What is a Soupy? Designer. Parent. Gamer. Someone who once got a bowl of hot ramen dumped down his back.
I grew up having a stereotypical 80s childhood, from tree climbing to LEGO to hours on the NES. College was sciency, though my hobby got me into making games professionally. It’s been a fantastic career — I get to work with amazing people doing a job I still love. Pretty neat.
Along the way, I’ve tricked (it’s the only reasonable explanation) a fantastic woman into being my wife, gathered 3 kids, a scruffy dog, and some grand-kittencatkids. A good life, all things considered.
Aside from that, I’ve got the usual collection of things I enjoy doing. If you (for some reason) are interested in any of that, read on!
Games
I’ve enjoyed my fair share of the videographical games over the years, but here are some of my personal tippy-top favorites. I will freely admit to many of these being strongly nostalgic, but I also stand by much of what made (and makes) them great.
Metroid - The game that made me love level and world design before I realized those were things. A classic that put the Metroid in Metroidvania. With an immersive, original (and beefy) sci-fi world to explore, I think it’s still super fun to play (jumping and moving and shooting feel pretty great), maybe the best of the NES. This was my jam (as the kids say).
Myst - The first game I remember to mesh level design and gameplay together so completely. The puzzles and the worlds are so tightly intertwined that paying attention to the environment is the only way to play. This game was just the perfect mix of intuitive challenges, mystery, and immersion.
Half-Life - The first shooter that really showed how level design can be both a craft to guide players through fun gameplay and a way to immerse players in the world. It’s filled with stand-out examples of worldbuilding and level design. HL2 is, of course, fantastic (and that souped-up gravity gun - chef’s kiss), but the original is still my favorite. If you’ve never had the pleasure and are interested in playing it, Black Mesa is a fantastic fan-made update (including a great overhaul of Xen - keeping the truly alien vibe while adding some really compelling gameplay).
Shadow of the Colossus - I don’t know what else I can say about this, other than it’s an experience unlike any other. The majestic colossi, the puzzle gameplay of each boss (which mostly still holds up), the world that complements it so perfectly in tone, and the emotion of the story told through it all so minimally. An amazing and singular experience.
CoD4: Modern Warfare - Whew. A game that defined the playable action movie. The key was design that guides players to be the hero and then pays it off; the dev lesson isn’t ‘what’s the awesome thing?’, but ‘how do you get the player to do the awesome thing?’. Turns out it’s a lot of work…
Portal - The core puzzly conceit of this game is brilliant, of course. And the worldbuilding, and the tone, and the most memorable companion in a game (sorry BT)... Oh, and the way that the level design is the tutorial, building the player's skills naturally and in-world. Oh oh, and that end credits song…
I know this is a hot take, but it’s a really great game.
Bits and Bobs
Here’s an eclectic collection (eclection?) of other things I’ve liked.
Just listing them out seemed like it would get the response, ‘Yes, those are things,’ at best. I’m not sure if this is better, but I’ve decided instead to go with things that mostly have a specific personal memory or story tied to them.
Wordish Things - I’ll read about anything, from comics to manga and everything in between (which is a lot, if you go the long way around). My comics affliction started as a kid when I saw X-Men 251 on a retro spinny comic rack in a Cumberland Farms and was intrigued into somewhat obsessive collecting. I also read books without pictures, and (like many high school kids of the time) got quite into Stephen King. The Shining was my favorite, and the Kubrick film was a genuine disappointment, because it was both not exactly the book, and I was fairly dumb (I’m still fairly dumb, but at least now recognize the movie for the brilliant film it is). Reading through the works of Tolkien with my kids was also particularly special, though none have yet to take up The Silmarillion (which I suppose I can’t blame them for, though I stand by Of Beren and Lúthien as my absolute favorite Tolkien tale). Finally, I’ll recommend New Scientist as a popular sciency magazine, and not least because I once won a trip to London for making some nerdy evolution jokes.
Watchables - I’ve also been known to partake in a wide array of the audio-visual entertainments. Star Wars holds an unsurprising place in my heart. Aside from losing a Gamorrean’s head in my Rancor (as a child, though it could have happened weeks ago…), the special edition of A New Hope was a first date with my future wife. She had never seen a Star Wars, so it was a great excuse to take her out and a way to learn if she was a quality person or not. Years and a family later, we now live on a street where part of the pilot of Freaks and Geeks was filmed, which is a pretty fun tie to a quality (and fairly relatable) show. Related to relations, one great thing about having your own small humans is that you (mostly) get to choose what they watch, and showing them something great for the first time (like Aliens) is a delight, but you also get to enjoy surprising them (I highly recommend watching The Matrix or The Sixth Sense or Terminator 1 and then 2 with a human who’s got no idea what’s coming). I don’t often recommend living vicariously through your children, but in this particular case, it’s worth the exception.
Lovely Listens - We took a roadtrip across the country after the height of the pandemic, and on the days upon days upon days of travel, an epic playlist was created. Everyone contributed, so we had music from Weird Al (inspiring an obligatory visit to The Biggest Ball of Twine in Minnesota) to Gorillaz (turns out they’re great and put on an amazing live show!). I also listen to probably too many podcasts, so I’ll just give a special shout-out to anything Alice Fraser does (with Realms Unknown being the most recent, but I do miss The Gargle), and The Memory Palace, because it’s just fantastic - great personal stories from history (with just 5 minutes you can enjoy an episode too!).
Boards
While I’ve dabbled in a few different games that take place in the RL, I’ll limit to current obsessions.
Fancy Checkers - I’ve recently gotten back into chess. During a power outage I taught my youngest how to play and it turns out he liked it! Now, a year later, after chess clubs and online play and little tournaments, he beats me regularly. And I just can’t have that. So I’ve started playing again. I’ve discovered there are chess bros and that my assumptions about how to be good were fairly wrong (always fun when you can get another perspective on something you thought you understood). I’ve been having a lot of fun playing recently, and one day hope to not blunder constantly. MisterSoupy on chess.com if you are interested in a match.
Words
To paraphrase Remy the rat, anyone can write. Turns out anyone can self-publish also.
Space Vampires from Outer Space - I’d heard once you should write a lot, rather than write well. I don’t know if there’s truth to that, but that advice got me writing again (something I’ve always enjoyed). Some years ago, I wrote and published and even sold tens of copies of a truly terrible novella. Feel free to find out more about it and even read a few chapters at www.svfos.space.
