Interview: Talking Gaming with Holon
In this interview we talk gaming with Holon, the solo diverse music project led by Ronny Pedersen.
1. Let’s begin by going way back to the past! Specifically, your childhood and what your earliest memory of playing a video game is?
My first computer was a Commodore 64, which I got when I was around 9 years old. Back then, gaming was a very social thing – we would copy game cassettes and share them with each other.
I remember playing games like Winter Games, Summer Games, and California Games, along with OutRun, Marble Madness, International Karate, and Ghostbusters. Those were my early entry points into gaming.
At some point, I actually managed to break my C64 after opening it up and accidentally short-circuiting some components. I’ve always been curious about how things work, so in hindsight it’s not that surprising that I ended up becoming an engineer.
2. At what age and stage of your life did you start to find yourself hooked by gaming and was there any particular thing that bore responsibility for that?
Things really took off when I started spending time with a friend who had an Amiga, after my own C64 stopped working. That’s where I discovered a whole new level of gaming – especially the adventure genre.
Games like Indiana Jones, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, Police Quest, and Leisure Suit Larry pulled me in because they weren’t just about action – they required thinking, exploring, and problem-solving. That’s where I found my favourite type of game.
3. If you could point at one or two games that defined your childhood, what would they be?
Definitely the LucasArts adventure games, especially Monkey Island and Day of the Tentacle.
They had everything – humour, atmosphere, storytelling, and clever puzzles. Those games shaped how I think about narrative and structure, not just in games but also in music. My music is not about a quick adrenaline rush, but more about bringing the listener on an adventure – taking its time and trying to make some smart, and possibly unexpected, choices to keep the listener interested.
4. What about a system? What’s yours and why?
The Amiga holds a special place for me, even though I didn’t originally own one myself. That’s where I really discovered what games could be beyond simple mechanics.
Later, getting my own PC when I started my studies opened up another world – especially with the rise of first-person shooters and LAN gaming.
5. Do you have a particular game genre that you enjoy more than any other? Also, what’s a game genre you almost always avoid?
My favourite genre is definitely adventure games. I’ve always been drawn to games that allow for exploration, storytelling, and thinking rather than just reaction speed.
I tend to avoid games that are purely based on repetition or grinding without a strong narrative or atmosphere. I prefer games that feel like an experience rather than a task.
6. How about multiplayer? Did you have a game that you found yourself sinking untold hours into online or do you just prefer the single player experience?
Multiplayer for me has always been more about shared experiences than online competition.
During my student years, we did quite a bit of LAN gaming in the collective I was living in, playing games like Doom, Wolfenstein, and Duke Nukem 3D. There was something special about setting everything up and being in the same room – it felt social in a very real way.
I also have great memories of playing Micro Machines with a friend on the same keyboard. We got very competitive and even used cheat codes to always drive tanks. We played so much that my friend actually developed wrist tendonitis, which he struggled with for years – so maybe we took it a bit too far.
7. What is a game or franchise that you think you’ve sunk the most time into to date and what is a game or franchise that you’ve never quite been able to get into?
The games I’ve spent the most time with are definitely the LucasArts adventure games – especially Monkey Island.
I’ve never really been able to get into games that revolve heavily around grinding or repetition without a deeper sense of purpose or atmosphere.
8. Over the past couple of decades, what development within the video game industry has been revolutionary?
The evolution of computer graphics and 3D acceleration hardware – GPUs has been revolutionary. That’s actually something I work with professionally, so I see that development quite closely.
Technologies like ray tracing, and now the increasing use of machine learning and AI, are pushing real-time graphics toward a point where they may eventually become indistinguishable from modern CGI in films.
That said, better graphics don’t automatically make better games. There still needs to be a strong core – gameplay, storytelling, and engagement. It’s similar to music: you can have incredible production and technical skill, but if the underlying song isn’t strong, it doesn’t matter. It just becomes a very polished… well, you know.
9. Likewise, what development within the video game industry has been mostly negative for gamers overall?
One of the more negative developments has been the rise of monetisation-driven design, especially in mobile games. Many of these are built specifically to keep your dopamine levels constantly triggered, encouraging engagement rather than delivering a meaningful experience.
Interestingly, this contrasts with older games, which were often much more demanding. In arcades, you could lose very quickly and get very little playtime for your money. And at home, many games didn’t even have save functionality, so you had to start over repeatedly.
So we’ve moved from games that were frustrating because of difficulty to games that can be frustrating because they’re designed to keep you hooked. Ideally, the balance would be somewhere in between.
10. What is one aspect of gaming that you consistently find yourself getting nostalgic over?
The carefree time we had growing up. Sitting with friends for hours, fully immersed in a game, without thinking about anything else.
That kind of uninterrupted time is something I really miss.
11. Likewise, what is one aspect of gaming that you’d happily never experience again?
The early days of gaming on the Commodore 64 – having to wait for games to load from cassette tapes. It could take quite a while just to get into a game – and if something went wrong, you had to start all over again.
The same applied to loading new levels, so there was a lot of waiting involved. At the time it was just part of the experience, but looking back, I don’t miss that at all.
12. Focusing on the now, what are you currently playing and what is enjoyable about it?
These days I don’t play as much – my time is mostly taken up by music and work. But I still enjoy gaming occasionally, especially with my son.
We’ve played through some of the Monkey Island remakes, and as a family we’ve had a lot of fun with Rayman. I’ve also really enjoyed games like Uncharted and Heavy Rain – I remember playing Uncharted during paternity leave while my son was sleeping.
We recently bought the new Indiana Jones game and plan to play through it together, along with continuing The Last of Us. Even if we don’t play as often as we’d like, those shared moments are still very valuable.
