Tales of the Cryptik
Jan 10, 8:00 am
Wow, I don’t even know where to begin; my life has been an awesome rollercoaster over the past couple of years. Because I have been actively involved in the gaming community both through work and play, some of you may know me already, but for those of you who don’t, I’m very happy to have the opportunity to introduce myself.
My name is Melonie, but of course, known now as Cryptik from the Frag Dolls. Oh man, typing that out definitely brings a huge smile to my face!*ahem* Moving on… let me take this time to rewind a little bit.
I grew up gaming my entire life, and as an Army brat, my family moved every couple of years. Because of that, I didn’t always have a bunch of friends at a time, and I assumed that gaming was pretty much a way of life for everyone. In fact, when I was really young, I remember playing NES with some of the neighbor kids, boys and girls alike, and it appeared to be very common for everyone. It wasn’t until I got a little older that I noticed the other kids found me a bit odd for my gaming habits. Let’s face it, gaming wasn’t viewed as cool back then as it is now, and it especially was uncommon among girls (not so much anymore
). That certainly became an obstacle when trying to relate to my peers, but fortunately enough I always managed to find a couple friends here and there who shared the same awesome hobby I enjoyed so much.
As a kid, I played a lot of well recognized games, such as Mario, Sonic, Mortal Kombat, etc. However, my interest started branching into more diverse genres as I grew a little older and found myself utterly captivated by Command and Conquer, Runescape (which I played every day religiously for the first few years it originally came out), Text-based RPGs, Splinter Cell, as well as many other games. Speaking of Splinter Cell, I have that series to thank for my discovery of the Frag Dolls in the first place.
I remember the first time I saw a commercial for this new, awesome stealth game coming out. It was Splinter Cell. Immediately I was enthralled and absolutely had to get my hands on this sneaky adventure of a game. After becoming addicted to the original Splinter Cell, as well as Pandora Tomorrow and Chaos Theory, I was fascinated with what Double Agent was shaping up to be, and I posted on the Splinter Cell forums regularly while I awaited updates. Also a fan of Prince of Persia and Beyond Good and Evil, I took the time to browse through the other forums from Ubisoft’s website, and it was by chance (more like fate) that I found the Frag Dolls forums. The Frag Dolls – an all-female professional gaming team sponsored by Ubisoft. My mind was blown, and I spent so much time browsing their website, looking at the girls’ profiles, and reading their blogs.
In the spring of 2010, I applied for the Cadette program and made it! It was by far one of the best experiences of my life, and I cannot stress that enough. Meeting the Frag Dolls for the first time was absolutely surreal to me, and my first assignment as a Cadette was to demo Splinter Cell Conviction at PAX East. Was this real life?! I had to question that several times, as I was living a dream that couldn’t possibly have been more awesome even if I made it up myself.
After my Cadette term, I gained experience and insight of the gaming industry and later landed a job at Razer doing PR. It goes without saying, when it comes to gaming peripherals, Razer is the king, and working there was an absolute joy. I got to work with some great people, travel to events, and hone in on my on-camera skills. I learned so much and truly feel like my experience there helped shaped me into the person I am today.
Fast forward to the present – I’m sitting here now writing a blog as Cryptik from the Frag Dolls (there I go again *big smile*), and the reality of it all still has not completely hit me yet. This is my dream, and I made it. My journey getting where I am at now has been such a thrill, and I am so humbled by the experiences I’ve had. It doesn’t stop here, though. I may be a brand new Frag Doll, but I’m pumped and ready to go full speed ahead on doing some great things with this incredible group of girls.
Thank you all for taking the time to read my story. I look forward to getting to know all of you in the community better with game nights, our social media outlets, the forums, and of course events! If you need me, you know where to find me. Catch you on the flip side!
-Cryptik
Metadata - Tales of the Cryptik
Jan 10, 8:00 am
Tales of the Cryptik
Wow, I don’t even know where to begin; my life has been an awesome rollercoaster over the past couple of years. Because I have been actively involved in the gaming community both through work and play, some of you may know me already, but for those of you who don’t, I’m very happy to have the opportunity to introduce myself.
My name is Melonie, but of course, known now as Cryptik from the Frag Dolls. Oh man, typing that out definitely brings a huge smile to my face!*ahem* Moving on… let me take this time to rewind a little bit.
I grew up gaming my entire life, and as an Army brat, my family moved every couple of years. Because of that, I didn’t always have a bunch of friends at a time, and I assumed that gaming was pretty much a way of life for everyone. In fact, when I was really young, I remember playing NES with some of the neighbor kids, boys and girls alike, and it appeared to be very common for everyone. It wasn’t until I got a little older that I noticed the other kids found me a bit odd for my gaming habits. Let’s face it, gaming wasn’t viewed as cool back then as it is now, and it especially was uncommon among girls (not so much anymore
). That certainly became an obstacle when trying to relate to my peers, but fortunately enough I always managed to find a couple friends here and there who shared the same awesome hobby I enjoyed so much. As a kid, I played a lot of well recognized games, such as Mario, Sonic, Mortal Kombat, etc. However, my interest started branching into more diverse genres as I grew a little older and found myself utterly captivated by Command and Conquer, Runescape (which I played every day religiously for the first few years it originally came out), Text-based RPGs, Splinter Cell, as well as many other games. Speaking of Splinter Cell, I have that series to thank for my discovery of the Frag Dolls in the first place.
I remember the first time I saw a commercial for this new, awesome stealth game coming out. It was Splinter Cell. Immediately I was enthralled and absolutely had to get my hands on this sneaky adventure of a game. After becoming addicted to the original Splinter Cell, as well as Pandora Tomorrow and Chaos Theory, I was fascinated with what Double Agent was shaping up to be, and I posted on the Splinter Cell forums regularly while I awaited updates. Also a fan of Prince of Persia and Beyond Good and Evil, I took the time to browse through the other forums from Ubisoft’s website, and it was by chance (more like fate) that I found the Frag Dolls forums. The Frag Dolls – an all-female professional gaming team sponsored by Ubisoft. My mind was blown, and I spent so much time browsing their website, looking at the girls’ profiles, and reading their blogs.
In the spring of 2010, I applied for the Cadette program and made it! It was by far one of the best experiences of my life, and I cannot stress that enough. Meeting the Frag Dolls for the first time was absolutely surreal to me, and my first assignment as a Cadette was to demo Splinter Cell Conviction at PAX East. Was this real life?! I had to question that several times, as I was living a dream that couldn’t possibly have been more awesome even if I made it up myself.
After my Cadette term, I gained experience and insight of the gaming industry and later landed a job at Razer doing PR. It goes without saying, when it comes to gaming peripherals, Razer is the king, and working there was an absolute joy. I got to work with some great people, travel to events, and hone in on my on-camera skills. I learned so much and truly feel like my experience there helped shaped me into the person I am today.
Fast forward to the present – I’m sitting here now writing a blog as Cryptik from the Frag Dolls (there I go again *big smile*), and the reality of it all still has not completely hit me yet. This is my dream, and I made it. My journey getting where I am at now has been such a thrill, and I am so humbled by the experiences I’ve had. It doesn’t stop here, though. I may be a brand new Frag Doll, but I’m pumped and ready to go full speed ahead on doing some great things with this incredible group of girls.
Thank you all for taking the time to read my story. I look forward to getting to know all of you in the community better with game nights, our social media outlets, the forums, and of course events! If you need me, you know where to find me. Catch you on the flip side!
-Cryptik
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