Slappin' on his serious face.
Screecherz might not know where his gamertag comes from, but he sure knows where he likes to spend some of his down time. If you've seen him maxin' relaxin' right here on Bungie.net and wondered what in the world his story is, wonder no more - we cornered him and forced him to answer our not-so-pressing questions. Scroll down for his answers.
Q. Who are you and what do you do?
A. My name is Tom, I recently turned 16, and I live just south of the Twin Cities in the warm and sunny state of Minnesota. I am currently unemployed, but I’m about to hop back onto the occupation train and work at a delicious sub shop – none other than the Blue Ox Sandwich Factory. If you haven’t heard of it buy yourself a plane ticket and grab a bite to eat, it’s worth it.
My weeks and weekends go by pretty normally, I play some Xbox (when it isn’t flashing red lights at me), I swim a lot, and I try to get my school homework done. Swimming is my favorite thing to do, but unless I rake up some cash, I won’t get any pool time until next spring.
Q. Well, that was relatively coherent and subdued for a guy who goes by "Screecherz." Where'd you get the gamertag?
A. The origins of my name are pretty obscure to me. My profile here was taken from my gamer tag, which, in turn was derived from my old online PC name of "Screech." Where that name came from, I couldn’t tell you. I could have thought it was cool or original at some point, but it’s really not clear to me at this point. To make it quite clear, it isn’t taken from Saved by the Bell, and no, I do not make pornos.
Q. I don't think Screech did either. Stunt double and all that. Either way, this is getting a little too mature for my liking. Let's talk about where you waste the most time when you're online. What forums do you hang out in?
A. My most active forum would probably be the Community Forum, but the fast pace of ODST and The Flood have brought my interest there as well. I like the Community Forum because it gives me a chance to slap on my Serious Face and kick some ass, but people don’t ever listen. The ODST forum gives me a chance to help out lost gamers, and the Flood is, well, the Flood. I can’t say more than that.
Asides from the Forums, I’m also an avid Private Group poster. In my groups I get a chance to act ridiculously stupid without being judged, and I get to have a little more fun than is normally allowed in the Public Forums. So for anyone who likes to butcher the English language, or just can’t help it, private groups are the place for you.
Q. So, why gaming?
A. Gaming is primarily just a way for me to have fun personally; however with Xbox LIVE starting to become a huge social networking project, I’ve been able to hook up with a lot of friends and family. I have a good dozen personal friends on my list, and a few family members (some from Pennsylvania) that frequent Xbox LIVE. All in all, I use the service to have some nice clean fun.
Q. What was the first Bungie title you had some good, old fashioned, and totally clean fun with?
A. Halo: PC. My dad got me into this when he first played through the campaign, I was young, and so I wasn’t allowed to play it until I gained a few years for the tally, but it was well worth the wait. I have no end to the praise I can give that game, and I continue to hop on it from time to time. If I had a genie lamp, wish number one would be to resurrect the game, give it Xbox LIVE multiplayer support, and completely revamp the graphics (leaving the physics untouched, of course).
BRAGGING: I used to hold the Number 3 global spot in Oddball for Halo: PC. Just sayin’.
Q. Whoa, nice. Who would have thought? On the subject of disbelief and incredulity, did you ever think you'd be so involved with a gaming community?
A. I’m not so much surprised at how involved I am in the community as much as I am surprised at how well it took me in. After a slow start, I started to get familiarized with a few members of the site and now I am a full blown elitist. I believe Singularity was the person who got the ball rolling for me, but I do like to think I am responsible for a little bit of awesome.
Q. Do you get involved with any other online hot spots?
A. The only entertainment community I am a part of is Bungie.net. The forum structure, the great look of the site, private groups, stats, screenshots, etc, all make me come back here. The only other group I used to be involved with was BFM, a group that was dedicated to racing in Halo: PC.
BRAGGING: I used to hold the 107th global spot in Racing for Halo: PC. Just sayin’.
Q. Well, it's not top three, but I guess it's okay. Anything you would like to add before we cross this here finish line?
A. I’d like to thank the people who accepted me into the community for one, but I would like to make a few shout-outs to some special friends in real life and Xbox LIVE. First off, JT, for being one of the best, most helpful, and most fun to play with friends over Xbox LIVE. Rhi, for giving me an outlet to blow off steam and for loving me so much, and lastly all members of the Web team – who make the coolest site that I have come to know.
Thanks to Tom for taking time out to tackle our interrogation. If you want to take the time to say what's up to Screecherz, we've got a discussion thread up and going so you can do just that. Drop in and tell him how awesome he is.