We have another great interview lined up for you today for our Content Creator Spotlight. He goes by the name CptnAlex (Captain Alex) and is known for his cool Nintendo designed products, from Enamel Pins to Joy-Con covers. We caught up with CptnAlex on Social Media and asked if he would like to talk more about his designs and products and here we are! So it is time for me to stop waffling on and shine the spotlight onto CptnAlex.
Miketendo64: A real easy one to start off with. Who are you and what do you do?
CptnAlex: Hey there! My name is Alex Blake, I go by CptnAlex online (That’s Captain Alex). Primarily I’m a custom creator and influencer within the Nintendo community, with a focus on making controllers and consoles based on Nintendo’s newest and hottest releases! Even if you’ve not heard of me, I hope you’ve seen some of my designs!
Miketendo64: How long have you been designing and selling your wares?
CptnAlex: I’ve been making custom controllers since 2013 – but because of the weird state Nintendo controllers were in during that time, I really didn’t work on many Nintendo products until the Switch. The Xbox and Playstation controllers were always a much better canvas, due to their service area (in comparison to the Wiimote). With the Switch, even though the joy-cons are small, I realized that the console itself is so versatile, and using add-ons like the joy-con grip you can really expand the canvas in fun and unique ways! And they’ve really taken off!
Miketendo64: You have a store on Etsy. How has it been beneficial to you in selling your designs?
CptnAlex: Etsy has been great. It’s an expensive platform to sell on, but during the holidays it really pays off. Most of my sales are self-driven, but the Etsy platform is really user-friendly, so for now, I’m sticking with it.
Miketendo64: Do you produce your products yourself or do you use a third party to manufacture them?
CptnAlex: Everything I do is made by my own two hands. Its exhaustive work, but its extremely rewarding getting the feedback from customers and fans, and that’s what keeps me working so hard!
Miketendo64: A lot of your products are themes around Nintendo characters, games and products.
CptnAlex: Red tape. Ah. The infamous question everybody asks! As just about everybody in the world knows – copyright law, trademark law, its all extremely grey and has a big question mark hovering over it. No one truly seems to understand it but we all, unfortunately, have to live in fear of it. I’ve been very fortunate not to have any real issues with Nintendo, and I’ve been very open and forthcoming with multiple Nintendo employees and representatives about what I do. It’s no secret, I’m not hiding on the dark web. In fact, I’m waving a big flag saying “NOTICE ME”.
Not because I want them to shut me down, but because I want it to lead to more opportunities. I mean hey, RJ Palmer made realistic Pokemon images on DeviantArt and then got to design Pokemon for the Detective Pikachu movie! Talk about living the dream! While I don’t have any plans to move to Washington or LA and work for Nintendo, I WOULD love to be a freelance designer and help them create new special edition consoles.
Heck, even a special “Artist Series” of consoles. Can you imagine the collectibility? “Here are 10 designs, and only 1000 of each design is being made” – collectors would go wild! So all that to say I’m fortunate to not have had any issues with Nintendo, and with how open I’ve been, I hope a Nintendo representative would call me before a lawyer!
Miketendo64: What is it about Nintendo and it’s video games do you love so much?
CptnAlex: A lot of my love for Nintendo and video games comes from nostalgia. It’s not that I don’t like Xbox and Playstation – I do. In fact, I like them both a lot! But I grew up on Nintendo. My first console was a SNES, and one year my brother got a GameBoy Pocket for his birthday and I cried so much that my parents took me to the store and bought me a GameBoy of my own! (What a brat!) I have a lot of fond memories of playing games with my brother on the SNES, and then eventually the N64. Because of that, all my favorite franchises live on Nintendo consoles.
The Marios, Pokemon, and Zeldas are all exclusive, and because of that, I’ll always be a Nintendo guy! In regards to video games themselves, for me its all about the story. I’m more likely to play a game on “Super Weenie Hut Junior” difficulty than anything else. Not because I can’t play on normal or hard, but because I’m there for the story. I want to be able to experience the game in its entirety, and being stuck on a single boss fight for ages doesn’t let me do that – my backlog is too long to spend a week in one spot! Video Games are one of the most consumed forms of media in the world. For me, it’s just like reading a book or watching a movie, except this time I get to be in the leading role!
Miketendo64: What has been your favorite design/product you have done so far and what has been the most successful?
CptnAlex: Geez, my favorite design. I get asked this question so many times, I should really have a quick answer but that’s SO hard! My most successful design of all time has been by Pokemon Gold & Silver joy-cons, and my Pokemon Suicune joy-cons. Turns out people really love Johto (Me too!) But those aren’t my personal favorite designs. My personal favorite designs are ones I actually just released recently, and have not yet put up for sale! My new Splatoon joy-cons!
Miketendo64: You are currently organizing something with the Joy-Con Boyz gang. Would you like to talk more about it?
CptnAlex: Sure! When Etika passed away I saw an opportunity to do a lot of good, and that’s what I like to do. I know what I do is unique, and I know a lot of people love what I do. I also know even more people loved Etika. And Etika obviously loved the Nintendo Switch. So what better way to immortalize him than with a pair of custom joy-cons themed for him? After all, he did coin the term “Joy-con Boyz”. This gives his fans and extremely unique was to remember him and his legacy every single day. Of course, I would never take his name, image, or life for profit, so the joy-cons were sold strictly as a charity item, and we raised over $12,000 to date for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Awareness!
Miketendo64: Who are some of your favorite content creators and who do you take inspiration from?
CptnAlex: Man, there are so many good content creators out there. I’ll start with MissGandaKris. I started following her way back in the day when she still had a modest number of followers. Her custom amiibo work is so amazing and is what really inspired me to start making custom amiibo. That alone brought me into the Nintendo community in a big way! Over time I’ve met other amazing influencers like RayStrazdas who has become a good friend and allowed me to tag along with him at E3.
CaptainDangerous as well. She is just the most amazing Nendoroid toy photographer and genuinely nicest person out there, and so many other people. Each and every one of them has a unique skill set and brings something fresh and new to the Nintendo community, which is why they’re such inspirations to me! I like to think that I bring something extremely unique to the Nintendo community, and seeing how hard they work and how successful they’ve worked to become helps me keep pushing!
Miketendo64: Where can people find you on social media and Etsy and anywhere else you sell your products?
CptnAlex: I have a youtube, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook channel! Youtube.com/CptnAlex – Instagram: @CptnAlex
Twitter: @Cptn_Alex
and Facebook: /CptnAlex
Twitter: @Cptn_Alex
and Facebook: /CptnAlex
Main Website: cptnalex.com
While right now I’m not actively selling anything while I work on catching up on orders, all of my products will be available on CptnAlex.com in the future, or on Etsy by searching “ComicControllers” as the store name! The best way to find out about new products and sales is by keeping up with me on social media!
Miketendo64: Lastly. Do you have anything you would like to share with your followers and our readers?
CptnAlex: So many things. First and foremost if you didn’t know me before this, thanks for sticking around and getting to know me! I hope you’ll check out my work! To those of you who have followed me for a while, thank you so much for your continued support. Genuinely from the bottom of my heart I thank you so much. My inbox is always open if you need someone to talk to, and I’m always ready to hear your ideas for new customs you want to see me make!
*****
Thank you CptnAlex for taking part in our Content Creator Spotlight. It has been a pleasure engaging with you on Twitter and I love my Joy-Con enamel pins that I bought from your Etsy Store some time earlier this year. I hope you continue to do great things and most importantly, keep doing what you love.
If you are a content creator, be it YouTuber, Streamer Blogger, Designer or something else entirely, and would like to be featured in our Content Creator Spotlight. Reach out to us at contact@miketendo64.com with the subject Content Creator Spotlight. We want to help you grow and spread awareness of the great stuff you bring to the gaming community.
Well, Until Next Time. Keep On Gaming!
