Gamertag: DIE ARD
Superhero: Superman
Film: Terminator 2
TV show: Lost
Album: Coldplay-x&y
Cartoon character: Johnny Bravo
Xbox Live game: Halo 2
Offline Xbox game: The Elder Scrolls® IV: Oblivion™

Gamer Spotlight:

TriXie Interviews DIE ARD

This gamer amused me with his hilarious Xbox® Ambassador submission, in which he claimed "Scouser" as his second language. My Brit boss, Highbury Gunner, informs me that Scouse is a dialect spoken in Liverpool. So imagine this interview taking place with my annoying high-pitched voice and DIE ARD's cool Ringo accent.

TriXie: What's the story behind your gamertag?

DIE ARD: Well, when I first purchased Xbox Live® I really wanted 'Predator' which had already been taken, so the Mrs. just came up with 'Diehard.' I thought I would jiggle it up a little and decided on DIE ARD, all in caps as it stands out more, makes it look HARDER!

TriXie: Where do you live?

DIE ARD: I live in Wrexham in Northern Wales. For those that don't know where this is, it's about 18 miles out of Scouseland (Liverpool). Whenever I'm on my hols (holidays) people always think I'm scouse, but I'm actually Welsh and can't speak a word of it!

TriXie: What do you do for a living?

DIE ARD: I work for a large utility company. I can't mention any names as I would probably get a few death threats. I also have my own PC repair business which I run on a part-time basis. I am a PC engineer by trade, I was working for a company for 7 years straight from school, but it went under. I would really like to work for MS and want to train for an MCSE, but I can't afford the course at the moment as I keep spending money on things like HDTVs and Xbox 360™ games (you know, those important things in life).

TriXie: How long have you been on Xbox Live?

DIE ARD: I have had Xbox Live from day one. I remember the first Live game I had was Unreal Championship. Unreal really was something very special for me as I was only used to really laggy gaming on the PC at the time. The second Live game I got was Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Tides of War™. Now this game was really, really good!! The graphics where great, there was hardly any lag and this was the first true game on the Xbox® that required team work and used the communicator to its true capacity. I made many friends with this game and still have them on my friends list to date. Also after introducing my 3 brothers to this game, they also purchased it! They thought it was really crazy that you could speak to people in other countries in real time, also the odd slang word was pretty funny, things about each others Mommas cropped up now and again. The third Game I had on Live was Halo® 2, I don't really need to explain much about this game apart from THE BEST MULTIPLAYER GAME OF ALL TIME, and an awesome match making system. I still get shouted at by the Mrs. when I play Halo 2. All she can hear is me shouting, laughing and hammering my controller all night!

TriXie: I love that answer. That brings back lots of memories of the early days! Do you have an arch enemy on Xbox Live, and if so, who?

DIE ARD: Well, my biggest arch enemy for a while was my bro FRANTASTIC. He moans and takes it so seriously … OOOooooo, "I want the sniper I want the sniper" … that's all I would hear while playing Halo 2. It was so satisfying to blow him to kingdom come with a sticky on custom games.

TriXie: What's your Xbox set-up like?

DIE ARD: This is the good question! I have a Toshiba 37 WLT58 HDTV, running my Xbox 360™ through a component cable and my 5.1 is through a JVC system … the bass speaker has its own cooling fan and power supply. Sometimes I feel sorry for my neighbours, but after a few beers I forget. This is what I really love about the 360; I use it as a full media system, movies (as the up-scaling is great) and pics. I also have Xbox Live Vision Camera but have not used it to full potential yet, just used it for sending funny pictures of the Cookie Monster and the Hulk to my friends (yes I'm not right in the head).

TriXie: I'm going to assume that the 'Cookie Monster' and 'Hulk' you refer to are action figures and not euphemisms. What's the best feature of Xbox Live?

DIE ARD: The best part of Xbox Live is opening a can of whoopass on all of my friends. Xbox Live is getting better with downloadable demos and movie trailers. Also hearing people shouting at you because you just snapped them in half on MK3 is pretty funny.

TriXie: It's nice to know that those cans are available internationally. What's the funniest thing you've ever heard on Xbox Live?

DIE ARD: There is only one particular time I can remember, I always have fun online, would you believe I was playing on UNO® the other night with the camera on against someone dressed as Freddy Krueger! All good stuff.

TriXie: What is your greatest Xbox Live moment?

DIE ARD: Easy: Owning a level 49 on Halo 2.

TriXie: If they made a movie about your life, who should play you?

DIE ARD: Brad Pitt, Fight Club-style. Do you ever get those moments in your office?

TriXie: Every day. What superpower would you like to have?

DIE ARD: I would love to have the power to fly; it would be awesome to go on holiday and not have to pay for flights.

TriXie: If you could trade places with anyone for one day, who would it be?

DIE ARD: Bill Gates. I'd like to how much money it is physically possible to spend in a day, and you know what I would do with it? I would give most of it to charity. I would get every hospital in the UK out of debt, and drink what I have left while chilling in from of the 360 playing Gears of War®.

TriXie: I like that answer. It's both selfless and selfish; a nice balance. What celebrity would be the worst roommate?

DIE ARD: It would be one of the crew from Jackass. You would never be able to get a good night's kip without being able to sleep with one eye open!

TriXie: Hot celeb you'd like to be stranded on a desert island with?

DIE ARD: I couldn't possibly answer this while the Mrs. is watching. But the answer would be female, and take your pick.

TriXie: Okay, I pick Star Jones. That's what you get for dodging the question, dude. If you could be any video game character, who would it be?

DIE ARD: How about a character that I made in Fight Night Round 3? He was hard! It would be ace to be as hard as he was, I could say anything to anyone in a club and not be scared! I was thinking of Master Chief, but it would be pretty hot in that suit and I couldn't figure out how he goes to the toilet.

TriXie: Master Chief is too cool to pee. What's the last book you read?

DIE ARD: LOL. BOOK!? When I have TV, DVDs and Xbox 360? That word is almost as bad as non-alcoholic.

TriXie: If you could go on tour with any band, which would it be?

DIE ARD: Cough cough … she's not looking … The Pussy Cat Dolls! I didn't type this if she asks.

TriXie: Type what? What do you think is the best thing about the Xbox 360?

DIE ARD: Online capability is the biggest and best thing about the Xbox 360, but I'm easily impressed by things like being able to turn your console on and off with the controller and video chat, etc.

TriXie: What is the Xbox 360 Achievement that was hardest to get?

DIE ARD: Probably finishing Call of Duty® 2 on veteran level, but I never got bored of it, such good gameplay and a whole different game on Vet.