"A Gaming, anime watching, manga reading, TV and movie watching, cartoon watching, comic book loving, Heavy Metal listening, brony who has ADD, OCD, Tourette Syndrome and Aspergers Syndrome and also happens to live with his parents. *Phew!*" - Sandman420
General Questions
Where/how did you get your alias? My alias (Sandman420) is mostly just something random I came up with a while back. So far I’ve used it as my twitter, Tumblr, Instagram and Raptr handles. I’d have used it as my Playstation Network and Xbox Live handles, but it was taken on both. When something like that happens, I just add “x” or “xl” at the end (Sandman420x on PSN, Sandman420xl on Xbox Live, etc.).
What do you do for a living? I work security at football games (Raiders, 49ers, Cal, Stanford) during the fall (and some of January, now that the 49ers are making the playoffs). Other then that, I’m pretty much unemployed. Hence, a big reason why I live with my parents. Most of the money I have for buying video games (among other things) is from the occasional video game playtests. Obviously, I cant say what games, or where, due to the NDAs they make me sign every time. I’m sure you know what I’m talking about. ~_^
If you could travel anywhere outside the US, where would you like to go? Japan. One reason, obviously, is because I’m an anime fan. It’s also one of the few places left in the world where you can still find a decent arcade. Also, google “Odaiba Gundam”! That’s an epic reason all on it’s own! It’s also a beautiful country.
Have you ever collected anything before? Coins, cards, toys? Well, for one thing, I still have a binder full of Pokemon cards (no Romney pun intended) that weighs about FIVE POUNDS! I’m a sucker for “Collector’s Editions” of video games. But only if they come with something good like night-vision goggles (CoD:MW2), arcade sticks (Mortal Kombat) or “cat helmets” (Halo 3). Just a steel case and an art book won’t do it for me. Statues will do it for me, but it depends on the statue (e.g. Gears 3 Epic Edition, Halo Reach Legendary Edition, etc. will do it).
How do you go about watching movies? Netflix, DVD, Redbox, Theaters? Theaters, if I think it’s worth it. Otherwise, I’ll just wait for it to appear on Netflix Streaming or a premium channel like HBO or Showtime or something. If I see it on any of those things and like it, I might buy it on DVD.
Have you ever gotten any autograph, email or tweet from someone who you look up to? I occasionally get a RT or reply from someone I look up to, but not a lot.
Have you ever coded and/or animated something? No. Unfortunately, I have no experience with that kind of thing.
Are you a night owl or a bright and early person? Night owl. I don't get out much so most of what I do during the day (play games, watch anime) can be done at night just as easily.
What’s the last spiffy piece of technology you read about or played with? I played the WiiU at a demo station at my local GameStop. I’ll be picking up my OWN WiiU at launch!
video game questions
What’s the last game you beat? Assassin’s Creed: Liberation
Do you like “art books” that are stored in collector’s editions? Like I said before, if the Collector’s/Limited Edition comes with JUST an art book, I won’t bother. If it comes with something else and still includes an art book, I’ll still buy it. And the art books can be interesting sometimes.
Has anyone ever unplugged your ethernet cable in order to try and get you off an online game? No. Although, I have become “disconnected from the server” on occasion.
If you could combine 3 weapons from any games to make an ultra weapon of some sort, what would it be like? What kind of damage would it do? The primary ammo would be full-automatic, 500-count-per-magazine, armor-piercing, explode-on-contact plasma rounds. The secondary ammo would be the “Cerebral Bore” (google it) from Turok 2 for N64. With the chainsaw-bayonet from Gears of Wars’ Lancer for melee attacks! Obviously, this is WAY too overpowered for any mere mortal game.
What kind of headphones do you use when gaming? Like them? I currently use Turtle Beach XP400s. I like them, but I’ve been thinking about selling them and getting some Astro a40s or a50s. Not sure if that would be an improvement or not. They all get mixed reviews online and I’m not sure there’s enough of a difference to warrant the hassle of selling what I have and buying something else.
Do you like notifications on when you’re gaming? I leave notifications on, but I don’t really care either way.
When you buy a new game, do you look at the achievements or trophies before you start playing it? I never really cared about achievements, so, no. Same goes for trophies. I just want to play.
If a lone zombie was coming at you, would you run or kill it? Depends on the kind of zombie it is. If it’s a fast-moving zombie like in the remake of “Dawn of the Dead” and I don’t have a weapon of some kind, I’m running. If it’s a slow-moving Romero-style zombie, it doesn’t really matter if I have a weapon or not, I can just push it over and curb-stomp it.
Have you ever played a handheld Pokemon game? Do you rename all your Pokemon? Of course I've played them! I don’t rename my Pokemon, though.
What do YOU think the next gen console will be like? What would you like to see? I’m not sure we’ve seen the last of “motion controls”. I don’t think downloaded games will be replacing on-disc games any time soon. Not enough gamers have high-speed internet connections and hard drive space is still too limited. Although, I do think hard drive space in next-gen consoles such as Playstation 4 and Xbox 1080(?) will exceed the 1-TERABYTE level. It probably won’t be for a few more generations, but I want to see virtual reality games that put you into the game Matrix-style (without needing that big, gaping USB port in the back of the head, of course). We’re getting closer though! I can feel it!
sandman420's favorites
Animal in a zoo? Apes and monkeys!
Video game collectible? My Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Prestige Edition night-vision goggles.
Comic series? Naruto (Manga is still technically comics.)
Dinosaur? Velociraptor
Type of music? Heavy metal! \m/>_<\m/
70’s movie? Star Wars (1977)
Gears of War weapon? Lancer
Convention? San Diego Comic-Con
Neon Color? No preference
Guitar Hero or Rockband? My preference differs from game to game. Usually depends on the track list. Other than that, they’ve always seemed the same.
Contact sandman420: http://www.twitter.com/sandman420