Are you ready to be down with the King?  Well even if you aren’t, dig this new Unscripted 360 Showcase!  He’s fresh from an Achievement Anonymous meeting…

What’s life outside of gaming like with you?  Who is DAKing240?

I am a student at FSU, and the college life pretty much consumes me. Life outside of gaming revolves around a cycle of sleep, school, eating, drinking, posting 360 related news, going out, and then pretty much repeating the next day with going out being replaced by studying and homework on occasion.

What’s the story behind the Gamertag?

After playing Xbox for 1 year, and then getting the Xbox Live kit with NFL Fever, I was looking for a GamerTag that represented me without actually saying my name. I came up with my 3 initials – DAK and then added “ing” to it, and DAKing just kind of stuck with me. I then added my favorite number 24 to make DAKing24 and it didn’t work. So I quickly added 0, and DAKing240 became my Xbox Live name.

You’ve been a part of the 360 community for a while.  Why?

As with any product or game that I own, if I enjoy it, I usually join a community to learn more about it. I like my suggestions to be heard, and like to know what can be done to make it a better, more enjoyable product. With the 360, the moment I turned it on, I knew that I had already picked the right machine for the next generation. I decided to visit the forums looking for suggestions, and to learn more about the different features of the machine, and then the games, and then I got to the point where I stayed, and now to post in areas that I know about or to just give a little achievement spam.

You also have a website centered around Achievements.  Tell me about the site and how it came to be?

Ahh yes, our wonderful achievement site. It all started back when the 360 came out, and I was looking for suggestions for Call of Duty 2, and information about this achievement system. I stumbled on a website called xbox360achievements.com. The site had the first 10 or so games, with the achievements, and explained how to get them. The community was also great. However, when the newer games came out, the owner was nowhere to be found, and we waited for about 1-2 months. At this time, one of the members of the .com site left and formed a new website with the same concept, and called it xbox360achievements.org. (For the record, the .com site does not exist anymore)

We basically started from scratch to get to where we are today. Also, while I wish I can say it’s my site, it actually belongs to the community, since most of the updates are sent in by our users and forum users. But technically, I don’t own the site, that would be my good friends RoutineX, MintyMarlfox, and DaWebbmeister who actually started the new website movement, and now run the new site.

At the same time, I am also working on a more personal type of blog which is located at www.DaKing240.spaces.live.com. I am not sure yet what my goal is with this site though.

What are the plans for the Achievement site?

Our plans are to keep giving updates to make our site a more useful source for those who enjoy earning achievements. We currently have launched a private leaderboard for every forum user. We are also proud to say that we have the largest legit leaderboard, which means no GameSavers. Our future updates include reviewing many of the 360 games, and offering video guides for achievements that are extremely specific – like Tony Hawk gaps and SuperMan kitten locations.

Has the Xbox 360 experience been a good or bad one for you?

My 360 experience has definitely been a great one for me. I have met very interesting people, a great group of people who I can play almost any game with, and many developers of future XBLA games. I have also enjoyed most of the games that I have played, and luckily am still on my first console.

What’s your gaming setup?

At college I am on a 42” Samsung DLP with surround sound, and at home I am on a 60” (I believe) Samsung DLP with surround sound (a lot more speakers than at college).

Which title is getting the most playing time on your Xbox 360?

As of right this second, Gears of War is seeing the most time on my 360, but if you would have asked me last week, I would have said Viva Pinata. Both games are great in my mind.

There are plenty of games that people simply wish they never had played. Which is yours?

Well I wish I never played Halo 1 and Halo 2… look at how they got me addicted to gaming (again)! But honestly, I don’t have any games I wish I never played. I personally could never get into Perfect Dark Zero, but I probably didn’t give it enough playing time to get into it.

What’s your most anticipated 360 title?

Halo 3 without a doubt in my mind.

What’s the best feature on the Xbox 360 in your opinion?

Best feature besides Xbox Live and the wireless controller would be Private Chat. I just think that talking to someone while playing any game is incredible.

Have you purchased any of the new Xbox 360 accessories?

You mean besides the Xbox 360 Backpack (just kidding). I purchased the Vision camera (months before it officially came out) and a new mic. I am debating if I should get the HD-DVD in the near future.

You were almost in violation.  How do you feel about the Marketplace and what it’s offered so far?

I think Microsoft has a very powerful tool, but would be better off releasing games at a faster pace, without a schedule. I would much rather see a game randomly pop up on the Marketplace on a Monday afternoon, or Saturday night, then waiting for 4:00 am to hit on Wednesday morning. As for the TV shows and movies, it’s a work in progress, so no complaints on that front.

Gamerscore or Achievements? Which do you play for?

Achievements without a doubt. I will only go for the achievements in a game that I want to play, or have easy access to (as in, borrowing from a friend, neighbor, etc.) I do make exceptions at times, but if a Barbie game comes out… I will not play it!

What’s the best Xbox Live Arcade title and why?

Geometry Wars would be my favorite, because the game is extremely addictive, doesn’t last too long per game, and gives a never-ending challenge.

Is there any one thing that you think the Xbox 360 does better than its competitors?

Only 1 thing? Communication comes to mind first – MajorNelson.com, GamerScoreBlog.com, just for starters. It seems that Microsoft wants its customers to be happy, and will do anything to prove that they are in this for the long run, and will take any chance necessary to prove that they care about gamers.

Besides, the 360 does everything better in my opinion, with the exception of changing how a game can be played – which the award goes to Nintendo.

I’m mum on the Wii.  If you were a game developer, what type of game would you make for the Xbox 360?

A shooter! (haven’t we seen enough!?). Actually, I would make a completely different type of game. I always enjoyed the Sim City / Sim games. If I could make a game, I would combine Sim City and The Sims, and let people make entire cities, and then let them interact with other players via Xbox Live. Would they get along, share technology, or go to war to become a dominant land owner? Only time will tell.

Name a feature…any feature…you want in the next Xbox 360 system update.

Dashboard Group Chat (I wanted to give a feature that was possible)

Ok. One game. One shot. You against The BK King. Who wins and what game are you playing?

Well obviously I win… but what game and why…

We both put in the Gears of War disks at the same time, and we do a ranked game. The last 2 people left are DAKing240 and The King. The King is busy throwing Whoppers and Double Stackers, but DAKing240 is avoiding it. DAKing240 runs for the sniper, and aims at The Kings giant head. However, at the last second instead of shooting him in the head, he aims for the leg and brings The King down to his knees. However, DAKing240 could never kill The BK King, and tries to revive him. However, they are on opposite team so reviving is impossible, so DAKing240 curb stomps The King for the win.  Your winner by technical knockout – DAKinggggg240!

Any parting words?

I just want to say thanks for having me on the community showcase, and to keep up the good work on Unscripted360. Finally, if you’re reading this, come take a look at our community over at www.xbox360achievements.org for all your achievement needs, or just to meet some friendly people to play your next Xbox Live game with.

Shoutouts go to anyone reading from x360a.org, anyone from FSU, anyone from South Florida, and the members of Xbox.com.

Later DAKing!  Thanks for stopping by.