Member Interviews: ladynadiad

[Dragon-Archon]

Hey PSNP,

 

The interview with @ladynadiad is finished  . Without further ado, let's take a look. Have fun reading.

 

Stock Questions

 

How did you come up with your PSN name?

It’s actually the username I use everywhere, because I’m terrible at coming up with usernames. It basically came from a character I created and roleplayed for a long time in a LARP campaign. It was long enough that I actually was pretty used to answering to the name, so it was a suitable online handle too and just stuck.

 

What games convinced you get your PlayStation 3, Playstation Vita, and/or PlayStation 4?

• Vita: Ys: Memories of Celceta (my first trophy and plat are actually from MoC)
• PS4: Trails of Cold Steel III in Japanese. The funny thing was I got my PS4 right around when Ys VIII released, but at the time I put in my preorder I wasn’t sure if I was going to have enough to get a PS4 in time so I preordered the Vita version of that. I ended up getting a PS4 standard edition later on anyhow.
• PS3: No particular game actually! I just happened to have some extra cash and the PS3 had enough exclusives I wanted to be worth buying and had come down in price a fair amount with the generation being close to over at that time.

 

What are your top 5 game series and why?

1. Legend of Heroes – I’d say the series in general, because I even liked the PSP Gagharv Trilogy. I love the games because they have neat plots, charming characters and really good worldbuilding.
2. Ys – Got into this series way back on SNES and I’ve loved every entry I’ve played. I love the music and gameplay and the stories have been getting more and more interesting.
3. Shadow Hearts – Got this one as an impulse buy because Amazon recommended it and this was back when Amazon recommendations were quite solid and I loved it. Yuri is a great protagonist and the plot was a very interesting mix of saving the world while also dealing with Yuri’s personal internal struggles It’s just a great series and a shame that it’s pretty obscure now.
4. Suikoden – Before I discovered Legend of Heroes, this game really had a lot of what led me to like that series. Interesting world building, a cast of neat characters, a good plot, etc.
5. Xenosaga – Yeah, no shock that I’d love the game that was more interactive movie than game. I love games with lots of story and the characters were great and it was a good plot with a good ending and even though they ended it before they wanted to, they still pulled off a satisfying conclusion.

 

What are your top 5 games and why?

Not in any particular order here and will also keep to one game per series and no Falcom games to let you guys see what my tastes are outside of those (that and I can’t decide which Legend of Heroes game is my favorite).

• Shadow Hearts: Covernant – Just an all around great game. The characters are fun, the plot was interesting and I was totally absorbed into it from start to finish and completed bawled at the ending.
• Lost Odyssey – A true shame this one is Xbox 360 only because it’s one amazing JRPG that a lot of people I know haven’t played because of that. A great cast of characters, a fun world to explore and a very interesting take on immortals. It’s also one of very few games that accomplishes having amazing graphics while still keeping everything that makes a game fun within it, which so many games with stellar graphics fail at these days.
• Phantasy Star IV – Actually bought this around when it came out with my very first paycheck ever. That was one of the more expensive games of that generation at a $100 suggested retail price (I got it for less via shopping around and some trade ins). The game was so amazing for its time, really pushing the limits of what could be done in that gen and had a great cast of characters. People are so lucky now that they can get that game as a part of the Genesis collection for way cheap.
• Suikoden III – My favorite of the series. I really liked that it had different main characters and viewpoints at the start and then they all met up and joined together towards a common goal. I just overall liked the cast of this one better and it has some of my favorite characters in the series too.
• Tales of Hearts R – My favorite Tales of game, and also a top choice. Great battle system, a fun set of characters, a great plot, it just does everything right and gets me interested right off and kept my interest.

 

Do you have any other hobbies outside of gaming?

My main one is online roleplaying. When I’m less active here, it’s usually because I’ve got one of those going. I also do crafts.

 

Top 5 TV shows, Movies, and/or anime, why, and would you recommend them to people?

I barely watch TV any more, but still have a few that I like and I do follow a couple of current shows by streaming them from station websites (I don’t even have cable or anything hooked up for local channels my TV is solely a monitor for games). My overall favorite show ever was Sliders. My favorite currently running show is The 100. My favorite anime is Pretear. I’ll also include that my favorite manga is Fushigi Yuugi: Genbu Kaiden (and if it ever gets an anime, I’ll probably love that).

 

Top 5 favorite music bands/group/artist?

Well, I only really listen to video game soundtracks now. So let me just name my four favorite game soundtracks instead and my favorite band is Falcom Sound Team jdk.

1. Ys Seven
2. Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky the 3^rd
3. Final Fantasy VI
4. Xenosaga III

 

Your favorite platinum and why?

Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel IV. Though I’ll give Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana an honorable mention. CS4 just was a great game and a great end to an amazing arc of my favorite series and I always feel so accomplished when I get a plat from a Japanese game. My skills at reading Japanese are actually not great, so it’s not easy for me and even more so because there was no trophy guide for the game, so I had to really dig up whatever I could to get everything.

 

Your least favorite platinum and why?

Sorcery Saga. I honestly was not a fan of the game, to the point that I loathe it. The only reason why I got the platinum was because the game was frustrating to me and I refused to let it defeat me. As strange as it sounds, it’s quite motivating to feel that way.

 

Have you ever been tempted to switch over to the Xbox/Nintendo/PC gaming ecosystems?

I actually started gaming on an Apple Ile, Atari 2600, and NES. I actually do have over 1200 games on Steam and also own an Xbox 360. I’ll always be a multiplatform gamer. Now, I can say that I haven’t been tempted to get an Xbox One and Nintendo systems don’t tempt me any longer due to the lack of trophies or achievements and I’m not really into Nintendo first party games any longer. I actually sold my 3DS some time back, because I was broke and haven’t been tempted to rebuy one. Since I love Falcom games and those are being developed exclusively for Playstation systems, I’m pretty much here to stay now that they are being more regularly released and localized. But overall I think limiting to just one platform is just really missing out because each platform has stuff it does well. PSN is great for JRPGs, but PC has a far better selection of indie games and some stuff that probably won’t ever show up on PSN.

 

If you could have one game from any gaming generation be remade or re-released what would it be?

Just one game? What I want most to be remade or re-released is the Crossbell arc for Legend of Heroes, so it actually has a shot at localization. But if I have to pick just one game, Legend of Heroes: A Tear of Vermillion with a good translation please!

 

How far are you willing to go for a platinum?

Importing games I want to play from other countries or doing multiple stacks of the same game is about the furthest I’ve gone. The multiple stacks I’ve done, were because I got another version with my purchase or in the case of Lacrimosa of Dana and Tokyo Xanadu, I really liked the games and wanted to play both versions.

 

What feature (besides backwards compatibility) do you think the next console generation should have?

About the only thing I can think of is an option for portability, even if that requires a peripheral. The Vita is my favorite system and one I solidly play very often, just because I can take it to work and play during breaks. I think the Switch allowing for both the traditional console experience and a handheld experience was a great idea on Nintendo’s part and I would be very sad if there is no handheld option next-gen besides that. I don’t count mobile, because I don’t own a cell phone or tablet.

 

What is your favorite thing about PSNP?

The community and all the fun gaming challenges. I also love the grades for the games since that lets me compare my completion percentage in it to the average and gives more goals to work towards.

 

What is your least favorite thing about PSNP?

This isn’t just PSNP, but it is a trait that exists on here too, it just also happens to be a thing on Steam. I dislike the fact that some people judge another person based off the sorts of games they play, usually easy to complete ones (on Steam you can also add achievement spam games). I’ve always been a firm believer that what matters most, is that a person has fun playing their games and earning trophies and I dislike the idea of judging someone else for what they play.

 

Is there anyone in the PSNP Community you would like to give a shout out to and if so why?

No one in particular, about all I'd shoutout to are people who run events.

 

 

Community Questions

 

Do you have any favourite animal/creature, and why (or why not)?

Even though they technically don’t exist, dragons. I so love stories about dragons and all the different sorts of portrayals for them.

 

Got any good life lessons that took you a while to learn but have really helped you out?

Definitely! The biggest one that I think is important to remember in general, is that making yourself happy isn’t selfish and learning when to say no is one of the most valuable things you can learn. Living a life where you are constantly trying to please others and have no time for yourself is a quick road to misery.

 

For me, this took some time to learn, because everyone is taught that you should respect your parents and that spending time with family is something you must do, even though many of us don’t enjoy the time we spend with family. My own family is awful and other than my dad, who is no longer alive, they are not people I’d choose to spend time with and even a short phone call with my mom could leave me in tears and such a mess that I’d have to call in sick to work. It took me a long time to realize that trying to please her was actually harming me. The best thing I ever did was tell her never to contact me again and then actively block all communications, because of course she didn’t respect that. So the best life lesson I can share is to know when to say no and to maximize your time with the people and things that make you happy as much as you can.

 

When cutting the grass: single pass or double pass with a perpendicular cut?

I actually live in an apartment and have never had to cut grass before. And I’m not even touching the innuendo meaning of this.

 

Do you like banana yazoo?

I actually had to look up what this was, because I’d never heard of it. While I haven’t tried it, the fact that it appears to be flavored milk makes that answer a no. I actually have really bad reactions to trying to drink milk and beverages with a similar texture or consistency.

 

Do you like summer fruits oasis?

Had to look up what this one is too. That I’d put as a maybe. It sounds like it might be worth a try!

 

Do you like waffles?

I don’t eat them very much, but I love walnut waffles with plenty of sugar on them. I’m not a huge fan of syrup, so I’d put powdered or brown sugar on waffles instead.

 

Do you like bacon?

I sure do, even if I don’t cook it much! I found a maple flavored bacon at my local grocery store that was incredibly good.

 

Cats or dogs?

Definitely cats. Nothing against dog lovers, but dogs just tend to be a bit too needy for attention for my tastes. I also grew up around cats and am more used to them. Sadly I’m allergic to them now, so I can’t have one of my own, but I can sneak in a few pets and ear scratches if I see a friendly one around my apartment complex.

 

What's your favorite genre?

RPGs. Wouldn’t be able to decide between action RPGs and turn based RPGs, but I love just about any RPGs, except strategy ones.

 

Anything coming out soon that has you excited? 

Ys IX! Even if it’s not licensed yet for a localization, the game looks great.

 

If you were a tree, what kind of tree would you be?

Not quite sure, but maybe a maple tree because maple flavored stuff is amazing and the trees are very pretty in the fall.

 

Do you like ratalaika games?

Honestly haven’t seen one that really interests me so far.

 

Do you like bugs?

I’m assuming you mean actual ones with lots of legs and not bugs in video games (which I tend to dislike unless they are amusing). So, not a fan of anything that has more that 4 legs, even more so if it also has hair. The only bugs I can tolerate are harmless ones that are also pretty, like butterflies and ladybugs. I’m not totally scared of them, just more the type to squish them for daring to be in my presence.

 

Favourite Greek letter?

Pi I guess? I honestly don’t really have a favorite.

 

Favourite meme?

About the only meme I like is a community specific one for one of the RP comms I go to, which is where people reply “keep fucking that chicken” to just be randomly useless.

 

Favourite hairstyle?

Actually don’t have one because I just have my hair long and no styles. My hair is sadly too fine to hold any styles well and require so many pins that I often get headaches if I try to do my hair up nice.

 

Most frustrating experience at work?

I work a customer service oriented job, though I actually work at a law firm. To me the most frustrating thing is customers that just are very stuck on a certain way to resolve a matter and the way they want it resolved is impossible for anyone to do. Even more so when they say I’m not willing to work with them because I can’t do what they ask and even the owner of the firm would say no. I just have the advantage that I can actually transfer them to the owner of the firm and let him say no. Similar to this is people who insist on using an option and then complain about how annoying that option is to them, but won’t take other options that are offered that would be less annoying (and keep us from having to deal with their whining all the time).

 

Most consumed food/drink?

With food I tend to have certain things: I eat a decent amount and then just kind of move on to something else, so there really isn’t a truly most consumed food for me since any one thing I’ll change up in time. For drink it’s Pepsi.

 

Do you have any odd habits? If so what?

About the only one I can think of is that I actually don’t wear any sort of pajamas or nightclothes to bed. I just wear the same clothes I did that day and remove everything from my pockets and take off my bra and socks. Because of this, I don’t ever accidentally wash my debit card or anything. Also, I don’t use a wallet and only use a purse when I go to work, because my PS Vita doesn’t fit well into a pocket. It could fit in my coat pockets, but it’s warm enough where I live that you only need a coat in the morning during winter unless its cloudy (I live in west Texas).

 

What got you into gaming and trophy hunting? 

This actually will have a two part answer since I got into both separately.

• For gaming, it was because my parents back in the 80s thought it a good idea to invest in a computer for their kids to have access to. This was far before they were commonly used in classrooms, word processing programs being used for school and work was the norm, and the internet was even known to most people as existing (it existed, just not as it is currently or even as it was in the 90s). Back then, what we now call piracy was also far more acceptable and people would trade software freely, so we had access to tons of games and software. We always had a computer around and said computer would usually have some games, later most were legitimate purchases. I also asked for consoles for birthdays and xmas, so I’ve had a NES, SNES, Genesis, Gameboy, Playstation and Playstion 2 before I graduated college and had to buy my own consoles. Gaming was just fun and most of my friends owned at least one console. It was definitely very different in the early days before the internet to find walkthroughs and such though.
• Then as far as trophy hunting, well I got into achievement hunting first. Like I mentioned in an above question, I’ve always gamed on many platforms and in the previous gen, the PS3 actually didn’t appeal at the start, because it was expensive (and back then I was super broke) and had few games that the Xbox 360 didn’t have. Also, my job at the time was actually working on a contract for Microsoft supporting the Xbox 360, so it was actually required for us to own one and I bought a 360 for that reason mostly, but it was the console I was learning more towards since early 360 had a robust JRPG library. I bought a small pile of games and, of course, earned achievements, and found that I really liked earning them and didn’t like leaving games without all the achievements earned. I eventually got into Steam because of Ys Origin being released to it and liked achievements on there. Then, finally, I got a Vita and started using my already existing PSN ID to earn trophies. Now, I play primarily on PSN and Steam.

 

If you could have one super power from any video game, what would it be?

Teleportation. I do hate driving and commuting to work and it would be amazing to just use some magic and be right at my desk at work instead of dealing with the maniacs on the roads here or worry about how my car is falling apart (like literally, some parts are held on with duct tape and glue because my car is almost 20 years old).

 

Is there any video games that you would call yourself a "Master" of?

Not really. I play a game until I’m done with it and then move on to the next now, so I don’t really get a chance to truly master a game.

 

You get the opportunity to play, watch, and commentate on a sport. What sports would you pick for each (you cannot use the same sport more than once)?

Honest truth, I’m not into sports. About all I can say is I’d like to play lacrosse again? But I don’t really like watching or commentating on any sports.

 

What was the first video game you ever played?

Well, the sad truth is that I do not recall the title of the game. I started gaming really young and I’m 40 now. I actually don’t recall any games I played on the Atari 2600 we had other than I did play a few and thought it fun. The first game I remember playing was on the Apple Iie and it was a game where you pretended to have a lemonade stand and had to try and make a good profit on it. I sucked at it.

 

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood?

According to google about 700 pounds!

 

What characters that are amazing in their videogame, would be insufferable if you had to deal with them in mundane everyday situations? Why?

McBurn from Trails of Cold Steel. Just because he’s lazy. Also Bleublac from the Trails series because he’d totally steal your stuff and send you on a wild goose chase to find it.

 

I noticed that you have a few Otome games like Code Realize, Psychadelica of the Ashen Hawk and Hakuouki on your profile. What is your favourite otome game and who is your all time favourite male otome game character? Why?

I’d say my favorites were the two Psychedelica games. I really can’t choose between them because both were so good! My favorite male character was Kei Okazaki from Collar x Malice. I liked him best, because I really have a thing for the knight in shining armor sort of characters and he’s one who actually takes it to extremes. I also really thought it refreshing for a game to address the idea that dying to protect someone will only make them sad.

 

Name three features of your dream house if money and location were not limited. 

Well, I’m also going to assume that since money isn’t limited that I also am not limited by things not yet invented since I could pay someone a fortune to invent one! A house that cleans itself, a teleporter, and one of those replicator things from Star Trek.

 

Who's your favorite waifu and/or husbando in the Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel series?

I don’t do the waifu or husbando thing, but I can name my favorite male and female characters! My favorite female is Vita Clotilde and my favorite male is McBurn. I have an obvious bias and I know it.

 

What team members did you use in battle for ToCS 1 and 2? I would've asked for the whole series, but the rest hasn't been localized yet.

I’ll still answer for the whole series, but put my answers for 3 and 4 in spoiler tags since I have some party member spoilers among my choices.

• CS1: Honestly, I didn’t really bother too much with picks and when I could pick a party it often was the group I used in the last chapter for the field study. My end game party was Rean, Alisa, Elliot and Machias just because I had them beefed up for the chapter 6 ending already and had a pretty sound strategy with them.
• CS2: Rean, Laura, Jusis, Emma. Use the setup in the guide for the optional boss and nightmare is a breeze. I very much appreciated that tip and they are a fun party for the cutscenes as well.

Spoiler

• CS3: Rean, Juna, Sara or Kurt, anyone else (Fie or Gaius are good choices, but for the final boss you’re stuck with Musse). On nightmare in CS3 you definitely have to cheese the battle system and Juna’s brave order and Sara or Kurt’s brave orders are essential to this. So, funny thing was that I didn’t figure out how to cheese the battle system right off, so when I got to the end of chapter 4 and the fight against the Dark Dragon, which is a multi part battle using pretty much everyone, I got my ass handed to me, but in phase 2, Gaius nearly soloed it because the dragon couldn’t freaking hit him. I came to actually really appreciate Gaius in my party thanks to that battle, because I hadn’t even tried to build him as an evasion tank, he just did the job naturally and it’s actually a role he’s good at.
• CS4: For my first run I was using Rean, Juna, Crow and Duvalie when I could choose. Juna’s gunner mode is great for large mobs and Rean, Crow and Duvalie are great damage dealers, plus Crow and Duvalie are amusing to have around for cutscenes. Crow is also a great support for an arts user. For my nightmare run I actually ended up running with Rean, Crow, Elliot and Gaius. I grew fond of using Gaius because of CS3, but I also found he’s really good at getting breaks in, so you can get link attacks a lot and some of the bosses in CS4 are very hard to pull this off with.

 

Did you enjoy Life is Strange?

I did not. Chloe really rubbed me the wrong way and the game kept on pushing how much of a good friend she was. I felt she was a toxic and abusive friend and Max should have dumped her in the first episode.

 

What did you think about Odin Sphere? 

I thought it was really fun, but it also got really repetitive after the first couple of routes. It also is a bit too much like an easier Muramasa Rebirth.

 

Which of your platinums was the hardest to obtain?

I’d say as far as actually hard and not just stupidly grindy beyond what most people would do, would go to Final Fantasy X. Those minigames really kicked my ass and were very frustrating at times. The only reason why I don’t say Ys Origin is that I 100%ed it on Steam, which is far harder, and by then I had the game memorized. I’ll also give an honorable mention to Tokyo Xanadu eX+, because holy crap that final boss of the After Story ramped up the difficulty a thousandfold when the Calamity run had overall been pretty easy, since I was massively overleveled.

 

Which of your platinums was the easiest to obtain?

My Name is Mayo, obviously! But discounting obviously EZ PZ games, I’d probably say most of the Kemco stuff. Legend of the Tetrarchs was probably the easiest game that has below a 70% plat rarity. It just consists of beat the game and complete all the quests. I actually really enjoyed the game too!

 

Do you plan to obtain 100% completion on your profile by cleaning up your incomplete titles?

Someday! Titles like Sparkle Unleashed, Zuma, Muramasa Rebirth, and God of War are mostly incomplete because their remaining trophies are insanely hard or time consuming, but someday I’ll get those plats and 100%s. I’ve definitely been chipping away at some of the incompletes over time.

 

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

And that's it for the interview folks. I hope you had a great time reading it. Thank you ladynadiad for taking the time to answer all the questions and a big thank you to the people who submitted questions (they are listed in the spoiler tag).

Spoiler

@Folkenio @DaivRules @BlazikieronUS @KyLo491 @MidnightDragon @damon8r351 @Tomy_IV @LewdLoliRavioIi @kidson2004 @Beyondthegrave07 @Sofa King @AK-1138 @fabiansc83 @Lava_Yuki @Edunstar84 @ahmedelebiary @30 Year Old Boomer

 

@Beyondthegrave07 @DaivRules Since you're already tagged in the spoiler tag: if one of you could move this to the Member Interviews subforum, I'd appreciate it.

[Edunstar84]

A great questions all around, especially the lawn grass cut one. ?

[Rally-Vincent---]

Always great to see pre-PS3 game series like Suikoden on someone's favorites list.

[Beyondthegrave07]

@Dragon-Archon, I got you covered, homie! Thanks for continuing doing this by the way, I appreciate you taking the time to put these together. I always enjoy reading about other members, and I find the answers to wacky questions quite entertaining!

 

Great interview @ladynadiad! I feel you on the customer service part. I work with clients, and we are told to never tell the client "no." I think it's silly so I just tell them that I'll ask my manager about it, and let him say "no." Kind of funny that was a life lesson of yours!

 

I feel you on the super powers too. I despise driving and teleportation would be amazing. Though, I think I'd take Max's rewind powers minus the headaches and nosebleeds!

 

 

Edited June 30, 2019 by Beyondthegrave07
Grammar

[Dragon-Archon]

I had a fun time reading it @ladynadiad, especially when finding out your favourite animal is a dragon, you're a cat person, and fav game genre is RPG. We're going to get along just fine  .

 

3 minutes ago, Beyondthegrave07 said:

@Dragon-Archon, I got you cover, homie! Thanks for continuing doing this by the way, I appreciate you taking the time to put these together. I always enjoy reading about other members, and I find the answers to wacky questions quite entertaining!

Thanks buddy  . No problem  , I enjoy reading the interviews too. It would be a shame if those stopped.

[Sofa King]

These interviews are one of my favorite things on this site. 

[PooPooBlast]

That was a good read on my break! Would've loved to ask a question but I've no idea what I would've asked tbh because sadly I don't know the person ( though you ask questions to know a person so.. )

[Dragon-Archon]

39 minutes ago, PooPooBlast said:

Would've loved to ask a question but I've no idea what I would've asked tbh because sadly I don't know the person ( though you ask questions to know a person so.. )

Would it help if the interviewee wrote a bit of information about themselves in the Submit Your Questions thread? Something like what kind of job they do, pets, or hobbies besides gaming? 

[Beyondthegrave07]

9 minutes ago, Dragon-Archon said:

Would it help if the interviewee wrote a bit of information about themselves in the Submit Your Questions thread? Something like what kind of job they do, pets, or hobbies besides gaming? 

Have the first question be, Can you tell us about yourself in real life?" or something like that. Open it up so they can give a little info on themselves and can be as deep (or shallow) as they want.

[Dragon-Archon]

3 minutes ago, Beyondthegrave07 said:

Have the first question be, Can you tell us about yourself in real life?" or something like that. Open it up so they can give a little info on themselves and can be as deep (or shallow) as they want.

That's a good idea . I'll try that with the next interview. 

[kidson2004]

Nice! Looking forward to being interviewed myself one day. 

[PooPooBlast]

1 hour ago, Dragon-Archon said:

Would it help if the interviewee wrote a bit of information about themselves in the Submit Your Questions thread? Something like what kind of job they do, pets, or hobbies besides gaming? 

Yea maybe! Like a brief "about me"

 

59 minutes ago, Beyondthegrave07 said:

Have the first question be, Can you tell us about yourself in real life?" or something like that. Open it up so they can give a little info on themselves and can be as deep (or shallow) as they want.

Exactly!

Edited June 30, 2019 by PooPooBlast

[Lava_Yuki]

Great interview! Thanks for answering my question too!

[Folkenio]

This was fun!!! Thanks to @Dragon-Archon for the constant work, and @ladynadiad for sharing and answering!! I'll be sure to check the next interview, it's nice to meet other users this way!!