First up is Sola aka burnyourbra.  A great female competitor that recently won second place in the Woman’s Invitational Tournament at Evolution 2k10 (EVO2k.com) competition in Las Vegas.  I got a chance to meet her in person at Summer Jam 4 in Philly a couple of weekends ago, and got the courage to ask her for a interview.  Luckily we had something in common as bifuteki is one of her clan’s (DMG DominionMethodGaming.com) sponsor.

Check out the interview after the jump…

Bifu: Age?
Burn: I’m 30.

Bifu: Hometown?
Burn: I was born and raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. However I’ve lived in San Diego, Hollywood.

Bifu: Where do you live now?
Burn: I live in Texas.

Bifu: Pets?
Burn: I have three cats; ShuShu, Dushka, and Sakura. I also have one dog, Cody.

Bifu: What do you do for money? (aka job – the one that pays the bills)
Burn: I quit my job early this year to move to Texas to be with my boyfriend.

Bifu: Favorite thing to do when you aren’t working?
Burn: Besides playing video games I also love to write novels and short stories. At heart, I am a writer.

Bifu: Who’s your hero?
Burn: My parents. Seeing what they went through to raise me and to keep me safe . . . it was a lot. I don’t think I would ever be able to do it.

Bifu: Favorite color?
Burn: Black.

Bifu: What’s your favorite show on TV? (if Heroes was your answer: What would your power be?)
Burn: As of right now I’m hooked on True Blood. It’s not my favorite T.V. show of all time though but it’s what I’m currently watching. I also like Dexter but we don’t have Showtime. I also like “How the Earth was Made”, “Life without People” or any historical documentaries. I’m a huge fan of the History Channel and Discovery Channel.

Bifu: Favorite console game?
Burn: Suikoden II was and still is my favorite console game of all time.

Bifu: Favorite handheld game?
Burn: Never owned a handheld game. LOL.

Bifu: Favorite movie?
Burn: Oh, I have waaay too many to count; Young Guns 1 and 2, Interview with the Vampire, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Doors just to name a few.

Bifu: Favorite artist?
Burn: Again, I have waaay too many to count; The Doors, Janis Joplin, Suicide Commando, VNV Nation, Wumpscut.

Bifu: Where do you see yourself in 5 yrs?
Burn: Hopefully be a successful author, which I’m working on at the moment. I was close to having my novel published three years ago but the publisher went under. I started submitting again and right now I’m waiting for the go ahead so hopefully they like it.

Bifu: One talent you would love to have that you don’t have now?
Burn: The ability to control atoms. 🙂

Bifu: How or What got you into gaming?
Burn: It was my mother who got me into video games. She bought me, my twin brother and my older sister a NES and whatever games we wanted, as long as we stayed off the streets during summer break. When she bought us a SNES and SF2 I was hooked. I didn’t know what I was doing but I played daily, against the Comp and against my siblings.

Bifu: Your first game you ever played?
Burn: Pac-Man for the Atari was the first game I ever played.

Bifu: Your favorite game?
Burn: Suikoden 2 is my all time favorite game. I’m not an RPG person but I can play them if they’re interesting enough for me. That game went well beyond what games were at that time.

Bifu: Playing with guys online – does it frustrate you when they make comments about your sex? and how females can’t game?
Burn: The key word in that sentence is “online.” It doesn’t really frustrate me because first, it IS online, and second I’ve heard it all before. I still hear it now. There have been some individuals that I had to shut up; male and female, but those are starting to be few nowadays.  I continue to play because I want to play, not because it’s the “in” thing to do at the moment.  If guys get butthurt because I beat them, that’s their problem and not mine. I don’t get butthurt if they beat me because I don’t see them as a male gamer. I see them as a gamer.

Bifu: Any words of wisdom to new gamers?
Burn: If you want to play . . . PLAY. Don’t wait for anyone to come around and to guide you. Unfortunately it probably won’t happen. If you’re really into the game learn all that you can and start playing. Take your loss for what it is. You have to lose to win and you have to lose to get better. And don’t worry about the haters because they will always be around, in some form or another. That’s what they’re there for. To hate.

Bifu: How does it feel to be a top gamer in your genre?
Burn: I don’t consider myself a “top” gamer actually. Maybe because I know that I need work in several areas. Some have called me the top female sf player in the U.S. which, to me, is just a title. I’m pretty humble.

Bifu: Being in a clan?  Do you recommend it or not?
Burn: I’ve only been a part of DMG (DominionMethodGaming.com) since after EVO and I love it. I’ve learned so much since then and it’s nice to have top players tell you about your faults and to help you up your game. I don’t look down on groups. But I would say if gamers are looking to be a part of one to do their research first on the group before joining.

Bifu: How did you come up with your handle?
Burn: burnyourbra was an old yahoo email address of mine. When I first got my Xbox I signed up with my real name; Sola. When I decided to get LIVE I tried again but it said “Sola” was taken (obviously by me but I didn’t know any better) so I sat there trying to think of a name. My old email address came to mind and when I typed it in, it worked. So I went with that.

Bifu: Aspirations for your future?
Burn: When I get older and stop playing I hope to either help other female gamers who are serious about their craft in getting the respect that they deserve. There are many out there, some in hiding, some who just need an outlet or a push, and I hope to be one of the many to help them.
I also want to be a successful novelist so I can sit back and write all day. I have a vivid imagination and my brain right now is overloaded with stories to tell.

Bifu: Current playlist of games?  Or games that are in heavy rotation?
Burn: Right now Read Dead Redemption, Rock Band 2, and Diner Dash are my current poisons along with SSF4 of course.

If you wanna follow burnyourbra, she’s on the following social networks:

Twitter
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