1 - A game that had a lasting impression on you. Doki Doki Literature Club. I haven't played it myself but I've seen a couple of people play it through on streams. This is a visual novel that starts out very cute and twee. And then dark things start happening. Very Dark Things. That's actually one reason I've never played it :-D.
2 - Favourite female game character. A few months ago, this would have been Commander Shepard of the Normandy in her true Femshep form. She benefits from the amazing voice of Jennifer Hale. However ... Sara Ryder of the Tempest in Mass Effect Andromeda has taken over. The game is probably too long (although that means there's lots to do) but I like the character more. It's a character that tends more to looking forwards to Happy, Fun and building a new life, whereas Shepard is fully locked in to knowing that she's facing an apocalyptic future.
3 - A game that's so bad it's good. Hmm ... I dunno actually, I think I'll go way back to Lemmings here. A simple puzzle game but also infuriating. Not sure about this one. May edit later. Also reaching back to Cannon Fodder, simple (bad) gameplay that kept you coming to try and win.
4 - A game that hit an emotional spot in your heart. Oh that has to be Mass Effect 3. It tugged on all of the heart strings in a sequence of tragic and heroic scenarios. I think the emotional hits that keep coming are why I've never replayed it.
5 - Favourite game developer or studio. I think this is probably Square Enix at the moment, because I'm riding the wave of what's actually turned out very enjoyable in Deus Ex Mankind Divided and Deus Ex Human Revolution was one of the first games I 100%'d on Steam.
6 - Favourite male video game character. There might be a theme coming ... Adam Jensen of the Deus Ex earlier games. I like the gravelly voice, done by Elias Toufexis. I like playing the character. He's not an invulnerable tank, even if you do upgrade all the way. He's a tragic figure caught up in the aftermath of just trying to do his job. And this is one reason I'll keep going back to those games.
7 - 5 of your favourite Original Sound Tracks. Oh 'eck ... Teslagrad is one, even though I've never played the game. Lucasarts had a system they called iMuse for the Star Wars games, which matched authentic sounding Star Wars music with the action on screen. Mass Effect's OST nicely accompanies the game. Stellaris has an uplifting soundtrack. And I get a relaxed happy feeling when FTL's theme tune comes on the iTunes. Honorable mention to World of Warcraft as well.
9 - Favourite Villain (being mindful of spoilers). I think this is Mass Effect again with the Reapers. The first time they speak is a time when you, the player, will freeze, wonder what's going on and be completely wrapped up in what's coming next. They're implacable, eternal and they're coming our way ...
10 - Favourite game as a kid. This is between the 1984 version of Elite, Revs and a Cricket game. I'll go for Elite because it did that wanderlust thing.
11 - 5 of your favourite video games - Mass Effect, Deus Ex HR and MD, Defence Grid (not played for a while), Motorsport Manager, Stellaris. And I'll cheat by adding in Elite Dangerous too.
12 - A game or series that you've never been interested in. Counterstrike Go and the like. I've played a few of these multiplayer battle arena things but the set up puts me off. They're fast paced, shoot everything then reset to neutral again. I like to have something story based, where your performance so far matters for what's coming. This goes into the strategy games too, I preferred Panzer General over the other WW2 games as your army group would move through the missions with you. Similar with games like Homeworld, although I never finished that one.
13 - Favourite NPC or party member - I have a few of these. Farida Malik from Deus Ex Human Revolution would pilot you around between areas. This is a lady you definitely want to have on your side, indeed one of the missions involves you enacting a little Shanghai street justice on a playboy (he deserves it). I usually play through these games non-lethal but there's one section where I break that, just to keep Malik alive. Also Mordin Solus in Mass Effect and very definitely - Tali'Zorah who grows marvellously through the games.
15 - A game that everyone should play at least once - Best Fiends.
16 - A game that inspires you - This one's tough and it's between EarthX and Cosmoteer. Both are being made by singleton developers and it shows what truly talented people like that can do. I should have another look at Cosmoteer sometime.
17 - Favourite genre - I think this is story games now and this has changed over the years. It seems like the best way to carry those stories through at the moment is to put the player in the persona of the main protagonist. First person / Third person games have been working well for me there, whereas I'll bounce off games like the isometric Pathfinder or Baldur's Gate.
18 - That game you REALLY should have played by now - the original Deus Ex ! It came out in 2000, I acquired it years after release and while I've played DXHR to death and I think I'll play through DXMD a few times, I've only played the tutorial level of the original game.
19 - Favourite indie game you played recently - EarthX. It's still in development, I have it in early access but it shows enough promise that I made that step to acquire it. It's a rocket company simulator and it felt pretty good in my first look around Xmas.
20 - A game that truly scared the something out of you - Prey (newer one). I've only played the first few bits of this and the ambience was already getting me massively on edge. This is one that plays with the sound, is that rattle in the background something being dislodged or is it a mimic mimicing a coffee cup before it jumps you. Part of why I've not played that much is because I think I need a new graphics card again to appreciate it, part because it's really unsettling.
Over to videos and more of Excession by Iain M Banks !
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