Dan Amrich
Los Angeles, CA
Male, 41
I started reviewing videogames professionally in 1993, when Genesis and SNES roamed the earth. Over the next 15 years I worked for magazines and websites like GamePro, GamesRadar, Official Xbox Magazine, and World Of Warcraft Official Magazine, while freelancing for Wired, PC Gamer, and many others. In an attempt to guide the next generation of reviewers, I wrote and published Critical Path: How to Review Videogames For A Living in February. Ask away!
Sure -- but it might not be in those obvious A/V categories. At some point we're going to hit a visual threshhold where it just doesn't matter if games look better, or the improvements made will be less obvious. So the innovation has to come from things like gameplay and concept and big ideas, I think. We know spaceships can blast aliens; we know dudes can beat each other up; we know one hero can save the world. But when you consider how many interesting topics books and movies cover that games currently do not, you realize there's tons of room for growth. The world of gaming is not limited to simulations of both real and imagined worlds and activities; I think we're going to see "better" come from "more thought-provoking" in the long haul. And those thought-provoking games can absolutely come with photorealistic graphics, surround sound, and tangible 3D worlds -- but those can't be the focus in and of themselves.
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I do a lot of my gaming on 360 and iPad because I worked at OXM and it is most available in my free time, respectively, but I could just as easily be doing it on PS3 and 3DS. My playing a lot of 360 should not influence you in the slightest. I am platform agnostic and I have active disdain for the so-called console wars. As if we don't have enough divisive issues in the world, some brainiac decided that one machine dedicated to playing games had to be empirically better than another. Downright ridiculous. Play what makes you happy on whatever you can put your hands on. The important thing is that we're playing games and enjoying it.
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You can only review the experience you have. People seem to think that if a review does not reflect their personal experience, then the review is wrong. Well, no; their experience was different from yours, but both experiences are valid. If something like DRM/always-on connections affect your experience of the game, then they should factor in. But if they did not affect the reviewer's experience at the time of review, it's hardly fair to expect them to say "But maybe the game isn't actually as good as it was when I played it for myself." Whose opinion are they writing anyway? Their own, based on their own experience. But it is absolutely responsible to note "this game has significant DRM" or "this game will require an always-on connection" as part of the review's information, as those will factor into the game experience. As you note, a game is more than just its content, and every game is more than your personal money investment, it's a time investment. Reviews can't just factor in "is it worth your money" -- they also have to ask "is it worth your time?" Whether DRM or technical factors weigh into the score or not depends on whether that reviewer felt it was a detriment or a boon or neither. At the very least, the consumer should be given that information so they can factor it into their own decision. But they cannot control the game once it is released any more than you or I can. If a game has significant issues after the review is posted, add an update to the review, or post a news story about the current events. You don't have to ignore reality, but I also don't feel the reviewer's experience should be rendered invalid because of temporary technical issues. Problems will arise and problems will be solved. I know of very few top-tier games with online components that don't experience issues during launch week and don't have adjustments on the back end to deal with those issues. Based on the last several years, I now accept that games will evolve after release, and that the release week may well be problematic. It's reality.
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I'm not familiar with today's educational games. I have never reviewed them, and I do not have kids, as I mentioned above. :)
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Sushi Chef
Is there a stigma against sushi restaurants that have non-Asian chefs?
Border Patrol Agent
Do Mexican authorities help on THEIR side of the border?
Call Center Representative
Are you allowed to hang up on a caller if they're being very rude?
You're right, I did cover it in the book -- but I think games journalism simply evolved to incorporate more personal asides. NGJ can be very personal and powerful...but I think it's easier to make it personal and self-indulgent. To say something personal that also offers insight and a larger commentary is not as easy as it looks. I recommend getting a handle on OGJ first. Once you know the rules and why they are there, then you are better equipped to break those rules in a meaningful and evolutionary way.
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Too late to ask this one. They already are.
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Yes, and burnout is a very real side effect of the job. I've worked with people who were so determined to cling to their dream job that they were unaware that they were grumpy and bitter about something they used to love -- when play becomes work, it's very easy to only focus on the negative sides of the work, like deadlines or office politics or technical issues. That can and does spill over into reviews if you let it -- and that can alienate readers and ruin your reputation. I took very few vacations at GamePro because I loved the work and there was always so much to do in a short amount of time; when I left I had banked a month of vacation time. I wish I'd taken it, because I went through a serious crisis of conscience while I was there, thinking "Is this it? Am I burned out? Can I still do this job and have my writing be worth something to other people?" And it did take a few weeks to realign my thinking; I was critical enough about my own performance and my own writing that I was able to see when I started to go off the track and self-correct. But yes, absolutely -- a combination of crushing deadlines and the inherent sameness of games within a genre (for instance, all FPSes are different, but they do all speak the same language) can make you bitter and jaded and very much in need of a vacation if not a career change. It's like eating candy all day every day -- sounds great when you're a kid, and when you get to try it, you love it at first...and then you realize it's just not healthy and you feel worse if it goes on for too long. You need to take it on moderation so you continue to love it.
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