[Marduk]

I just noticed my last post was incomplete; I forgot to say that for every question that I answer I get to ask one in return. As it's too late to expect you to agree to this neither of you (Trom and Fantasy) are required to answer my question.

Originally Posted by Fantasysci5

You didn't list your favorite games on your profile. What are a few that you love, or at least the series, or types of games?

Broken Sword (the first one, they went down hill from there), Discworld 1 & 3 (I enjoyed the second but I don't really think it compared to either of the others), the Monkey Island (I haven’t played much of the first 2, though; I started playing LCR but lost it when something happened to my computer and never got around to installing it again, I did get it back and got SMI at the same time; I finished the first act of SMIwhen I heard the news that they were making a 'special edition', so I decided to put it off until then) series, The Sims 2; PSP edition (I don't know about the DS edition, but what many people don't know is that the PSP version was actually an adventure game. Sadly I lost my PSP, and my copy of the game which was in it, a long time ago ), The Sam & Max series, Grim Fandango, Hotel Dusk: Room 215...

Then there's the ones I like out of the 'popular' genres (I won't include anything from the old Scrolling Platforms or there'd be too many to list, as my early days of gaming was mostly on concoles and therefore mostly scrolling platforms); the Sims 2 (PC Version; I don't like playing families, so much, but I love building houses. I'm really proud of some of them; I even considered getting myself 'AutoCAD', until I saw how much it costs........), GTA 3 (+Vice City and San Andreas, I think I liked San Andreas best out of the GTA 3 series), Assassin's Creed, Dune 2 (my first RTS. The last one I played before that, I think it was Populous, was when they still referred to the genre as 'God Sims'), Command & Conquer (the first one, I never got a copy of Red Alert and I don't think it would be fair to judge it entirely on the few hours I had from the time I rented it), Driver (the first one; all the others felt like a chore if you played them for long enough) The Getaway (I nearly got all the way through the first campaign without leaning on a wall and couldn't understand why everybody else said it was too easy. If they remade the game without this feature it would be perfect) Twisted Metal 2; World Tour (the only twisted metal game released in this country before TW: Black, to my knowledge, which was so heavily censored over here that I didn't even know it had cut scene movies until I read about it in a review of the online version about a year after I got 'Black'. I was really disgusted, and surprised since British TV and Movies are far more lenient in what the censor than in some other countries), Theme Hospital, Rock & Roll Races, Warcraft 3, World of Warcraft (which I've stopped playing, except when I'm really, really bored)......

There are probably many more but it's reached the point where I have to stop and think about it, so I think that makes a 'natural' cut off point.

Fantasy; tell me about your favourite books. Please try to give at least 1 reason of why you liked it for each of them. (You don't have to answer; as I said, I should have included this in my previous post).

Originally Posted by Trumgottist

I'll pick a music question, and ask you to introduce yourself musically. By which I don't mean that you should do so in a song, but feel free if you want to.

Ooooooohhh, if only I had the time... And any decent recording equipment. I really love singing. I don't know if I'm any good (I'm not fishing for compliments as none of you can hear me singing to drop even an empty one ) but, if I'm in my comfort zone I just don't care who hears me.

Do you play?

I can't play anything. I really want to learn an instrument and might do so when I have more time on my hands. (I imagine the longer you put it off the harder they'd be to take up. I think I might already be too old to make an attempt at being a rock star ).

What do you listen to? (If that's too broad a question, just answer with a favourite band/artist.)

I listen to a wide selection of musical genres; jazz, rock (baring in mind that rock can mean almost anything with a guitar, these days), classical, various types of electronic music, some folk music (depending where in the world these 'folk' are from ; I don't like to use the word 'world music'), anything ‘avant garde’ (a term I use in a broad sense, here, to encompass anything that's intentionally difficult to listen to. I include "Extreme Metal" in this, which is a blanket term for extremely heavy metal such as Grindcore or Death Metal)....

Any other type of music escapes from me, at the moment. (I'm trying to use the broadest terms possible because, if asked a musical question, I can go on for pages and pages without meaning to because of my obsession with details).

Trum; I know you're in the process of making a freeware adventure game, but obviously that doesn’t pay the bills. Do you ever plan to turn it into a ‘real’ profession? (Assuming you also have a paying day job, because if it's a full time hobby then I must assume the answer is 'yes').

[Fantasysci5]

I don't mind answering, I'm very open about myself; maybe too open!

And may I say, it seems you like a lot of non-Adventure related games, which you can find more threads about in the "General" forum. I'm mostly just into adventures, but I too love the Sims 2. And some RPGs, but that's besides the point.

My favorite books...hmm. I used to read quite a lot, but I don't really like reading "new" things to see whether or not I like them, I usually just stick to the ones I know I like.

My absolute favorite book(s) are the "Lord of the Rings". Tolkien visualized a whole world, with back-history for hundreds of years, and is so interesting. He does get a big bogged down with details, but the whole story he thought of, the many different paths of characters, and my personal favorite, the friendships between the characters, are just amazing.

I love other books based on media movies/games. The "Red Dwarf" books are a refreshing twist to the series, written by the original writers of the series, and although it explains near the same stories, the level of detail and slight difference of what goes on makes it so worth it!

The "Myst" books, based on the games and written by the same guys who made it, give so much detailed background, which really gives life to the games for me. I love all of the background of the characters, and since I love Myst, it's like ulta fan-fiction. "The Blackstone Chronicles", which a game was based on, was lovely. I love dark themes, and seeing what life was like for the patients in the insane asylum and the cruelty done there, and the supernatural thrown in I always love.

My favorite childhood book was, "Howliday Inn". I loved how the animals were acting just like people, and there was a "murder mysery" going on and everything. I love characters so much, and that book was full of very interesting ones.

For classics, I love "Three Musketeers", because it's exotic and romantic, with swords and stuff. And wonderful writing, of course. And I absolutely adore "Sherlock Holmes". His cases, and how he solves things no one else can see, are amazing. And his friendship with Watson is so endearing, I lvoe it. And it is also from that romantic period of horse-drawn carriages and gentlemen.

And finally, (Woo!) the "Dreaming Dark" books, which not many people have heard of, which includes, "City of Towers", "Shattered Land", and "Gates of Night". It reminds me of "Lord of the Rings", where the whole world is made up and full of fantasy things.

Sorry for the long and detailed reply. I doubt anyone will read it through, but I love talking about them and couldn't keep it short. This is fun-wish we could ask more than one question. lol

[tsa]

OK, now it's my turn. First: Fantasie, I skimmed your answer, is that OK? And Trumgottist, we could also call you Trumgotsie, but that sounds weird.

OK, The Question for Marduk: I guess you don't earn money playing all those games. What do you do for a living? Do you have a job or are you still studying?

[Trumgottist]

Originally Posted by Marduk

Discworld 1 & 3 (I enjoyed the second but I don't really think it compared to either of the others)

Yay! Someone who shares my view on those games. (And someone who has realised that it's fun to sing. You're clearly a very sensible person. )

Trum; I know you're in the process of making a freeware adventure game, but obviously that doesn’t pay the bills. Do you ever plan to turn it into a ‘real’ profession? (Assuming you also have a paying day job, because if it's a full time hobby then I must assume the answer is 'yes').

No, I have no such plans. Game making is just a hobby, and I like my job as teacher of reed and brass instruments. It's (usually) nice to work with people, and music is more to me than just a living.

[jimiemaan1]

Hi everyone.

My name is jimie. I used to play an adventure game(DOS based) some years ago. I wanna know the name of the game now. The story of the game is that "A man is arrested for the murder of his friend and will be executed in two months. This man's son tries to solve the murder mystery to help his father. In this game, our player is that man's son. The starting scenario is the place where the victim was killed and suspect's son is investigating."

Please help me find this game.

[MoriartyL]

Okay, I've got a question. Do you have any friends or casual acquaintances with Asperger's Syndrome?

[Marduk]

Originally Posted by MoriartyL

Okay, I've got a question. Do you have any friends or casual acquaintances with Asperger's Syndrome?

I've had several, one in school (that I knew of) and 2 from church.

My brother also has Aspergers, not to mention ADHD and Authoritative Oppositional Disorder (venomous combination).

You're question... Well, I wasn't sure what to ask; first I thought maybe a Sherlock Holmes question, because of your name, and then maybe an art question, because of your abstract avatar... But, going through some of your old posts, I found this.

Can you please list the sound track of your life, with songs that add up to no more than 90 minutes (and thus fit on a CD)?

Originally Posted by jimiemaan1

Hi everyone.

My name is jimie. I used to play an adventure game(DOS based) some years ago. I wanna know the name of the game now. The story of the game is that "A man is arrested for the murder of his friend and will be executed in two months. This man's son tries to solve the murder mystery to help his father. In this game, our player is that man's son. The starting scenario is the place where the victim was killed and suspect's son is investigating."

Please help me find this game.

I realise the title of this thread must be ill conceived, is there a way for me to change the title? Should I report the thread and maybe ask a mod moves it to a more appropriate part of the forums, if need be?

Also; Hi Jimie

[Hammerite]

What is your main ambition, if that isn't too personal a question?

[Marduk]

Originally Posted by Hammerite

What is your main ambition, if that isn't too personal a question?

I don't have one

What's yours ?

[tsa]

What about my question?

Originally Posted by tsa

I guess you don't earn money playing all those games. What do you do for a living? Do you have a job or are you still studying?

[MikeLXXXVIII]

It's nice to see how this topic got so popular, but hey I don't mind its nice to look around. Personally I can't think of just one question as I am one with a billion questions :p. *stalks this thread*

[Marduk]

Originally Posted by tsa

What about my question?

I'm very sorry, I missed it

Originally Posted by tsa

And Trumgottist, we could also call you Trumgotsie, but that sounds weird.

That kinda reminds me of 'Trotsky', the communist. We could call him 'Trumsgy'.

OK, The Question for Marduk: I guess you don't earn money playing all those games.

Most of those games were released years apart, many of them were only purchased a considerable amount of time after their release (I'm extremely cautious about buying new games). The reason those are my favourite games is because they were the most memorable, but I assure you that the list looks a lot shorter if you remove everything in brackets.

As it stands I actually get very little time for gaming or internet surfing. (I do both in whatever free time I can snatch. (Long posts are written in a surprisingly short time, unless I feel compelled to look up details on the net, I can just knock of a page's worth of stuff before I even know I've started writing).

Most of my 'gaming' time is usually in the middle of the night, causing me to depend on energy drinks in the day time.

What do you do for a living? Do you have a job or are you still studying?

I am a full time carer. My mother is heavily disabled and my little brother has aspergers, ADHD and Authoritative Oppositional Disorder (or 'Oppositional Defiant Disorder'). I get an allowance for that, but I have to make it stretch. I'm also a full time, unpaid babysitter for my niece, sometimes my niece and nephew and, before my niece was born (she's 1 year old), just my nephew (who will be 3 in a couple of months).

My question for you... As a writer your posts, one what is an extremely social thread, have been (on average) have been about the shortest. Is there is this meaningful of something deeper?

Originally Posted by MikeLXXXVIII

It's nice to see how this topic got so popular, but hey I don't mind its nice to look around.

I know, I'm not used to this kind of interest :S I'm certainly not usually this comfortable with people taking an interest into my life.

Personally I can't think of just one question as I am one with a billion questions :p. *stalks this thread*

OK, for every question of mine you answer, I'll let you answer another

[Trumgottist]

Originally Posted by Marduk

OK, for every question of mine you answer, I'll let you answer another

I see what you did there.

[tsa]

Originally Posted by Duksie

My question for you... As a writer your posts, one what is an extremely social thread, have been (on average) have been about the shortest. Is there is this meaningful of something deeper?

Well, what can I say? The writing is a hobby of mine. I haven't really had time (or must I say made time) for writing. But writing is not all about making long sentences or elaborate posts. It's about getting the message across. I think I did fairly well in that, didn't I?

Another question from me then. Let me first state that I find it very honorable of you to be a full-time carer. I'm not sure if I could do that, physically as well as mentally. Anyway, my question is simple: what did you study?

[Marduk]

Originally Posted by Trumgottist

I see what you did there.

well spotted... Nah, I cannot tell a lie; this was a mistake. I like to think this is the level of wit I'm usually capable of, though.

Originally Posted by tsa

Well, what can I say? The writing is a hobby of mine. I haven't really had time (or must I say made time) for writing. But writing is not all about making long sentences or elaborate posts. It's about getting the message across. I think I did fairly well in that, didn't I?

Another question from me then. Let me first state that I find it very honorable of you to be a full-time carer. I'm not sure if I could do that, physically as well as mentally. Anyway, my question is simple: what did you study?

First I studied business. I learned a lot but the biggest thing I learned is that I hated business. Then I went into an access [to higher education] course, which I dropped out of during my divorce.

[EDIT] if writing is only your hobby then what is your 'day job'?

[Marduk]

Originally Posted by Trumgottist

I see what you did there.

well spotted... Nah, I cannot tell a lie; this was a mistake. I like to think this is the level of wit I'm usually capable of, though.

Originally Posted by Marduk

First I studied business. I learned a lot but the biggest thing I learned is that I hated business. Then I went into an access [to higher education] course, which I dropped out of during my divorce.

[MoriartyL]

Originally Posted by Marduk

You're question... Well, I wasn't sure what to ask; first I thought maybe a Sherlock Holmes question, because of your name, and then maybe an art question, because of your abstract avatar... But, going through some of your old posts, I found this.

There are a bunch of faulty assumptions here, albeit understandable ones. I have very little visual sense- my avatar is just the phrase "I am not" mushed together. So I don't know anything about art. I also don't know anything about Sherlock Holmes; my username is a pun on my actual name. And finally, I looked back at the post you linked to, and I remember exactly what I was thinking as I wrote it. I will often improvise tunes in my head (or on a piano) to correspond with what's going on at the moment, so in a very literal way my life has a soundtrack.

I was hoping for a little more detail from you on what sorts of relationships you've had with other people like us, to compare my own experiences against, but you have answered my question to the letter so I will answer yours.

Can you please list the sound track of your life, with songs that add up to no more than 90 minutes (and thus fit on a CD)?

Absolutely. Unfortunately, that would involve me playing it out for you on a piano. Some of the pieces have titles, most don't. I'll make up titles for the ones that don't, so that you have an idea of it.

1. Innocence
2. Forever Wandering
3. Classical simplicity in D Minor
4. I'm Not Sure About This...
5. Dots and Curves
6. 3 Themes
7. Palatino
8. A Lonely Journey
9. Bouncy Silly Cheeriness

None of it has lyrics, obviously. I don't much care for music with lyrics, though I'll make an exception for musicals.

Allow me to introduce myself properly. I am Mory Ariel Buckman, and if you ever say anything I disagree with I will have much fun disagreeing with much stubbornness for as ever so muchly many posts as I can get away with (so please do!). As you have no doubt figured out, I'm an Asperger's with music affinity, but I've chosen not to pursue that so that I can instead make my own computer games. I don't actually like adventure games usually, I just like imagining the potential of adventure games.

[Marduk]

I'm very sorry.

I’ll try to describe my experiences with those people for you.

The first was back in secondary school, nearly 10 years ago. A guy I 'befriended' (I never made especially close friends until sometime in the last few years, though I’m not terribly sure they’re everything the brochure made them out to be ) who also irritated me a great deal. I think a lot of the reasons he irritated me was that I could see a lot of myself in the way he acted (though it was usually the way I tried hard not to act; which is difficult because you’re only acting as your nature dictates), and so I hated myself for getting irritated with him.

(I realised that I was different from everybody at about the age of 8 and tried to start observing my own behaviour, to learn from it, though I didn't have any basis of comparison to see how well I managed this).

The guys I knew in church were a boy and his step father, though that 'boy' must be around 20 by now (I think he was about 5 years younger than me). The step father had his family join the church but was, for some reason, rebellious against its principles (why join if you don't agree with it?) and the family would generally agree with him or go along with what he said in order to please him.

He was particularly impatient with his Step son, whose behaviours was no worse than my own.

I remember after church on one Sunday, as people started up from their seats and gravitated towards oneanother, to mingle he kicked the boy in the arse, apparently at random and chastised him for his behaviour. The boy's older brother took great pleasure in this and imitated this behaviour shortly after.

They had a lot of trouble getting him officially diagnosed and statemented as Aspergic (I don't like the word 'aspie', or however it’s spelled) because local health authorities don't like to spend money on support for various services (educational and other things). I had the same problem myself and wasn't much older than him when I was finally diagnosed. (One doctor diagnosed me at a very early age but her opinion was dismissed. I don't remember her name but she later turned out to be a leading authority on Autism).

Shortly after this boy received his diagnosis his step father was diagnosed with it, too. He became much less irritable around his step son, not shouting at him as much or showing signs of that he might be violent when other people weren’t around. I don't think their relationship exactly 'blossomed' into some relationship you might see on some United State'ian family show, the boy was much calmer from then on (he'd previously seemed to be on the edge of a nervous breakdown - for several years).

Looking back I think I should have alerted the social services about their situation. For years the poor little guy desperately sought the old man's approval and received nothing but his scorn and it was taking its toll on him mentally. Things mightn't have worked out as well as they did (eventually).

Does that help? There are one or 2 other little titbits which I gleaned from them, when comparing their lives to mind which I'd rather not share on an open forum (nothing morally dubious, though ) which I'll be happy to share through PMs if you wish

[tsa]

Marduk, you asked me what my day job is. Well, at the moment I am, as they call it, in between jobs, but my profession is basically to make very small things. I don't design them, I just make them. You can check my professional website to find out more. During the past five and a half years I have been making so-called photonic crystals, which are porous materials with a very specific and very ordered pore structure. This pore structure makes light that you shine on the crystal behave in special ways. The most noticable feature of a photonic crystal is the fact that it does not allow light wit certain colours to shine through it. It will just reflect that light, although the light can shine through the same material without pores in it just fine. Photonic crystals are extremely hard to make because the tolerances that are allowed are fairly small (in the order of 10 nm or so; 10 billionth of a metre, or ten thousand times smaller than the diameter of a human hair). The best crystal we made is not on the website yet because it is not published in the scientific literature yet, but we were very proud to have pulled that off.

[Little Writer]

Ah, the introduction thread. Been looking for this. Usually it's sticky.

Anyway, I'm from Belgium. First computer game ever would be the original Prince of Persia, I think, but it errored at the final level so I never finished it. Also had a golf game of some kind with annoying internal speaker tweeting birds, but a lovely "plonk" sound when your ball went swimming.

But of course, more important, my first adventure game was the well known "Secret of Monkey Island"! Man, that was still on those huge flexible floppies, do you remember those? Became an instant fan of Lucasfilm/LucasArts - I think I have all the adventure games and I even had a copy of X-Wing once ... good times creating my own little cockpit with the joystick and keyboard.

Anyway, Larry 1 was my first Sierra game. While I enjoy those games, dying every which way is not for me. Then one Christmas I got Gabriel Knight, totally out of the blue, and it really opened a new world for me.

Haven't played many "recent" adventure games. After Gabriel Knight 3 and Escape from Monkey Island, it all kinda went dead. I bought Runaway the first day of release because I was starving for a new adventure. Found a copy of The Longest Journey on eBay a while back, playing it now.

Would like to get my hands on the newest Sam & Max and Monkey Island games, but I'm a store hardcopy buying guy only.