An Interview with ScrewAttack’s Stuttering Craig

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I sat down with ScrewAttack‘s Stuttering Craig!

Blabbering Collector: What made you want to create Screwattack?

Craig:

BC: Where did the name “ScrewAttack” originate?

C: Screw Attack is a power-up in a game called Metroid. It is one of my favorite games, and Screw Attack is one of the most powerful power-ups in the game. We originally didn’t want the name; it was kinda like a byproduct of searching for domains. I remember searching for names, but we wanted it to be a power-up that was the strongest in a game. Initially, we were looking at Red Ring, which was a reference to Zelda at the time, because, in Zelda, you get a White Ring, which makes you a little [beefier], but then you get a Red Ring, which is the ultimate armor form in the game. If we had gotten RedRing.com during the Xbox 360 era, the consoles would bug out, and it would be called “red ring.” So, it was interesting because instead of a green power-up, it would be a red ring! It’s just kinda how things worked out!

When we thought of ScrewAttack, we were like, “Surely that’s taken.” So we looked on GoDaddy, and we were like, “Holy shit, it’s not taken! Let’s get it!” The name itself didn’t have a whole lot of meaning initially, but I would say it would really encompass the brand later on because it was aggressive with the attack, there was a lot of screwing around, it was fun and quirky!

BC: What would you say are the biggest differences in internet culture from ScrewAttack’s creation compared to today?

C: God damn! Probably the biggest difference isn’t just internet culture; it’s just culture as a whole. The thing I really appreciate about G+G is that it is the anti-culture of what the gaming culture is now. ScrewAttack was that over a decade ago. People were considerably more accepting. You had your trolls and people who would make snide comments… I remember we wouldn’t let new employees look at the comment section for two weeks because they were like, “Who the hell is this guy/girl? Show me your boobs!” and whatever. And not saying that is right at all; looking back, we should have been like, “Hey, how about you guys just not be dicks?” But for the most part, it wasn’t that toxic or divided. Now, the idea of being a console fanboy, or a Microsoft fanboy, Sony fanboy… that was kinda the most of the allegiance attached to something, you know? It was like, “I’m a really big fan of Nintendo.”

*Watch the video below to listen to Jeremy rave about Nintendo.*

But it’s just gotten so mean, in the last five, six, seven years. I think that is kind of the saddest thing about it. Politics have really crept in as a whole, and it’s like there are teams that you have to be on! My thought process on everything is, “Look, I don’t care how you think, whether you’re black, white, gay, trans… whatever! I really don’t care. Just don’t tell me how I should think in my life.” But I can say that, and people will be like, “You’re a right-wing bigot!” And I’m like, “What? I just told you that I like Super Mario Bros., and now, all of a sudden, I’m this insane, horrible person because I don’t care how you live your life?” And that is probably one of the more shocking things over the last few years, the idea that I have sixteen years online at this point, thousands of hours of content online at this point, whether it’s livestream, video, or seeing me in person.

It’s very hard not to be yourself after being online for so long. People have seen me at my best and at my worst. I’ve been pretty damn consistent the entire time. But people have taken things, and they create these opinions of you even though these people have followed you for twelve-plus years… and they hate me now! Based off of something that I have never even said! This never would have happened back then; people were way more open then. It’s honestly really sad, legitimately sad, to see how things have shifted. I came back because if I can provide some sanity to some people who are just fucking normal people… and normal means different things to everybody, but you know, what is normal? I don’t know! But you know it when you see it. I would just say “sane people,”… so if I can provide just some sanity, then I’m happy.

BC: I like that answer.

C: Oh, thanks.

BC: *Chuckles* In your opinion, what is the best gaming console?

C:

BC: What’s a video game you were excited for that you felt ended up being a massive disappointment?

C: *Ponders for about five minutes* Modern or classic?

BC: Any!

C: I’ll tell you my most recent one! My second favorite ever arcade came out; it’s called NFL Blitz Arcade 1-Up version. And the idea was to put it right behind me in my setup. That’s why it’s empty now. I bought it, spent four hours setting it up, turned it on, and immediately knew that things were wrong on it. They changed delayed hits, which was minor, but they changed some pretty important gameplay elements to it. I returned it that night! I brought it back to Best Buy. I just picked it up and gave it back, saying, “I don’t want this.” They gave me $600 back! It cost me that much, which is why I wanted to return it. Maximum disappointment. I can look past little things, but I can’t look past major gameplay flaws and errors and joysticks coming off whilst I’m playing. That was the worst part.

BC: $600 too! You should get what you paid for!

G: Dude, for $600… well, I’ll leave it up to your imagination. It should do wonderful things for me.

BC: *Laughs* Favorite video game series?

C: Definitely Mario! I’m a big Nintendo guy. I’ve always been a Nintendo guy, but I’ve garnered the nickname “Platform Jesus” over the years because I’m very good at platforming games, games where you start at one point and you gotta get to another point, and you have to jump in-between. Anything Mario-related, I’m really good at. Mario 35 was pretty much all I played for, like, a year. I was ungodly at that, even the spinoffs, like Mario Kart. Outside of Mario, I’m really enjoying Apex Legends.

BC: I used to play that a lot! I haven’t in ages, though. The theme song is great.

C: Dude! You download all these theme songs; they give you all these songs as you play through and complete stuff. I’ve never switched from the original! I love it! Yeah, Apex is my go-to game right now; you can play a game and then leave after ten minutes if you need to. We should play!

BC: Yeah! Let’s do it! Just know I will be terrible, as I haven’t played in months.

C: It’ll be great! You’ll be the lowest ranking, so we can play on the low ranks!

BC:  That works. Were you inspired by anyone in the beginning of your career?

C: I think of Mega64; they are still going strong! ScrewAttack was the OG, but Mega64 was the OOG. In terms of content, we do entirely different things, but just the idea of doing it [from that] perspective inspired me. Over the years, I was able to get to know the guys there, and they are just a bunch of phenomenal characters.

BC: What project are you most proud of?

C: ScrewAttack did some really interesting things. There was no game plan on how to make money online; there were no sign-off sheets. The most emotional one for me was an event called SGC, which was ScrewAttack Gaming Convention. It ran for six years, and the fifth year had 15,000 people go to it. It was one of the largest gaming events in the USA at the time! The sixth event was when it was owned by another company, and it was totally different. The fifth event was a big deal. It was such an intense amount of hard work. For me, SGC was our payoff. It was like our Super Bowl. It was a cool time to hang out within your community and [with people] who are like-minded and just want to play games. Everyone just had a great effing time. Everyone who’s gone always would say it was the best game they had ever been to. It was a laid-back, fun program. We always ended it with some sort of major announcement. I remember finishing the fifth event, and we were standing in this big 3,000-seat theater, and everyone just started crying from happiness. It was really emotional to do that and to feel like we made a difference in everyone’s life that weekend and having that tangible feeling.

When I sold the company Fullscreen, I made sure that my employees were taken care of. I had an offer on the table that essentially took care of me. I was very adamant that everybody who worked for me, in some cases who had spent years working for me, eight or nine years, for next to nothing… no insurance, everyone working for pennies… I had no money to pay anyone then. I was very adamant that they would receive stock. It meant nothing at the time, but when Fullscreen was later acquired by AT&T, it meant a lot!  It was really important to me that they got taken care of. I held out on the deal until everyone had a good chunk of stock in the company. It wasn’t realized until the acquisition, but the guys got a really nice-sized check. That was something I was always proud of. I will be loyal, and I want to take care of my team. I think I had only ever fired two or three people at ScrewAttack. If you’re going to war with me, I’m going to make sure you’re taken care of.

Of course, my personal achievement is getting married and having kids. Once you have kids, you’re a different person.

BC: How did you hear about G+G?

C:

BC: How do you unplug?

C: I unplug with my wife and kids. I’m an avid lover of sports. I love hockey! I love coaching sports; I coach my daughters’ competitive soccer team. I love making a difference in a kid’s life. There are several girls who have played on the team for five years, and just knowing that I’m able to make a positive impact on their life is really fulfilling to me. Anytime I’m coaching and playing with my kids is, like, the best time with me.

BC: Do you like to collect? If so, what is your focus?

C: At my core, I’m a ridiculous minimalist. Even when my wife is like, “You need to get new jeans.” And I’m like, “Why? I’ve had these jeans for five years; they work fine!” I will run my car into the ground. I don’t really collect anything. I like to collect moments. And I think as soon as Elon Musk figures out a way to bottle memories and moments and sell them back to you, he will be even [richer].

BC: What is your favorite book? Why?

C: Ah! So, reading is something that I don’t really do. I don’t like to read. I just read the internet. Like, legit, I cannot tell you the last book I read. I read a lot of Twitter, the internet, etc. I will have books read to me, like an audiobook. I was listening to some sort of inspirational coaching book. I have this degree in journalism, yet I don’t like to read or write, which is not very good.

BC: Kinda counter-productive there!

C: Right? But I would rather say what I want to say as opposed to writing it out. Works for podcasting!

BC: Does that include comic books too?

C: I may have read a comic book once. I just could never get into that scene. Growing up, to me, comic books were kinda dorky. I know Eric July has his entire brand, which is awesome. I knew who Wolverine and Cyclops were, but I didn’t know their lore. The lore, to me, was what I saw in the cartoon. I didn’t really get to know the characters until the films with the likes of Hugh Jackman.

BC: So, do you like Marvel movies?

C: If it is on, I’ll watch it. Here’s the thing with MCU movies and other sequel films… when it comes to, like, franchises, if I don’t see the first one, I’m out! It’s impossible to get back in. It’s hard to keep up. I think the last MCU film [I saw] was Guardians 2, and I saw it when I used to have Disney+. It just keeps going! I don’t want to devote a month of my life to just these movies! It’s a lot! I do enjoy the James Bond films because it’s kinda like a standalone.

BC: Do you have anything you would like to say to your fans and audience? How about your haters?

C:

Speed Round – Short Answers Only!

BC: Hogwarts House?

C:

Harry Potter and the Fellowship of the Ring.

Keep your eyes on the @GeeksGamersCom main website next week for the full interview!@StutteringCraig @BlabberingC pic.twitter.com/eqHDLoclxZ

— Geeks + Gamers (@GeeksGamersCom) December 2, 2022

BC: Lightsaber color?

C: Green.

BC: Favorite destination?

C: Broken Bow, Oklahoma, or The Orange Coast in Alabama.

BC: That’s oddly specific. Hot or cold?

C: Uh, hot.

BC: North or south?

C: South.

BC: City or country?

C: City?

BC: California or New York?

C: Neither.

BC: Pineapple on Pizza?

C: Absolutely

BC: Oh, no! I thought we were going to be good friends, and then you said that.

C: See! This is what I’m talking about. Polarization! People just take their sides and stick to it! You gotta be better than that, Blabs! You gotta be better!

BC: Best Star Wars film?

C:

BC: Sand or snow?

C: Snn… snand.

BC: What?

C: Sssss… I’ll go with snow.

BC: Chicken or fish?

C: Chicken.

BC: The sun or the sky?

C: The sky.

BC: Running a mile or doing a 5-minute plank?

C: Running a mile!

Questions From Twitter

BC: Krista wants to know: “Slamball with G+G when?”

Craig: Yeah, I’ll make that happen! Apparently, Slamball is going to come back in 2023, and I know the guy who runs Slamball, and I’ve actually had a conversation with them a few months ago. I guarantee that if we can make a good value proposition, like why we should get the G+G folks, then I can make that happen! I have the connections! Yes!

Twitter: What’s it like for you to balance a life outside of YouTube now with a full family?

C: 

T: Why don’t you stutter?

C: When I was young, I used to mumble. My mom would always tell me, “You need to speak up; you need to be clear!” When ScrewAttack started, I had interned in radio, and I had been a fan of it for a long time. In radio, they always had these catchy names. Any sort of major online publication showed people’s real names, like “Jim” and “Joe.” So, when we started, it was important to me that we stood out. So, it wasn’t just “Craig” and “Tom;” it was “Stuttering Craig” and “Handsome Tom.” We always gave someone a nickname. “Stuttering Craig” sounded better than “Mumbling Craig,” so that is why I went with “Stuttering.” I do have a lot of people who do stutter and come up to me, and we will have a conversation about it. I think, just like most people, I’ll have a hard time getting things out of my brain; like, my brain is moving so fast that my mouth doesn’t keep up. So, if I can provide any sort of relief or inspiration for those people, then I hope I can! I was never diagnosed with a stutter, but I definitely mumbled a shit ton and had to learn how to enunciate my words!

BC: And for the very last question…

C: That is it?! For the whole thing?

BC: Yeah!

C: What? That was way too fast! I thought we would be here forever!

BC: Yeah, forever and ever, just stuck in eternity.

C: Alright, fine.

T: Are you ready to bring the Side Scrollers podcast back?

C: *Giggles* I get this question probably more than any other question I have! Side Scrollers was the podcast we started with. It was built like a radio show; it was 30-45 minutes long, and it was broken up into three or four segments. One was built around news, funny stories, questions, etc. I would love to do it again. I would love to! And I may! The only thing that is holding me back is, I don’t know how it works on a copyright standpoint. It was a really magical show that I honestly took for granted when I did it. I would have to find the right people for it, though, because that is what made Side Scrollers special. I was the recurring host on it, but no matter who was on it, it was always fun; lots of laughs and inappropriate moments… things that you would get canceled for today. But yeah, I would love to do that. Maybe, and maybe that is something that would fit on my brand-new channel, Craig Talks News.

Thank you, Craig, for your time! You can find Craig on Twitch, YouTube, his new YouTube channel Craig Talks News, and Twitter!