TriXie Interviews Headgamer

Published December 16, 2003

Introducing Headgamer from Bismark, N.D. He’s a clinical psychologist, father of three boys, and one heck of a Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon sniper.

TriXie: “Headgamer,” huh?

Headgamer: Well, people have always referred to psychologists as "shrinks" or accused them of playing head games with people. I may be a psychologist, but I'm not above poking fun at my profession. If I am supposed to be playing head games with people, I guess that makes me a Headgamer!

TriXie: What’s Bismarck like?

Headgamer: Not only do we have electricity here, but we also have broadband! Assuming the air doesn't freeze into a solid state …

TriXie: What’s the worst or weirdest job you’ve ever had?

Headgamer: As a graduate student, I provided counseling services to inmates in three different county jails (two of which I covered by myself). Needless to say, I became somewhat cynical and jaded about the human race in that job, and it drained me. I have gotten a lot more positive about life since then, though, and all my buddies on Xbox Live go a long way to help that! LOL

TriXie: So, you’re a shrink. Do you think video games cause violence in teenagers?

Headgamer: No. Here's one of my soapbox issues, so get ready! First of all, research has shown a link between video games and violence, but my belief is that, though the two may be related, video games per se do not cause violence. There are certain games that I personally think are inappropriate for anyone (the freeform violence just for the sake of it in the Grand Theft Auto series comes to mind); however, most games in the hands of most people are okay with proper supervision. The key word here is supervision. And, this brings me to my second point. The industry has a rating system. This system should be enforced strictly in my opinion, just like with alcohol and cigarettes. People should be required to show their I.D. to buy certain games, just like they would be at convenience stores for cigarettes or alcohol. Adults buying such games for their children should be held accountable, just like adults buying alcohol or cigarettes for minors.

TriXie: Okay, then. Were you a beta tester?

Headgamer: Yep. Second waver.

TriXie: How many people do you have on your Friends List?

Headgamer: At last count, around 90 or so … and that is just because I did some house cleaning recently!

TriXie: Do you have an archenemy?

Headgamer: Just one?! I can only name one?! I don’t have any archenemies, per se, but there are a few I really enjoy gaming with. zer0 would be #1, I guess. We are only about five miles apart up here in North Dakota, and we met during beta testing. Davidson, Lulu, and the Lonestars are up there as well. In our group, I have a reputation of being, um, a sniper aficionado, to put it lightly. So, whenever I’m playing Ghost Recon or Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon™: Island Thunder™, my wife andRAM2600 get my attention, since we all look for each other at 500 yards through our sniper scopes!

TriXie: How many hours a week do you spend playing on Xbox Live?

Headgamer: With a wife and three little boys age 7 and under, time can be a precious commodity around here. I'd say I play anywhere from 5–10 hours per week, depending on what time at night I can carve out after the kids are in bed.

TriXie: Is your wife cool with that?

Headgamer: Hmmmm. You had to ask that one! Let's just say that my wife has come to learn that this is my way of getting a mental break and winding down at the end of the day. But, you won't find my wife with a Gamertag anytime soon. Of course, Trivial Pursuit on Xbox Live may change her mind. (Cross your fingers!)

TriXie: They’re crossed! What’s the funniest thing you’ve ever heard on Xbox Live?

Headgamer: We were playing Ghost Recon: Island Thunder one night, and Lazeeboy (LoneStar and LoneStarGal's son) was playing on my team. He accidentally shot one of our teammates and felt horrible! Then he shot another one! The next words out of his mouth were, "Dang! Even my dad doesn't kill that many of his teammates!" None of us could stop laughing about it the rest of the night!

TriXie: Tell us about your greatest Xbox Live moment.

Headgamer: Ghost Recon. Airbase map, Six on Six. My team went north, and I, being the loner sniper guy type, went west. They were all dead within 30 seconds. I then proceeded to skulk around with my sniper rifle and pick off my opponents one by one, single-handedly winning the match. That's when my sniper reputation started.

TriXie: Any tips for getting a rep like yours?

Headgamer: For games like Ghost Recon,Ghost Recon: Island Thunder, and Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six® 3, don't play Rambo. Take your time, be thorough, and keep a good peripheral vision. Also, keep communication open with teammates. Use each other for spotters as well as cover fire.

TriXie: What feature would you like to see on Xbox Live?

Headgamer: Aside from Halo™ 2 before Christmas? Some instant messaging features. Frequently, we can't get into a room and have to start our own room and invite the other host, so he can invite us into his room. Sometimes we get invites, and then need to decline them, but we don't want to seem rude. Being able to send quick standard messages like "Let me in!" or "Maybe later, in the middle of a match," and so on would be great! Also, increasing our Friends List limit to 200 instead of just 100 would be fantastic. I know I will need it!

TriXie: What do you look for in a teammate?

Headgamer: Cooperation and communication, by all means! Coordinating a breach-and-clear in Rainbow Six 3shows you just how important teamwork is. If everyone goes off like Rambo, you're dead.

TriXie: What’s your favorite Xbox Live–enabled game?

Headgamer: I have to pick just one? I won't do it!

TriXie: Try.

Headgamer: I can't! I'll limit it, though. Links® 2004 and Rainbow Six 3 are the current favorites. Crimson Skies™: High Road to Revenge™ would get a lot more gaming time, too (fantastic game!), if I could just get my Friends back on the game. Argh …

TriXie: What games are you looking forward to?

Headgamer: Let me see … Can you say Halo 2?

TriXie: What is your favorite offline Xbox game?

Headgamer: The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind Game of the Year Edition, without question! I would guess I have lost close to 200 hours in that game! I am currently playing a character modeled after Gollum from Lord of the Rings. No quests. Just sneaking around and collecting rings.

TriXie: Talking to yourself, no doubt. What’s the best game of all time?

Headgamer: Halo. It's amazing the influence that game, a "mere" first-person shooter, has had on the video game culture and thinking. For introducing the concept of video games to our culture in the first place and for starting the revolution (so to speak), Pong deserves mention as well.

TriXie: Best film?

Headgamer: For me, personally, it’s not one film, but a trilogy: Lord of the Rings, without a doubt. I have never seen a movie (or movies) that follow the details and overall theme of a book so closely.

TriXie: How ‘bout best album?

Headgamer: Couldn't Stand the Weather, by Stevie Ray Vaughn.

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

Headgamer: Anthony Michael Hall. Think Breakfast Club, Sixteen Candles, and Weird Science geek all rolled into one. In one, he was geeky smart. In the other, he was geeky cool (but didn't know he was a geek). In the last, he was geeky and wanted anything to be cool, but eventually realized it was cool just to be who he was.

TriXie: Who knew geeks were so complex? What cartoon character do you think is most like you?

Headgamer: Marvin the Martian. He's a smart guy, but sometimes, he is full of himself and the intelligence keeps him from having common sense!

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

Headgamer: Whoever is the next man to walk on the moon … or the first man to step foot on Mars.

TriXie: Maybe it’ll be a chick. Would you rather be an undiscovered genius or a celebrated fake?

Headgamer: Undiscovered genius, by far! I don't think I could live with the guilt of living a lie and fooling everyone.

TriXie: If you had to come back as an animal in the next life, what would you be?

Headgamer: An eagle. The idea of being able to fly would just be so great! Just imagine what it must feel like to be soaring over the mountain, getting a bird's-eye view of the world. Amazing!

TriXie: Who's your favorite superhero?

Headgamer: Batman because he didn't do it with any weird super power. He did his job based on ingenuity and man-made gadgets and tools.

TriXie: Cat in the Hat or the Grinch?

Headgamer: Grinch. The Cat in the Hat is just a nuisance that never changes. The Grinch shows some personality and conscience over the course of the story and shows that there is good in all of us.

TriXie: What's a book you wish you'd written?

Headgamer: Tolkien's trilogy, The Lord of the Rings. Voted the best piece of literature in the twentieth century?! How cool would that be! (I'd have to make sure I got royalties from any movies that may come out decades later too … )

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

Headgamer: If he was still alive, Stevie Ray Vaughn.

TriXie: Yeah, touring with a dead guy would probably be a drag. What do you predict will be the “next big thing” in gaming?

Headgamer: More realistic games that put you completely in the life and circumstances of someone else. I mean more than a first-person shooter-think virtual reality. Imagine taking the first-person perspective and applying it to a game not typically expected to be in a first-person format, allowing you to immerse yourself in the character. In other words, literally living the life of the character through his or her eyes. I think we saw a glimpse of what I am talking about with the First Person Football mode of Sega's ESPN NFL Football this year. Imagine playing a detective game where you are tracking down a killer, and you examine the crime scene through the agent's eyes, finding all the pertinent clues yourself. You actually pick up the clues yourself (e.g. though some virtual reality glove system that reads your hands movements, etc.). To sum up, just totally immersive games.

TriXie: What would you like to be doing in 10 years?

Headgamer: Continuing to grow my professional practice and possibly venturing into administration. Continuing to grow and mature in my faith. Effectively surviving, having three teenage boys and watching one approach graduation. Loving my wife more than ever. And thrashing my Friends List on Ghost Recon 6 on Xbox 3!