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26847 Players Online
Take me to the game |
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| Ch@t Zone: Meet LMMOTT@zone! | |
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Just exactly who are the creative minds deciding which games come to the Zone and how the site is going to look? Who writes all those cool articles? Well, to get your answers, pull up a chair and sit down with the @zone folks!
If you've ever seen a Zone member with an @zone ID, you've found someone who both works and plays on the Zone! Behind the many, many Zone Web pages and games are a group of exciting, fun-loving game fanatics who work diligently and creatively to bring you the best games online!
Let's meet one of them! LMMOTT@Zone!
LMMOTT was born and raised in New Jersey. He grew up in Freehold, which is also the hometown of Bruce Springsteen. When Bruce sings "My Hometown," LMMOTT knows exactly what he's talking about. After graduating with an MBA from Duke University, LMMOTT came over to Seattle as a product planner for the very first Flight Simulator for Windows 95. After a few years at Flight Simulator, he moved to the Zone as a lead planner and has been working here for over a year.
Besides working on marketing and planning games for the Zone, LMMOTT spends a good deal of time with his young daughter and enjoys hiking and travelling, and playing soccer, squash, tennis, and basketball. "I love the outdoors, and during the 15 days of sunshine in Seattle, I like to mountain bike and raft. My goal this year is to run the Seattle marathon, but I said that last year and whimped out."
Zone: How did you come up with your Zone ID?
LMMOTT@Zone: LMMOTT@Zone is a combination of my wife's, my daughter's and my own first initials. Zone: What part of the Zone do you work for and what are you in charge of? LMMOTT@Zone: I am in charge of the planning team that secures the Premium games; card, board, and other casual games; retail game publishers' games; and advertisers for the Zone. Zone: Is playing games part of your day-to-day job on the Zone? LMMOTT@Zone: Not as much as you would think. My team MUST be aware of the latest and greatest games, so they are expected to play early versions, trials, and the latest releases in order to see where the industry and technology are heading. Zone: And what is your favorite part of working on the Zone? LMMOTT@Zone: My favorite part of the Zone is adding great games. Zone: Were you always interested in games/gaming? LMMOTT@Zone: My first video game experience was Pong, which I would play for hours with my father -- never winning -- and my brother -- never losing. After that came the Atari system, where I spent as much time playing Breakout as I did doing my homework. My first computer game was Ultima on the Apple IIe. I can still remember the castle guards chasing me out of the towns. Finally, I played Flight Simulator on a friend's father's IBM computer with a 12-inch monochrome monitor. The wireframe buildings and control panel were the most amazing things I had ever seen. It is somewhat ironic that I started my career at Microsoft planning the first of Flight Simulator for Windows 95. Zone: What is your favorite part of working in the online gaming community? LMMOTT@Zone: Hearing from a friend that he met an old high school classmate playing Backgammon on the Zone. The idea that families can get together over a game of Checkers or Golf makes me feel great. Zone: Tell us what you think about the Zone Community. LMMOTT@Zone: I think the coolest thing we have is our community of players that get to know each other and in some cases support each other through difficult personal times. It amazes me when Sysops and Zoners get together at events as if they knew each other for years. Zone: What do you think is the coolest feature of the Zone and why? LMMOTT@Zone: My favorite feature/technology on the Zone is Fighter Ace. The idea that I can go online almost any time of the day every day and play a game with great graphics and sound against people from all over the US is just amazing to me. Zone: What is your favorite all-time game? LMMOTT@Zone: Ultima -- it was my first and I played it almost endlessly from the ages of 11 to 13. Zone: What about this game makes it your favorite? LMMOTT@Zone: For me it is the evolving storyline and sets of challenges. This takes on even greater meaning when you have a multiplayer experience and the story and game are different every time. Zone: What is your current favorite game available on the Zone and why? LMMOTT@Zone: I like Backgammon the best because it is quick and easy, and I always meet nice people who then beat me soundly. Zone: What has been the toughest part or greatest challenge of working on the Zone? LMMOTT@Zone: Keeping up with all the great ideas that users want. The technology and games are developing so fast I wish we had an army of developers to implement all the cool new ideas. Zone: If you had a magic wand and could change anything about the world of online gaming, what would it be? LMMOTT@Zone: Misconception that online gaming is difficult or scary. My parents play Bridge and would love to play with friends that have moved away but don't because they feel it is too difficult. One day I walked them through the Zone and they loved it. It wasn't the design that was challenging; it was their perception that games on the Internet were hard that kept them from signing up earlier. Zone: What do you think the future will be like for online games? LMMOTT@Zone: I can see the Zone and other online gaming services putting an arcade in your living room. Imagine a cold and rainy February (we have a lot of them in Seattle) and there is nothing on TV. How cool would it be to call your friend, brother, sister, or father and challenge them to a game of Chess, Quake, Football, or any other game. Zone: Tell us something you've always wanted to share with Zoners everywhere. LMMOTT@Zone: Zoners are on the cutting edge of gaming. Games have always been social experiences, yet the early PC gaming made these single-player experiences. With the evolution and proliferation of the Internet, games have returned to their social roots with all the benefits of great graphics, sound, and gameplay. |
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