Interview with David
McCandless
November 1997
How did you get started in computer journalism?
Started doing POKES around 1986 (when I was at my most spottiest) and sent them in to Crash and YS. Would wait two long months to see if they appeared and then feel enormously thrilled when they mis-spelt my name in bold. Became a regular 'hacker' for YS and in 1987, sent in a speculative article. Marcus Berkmann got back to me, saying they were looking for someone to take over their hacks page (ZZKJ had left). I came down to London looking a sizeable prick with a tie on and my mum in tow. They gave me the column to write every month (for £35 - a King's ransom in Cola Bottles those days). Then I started doing Program Pitstop. Then I did work experience for a week and asked to do a review of Cybernoid. They liked it. I started doing reviews.
When did you first see a Spectrum and what were your
first impressions?
I first saw a Spectrum in a glossy brochure which I was using for
my 4th year primary school project on computers. I think they
were about two hundred quid at the time and every piece of
advertising had Sir Clive's gory visage plastered over it,
alongside a disgusting white anglo saxon family in cardigans who
were gathered around a huge TV saying "Wow" and
"Crikey". I would have happily spooged over the
Spectrum but alas, I lacked the anatomy at the time.
How did you leave the Spectrum scene? Were you sad to
leave?
Like many people, I 'graduated' to the Amiga and ST. A few of the
YS writers (well me and Duncan MacDonald) went off to launch ZERO
(still, in my opinion, the best computer magazine ever created).
I soon blagged myself an ST, discovered Dungeon Master and
Mercenary and it was cheerio to the old rubber massage mat. I
wasn't really sad because the Spec had served its purpose by
advancing the human race. With 16 colours on our TV screens, soon
we would surely conquer space and start exploring the galaxy with
warp drives and phasers.
What are you doing now?
I am still writing. A lot. I have worked regularly for PC Zone
since its inception, and you also see my stuff in MacUser, PC
Pro, Escape, Stuff, and a bunch of other mags including: Wired US
and UK, Q Magazine, The Daily Telegraph. I've been on TV numerous
times (in my guise as UK Doom Champion), been on the BBC Radio 5
(I have a semi-regular games reviewing slot on Sundays, 8:30 The
Big Byte). Um, I've written two books (both for the money):
TrekMaster (Boxtree), and Queen: The Eye (Macmillian). I was also
news editor on TV Hits magazine for six months back in 1990. I
went to University to study English and er, Drama. Er, I am also
a musician now and have just finished recording an album. You can
check out details and buy a copy (only £6.99) at my web-site:
http://www.wakeywakey.com
and you can read a Wired article of mine at:
http://www.hotwired.com/wired/5.04/warez/ff_warez.html
Oh I am a qualified video editor and camera man. I have directed
18 corporate videos, 3 pop promos, and worked for Channel Four on
two documentary series.
(Blimey! Busy man!)
What were the best/worse things about the Speccy?
The best thing was that it was hard to use. Those key
combinations, weird memory addresses, and spooky BASIC kept those
scummy Commodore 64 gits away. Also, it was around for ages (far
longer than any home computer platform at the time) and so
allowed people to really push it to the extremes of its ability.
I mean, I can still remember when I first saw KnightLore. My
friend and I was just gob-smacked. This was 3D - three bloody
dimensions - on a Spectrum. It was amazing, and its no
coincidence that a lot a major, world-reknown talent these days
sprang from that little rubber box.
What were your favourite Speccy games and why?
In no particular order:
Manic Miner - because it was the first Spectrum game I ever
played and it is still a work of genius.
Avalon - because it was hard and huge and a brilliant RPG.
StarQuake - because Steve Crow (?) was great.
Lunar Jetman - I spent fucking weeks looking for that trailer.
KnightLore - ground breaking and irritating in equal measure.
Sabre Wulf - those mountains made me drool. (Also, like most
Ultimate Play The Game games, its code was beautifully written,
like nothing else around. Optimised and complex. It took me five
days to get a single POKE for this game, and I could only find
one to make the monsters disappear).
Laser Squad - brilliant game.
I have others but I can't remember their names.
Favourite Speccy coders/artists/musicians?
In no particular order:
The Gollops - for Laser Squad.
Matthew Smith - naturally.
Ultimate Play The Game
- and all the usuals
Musicians-wise, the guy who programmed the GhostBusters theme
into the game. The Spectrum actually said (in a low quality Metal
Mickey sort of way): "GhostBusters".
Favourite Speccy journalists?
Phil South and Marcus Berkmann, both progenitors of the very
distinct YS style, passed down to myself, Duncan MacDonald, and
Johnathon Davis. Duncan MacDonald did some of his funniest work
for Zero, did work for PC Zone, but, alas, has disappeared.
Phil actually came up with my nickname "Macca" which
everyone *still*, 10 years later calls me at Dennis.
Do you use an emulator to play Speccy games?
Yeah. I've got a full version of Z80 and a Gold Disk Of
Everything.
What did you think of Crash and Sinclair User?
Loved Crash - it really was old school with Oliver Frey's (?)
illustrations and terrible design (in fact the newsagent opposite
Dennis Publishing still has a copy of Crash on the shelves circa
1990 and the newsagenteur is still selling it for the 95p cover
price). Stopped reading it after I heard about the scary origins
of Newsfield.
Never really liked Sinclair User. They were also a poor imitation
of YS, I thought. Incidentally, the last time I heard of Tony
Dillon he had been sacked from EMAP for leaving the word 'C*NT'
in a screenshot in ACE ( I think), W.H.Smith banned the magazine
and EMAP had to pay for eight ladies in Birmingham to sit in an
office with black felt-tips crossing out the offending word from
80,000 magazines. Har-de-har.
What do you think about modern games? Can they compete
with the classics? Aren't they all presentation and no gameplay?
Um, difficult one. The most depressing/enlightening things about
emulators is that most of the games are shit. Really really bad.
You browse the list and you say "Cool. Deathchase - what a
game". You load it up and it's absolute crap. There are some
that are still brilliant but most are poo. Nowadays, games are,
on the whole, better. Obviously visually, but also in terms of
depth and gameplay. Tell the truth, I don't really play games
anymore. After ten years, they bore me. I'm only interested in
Quake and Doom style titles and on-line multiplayer games. I
don't really have the time anymore.
Is there anything you miss about the old days?
One thing - journalism. Games magazines are not about consumer
journalism anymore. It's all marketing, spin, cover discs, and
advertorial. PC magazines, especially, have become newsletters
attached to CD's. Scores are constantly upped to please
advertisers. PR people wine and dine reviewers to get better
scores. And deals are struck to promote shit games in order to
snaffle exclusives on big games. It's boring and shit. In 'ye
olden days', we could quite happily slap a score of "2"
on a turkey and spent 500 words moaning about its laughable
graphics. Nowadays, you'd get spanked by a lawsuit.
Any amusing anecdotes/stories etc about the old days?
The only amusing thing I can think of is how I truly believed
that "Cookie" was the best game ever, in the universe.
I giggle to myself that I believed a game where you control a 2D
cook as he smacks dough balls with eyes into a bowl over and over
again with sacks of flour could be the summit of interactive
entertainment.
Have you anything to say to people who still use the
Speccy today?
People still use the Speccy today? Jesus.
Thanks to David for doing the interview.
Interview composed, conducted and edited by Philip Bee.