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JournoGAF |OT| Road to the Pulitzers

M

Moobabe

Member
fleet-street_1424089c.jpg


We're lucky enough to have writers from GiantBomb, Kotaku, RPS, IGN, Gametrailers and many others as part of the GAF community. Unfortunately the only time they seem to post is when they're defending either their own work or the games media at large. I wanted to create a place for writers, critics and journalists away from the noise of resolutions, Doritos and next gen launch hysteria to just talk.

This is a place for game writers to discuss their work; their methods, their styles, their current projects and maybe one or two of the pieces they're most proud of. Share your successes, failings and maybe some of your favourite pieces from other game writers.

Whether you're a full time writer, freelancer or just do it for your own site in your spare time then post away!

RTVTSfu.jpg
Note: This is not a place for people to complain about review scores
RTVTSfu.jpg


If someone wants to make me some fancy sweet ass banners and icons that would be more than appreciated!

Roster

Post your name and your site! I'll list you here

Moobabe - Max Downton - D22 Zone
More_Badass - Indie Game Enthusiast
excaliburps - Pixel Enemy
micster - Nerfed
CheesecakeRecipe - Extrahype
RMI - GaijinDensetsu
jschreier - Kotaku
GDJustin - IGN
Moz La Punk - Gamer and InsideGamer
RyougaSaotome - Japanator
JehutyRunner - "Freelance connoisseur"
RobCrossley - CVG
davewiththeid - Game Reviews
Jintor - PCPowerPlay, Hyper Magazine Australia
joshrholloway - Freelancer
MaverickHunterAsh - Examiner
Dougstyles - Save/Continue
Kensuke - FOK!games
kassatsu - PSNStores
MrSerrels - Kotaku Australia
Ryan_IGN - IGN
apricot - Chic Pixel
Mdk7 - IGN Italy
TheGoddamn - Kambyero
Patrick Klepek - Giant Bomb
nynt9 - Save/Continue
matthewwhatever - Gaming Age
Wunder - Team Liquid
JohnnyPana - Nintendo Life
cupajoe - Greet The Rifts
GDGF - Brian Anthony Thornton - http://www.gamezebo.com/writer/brian-anthony-thornton
 
B

Broken Joystick

At least you can talk. Who are you?
Hey OP, thanks for this thread. I'm actually interested in hearing and reading how other journalists write/what they did to get into what they did and the best way to stay on the good side of people.

I'm currently (well, consider myself) a pretty amateur journalist (I've written pieces I'm proud of and conducted email interviews, so my foot is at least in the door) and I've helped start up fan websites, contributed for various sized sites and generally kept myself busy. I'm only 17 (18 in 2 months!) but I'm more than confident that games journalism is where my life is headed, I live and breathe games and I've found a way to express myself through playing and writing them! Talked briefly with many journalists from time to time and I've heard more often than not "don't get into it". I know what the average pay is for these sort of careers and I'm fine with that, I just want to be doing something I love for a living. Pretty soon we're going to need some next-generation journalists!

So again, thanks. I hope we get to see posts from a variety of journos/freelancers, what they're most proud of, how they got into what they're doing, their writing style and so forth. It would actually be a really big help!
 
M

Moobabe

Member
Broken Joystick said:
Hey OP, thanks for this thread. I'm actually interested in hearing and reading how other journalists write/what they did to get into what they did and the best way to stay on the good side of people.

I'm currently (well, consider myself) a pretty amateur journalist (I've written pieces I'm proud of and conducted email interviews, so my foot is at least in the door) and I've helped start up fan websites, contributed for various sized sites and generally kept myself busy. I'm only 17 (18 in 2 months!) but I'm more than confident that games journalism is where my life is headed, I live and breathe games and I've found a way to express myself through playing and writing them! Talked briefly with many journalists from time to time and I've heard more often than not "don't get into it". I know what the average pay is for these sort of careers and I'm fine with that, I just want to be doing something I love for a living. Pretty soon we're going to need some next-generation journalists!

So again, thanks. I hope we get to see posts from a variety of journos/freelancers, what they're most proud of, how they got into what they're doing, their writing style and so forth. It would actually be a really big help!
Click to expand...

Post some of your stuff man! I'm kind of the same as you to be honest
 
D

DrTeflon

Member
I usually do freelance stuff for a magazine, besides having my own website, Hu3br.

Yes, I know, I dont like the name either, my gf chose it, so I decided I shouldn't argue with her. Its in portuguese, so most people wont understand what's written.
 
M

More_Badass

Member
Nice to meet you, Broken Joystick. I'm 21 myself, stated writing about games over the summer.

I'm guessing you guys are interested so here's a post-mortem about my blog I wrote a few weeks ago:
Starting a successful (relatively, as in a personal success) gaming blog had never crossed my mind in the past. As much as I loved games, writing about them was an avenue I never considered. Even now, a college student such as myself could probably be spending the hours I spend playing these titles and writing impressions on more productive activities. This blog was born not from the simple want to review games, but out of frustration and a desire to help.

It began in late August. I had only gotten into PC gaming a few weeks ago and could finally indulge my love for indie games. It was a love that started with my first playthrough of Facade and then cemented by Nitronic Rush. For years, I had enjoyed reading about independent games, but as a console gamer, my proximity was limited to videos and articles and some freeware games. Now that I've dived headfirst into the world of Steam, Desura, GMG, of Humble, Kickstarter, and Indiegogo, my love has blossomed into a passion for independent gaming.

I stumbled upon the IOS game Line Bound on the Toucharcade forums. It's a challenging minimalist game in the vein of Super Hexagon and soon I was surprised and frustrated by the lack of attention for the game. Eventually the site Undiscovered App reached out to me to write a guest post about the game and I leaped onto the opportunity to spread the word. It was my first time I ever really sat down and transcribed my thoughts on a game. It was an experience and opportunity that I greatly enjoyed and the impetus that drove me to start a blog of my own.

Indie Game Enthusiast went live on August 21st, where I covered Line Bound, the freeware game Outer Wilds, and the first person puzzle platformer Inverto. I think the crickets were the only ones aware of my blog at that point. I spread my links and impressions across various sites and forums, from Reddit and Toucharcade to IGN and N4G. Views slowly increased but at glacial pace and days passed where no one visited. Still I continued posting articles and impressions. NeoGAF and its Indie Threads were my main source of hits so I knew there was at least some kind of audience.
After a while, I decided to set up on social media with a Facebook and Twitter page.

While the Facebook page proved a bust, the blog's Twitter was instrumental in helping spreading the word on these games and articles. I didn't care about followers. Begging people to like and follow me was something I wasn't going to do; I'd rather have a few followers who actually care about indies than 200 who only want giveaways or some stupid gimmick to attract a community.

And slowly but surely, I found that my blog had grown far bigger than I ever anticipated. Compared to those paltry handful of views in the early days, now I regularly receive 200 to 300+ views daily, amounting to over 8000 views since late August. Developers follow me on Twitter and have even said some wonderful things about my work. Syama Mishra of Witch Beam (Assault Android Cactus) said "You're an indie game devs fantasy come true“, while David of Hailstorm Games (Claire) commented “Thanks for the support and spreading the word...Not just for Claire, but all indie games. You bring light to a lot of cool stuff.”. It's that knowledge, that my blog can help the overlooked, overshadowed developers out there, that will keep me working on Indie Game Enthusiast for the foreseeable future.
It's not about playing games, or getting views. It's about something more important, about giving these games the attention and exposure they deserve. If even one person reads my blog and decides to support a developer thanks to my impressions, then that makes all the hours and time worth it.
Click to expand...
 
E

excaliburps

Press - MP1st.com
I'm pretty much always online on GAF -- at least, whenever I can. And I go here for the chatter (Gaming and Off-Topic) and not to defend gaemz joornalizm or even the site I work for.

Feel free to add me to the list, OP. I'm the EIC of Pixel Enemy (YouTube and site), as some people here know (don't know or don't care). Before that, I've written professionally for a number of other sites.

So, do we get cookies for submitting our names or what? =)
 
M

Moobabe

Member
excaliburps said:
I'm pretty much always online on GAF -- at least, whenever I can. And I go here for the chatter (Gaming and Off-Topic) and not to defend gaemz joornalizm or even the site I work for.

Feel free to add me to the list, OP. I'm the EIC of Pixel Enemy (YouTube and site), as some people here know (don't know or don't care). Before that, I've written professionally for a number of other sites.

So, do we get cookies for submitting our names or what? =)
Click to expand...

ALL of the cookies!! I'm not here to defend anything or otherwise - just to discuss how we ourselves go about things.
 
D

DrTeflon

Member
More_Badass said:
Nice to meet you, Broken Joystick. I'm 21 myself, stated writing about games over the summer.

I'm guessing you guys are interested so here's a post-mortem about my blog I wrote a few weeks ago:
Click to expand...

That's funny. I tried using twitter in a way to spread or promote our content (we are a two man team atm, me who writes newspieces / reviews and a friend who handles MOBA / Dota 2 audience, which is one of our main audience) and it didnt work. Facebook on the other hand, though, proved itself a success.
 
M

Moz La Punk

Member
I write for the Dutch videogame websites Gamer and InsideGamer. This could be an interesting topic, I will keep an eye on it for sure.

Edit: made my introduction a fair bit shorter, I can be such a talker without a good editor ;)
 
M

micster

Member
Hello! I'm Michael. I've wrote about videogames for a smidge over three years now. I've been with Nerfed for a year now and that's where all my previews and reviews go!
 
M

More_Badass

Member
DrTeflon said:
That's funny. I tried using twitter in a way to spread or promote our content (we are a two man team atm, me who writes newspieces / reviews and a friend who handles MOBA / Dota 2 audience, which is one of our main audience) and it didnt work. Facebook on the other hand, though, proved itself a success.
Click to expand...
I find Twitter much more direct and easier to update. My Facebook page is pretty much dead

And btw, since we're among fellow writers, I wore that post-mortem on 10/22, had about 8000 views total on my site at the time. By today...13,500 views. So almost over 5,000 in what...three weeks? I'm still amazed
 
M

Moobabe

Member
I'm pulling together work on my next "in depth" project but I'm trying to decide what to go for - what do you guys think?

Moobabe said:
Gonna start researching for my next article tomorrow/thursday but I need to narrow it down from a choice of the following:

Alice - Looking at how Madness Returns fits into the canon, whether or not it's a worthwhile addition to the canon etc

Krater - Interview/article about how and why Krater is the greatest game of all time and no-one knew it. What were their aims, where did it go wrong etc

Demigod - Interview/article about how and why Demigod is the second greatest game of all time.

Bioshock - My favourite game series of all time. Why it works, why it doesn't, why Rapture is the greatest game environment of all time. Basically why Bioshock is pro. If I could interview Ken Levine I'd probably shit myself.

Gone Home - A part 3 in my Dear Esther/Proteus series. What are it's influences, why it fits the time period so well, what it accomplishes in it's 3 hour life of nothing but walking.

These are all rough, obviously, and require varying amounts of research/playtime/writing but I'd be interested to see what you guys prefer.
Click to expand...
 
B

Broken Joystick

At least you can talk. Who are you?
Moobabe said:
Post some of your stuff man! I'm kind of the same as you to be honest
Click to expand...

I had previously contemplated making a similar sort of thread, but I was going to email the likes of Jason Schreier, Philip Kollar and a bunch of editors/journalists that worked for a magazine I used to read to hear their thoughts on how people like us should try and tackle the industry, didn't have the time however!

I've been around various sites but I think the best piece I've done was a look into how Nintendo's changing their attitude towards indies, which I penned last year. A less serious example would have to be my "Settle Dust: Rayman Legends" piece I put up on my blog, it's supposed to be sort of like a review but at the same time not, so I didn't really know where I was going with it.

Happily reporting news for Push-Start Play right now, but the highlight of my career would have to be a sub-400 word review of Metroid Prime I wrote for ONM when I was 15 haha!

More_Badass said:
Nice to meet you, Broken Joystick. I'm 21 myself, stated writing about games over the summer.

I'm guessing you guys are interested so here's a post-mortem about my blog I wrote a few weeks ago:
Click to expand...

Hey More Badass, that's a great insight you got there, inspired to do my own!

Moobabe said:
I'm pulling together work on my next "in depth" project but I'm trying to decide what to go for - what do you guys think?
Click to expand...

Considering I've not heard of Krater, I say that one!
 
M

More_Badass

Member
@Moz
Hate for gaming journalism on GAF? Maybe I haven't been here long enough but I don't think I've ever seen anything amounting to hate. Dislike for a score and criticism of a review, and there's the stupid vocal minority who bash stuff, but hate?

@Moobabe
I'll see what I can do about a JournoGAF banner
 
M

Moobabe

Member
Broken Joystick said:
I had previously contemplated making a similar sort of thread, but I was going to email the likes of Jason Schreier, Philip Kollar and a bunch of editors/journalists that worked for a magazine I used to read to hear their thoughts on how people like us should try and tackle the industry, didn't have the time however!

Happily reporting news for Push-Start Play right now, but the highlight of my career would have to be a sub-400 word review of Metroid Prime I wrote for ONM when I was 15 haha!

Considering I've not heard of Krater, I say that one!
Click to expand...

Metroid Prime happens to be one of my favourite games EVER. I mean EVER. That's incredible. The Demigod and Krater pieces are the ones I think I can do easily - the others are gonna require a lot of reading.

I think I'm most proud of my Proteus and Dear Esther pieces. They're "reviews" but I wanted to take a look at the broader review scene when I wrote them, especially the Dear Esther one, and try and place my review in opposition/agreement. I don't really expect people to ONLY read my stuff, it doesn't exist in a vacuum after all!

I lost a lot of my work when we moved hosting unfortunately.
 
A

Acccent

Member
Ah! super great thread. I'm not a journalist or critic but I am super interested and admirative of that field, which isn't really something all that common among devs, and I actually think games media 'hold the key to the future of videogames and have yet to realize the full extent of their power'. I'm totally serious.
 
A

Aaron-Lagann

Banned
I did it casually over the last year. I wrote for four sites and have since left all of them, as I got sick of writing for free. It's extremely difficult to get any paid work if you don't have a degree, and even if you do then freelance is barely worth the time it takes to do so.

The main issue I ran into was that people I wrote with weren't very professional. Like, my editor would repeatedly assign games, stories and event coverage to someone, then the next day assign assign it to someone else without telling either person of this change. He'd edit our work poorly by changing errors into other errors, or taking acceptable sentences and adding in errors. It was just, a really bad place to write for.

These experiences perpetuated as I continued to write for other sites. On one I was assigned a game to review until it became a review copy from the developer, then it was my boss'. I don't know if that's a common practice or not, but he did it with every review copy we got and we all just assumed it was him being greedy.

One time I wrote for a site and was literally the only person putting out any content but was also the only one on staff getting no money, so I was essentially just writing everything so three other guys could do nothing but play free games.

The worst thing that happened to me was a review I wrote that my editor refused to put up unless I changed the score to be higher. This actually caused me to leave immediately, and his reasoning was that since it was a review copy he didn't want to give it a bad score and stop the games from coming from that developer. After that happened I knew exactly what type of editor he was and that's when I took my temporary leave from writing about games, though, since I've been away from doing it for a few months I've really started to miss the satisfaction of having a review on a site. Being able to point to something if someone has questions about a game I played or having a public venue to put out an opinion.

Other reason I stopped was because most places were only looking for news editors and I feel that news on smaller sites is completely pointless and is nothing but a waste of time to write. There're so many ways to get news now that nobody is going to go to some tiny blog to find out about a new trailer for Call of Duty. If that person cares about COD, then they have Facebook, twitter and YouTube all right there desperately trying to give them that info, nothing I'm doing on this small site is helping anyone in that regard.

Edit: Got caught up talking about stuff and forgot the point of the thread.

Aaron Eades - (Not currently writing for any site, but I do have a blog that I don't update very often and have taken down almost all of the content from.) aaroneades.blogspot.com
 
C

CheesecakeRecipe

Stormy Grey
Currently I post on Extrahype, a site started by a GAFer some years ago and asked me to join up for a site relaunch/refocus that would have had several writers covering all manner of content. We all seemed to dissolve over the summer, then downtime led to inability to post anything. At the moment i'm the only one who posts there, and I have no ability to see page hits or anything outside of facebook and twitter shares so I kind of exist in a void where I don't know if anything I write is even read. Which is pretty awful for my anxieties about it all.

I've been liked and shared by a few indie devs who enjoy my style which has let me request a few press copies here and there but for the most part i'm unknown and have to pay for what I cover out of pocket. It leads to some significant delays in coverage since I don't make that much to begin with. Frustrating to be sure, but it's what I've got to work with.
 
R

RMI

Banned
I post somewhat infrequently on my personal website GaijinDensetsu. I used to cover some game news stuff but now I mostly just write about what games I've been playing, with a specific interest in NA releases of Japanese developed games and sometimes imports.

*Edit - I think this is a cool idea for a thread btw, especially since GAF can be pretty brutal in criticism of the mainstream game press. It might be not a terrible idea to shine that light back at ourselves a bit haha.
 
I

Imbarkus

As Sartre noted in his contemplation on Hell in No Exit, the true horror is other members.
It_e874f1_1336784.gif


Not sure this thread will turn out how people think it will.
 
M

More_Badass

Member
Aaron-Lagann said:
I did it casually over the last year. I wrote for four sites and have since left all of them, as I got sick of writing for free. It's extremely difficult to get any paid work if you don't have a degree, and even if you do then freelance is barely worth the time it takes to do so.

The main issue I ran into was that people I wrote with weren't very professional. Like, my editor would repeatedly assign games, stories and event coverage to someone, then the next day assign assign it to someone else without telling either person of this change. He'd edit our work poorly by changing errors into other errors, or taking acceptable sentences and adding in errors. It was just, a really bad place to write for.

These experiences perpetuated as I continued to write for other sites. On one I was assigned a game to review until it became a review copy from the developer, then it was my boss'. I don't know if that's a common practice or not, but he did it with every review copy we got and we all just assumed it was him being greedy.

One time I wrote for a site and was literally the only person putting out any content but was also the only one on staff getting no money, so I was essentially just writing everything so three other guys could do nothing but play free games.

The worst thing that happened to me was a review I wrote that my editor refused to put up unless I changed the score to be higher. This actually caused me to leave immediately, and his reasoning was that since it was a review copy he didn't want to give it a bad score and stop the games from coming from that developer. After that happened I knew exactly what type of editor he was and that's when I took my temporary leave from writing about games, though, since I've been away from doing it for a few months I've really started to miss the satisfaction of having a review on a site. Being able to point to something if someone has questions about a game I played or having a public venue to put out an opinion.

Other reason I stopped was because most places were only looking for news editors and I feel that news on smaller sites is completely pointless and is nothing but a waste of time to write. There're so many ways to get news now that nobody is going to go to some tiny blog to find out about a new trailer for Call of Duty. If that person cares about COD, then they have Facebook, twitter and YouTube all right there desperately trying to give them that info, nothing I'm doing on this small site is helping anyone in that regard.

Edit: Got caught up talking about stuff and forgot the point of the thread.

Aaron Eades - (Not currently writing for any site, but I do have a blog that I don't update very often and have taken down almost all of the content from.) aaroneades.blogspot.com
Click to expand...
Wow that sounds horrible. Sorry about those poor experiences. I'm a one-man site, and I'm proud of that

And I don't rate games because scores are pointless and hurtful to the industry in general. I even wrote an opinion piece on why I don't score games if anyone wants to read it.

Do you guys rate games? What are your thoughts on that?
 
T

The Flash

Banned
I'm not a professional writer or anything close to that but I have been taking a Mass Media Law and Regulation class this semester and if there's one thing that I've learned from that class it's this; Don't be like Stephen Glass. Stephen Glass is a douche. Instead, be more like Chuck Lane because Chuck Lane isn't a douche. Thank you.
 
M

More_Badass

Member
RMI said:
I also don't rate games (anymore), and also wrote a bit about it. I haven't read it in a while, but it is more or less in line with what you wrote IIRC.
Click to expand...
"Games are not the sum of their parts."
Bascially yeah my piece echoed yours. Trying to represent all that a game is with a single score or label the breadth of an art style with a number just does a disservice to that game as a whole

So I'll be writing another opinion piece soon. Would you rather read

Die, Succeed, Die Again, Repeat: on the allure of roguelikes and difficult games
or
From The Shadows: on how stealth is empowering
 
R

RMI

Banned
More_Badass said:
"Games are not the sum of their parts."
Bascially yeah my piece echoed yours. Trying to represent all that a game is with a single score or label the breadth of an art style with a number just does a disservice to that game as a whole

So I'll be writing another opinion piece soon. Would you rather read

Die, Succeed, Die Again, Repeat: on the allure of roguelikes and difficult games
or
From The Shadows: on how stealth is empowering
Click to expand...

This second one sounds good. I actually think stealth mechanics are a bit stagnant and can lead to player frustration (i.e. it is sometimes just a fail state), so reading about some positive examples or side effects of stealth mechanics would be cool. Difficult games are interesting as well though, especially as (I hope) a sign that the industry is stepping back from what I perceive as a ledge of games that can be completed almost trivially by players of any skill level.
 
R

RyougaSaotome

Member
Hi hi.

I'm a Destructoid contributor (mostly around TGS time), and an associate editor for their sister site, Japanator. The latter deals in pretty much anything Japan, but I typically tackle Japan-only games/import stuff in my weekly column, Go West!.

Admittedly, I write way more about animation/film on average, but yeah, import games are my scene.

I also reviewed Tokitowa when it first came out here. I still hate myself for that.

Oh yeah, and I guess here's my Twitter. Warning, I mostly tweet about Japanese games/animation/life in Japan, and I tweet a lot.
 
J

JehutyRunner

Banned
Oooh, this seems like a good idea. So what the hell, I'll bite!

I'm Johnny Cullen. I used to be UK Editor for VG247, now a freelance connoisseur, if you will. I continue to write for my former paymasters but also for the likes of Eurogamer (here's a piece I did back in June with Jennifer Hale - the piece I'm proud of most because I dreamed of being on EG one day), Official PlayStation Magazine UK and written for Polygon.

Here's my Twitter!
 
E

excaliburps

Press - MP1st.com
Moobabe said:
I was sure to mention Doritos in the OP - but I wanted to make a place that we could just talk about our projects and methods away from the noise and distrust.
Click to expand...

Subscribed!

And yes, please no Doritos talk or moneyhat this. I mean, every thread has that already, right? :)

So, fellow GAF games media peeps can pitch ideas here, shoot the breeze and such, eh? Awesome!
 
M

Moobabe

Member
excaliburps said:
Subscribed!

And yes, please no Doritos talk or moneyhat this. I mean, every thread has that already, right? :)

So, fellow GAF games media peeps can pitch ideas here, shoot the breeze and such, eh? Awesome!
Click to expand...

Yeah that's the idea - post what stuff you're working on, post some of your favourite pieces from other writers, or stuff you've done that you're proud of!

GDJustin said:
If anyone tries to ask me any tough questions, I'm calling the cops.
Click to expand...

Deal!

JehutyRunner said:
I'm Johnny Cullen. I used to be UK Editor for VG247, now a freelance connoisseur, if you will. I continue to write for my former paymasters but also for the likes of Eurogamer (here's a piece I did back in June with Jennifer Hale - the piece I'm proud of most because I dreamed of being on EG one day)
Click to expand...

Thanks for stopping by! I remember reading that piece! Soo good - that's the kind of stuff I'm most interested in - I'm not really one for "news" but I prefer the human angle to games.

RyougaSaotome said:
Hi hi.

I'm a Destructoid contributor (mostly around TGS time), and an associate editor for their sister site, Japanator. The latter deals in pretty much anything Japan, but I typically tackle Japan-only games/import stuff in my weekly column, Go West!.
Click to expand...

Welcome!

I knew there was a bunch of high profile people lurking on here!
 
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