Hello, everybody! Wynn right here once more. Welcome again to a different Xbox Insider Workforce interview. Right this moment’s chat is with Andrew—a Buyer Expertise Supervisor on the workforce who undoubtedly has extra Xbox 360 video games than you do.

How’s it going, Andrew?

Ha. Going nicely, Wynn. You didn’t must name me out like that proper from the highest.

If there’s one factor I need Xbox Insiders to know from this interview, it’s that you’re Xbox 360’s #1 fan and supporter. It’s like that meme. If there aren’t any extra Xbox 360 followers, then we are able to know you’ve shed your mortal coil.

I can get behind that.

However earlier than we dive into your seventh gen obsessions, let’s take all of it the best way again. Give us the backstory. What began your curiosity in video games?

I’ve been enjoying video games my complete life, whilst a really small youngster. I’m relationship myself a little bit right here, however my first console was an Atari Pong dwelling console.

That’s about as OG as you may get.

Yup! And I’ve been enjoying ever since. All the best way from Mario to Halo, which is de facto what acquired me closely into the Xbox ecosystem.

Did you discover your love for the 360 earlier than or after you began right here?

Earlier than. I used to be on that prepare instantly. You keep in mind the Xbox Stay Arcade when it first launched? I used to be sitting on my console each Wednesday getting nearly each single recreation because it got here out. It’s actually my love for the 360 that made me need to begin working at Xbox. I grew up in rural Ohio, so it wasn’t actually a giant tech hub.

So how way back did you get employed?

I believe round 13 years in the past or so. Proper firstly of the 2010s I acquired employed to do Twitter Help for Xbox. I used to be a type of outdated brokers the place we’d reply to tweets or DMs with our initials.

Oh wow! I truly did one thing related after I was within the retail shops. If you happen to clicked “Help” on Outlook Cell in like 2015-2017, you’ll have talked to me. It’s a harder job than folks would possibly assume.

Yeah, you discuss folks by way of so many various points day-after-day. You turn into a really well-oiled help machine after some time.

Completely. If I attempted onerous sufficient, I might in all probability keep in mind a few of the error codes.

Identical right here. I keep in mind many.

So, how lengthy did you probably did work on Help?

Nicely, I did the Twitter stuff for about six years. Labored my means up the ladder earlier than I moved over to a program administration place on the Help Workforce. Then, I did that for a number of years earlier than shifting to the Insider workforce the place I nonetheless kinda do numerous help. So, actually in some methods, I’m nonetheless Help, however I left the official “Help” group again in 2021.

Is there something you’re at present engaged on that you may inform the Xbox Insider neighborhood about?

I’m not engaged on an excessive amount of for Xbox Insider particularly proper now, although I’m all the time attempting to enhance the options we flight by way of this system. I assume essentially the most attention-grabbing stuff I’m doing—that might even be attention-grabbing to this viewers—is that I’m engaged on all of our legacy Xbox 360 companies.

Okay, that’s sick.

Yeah, I’ve been on that workforce for some time now and it’s one thing I’m extraordinarily keen about. I imagine we now have to do all the things we are able to to finest protect and admire our historical past earlier than we are able to really transfer into the long run.

I’m absolutely with you there on that man. I do know I joked about it earlier than, however I need to let our readers know that you simply do have nearly each bodily Xbox 360 disc.

Nicely, each North American disc. I don’t have a PAL or JPN 360 but, so I don’t purposefully accumulate these in the mean time.

My JPN 360 is amassing mud, however I’ve a bunch of Visible Novels that I ought to play someday on it. Since we’re speaking about your favourite system, do you will have a favourite second in time from engaged on it because you’ve been right here?

Man, I’ve executed so many issues truly for the Xbox 360, however I can’t actually speak about most of them; even on reflection. However I do have considered one of my most cherished recreation collections objects from working right here.

Let’s hear it.

So, after I began again in 2011, I used to be already pounding my drum about a lot I really like the blades on the outdated 360 dashboard.

I believe when you pay attention onerous sufficient, that’s a refrain of voices from our neighborhood shouting out in settlement proper now.

Haha. I nonetheless assume it’s the best console working system of all time. However yeah, I used to be actually keen about telling everybody I might how a lot I liked that OS. Quick ahead to round 2017-2018, I had simply transferred over to a brand new CSS function, and I used to be speaking about my love for the blades with my new workforce. Nicely, a long-tenured teammate confirmed up at my workplace a couple of week later. Seems, he labored on the {hardware} workforce, and he had an outdated 360 that also had the blades dashboard on it saved in his archives. He gifted it to me and now It’s considered one of my favourite issues I personal. A real gem in my assortment meaning rather a lot to me personally.

I really like that a lot. I might give a not-insignificant portion of a paycheck to determine what all we now have buried in places of work round campus. So many cool techniques hidden away.

Yeah man. Some folks have held onto some actually cool stuff for all the 20-year run.

Okay, let’s transfer on to a few of the extra rapid-fire stuff.

What’s a recreation that’s had the most important impression on you all through the years?

Hmm. I’m unsure I can choose only one. However there’s an evolution in my tastes and my curiosity within the medium over time. Like Pong was my intro to video games and I believed it was fairly cool, however the first Tremendous Mario Bros. is after I knew I used to be going to be enjoying them for the remainder of my life.

It’s onerous to understate simply how revolutionary it was to have performed that in that point interval.

Precisely. It paved the best way for a lot. Even rising up my favourite recreation, and possibly nonetheless my favourite recreation of all time is Tremendous Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island. I might play that recreation time and again and over. I by no means get bored with it. If I transfer extra into my grownup life, I believe that those that impacted me essentially the most are Portal and Braid. Portal as a result of it taught me to really get pleasure from tales in video games, and Braid as a result of it was the primary actually difficult puzzle recreation I performed. It unlocked design-language in my thoughts that I simply didn’t have beforehand.

You’re selecting simply banger after banger. I’m stunned by the Portal choose although. Not as a result of it’s not an awesome recreation, however I do know you’re what I prefer to name a “mechanical purist” in terms of video games.

Oh yeah. I actually can’t stand textual content in my video games. RPGs are my least-favorite style ever. I simply need to play the sport. However the best way Portal gave me the mechanical depth, but additionally saved me within the over-arching story from second to second gave me a greater appreciation for narrative in video games.

As somebody who in all probability has extra RPGs in my assortment than some other style, my knuckles could be altering colours, however I respect your opinion.

Let’s transfer on to music although. Favourite albums of all time?

I’ve twenty-one information framed and held on the wall of my lounge which are the most effective music ever pressed. However for the sake of brevity, I’ll go along with Illmatic by Nas and The Undisputed Reality by Brother Ali.

I might have by no means in one million years have guessed these solutions.

Haha. You count on the standard like Aerosmith or Nirvana? Nah, most of what I take heed to is rap and hip-hop from the 80s by way of the 2010s.

Truthfully, I’m unsure what I anticipated, however it wasn’t these.

So, now I’m curious. How does a white man from rural Ohio get into this fashion of music?

I noticed the video for Battle the Energy on MTV after I was seven years outdated. It was quick. Flav drew me in, and Chuck taught me classes. From there it was a wrap. Rakim, EPMD, LL, De La Soul; you title it, I used to be listening to it. I undoubtedly acquired made enjoyable of for liking this kind of music rising up within the space the place I got here from. It wasn’t actually till 2Pac blew up that individuals began getting a little bit extra into it. However even then, I’d attempt to present somebody the brand new Tribe Known as Quest document and so they’d name it wack as a result of it was nonetheless too totally different from the hip-hop that was discovering wider success on the time.

I really like when folks go actually deep into their musical leanings. I principally listened to no matter my dad was listening to rising up. It wasn’t till highschool that I acquired into my very own music tastes. A lot of “scene” music. Put up-hardcore, metalcore, and so on. Something on Rise or Victory or Sumerian. I’ve a lot of that period of music.

I’ve a ton of CDs. Like, in all probability over 5 thousand of them again dwelling in Ohio organized by launch date. I knew nearly all the things there was within the hip hop world from the 80s till 2010. However there have been like 10 totally different albums dropping day-after-day and I couldn’t sustain anymore.

5 THOUSAND?!

Yeah man. I spent like all of my cash as a child on CDs. I keep in mind this one time I skipped a faculty area journey to stroll to the document retailer and get the brand new Ghostface album.

That was the period earlier than Spotify and all the things. How did you even discover that a lot music?

Within the mid to late 90s, a rapper named Huge L acquired me actually into the underground scene and I’d take heed to radio from in all places. 888hiphop.com, PhillaFlavaDrop.com, Rhymesayers.web, I used to be tremendous into these items. I’d go watch battles and see folks earlier than they blew up. It was only a world I used to be absolutely immersed in.

Dude, I need to spend one other hour speaking about all of this, however we gotta wrap up quickly. Particularly since this subsequent query I tailor made for you.

Do you will have any TV reveals that you simply all the time have on within the background?

Ha! Okay, you bought me. Sure, I’ve in all probability had 4-5 episodes of Associates enjoying on my TV day-after-day for so long as the present has been off-air. Nicely, that and South Park.

Means again after I initially had the concept for these, the rationale this query got here up is we had like three conferences collectively in sooner or later and there was all the time a present on within the background of your digicam. I’m undoubtedly not a “can simply take heed to it” sort of man, so I believed it’d be enjoyable to see everybody on the workforce.

Truthfully, I might in all probability recite a number of of my favourite episodes.

Now that’s leisure. We might perhaps cost for that.

Okay, shifting away from media, do you will have any hobbies outdoors of the home?

I’m actually into sports activities. I took trip days to observe the start of March Insanity. I watch numerous faculty soccer as nicely.

Wait. I do know this one. O-H!

I’m Ohio State’s worst enemy.

Whelp! That backfired. Haha.

Yeah, I’m a Michigan fan.

Even higher! You had an awesome yr.

For the primary time in my lifetime, sure. I used to be ecstatic.

Some other groups you get pleasure from? I received’t threat guessing the Bengals, the Reds, or some other Oihio-based sports activities entity.

Good! As a result of I’m all about groups not from my state. Payments, Tar Heels, Penguins, Celts, Pirates. Can’t say I’ve an excessive amount of hometown pleasure there.

Oh. I additionally actually get pleasure from MMA. I get a gaggle of buddies collectively and we watch all of the PPVs.

As an Atlanta sports activities fan, I generally want I hadn’t grown up with my hometown groups.

All proper, nicely we’re out of time. Any ultimate ideas for our Xbox Insiders?

That is going to return to that concept of preserving historical past. If there’s a important level in what I’m doing, it’s that I concentrate on historical past over the long run. I need in 60 years folks to nonetheless be capable to entry their video games library, and like hand down their Gamertag to their grandkids or no matter. That’s my preferrred dream state. My video games assortment is essentially the most useful factor I personal aside from my home, and I do know that lots of people make investments their time, cash, and power into these ecosystems. I need to do all the things I can to make sure we’re respecting that funding and enabling folks to maintain enjoying lengthy after we’ve turned to mud.

That’s highly effective stuff man. Extremely acknowledged.

Andrew, thanks a lot for taking the time to speak with everybody immediately. It’s been nice!

Thanks for setting this up, Wynn. Till subsequent time!

Xbox Insiders, remember to be looking out for extra content material all all through February together with extra interviews from the workforce, a visit down reminiscence lane, and a lot extra. All of our tenth Anniversary content material could be discovered on our Hub Web page.

Till subsequent time! Wynn/