Interview with JReflex93: The Guitar Hero/Rubik's Cube Kid!

A few days ago, 8bit brought you the videos of the boy wonder who not only canplay Guitar Hero on expert, he can solve Rubik’s Cubes one-handed……..SIMULTANEOUSLY!

What started out as a gimmick blurted out by a friend not to be taken serioulsy, led JReflex93's videos to be posted on every major gaming website. Obviously the kid’s unmatched challenge caught the attention of gamers world wide, but not much has been told about him. I had the privilege of asking him a few questions that he agreed to answer. :-) So without further adieu, I give you JReflex93!

1. First of all, where/how did you come up with the idea to try playing GH and solve a Rubik's cube at the same time?
"About 4 months ago, before I had my first 100 subscribers, I was talking to a friend about doing something special for the 100-subscriber mark. My friend just blurted out why don't you solve the Rubik's cube while playing Guitar Hero? He wasn't being serious, but I thought it might work. So I thought about how I could do it using one-handed solving and elbow strumming. So I practiced one-handed solving and I made the first GH + Rubiks cube video about a week after this. A few weeks ago, when I was approaching 300 subscribers, I thought I would try to do the same thing but with a harder song. I chose Mr. Crowley for all the hammer-ons (which make it easier to elbow-strum). But this song is pretty long, so I decided to solve two cubes instead of one."

-----A week. That's all it took this kid was a week.-----

2. Have you ever competed in either event?
"No, theyre just hobbies. I never cared enough, and never got good enough at Guitar Hero to compete, and I just didnt think a Rubiks cube speedsolving competition sounded fun/cool."

3. What GH version did you originally start out playing?
"Guitar Hero 3."

4. You got 77% on expert with solving a cube at the same time. What percentage can you get w/o trying to solve the cube?
"I would probably get 85-90% playing the normal way."

---Note that the 77% was on Mr. Crowley---

5. How old were you when you started doing the Rubik's cube thing and what prompted it?
"I had just turned 15 (Im 15 right now) and I went to a friends house and saw a Rubik's cube sitting on the table. I messed around with it for an hour or two. I didn't come close to solving it, but I was fascinated by all the mathematics and laws hidden in the cube."

6. What is the fastest time you have ever solved a Rubik's cube in?
"Using one hand, my best solve time is 35.2 seconds, and with both hands my best is 16.4 seconds. I have Youtube videos showing these solves if you would like to see."

---Check at the end of the interview for his 35 sec solve plus his Mr. Crowley video--

7. Do you play any consoles besides the Wii?
"No, just Wii. I'm not serious enough about gaming to have a PS3 or 360."

8. Besides GH, what are some other games you enjoy playing?
"I mostly play Mario Kart, Smash Bros Brawl, and Boom Blox. I will play any game though, except for sports games."

9. Do you play any instruments in real life?
"I used to play the Saxophone in elementary school, but not anymore."

10. What are other interests you have besides the Rubik's cube thing and video games?
"I love being outside and running, swimming, or mountain biking. I'm on my high schools cross-country mountain bike racing team. Sometimes I like to draw, but not very often. Right now I'm learning about 3D-modeling and animation using 3DS Max."

11. Ok, so everyone thinks you must be some kind of kid genius. How well do you do in school? What's your fave subject?
"Haha. I have all As in school, and my favorite subjects are math and science."

12. Do you have plans for another video? If so, what will you do next?
"Right now, I dont have any plans for another big video. Ill probably continue making the videos about my Boom Blox levels and such."

13. Do you have any tips for people (like me) who have never solved a Rubik's Cube in their life?
"Hmmm well if you're interested enough, and you mess around with a cube enough, you start getting an understanding of how it works. But you could just search the internet for a tutorial on a basic solving method, which could take you less than an hour."

14. Do you have any tips for gamers (again....like me...I can only play GH on hard) to improve their skills at Guitar Hero?
"It just takes practice!"

JReflex93 hails from a small town in southern Cali and has been gaming as a hobby since he was 4 years-old. He says he used to love watching his dad play Super Mario 64 and Blast Corps when he was too young to even play.

"Thanks to everyone for watching the video and reading this article. I never imagined that something like this would happen to me."--JReflex93

Check out JReflex93's Mr. Crowley vid one more time and his other Rubik's Cube Speed Solving vids. Don't forget to follow him on YouTube!