Interview: Adrianne Curry Talks The Future Of Gaming, Her Fantasy Game And More

The star of PlayStation Network's "The Tester" admits to being a Ratchet & Clank fan among other things.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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When it comes to female gamers, few come as hot as celebrity Adrianne Curry. The two-time Playboy cover model and reality TV star grew up with a controller in her hand and she never gave video games up. These days, Curry can be seen on PlayStation Network’s original gaming reality series, “The Tester.” She’ll also be heading to E3 in June to check out the latest titles coming out. Curry put down her controller for a minute to talk about games in this exclusive interview.

What’s a video game memory that you can share from when you were young?
My biggest memory being a little kid video gaming was having two older brothers that would always tell me that my turn was coming, and it never did. That’s one of my main memories. Then I remember screaming or acting like they hit me, so one of them would get in trouble. Then I would get his controller, which was awesome.

What games would you guys play?
When I was really little, we had Colecovision so we’d play Donkey Kong and this little penguin game that jumps over ice glacier holes (Antarctic Adventure). We’d play games all the time. My parents were pretty anti-console games; actually my mom. My dad’s a big sci-fi geek, and was totally into that kind of sh*t.

When I got older, I'd go to all my friends’ houses and play their video games. Out of all the years, and all the different things that I’ve played, the number one thing I remember with consoles is tripping over someone’s wires when they’re in the middle of something really important, unplugging the machine. And them get really pissed off.

Luckily, they’ve migrated to wireless controllers these days.
I know. I feel so ‘90s and ‘80s when I talk about that. I was playing video games with my friend’s little sister not too long ago. She looks at me--she’s 18--and she says, “These had wires? Shut up!”

What are your thoughts about how far gaming has come?
It’s absolutely amazing. I think video games are the prototype of what scares celebrities the most, which is the creation of beings that are so perfect that pretty soon you won’t need an actor. I think they’re beautiful; they’re visually stunning and a whole lot of fun. It really makes you laugh when you go back to those old games and you look at the pixelation. It’s like, “Oh, my God. I used to think this looked good?”

The good thing is, they’re still using actors, both for performance capture and for voice acting, for a lot of these big games.
Yeah, which is awesome. A few years ago, I actually was a demo for one of NVIDIA’s graphic cards. They totally recreated me in a game-like version just for people to play around with one of the new NVIDIA cards, so I know how that goes. That is pretty cool. It’s definitely awesome. I just can’t wait until we can play video games in our head; you know it’s coming.

NeuroSky does have some games that use mind control.
Yeah. I doubt if we’re there yet, but one day I think we might be. When we are, I want the video game where Johnny Depp is 45 again and you’re 18. That’s my video game. (Laughs)

When it comes to “The Tester,” can you talk a little bit about what you learned about video game development, and about the games industry, from working on this show?
I learned that the gaming industry is a lot like Hollywood productions. Everybody behind the scenes is really cool. There’s a lot visionaries. I love talking with the artists, getting their ideas, and how they’ve helped create or draw out a character, storyboards and all that stuff. It’s like making a movie, only bigger, because some of these games have much more potential to make way more money then some of those big movies that come out.

What are your thoughts about the fact that now people can compete to get a dream job in game development through this show?
I think it’s awesome. It’s definitely an incentive for some people who felt like there was no way for them to get into a dream job. I find it very interesting when people come in with education, backgrounds, and other lines of work. They’re just like, “Look, this is what I want to do.” That, to me, is really impressive; to chase a career and job that makes you happy as opposed to just paying your bills and making you miserable.

“The Tester” runs on PlayStation Network. As someone who’s been on TV shows, what do you think of the changing landscape of television and programming?
I think it makes complete sense as an owner of a Smart TV. I hardly watch live TV anymore. I am deeply offended when a commercial comes on, and I can’t fast forward it. I’m like, “What the f*ck is this?” Live TV? I think it’s a step in the right direction, and I think that TV, as we know it, in the next 10 years is going to completely change. I really believe that console games, with their online gaming aspects, are helping bridge that gap into something new and improved. Things are converging with PlayStation and Smart TV and original programming.

Do you have a PlayStation 3 and what has impressed you lately on that console?
I do have a PS3, and I have been playing some things that impress me. I’m very into Ratchet & Clank. I know everybody makes fun of me, because it’s kind of a kids’ game, but I like it. I like Infamous. My most favorite game is one that none of my friends are very good at -- Slaughterhouse

So you like the re-make?
Yeah, it’s fun. You just get to kill everything. I love demonic stuff, and it’s full of it, and gore. It’s actually quite hard. It’s fun to own a bunch of boys who come over to drink beer. They’re like, “This game’s stupid.” I’m like, “No, you are. You just can’t play.”

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