November’s gamer lady of the month.

I know we skipped a few months but rather than claiming ‘better late than never’ I’d prefer to say the wait was well worth it.  I told you a couple weeks ago that I had tried to get an interview with Felicia Day for this feature, but she is very busy.  That’s understandable, and we are patient (evil grin here.)  That is not to say our quest didn’t meet with success though.  It put me in touch with the wonderful gamer ladies of Geek and Sundry, and at least one of these charming ladies (we look forward to many more) has agreed to be featured in this modest little blog.  I talked to Beverly over the course of a couple of emails and she kindly offered to help us out, and to pass on the information about the feature to her coworkers as well.  It was a very pleasant experience because, being a writer, I’m used to canned rejections, form letters, and impersonal responses to queries.  Beverly was anything but, and I wish more contacts at companies were like her.  So, without further ado, ladies and gents, I present your November Gamer Lady of the Month!

Q. What is your Gamertag?
ManicHateball. It came from the name of a villain in The Venture Bros!

Q. We are getting a lot of viewers outside the U.S. If you don’t mind everyone knowing, what country do you hail from?
USA!

Q. Gamer guild/clan affiliation?
None at the moment…I’m too busy to keep up with guild duties!

Q. Console or PC?
Console – XBOX 360 primarily, though I do play some PC games.

Q. When did you start gaming?
My parents had an Atari when I was growing up, but they never really let me play it! I was probably 12 before I had a game system.

Q. What got you started in the world of gaming?
This probably sounds silly, but I was really into the Pokemon cartoon as a kid. I wanted to play the games the show was based on, so I bought a used Game Boy off of Yahoo! Auctions (does anyone remember that site?) with my summer allowance. My middle school crush bought me Pokemon Blue for my birthday that year, and my mom got me Kirby, Link’s Awakening, and a few others. I got a Nintendo 64 for Christmas, my first real console (crazy, I know), then eventually an Xbox, finally an Xbox 360. I didn’t have even have a PS2 until the PS3 was already out!

Over time I became really interested in gaming culture and games themselves, amassing a significant collection. Eventually I turned that love of gaming into a job in the industry, at BioWare as part of their community team for STAR WARS: The Old Republic. After that, I got into the entertainment side of things. I am now the director of marketing and community for Geek & Sundry, working for the awesome Felicia Day, getting involved in awesome shows like The Guild and TableTop.

Q. Favorite game?
Ugh, so hard. I think Elder Scrolls: Oblivion is my all-time favorite. I have sunk SO many hours in that game. Very close runner-ups are Fallout 3 and BioShock.

Q. Currently playing? 
Dishonored, which I am really bad at because I keep killing everyone accidentally. I am not very stealthy. Also Borderlands 2, which I am much better at.

Q. Most anticipated future release?
BioShock: Infinite. COME OUT ALREADY!!

Q. Build your own or off-the-shelf PC? Any reason for preference?
Off-the-shelf, just for sheer lack of time.

Q. Favorite game type?
RPG, so long as there are strong first- or third-person fighting elements.

Q. Do you think there are any issues related to being a female gamer?
I think the thing we face most is that a lot of people don’t really “get” why being a female gamer could be problematic. A lot of people don’t understand concepts like privilege, so they don’t see why women might choose to want to remain anonymous, or select a male avatar, or not use voice chat, just because they don’t have to worry about those things themselves.

We also tend to face more scrutiny and have our intentions and authenticity questioned. A lot of women find they can’t say they’re interested in games without getting the third degree to determine whether or not they’re a “real” gamer. It’s craziness!

So there you have it folks, with another month we take a chunk out of the myth that female gamers don’t exist.  I recently saw that ugly beast rear its head in my new favorite game, Guild Wars 2.  A player commented on her husband playing and of course, what I assume was a troll, asked if the couple were a gay married couple.  Whether the troll truly believed that female gamers don’t exist, or was just trying to be funny (which he wasn’t) it didn’t matter much to me.  I told that troll to back off.  Yah I know, tough guy on the internet!  That’s me.  Anyway my guild is opposed to that sort of douche-baggery and being a knight (we are the Darksong Knights) I had to step up to the lady’s defense.  The guy did shut up at least, and I made a new friend and possibly a couple of new guild mates out of it.  It’s trolls like that that still stain our community, so if you see them, don’t feed them, don’t sink to their level, just tell them to back off and show your support for the wonderful lady’s that game!

If you, or someone you know, would be perfect for this feature, email us at xamot@fragsandbeer.com.  Give us a brief reason why you (or they) should be featured and we’ll handle the rest.  Don’t worry, pictures and real names optional.