@OviManic - @Aalasteir (Q)
Q: How did you discover the Newgrounds site? And why did you decide to join the community?
I’ve discovered Newgrounds in Elementary school from a classmate. This was around the time the only person who had Internet access in the household was my cousin from the first floor using AOL. There, my number one fixation on that site were Super Mario parodies and fan videos. After 2010, I was rather distant with the site because I once assumed it was one of those sites that was giving me viruses on my computer.
Eventually, Newgrounds was just a passing thought until August 2020 where a music remixer I liked on YouTube had a Newgrounds account. My first game was released a year ago and I wanted to give my potential franchise another home in case it gets booted out of a site for whatever reason. Foresight was right on the money because GameJolt decided to remove and reject all adult games around a year and a half later with no warning prior to that.
Since then, Newgrounds became the site I am most social in: Twitter and YouTube are a little too chaotic and unstable for my liking. I don’t usually follow artists on Twitter because holy cow, one can get sucked up in whatever political movement they follow more than the art pieces you were originally interested in! YouTube, I just use as a replacement for TV: more of a watcher than a user. Yeah, Newgrounds is basically my social circle for now on!
Q: How do you feel about creating art and games?
The reason why I want to make… well, anything, is because there’s always that metaphorical itch no other media work can scratch. So I decide to scratch it myself by making stuff that I like, even if the grand majority don’t. In fact, after witnessing the absolute madness and headache a trending franchise can become, I’m well aware there’s quite a few benefits of being niche.
Q: How do you feel that creating art impacts you personally?
I’m not sure. Ever since I was young, I always daydream a show or game of my creation being shown to the public. I remember making fan fictions indefinitely until around 2012 where I’ve finally decided to make complete original works and ultimately scrap any use of the IP of others’. Doing that, I was basically free to write my own storylines and subjects without being dependent on the established continuity that the original authors have worked so hard to perfect. I tell you, continuity of other people’s works was actually something that caused me intense anxiety for years! Feels stupid in hindsight, but fortunately I’ve long since grew from that mistake.
Q: What do you like about posting in the Newgrounds forums? Also, which user do you think should be banned from the forums, and why?
Just posting a subject and see others’ thoughts on it: that’s usually my favorite. Although I have had disagreements with some forum users before, it’s definitely not worthy of any ban whatsoever! Even when Politics was an active forum, I couldn’t think of anyone that should’ve been banned despite their awful opinions.
Q: Who created Madness?
No clue, honestly. But I believe I saw him in cartoon form in a game where Pico tried to kill other popular mascots in the Newgrounds site. Pico attempts to kill Tricky but he was then told he has to kill his creator to do it… as told by Tricky’s creator.
Q: Could you recommend 5 songs, 5 games, 5 art pieces, and 5 movies that you would encourage people to check out?
The Audio and Game Portals aren’t exactly my favorite places to explore. For Audio, it’s because I don’t generally listen to radio here, and for Games is because go to Newgrounds on my tablet and most games require a keyboard… including my own.
But I will share 5 movies and art pieces I currently like!
Movies:
Art:
Q: What would be your advice for people posting in the BBS?
Think of topics many people can get involved in, don’t involve too much of yourself (I find vent posts quite souring), and don’t be afraid of any backlash for lesser subjects. There’s always butting heads in any social circle!
Q: Your advice for being an artist
Be varied and flexible. Honestly, I don’t usually follow those rules myself when it comes to just drawing, but considering today’s market, adaptability is key to survive this industry. For me, different art styles may not be one of them, but animation, programming, and business management / marketing are some of the key things I’m focusing on to keep myself stable in this industry.
OviManic
Oh crap! I’m sorry it took me this long to respond to this. It probably showed up right after I left for work!