Here is an interview with a married Japanese woman in her 30's, who is a gamer that has been gaming since she was a little girl. She would consider herself a Japanese housewife. She goes by the name Nako and or Nakko. Nako-chan to most. Her responses will be highlighted in purple.
Hello there. How would you like to introduce yourself?
Hi! I’m Nakko. Of course I love games. I love difficult and challenging games like Dark Souls and games with inspiring stories! And, I also love taking pictures in the game. I learned important things in life from games.
How long have you been gaming, and what got you into video games?
I've been playing games since kindergarten, so maybe it's been about 30 years. The reason was that my cousin liked games. He always had a new game. So I was envious.
What is your favorite video game?
My favorite game is Dark Souls. My favorite Indie game is Papers, Please. Besides these, I like The Legend of Zelda series and Assassin’s Creed series. I can't write here!
Who is your favorite video game character?
Yoshi! You know, of course, right? He is a Nintendo character.
Do you prefer female video game protagonists or male video game protagonists?
I like the gender that suits the story of the game. Gender discrimination is never tolerated, but there is also a story that a white man is suitable as the main character. Of course, there is also a story in which a black woman is suitable as the main character. What I mean is that you don't want the story or world of the game to go crazy.
What is the first video game console you played?
Family computer.
Which video game company do you support? SEGA? PlayStation? Xbox? Nintendo?
I especially like Nintendo, but basically I'm concerned about whether the game is interesting, so the makers don't really care.
What video game consoles do you currently own?
PlayStation 1, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation
4, PSP, PSP Vita, SFC, DS, 3DS, N64, Wii,Wii U, Nintendo Switch.
What video games are you currently playing?
What soon to be released video games are you going to buy in 2021?
Rune Factory 5, remaster of Legend Of Mana and クレヨンしんちゃん「オラと博士の夏休み」～おわらない七日間の旅～ Horizon Forbidden West and TRIANGLE STRATEGY. (Known as Project Triangle Strategy.)
Do you play any Western video games? For example American video games?
Of course!
What is your favorite video game genre? Example would be RPG? Action? Simulation? Visual Novel?
I like, ACT, ADV, point & click, SLG, puzzle, rhythm, rogue-like.
The next questions to follow will ask Nakko what she thinks of specific games in the Western market.
Have you ever heard of the Fable series? What do you think of it?
I've never heard of it.
What do you think of the Tomb Raider series, featuring Lara Croft? A game originally created by Core Design, which has lost its appeal since Square Enix took over Crystal Dynamics and rebooted it and changed everything.
I've never played it.
What do you think of The Sims? Have you ever played The Sims by EA Games?
I love SIMS! I have been playing this game since The Sims 1. It's fun to make money and build your ideal home! I'm happy when I'm thinking about the interior.
What do you think of Grand Theft Auto?
I want to play this game. But I'm not sure if it's fun to start in the middle of the series. Because this game has a lot of series.
What kind of video games do you like? 2D? or 3D?
Anything is fine. I like games that are fun and have a good story, rather than the beauty of images.
What are you looking for in a video game character?
I hope to be a character with a will. I don't like to change the game world or the character's personality, such as in collaboration.
What do you think of Street Fighter?
I'm not good at fighting games. But I like the characters of this game, and I like the music because it's cool!
Who do you prefer? Mario or Sonic the Hedgehog?
Are you asking which of the two you like? I like Mario!
Are there any video games that you dislike?
The recent Atelier series. After the company changed its main target to men, I didn't like it anymore. A game with many bugs even though it doesn't have a complicated system.
Thank you for your time. It was a pleasure to interview you. ~