A Lone American Agent, Homebrew Beer, and a Neo Geo Pocket
Team Member Spotlight — Marco
Over the last few months we have been making a huge effort to grow and get to know our community, but we figured it was about time we filled you in on who we are. So each week we are going to do a spotlight on someone from the team; to really give you a feel for what makes us tick and why we are doing what we’re doing. If there is a question that we missed or questions you would like to ask about one of our other team members, post it as a reply and we’ll try to make sure it gets answered.
Name: Marco Cuesta
Role at FirstBlood: Co-founder and Head of Business Development
Gamer tag: OmnesOmni
What do you do at FirstBlood?
Hey Gamers! My name is Marco Cuesta, I’m a graduate of Boston University’s Questrom School of Business, an entrepreneur and a gamer myself. I Co-Founded FirstBlood and I’m currently working as the Head of Business Development. This job entails a lot of travel, forming strategic connections, developing relationships, overseeing marketing operations as well as connecting with our fans.
How old were you when you first really got into gaming and what was the game that hooked you?
The earliest gaming experience I can remember was playing with my mom’s Donkey Kong Game and Watch for hours on end as a toddler. That device was really something when it was first produced (1982) and a prime example of quality Japanese engineering (it still works perfectly to this day). That got me on the whole GameBoy/Pokemon craze that was sweeping The States in the 90s. Super Mario World was another close favorite of mine along with a variety of other Nintendo titles . If you can picture it, I was that hyperactive little kid with multiple game pouches around my neck getting who was constantly getting pulled aside by airport security. I even had a NeoGeo Pocket! It featured titles from Capcom and Sega, my two favorites being Sonic and Metal Slug. My first parley with PC gaming (besides everyone’s favorite pinball game) was with Elite Forces: WWII Normandy which worked pretty well on my Windows 98 dream machine. That started my love for FPS games which is still my favorite genre. After we partied like it was 1999, I started to get more into the console gaming world with Playstation and Gamecube. Once again, FPS was the dominant focus when I wasn’t playing Smash Bros.
What is your favorite game of all time?
My favorite game of all time has to be from the Metal Gear Solid Series. Everything from the intricate storyline and character design is delightfully Japanese. The American humor thrown in is an unexpected and hilarious plus. The graphics and sci fi-esque DARPA technology combine with modern day situations really made you think, “What IS actually possible?” It’s a tie between MGS2 and MGS4. MGS2 was revolutionary for the time, especially when Mantis starts moving your controller in RL and reading your mind (your entire PS2 gaming history). Kids playing that game in 2001 were pretty much losing their minds at that point. MGS4 is just a beautiful game, graphically and storywise. The writers were able to pull together all the strings from all the previous games and produce hollywood quality cut scenes that sometimes ran 2 hours in length.
The series follows the motif of the lone American Agent bending international laws for the safety of the world and its people. There are a few other series that follow this motif (Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, 24 TV Series). It’s no surprise Americans find this appealing but what’s really interesting is the theme’s international success.
What is your most memorable gaming moment?
Probably one of the most memorable moments in gaming was in Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty. This game could make you laugh and cry with its serious humanitarian themes and copious amounts of bathroom humor. Raiden (the effeminate long haired agent) is mistaken by The President for a female assassin. It isn’t until the President grabs Raiden below the belt (yes, not an election joke) that he discovers the agent is actually a dude who’s come to rescue him.
What game are you playing right now?
As of late, I’ve been playing COD and Counter Strike. I’ve played CSS for almost half my life but made the switch to CS:GO a little over a year ago. I made a new account recently so I’m starting at the bottom again; currently on Sargent Level 9. Over the last few weeks I’ve started focusing mostly on Dota 2. The transition from FPS to MOBA has been interesting but Dota 2 is an amazing addictive game with seemingly endless domination strategies.
Do you have a party trick?
I also brew my own beer and give it away at parties, pretty good trick eh?
How did you first get involved with ethereum/blockchain tech?
I first got involved with Bitcoin and Blockchain when I started Alt-Options with my closest colleagues from Boston University. Joe was the founder of the Boston University Trading Club and we bonded quickly over the subject. We thought if there was a platform to trade derivatives on digital currencies it would offer people more options to hedge and speculate efficiently while stabilizing the market. The rest is history.
What is your vision for FirstBlood and why does it get you excited?
My vision for FirstBlood is for it to become the preferred platform for amateur and professional esports competitions. This would take blockchain technology mainstream, something that the community agrees is long overdue. By overhauling the current platform model and introducing innovations unseen in this industry, our team will be ushering in the new age of Esports 2.0.
Dev Update
We’ve made some really good progress on the FirstBlood platform since the end of the pre-sale. While the vast majority of the work has been on the back-end and smart contract side of things, over the last few weeks we’ve started making some great progress on the front-end/UI as well. The platform is really starting to take shape and we’re looking forward to sharing some sneak peaks over the next few weeks as we build towards the alpha.
