Well last week a new website called www.vurp.com launched and us here at retracon decided to ask one of the creators Matt Burgess.
Retracon:Name and occupation please?
Matt: Matt Burgess. Erotic Dancer and some-time gigolo. (Also a web application programmer.)
Retracon: First off lets ask, what is VURP and what does VURP stand for?
Matt: Vurp stands for Videogame Upcoming Release Program/Page. There is some conflict about that. Yug claims it should be program because it’s not a “page”. My argument is that it’s not a program either. Stick with program, I guess, as it has a wider range of meanings, one of which is probably near enough.
The other bit of your question is in that, really. Vurp is a listing of upcoming release dates for all games for Australia. The release dates and other info are updated by the publishers directly making them the most up-to-date possible. Also, the site features RSS basically flying from every orifice, so these are able to be pulled in and used on other websites to make updating easier.
Retracon: How did Vurp start?
Matt: Actually, funny enough that’s a secret. Vurp is in fact a side project from another project we’re working on that will be out soon. It comes as a process of much bickering between Yug and myself and we decided to make a dedicated site for it, because the information is notoriously hard to get and keep updated.
Retracon: Where do you see VURP in 3 years from now?
Matt: Purchased for phenomonal sums of money by NewsLimited, easily enough for me to buy a waterfront mansion in Spain and pay a hitman to visit Yug. Plan B is that we’d like to see Vurp becoming the central point for a lot of video games data, possibly even interfacing directly with retailers, etc, to provide THEM release dates. Three years is a long time, though, in this industry, so it’s not really that relevant.
Retracon: You also run another site with Guy Blomberg called australian gamer, how different was it to work on VURP than australian gamer?
Matt: So different. AustralianGamer was started years ago and was pretty simple. It was never built to do what it does now. Podcasts, forums, etc. Hell, when it was built there was no expectation there would ever be anyone writing but Yug and myself. It’s been upgraded, improved, hacked and changed. Vurp, on the other hand, was built from the ground up to a specific plan and a much higher level of technical standard. It was also built to be flexible and expandable, so we can add new features easily.
That was a very boring answer, so I shall use the word “norgs” now randomly.
Retracon: OK unreleated to VURP but I’ll like to congrats you on nearly making to the 100th episode of the australian gamer friday night podcast, did you ever think it would last so many episodes?
Matt: Honestly never really thought about it. You don’t go into something like that thinking about the end, or the 100th, or any milestone. You just do it one step after another and before you know it, hey, 100! That being said, while it’s 100th and all, that’s fairly meaningless in the grand scheme of things. There’s a 101st after it, for example. It’s just a pretty number.
Retracon: Was there an episode of a podcast that became your fave episode?
Matt: Any of the ones where I sound brilliant and Yug makes an ass of himself. Hang on, I should narrow it down some? Some of the earlier ones where Yug was REALLY drunk and belligerent and I had to keep things focused, they actually went pretty well. I must admit, there was a recent one where I was very drunk and Yug wasn’t. I liked that for three reasons. One is that it was different, and I think variety is important. Another is that opinion was really divided on it. Some people loved it and some hated it. I actually really like that. Conflict and controversy is far more fun than making people happy. The third reason is that it really annoyed Yug, and that’s like a hobby of mine.
Retracon: What is your fave video game for now?
Matt: Favourite of all time, or current? All time I’d go with Deus Ex, with Final Fantasy 7 a short step behind it, but I don’t think that’s what you asked. Currently, I think Portal. The concept, execution, and most of all the writing of it are exceptional. Good writing is rare. The only criticism you can give it is that it’s too short, but I’m Ok with that. I’m trying to learn ADHD at the moment, so the short span of Portal was a boost. Seriously, though, I just don’t have time to play 20 - 30 hour games. Work on AG and its associated “stuff” takes up too much time. Flatly contradicting what I just said, I also play a bit of World of Warcraft. Say what you like about the MMORPG genre, WoW is a well made game.
Retracon: Thank you for giving me permission to interview you, do you have any advice for our readers?
Matt: The “medicine cabinet” is where mummy and daddy keep the best lollies. They just don’t want to share them with you.
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Make sure you check out www.vurp.com & www.australiangamer.com .
retro out
Sam.a
