Trixie360 Interviews HotelQueen

Published May 11, 2009

She's a mother of four, and a cool Canadian gamer girl. Say "Eh" to HotelQueen!

trixie360: What's the story behind your Gamertag?

HotelQueen: It's been my handle since back in my online Quake days. It's a fun take on my profession at the time of Hotel Manager.

trixie360: Where do you live?

HotelQueen: Ottawa, Canada.

trixie360: What do you do in Ottawa when you're not gaming?

HotelQueen: I'm a stay-at-home Mom of four kids, ages 9 to newborn, and a home daycare provider; I play with kids all day! :)

Hotel Queen and her children.

trixie360: What's the worst or weirdest job you've ever had?

HotelQueen: As an Admin Assistant, one of my "other duties as required" was to send a particular brand of boxers to the President of our office in Southeast Asia. I gave myself the title "Handler of Executive Underwear."

trixie360: I had a boss once that made me buy and ship birthday gifts to his secret lovechild. How long have you been on Xbox LIVE®?

HotelQueen: I joined not long after the 360 launched.

trixie360: Do you have an archenemy on Xbox LIVE?

HotelQueen: So far I've managed to stay on good terms with everyone I've met on LIVE.

trixie360: Impressive! What's your Xbox setup like?

HotelQueen: We're a two Xbox house and they move around a bit, but mostly I get the 48-inch LCD TV in the living room. It's close to the kids' rooms, so the surround sound is hooked up to the 19-inch LCD in the basement. One person gets the better screen, one person gets the better sound, it's not a bad trade-off.

trixie360: What's the best feature of Xbox LIVE?

HotelQueen: I like being able to keep in touch with family and friends in a super easy way. We can video chat and send messages, and of course compare Gamerscore.

She loves the Ghost Recon series of games.

trixie360: What is your favorite multiplayer Xbox game?

HotelQueen: I really like the Ghost Recon games. I've had some very fun times playing the GRAW co-op missions with my other half and friends. I'm super excited about the next installment!

trixie360: What is your favorite single player Xbox game?

HotelQueen: I love Mass Effect™, I think it's the best RPG to ever hit a console.

trixie360: What do you think is the best game of all time?

HotelQueen: Hands-down my favorite game ever is Baldur's Gate II for PC. I can't even count how many times I've played that game though!

trixie360: What do you think is the best film of all time?

HotelQueen: The Princess Bride has it all: fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles …

trixie360: And Rodents of Unusual Size! What do you think is the best album of all time?

HotelQueen: I love all kinds of music, so that's a tough question. I'd have to say Fleetwood Mac's The Dance. It has all their best songs and all the energy of a live show. I have a thing for live albums.

trixie360: Rock Band or Guitar Hero?

HotelQueen: Rock Band all the way.

She thinks Mass Effect is one of the best console RPGs.

trixie360: What's the funniest thing you've ever heard on Xbox LIVE?

HotelQueen: My partner and I have had some pretty funny moments playing Gears of War® 2 horde mode with my Dad and step-Mom. They love games—they each have have their own 360—but they're not exactly "hard core," so sometime it gets a little chaotic as we're running around fighting "Bob Marleys" and "Horses" and rez-ing each other again and again. We're on level 49 and determined to beat it together.

trixie360: What is your greatest Xbox LIVE moment?

HotelQueen: Playing Gears 2 during Christmas dinner with my family (yes, really). We were all in the same house on three consoles, and I played on a team with my step-Mom, my aunt and my (non-gaming) teenage cousin. We were a multi-generational-all-female-chainsaw-wielding force to be reckoned with!

trixie360: I LOVE that! If they made a movie about your life, who should play you?

HotelQueen: A purple-haired Drew Barrymore.

trixie360: Favorite cartoon character?

HotelQueen: Jem from Jem and the Holograms. She's truly outrageous! Plus I like weird hair colors and singing.

trixie360: What superpower would you like to have?

HotelQueen: Some days I'd like to be Elastigirl; as a Mom of four, sometimes I need to stretch myself pretty thin.

trixie360: If you could trade places with anyone for one day, who would it be?

HotelQueen: Hmmm … I really can't think of anyone. I have a great life and am pretty darned happy just being me. Totally corny, but true!

trixie360: What celebrity would be the worst roommate?

HotelQueen: Sarah Palin. I have zero tolerance for stupid people.

Chainsaws, Christmas, and Gears of War 2. Can't get any better than that.

trixie360: How many people are on your Friends List?

HotelQueen: Currently 49. I mostly keep my list to family, real life friends, and the Xbox Canada community.

trixie360: Hot celeb you'd like to be stranded on a desert island with?

HotelQueen: I'd love to say Neil Patrick Harris, he's sexy, funny and can carry a tune, but I don't think I'm his type … so, I'll say David Duchovny (pre-rehab).

trixie360: If you could be any video game character, who would it be?

HotelQueen: My Rock Band 2 character. She has a kick-ass wardrobe.

trixie360: What's the worst food you've ever eaten?

HotelQueen: That's a loaded question for a picky eater like me. Pretty much anything I didn't prepare myself.

trixie360: What's the first video game you ever played?

HotelQueen: The first games I ever played were for the VIC-20. I played a lot of Pirate's Cove, a text adventure game. I think I totally just dated myself.

trixie360: What's the last book you read?

HotelQueen: The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch and Jeffrey Zaslow. A very inspirational yet light hearted book; everyone should read it.

trixie360: If you could go on tour with any band, which would it be?

HotelQueen: My all-time favorite band, Blue Rodeo.

The co-op missions in the first GRAW didn't provide many points for the effort.

trixie360: What do you predict will be the "next big thing" in gaming?

HotelQueen: Cloud gaming is looking like a real possibility, and I love the idea of being able to play good PC games as a family without having to have a house full of high-end PCs.

trixie360: What do you think is the best thing about Xbox 360?

HotelQueen: I love the library of games. I can play lots of great hardcore games, but there's also fun casual games and party games that I can play with my kids and non-gaming friends.

trixie360: What is the Xbox 360 Achievement that was hardest to get?

HotelQueen: The Co-Op 1-3 achievement in Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter™. It's only worth two tiny little points, but it was so much work!

trixie360: What would you like to be doing in ten years?

HotelQueen: Having fun with my family and friends … and maybe selling my own line of video game inspired cloth diapers? I can't be the only eco-hippy-gamer-chick out there, can I?

trixie360: Let's hope not!

Interview by TriXie