Meet The Staff: Kovacs

Name: Lee Cash
Age: 32
Birthplace: Dublin, Ireland
Living now: Dublin, Ireland (but in a different place)
Gamerscore/Trophy Level: Lower than you’d think

Q: Apart from gaming, what do you do to relax and really take the edge off a hard day’s work?

A: The concept of relaxation is something that is completely foreign to me. I’m perpetually busy, a good complaint to have as it means I’m never bored. I would like some time to actually sit down and play these bloody games I spend so much time writing about, however.

I exercise as much as possible, which includes long runs punctuated with frenzied air-drumming and random Japanese outbursts (I catch up on my Japanese studies when working out. Don’t ask.) If it wasn’t for running I’d probably have ‘killed me a man’ by now. I ran a marathon in 2006 and I’ve got my eye on some other insane endurance races in the distant future. When I have more time to train, of course. As I’m struggling to find time to get through my mammoth backlog of games as it is, the likelihood of me becoming increasingly fat and a danger to the wider air-drum hating public is a real possibility.

I read. As an aspiring writer copious amounts of reading is mandatory. I will read anything as long as it’s good. Actually, that’s not entirely true, as I also gravitate toward utter crap as an insidious tactic of making myself feel better about my own meagre ability. Hello Stephanie Meyer!

I also write. Furtive, juvenile scribbles that I rarely share with others for fear of rejection. Mostly I like to spend time with my family, be it walking my lunatic dog or listening to my girlfriend provide insightful commentary on the games I’m playing. (On Metal Gear Solid 4: “It’s all the same. You sneak past someone, some bitch screams ‘SNAKE!’, then something with tentacles appears.”)

I play guitar (a beautiful 2006 Fender Strat; a gift from my father on my 30th birthday) to unwind. I also find chronicling my life on Twitter as quite cathartic; anything from what it’s like to be in the middle of a full-on bus riot, to the wonders of coffee-induced spirit-walks. Yes, you can drink too much coffee in one day. In case you’re wondering, my spirit animal is a cantankerous, lecherous marmot that likes to spit. We’re best friends.

Q: Honestly, if my last name was Cash I would require everyone to call me Mr. Cash. Does this actually happen or are you nicknamed something much, much cooler in the real world?

A: Well, most nicknames down the years have understandably derived from either my first or last name. Lee wasn’t a very common moniker back in “ye olde Ireland” growing up in the 80s; back when most Irish people lived off potatoes, Guinness and spite (as opposed to today’s diet of venison, lattes and bankruptcy). Hence, a lot of people thought it would be real clever to call me Bruce as a precursor to kicking me in the face and/or nether regions.

The Cash name has been both a blessing and a curse. It’s a great talking point, as I freely admit it’s quite uncommon. People invariably bring up Johnny, when they’re not questioning if my name is actually real, that is. After a drunken wrestling ‘incident’ in a car-park in Boston I had a cop point blank refuse to believe I was giving him my real name. “That’s a fake name if I’ve ever heard one. No Irishman could ever be called Lee Cash.” Luckily I managed to play “the Paddy card” to extricate myself from that particular prickly situation. I’m pretty sure an Irish person would have to set fire to something quite large and important in Boston to actually get arrested. And even if you did, you’d probably end up getting drunk with the arresting officer a few hours later.

Last year I travelled around the world in 96 days (the luxury of being a wordsmith for hire) and it never failed to pique the interest of people of varying nationalities. From Montreal to Bangkok, immigration officers would comment and snigger. “Just like the money!” they’d say. Yes, just like the money, asshole. “You know Johnny?” Yes, I know Johnny, douchenozzle. I know Johnny real well. It was an especially fun time when Swingers came out: “You’re money! You’re so money and you don’t even know it!” Yes, Cash, money, I get it. Tango & Cash I don’t want to talk about. Some wounds still fester.

Q: So Mr. Cash, tell me something. What’s the most embarrassing moment in your life so far?

A: Like I’m going to divulge such information on a public forum. Hey, have you seen that photo above? How ridiculous is that? All I’m missing is a scarf billowing in some imaginary heroic wind. The truth is, I’m a firm believer in the premise that if you can’t laugh at yourself, you have no right laughing at anyone else. And, to be bluntly honest, I laugh at other people a lot.

Q: Can your family hold their own against you or does Mrs. Cash (seriously, awesome name) wipe the floor with you?

A: As the would-be Mrs. Cash has already unequivocally informed me that she will not be branded with such a ridiculous name whenever we do decide to enter a nuptial blood-bonding ceremony, Mrs. Cash is and always will be my Mom. She doesn’t game but she has watched her son lose the plot enough times over the years to know all about Solid Snake and “that harlot Ms. Croft.” My partner does game though, curiously not as much as she did since the PS3 came along. However, she does have her own PSP, and we finished Fable on the original Xbox together. Just one of many titles we played through using the age-old “pass the controller when you’re dead” rite. Nowadays she’s mostly content with some Droplitz and has a penchant for the Silent Hill series. She’s also a hell of a lot smarter than me, something that was only compounded when I had to review The Blue Toad Murder Files, a torturous experience that saw me consistently fluff all of the puzzles I attempted. She flawlessly aced all of hers, of course. Easy-peasy. And yes, I did shout “fix!” over and over for most of the evening.

Q: How did you passion for gaming begin?

A: Like a lot of people who may be reading this site I took solace in gaming as a way of fuelling my creativity. Oh, who am I kidding. I was crap at sports and I had no friends. Okay, I had equally unpopular friends, but, in general, computing and gaming always appealed to me at a very intrinsic level. I started young, my uncle exposing me to the intoxicating allure of a ZX81 back in 1980, empowering my childish inquisitiveness with games such as Ski Run and Break Out. The nascent seed was planted. I grew up gaming, graduating from console to console during the bleak, harrowing days of Sega Vs. Nintendo, dabbling with PC gaming along the way before settling on Sony as my drug of choice. That’s not to say I’m always monogamous to my sleek, black lover. I’m old and wise enough to know that fanboyism is a myopic practice; generations of gamers missing out on some truly great games due to what can only be described as blind, often mystifying allegiance to one company.

As I got older I decided computing was the way to go (after it quickly became evident that I hadn’t a hope of qualifying for the journalism degree I wanted to do) so in 1995 I went to university. This was back in the days when the internet literally comprised of perpetually dancing hamsters and the declaration that, just like every other page you visited, sites were still “under construction”; the accompanying “men at work” sign the digital equivalent to today’s cobwebbed “Welcome to my new blog – I hope to update this regularly!” post. I got a degree in Computer Science in 1999 despite numerous impediments – being only moderately intelligent the most crippling. Unfortunately back then there was little emphasis on game theory in my course, a fact I lament to this day as I’m sure I would have (maybe) applied myself a little more. As Ireland’s gaming industry is starting to really come into its own, who knows what the future holds for me.

Q: Which game will always remain at the top of your list as Best Game Ever?

A: I’ve never been able to answer the “What is your favourite game?” question, simply because I find it impossible to pick one. I could rattle off a list of titles from Wonder Boy on the Master System to the sublime and somewhat overlooked Vagrant Story on the PS1, but I have an eclectic gaming palette that appreciates all genres and platforms. If I was pressed for names, the Metal Gear Solid series, the Uncharted games, and recent “smaller” titles such as PixelJunk Shooter and Flower come to mind. But it’s all relative. I could answer this question tomorrow and probably name a whole gaggle of different titles. Gaming is too big and beautiful to pick just one favourite. At least, it is to me. I’m also criminally behind everyone else in terms of games to play. I’ve recently completed Dead Space and inFamous, for example. No, don’t fret, you haven’t just been transported back to 2008. It’s not that I’m late to the party; I was explicitly not invited.

Q: How do you pass your day? We all know gaming is a costly hobby.

A: Up until a few months ago I was a full-time struggling freelance writer. These days I’m a part-time struggling freelance writer working as a full-time project manager. I work in digital publishing when I’m not orchestrating other devious plans that I won’t go into here for fear of defenestration. I also write for other sites (and not just about gaming), building up a burgeoning portfolio. When I’m not deploying the grammar police here, obviously. Technically I pass most of my days on buses actively trying to not get myself killed. So far so good.

Q: And finally, a word to our readers, please.

A: Just to echo those who have come before me and say a heartfelt thank you. The vast majority of TSA’s charm and appeal stems from its community, and I know it sounds mushy and passé, but without its readers this site is literally just a bunch of fanatics rambling into the void. The community has elevated TSA above the throng of other blogs. I like to think this is because we work very, very hard to provide thought-provoking and (hopefully) engaging content.

I also just want to say a personal thank you to everyone who has commented on my articles with positivity, especially those who have said they’ve garnered something from my (shockingly verbose and overlong) reviews.

Lastly, but by no means least, my thanks to the TSA team itself for always accepting new blood into its ranks to keep TSA up there with the best of them.