Meet the ZI Staff: Theodore “Tpaul” Homdrom

Posted on February 03 2015 by Theodore Homdrom

Hello everyone! My name is Tpaul Homdrom, though you may see above that my username is Theodore Homdrom. That’s because my full name is Theodore Paul Stewart Homdrom, and with lots of Theodores and Pauls in my family, T.Paul (which I eventually started spelling as just “Tpaul”… for some reason…) has been my name since before I could talk. So if you see a “Tpaul Homdrom” elsewhere on the interwebs, that’s almost definitely me. Also that conundrum of naming means I have tons of nicknames. Heck, in the ZI Staff chat alone I’m called “Teddy,” “Theo,” “Theodore,” “Paul,” and “Tpaul.” It’s a mess, but I love it. Okay! Let’s get into the whole “meet the Tpaul” thing. Wait, that’s not what it’s called…

My Gaming History

I freaking love Nintendo. My earliest gaming memories are of Nintendo. I have an older sister and younger brother, each within two years of me, and so we grew up playing the same video games. Our Game Boy Pockets (anyone remember those?) were the go-to gaming device, and two games made an instant impression on me: Pokémon Red and Link’s Awakening.

I still have incredibly fond memories of my brother, sister, and I sitting on the floor in the living room starting our very first Pokemon adventure, picking our starters and being amazed at all the different creatures we found in the Kanto region.

Link’s Awakening introduced me to the joys of playing as a kid in green named “Zelda” (yeah, I was one of those kids…), running around, slaying monsters, solving puzzles, and embarking on a grand adventure.

Enter the Nintendo 64, and a host of truly amazing video games. Our first home console in the family was the Nintendo 64, and one thing I remember oh so fondly about growing up is that my siblings and I all took turns (we played almost entirely single-player games, save for the amazing Diddy Kong Racing and Snowboard Kids), and when one of us was playing, the other two would usually watch. It was a team effort beating almost every game we played, taking turns on different save files, and working through puzzles together with whoever was watching us play.

The Nintendo 64 also began my true love of the Zelda series, with the release of Ocarina of Time. This was the first Zelda game I beat, and to date, including the 3DS remake, I’ve beaten the game over twenty times. I’m not bragging – I’m just emphasizing how much I love the game, and how I feel that, even though some of the mechanics are slightly dated today, it retains its magic and is still a truly stellar video game.

While I skipped over the Wii, and missed both of the DS Zelda titles, when I finally got around to purchasing a 3DS at the end of 2013 and a Wii U January of 2014, I got the Wind Waker edition Wii U, as well as Ocarina of Time 3D, A Link Between Worlds, and Skyward Sword. Yep, four Zelda games bought in the span of two months. Believe me, it was completely worth it.

All this passion for Zelda brought my attention to Zelda Informer. I followed the website for months, commenting a lot and loving how I could so easily stay up to date on Zelda news. The different features and editorials also were so much fun to read, because they were written by people as completely nuts about the series as I am! When there was finally a call for writers for the website, I had to apply. I love writing, and I love Zelda games. How could I pass up this opportunity?

I haven’t been disappointed writing here. The entire staff rocks, and I get to write about all things Zelda! It’s just about a dream come true.

Why Do I love Zelda?

The adventure. I just love the sense of going on a grand adventure, fighting bad guys, solving puzzles, exploring the world and finding treasure, it’s all just so wonderful and exciting! It’s literally a dream come true, a dream since I was a kid (and I’m still a kid at heart, so I guess you could say it’s still me dream).

Also, Link is my favorite character in all of video games. He’s courageous, heroic, and altogether good. He inspires me to be better, to be braver, to care about others and look out for those around me. The Zelda games that focus on the conflict between good and evil are some of my favorites, because that’s how I like my stories: good vs. evil, good wins, yay! I don’t get the recent trend of pushing for darker themes in gaming, for anti-heroes and grey moralities. I don’t get it and I don’t like it. I want to be a hero in real life in whatever small way I can, and in video games, I want to play as the hero. Heroes are amazing.

And then there’s just the overall gaming experience. The Zelda games age so well, their gameplay is brilliant. Fighting, pushing blocks, hitting switches, using items, exploring the land, is all so well done and polished to a golden sheen. The Zelda games are shining examples of excellent game design and proper testing and polish, and deserve every award and high score thrown their way.

Going beyond that, the music in these games is so perfect, in nearly every single game. Each theme fits its area so well, sets the mood so perfectly. The worlds you get to explore are stunning, vast, and full of wonder and secrets to discover. I just gush over these games, every time I play them. They’re just so good, so fun, so imaginative and adventurous and they make my heart soar.

My Favorites!

It’s list time! I’ve got quick bullet points coming your way of favorites from Zelda games, as well as a few non-Zelda related favorites at the end.

Favorite Zelda game: Skyward Sword
Favorite Zelda dungeon: Skyward Sword’s Sandship
Favorite Zelda item: Roc’s Feather
Favorite Zelda boss: Evil Eagle
Favorite Zelda mini-boss: Scervo/Dreadfuse
Favorite Zelda sword that isn’t the Master Sword: Razor Sword (if it wasn’t breakable, I wouldn’t even upgrade to the Gilded Sword)
Favorite Zelda enemy: Ocarina of Time’s Stalfos
Favorite Zelda side character: Colin from Twilight Princess
Favorite Zelda song: Skyward Sword’s “Skyloft Theme”
Favorite Zelda overworld: Skyloft
Favorite Zelda companion character: King of Red Lions
First Zelda game played: Link’s Awakening
First Zelda game beaten: Ocarina of Time
Most recent Zelda game played: Oracle of Seasons (just started playing it for the first time ever!)
Most recent Zelda game beaten: Ocarina of Time 3D
Favorite non-Zelda video game series: Fire Emblem, Harvest Moon, Pokémon
Favorite Pokémon: Bulbasaur
Favorite character to use in Mario Kart: Daisy
Smash Bros. main besides Link: Pit
Favorite movie: I can’t decide! Pretty much anything Disney or Marvel
Favorite book series: The Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan

Me Beyond Gaming (Sort of)

Now I’m going to branch off from Zelda talk and let you know a little bit about myself beyond my borderline obsessive love of everything Nintendo – especially Zelda.

Beyond video games, I love writing. I’ve been spinning tales since before I could write them down, and writing stories all my life. I’ve been reading fantasy novels since I knew how to read, and this love of reading and writing has me currently writing a fantasy novel of my own, which I hope to have published this year.

I’m also a personal trainer working at a local gym in Richmond, IN, where I live. Because I just can’t stop myself from writing, I also have a fitness, nutrition, and general health related blog that I update twice a week.

I also play guitar and sing, and am a worship leader at my church. I know – my interests are all over the place! Music, writing, fitness, video games… thing is, I suspect many of you are the same.

Back to video games, I recently got a capture device and am so excited to finally start doing video game related content on YouTube! I know, as if I wasn’t already doing so many different things, right? I started a Let’s Play channel on YouTube, and have some other cool game-related YouTube stuff planned for this year beyond that.

Will Someone Shut Him Up Already?

Well, I’ve been all over the place here, but I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this, and if you’ve read every single word up to this point, then you’re my best friend (and also, thanks). If you’ve enjoyed getting to know more about me, let me know in the comments below! If you want to know even more (really?) about me, then ask me a question in the comments, or send me a private message (assuming that system works… I’ve never actually tried it on ZI).

And hey, let me know a bit about yourself! What’s your favorite Zelda game? What was your first game in the series? Do you like what I’ve been writing on ZI so far? Is there anything you’d like me to write about in the future? Or do you just wish I’d go away? Let me know down below! I read every single comment on my articles, and respond whenever I have something worth saying.

Thanks again for reading! You guys are awesome!

If you want to watch me play video games and make a fool out of myself, check out my Let’s Play Channel: Tadpole Superhero.

And if you want to read some stuff I wrote, check out two of my favorites:

Want to know my top 20 video games of all time? Because for some reason I wrote a journal about it over at Gamnesia! Check it out right here: My Top 20 Favorite Games of All Time.

(Okay I promise I’m done. To the comments section with you!)

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