Friday, December 14, 2012

I was featured by Phoenix People!

Nicki Escudero of Phoenix People put together a feature on yours truly. Given my career in writing about others, it was kind of odd sitting down to talk about myself for a change.

Find out what got me into journalism, why I love my job and why video games have been such a big part of my personal (and now professional) life.

It feels weird promoting something written about me, but it was also really cool to be on the other side of the interview, so here you go: Phoenix People: Ryan Winslett

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

This month in Bit Creature - December 2012

A chat with the live-action Nathan Drake, Ryan Culver
My interview with Ryan Culver, the man who portrayed Nathan Drake in the PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale trailers.

Building a bit of heaven in Far Cry 3 [Column]
I take a walk through the paradise of Far Cry 3, only to be reminded how dangerous the island truly is.

DJ Max Technika Tune [Review]
Find out why I adore this K-Pop-infused rhythm game for the PlayStation Vita.

Tuesday, November 6, 2012

This month in Bit Creature - November 2012

Video game haikus [Column]
This week's column is straight up poetry...No, seriously, I wrote a bunch of haikus about video games.

Sports Champions 2 [Review]
Find out why I think Sports Champions 2 is one of the best motion-controlled games on the market.

Shut up and drive [Column]
I muse about how video games serve as a form of therapy, allowing me to get behind the wheel of a virtual car and drive away from my problems for an hour or two. 

Ragnarok Odyssey [Review]
Find out why I think Ragnarok Odyssey might be one of the best PlayStation Vita games to date.

Orgarhythm [Review]
My doctor wrote a note on my behalf to the creators/publishers of this rhythm strategy game for the PS Vita. Its toe-tapping, head-bobbing beats led to some serious injuries.

Thursday, October 11, 2012

This month in Bit Creature - October 2012

Dokuro [Review]
Find out why this puzzle/platformer for the PS Vita is worth your time.

Watching the world burn [Column]
 Retro City Rampage finally gives me a guilt-free place to let my inner psychopath run wild.

Silent Hill: Book of Memories [Review]
Find out why I enjoyed WayForward's mix of dungeon crawling with the familiar world of Silent Hill.

I stand alone in the woods [Column]
In this week's column, I talk about how the simplistic horror game, Slender, scared me to death, and how indie games like this could help shape the future of the industry.

Thursday, September 13, 2012

This month in Bit Creature - September 2012

The memories we make [Column]
In this week's column, I fret over the time I spend playing video games, pondering if there isn't something more constructive I could be doing with my free time.

More than meets the eye [Column]
In which I talk about my love for Transformers: Fall of Cybertron, how it makes me feel like a kid again and how, sometimes, it's nice to exchange a critical eye in the name of enjoying the hell out of something.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

This month in Bit Creature - August 2012

The sound of music [Column]
In this week's Bit Creature column, I talk about how Sound Shapes makes me feel like a musician.

The pinball apprentice [Column]
It took me a long time to come around, but I've finally fallen in love with pinball. Here's where you can follow my journey to enlightenment.

Darksiders II Review
I spent 40 hours in Death's blood-soaked boots and loved nearly every minute of it.

The Minibosses on video game rock and roll [Interview]
I spoke with two-fourths of the members of the Minibosses about how they got into video games and how their love for classic NES titles evolved into a musical career.

Wizorb review [Review]
Two very different genres (brick breaking and RPG) align in this retro throwback.

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

My OTHER New Gig: Bit Creature

I'm excited to finally be able to announce my involvement with Bit Creature, a new website that looks at gaming culture as a regular part of everyday life. If the staff over there looks familiar, it's because most of the regulars from Joystick Division have made the jump to our new home.

As such, I'll basically be doing exactly what I was doing back at Joystick Division. My gaming column, Infinite Ammo, will run bi-weekly. I'll also continue contributing the odd review, feature and news story.

I greatly enjoyed my time at Joystick Division and the folks I worked with for the past two years, so I'm more than excited that we'll keep on keeping on at our new site. Hopefully we'll be making a lot of noise in the very near future, so keep your ears open and your eyes peeled.

Please join us by making BitCreature.com a regular stop for gaming news, reviews, insight and more.

Friday, July 6, 2012

This month in Joystick Division - July 2012

Video games' best endings [Infinite Ammo]
How a game ends can help determine how well it is remembered. Here are five of my favorite video game endings of all time.

Resident Evil Chronicles HD Collection is off target [Review]
Sore arms, wonky aiming and some poor design keep Resident Evil Chronicles from being a light gun must-have.

Mobile gaming doesn't compare to portable consoles [Infinite Ammo]
Smart phones are good for killing time at the doctor's office, but they simply can't replace the portable gaming experience.

Monday, June 11, 2012

My new gig: Contributing writer at Gaming Blend

This month I begin a new venture in the magical realm of video games reporting, hired on as a contributor for Gaming Blend.

Part of the Cinema Blend family, Gaming Blend features news, reviews, hands-on impressions and pretty much everything else you would expect from the world of gaming.

I'll be providing about five stories per day, Monday through Friday, as well as some weekend content from time to time. Check it out at GamingBlend.com

Friday, June 1, 2012

This month in Joystick Division - June 2012

Video games' best daddies [Infinite Ammo]
This week I talk about the best fathers in the wide world of video games.

Musings on E3 and childbirth [Infinite Ammo]
My new nephew was born the first morning of E3. My new nephew is awesome. E3 2012, not so much.

Gravity Rush: And I'm free...Free falling. [Review]
Making the laws of physics your plaything is a rip-roaring good time in Gravity Rush for the PlayStation Vita.

Taking my game to the tabletop [Infinite Ammo]
Grab your dice and a few friends. This week's Infinite Ammo abandons the controllers to talk about the wonderful world of tabletop games.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

This month in Joystick Division - May 2012

Resistance: Burning Skies not quite a bullseye [Review]
Resistance: Burning Skies provides a fun shooting experience for Sony's portable console, but little frills and a lackluster online offering means the excitement grinds to a halt all too soon.

PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale: My dram roster [Infinite Ammo]
We're all expecting to see the likes of Nathan Drake, Cloud and Ratchet in Sony's upcoming brawler. Here are 10 less obvious characters from PlayStation's past I'd love to see make the cut.

Rusty Hearts is pretty dang rad [Infinite Ammo]
Find out why Rusty Hearts, the free-to-play action MMO, has become my latest obsession.

Starhawk's DLC maps will be free? More of this, please. [Infinite Ammo]
My thoughts on Lightbox's new method for keeping their online community united, namely in the form of free map packs.

The games that define me - Part two [Infinate Ammo]
The second and final in a series taking a look at the video games that helped make me the gamer I am today.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

This month in Joystick Division - April 2012

The games that define me: Part one [Infinite Ammo]
The first in a two-part series exploring the games that helped shape my life, picked me up when I was down and brought me closer to my friends.

It's a Golden Age for gaming [Infinite Ammo]
Sure, things aren't perfect. But on the whole, it's never been a better time to be a gamer than it is right now.

Video games: A constant supply of achievement [Infinite Ammo]
If "sense of accomplishment" were a drug, then video games would be the best dealers out there.
Is the Wii U really less powerful than current gen consoles? Here's a better question: Does it really matter?

Friday, March 2, 2012

This month in Joystick Division - March 2012

Hells yeah to video game warning labels [Infinite Ammo]
I fully support putting warning labels on our video games...No. Seriously.

Enjoying the seasonal slump in new game releases [Infinite Ammo]
Annual video game release slowdowns don't always have to be a bad thing.

Why Journey is so important [Infinite Ammo]
While Journey receives much-deserved recognition for its various bits and pieces, it should also be praised for creating an experience that can only be achieved in video games.

So, I bought a Vita. Wanna make something of it? [Infinite Ammo]
My three-part PlayStation Vita rant finally comes to a close. I bought one. Here's what I think. (Spoiler: I flippin' love it.)

Don't like the way Capcom does business? Stop giving them your money. [Infinite Ammo]
I know it can be tough, but the best way to let a publisher know you're unhappy with the way they're doing business is to stop giving them yours.

Sunday, February 12, 2012

Todd McFarlane brings a comic artist's eye to Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning [Via Gamasutra]

Comic book creator Todd McFarlane joined the likes of Curt Schilling, R.A. Salvatore and Ken Rolston to create 38 Studios' first video game, the ambitious open world RPG, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reconing.

McFarlane spoke with me about how he got involved with the project, what it was like moving from comic books to video games, and how he worked with the team as Executive Art Director to give the game its darkly whimsical look.

The story has been published by Gamasutra and can be found at the following link:

Interview: Todd McFarlane brings a comic artist's eye to Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning

Friday, February 3, 2012

This month in Joystick Division - February 2012

I fought the hype and the hype won [Infinite Ammo]
Hype runs rampant in the world of video games. Will the buzz surrounding the PlayStation Vita push me over the line to making a purchase?

Viva la Vita: Is there room in the pocket for Sony's new handheld? [Infinite Ammo]
The portable gaming landscape has changed drastically over the past five years. Is Sony's latest handheld console, the PlayStation Vita, targeted at a market that no longer exists?

Sometimes I just want to punch stuff [Infinite Ammo]
We tend to fault games that don't attempt to elevate the form to new levels. This week, I ponder when it stopped being okay to just enjoy the mindless fun video games can provide.

Online passes: The good, the bad and the ugly [Infinite Ammo]
Whether you see them as an attack on used game sales or as a means for publishers to stay afloat, it looks like online passes are here to stay.

Friday, January 6, 2012

This month in Joystick Division - January 2012

Why do we love bad games? [Infinite Ammo]
Even terrible video games manage to garner a few diehard fans. In this week's Infinite Ammo, I ponder why that is.

Amy- Frustration has a new name [Review]
What's in a name? In the case of Amy, the answer is "an infuriatingly unfinished game."

Dreamcast: My next gen is old school [Infinite Ammo]
With a new console generation on the horizon, I look to the past for some quality gaming at a fraction of the cost.

The evolution of the complex hero [Infinite Ammo]
Follow the video game hero through its many form, growing to become more relatable, flawed antagonists.

Video games' unsung heroes of 2011 [Infinite Ammo]
In this week's Infinite Ammo, I take a gander at some of the best titles of the year that will likely be overlooked in most "top 10" lists.