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Succubus Interview by Bam Bam
at Gameloft Recently, the CPL had an all-female tournament, which awarded one of the most abundant sums of prizes in the history of female gaming. This, of course, sparked numerous debates within the gaming community. One of the debates was of the controversy surrounding all-female tournaments in general. Many males felt that this was discrimination, while others felt the female tournament was necessary due to the fact that "girls were not good enough to play with the boys". Being a new female gamer, I felt, since tournaments were "male dominated" anyway, what's wrong with having an all-female tournament. After hearing that one of the top female players, Kornelia, was signed to represent Gamespy, I thought it was a step up for professional female gamers everywhere. I recently had the opportunity to speak with two female gamerz, Trillian of Qgirlz, and Succubus the Frag 4 all-female tournament winner. I wanted to know what they thought of the controversy surrounding all-female tournaments and I also wanted to know what sparked their interest in on-line gaming. In this two-part interview, you will read their thoughts and ideas on these issues and many more surrounding female gamerz in general. Read on to find out what Cary Szeto; know as Succubus had to say about female gamerz and the opportunities presented to us now. [Bam Bam]: First I would like to say congratulations on your recent win at Frag 4.[Succubus]: Thank you. It was a surprise, but my teammates knew I could do it.[Bam Bam]: How long have you been playing and what made you become a professional female player?[Succubus]: I haven't been playing that long. I started a year ago on Quake, but I never played Quake 2, I went straight to Quake 3. My first time playing professionally was at Frag 4 in the All-Female tournament. I played in QuakeCon before that, but I wasn't a serious player.[Bam Bam]: Really? So you never played professionally before that? You really are a prodigy. Are you in a clan now?[Succubus]: I wouldn't say that I am a prodigy. I practice, but not religiously as other players do. I am in a clan called *69. They knew I could play and win at Frag 4. I am however, the only girl in the clan, so I get tips from the other members and they help me with strategy and tactics.[Bam Bam]: The only girl in the clan? Do feel that there is a difference playing with females and males?[Succubus]: There is a difference. I really haven't played with a lot of females. But playing with guys is more of a challenge. I can see that just from playing in Frag 4. For me, it's less pressure when I play with guys. I don't know why that is.[Bam Bam]: Which brings me to my next question. Do you think there is a rise in women competing more?[Succubus]: I don't know if there is a rise. But I am sad to see that more females do not play in competitions. Frag 4 encouraged females to come out, but all the spot were not filled.[Bam Bam]: Why do you think that was? For example, Trillian talks of a middle playing ground. What do you think about that?[Succubus]: I don't know. I don't have an opinion on how it should be. I can, however, imagine the best females beating the best guys. But we all have to remember that it's all about and comes down to who has the best hand and eye coordination, just like in any sport. For the middle ground, there are not enough females now to actually have a middle ground. In the future maybe, but right now, it's not going to happen because the sport is very male dominated. It would be great in the future to see female leads to play against these male leads, but it's not fair right now and there is no middle ground now.[Bam Bam]: I know you went to Frag 4 and beat Kornelia, the top female player in the all-female tournament. How did that happen? How do you feel?[Succubus]: I was really surprised! Like I said, my clan mates knew I could do it, but I was really skeptical. I just saw an opportunity to play in an all-female tourney and I just wanted to have fun. I was just in shock when I found out that I won.[Bam Bam]: I know. At the end, you were swarmed with tons of questions. Basically, you came out of nowhere and beat the top player. After that, you disappeared. Basically, you were a ghost in the night.[Succubus]: That is true. But I just wanted to take a breath because I couldn't believe that I won. I just wanted to relax and not have to answer tons of questions about the match. It was over and I wanted to rest, but enjoy the victory.[Bam Bam]: Trillian and I recently talked briefly about the whole approach to gaming between men and women. What do you think about this issue?[Succubus]: I agree that men are willing to give up certain thing to practice. The female approach is definitely different. Guys are more aggressive. There is a double standard, of course. But I am really optimistic about females actually becoming more prominent in the gaming industry. I do, however, notice that not many females play Q2, but more play Q3 and I don't know why that is. It's probably because it's a better version period.[Bam Bam]: I agree definitely. Q3 is way better than Q2. I can't even get into Q2. But do you think that you have a better advantage over most of the better female gamerz out here now, since you play mostly with guys?[Succubus]: You have to admit, since you are playing with these "aggressor", it has to make you better. It has, but I am sure that there are other females out here that can keep up with the best guy, because they also play with other guys. I am not as aggressive, but I can handle my own.[Bam Bam]: Thank you very much for taking time out to talk to me and good luck in school. I am looking forward to playing you and Trillian some day, when I get better at Q3, of course.[Succubus]: You're welcome and I'll look for that.
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