Okay, cue the annoying train whistle annnnnnd... begin! All aboard! Hi there, your friendly Editor in Chief Mike "Australia" Antebi, is about to take you on a journey around the world! The Championship Gaming Series teams have been gathering gamers around the world to compete against each other in wonderful locations, offering tremendous prizes to the winners and of course, uniting gaming. In the past we've been able to see most of the American teams and learn a lot about them which is great! Now, I feel it is time to introduce to you players from around the world. We're going to hop from continent to continent and interview Dead or Alive 4 players and grab some info about how they've started up, what they plan to do, and most importantly who they are! Since "Australia" is what you all know me by, I felt obligated to show a bit of favoritism and start with Australia. Without further adieu, Georgina "Monkeykong" Matthews and Daniel "Berzerk" Chlebowczyk from the Sydney Underground team!

First, tell us a bit about yourselves, where are you from, how long have you been playing and some hobbies other than gaming?

Georgina: Well I’m from Melbourne, Australia. I’ve been playing games since the age of 4 or 5. Street Fighter in the arcades then made the move to home console with the SNES. Still undoubtedly the best console ever. Hobbies, eh? Well my main one would be music. I regularly see live bands and I can also play guitar, bass, drums (not too well) and sing. My strongest interest would be in future developments in architecture and technology.

Daniel: My name is Daniel Chlebowczyk (that’s Polish/Slovak background, but I’m Australian born and bred). I live in Melbourne, Australia.  I’ve been playing video games all my life, since the Atari 2600, through the Commodore 64, Amiga, and the 16-bit consoles through to now.  My favourite gaming platforms were always the Saturn and Dreamcast, a great time for really creative original games, and the arcade.  Console/Arcade gaming is where you find the most immediate, fun types of games. 

In my day-to-day career, I’m an assistant brand manager for a DVD and pop culture company and do a lot of producing, copywriting and marketing, so I see all these kinds of skills as related and benefiting each other – either way, its about pride in your work and getting recognition from the people that enjoy it.

My fighting game background of course goes back to SF2 and Virtua Fighter, leading to DOA. I’ve played DOA for years, since DOA2 in the arcade and Dreamcast, and DOA4 competitively for a couple of years, culminating in winning Australia World Cybergames DOA4 crown and selection in CGS all this year.

Gaming is just one of too many hobbies – I’m a massive film buff and music fan, so I’m always heading out to the cinema or to see a band.  Its summer in Australia now so the festival scene is kicking in and my friends and I are booked pretty solid to see bands like Interpol, Sonic Youth, and others on tour.  My only regret in going to the CGS world finals was I missed Daft Punk’s tour and had to sell my tickets!

Of course I’m a geek at heart so I’m big into comic books, anime and collectibles, but just as comfortable playing sports as going to an art gallery or museum. As a minor Japanophile I went ahead and learned Japanese to an intermediate level. I’m pretty much one of those people that’s hungry for knowledge, so I’m a big reader, follow news and issues, and like to travel and see things.