why?
Tommy: If it’s a game she likes, she is. I think I spread myself thin. I play a huge variety of games and thus don’t get very good at any them. She plays a small handful, and thus gets pretty good at them as they come along.

Kristine: Tommy, hands down.  He’s been playing since he was three years old!

What is your system of choice and why?
Tommy: Really, I don’t care. For multiplatform games, my choice is generally contingent on which will get me the most friends to play with if it has multiplayer. Otherwise I’ll look at the features or performance. I picked up Arkham Asylum on PS3 to play as the Joker, but got Assassin’s Creed 2 on 360 for the faster load times and slightly improved visuals, Dragon Age on PC because of the tactical view just completely lacking in the console versions.

Kristine: For sentimental purposes, the Nintendo DS.  Some of my friends, who were also co-workers at that time, got them the day it came out.  Pre-boyfriend-status Tommy was one of them.  He and another friend spent that whole morning at work playing with the Pictochat feature, which I thought was the coolest thing ever.  That afternoon, I went to Target during my lunch break to buy my very own.  I was a bit apprehensive about it at first because it cost quite a bit of money, but Tommy promised to make sure I don’t let it go to waste.  He’s been making good on that promise ever since.

Fave game of all time?
Tommy: One of the hardest question for me to answer right here. My immediate reaction to this question is always Chrono Trigger because it was the first game where I got really swept up in the characters and story. Just a terrific game. But Half-Life and Street Fighter 3: Third Strike also come to mind. The former’s pretty standard desert island fare, the other I feel I should justify. I realize that Street Fighter 2 is the groundwork and the more important game, but to me personally I’ve had more fun learning and trying to master its direct sequel with close friends. I love that game, and I have amazing memories playing it at home and arcades.

Kristine: Super Mario 3.  It is the first game I ever owned.  My parents bought it for me and my older sister for the Nintendo Family Computer when were little.

What do your gamertags mean?
Tommy: Tawler is just the first letter of my first name tacked onto my last name without its first letter. On PSN I made it TawlOtter because uh… Otters are awesome? Hellooo?

Kristine: Gamertags are for nerds!

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Names: Aaron & Misha

Status: Long Term Relationship

Which one of you games?
Aaron: 7 days a week, Misha when she has free time.

Misha: He does…a lot. I do…some NOT anywhere close to how much he does.

How often do you game?
Aaron: Any chance I can when it’s not warm and sunny.

Misha: Depends on my mood – some weeks it’s 3-4 times for an hour or so, and some weeks it’s not at all.

Do you prefer to play online multiplayer or locally:
Aaron: Locally unless my friends are on back home.

Misha: Depends on the game – for an example – Carcassone online and Scene It locally and 1 vs 100!

Do you prefer competitive or cooperative multiplayer:
Aaron: Co-op being able to play with friends across the US is amazing.

Misha: I like both, but I do think healthy competition is a lot of fun.

Fave game to play with others?
Aaron: Gears of War 2, Modern Warfare 2, Castle Crashers, 1 vs. 100, 2 Uno Games.

Misha: Any Scene It game (for 360) and Wii Sports Resort.

Fave game to play with each other?
Aaron: Uno and 1 vs 100, we play almost every night.

Misha: UNO Rush – we are a force to be reckoned with when we team up together.

Currently playing:
Aaron: MW2 and anything with achievements I don’t have yet.

Misha: Peggle Nights for XBOX 360/Super Mario and Donkey Kong Country for the Wii.

Do you consider yourself to be a hardcore or a casual gamer?
Aaron: I’m casual hardcore – I don’t have nto play but when I do, it’s go time!

Misha: I started very casually but am getting into it more.

What do you like about gaming with Misha?
Aaron: Sharing my love for the tech and experiencing new games with her.

What do you like about gaming with Aaron?
Misha: It’s something that he loves to do and I enjoy also. And it’s a lot of fun.

What DON’T you like about gaming with Misha?
Aaron: That I get upset because she doesn’t pick things up as fast as I do.

What DON’T you like about gaming with Aaron?
Misha: He sometimes gets frustrated with me because I’m not as fast of a learner as he is. My hand-eye coordination is not the best.

What has been your most memorable gaming experience?
Aaron: I will never forget Aeris Battler with Sephiroth (Final Fantasy VII).

Misha: Playing Donkey Kong Country again – it was my favorite game growing up – SNES.

What has been your most frustrating gaming experience?
Aaron: Same as above – didn’t want to play it for a week after it happened.

Misha: Trying to keep up with Aaron in Gear of War – Wingman, ONCE.

Who is the better gamer and why?
Aaron: Me because I have been playing since Atari.

Misha: AARON! For Sure! He has the coordination and understanding of the physics of the games he plays. It’s crazy how fast he gets through games.

Fave game of all time?
Aaron: Final Fantasy VII

Misha: Hard to choose – loved Donkey Kong Country growing up, Carcassone is awesome, Peggle is CRACK! But then there’s TETRIS, BEJEWLEED 2, HEXIC, the list goes on and on…

What do your gamertags mean?
Aaron: Theboycharlieb: The boy (nickname); CharlieB is short for Charlie Brown – because I was balding in high school.

Misha: They’re our nicknames – he’s The Boy and Charlie Brown (theboycharlieb)
and mine is Misha and Kittie (mishakittie).

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Names: Julian & Mandie
Status: Dating
Which one of you games?
Julian: Both of us.
Mandie: Both, thank goodness!

How often do you game?
Julian: After work ever day, and usually a bunch on weekends (unless we’re going out somewhere. Gotta have RL friends too.)

Mandie: When I’ve got free time from school. Usually on the weekends or late in the evening.

What systems do you own?
Julian: Xbox 360, Wii, PC, PSP, 2 DS’s, PS2, Gamecube, Dreamcast, Neo Geo Pocket Color… am I forgetting anything?

Mandie: Super Nintendo!

Do you prefer to play online multiplayer or locally?
Julian: I prefer locally. It’s nice to be able to slap someone if they’re being a jerk, lol.

Mandie: Hmm, it is fun to play locally but I’m a big fan of playing online with people from different parts of the world. I mean if I didn’t play multiplayer I would have never met Julian!

The two of you lived on the opposite sides of the country for a while, did you game online together?
Julian: Totally. We lived apart for 2 and a half years, but online gaming really helped us feel like we weren’t that far away.

Mandie: We sure did! Even though we were on opposite sides of the country, gaming made us feel like we were still hanging out and doing fun activities together.

What kind of games did you play?

Julian: Mainly MMORPGs. We met in Final Fantasy XI and we’d play together all the time. Even though we weren’t always close in level we’d still find ways to play together. Mandie also got me into World of Warcraft, so we played that too.

Mandie: I was crazy for MMORPGs before I started college. Julian and I played FFXI together for a few years, and then moved onto WoW.

Did you prefer one console over another or did you play via PC?
Julian: I’ve become a big fan of the 360. I mainly use the PC for Mugen when I need a 2D fighting fix.

Mandie: I love the DS but playing games on Steam has been a lot of fun.  I’d say the PC is becoming my console of choice.

How do you juggle game time with school and/or work?
Julian: Normally I’m pretty responsible about balancing the two, but when there’s a particularly awesome game out I sometimes end up going to work with a few hours less sleep than usual.

Mandie: School always has to come first for me so I’m pretty behind on playing a lot of new releases. I even own some PS2 games with the shrink wrap still on ‘em.

Do you prefer competitive or cooperative multiplayer?
Julian: I like co-op. I’d rather work with someone than against someone.

Mandie: Julian is definitely the co-op fan, I’d be pvping in battlegrounds in WoW and he’d be questing with a pal. Co-Op can be a lot of fun though, I think it totally enriches the experience of certain games. Particularly Marvel Ultimate Alliance and all the LEGO games.

Fave game to play with others?
Julian: New Super Mario Bros Wii is awesome with a group.

Mandie: That game is vicious! I prefer Mario Party or Band Hero/Rock Band.

Fave game to play with each other?
Julian: Marvel Ultimate Alliance (I think the first was more fun).

Mandie: Same

Currently playing?
Julian: Dragon Age: Origins (contemplating starting a 3rd character), Megaman 9 (practicing for 10), and Mugen on the PC.

Mandie: Dragon Age: Origins (on my second character), Left for Dead 2 (Spitter ftw), and Poupee Girl DS (a Japanese dress-up game).

Do you consider yourself to be a hardcore or a casual gamer?
Julian: I definitely used to be hardcore, but now with a job and grown-up responsibilities like rent and bills I’m getting a little more casual in my old age.

Mandie: I think I’ll always be a hardcore fan of games but in terms of playing I’d say casual. Damn you real life responsibilities!

What do you like about gaming with Mandie?
We work great as a team. There’s no puzzle we can’t solve together.

What do you like about gaming with Julian?
He let’s me break all the destructible objects!

What DON’T you like about gaming with Mandie?
She’s a great winner, but not great at losing. I still love her though.

What DON’T you like about gaming with Julian?
Nothing, he’s swell! Also, losing sucks.

What has been your most memorable gaming experience?
Julian: When I was going for my Epic Warlock Mount in WoW. I couldn’t find ANYONE willing to help with the raid, so Mandie and I ended up doing the entire thing with just the two of us. It was rough, but we did it. I was so proud of us.

Mandie: This is going to sound dorky but getting married in Final Fantasy XI. It took weeks for Square Enix to approve our application for the “official SE wedding”. It was a lot of fun to gather our linkshell
(guild) and participate in the ceremony.

What has been your most frustrating gaming experience?
Julian: The damn vehicle portions of Lego Star Wars. Mandie and I did it
2 players and that actually makes it worse, since BOTH players have to perform flawlessly. A weaker couple would have killed each other over it, lol.

Mandie: Oh man, Julian would probably say I’ve had a lot of them. I’d say the last boss in Champions of Norrath. I was convinced the game was broken because we could not kill him. Julian died pretty quickly but I kept running the boss in circles. Finally, I just ice arrowed his face for what felt like an hour and he went down.

Who is the better gamer and why?
Julian: I’d have to say I am. We both excel at different genres (I can’t play a shooter to save my life) but I’m more patient and willing to die 100 times just to master a single tricky jump.

Mandie: Yah, Julian definitely is. I have little patience. Though I’d probably kick his ass at any FPS he always wins at fighters and side scrollers.

What is your system of choice and why?
Julian: I like the 360 a lot. It has a great variety of games and Xbox live is pretty awesome.

Mandie: PC, I don’t feel limited by console hardware and we get most, if not all dlcs free!

Fave game of all time?
Julian: Megaman 2. Pew pew pew!

Mandie: Donkey Kong Country. It came free with my SNES and I played the crap out of it. Even when I go back to it now it’s tons of fun.

What do your gamertags mean?
Julian: UltraRoboNinja. I just thought it sounded awesomely dorky.

Mandie: kunoichi. Its Japanese for female ninja.

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Names: Norman Major III & April Carlson
Status: Married (to each other) since 11/19/2006; together since April 2000.
Which one of you games: Both of us!!

How often do you game?
Norm: A lot but not as much as you might think.  I go through phases where I play games for extended periods of time, but I can also go a while without playing a single game.

April: I game every chance I get…either by myself, with Norm, or with a friend online.

Do you prefer to play online multiplayer or locally?
Norm: Locally.  I prefer the in-person interaction and knowing the person that I am playing with and their skill level.

April: Generally, when I play a game with someone I prefer that we play locally.  There’s nothing like playing a game with a friend and being in the same room together.  If I do play online, I generally do so with people that I know, either in person or via the Internet.  I rarely just jump into an online match but I do on occasion.  I guess I’m old school that way, I just prefer to play with people that I know.  I have participated in game nights, like the Gears of War 2 night with Gaming Angels, and that was a lot of fun and I played with a lot of good gamers – good shots and good sports.

Do you prefer competitive or cooperative multiplayer?
Norm: Co-operative, although a good Halo deathmatch is always in order.

April: I generally prefer cooperative play.  That’s not to say that I don’t enjoy competition.  I actually prefer competitive co-op – where you play the game as a team but I’ll generally try to get a lot of the pick-ups or money and achievements, of course.  Most co-op games now share gold and items with the other teammates so it’s less competitive now, but with games like Gauntlet Dark Legacy or Baldur’s Gate…watch out…I will so totally steal all the gold and items I can find.  I do, of course, share, if the game allows for it (like in Baldur’s Gate.)

Favorite game to play with others:
Norm: Probably Rock Band.

April: I guess I’d have to say Halo 3.  I mean it’s the game that Norm and I along with our friend, Bob, play together on a regular basis.  We have our own custom Slayer match set up and we sit and kick each other’s asses for several hours at a time, at least once a month or so.  Oh yah, and of course, Rock Band.

Favorite game to play with each other:
Norm: I like the Halo series and Resident Evil 5, also Mario Kart is a blast, although we haven’t played that very often.  But I would have to say my favorite has been The Beatles Rock Band.

April: Hmmmmm….that depends…we actually play a lot of games together.  If it has a co-op mode, we’ve probably played it at least once.  If I had to choose just one, it would be Rock Band (and that’s really a ton of games, since I will lump all the Guitar Hero and Rock Band games into that).  That’s probably the most consistent game we currently play together.  Runner ups would be Baldur’s Gate 1 & 2, House of the Dead (Wii and standard arcade versions), Resident Evil 5, and all the Halo games.  What can I say, we like to play together.

Currently playing:
Norm: Muramasa: The Demon Blade, Halo: Combat Evolved, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, and Price of Persia (360).

April: Right now I’m playing Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3) & Borderlands (360).  My fallback game for the last year has been Fallout 3, although, I just completed the main quest of the game.  I will also play Fable 2 on occasion.

Do you consider yourself to be a hardcore or a casual gamer?
Norm: A little bit of both. It depends on the day that you catch me and if that makes me a casual gamer, so be it.  But we own more games than most people will ever own in a lifetime and it that makes me hardcore, so be it.

April: The definition of Hardcore vs. Casual has been and always will be a debate amongst gamers forever.  Everyone really has their own definition of hardcore and casual.  I would put myself in the Hardcore category since I pretty much live, eat, and breathe games.  Together, Norm and I have over 20 game systems – all of which are hooked up and ready to play.  I give almost every genre a try, even if I am not a fan.  I recently opened up to strategy games and I’m dabbling in the sports genre.  Not ready to make that commitment but if a game is worth playing, I’ll try it out regardless of genre.

What do you like about gaming with April?
I love gaming and I love April and I love that I can put the two of them together.  Not a lot of husbands get to do that, so I don’t take it for granted.

What do you like about gaming with Norm?
I like being able to share something that I really love with Norm.  He loves it too which makes it that much better.  If I had to name one thing, it would be that he never LETS me win.  When I beat him at something, I know it’s because I was just better and not because he went easy on me.  That’s very satisfying.  I return the gesture and never go easy on him.  If I lose, I occasionally will say it was because I let him win…but only because it makes him mad.  It’s all just a part of my strategy.

What DON’T you like about gaming with April?
I guess if I had to choose something, it would be when she’s in the mood to play a game and I’m not.  Also, she’s way better than me at trivia so trivia games can be frustrating at times.

What DON’T you like about gaming with Norm?
Hmmmm…there are a couple of them.  He can get really frustrated especially if the point spread is ridiculous, like it tends to be in trivia types of games.  I’m sorry, but I kick righteous ASS in most trivia games and that really makes him pissy and I don’t enjoy those moments.  (In his defense, I can get a little cocky…so I guess it evens out.)  The other thing I hate is when I am having a hard time with a portion of a game – stuck or can’t execute a combo or something like that – and he says, can I try?  NO.  No you can’t try.  I hate that…mostly because when I get frustrated I can’t really function and if he were to get it on the first try, I would explode.

What has been your most memorable gaming experience?
Norm: Playing Super Metroid for the first time, staying up all night with my best friend, Rich.

April: Hmmm…most memorable?  Probably the first Valentine’s Day and playing Perfect Dark on the N64.  Runner up to that would have to be when we were in San Francisco for our honeymoon.  We got married on the Wii’s release date and even had the Wii set up at our wedding.  We took it with us on our honeymoon and we had to get an adapter for it to play it on the hotel’s TV. We were staying in Japantown and decided to take the bus.  When the bus stopped and people were getting off, someone pushed an old man out and he fell out of the bus, hitting his head on the concrete.  I was appalled that people just kept on going.  The bus driver called for an ambulance and we decided to wait until the ambulance arrived.  The man didn’t speak English and he hit his head really hard – I heard it.  We waited, along with the bus driver – who routed people to the next bus.  When the ambulance finally arrived and took the man away, we were ready to go and the bus driver asked us where we were headed.  We boarded the bus and got a private bus ride to Powell Street, free of charge!  We found a Radio Shack, found our adapter, got lunch, and headed back to the hotel to play some new Zelda.  That was pretty memorable!

What has been your most frustrating experience?
Norm: A particular game of You Don’t Know Jack where I was losing so badly that April couldn’t help but to really rub it in to the point where I had to stop playing.

April: I have a lot of those (mostly due to game mechanics, though)!  I guess my frustrating experiences would be when people think I can’t play or don’t know anything about games because I’m a female.  It doesn’t happen often – I get more shocked reactions from people now.  But most people that know me, know that I LOVE gaming.

Who is the better gamer and why?
Norm: I am but it’s getting closer everyday.  I’ve been playing video games religiously since I received the Intellivision and so my skills are a bit more honed at this point.  But that could change, we’ll see.

April: That’s a tough one…well…I guess technically, Norm is.  If I had to answer this question five years ago, the answer would definitely be Norm.  But in the last few years, I’ve definitely improved in my gaming abilities.  I’ve been able to go back and play games that I originally had a lot of trouble with and get through them a lot easier.
Norm generally excels in a game over time while I generally pick up games a lot quicker.  In the long run, Norm will come out ahead of me.  That’s not in all games but in a lot of them.  I’ve gotten a lot better and keep on getting better….so it’s only a matter of time!  I remember there was a time when I thought I’d never be able to play Guitar Hero/Rock Band on Expert…and now that’s generally all I play.  If I stick with it, I generally do better.  It’s not always so competitive though…we’ll shit talk each other but I still think that we have evened out in the last few years or so.  It a much more even playing field these days.  I pwn him playing Target Fun on the Atari 2600 though! 

What is your system of choice and why?
Norm: If we’re talking overall, I would pick the N64 because some of the greatest games in my opinion were created for this system, such as Mario 64, Ocarina of Time, Rogue Squadron, etc.  If we are talking current gen, I would have to say the Wii.  I enjoy the motion controls but most importantly, it’s the Nintendo brand of games and their philosophy of gaming that I’m tuned into.

April: Definitely the 360.  I think that it’s the all around best console in terms of ease of use and accessibility.  This is made obvious by Netflix the upcoming Facebook and Twitter updates coming this month to XBL.  I have a lot of trouble keeping my PS3 connected to the Internet – I’m sure that’s not the PS3′s fault necessarily, but it’s pretty frustrating.  I think that the 360′s Achievement system is also the most cohesive.  I don’t care what any gamer says, but most of us judge other gamers based on their gamer score and that’s directly from the 360.  I still enjoy the PS3 and the Wii but I spent most of my time with my Xbox.

Favorite game of all time?
Norm: Super Metroid.

April: Honestly, I hate this question.  LOL.  Hate it.  I generally don’t have ONE favorite as opposed to a top five or ten favorites.  I can narrow it down to two games. The first, I’d have to say is Pac Man – the Atari 2600 version.  It was one of the first video games that I played ever and it has always stuck with me.  I remember playing the game for hours at a time when I was a kid.  My second favorite game is Spy Hunter.  If there was a Spy Hunter machine in the room, you’d had better make way for the 8 year old me.  I played the crap out of that game.  My parents used to put on dances for teens in the summer when we lived in Arizona and they had an arcade set up there with – you guessed it – Spy Hunter.  My mom was the token keeper so to keep me occupied, she’d give me a handful of tokens and I would sit and play Spy Hunter until I was out.  Everyone there knew that if I was on the machine not to bother me.  The free tokens I handed out helped keep them away and I even had a boy who would make sure I didn’t get bothered while playing!

What do your Gamertags mean?
Norm: Mine is pretty straightforward. It’s my name and I am a third (Norman Major III), hence the 3.

April: Mine is GMRx2, which stands for Gamer times 2. Originally when we got the 360 we didn’t want to shell out the cash for two Gold memberships. I started playing the 360 more and Norm doesn’t care about achievements so I had him create a Silver membership and I kept GMRx2. I probably should change it but it kind of a sweet tag and I like it. Especially when I tell the story behind it.