Posted on behalf of t4nd4r
I sat down with Kellen Empey from Las Vegas and began talking to him about his everyday life and personal interests. With all those school classes, it's amazing to see him getting time in to play videogames! He also USED to be a completionist, but decided to break away from it so he could ENJOY playing games (who does that?). During the course of my interview I found out something horrifying about SparkyMP and the game Halo 3... read on to find out about it, and much more!
You currently reside in Las Vegas Nevada... THAT must be an interesting place to play video games, right?
Las Vegas is an interesting place to live. It was hardly any fun while growing up, but after you become 21 the city opens up to you and your wallet. The positive side to being a gamer here is there are countless amounts of game stores. 15+ Gamestops and about 50 other local game stores. Not to mention that Las Vegas is a big host to gaming/electronic conventions.
I know your current employment situation, but would you like to explain it to others?
Currently I am on disability due to an injury I received while working for Coca-Cola. I ruptured 2 discs in my lower spine which are creating constant pressure on my nerve endings. After a few (7) months dealing with workers comp, and the corrupted doctors they hire, my claim was finally finished. I received an 8% permanent partial disability and 13 months of free schooling.
I heard you signed up for a ton of classes this year, what is the major you are going for, and why?
I signed up for a small tech school, I thought it would be a better idea than going through a traditional college. I only have 13 months and the tech school can cram everything into that time. I am signed up for A+, Network+, Security+, LAN Administration, CCNA/Cisco, and Microsoft Certified Professional. After all these classes are completed I will take them to a college and get a quick associates degree with them.
Do you have a wife/kids/dog/mongoose?
I currently have a girlfriend/fiancee (she has a ring, just not a proposal from me) and 4 dogs. We recently moved into her mothers house to save money, which added another 4 dogs, 2 cats, 1 bird, and 2 fish onto the list of pets. Needless to say, we like dogs. Kids might be happening next year, after I finish school of course.
You joined 360Voice on March 9th 2008, what brought you to the site?
My sisters boyfriend told me about the site. I had purchased my console about 6 months before joining. I was getting tired of not having any friends to play games with so he suggested looking up 360voice. I don't think he had expected me to become such an active member.
You started with 10,760 GS and you currently have 70,857 GS, what motivated you to gain such a tremendous amount in such short time?
Challenges!! The idea of competing against others for the most amount of gamer score gain was awesome. I thoroughly enjoyed gaining all those points for "bragging rights." Plus the added prize here and there was great too.
What is your favorite part of the site, what are some things you would like to see improved?
I enjoy the forums. The people on this site are truly awesome. Its what keeps me coming back for more everyday. I have expanded my friends list from 2 people all the way to 100 thanks to this site. As far as improvements, well it seems that those things are always working themselves out. The things I have suggested have all been implemented, no complaints from me.
How did you come up with your Gamertag?
I used to be an electrical apprentice, so Sparky comes from that. As far as the MP, well it sounds like my last name. Empey = MP. So there for SparkyMP was created. Its also my license plate. SPRKYMP
You have played 177 different games, what are your top 10 favorite?
Bioshock was probably my favorite game for the 360. R6V2 was really good as well, lots of good times with some buddies from this site. Pins and Beans lol...inside joke, ask Davem3 TF. I was very happy to get Vigilante 8 and Wolfenstein as arcade releases over the last year. Gears of War and its sequel are also fun favorites.
What are your top 10 least favorite?
Halo 3, go ahead bash me if you want, I hate that game. Horrible online multiplayer, and no its not because I suck at it. The only positive thing to that game is the 4 player coop campaign. King Kong, Fusion Frenzy, Ridge Racer 6, Jumper, X-men the official game, and Bionicle Heroes come to mind when I think of the crap I have played. Sad part is I will eventually have to go back and play half of those again.
[Editor's note: Before continuing with the interview, I hit SparkyMP with my Xbox360 controller several times...]
You are involved in a race to 1k for the game DBZ Burst Limit, you currently have 35GS in it, think you have a chance of winning?
No, not really. There are several achievements in that game that are nearly impossible. And with me not being a fighting game type of person, that game may take a while. Thanks for the reminder though, I do need to keep working on that one. And I thought you involved in that race as well t4nd4r???
[Editor's note: Don't remind me... :/]
What are your top 5 proudest achievements?
Historian - Bioshock, Perfection - Track and Field, Fill Legend - Rock Band 2, Kilopiece Colossus - Puzzle Arcade, Lord of the Deep - Undertow. Those are my favorites that I busted my butt working on. There are others that I have that I like, but I am not as proud of them because I boosted to get them.
What are your top 10 most shameful achievements?
Can you say Hannah Montana and My Horse and Me 2!!
Do you ever think you will go back and finish Jumper?
NO!
In your bio you talk about wanting to reach 75k GS by 2010, think you will make it?
I think I will make it much sooner than the end of this year. I'm looking at reaching that before the end of September. Maybe even the end of this month.
You currently have a streak of 490 days, how much farther do you see yourself going?
As far as I feel like. All I wanted to do was reach 365 days. I have more than accomplished that, I am just waiting for a vacation now. I might drop the streak when I travel to Boston during Christmas break. I haven't decided yet. I'm going to be taking my laptop with me, so its not like I cannot keep my streak using a "games for windows."
What are some to-be-released games you are looking forward to playing?
Wolfenstein looks awesome. Bioshock 2 was a huge let down when they pushed it back to next year, still looking forward to it though. I played a trial for the new Batman, and I must say I was a little disappointed. That one is up in the air now, I will have to wait to see what my friends think of the story.
What is your opinion on multiplayer achievements?
I absolutely despise online achievements. Multiplayer is fine, as long as its obtainable offline as well. Being required to pay $50 a year to be able to gain all the achievements in a game is wrong. The good side to online multiplayer achievements is that it gets people to explore the multiplayer side of games. And thats why I think achievements were a great idea, it gets people to play the game to the fullest extent. Exploring every aspect.
Try to think waaaaaaaay back, what was the first video game you ever played?
An old stand up arcade version of Pac-Man. I started playing that when I was 2 at my dads favorite restaurant. Ever since then I have been hooked on gaming, and collecting for that matter. I'm still trying to get my hands on the few consoles I don't own yet.
What made you decide you wanted to be part of the Xbox Live experience?
Being able to play online with people was worth paying for. Gears of War was a major factor in my decision.
Are you glad you made the decision to pay monthly for the service?
I am. This site has made it entirely worth it. Being able to use it to just sit there and talk to people in a party chat is great. Netflix was a nice little add on. I'm getting a great amount of use out of that feature.
If you were high up on the chain of command in Microsoft, what would you change about Xbox Live?
The monthly fees are understandable so those would have to stay. I would force companies such as EA to either keep their servers on or to transfer the games onto Microsoft's servers. We as a customer have paid for the games, and then to have a company take away the usage of the game is stealing the money we spent on it. I think a stable live service would be great as well.
Are you excited for the upcoming Xbox Live update on August 11th?
I don't know yet. Every new update comes with new problems, we shall see just how everything goes. I hear the dashboard doesn't lock up like it used to, so that could be a good thing about it.
Think you will purchase a ton of new clothes for your avatar? Or just get the freebies by gaining certain achievements?
I can honestly say that I will never purchase any clothing for my avatar. I would rather buy an arcade game with my MS points. I'll take the freebies from whoever is giving them away.
If you ever got the chance, who are some people you would want to have brunch with from 360Voice?
Far too many people to count. There are about 20 people I can think of immediately who I would really like to see. Sometimes I wish I lived closer to people just so I could do those things.
You recently declared you were done trying to work on your completion %, what made you decide this?
Worrying about the completion percentage kills the enjoyment of games. I don't like having to complete one game before I move onto another. Its the reason why I have 40+ sealed games sitting next to me. I think I am living up to my word lately as well. I have opened a new game almost everyday this week.
Have you found yourself to be enjoying gaming more because of this decision?
I have actually, its been much better not having to worry about getting those last few achievements.
What is your current gaming setup?
Well that depends. I mostly play on my xbox in my bedroom. Its a 360 elite hooked up to a 50" Toshiba DLP 1080p display. I gave up my sound system when I moved. Besides that system I have 3 other xbox 360's in the house as well as two computers each with its own "Games for Windows" game on it. Cannot be too safe with the streak eh.
Do you bask in the glory of HD gaming, or do you still use those color-coded cables?
I thoroughly enjoy my HDMI cables.
If you do use HD, what are some differences you were able to notice when switching?
The colors and screen resolution between component and HDMI is huge. I don't think I could go back to component much less VGA ever again.
If you were born with any one superpower... what would it be, and why?
I was born with a super power!!! Okay maybe not, but I can dream. Flying would be nice. But I think I would rather have something a little bit more useful. Perhaps some form of telekinesis, or being a genius if that counts. Something to change the world, take money out of the oil and gas manufacturers pockets in some way. I'm tired of being cheated and not being able to avoid it.
If you were given the option of being able to meet a famous person (past or present) who would it be, and why?
Well that depends on if I coud take my girlfriend or not. If not then I really don't know who I would meet, maybe Einstein. If I could take her, well then it would be up to her. Something to make her happy. I really don't care for meeting famous people.
Do you like to eat any snacks/food or drink anything while playing games?
Oh all the time. Spicy Nacho Doritos is the snack and either water or diet coke for the drink. Thats almost always what I munch on. Cheez-It's are another favorite, but I haven't had them in about 6 months.
Is there anything you would like to add, maybe make some shout-outs?
I just want to thank everyone on the site for making this place so great. Thank you creators, keep up the awesome work. And thank you t4nd4r for choosing me as a MotM.
Thank you for your time SparkyMP, let us know when you receive a spot in the Guiness World Records book for having the most dogs in one house.