I had the privilege to interview Will Santiago, aka AkilleezMight, Monday at a Women In Games International WAM mixer. I will have the full interview up on RealOtakuGamer.com, but here is a snippet to wet your whistle.
So what do you think of how women are treated in games/gaming culture?
It goes along with the whole race thing. Things are moving forward. I like the way the industry is moving towards being more diverse and more gender-friendly. There are more female protagonists now. I definitely support this move, because it’s not just good for adults: it’s good for the kids. Gaming helped me stay out of trouble, and I think if we can introduce more diversity and culture into our games and teach people not to segregate, then it would be a positive thing.
Especially now [working with Sony], I see a lot of women able to take on roles in the industry as project leads or directors or other prominent roles like that. It’s impressive, and it’s the way it should be. I like the improvement I’m seeing.
Is there anything you would change about the state of the gaming industry?
Yes, actually; I would love for the golden age of gaming to come back. You know, when everything and all parts of the game came with the disc.
(He proceeded to rant for a bit, but the bottom line is that Mr. Akilleez is not a fan of patches or characters you have to pay to unlock).
If you could be any video game character, who would you be and why?
I would be Dante from Devil May Cry 3.
Why?
*looks at me incredulously*
‘Cause he’s a f*cking badass!
*laughs*
Okay, okay, well, he’s over the top and he’s this funny, arrogant, crazy character, but he is never unlikable.
Nerdy But Flirty 