What's Your Story? - Andy_Panthro
It's been ages since I published a What's Your Story post. I still have a bunch in my mailbox to get through, although there are a few in there that I haven't heard from in a long time. I can't be sure whether they're still reading, so let's find out! Calling on The Mad Gamer, Killias2, Troy, HunterZ and Crash. There's also an entry from someone whose name I won't mention as it appears to be his real name. The initials are JLM. Apologies if you have commented recently and I overlooked it, but please let me know if you're still around.
Right, today we welcome to the microphone...Andy_Panthro!
My home country is… England, The North: Living and working in and around Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
My age is… 29 and a half (Ed: he may very well be 30 by now!)
The first adventure game I played was… King's Quest I: Quest for the Crown. I'd played a few games by that point, mostly stuff like Monster Math and Alley Cat, on my Dad's Amstrad PP16. That would be in about 1988, so I was around 5 years old, and we got a lot of our games second hand (which is why they were older ones) and through... other means. For much of my youth we were living in places were legal games retailers didn't exist, and you couldn't get much in the way of postage either. But my Dad was very interested in new technology, and games were often the best way of testing the limits of new computers (still are I guess).
My favourite adventure game is… There's two I'd mention here, both from Sierra and both from the same era. I've played through them numerous times, but only once with the voice packs: Space Quest IV and Quest for Glory IV. I tried to decide which one I preferred most, but they both have different qualities that set them apart. SQIV had it's time-travel plot, sci-fi humour and some really great artwork. QFGIV had it's Lovecraft-themed horror-parodying, great characters and of course the variety of class-specific content. I really feel I'm under-selling them both, but to praise them too much would lead me into spoiler territory for the blog, so I'll wait and comment at length on them in the future!
When I’m not playing games I like to… There are a few things I could say here, but I suppose the main one would be film - to say I've watched a lot would be understating it a little. Of course, I'm not quite into hardcore film critic territory, but I'm working on it!
I like my games in (a box, digital format)… I used to say "box", but it's been a rather long time since we got the likes of the Ultima big boxes, which came with little tokens, cloth maps, proper manuals and the like. These days it's hard to get around the convenience and price of digital distribution, and I tend to visit GOG, Gamersgate and Steam with perhaps a little too much regularity!
The thing I miss about old games is… Not sure I miss that much really, since the majority of the games I played when I was younger are still available (in one way or another) today. There was a certain spirit of adventure back then, when it was so new and boundaries were being pushed all the time, and it would be nice to revisit that. However, indie gaming and smaller publishers (like Paradox) do seem to be taking that place.
The best thing about modern games is… Graphics/GUI: While modern games can sometimes be lacking in many respects, certainly the graphical improvements of the 3D era are impressive. But it's the GUI that gets the big mention, these days it's often far more clear what everything does and you generally get less clutter. As much as I enjoy the Ultima Underworld interface from a visual point of view, it's massive restriction of the viewing area would never be tolerated these days!
The one TV show I never miss is… In the past it's been Babylon 5, LOST, House (and more, I watch a lot of TV!), but at the moment it's Game of Thrones. I'm constantly tempted to read the books, but I don't know if I'd appreciate the differences between them and the TV series. The only thing that bugs me about it is the constant deaths of interesting characters! I got into it slowly, only really watching for Sean Bean, but now I'm hooked. Very much looking forward to the big season 2 finale.
If I could see any band live it would be… I listen to a lot of music (couldn't face my commute to/from work without it), but I'm not really one for live music. I'd quite like to see OK GO though.
One interesting thing about me is… I'm the creator of an Ultima-themed Minecraft Texture Pack (available at http://inspired.ultimacodex.com/andy-panthros-ultima-textures-for-minecraft/ ) Shameless plug I know! It all began because I didn't like the clay texture (wasn't visible enough), and then I decided to replace other textures and items, and decided on the Ultima theme, as it's always been a favourite series of mine.
Right, today we welcome to the microphone...Andy_Panthro!
Andy_Panthro: I'm really not sure what I'm looking at here. Perhaps Andy can explain?
My home country is… England, The North: Living and working in and around Newcastle-upon-Tyne.
My age is… 29 and a half (Ed: he may very well be 30 by now!)
The first adventure game I played was… King's Quest I: Quest for the Crown. I'd played a few games by that point, mostly stuff like Monster Math and Alley Cat, on my Dad's Amstrad PP16. That would be in about 1988, so I was around 5 years old, and we got a lot of our games second hand (which is why they were older ones) and through... other means. For much of my youth we were living in places were legal games retailers didn't exist, and you couldn't get much in the way of postage either. But my Dad was very interested in new technology, and games were often the best way of testing the limits of new computers (still are I guess).
Where it all started for many of us
My favourite adventure game is… There's two I'd mention here, both from Sierra and both from the same era. I've played through them numerous times, but only once with the voice packs: Space Quest IV and Quest for Glory IV. I tried to decide which one I preferred most, but they both have different qualities that set them apart. SQIV had it's time-travel plot, sci-fi humour and some really great artwork. QFGIV had it's Lovecraft-themed horror-parodying, great characters and of course the variety of class-specific content. I really feel I'm under-selling them both, but to praise them too much would lead me into spoiler territory for the blog, so I'll wait and comment at length on them in the future!
Space Quest IV: The first SQ game on the list that I haven't played. Looks great!
I like my games in (a box, digital format)… I used to say "box", but it's been a rather long time since we got the likes of the Ultima big boxes, which came with little tokens, cloth maps, proper manuals and the like. These days it's hard to get around the convenience and price of digital distribution, and I tend to visit GOG, Gamersgate and Steam with perhaps a little too much regularity!
They don't make them like this anymore!
The best thing about modern games is… Graphics/GUI: While modern games can sometimes be lacking in many respects, certainly the graphical improvements of the 3D era are impressive. But it's the GUI that gets the big mention, these days it's often far more clear what everything does and you generally get less clutter. As much as I enjoy the Ultima Underworld interface from a visual point of view, it's massive restriction of the viewing area would never be tolerated these days!
The one TV show I never miss is… In the past it's been Babylon 5, LOST, House (and more, I watch a lot of TV!), but at the moment it's Game of Thrones. I'm constantly tempted to read the books, but I don't know if I'd appreciate the differences between them and the TV series. The only thing that bugs me about it is the constant deaths of interesting characters! I got into it slowly, only really watching for Sean Bean, but now I'm hooked. Very much looking forward to the big season 2 finale.
Lost: I'd like to watch this series one day, but I've heard the ending is crappy
My favourite movie is… Amazingly difficult question, every time I think of one film I can think of another I like just as much. I'm just going to say Total Recall (obviously the classic Arnie one, haven't seen the new one yet). It's got some great action, comedy and a really interesting plot. There are plenty more worthy films out there, but Total Recall is one of a group of films I've seen so many times I could probably re-make it from memory.
Arnie really did rock when I was a kid!
One interesting thing about me is… I'm the creator of an Ultima-themed Minecraft Texture Pack (available at http://inspired.ultimacodex.com/andy-panthros-ultima-textures-for-minecraft/ ) Shameless plug I know! It all began because I didn't like the clay texture (wasn't visible enough), and then I decided to replace other textures and items, and decided on the Ultima theme, as it's always been a favourite series of mine.
It looks like you put some serious effort into this. Respect!
If anyone else wants to send their answers and get 20 CAPs, please send them to theadventuregamer@gmail.com.
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