Oh yeah, I almost forgot to report on this! I got a ton of responses about how to pronounce Cid. In Japanese, he's called "Shido" or "Sheedo." There is no "id" sound (as in "middle") following a c in Japanese. Shido got Americanized to "Cid," which is pronounced as in "middle."

Q: All righty AndrewK, of RPGamer. This here is a two part question, which I don't expect to see answered.
Uno, why is it that half the questions in your column these days have absolutely nothing to do with RPG's? In one column, I've counted three questions that didn't even remotely touch upon the subject, and the other two were just sorta.. filler. Why not.. oh, I don't know, maybe answer some legitimate questions that might happen to filter into the mailbox? I'm sure there ARE some.
Three, in the event that any RPG concerns will be adressed in your column in the future, has there been any news on the FFMovie, like say, casting or something like that?

AK: Hey, you never know what I'm going to post, unless you say something like "AK is a schwazz." I've got a delicate ego, you know. Anyway, I get usually over 20 questions per day that "merit" posting. I choose the ones to post more or less at random, depending on how well and creatively I can answer, or on how pressing the question is. And then there are times where I just post something for kicks.

About the FF movie: last I heard, it was coming along slowly but surely. No word on casting yet, mainly because it'll be a CG-based feature, along the lines of Toy Story. I'm not sure if it's being developed for U.S. or Japanese audiences (my guess is Japanese). Assuming it is being developed for Japanese audiences, when they release the list of voice actors, I doubt we'll recognize any names.

Q: Why isn't there a town of imps, what I really mean is, why don't normal enemies have more background stories? It wouldn't really be that hard to come up with and include stories of the history, habitat, food, and lifestyles of the enemies.

AK: I think that'd be cool, myself. I guess memory issues are always an issue, but little details like that really bring a game together and add fascinating details. Of course, I'm also easily entertained, and would probably be entertained if they had a subplot about making a big ball of yarn.

Q: Hey there andrew,
any idea where/what legend the rat's tail / adamant thing comes from in Final Fantasy 1 and 2 and who knows what else? is it just a square thing (tho it doesn't seem likely...) or is it a myth or saying?
- Lorelai

AK: Hey there Lorelai. I don't know where that comes from, but I would imagine it is a part of some mythology. Any mythology buffs out there care to fill me in?

Q: Hey, what does R.E.M. stand for? Also, do you like Electronica music such as Juno Reactor? Or Industrial music such as KMFDM or Nine Inch Nails?

AK: R.E.M., when referring to the band, doesn't mean anything. To tell one of my favorite R.E.M. stories, the gang was sitting up late one night trying to come up with a name. As they often do, they decided it would be best to get drunk before trying to be productive. When they woke up the next morning, they looked at the chalkboard and picked out their 3 favorites: Cans of Piss, Negro Eyes, and R.E.M. They didn't want to offend their African American friends, so Negro Eyes was out, and they "didn't want a name [they'd] have to mumble to [their] parents." That knocked out Cans of Piss, and leaves us with R.E.M.

I'm afraid I haven't heard much Electronica (is that at all like techno?), and industrial really doesn't charge my batteries. Can't honestly say I like either one.

Q: As I've learned more about video games, I've heard more about the graphics found in these video games. Would you be so kind as to explain the difference between sprites vs. polygons? I've heard both terms mentioned, with no idea of their meaning.

AK: I went to a friend to try to get a good answer for this, so blame him, not me, if I butcher this! Anyway, sprites are pre-drawn graphics placed on a pre-drawn background. For example, with Terra walking around a town in FF3, you had a frontal shot, a right profile, a left profile, and a rear shot. Polygons, on the other hand, are drawn and altered on the go by the game system, so you can program the game to show her from the side, or from above, or from a 34 degree angle, etc. (side remark to my friend for his help: kupo thanks!)

Q: Hey Andrew, I have a few questions for you.
1: Are there two versions of Chrono Trigger? I don't mean Japanese and American. I mean one of them has a choice of New Game and New Game+. The other only has New Game. What's the Deal?
-Vincient.

AK: Vinny, my man, you need to go back to math class. Anyway, there's only one American version of Chrono Trigger. The New Game+ option becomes available once you've defeated Lavos.