August 2009 CE United presents: 20 Questions with DeepCee " Get to know the guy inside the Spartan armor as well behind the artist behind the Chronicles of ODS Steve Halo web comic.
For those of you who do not know who DeepCee is he is the guy behind Chronicles of ODS Steve Halo web comic here is a link to the latest Ep for August 26th. http://hawtymcbloggy.com/2009/08/26/chronicles-of-ods-steve-return-of-the-mhack-39/
So without delay lets get the the 20 questions interview for August shall we.
Question 1:
You posted an image on Hawty Mcbloggy’s forum on Oct 15th 2008, here is the link to that post http://www.hawtymcforums.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=840&p=8282#p8282
Did you always intend to make ODS Steve a web comic, did you ever think when you made that image you would be doing a weekly Halo web comic and making people laugh?
DeepCee:
That image brings back a lot of memories. I had no plans to make a webcomic initially. It was just something I came up with for fun after a conversation with a friend of mine about how we both miss Mister Chief. Decided to post Steve on HBO and on the HawtyMcBloggy forums to share with the community. Someone suggested they would like to see weekly Steve and that's where I got the idea. Hopefully I can still make people laugh in future episodes too.
My Response:
It’s always nice when things you make or do take on a life of their own. Especially something you just made for fun, and now look at Steve he is making people laugh on a weekly basis.
Question 2:
How did you decide on the name ODS Steve. When I first time I saw the Chronicles of ODS Steve I thought it should be ODSTeve, to me I think ODSTeve sounds and looks better. Just a thought, now I don’t care what you call it, Chronicles of ODS Steve makes me laugh every time. Also why the name Steve? I personally like that name seeing how it’s my real name.
DeepCee:
The inspiration was Mister Chief. I liked how Mister Chief sounds similar to Master Chief. I wanted to come up with something similar. ODS Steve is a play on the letters ODST. If you say ODS Steve fast it sounds like your saying ODST. A lot of people thought his name was OD Steve when I first introduced him. I just thought ODS Steve flowed better. Now I just call him Steve though. I think I came up with three other names but cannot remember any of them right now.
My Response:
I think we all miss Frankie’s random Mister Chief drawings at the end of the Bungie Weekly Updates. Well I think Steve fits him well, way better then seeing him called ODS Stan or something else.
Question 3:
How long does it take you to make 1 comic strip, I mean I know they get posted every week on Hawty’s site. Could you give us a rough time it takes you to go from an idea for that week to completion of that weeks comic.
DeepCee:
It's easier some weeks than others. Usually I have an idea and start working on the comic and have it done in about 15 or 20 minutes. But after that I end up just going over it a couple of times to see if I could improve it in any way or if I made any mistakes
My Response:
I wish I could say the same thing for these interviews I wish it took me 15 to 20 minutes to come up with these questions. If I did that I don’t think these interviews would be that good.
Question 4:
Are the Chronicles of ODS Steve planned out, do you know what’s going to happen in the comic a month from now or do you just wing it as you go along?
DeepCee:
When I started out I had an idea of where I was taking the comic. I made sure I had enough ideas for a good start. I think I had ideas for about 10 or 11 episodes but I noticed as I was drawing them every week that I just kept getting ideas midweek and kept adding episodes. Two months later I realized I still had some of the original ideas I had written down. Let me give you an example. Right now I have a plan as to where the squad is headed and what will happen once they get there but anything can happen on their way there. I tend to go with the flow most of the times.
My Response:
Cool, ya originally these 20 question interviews were not going to have 20 questions. It’s amazing how things end up. As for the Chronicles of ODS Steve I can’t wait for each new one.
Question 5:
Have you read any other Halo web comics at all? There seems to be a few others out there?
DeepCee:
Definitely. I started with One One Se7en. One of my favorite Halo comics. Had a lot of catching up to do as I was relatively late to the party. Halo Heads, Another Halo Comic Strip and Larry The Marine were all comics I checked regularly. It's just too bad they don't come out as regularly as they used to. Reclaimer is another one I follow. I haven't followed the story lately though so I need to catch up.
My Response:
I have read Reclaimer a few times; I didn’t really get into it. Those Halo comics that use in game screen shots are cool looking but I just haven’t got into too many web comics. I have not heard of Halo Heads or Larry The Marine yet. Although I did see One One Se7en before I just didn’t know that is what it was called. The funny thing is CE United almost started a Halo web comic, I think the name was going to be called Combat Evolved Comic of CE comics. I’m not going to give away what the idea was because later down the road I may come back to the comic idea and start it up. That is if I can ever improve my paint skills on the computer.
Question 6:
Since you are creating Halo fan fiction have you read any or all of the Halo book? Also have you read the Halo graphic novels?
DeepCee:
I have read a few of the Halo books. Fall of Reach, Flood,First Strike and Ghosts of Onyx are part of my collection. I have not read Contact Harvest or Cole Protocol yet. I have read the Graphic novel and I loved it. I'm looking forward to the new novels that have been announced that should reveal more about the Forerunners.
My Response:
I recently just finished Contact Harvest and The Cole Protocol. Both really great books, I liked Contact Harvest a little more but I finished The Cole Protocol faster. I have not read the Graphic novel but my brother gave me the art work book from the novel.
Question 7:
Are you looking forward to Halo anime “Halo: Legends”?
DeepCee:
Absolutely. I noticed the majority of the community is a little apprehensive about Halo : Legends but I am definitely looking forward to it. Especially since I found out who was involved. Appleseed and Ghost in The Shell are one of my favorite anime's and my interest was only elevated when I found out the men responsible for that were working on Halo: Legends.
My Response:
I’m not a big anime fan, but if Halo: Legends is anything like the Halo Wars cut scenes I think it will be enjoyable to watch.
Question 8:
I have to ask in OSD Steve #21 how did Steve get the needler to shoot at the map to stick it to the wall? Not to mention a needler doesn’t seem like Steve’s style, I think he should have tossed a few Plasma grenades to the wall.
DeepCee:
I remember that episode well. It was one of those ideas that just popped into my head. Well I'm sure in a big city like Mombasa the squad was bound to find a couple of Covenant weapons lying around. Steve just decided to use the needler for a very different purpose :)
My Response:
Makes sense someone else might have just tossed a sticky grenade leave it to Steve to think outside the box.
Question 9:
Where do you get your inspirations for the Chronicles of ODS Steve, like when Sarge painted Jim pink to tell him apart from his twin. Or having Steve duel wield Spartan Lasers and have him take down a whole bunch of people.
DeepCee:
Like I said earlier, sometimes the ideas just pop into my head. The character of Jim is actually based on a friend of mine, Jim028 from HawtyMcbloggy. So I put in people I have met through Halo in the comic too. Steve dual wielding Spartan Lasers is just something that Steve would do. Attempt the impossible.
My Response:
When I first saw Steve duel wielding those Spartan Lasers it made me think of Goldeneye for the N64, where you could duel wield any gun in the game. Including the Rocket Launcher or Grenade Launcher.
Question 10:
That being said, I’m waiting to see when the yellow elite that Steve shot down make another appearance in the comic. Will we see him again soon?
DeepCee:
Oh you will see him soon. Possibly by the time this interview is out.
My Response:
There you have it folks DeepCee can predict the future, just look at Chronicles of ODS Steve Ep #39
Question 11:
If I remember correctly one of the prizes for the Fairfax fundraiser was an appearance in one of the Chronicles of ODS Steve. Will we see that individual any time soon, or have they already been in the comic and I missed it.
DeepCee:
No, you have not missed her. You will be seeing her character introduced soon. That's right! You heard it here first, a new female character will be introduced in The Chronicles of ODS Steve.
My Response:
Pretty cool, I’ll be keeping my eye out for that new character.
Question 12:
I love the Pac-man reference in the Chronicles of ODS Steve #18. Have you played a lot of Pac-man, does that game play a part in your gaming history?
DeepCee:
I remember playing it for hours on my Atari2600. It's like a right of passage. Everyone has played Pac-Man. You could say it was one of the games I grew up with.
My Response:
I think I’ve actually played a lot more MS. Pac-Man then I have Pac-Man. It seems like every laundry mat I go to has MS. Pac-Man.
Question 13:
What is your favorite Halo weapon of all time as well as your favorite Halo 3 map?
DeepCee:
I love any game on Avalanche. It's one of my favorite maps. Valhalla comes a close second. Favorite Halo weapon though...Hmm that's a tough one. I honestly don't have a favorite’s tend to stick with the Battle Rifle. I do love the feel of the shotgun and dual wielding Maulers though.
My Response:
Good choice you can’t go wrong with Avalanche, I only like Valhalla when all the vehicles are on like the Banshee and Wrath, and it just isn’t that fun with just hogs. Lol so you are one of the many people who I would die to because I get blasted in the face with a shotgun.
Question 14:
If you could change anything in the Halo games what would it be?
DeepCee:
The only thing that has bothered me about the Halo games would be the animation when the player character is walking up a slope or stairs. If I could change something then that would be it.
My Response:
Interesting everyone has there little things in Halo that bug them, I have never really noticed that too much. My biggest thing I wish I could change would be when you are playing a CTF or Bomb match. When the bomb is on the ground next to a lot of dropped weapons I wish you could set it so you only pick up the objective and not a random weapon. I have won and lost so many games because of that happening to me.
I’m hoping if I say this enough Bungie will take a look at this and play around with the idea.
Seeing as how Bungie sort of already asked my favorite question when they Average Joed DeepCee, I had to rethink my question about his gaming history. So I just made up a new question.
Question 15:
Aside from all the glitches and no online play, which is your favorite Halo game ever
DeepCee:
It all started with Halo : Combat Evolved so it has to be that. That is the game that got me hooked to the series and there were plenty of moments in Halo3 that brought back memories of Halo :CE.
My Response:
I would also have to say Halo: Combat Evolved for so many reasons, one of which is it is the game that started it all. It got us all playing the same game and moving on to Halo 2 and 3 and eventually getting to meet some interesting people along the way. Also I say Halo CE because without Halo I wouldn’t be best friends with my 2 best friends right now.
Question 16:
You said in your Average Joe interview you visit HBO, and you post a lot on Hawty’s site and you like Ascendant Justice. Since the Average Joe thing do you visit any other Halo sites now or do you still stick with those?
Also if you like Ascendant Justice, they will be interviewed in a Halo podcast called The Running Riot on August 18th. It’s live and the host who we interviewed does the podcast LIVE in game inside Halo 3, it is really interesting. If you haven’t heard of The Running Riot you should check it out it is a very interesting podcast to listen to and watch.
DeepCee:
I have dropped by Halocharts a few times. It has been a while since I checked Ascendant Justice too. I just love the thought behind all their articles and the in depth research for everything they do. But HBO and HawtyMcbloggy are still my regular haunts.
My Response:
Gotcha ya I visit a lot of Halo site, but there are so many if I visited anymore then I currently do I would have no free time what so ever.
Question 17:
What is your favorite thing about the Halo community?
DeepCee:
How the community comes together for a good cause or to raise awareness about an issue. All the awesome community creations that you hear about everyday. The machinima,comics, articles, fan sites. Just everything. I have met so many awesome people all because we share a common interest. Like I said in my average Joe interview on Bungie, it's a melting pot of awesome !
My Response:
I would have to agree with you on that, it is the great thing about this or any online community we ban together for the same interest. Ours just seems to be one of the bigger ones out there. Yet even though we are a huge community a lot of names go un-noticed.
Question 18:
We will see any other main Halo characters make an appearance in the Chronicles of ODS Steve. Seeing a how we have already seen Dare (with purple helmet) and the Superintendent
DeepCee:
A lot of people were confused about who that exactly was wearing the Recon helmet. It's not Dare. That is BS Angel from HawtyMcbloggy. I told you I put some of my friends in the comic too. I figured she would fit in perfectly as the special ONI operative assigned to Delta Squad. How did she get the Recon helmet? Well she stole Dare's helmet and spray painted it purple. You should check out episode #34 again.
Do I have plans to introduce any of the other main characters? You never know :)
My Response:
Ahh now I see, that is the great thing about comics they are open to interpretation a bit, I guess I should have read the comments on that one, I just thought someone just sprayed her helmet. I can’t wait to see what other Halo characters you decide to put in.
Question 19:
So you got your start in Halo by playing it for PC, as someone who never played Halo on PC, which one is better Halo: CE on the PC or Halo: CE on the original Xbox?
DeepCee:
I've actually never played Halo:CE on the original Xbox. I went from Halo on the PC to Halo2 on the Xbox. So I would really have no idea. I guess Halo PC has a lot more custom content created for it and you have a dedicated group working on mods for Halo PC even today.
My Response:
Hmm I must have misread that then, Halo did revolutionize FPS games on consoles, it was nice to finally have a new game that you could run around in and shoot rockets at your friends.
Question 20:
Is there anything you would like your fans to know? Or maybe give them a little sneak peak of what’s to come, or maybe a tease to get them wondering what’s next?
DeepCee:
I'm still surprised how many people enjoy the adventures of Steve every week and I just love drawing them. I don't plan on stopping after I hit a certain number of episodes so you can expect to see Steve for a long time to come. I'm not sure where his adventures will take him and the squad but I can tell you this, expect to see unexpected alliances :) . Once again I'd like to thank the fans and thank you Willy for this interview.
My Response:
Thanks DeepCee, it was fun getting caught up on Chronicles of ODS Steve I look forward to reading each new episode, and there you have it looks like we will be seeing a lot more adventures with Steve in the future.
I hope you all enjoyed the interview for August I would like to again thank DeepCee for letting me interview him, you should defiantly check out Chronicles of ODS Steve. They are really funny not to mention it may get you pumped for Halo 3: ODST seeing how it has ODST troops in it.
Here is a link to all of the Chronicles of ODS Steve episodes so you can get caught up on them.
http://hawtymcbloggy.com/tag/ods-steve/
As for the 20 questions interview for September I don’t have someone to interview just yet but I will find one, so expect another 20 questions interview sometime in September.
Long live CE United.
-Willy-