Greetings!

Hello.  My name is Mark Schjoll.  Yes, that Mark – Regina’s friend Mark.  But, enough about my name.

Here’s a bit about my gaming “cred”.  I started playing games as a kid, as most kids do.  However, early on, one of my uncles and a grandfather taught me how to play poker.  I think that’s what started it all.  Then, around the time of my adolescence, there was D&D.  After high school I got into playing Battle Tech, Magic: The Gathering and Vampire: The Masquerade. To this day I still play all sorts of games. This does not tell the whole story though.

I also started playing video games when I was very young.  I was really lucky because before there were home gaming consoles my uncle was a video game repairman for actual arcade games! Yes, the actual table style and upright machines you would find in an arcade.  I cut my video gaming teeth on all the early classics to play test them after they were repaired.  After that, I played consoles over at my cousin’s and friend’s houses, never owning a console of my own until I was an adult. Occasionally, I dabbled in PC gaming, but hadn’t owned a computer up to that point.

In 2000 I bought my first PC and Diablo 2 was released.  My love affair with PC gaming began that summer. Late summer of 2002 I found the final piece of the PC gaming puzzle for me.  Medal of Honor: Allied Assault was released for the PC.  I played it at my cousin’s apartment and immediately knew I had to get high speed internet so I could mess up those snipers at the back of the map!

I have played a bit of most styles of PC and table top games ever since, while sticking with my favorite genres. In the coming weeks and months, I hope to share my thoughts about them, the gaming industry, and gaming culture.

~ Mark Schjoll @MarsUller