Category: QotM

Gaming, Meaningless Ramble, QotM

QotM*: The Protagonist

*Question of the Month is a stack of pancakes whipped up by Later Levels and drizzled in Maple Syrup by OverThinker Y!

2019’s ‘Question of the Month’ format has been shaken up. Instead of individual gaming conundrums the dream-weavers in charge of this community chaos are focused on a much bigger goal: Coming up with the Ultimate Video Game over the course of this rotation around the sun. Each month they’re asking for entries to add to the growing structure of this fantastical game covering different aspects. For February the community have been charged with adding the main protagonist to the existing setting.

… still not entirely clear? Head here to see details of February’s challenge and read more about the overall concept…

I was thrilled to be picked as the winning entry in January’s challenge to define the setting of this game and, as I’m now part of the team, I’m no longer eligible to win in future months. This doesn’t mean however that I can’t just join in for fun and as I came up with the setting I thought I’d have a crack at trying to put a suitable protagonist in to it.

If you haven’t read my description of the Setting then click here to read that piece as it will give what follows much more context!

Of course regular readers might have noticed that I’m not one for just answering the question and I often take liberties with what actually constitutes an answer so the following is my own meandering extension of the piece I wrote covering the setting; I’m sure that many of you out there are much better at defining characters and I look forward to reading what everyone comes up with… but for now here’s my own take on who the protagonist could be…    Continue reading “QotM*: The Protagonist”

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Meaningless Ramble, OffTopic, QotM

QotM*: The Ultimate Video Game Setting

*QotM is a solitary waffle hand cooked by William Shatner himself and thrown at you from across the restaurant by Later Levels

I know what you’re thinking “What are you doing? This isn’t a regular posting time!”. Indeed, this is a bonus post to provide an answer to this year’s first Question of the Month. The puppet-masters have mixed it up for 2019 giving an overall gameplan to the QotM formula. Over the next 12 months they’re hoping to compile all the elements of “The Ultimate Video Game” by tasking bloggers to come up with a new element each month and then selecting the one that is ..erm… the most ultimate… does that make sense? No? Well there are plenty more details here!  Continue reading “QotM*: The Ultimate Video Game Setting”

Hundstrasse20 Comments
Gaming, QotM, Retro Gaming

QotM*: ScaredStrasse – Cosmic Chasm on Vectrex

*Question of the Month is a pumpkin spiced latte without the pumpkin or the latte and more of a chocolate mint thing going on… kind of just a minty mocha, with marshmallows, and a cookie on the side brought to you in your favourite armchair by Later Levels

It has been a while since I last participated in a Question of the Month. That last entry was something of an epic foray in to the world of my roaming imagination and seemed to consume an inordinate amount of my QotM energy. I think it’s about time to venture back in to that QotM world with my take on this month’s question.

For October, the month of the Ween-of-Hallow, the question has a distinctly appropriate spooky vibe and has been set by Megan over at A Geeky Gal; it’s an exceptional blog that I thoroughly recommend you check covering gaming, anime, and general geek-ery. Megan recently unleashed a set of her five personal favourite horror games that not only include some of my favourites, but are a neat place to start if you’re looking to explore her work and read something seasonally-appropriate at the same time.

As always check out the MONSTER POST! over at Later Levels for all the details and to see all of my fellow word-lers’ take on October’s question by looking through the comments. This month Megan asks:

In honour of Halloween, tell me what video game scared you the most. What is it about the elements, environments, music, or characters in the video game that scared you?

Continue reading “QotM*: ScaredStrasse – Cosmic Chasm on Vectrex”

Hundstrasse3 Comments
Gaming, Meaningless Ramble, QotM

QotM*: Empire Building

*Question of the Month is some blueberries on meringue with ice cream served on a sunny day by Later Levels

As I sit here on the triple throne of Green Hill Zone, The Mushroom Kingdom, and Hyrule, I’d like to take a moment to recount for you the story of how I came to acquire this power. The challenge, if I recall correctly, was laid down by one Luna of GamersUnitedGG, inscribed for the ages in the legendary “Master Post” and archived in the great library of Later Levels. I’d made my way there some years ago to find a truth, but as I read that text, it began to form in my mind a dark challenge that, when translated in to the tongue of the current age, read thus:

You are a new villain trying to make a name for yourself so you have decided to take over the Mushroom Kingdom, Green Hill Zone and Hyrule. Who are you and how will you defeat each hero and take over? Continue reading “QotM*: Empire Building”

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Gaming, Meaningless Ramble, QotM, Resident Evil

QotM*: Umbrella Employee #57832

*Question of the Month is an apple crumble with a really good crumble-to-fruit ratio brought to us by Later Levels

This month’s slice of question pie has been dished out by the fantastic Pix1001 who runs a streamlined train over at “Shoot the Rookie“. Check out the MASTER POOOSST! for a little more about what her particular brand of cereal is. Right now, I’m going to get on with the business of this month’s question which is:

if you could live in any video game settlement (ie a town, village, city, etc), where would you choose to live and why; and what role would you play in it?

Wow – so this is quite the topic. Let’s face it, we’ve all daydreamed about living in our favourite in game setting from Hyrule to Rapture, but I think personally I’ve spent more time imagining what it would be like to live in Resident Evil’s Raccoon City more than anywhere else. It’s not your traditional utopia, but given the game’s impact on me, I always had dreams of roaming the police station and wanted to step in those detailed pre-rendered rooms to delve deeper in to that world.

I also guess that like most people in Raccoon City, I’d work for Umbrella because someone has to do all that evil science right? Unfortunately I just don’t think it work would out to be the idyllic experience I’m imagining…. Continue reading “QotM*: Umbrella Employee #57832”

Hundstrasse12 Comments
Gaming, Meaningless Ramble, QotM

QotM*: Disease Ridden Vampiric Apocalypse

*Question of the Month is an pack of Oreos that you didn’t know you had, hidden in the back of the cupboard by Later Levels

It’s still April and I can still get in on this… right? This month’s question is diabolically intricate and provided by Nathan over at Hurricane Thought Process. Nathan hasn’t just asked one question, he’s asked a stunning One-Hundred and Forty Three Questions! (The Asteroid of Killer Tomatoes being sadly invalid due to February’s length). Luckily for you all I only have to answer one of these as dictated by my birthday, but for all of you curious wombats, and those who just want to check out the other answers, makes sure you drift on over to the “Post of Masterfulness“!

Which Three Video Game Characters Would I Pick to Help Me Survive an Apocalypse of Diseased Vampires? Continue reading “QotM*: Disease Ridden Vampiric Apocalypse”

Hundstrasse8 Comments
Gaming, Meaningless Ramble, QotM

QotM*: Personal Trainer

*Question of the Month is the sound of rain on a tent at a camping trip organised by LaterLevels

Unfortunately I just didn’t get around to answering last month’s question, which was double-bad because the format has been all shaken up and poured over ice; from the beginning of the year, a star blogger gets to both set the question and make their decision on who’s managed to best answer that month’s conundrum. For February I have to try and impress Kevin from over on The Mental Attic. The QotM master post gives you something of a glimpse into the world of our quizzing puppet-master for this month who asks:

You ate everything during Christmas so now have to diet and work it all off; which video game character do you recruit as your personal trainer to get you back into shape?

Continue reading “QotM*: Personal Trainer”

Hundstrasse11 Comments
Gaming, Meaningless Ramble, QotM

QotM*: Which Video Game Character Would do a Better Job Than Santa?

*Question of the Month is that first mince pie of the season served up by Later Levels  December’s ‘Question of the Month’ seems to have taken a festive turn looking to the jolly gentleman clad in red and asking “Is he really pulling his weight? Couldn’t someone else… say from the world of gaming do a much better job?“. Tough as it is on the … Continue reading QotM*: Which Video Game Character Would do a Better Job Than Santa?

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Gaming, Meaningless Ramble, QotM, Retro Gaming

QotM*: Poor Wardrobe Selection

*Question of the Month is a metaphorical puppy let loose in a ball-pool orchestrated by Later Levels

As always the game blogging community isn’t afraid to tackle the really big issues of our chosen sphere of interest. For November we’re looking at fashion choices, but not the most stylish, or sexiest, … Or even those outfits that we as gamers would like to steal from our favourite digital protagonists and strut around in from time to time (answer to all three is Link’s barbarian armour set from BotW). For this question we’ve been asked to come up with the character who has just made a plain bad choice because of the practicalities of their chosen activity. Continue reading “QotM*: Poor Wardrobe Selection”

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Gaming, Meaningless Ramble, QotM

QotM*: Who is the Most Memorable Video Game NPC?

*Question of the Month is the blogging equivalent of a weaponised Furby who has disobeyed orders and gone rogue, all to the delight of those architects of anarchy at Later Levels

I’m not one for spoiling the magic, but for those of you who might want to peek behind the curtain into this strange gaming blogging world, I will say that this question caused quite a stir amongst the regular participants; there was some question over what constituted an NPC in this context. I know you’re all shouting at your monitors that surely it’s pretty obvious, but the concept of ‘Non-Playable Character’ is open to interpretation and there are certainly examples of entities within games that are both ‘characters’ and ‘non-playable’ that I wouldn’t class as an NPC. Continue reading “QotM*: Who is the Most Memorable Video Game NPC?”

Hundstrasse3 Comments