Creatures Caves | Community

An interview with Ashley Harman (Frimlin) by HomeCreatures.

Ashley Harman
Full Name: Ashley Richard The Third Bobby Jones John Harman (though my birth name was Robert Daniel Nicol!)
Personal Quote: "Time will tell."
Known as Frimlin.

HC: What did you do before CyberLife?
Ashley: My first job was at McDonalds, then at my birthmother's Accounting Firm, then at an Accounting Software Company! So there's been a steady upwards progression thing going on there ;-)

HC: How did you get involved with them?
Ashley: I started exchanging emails with them around three years ago, then early this year (1999) I sent them some subtle queries as to whether there was a possibility of employment here *SMILE* Obviously I wasn't subtle enough!!! *GRIN*

HC: Had you heard of or played Creatures or other A-Life game before you joined, thoughts?
Ashley: Oh yes! My first a-life experiences were SimEarth and SimLife.. and other similar games on the series of Amigas I had *SMILE* Then when I saw an ad for Creatures back in third quarter 1996 I thought - "hmm that sounds like a game for me!" and look where that got me eh? That'll teach me for paying any attention to adverts! *GRIN*

HC: What was your first day at CyberLife like?
Ashley: Well silly me had been drinking a tad too much beer the night before, so my first day was gruelling.. *GRIN* I spent my first day doing simple things like reformatting my Gelsemium Vendor COB to cope with Creatures 3 CAOS syntax.

HC: Can you describe a typical day in your life?
Ashley: Get out of bed, shower, walk to work, yawn, get a can of coke, drink it, yawn, tap away at my keyboard, yawn, have a pub lunch, yawn, tap some more at my keyboard, walk home, yawn, have a bite to eat.. and just 5 minutes before going to bed I finally wake up :-)

HC: Where do you see yourself in three years time, and where do you see CyberLife?
Ashley: Ask a tough question, why don't you! Ok maybe I shouldn't tempt fate! *SMILE* Well, I see CyberLife moving to a larger office, or expanding into some of the other offices in the Quayside building - and I see myself expanding too, but no, not my waist - so I forbid you to pass any comments here! *GRIN*

HC: Is there a member of the team who has a habit that really annoys you that you would like to get of your chest?
Ashley: Yes, I really hate it how near the end of the week people ask me if I want to go to the pub after work, I mean, don't they realise I don't know how to say NO to such a question? *GRIN*

HC: What is your life ambition and why?
Ashley: Well, that's a toughie too. I enjoy writing so much that I can't see it not becoming a major part of my life sometime. At the moment I'm just taking everything as it comes and adjusting my ambitions as need be. I have set an internal alarm for when I turn 25 which will alert me that if I haven't already, I must start doing some writing for publishing. Anyhow, as I always say, time will tell. *GRIN*

HC: Using one sentence can you describe yourself?
Ashley: No *SMILE*

HC: Good, cause we dont want you to- ha! But do you have any interesting Norn stories?
Ashley: Yes *GRIN* but I won't bore you with them now! Or maybe I will... okay, okay, I won't!

HC: Oh shut up

If there was anywhere in the Creatures universe (Albia & Ark) you could go where would it be, and why?
Ashley: I'd like to go to the Shee's new home planet and take a look around. I've always been compelled by alien worlds, probably because I originally came from one *GRIN*

HC: If you had to be a breed of Norn, Grendel or an Ettin which would you be and why?
Ashley: I would be one of my C2 Tree Norns, they look really good, but still need a lot of work, and probably will never be completed *BIG grin* Who would want to be completed? *SMILE*

HC: Has having a community status before you came helped you fit into CL?
Ashley: I guess so. Well I've had a few people say "So you're Frimlin, are you?" - and a few people realise that I've probably played the Creatures games a thousand times longer than they have, so I must actually have some valid ideas on the product *GRIN* It must be a great deal more handy to have my background knowledge on the product, rather than coming in and not knowing anything about it. But it also gives me a sense of responsibility, like I still have to think about all my Creatures Community friends - and wonder what they would want to see. I think that makes it somewhat harder for me than for someone who has never been in the Community before and knows nothing of the Creatures product.

HC: ASH HARMAN JUSTIFY YOUR EXSISTANCE
Ashley: Justify my existence?

HC: Yup, go on!
Ashley: Surely just the fact that I exist justifies itself?

HC: Er..well I guess, but ...
Ashley: My mother was a sixteen year old girl at the time of my birth, she could have aborted me - but no, I persisted - justify that!

HC: Well,
Ashley: I lived through depression in my early teenage years, I could have killed myself - but no, I persisted - justify that!

HC: No but I mean...
Ashley: I lived through playing Creatures *GRIN*, I could have played Quake *FROWN* - but no, I persisted with Creatures - justify that!

HC: Ok ok! Enough!
Ashley: Sorry. I get very hyperactive at times *TWITCH*

HC: I think now its a good time to end the interview, so your final say to the community....?
Ashley: Well, not my final say! There's no way that the Community has seen the last of me *GRIN* I suppose one thing I'd like to say is: I'm still Frimlin, I'm still me - just a human like everyone else that works here at CyberLife! Just because I've crossed over into the "darkside" as I have seen it mentioned on alt.games.creatures, doesn't mean that I'm not still going to be flitting about in the "lightside" - I guess that means that I will have to be a changing shade of grey *GRIN*

Thanks for the interview, Ashley! :-)

An interview with HomeCreatures.