Wednesday, June 19, 2013

E3 2013 coverage for Gaming Blend

E3 has officially come to a close and my brain is still trying to digest everything that went down in and around the LA Convention Center from June 10-13. I had the opportunity to attend press conferences for Sony, Microsoft and EA, as well as pile on three full days worth of interviews with developers and get in some hands-on time with loads of games.

My coverage of E3 2013 can be found on Gaming Blend or, for your convenience, I've compiled all 16 of my stories from the event here in one handy-dandy little post. Dig in!

An Xbox press conference diary
An EA press conference diary
A Sony press conference diary
E3 2013 made me finally buy a 3DS
Hands on with Dragon's Crown
Hands on with Killzone: Mercenary
Shinsaku Ohara discusses the insanity of Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z
Designer David Goldfarb dishes details on Payday 2
Creator Andrew Spinks digs into Terraria for iOS
Creative Director Jens Matthies shows off Wolfenstein: The New Order
Shinji Mikami talks about surviving The Evil Within
Xbox One reps dive into console's potential
Hands on with Saints Row IV
Eyes-on with the Destiny gameplay demo
Behind closed doors with Call of Duty: Ghosts
Exploring the crazy action of Killer is Dead
Tracking down monsters in The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
Narrative Director Steven Gallagher steps out of the shadows with Thief

Sunday, June 2, 2013

Bit Creature: That's a wrap

After nearly a year of bringing readers some of the most original, thoughtful writing in the world of video games, Bit Creature has closed shop. Our fearless leader, James Hawkins, got dealt a pretty rough hand and had to reassess his ability to keep the site going full throttle. In the end, the decision was made to put Bit Creature on a (possibly permanent) hiatus.

For my part, I've absolutely loved writing for the site. Hawkins and my talented editor, Rich Shivener, allowed their amazing staff of writers total creative freedom. I'm humbled to have been among their ranks. It's not often you find a place to work that truly encourages creativity and coloring outside of the line. James and Rich absolutely celebrated that kind of writing, which is what allowed such wonderful pieces to pop up on Bit Creature on a regular basis.

For almost a year, I provided columns on a bi-weekly basis, as well as the occasional review (another area where James and Rich insisted we be creative and have fun with our writing, rather than just roll out the usual product review--it controls great and the soundtrack is lovely!--you find pretty much everywhere else on the internet).

In short, it's been the best writing experience of my life. The crew was amazing and I loved that there was a place where I could read their unique takes on video games and life. I only hope I will someday find a place where I can pursue this type of writing once again. I'm already itching to spill my guts on a variety of topics, but the sad fact of the matter is that there just aren't many places like Bit Creature out there, where I'd be able to cut loose and fly as free as I have for the past year.

It was an honor and a privilege to call Bit Creature my home. And for those of you who are looking for some great writing about the world of video games, the people who play them, and how that all ties into our daily lives, you can always drop by the site and dive into its wealth of content at BitCreature.com

As for me, I'm still plugging away at my job writing for The Fountain Hills Times, I still write daily for the fantastic games news site at Gaming Blend, and I'm still finding opportunities to do some freelance pieces from time to time. I'm definately keeping busy, I'm just going to miss my friends and the playground we all got to share at Bit Creature.