The Game Fanatics Staff
Contributor: Joel Ramirez
Joel has been a contributor for The Game Fanatics for about six months. As a long time gamer, and current student of Game & Art Design, gaming has become more than just a hobby, it is his life. Joel’s favorite game system by far is the PlayStation 3. He is always online and ready to game under PSN: Voicescarry7. Other than gaming, Joel works as a T-Mobile Sales Representative and is a father of three children. With his future most likely being involved in the gaming industry, The Game Fanatics allows him to be on the frontlines of news, event coverage, and connect with gamers around the world. You can always find him on Twitter @tgf_thejoelness and on PlayStation Network.
Question 1: When did you join The Game Fanatics or how long have you been with TGF?
I have been with The Game Fanatics for about six months now. It all began when John Sylvester and I began playing the Resistance 3 beta and followed each other on Twitter. Then he started working with The Game Fanatics and I began seeing in my feed, and eventually decided to apply, since then I have been contributing and have loved every second of it. I have made some great new friends that share as much passion for gaming and technology as I do.
Question 2: Background: Where are you from, married, kids, and work?
I have been living in Idaho for about five years, but I was born and raised in Orange County, California. I am not married, but I am engaged to the mother of my 3 kids. I have two sons ages 4 and 3, and a daughter of 20 months. They keep me young, and allow me to relive my childhood all over again with Legos, cartoons, and classic games I grew up with. I work as a Senior Sales Representative at T-Mobile, where I monthly destroy sales numbers and manage to win myself a free trip to Cancun, Mexico this April. That is definitely not my career goal; I am attending the Art Institute and pursuing a Bachelor’s in Game and Art Design. My goal is to become a Character Artist, and Concept Artist, and hopefully end up in a Lead Designer role.
Question 3: Gaming Background: Preferred game system to game on. Favorite game or top 5 games of all time?
I am diehard PlayStation 3 this current generation, and have been all Sony since PSX. I have a PlayStation Vita, and an original backwards compatible 80 GB PlayStation 3. My favorite game of all time is definitely Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. Uncharted 2 was such an amazing adventure, and incredibly fun to play through over and over again. Among my favorite series besides Uncharted, Resistance is definitely up there, as well as Shin Megami Tensei’s Persona series. I annually purchase NBA 2K, cannot get enough of the MyPlayer/MyCareer modes. Other than my PlayStation, I currently play some MMO’s, Star Wars The Old Republic, and Guild Wars 2.
Question 4: Do you have goals that tie in with being part of The Game Fanatics/or the Gaming Community?
Besides my career goals involving Game and Art Design, I just love being involved in anything gaming and having the opportunity to meet and become friends with people who share the same passion as I do. I hope to become more involved in the community whether it’s doing more for The Game Fanatics or working on some other projects within the community.
Question 5: Which games are you currently playing and what do you think makes a great game? Or which games are you most looking forward to this year?
I think a great game consists of a great story, functional controls, and high replay value, but most of all fun. Currently I am playing Persona 4 Golden on PS Vita, which is by far the best game on Vita, and NBA 2K13. In my rotation of games I rotate, DC Universe Online, Dragon Age II, Dead Island, Borderlands 2, Uncharted 3 and Call of Duty Black Ops II.
Games I am most looking forward to are Dead Space 3 (PS3), Bioshock Infinite (PS3), God of War: Ascension (PS3), Last of Us (PS3), Killzone: Mercenary(Vita), and Dust 514(PS3). There are so many games I still want to play from 2012, hopefully I will have an opportunity to play them all in 2013.
