You play video games like Resident Evil (zombie apocalypse), Silent Hill (surviving in a cursed town), and Days Gone (Post-Apocalyptic survival). If you could be teleported into a video game, to live it for real, which would you choose and why? Could you survive the experience?
That’s a very good and interesting question. Personally, I’m going with Days Gone, which may be considered an unexpected answer, especially with the love and passion I share for Resident Evil and Silent Hill games, but hear me out. Resident Evil is based in Raccoon City and that gets blown to Hell in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, so if I’m there I’ll be dead (unless there’s a chance of escape—potentially steal a vehicle and get out quick?) I think I might have a chance. Silent Hill is a psychological masterpiece of a game, but I truly believe I’d be scared, confused and would not escape. But Days Gone—driving around on a motorbike on the open road, finding food/materials to survive, and the open world with opportunities to grow a community, support one another, etc.— sounds pretty good to me. Within that I think, yes, with the right temperament, I could survive and live a so-called fruitful life.
You took the incredibly brave decision to give up working for someone else to work for yourself by streaming full-time on Twitch (and everything else that goes with it). How difficult was it to take that leap, and what advice would you give someone who is considering pursuing their passion (streaming, writing, etc.) full time?
The leap was considerable, and it was a difficult decision to make. My previous job had changed over the years and become something totally different from what I had signed up for. The people who had the knowledge and experience had left and I was the last remaining person of the old guard (so to speak). Everything had changed, and it got to a point where I despised the role I was in and I needed something new in my life.
I think having a supportive partner helped with the transition as we sat up most nights talking about the “if’s” and “but’s.” Overall, she supported my decision as she believed we would be okay each month from a financial standpoint (house, mortgage, bills etc.). I think as people we always worry about uncertainty and change in our regular day-to-day routines. Going from a somewhat stable job to something such as Twitch was a big risk, but I’m glad I took that leap.
Being self-employed is a total change; doing your own taxes, managing your own workload and expectations is not that easy. Yes, it sounds great working for yourself, but taking time off on the flip side means no income. So, I see positives and negatives in both sides of being employed by someone else and self-employed. Ultimately, though, I enjoy what I do. Yes, it’s hard work, but it’s in my hands, I choose my own fate, rather than leaving it in the hands of the people in the managerial spiral above me. I don’t have to deal with being told what to do, or complaints, etc., either.
To anyone considering pursuing their passion into streaming I’d say: work hard, be consistent for your community, be transparent, be informative, and be kind—fundamental traits, in my opinion. Luck is, of course, a factor to be considered, too; I was very fortunate in my growth due to the pandemic. Would I have been a full-time streamer without it? I’m not so sure. So, luck is a factor, and, despite how devastating the pandemic was for the world, it ended up being a blessing in disguise for my streaming career, as more people were at home watching Twitch.
The biggest piece of advice I’d give, though, is never give up on your dreams. I started Twitch with nothing more than the hope I’d make a few new friends whilst playing some awesome games. I never thought I’d be where I am today. So, stay strong, work hard, and push hard if you want to make it as a fulltime streamer. Finally, only take that leap into fulltime if you’re certain you can achieve financial security each month. Remember, no matter which profession you’re in, no job is truly safe, and Twitch is no different.
I’d like to thank Matt for taking the time out of his busy streaming schedule to talk to me today. You can buy a copy of The Brumology from Amazon by clicking on the button below. Alternatively, if you’re attending the Author City booksigning event on Saturday 15th July, you can pre-order a copy at a reduced price. The pre-order form for this is linked below, as well as the Eventbrite page to purchase your £5 ticket. I will be at the event signing Bow Street Society books, so, I hope to see you there!
~ T.G. Campbell,June 2023
Above: MattRPD in
his stream room at home
© MattRPD
THE BRUMOLOGY & MATTRPD:
An Interview
Could you explain ‘Speed running’ to those who’ve never heard of it before, and why you do it?
In a speed run, gamers set out to complete a video game in the shortest amount of time possible. This is done by planning routes, shortcuts and in some categories exploiting and or breaking the game to achieve the object of finishing the game as fast as possible. I started speed running after 6 months of streaming on Twitch, as initially I was offering purely variety, casual gameplay. This changed, however, when I watched my friend Tom (Tompano) speed running Resident Evil 2 (Remake), and from then on I got involved, started to enjoy it from a competitive standpoint, and started to succeed on Twitch from a community growth aspect. I speed run because 1) it’s fun, 2) it’s competitive, and finally, 3) there is a large community spirit/foundation built up of speed runners who enjoy helping each other achieve their goals. Oh, and don’t forget what we’ve achieved for charity; £20K raised from my channel, and Resident Evil (RE) Marathon channels, alone. So, there is a lot of good to come from it, too.
Above: Detective Inspector Donahue as drawn by regular Bow Street Society artist Peter Spells
https://www.peterspells.co.uk/
© T.G. Campbell
The Bow Street Society make their second short story anthology outing in The Case of the Contradictory Corpse in The Brumology: The Author City Birmingham Anthology sold in aid of charity. In it, Society clerk Miss Rebecca Trent travels to Birmingham at the invitation of a potential new client. Revelations galore follow, including a tense meeting between some Bow Street Society members and Detective Inspector Matthew Rupert Peter Donahue of the City of Birmingham Police. Donahue and the basic premise at the heart of the story’s mystery were partially inspired by a very good friend of mine and his content, streamer MattRPD (the RPD stands for Raccoon Police Department from the Resident Evil video game series). I had a chat with Matt about his work, the Brumology, and much more.
I started by asking him to say a bit about himself and what he does.
I’m Matt, I’m 34, and I was born and raised in the small town of Walsall, situated in the West Midlands, UK. Growing up, I was always a bit of an oddball; kind of quirky, pretty much random in thought and mind. I had a love and passion for computer games starting at the very young age of 3. My mom, as with so many other parents at that time, was very busy with other commitments—work and so forth—and for that I was often left with my Nan and Granddad. They appreciated my love for computer games as they were gamers themselves. I’m a fulltime content creator. In short: I play games and entertain a wonderful community on the “Twitch” website.
The character of Detective Inspector Matthew Rupert Peter Donahue (MattRPD) in the Bow Street Society short story, The Case of the Contradictory Corpse, is loosely based on you. What do you think about being immortalised in a piece of crime fiction? Would you like to see Inspector Donahue become a permanent fixture in the Bow Street Society universe?
Firstly, it’s an absolute privilege and honour to have a character in a book, not in my wildest dreams would I have thought this would ever happen to me. It’s a surreal moment and so for that I thank you. The Ripper is a great character with some hilarious lines that made me spit out my tea at first glance “Calm down, Barry” which is a reference I personally use a lot on my Twitch channel. I think Inspector Donahue has a lot of potential in the Bow Street Society universe to be a permanent fixture, I’d love to find out the history of the Ripper and why he likes violence so much? Did he have a bad upbringing? What made him so infamous and feared? I’d love to hear more of his backstory and how he can be incorporated into future stories, as I really enjoyed his brief introduction into The Case of the Contradictory Corpse.
Bow Street Society logo artwork by Heather Curtis: mouseink@gmail.com
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