Out of all the great things I’ve experience in my years working within the gaming industry, the best part of the wild ride would have to be the people I’ve met. Each month (ish) I will fire off a bunch of questions to an iconic part of the gaming industry, both professional athletes, and industry folks. I will only give my Geek Badge of Honor to the people in our little world that deserve praise above the normal. It’s been such a pleasure meeting and getting to know these people, I hope you enjoy our conversations.
Mrs. Violence’s Gaming Set-up
Geek Badge of Honor: Mrs. Violence
Sheriff Earp: For those unaware of who you are, can you give us a nice explanation? We will punish the naïve later.
Mrs Violence: Well, my name is Kelly Kelley (No my parents didn’t play a prank on me), I’m a 23 yr old hardcore competitive gamer!
Sheriff Earp: Let’s start with the beginning. When did you start playing video games?
Mrs Violence: I picked up my first controller at the age of 3. Playing every game and system I could get my hands on as I grew up. My obsession with video games really hit home with Resident Evil, and the Halo Series.
Sheriff Earp: How did you get involved in professional gaming?
Mrs Violence: Well, when I was growing up I was always a competitive person. Through all the sports my dad put me through I just came to love each game and always strived to be the best. So, when I heard about Magic the Gathering. A new card game that had formed and I wanted to be a part of it. I ran to the closest comic store and bought my first deck. From then on I decided that this was something I wanted to do for a very long time.
Sheriff Earp: You’re known for competing in many things, but one game sticks out further than the others. What has made the Gears series so special to you?
Mrs Violence: Gears is very unique. And I guess I respect it for that. Growing up on strict first person shooters, Gears sort of opened another world for me. Cover system, blind firing, small maps, 1 Life per round.. there’s just nothing more exciting than Gears of War. I mean honestly, do you not get all tingly inside from chain sawing someone in half? I do.
Sheriff Earp: What is your ambition? To game forever? Or is there something else to Kelly that no one knows?
Mrs Violence: After my competition days, I would like to maybe start my own team, and manage them. Or work in public relations and maybe become a spokes model for the new and upcoming competitive gamers.
Sheriff Earp: The original generation of “Pro Gamers” had a tough time finding support, from their peers to their parents. Did/do you run into this same issue?
Mrs Violence: Not really, My family was extremely supportive and they still are to this day. I used to team with my 2 other brothers and competed at the top level for Rainbow Six 3 and Black Arrow on GameBattles. We’ve played top 5 for those two games countless times. I even won an Xbox 360 from winning GB tournaments.
Sheriff Earp: Do you currently have sponsorship?
Mrs Violence: Yes! I’m proudly sponsored by Quantic Gaming, Turtle Beach, and Kontrol Freek. We are very thankful to be affiliated with such amazing companies in this industry.
Sheriff Earp: With your position inside Quantic High & Mighty, what does being a part of the team entail? For those not in the know, what does being a part of this/a team mean?
Mrs Violence: Being a part of HAM, as we like to call it, is fantastic. The amount of passion from each of these ladies astounds me to my very soul. I love them for not only who they are, but what they want to become. High and Mighty isn’t just some all female clan, or marketing team . . . we’re different! We have the mental drive to get better at our specific games, and can actually succeed! That’s what makes us different. We aren’t here to look pretty (Even if we do rock the shit out of a party), or stand in a booth all day. We want to compete, and at a professional level.
Sheriff Earp: Where do you work?
Mrs Violence: Game Stop! My life literally revolves around video games. I live, eat, breath, die video games! (Unlimited Respawn enabled)
Sheriff Earp: How long have you worked at Game Stop?
Mrs Violence: I’ve worked at GS for about 4 years now.
Sheriff Earp: Does having a full-time job affect your gaming? If so, how?
Mrs Violence: Not really. This job is very flexible and can work around my convention seeking needs.
Sheriff Earp: What inspires you? In your day to day, and your gaming?
Mrs Violence: Day to day eh- Well at game stop, I’m constantly looked at as just a pretty face. I love getting the doubtful customers that try to quiz me on my gaming knowledge, just to throw into their face that I’ve actually partied with some of the people they simply Tweet at to get attention. It astounds them, and they are the ones that inspire me to continue what I do. Gaming, well that’s easy. I look around at the haters that females have been dealing with for so many years, and I just want to do the same which is prove them wrong and make a more direct and influential presence in the competitive gaming scene! E-SPORTS!
Sheriff Earp: What is your opinion on “Girl Gamers” and the stereotypes that are associated with being one?
Mrs Violence: Well, the first thing that comes to mind is “Get in the kitchen and make me a sandwich”. Honestly? I’ve moved past the derogatory remarks and just keep gaming. It’s called a Mute button for a reason, and if you actually want to listen to some 15 year old nobody tell you those things, then so be it, you attention seeking freak. Some girls get off at the fact that boys instantly show them attention, and relish in it, but then go off and complain to their friends and followers that they were just insulted via Public Cod Server. I laugh at 99.9% of the remarks made towards me, and if they’re good enough, I’ll post them, but not on a daily basis. It’s like, OK We get it, you like being called a whore and don’t block communications, we get it!
Sheriff Earp: Tell me about WCG Ultimate Gamer, how did you get in?
Mrs Violence: I first auditioned in Chicago Illinois, in a downtown hotel. I heard about UG from the leader of vVv Gaming. I was a part of the organization for 3 years, and wasn’t really too active that year for MLG, so I decided to go and give them a little lesson on who Mrs Violence really is.
Sheriff Earp: What is your highlight from WCG?
Mrs Violence: I think meeting all the amazing people throughout the show and the post production. Because of that show, I was introduced to so many new faces in the gaming industry and I’m truly blessed to have been a part of it.
Sheriff Earp: Were you pleased with your results on the show?
Mrs Violence: Absolutely not! I knew I could have done a lot better, but what the public doesn’t seem to know is that I was severely injured after the second Real Life Challenge. I was told directly afterwards that I had two options. To go to the hospital and get checked out of the show, or to try and play (ON A FIGHTSTICK) with a sprained wrist. I even asked just for a controller, and they still said no. Afterwards, we were sent back to the Loft and I was in interviews about my wrist for about 45 minutes. When I got back into the main room of the Loft, I had around 2 minutes to pick my Virtua Fighter 5 character. So, I went into Isolation with a 2 minute character. I don’t even remember who I picked, but you can see the difference in my play style from iso to elimination. I actually had some time to learn the game from Dante and picked up on his technique of play style. So, without the injury, I think I would have made it far, due to the sole fact that I know the rest of the games very well, and would have excelled at all of them. Season 1 would have been a lot different.
Mrs. Violence VS Athena PMS (WCG Ultimate Gamer)
Sheriff Earp: What did you most take from the experience?
Mrs Violence: Haha, to watch what you say! You never know who is listening!!
Sheriff Earp: You’ve recently turned to the CoD franchise as your “main games”, why the switch? What’s different?
Mrs Violence: That’s simple, Gears of War isn’t on the circuit.
Sheriff Earp: What’s the next phase in the history of Mrs. Violence?
Mrs Violence: As of right now, I’m on a Co-Ed Call of Duty Black Ops team, still called High and Mighty, but HAM has been split up. Ashley (LadyInsanity) has gone to SC2, but will still be playing and representing Quantic HAM. I’m extremely excited for this new direction and team! But my objective is to still play COD For the rest of the MLG Season, and then pursue Gears of War depending on my stance with JforJade and HAM.
Sheriff Earp: What was Battlefield 3 The Controller?
Mrs Violence: The Controller Battlefield 3 was a web based reality show, where 6 pro gamers got paired up with 6 noobs to bring Battlefield 3 to life. The pros had to focus on physical challenges, while the noobs had to learn how to play BF3 for a grand prize of 50 grand!
Sheriff Earp: How did you get invited?
Mrs Violence: I was recommended by several resources to audition. I actually never heard of the show. It more like they heard of me and instantly were interested. I soon learned a little bit about what I was getting involved with and became very excited when I heard pro gamers plus Battlefield. There weren’t many details to go off from, but I was pretty hooked from the start.
Sheriff Earp: How does it feel to win? What did you take from it?
Mrs Violence: It felt extremely good! Not just for myself but for Sev too! Him and I butted heads a few times throughout the series, and had to overcome a lot of emotional and physically demanding times. But overall I was just thrilled to have picked up the game plus the PS3 controller and flat out dominate!! I have taken many things from this experience, but of them is honor. I was honored to be recommended, play the game, come out with respect, and play against one of my favorite faces in E-Sports.
Sheriff Earp: I would like to say thank you on behalf of myself, the Geek Badge Posse, and gamers worldwide. I pray that your success and obsession in gaming doesn’t slow any time. I wish you best of luck in Raleigh. Say hello to all the Quantic team for me. Please keep the bullets flying and the cussing to a maximum. Game ON!
Mrs Violence: Thanks for the interview! It’s always a joy to spread the word of Mrs Violence around! Also, big thanks to Quantic Gaming, Turtle Beach, Kontrol Freek, and the rest of team High and Mighty! Love you guys and wouldn’t be here without you all!
