Creator Interviews: Scruffy Dragon Production's Seth Zankuten

1) How did you first learn about MUGEN and how long ago was that?

I think I first learned about MUGEN back when I did Mega Man sprites. I was a freshman in high school (We called it Intermediate school, grades 9-10 only), at the time, 1999. My buddy Zephiroth X (The Cold Mage) was going to be making a Mega Man vs. Final Fantasy game. So I started looking for Fighting Game Engines over the next few years, and I wound up downloading the MUGEN beta when it came out in 2001.

2) Why did you decide to get into the creation side of MUGEN, and do you focus more on spriting or coding?

I have a love for battle systems like no other. Originally, I was a sprite artist that wanted to make sure my sprites did exactly what I imagined so I picked up coding...then I started finding people that wanted me to code their characters so I started to lean towards coding. As of right now I'm working on a degree in game/simulation and design so coding is kind of my focus all around now.

3) I could not think of a better degree for you to get. When you are just focusing on having fun and playing, what characters do you tend to use the most and why?

I usually don't play MUGEN for fun...but I like to load up the full games and play them. When I do play MUGEN I enjoy playing with P.O.T.S' Cammy and M.Bison/Vega, and sometimes Big Eli King's Venom.

4) What comic character not already made or in the process of being made do you wish was MUGENized?

Well, I don't know if he has been started but Daredevil has always been a dream to make.

5) Can you please tell me about what current WIP you are most looking forward to other than your own?

As far as my own, easily the Phase1 for DCvsMARVEL. Other than that I have about 20 characters on the back burners ready to be cooked and seasoned, withh most of those being on the Down-Low.

What WIP am I looking forward to other than my own? Hmmm I'm really looking forward to a good Shocker...but I haven't seen any complete ones yet. (editor’s note - Check out BigPimp’s WIP of Shocker here: http://cvgunited.com/index.php/topic,40.0.html )

6) How and why did you get involved with Scruffy Dragon Productions?

Well, back when I started coding, I wanted to create a functioning Maximum Spider for Spider-Man....back then I wasn't concerned about balancing and functionality, just how things looked. Buyog saw my Spider-man and asked me to join up with him in his quest to finish this game. I agreed and joined the Ranks of Buyog, Loganir, Magus and McCready and after that I'm sure most people know the story.

7) Very nice, and glad that all happened. Since then, please tell the readers all the characters you have worked on towards their release.

Off the Top of my head;
Spider-Man
Superboy
Carnage
Angel Ryu
Ironman (Magus)
Superman (Kal-Elvis and Han)
Savage Hulk (Buyog and Bob)
Ultron (McCready)
Strong Guy (McCready)
Evil Dan (ilcane87)

I've had several discussions with creators like Syn, iTorres, Grave of Death, and others with coding suggestions and help, while I've also helped Sprite artists tweak their sprites to be top notch. So I guess I'm really a Mugen Coach more than a Creator ;)

8) Which one of those stands out the most to you and why?

I know most people are going to think its Spider-Man but, the one that stands out the most to me is Carnage....reason? Well he was a hack job beta that I really never had time for, so I threw a bunch of crap together just to release him...and people still download him. I really want to redo all the sprites, as that was just a trial run on what I could actually do back in the day. So most likely when this happens, I will come up with a whole new concept for him. Carnage will have some things from the old version but in all reality he will probably be massively different. Mostly new sprites, some moves may stay the same with just new animations. One day this will happen, but as of right now I have bigger fish to fry.

9) Speaking of Spider-Man, I noticed that you have a pretty massive update on the way in some regard with the Blacksuit version. Is this going to be an all new character, or a 2nd mode of your main Spiderman? Can you tell us more about him please?



Uh-Oh, someone’s digging deep. Black-Suit is kind of behind closed doors right now. All I can say is that WINMUGEN may not be able to handle him alone.

10) I really like your Superboy, but noticed that v.65 and v.95 are massively different. I like them so much and saw numerous differences that I actually have both in my roster. When you released v.95, you said some of the moves were just placeholders for when he gets a full release. May I ask what will change between those versions? And when might we be on the lookout for him?

As you may or may not know, Titan Goku and I both sprite on Superboy, and we originally had two completely different WIPs of him. As of right now Titan Goku is MIA and he had a ton of plans for the new update of Superboy…as did I. The only updates I was able to put in where my own sprites and gameplay elements. We'll have to wait on big TG before we know what is really in store for him.

11) We all know you are working very hard on Phase 1 of Scruffy's DCvMarvel project, and word has it, the release is semi close. Can you tell us how things are going on that please? And what can we expect to see that we might not be familiar with from other game projects of that nature. I do not suppose I could get you to guesstimate when it might be ready for the public?

As of right now the Mugen Community has only seen snippets and pieces of our full plan. We don't want Phase 1 to just be another screen pack with DC and Marvel characters. We all want it to feel like a full game, not just a MvC rip off, but something stand alone. There are many new game elements and features to make it original but still have that exciting high impact, lightning paced game play everyone has grown to love.

We were aiming for Scruffyversary, but a few things had held us back from actual release. We want to give the best we got and not just something half-finished.

12) For anyone that has seen your signature, avatar, and anything else that you choose picture wise to represent you, they would know you are a big Cyclops fan. May I ask what is so appealing to you about him, and why is it you've not actually made your own version of him for Mugen to this point? (i'm assuming your not heavily involved in verz's astonishing version, but if i'm wrong so be it)

Cyclops has always been my favorite X-men. When I was young I always picked him on all the games, and always claimed "Dibs". I believe the reason behind it all was when I took a bunch of my brothers comics when I was young and I read "Uncanny X-men 175". This issue is part of the Phoenix Saga where Scott defends himself against the X-men (Wolverine, Nightcrawler, Colossus, Storm, Rogue, Shadowcat, even Lockheed) with a pair of broken ribs. Ever since then Cyclops has been an underdog that gets pushed aside for characters such as Wolverine.

Why haven't I made one? I've thought about it but then I look at Sunboy's and I'm pretty happy with his version. I know I could go and add some flashy effects and maybe a move or two, but really its not worth my time right now to try and give him a face lift, when I enjoy playing as the one Capcom and Sunboy made already.

13) Any tips you would like to share on how you all work that may help other creators?

Don't quit, and be kind. When you quit, all your work was for nothing. You lose part of yourself to what you never completed, even if something takes you 10 years. Finish it and be proud.


14) Everyone knows that MUGEN creation is very detailed oriented and time consuming. What keeps you motivated to continue your work?

I get bored...and I can get lost in coding. Just imaging being able to do something with your favorite character, than make it come true is captivating to me. I heart it.

Hugh Jackman Interview

Actor Hugh Jackman recently did an interview concerning his starring role in Wolverine. I admit that I'm impressed. He has allowed more access by his fans and worked more closely with Marvel in public than any other actor starring in a Marvel film has done. I'm posting this because I enjoy creators of the fiction I enjoy talking about their work. Yes, it's a shameless plug for a movie, but I'm going to go see it anyway.

JJ Abrams Interview

I love to to see interviews by artist talking about their art. Here is an interview of JJ Abrams talking about his new movie: Star Trek.

Voice Actors of Iron Man

Here is a video of actors being interview on their roles in Iron Man: Armored Adventures!

"Wolverine: Worst Day Ever" Interview

I have seen a great interview from the writer of the new book Wolverine: Worst Day Ever on Marvel.com

Creator Interview: Twinimage

Well, Volzzilla has done it again. He passed on to me an interview he did with Twinimage. I am really impressed with his work and I was grateful to him for setting aside time to answer Volzzilla's insightful questions. As always, Volzzilla's comments and questions are bolded and Twinimage is unbolded.

1) How and when did you get into Mugen?

Well, I think it was around 2007, I was working with Game Maker and looking for Capcom/Marvel sprites to use for a game I wanted to make. I ran into a MUGEN site and saw Jean Grey and was like, "Wow!” But I didn't understand the file format of what I downloaded. I forgot about it and a month or so later I returned. I downloaded MUGEN and found out all about it and I’ve been hooked ever since.

2) Why did you decide to get into the creation side of MUGEN, and do you focus more on spriting or coding?

I wasn't sure how well I could sprite, so I thought I'd start with stages. I wanted to give something back to the DC vs Marvel team, cause I enjoyed their work and their project so much. So, I created "The Sky Is Bleeding!" stage ("http://host-a.net/twinimage/SkyBleeding.zip), based on a scene from the DCvM comic series. I kept working on stages, until I started to learn about coding. I thought I'd try coding characters and even making Nightcrawler. When the Scruffydragon's released their character template I really started to learn how to code. I think I prefer coding, most of the time. I like spriting too, but it's so time consuming and I'm not the best there is.

3) When you are just focusing on having fun and playing, what characters do you tend to use the most and why?

Loganir's characters for sure, especially Wonder Woman. But also any of the other ScruffyDragon's characters because their top-notch quality and they're comic book characters I want on my Mugen roster. There's a character I made of myself not long ago, so sometimes I play that, lol It's kind of cheap though, sprite-wise, I did it just for fun and to unleash my creativity.

4) What comic character not already made or in the process of being made do you wish was MUGENized?

There are probably a good number of X-men I wish were made. A better Professor X and Jubilee come to mind. I’m also interested in Shadowcat, and Toad. (editor’s note: expect some of those to be discussed in a future ‘What If?…’ article.)

5) You are quite involved in a number of good Mugen projects; lets discuss your involvement with SGM’s Amalgam first.

Well, I'm a programmer, stage maker, and the head creator of Nightcreeper. Sic-1 chose me to be part of the team because of my work on Nightcrawler. It's great being part of such a young and quickly progressing project. We all help each other out. Sic-1 chose a great group of people for this team.

6) And your involvement with Project X?

First I must say, PROJECT X IS NOT DEAD! We just choose to keep its progress a little quieter due to some previous leaks. As for my initially joining Project X, I believe it started when I was making Nightcrawler and jr6 was impressed and wanted to work with me as well. So we talked a little. Eventually, he was also looking for a new programmer for his Dazzler. He chose me and we worked together on Nightcrawler and Dazzler. Later, since I was his programmer I was qualified for being part of Project X! It's a dream come true; when I started out with MUGEN I never imagined I would be part of this project.

7) Let us discuss Dazzler then. Will there be another released version anytime soon?

Well, jr6 is quite busy right now and he's doing some great new stuff with Dazzler. I'm just the coder, and until more sprites are made, we won't be seeing any new release of her for a while. But believe me, from what I've seen; she's going to Dazzle you!

8) Please tell us about your current WIPs.

As most may know, there is Nightcrawler, who is almost completely finished, so be on the look out for him soon. Next in line is Nightcreeper for the Amalgam project. He'll most likely be very similar to Nightcrawler, gameplay-wise. I have the team helping me out on this one, so hopefully we can make him unique and different from Nightcrawler. There are other AOS characters I'm helping with coding and Project X characters I'm helping out on, with spriting or coding. In regards to the other Project X WIPs, I don't want to say anything just yet, but keep an eye on my signature or avatar for my next big project involving them.

9) So what initially got things kicked off with Nightcrawler?

Well, I saw MamboJambo's Nightcrawler previews and very much liked what I saw, but I didn't care for the design of him. So, I just started to create my own Nightcrawler since I had always been a fan. Ironically, I am also coding MamboJambo’s version who will be very much different, but still enjoyable.

10) Tell us about his special and hyper moves.

Well, he can teleport, of course, as well as do a teleport attack, where he does like a flying kick almost. And you can't have Nightcrawler without swords, so he has a sword attack. The real fun is with the hypers. One hyper has him teleport all over the screen, taking the opponent with him, and then knocking them around the screen. There's also his sword hyper, ending with an epic final blow in the air. Then there is his disappearing hyper. It's probably a less known fact that he can fade into shadows easily, making it easier to attack enemies. You can't hit what you can't see. There's a couple more specials and hypers planned, but I may leave those for like a version 2.0 release

A video of Twinimage's and jr6's Dazzler can be seen at:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMxZcMRMHq0&feature=channel_page

11) Sounds incredible, I especially like the Excaliber hyper in addition to those. When will Nightcrawler be ready for full release?

I was hoping to release him March 1st, 2009, to celebrate my graduating from college. But real life stuff, like graduating from college and the flu got in the way. But he's closer than ever. His basics are done; most of his specials and hypers are done. Just need to add the finishing touches to him. Let’s just say, expect something very, very soon ;)

12) Looking forward to him already. Any tips you would like to share on how you all work that may help other creators?

Well, first off, take your time. Learn what you're good at, whether it be coding, spriting or something indirectly related to MUGEN creation. Maybe start off with stages, or maybe just plain sprite edits not intended for a character WIP. And if you want to be part of a project, like I wanted when I first started out, show your work to people and wait. See if project team members like your work and try to subtly start conversations with them. I became part of projects because jr6 liked my work and we just talked a little bit.

13) Everyone knows that MUGEN creation is very detailed oriented and time consuming. What keeps you motivated to continue your work?

I have no idea. A number of times I thought of not finishing Nightcrawler. I think being part of a project team helped me stay motivated. Sometimes I take huge breaks from working on anything MUGEN, then I go all out spriting or coding. And of course releasing video previews and finally releasing my work and seeing that people like it really motivates me to continue.

Be sure to keep an eye out at Favorite Fiction as we will update you on Nightcrawler’s release, as well as offer up a review as soon as we can. To check out Twinimage’s progress on him go to:

http://www.scruffydragon.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=4551

To read more about Nightcrawler in general:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightcrawler_(comics)

http://www.comicvine.com/nightcrawler/29-1461/

Creater Interviews: Alexziq

Well, Volzzilla has done it again. He passed on to me an interview he did with Alexziq. I am really impressed with his work and I was grateful to him for setting aside time to answer Volzzilla's insightful questions. As always, Volzzilla's comments and questions are bolded and Alexziq is unbolded.

1) How did you first learn about MUGEN and how long ago was that?

Two years ago, I was looking for a copy of the fan film “Lobo’s Paramilitary X-Mas Special” I stumbled upon a MUGEN video of Lobo. I had seen screenshots years ago of a Lobo fighting game, and thought this was new footage. After reading, and doing more internet searches, I realized I would actually be able to play DC characters in a fighting game so I was ecstatic as a fan.

2) When you are just focusing on having fun and playing, what characters do you tend to use the most and why?

I actually like to play my Flash remix, and Mini Flash together on Team Arcade just because I have a mixed roster, and the characters have the means to beat just about anybody if you know how to play them. I’d say I enjoy Lobo as well because I was a big fan of Lobo in the 90’s.

3) What comic character not already made or in the process of being made do you wish was MUGENized?

Well a lot of people say “everything” is in production but that’s not always the case. I’d really like to see some more unique DC characters like Swamp Thing, Constantine, or The Creeper get made. It’s a real shame there’s not a decent Catwoman for MUGEN yet.

4) Can you please tell me about what current WIP you are most looking forward to other than your own?

As far as Wips go that I’m looking forward too, I’d say I’m really looking forward to the guys I’ve worked with in the past projects the most. Z666’s Havok, Batzarro’s Rhino, Dark Talbains Wolvenom, and Jason Todd’s Wonderman.

5) Please tell the readers all the characters you have worked on towards their release.

Joker (Jason Todd, and Batzarro) Coding, and some Sprite work

Harley Quinn (with Batzarro) Coding

The Flash Barry Allen, and Remix 3.0 (With Egoless, and Eradicator) Sprite improvement, recodes, and bug fixes

Robin (Jason Todd, and pretty much everyone formerly from Team Spoiler) Coding, bug fixed, and some sprite work

Hobgoblin (With Dark Talbain, and Susan Mugen) Fixed minor bugs for upcoming re-release)

Sniper Joe (with Spider Mew) recode, and bug hunt

Question (With Jason Todd) early beta

Shazam (With Jason Todd) terrible early alpha

Red Tornado (With Jason Todd) leaked terrible alpha

6) Which one of those stands out the most to you and why?

Robin, and Harley definitely. Harley a little more so just because she was my first attempt at coding from a base instead of editing, and fixing existing material. And Robin because it was the character that helped me learn how to add, and implement code.

7) Do you have any plans on further updates towards those characters?

Oh yeah. Robin, Joker, Harley, and Question are all on my agenda for re-release this year. Even if other versions get released, I plan on seeing them through till I’m happy with them from a personal standpoint.

8) What WIPs are you currently working on?

Batman Beyond and Red Tornado are my current projects. I inherited both these characters from more underground creators, Spiderbat (Batman Beyond) and Jhonny DC (Red-T), and I was able to get all the permissions for these to finish the work they started and hope to have playable beta’s by spring. I’m not a spriter so I have to rely on my co-workers to help me out on improvements because both of these have massive potential, and we don’t want to cut corners with these particular releases.

9) I’ve seen you sporting a banner in your signature about a new team you are involved in. Can you please share any information about them?

Well the Legion Mugen Team is: myself, Spidermew, and Z666. We were all Team Spoiler members before the split. I really wanted to help these guys get their stuff off the ground after Spoiler broke up. Jason, Batzarro, and Dark Talbain had all put out Betas that got a lot of attention, and all three branched out to work with other creators, and more experienced coders. I took an interest in Sniper Joe because I felt like the first beta was just slopped out there with a lot of problems, and I wanted to help Mew get it going because it was a solid Capcom character.

Like I said I’m not a spriter, so I need people to help me if I do need Sprite work done, and I knew these guys were still at a similar place in life as myself so it just worked out. In turn I promised these two guys I’d fix or code whatever they need as top priority. The Spoiler Team alumni are all still very close, so its not like much really changed. It just was a very intimate group of people who were comic fans first, who all kinda got into MUGEN through that avenue.

When we branched out to work with people outside of it, it just didn’t feel right. While I’m sure some probably roll their eyes at the break up knowing that we still work closely, at the same time I’ve never gotten along better with the group. I think without the pressure of a “Team” we all ended up a lot happier. I don’t expect that to make sense to most people, but it is what it is.

10) Any tips you would like to share on how you all work that may help other creators?

I’m still learning myself, but I recommend caffeine, Adult Swim, a good Laptop, and a lot of patience. At least as far as coding goes. I was oblivious to PC code before this, so it’s a learning experience.

11) Everyone knows that MUGEN creation is very detailed oriented and time consuming. What keeps you motivated to continue your work?

Hmm, good question. As a coder sometimes it’s the challenge, sometimes it’s the quality of the sprites. I got very challenged when I worked on Sniper Joe in January because it was a style of character I wasn’t used to. At first, I kept getting frustrated, but once I dug into it, I got obsessed with it. Now that I’m on Batman Beyond, I get to fix up all these great animations, and its so sharp looking that I can’t put down the laptop. I do think I need a break later this year, but it’s only to make more time for my writing, and music work that have been long neglected.

Thank you, Alexziq and Volzzilla for sharing this interview with the readers of this blog. The WIP that Alexziq is working on that I'm most excited about Batman Beyond so I can't wait to try it out. I love his Flash Remix and I'm sure we will like all the characters he has a hand in developing.

Creator Interviews: Sic Graphics Mugen (SGM) Amalgam Project

Volzzilla had the opportunity to speak with one of the team leaders, Sic-1, of the Amalgam. Project. His questions are in black and bold and his answers are in black unbolded. I really appreciate that Sic-1 gave Volzzilla time to answer questions and for Volzzilla to share this with all of us. This post will be talking about the Amalgam Mugen project and will not focus on a single character.

1) Please tell the readers all about the Amalgam project, when the team got together, how the team got together and how the idea for turning Amalgam into MUGEN came about?

The idea of turning Amalgam into MUGEN was in my co-administrator’s head, techimuyo4ever, longer than it was in mine. I wanted to start a project but had no idea what to do…Tenchi was already making Iron Lantern into a full character, and I always loved the Amalgam Comics in the 90's. So I talked to him about making a full game based off of the Amalgam Comics and he was down for it! From that day on, Tenchi and I looked for the best of the best for our team, and I think we found them!

2) Interesting. So I have noticed some Scruffy Dragon Production characters have Amalgam moves. Was there any cooperation towards that and your team project?

Well we do work with the Scruffy Dragon team on some things and after both their project, as well as own project is done we’ll continue with that. SGM and Scruffy Dragon Productions are coming together to do something for the MUGEN world that has never been done.... What is that you may ask?? You are just going to have to wait and see until then.

3) So what are all the current WIPs going through creation right now?

Almost every one of our characters is being made as we speak! And most of those are not being made by just one person; they are team WIP's, so they get done that much faster. Ferroman will be our first beta release, but soon after that Iron Lantern will follow. Super Soilder, Wraith, Dr.Doomsday, DarkClaw, NightCreeper, SpiderBoy, Bizarnage, and Thorion are all also being worked on right now.

4) Very nice, but I have noticed some of them do not have WIP topics on your message board. May I ask why that is the case with: Darkclaw, Nightcreeper, Spiderboy, and Thorian?

We are keeping some stuff hidden for now. But I can tell you it will not be long before people get to see them.

5) Judging by the communities love for Wolverine and Batman, it is a safe bet DarkClaw will be very highly anticipated. May I ask who is working on him, and what has the progress been like thus far?

DarkClaw is being worked on by every single member of the SGM team right now. The reason for this is because we know people would really like to see DarkClaw in the game and play as him...so we are making sure we are doing the very best job we can on him.

6) What other characters are planned WIPs for the future but not currently in production?

Nightspector, Madam Sapphire, Lobo the Duck, Hyena as well as perhaps a few other surprises, including the secret final boss character for our game.

7) I know I speak for many of the readers when I say that I love the general concept of Amalgam characters in MUGEN. Something else that stands out unique about the project are the De-Amalgam moves. Can you tell us more about the general concept behind such moves? Anything else unique you all have planned in regards to the theme of the characters and the project?

For any one that does not know, the De-Amalgam hyper will happen when the character branches out into the counterparts that form the character to deliver one devastating move. Well, these De-Amalgam hypers will be able to be stopped. If the character is hit during the time they are spliting up into their counter parts for the move, they will be forced to fuse back together but in a "Funny Mutated Mess" that should be entertaining for the player to see. We are also adding a second stance to our characters, meaning every character will have 2 stances. For more info on all that, you will just have to wait for the Full Game Release.

8) Please tell the readers what will be in store for them game play wise when the full game is released.

We have spent a lot of time thinking about this and we wanted to do something that has not been done before in a full game. We feel that the "Story Mode" of the game will give people the best MUGEN time they have ever had. And yes, I said "Story Mode".

9) That’s cool. Is there anything you can share story wise concerning your final game project?

Sad to say, but not right now. We have to keep a few more things as surprises for the fans.

10) So what are your thoughts on beta releases in general for characters from this project?

I see the beta releases as a sort of teaser trailer for our final game project. A good look into some of the characters before they get a chance to play the full game. In short, leaving the players with the thought of wanting to play our Amalgam game project that much more because of the time they spent with our beta released characters.

11) Any beta releases coming in the near future?

Keep an eye out for Ferroman sometime soon! And Iron Lantern will be coming not too long afterwards. He is the WIP that started this Project, so we are taking our time with him because we know there are a lot of fans out there highly anticipating him.

We will keep an eye out and the readers can do the same by checking out the following websites:

Sic Graphics Mugen - Amalgam Project

Sic Graphics Mugen Vid's

http://www.youtube.com/user/tenchimuyo4ever
http://www.youtube.com/user/Sephirot08

And be sure to keep checking out Favorite Fiction Blog, as it will continue to be your source for all things MUGEN related.

Creator Interviews: Scruffy Dragon Production’s Buyog

Volzzilla has managed to talk to Buyog who agreed to a short interview. He is a very talented spriter and coder and bears partial responsibility for some of the greatest Mugen characters available! A lot of insight was provided and it is greatly appreciated. Volzzilla's questions are in bold, the answers are un-bolded. Volzzilla wrote it up and passed it to me. My comments in this post are in green. Volzzilla's questions are in black and bolded. Buyog responses are in black and unbolded. Volzzilla has the ability to ask really great questions and I appreciate Buyog's illuminating and candid responses. I thoroughly enjoy playing with any creator Buyog has had a hand in creating. The characters below have been released or are in development. All art in this post is from Buyog's website except the Scruffy Dragon logo (that came ScruffyDragon.com).

1) How did you first learn about MUGEN and how long ago was that?

Well, I actually first got started with the old SFR engine that G.M.Spectre used to use for his M Fighter series of games. From there I found MUGEN, back in 2001 or so I think.

2) When did you decide to get into the character creation side and why? What side of creation do you focus on most?

After only a few weeks of playing with the old DOS MUGEN engine and reading through the docs, I started tinkering with sprite edits and pretty basic character stuff. I even tried making a few characters that never went anywhere (a Super Metroid version of Samus Aran, for one), but I learned a lot in the process. Nowadays, I'm probably mostly a coder, but I like sprite editing too for its Zen.

3) When you are just focusing on having fun and playing, what characters do you tend to use the most and why?

I don't just say this because they're my teammates, but I *love* Wucash and Loganir's stuff. There's just so much packed into one of their creations, and it's all so tightly packaged, they're a ton of fun to play with (and play against, for that matter).

4) What comic character not already made or in the process of being made do you wish was MUGENized?

I can think of several that would be great. The new Blue Beetle (Jaime Reyes) would be fun, as would Batman Beyond for much of the same reasons. (editor’s note: This was recently started; Batman Beyond WIP Thread ) On the Marvel side, I'd love to see a Machine Man character done with the Nextwave sensibility. That would be hilarious.

5) Can you please tell me about what current WIP you are most looking forward to other than your own?

Hmm, that's really a tough one. Zvitor's Hawkman looks like it'll be epic, he's really attempting to up his game with that one. Verz's new Captain America (Bucky) is shaping up to be very interesting, too. There are several others I could name, but those two off the top of my head are very promising.

6) How did you get involved with Scruffy Dragon Productions?

Long story. Short version is, I pitched the DC vs. Marvel idea at a few MUGEN boards and got some others interested (Magus and SethZankuten are the earliest partners that are still around). McCready, Loganir, Wucash, Verz and the rest all came along at one point or another as time went on.

7) Please tell the readers about all of your releases. Of those, which one are you most proud of and why?

I still love my first character, Lobo. He's just a blast to play. Almost all of my other works have been collaborations: Ice with Smogon, Marrow with Ryu Win, Guido with McCready, Hal Jordan and Lex Luthor with Enzo (and the SD community at large), Hulk with BobStarsky, Bizarro with Kal-Elvis, Sinestro with Larramones, Elektra with XFields and Daraku. I'm pretty proud of all of my MUGEN "children", although I certainly feel some have been more successful than others. Sprite-wise, I'm pretty proud of the improvements I made to G.M. Spectre's original Ice sprites. Code-wise, I think Lex is some of my best programming work.

8) On your website, you have numerous promising WIP’s that you discuss when you can. Of these, you mention your current 'baby' among those as Parasite? May I ask about any progress you would like to share, and if there are any plans involving him and Scruffyversary?

Like I said on my site, Parasite's become the "purple elephant in the room." For better or worse, I can't talk about my MUGEN work without him coming up eventually. Not that I'm embarrassed about him or anything -- although he's taken a lot longer to advance than any of my others; he's just much harder to get "right." I've felt for a long while now that I shouldn't have publicly announced him at all until he was much further along... but like the DCvsMarvel project itself, the scope of my plans for Parasite keep growing, and that makes it hard to pin down. Currently I'm planning for him to have somewhere between 30 and 50 different power sets when I release him; right now he's got about 50 finished moves (specials and hypers), and most power sets will have 2 moves total, so you can kind of gauge his progress that way I guess.

9) At the Scruffy Dragon Forum, you recently made a comment about "expect an update coming...soonish" regarding Savage Hulk. Any other tidbits you would like to share regarding that?

A lot of the new work for Hulk has been done already, but still some kinks to shake out of his AI. And BobStarsky is still working on a few animations that I'd like to add. Looking at hopefully sometime in March, I think.

10) Again, on your main website, you mention possibly kicking out new beta releases for Sinestro and Elektra, please tell the audience more as I'm sure that would be something highly anticipated.

Well, as I've said on my blog, Sinestro has a few new moves I've put in, but he's still missing a lot of basic stuff, so that one's definitely still in the "maybe" column. With Elektra, though, I've found myself an enthusiastic partner in Daraku, so she's got a lot of new stuff coming down the pipe: more and better intros and winposes, several more finished moves, and the all-important get-hit sprites to make her feel more like a "real" release.

11) Sounds awesome. Please tell the readers more about all the things to expect in this New Elektra beta, starting with the intros and winposes, and then giving as much detail about new moves as you would care to tease the audience about.

All I'll say about intros/outros is to expect to see other characters you may be familiar with. Move-wise, she'll have 3 or possibly 4 specials, and I'm thinking probably 2 hypers (including a revamped version of Curse of the Hand). Plus, as much of the DCvsMarvel goodies (like superjump, hitsparks, push blocking, etc) that I can stuff in before the release.

12) And when can we expect this beta release of her?

My original goal for myself was Valentine's Day, which obviously we've missed already, but she should be ready to go now in the next 2-3 days.

13) Okay, totally anticipating her more now and cannot wait until then! Of your remaining WIPs, Bizarro, Mandarin, and Invisible Woman, who do you see getting the bulk of attention when things slow down for you from the things you are currently focused on?

This will most likely be the Mandarin. Angelic Charon is making a great Invisible Woman, so I'm not as anxious about that my own anymore. And Kal-Elvis is busy with his day job these days, so Bizarro progress is slow. McCready got me off to a great start with Mandarin, sprites and move ideas. And with all of the Iron Man movie buzz the last year or so, including the sequel coming out next year, I feel like there's definite momentum there.

14) Any tips you would like to share that may help other creators, plus what keeps you motivated to continue your work?

For me, it's good to be a bit schizophrenic. That is, I do sprite work, I do code work, all while keeping an eye on forum moderation and team leadership. Plus I maintain a web coding blog and have "real life" pursuits away from the PC too. It keeps me from ever getting bored or burned out on any one project, but the side effect is, of course, that it takes me a lot longer to get anything done. That said, there has been a lot going on in my pipeline these past couple of years, and we're starting to see the payoff from that now. 2009 should be a very fruitful year.

Thank you so much for your time. I know I speak for everyone when I say you gave us a lot of information to crank the anticipation level even higher for everything you are working on. Be sure to check out Buyog's Lair: Buyog2099's MUGEN Creations and Scruffydragon.com Forum the next few days as those will be the first places the new Elektra Beta will be released.