Archaeology of Tomb Raider: In the Spotlight: Jay W
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| Interviews by Fans | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Archaeology of Tomb Raider: In the Spotlight: Jay W |
| Interviewer: | Kelly M |
| Interviewee: | Jay W |
| Date(s): | February 13, 2014 |
| Medium: | online |
| Fandom(s): | Tomb Raider |
| External Links: | In the Spotlight: Jay W – The Archaeology of Tomb Raider, Archived version |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Archaeology of Tomb Raider: In the Spotlight: Jay W was conducted in 2014.
Some Excerpts
So, tell us a little about yourself.
Hi, I am Jason Walker, or Jay as most call me. I live in London, England. I’ve been working in the games industry 20 years now, starting at Codemasters back in 1994, before starting to work for Eidos in 1998. I’ve held a few positions here and survived quite a few changes in the company. We’re now Square Enix and I am currently the Mastering Manager and Licensing Coordinator. I’m a BAFTA member which means I take my movies (and TV) very seriously. Oh, I am a gamer too, although I don’t get a lot of time to actually ‘game’ even though I work on a lot of them.
What are your thoughts on Lara’s image? Is she simply the product of a sexist gaming industry or can she be seen as a positive role model?
I’ve never looked at Lara as anything other than the heroine in our games. What’s not to admire about someone who after 18 years in existence STILL can hold people’s attention and kick ass in games? Oh and is still seen as the beacon for British gaming? We cannot control who looks at Lara so there will always be a set of people out there who show their disrespect very publicly towards not only Lara but the whole female gaming community. It’s a great shame, but I don’t believe Lara is made for THEM at all. The new rebooted Lara, I believe, goes further to strengthen the image of Lara as someone to look up to.
What about least favourite moments? Is there anything you dislike about the games/films/comics?
Like a lot of people I felt the `family` story in the newer generation of the games was a little too much ‘borrowing’ from the movies. I always felt Lara should be on her own and I liked that. Suddenly, having this mum/dad story attached just made it feel it was no longer a Tomb Raider game but a game about Lara Croft herself.