Meet the Mob: John Michael

Name: John Michael
Age: 25
Base of Operations: Saskatchewan, Canada
Xbox LIVE: Ego Tryptophane

Bio… as it relates to Videogames and more:

I’ve been playing games since I was a little kid on an Indian reservation out in the middle of nowhere, Saskatchewan. Not much to do on a reservation, unless you want to try to dissect a dead mouse with a butter knife… Yes, I’ve seen such an attempt. The mouse was stuffed into an empty glass Pepsi bottle after it failed to burst open.

When I wasn’t watching in disgust as such shenanigans occurred, I might have been seen playing SNES classics such as Star Fox and Super Ghouls and Ghosts. Sometimes I may have snuck my hand at a few moments with my brothers Genesis. You know, Phantasy Star III (oh, shush. I like it) or Shining in the Darkness.

I never really became “a gamer” until I was about 14. We escaped the reserve by this time and were happily living in the city. I have fond memories of Goldeneye. You know, I still have my cartridge with all the cheats unlocked. Yep. Every single one of them. It’s my greatest achievement in my gaming career.

I eventually acquired a Playstation and my love for Japanese RPG’s reemerged, but this time I had a greater appreciation for them. I had played Final Fantasy VI on my SNES, but let me tell you, when I tried out Final Fantasy VII for the first time, it was like the Devil himself surrendered to God and said “What can I say? You win.” You better believe it was a good day.

The very first game I ever owned. Purchased because the word of my older brother was "Super FX graphics are so awesome." And you know what? They were.

 

When I’m not playing games I might be seen contemplating my future. As of this moment, I have no idea where I’m going. Maybe I’ll pursue a career in games or maybe not.

I teach Sunday School to Single Adults ranging in age from 18 to mid 30’s, although I get the occasional married couple who sneak in for a visit. I don’t get paid for this, it’s kind of a volunteer sort of deal… Kind of. I enjoy it though. Based on the feedback I get, I’ve considered getting into teaching as a profession. You can find me contemplating this in a closet later.

I’m a quiet sort of fellow. One might mistake me as stand-offish. But trust me, I have a kind soul.

Favorite Games/Genres:

I had a huge list that I typed/deleted. But I thought I could sum up by saying I play just about every genre. But if I were to pick 10 games I have the fondest memories with, they would be (in no particular order):

Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time
Final Fantasy VII (I’m cool about though… honest)
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic
Counter-Strike
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind
Halo: Combat Evolved (Multiplayer)
Shenmue
Goldeneye
Age of Empires II
Phantasy Star Online

A good RPG is my preferred modus operandi when I’m going solo, but I mostly shoot my way through multiplayer sessions.

What I Like About Bitmob and My Time Here:

My presence is mostly passive. I enjoy reading while I’m doing other stuff. I used to stalk the GameFAQS message boards, but I think I’m too old for them now or something. I also found myself seizing to take posts seriously when I saw the “word” “emo” being used. The lack of trolling and delinquency at Bitmob is refreshing.

I got front paged once, and that was cool. It was write up about the Bayonetta Demo. It was all edited and stuff, which I thought was awesome because it was a real mess before the edit. But more than that, it allowed me to look at my writing objectively. I guess I would have been irked if they had taken out the “you’re so horny you can’t think straight” joke… but that was kept the way I had written it… so I was golden.

I’m not really here thinking it’s a possible gateway to gaming journalism as a profession. I’ve thought about it in the past, but I’m not the greatest writer in the world. When I think of a possible career in games, I mostly think about helping create games. I like the idea of being part of a team and really create something special. And that is why I’m also considering teaching as a profession. It’s really satisfying teaching a lesson in Sunday School and getting a ton of people involved in the discussion. All of a sudden everybody is learning from each other… Also my mom and sister are both teachers.
 

So, what about my time here? I just like talking about videogames.

Random Videogame Memory (optional reading… not that the rest was mandatory):

I used to have marathon games of Age of Empires II with a friend of mine. We wouldn’t play to win. We would play to have massive armies. We would spend hours playing one match.

This one time my friend turtled himself in a corner of the map. He was heavily fortified with rows upon rows off walls and towers. Every attempt at penetration would be met with defeat. He would listen to the Lord of the Rings soundtrack while we played, so he definitely had Helms Deep on his mind.

Anyways, a head-on approach wasn’t working. So I would send in small regiments on a regular basis to keep him distracted. Keeping his eyes away from the western side of the map, where I had few villagers cutting down a forest… a forest that was being used as inexpensive fortitude.

So eventually I cut my way through without him noticing, sent a small force to where I was normally attacking him, and while  he sent a sizable force to clear those guys away, the  3/4's of my army flooded through this little path and just decimated his fortress. The other quarter was used to take out any units trying to escape from the front.

The game lasted another 15 minutes as I tried to locate his smaller, backup town.