Artificially Flavored

Feature: Vallejo/Bell Talk BioShock 2 Art @ 1UP

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:46:27 -0600

Feature: Vallejo/Bell Talk BioShock 2 Art @ 1UP:

My brief 1UP feature about the latest entry in the BioShock 2 Artist Series painted by the husband-and-wife team of Boris Vallejo and Julie Bell. I didn’t conduct the interview, but used the resulting answers to put together this article, which is part of the BioShock 2 Cover Story going on at 1UP right now.

I knew of Boris and Julie going into this article for one primary reason — way back in elementary school, I rabidly collected Marvel Comics trading cards, and they painted a bunch of awesome images for one particular line of super-glossy, high-quality cards. Loved those.

Review: Rogue Warrior (360) @ 1UP

Thu, 10 Dec 2009 22:29:24 -0600

Review: Rogue Warrior (360) @ 1UP:

My review of Rogue Warrior, a first-person shooter developed by Rebellion and published by Bethesda, for 1UP.

Preview: Alan Wake (360) @ 1UP

Tue, 08 Dec 2009 08:24:00 -0600

Preview: Alan Wake (360) @ 1UP:

My interview-based preview of Alan Wake, developed by Remedy and published by Microsoft, for 1UP.com. It’s the first article in their latest cover story, which mimics a magazine’s feature approach with a swanky splash image and week-long coverage of a specific game or topic. Pretty sure it’s my first official contribution to a 1UP cover story.

Review: MX vs. ATV Reflex @ Official Xbox Magazine

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 08:57:47 -0600

Review: MX vs. ATV Reflex @ Official Xbox Magazine:

My review of MX vs. ATV Reflex, an off-road racing game for Xbox 360 (other platforms as well) developed by Rainbow and published by THQ, for Official Xbox Magazine. Also to appear in the January 2010 print issue.

Review: Stoked: Big Air Edition @ GamesRadar

Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:38:43 -0600

Review: Stoked: Big Air Edition @ GamesRadar:

My review of Stoked: Big Air Edition, an Xbox 360 snowboarding game developed by Bongfish GmbH and published by Destineer, for GamesRadar. See also: my review of the original Stoked for GamesRadar.

Yahoo! Video Games reprinting GameSpy reviews

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:32:00 -0600

Not to be all, “Hey, look at me,” but moments after submitting the previous post about PC Advisor/World AU syndicating my GamePro reviews, I found myself at Yahoo! Video Games, which now syndicates its articles from IGN’s websites — including GameSpy. And sure enough, my first article for GameSpy — the review of Tony Hawk Ride — is available at Yahoo! Video Games. IGN’s a big company with a massive reach, so I wouldn’t be surprised if a few other sites also cross-post such reviews.

Anyway, to make things easier, I’ve separated the links on the left into categories of publications (both current/recent and older; might separate them again soon), outlets my work has been syndicated in, and the websites I volunteered for when I first started in this industry. I might still juggle things around a bit, but that works for now.

PC Advisor/World AU reprinting GamePro reviews

Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:05:46 -0600

I’ve been reviewing for GamePro since earlier this year, and have had the opportunity to review some very big releases for them, including Wii Sports Resort, Fight Night Round 4, Tekken 6, and LittleBigPlanet PSP, among others. A couple months back, I was searching for something of mine and noticed that the PC World Australia website (also owned by GamePro publisher IDG) had reprinted my Wii Sports Resort review. I bookmarked the link and promptly forgot about it, but while clearing out my bookmark backlog this week, I stumbled upon the link again and decided to look around a little bit.

Seems that PC Advisor — the UK version of PC World — also published my GamePro review of Wii Sports Resort, though it seems to be the only one of mine up there at the moment (though PC World AU has a couple others of mine). I seriously doubt my reviews are ending up in the print versions of either publication, but it’s still neat to see my work syndicated to different parts of the world and new types of outlets. It’s similar to (but not exactly like) how my sports-related news stories for 1UP were also cross-posted to ESPN Video Games back in 2007-2008, giving me about 20 story credits at ESPN.com.

I’m still undecided on how I want to list these outlets over on the left side of this blog — I’ve been wanting to reorganize or overhaul how that is presented anyway, as I’d still like to put emphasis on the outlets I’m currently writing for, but never neglect to mention my past exploits. [/nerdiness]

Holiday 2009 print contributions

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 12:55:24 -0600

Future US, the publisher behind Official Xbox Magazine, PlayStation: The Official Magazine, Nintendo Power, and several other fine mags, puts out a 13th “Holiday” issue at the end of each calendar year’s run, and my work appeared in two such issues this year.

The Holiday 2009 issue of Official Xbox Magazine is my biggest issue of the mag to date, as it includes a whopping total of six reviews written by yours truly. Most notable is the DJ Hero review (online here), which takes up one and a third pages on 74-75. Over on page 81, you’ll find a 1/6 page review of Command & Conquer Red Alert 3: Commander’s Challenge, while page 82 has a similarly quick review of Cars Race-o-Rama. On the opposite page (83), my 2/3 page review of Lips: Number One Hits and 1/3 page review of Karaoke Revolution (online here) duke it out for singing game supremacy, and finally, my 1/6 page review of Football Genius: The Ultimate Quiz is found over on page 85.

Meanwhile, the Holiday 2009 issue of PlayStation: The Official Magazine includes one article from me: a one-page review of Star Wars Battlefront: Elite Squadron on page 82.

January 2010 issues are starting to creep out, and I should have articles in four magazines for that month, comprising a three-page preview, five reviews, and perhaps one or two other articles (all subject to change).

Review: Tony Hawk Ride @ GameSpy

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:33:36 -0600

Review: Tony Hawk Ride @ GameSpy:

My review of Tony Hawk Ride, a skateboarding game developed by Robomodo and published by Activision, for GameSpy, an IGN website. This is my first article for GameSpy.

Review: Karaoke Revolution @ Official Xbox Magazine

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 20:28:51 -0600

Review: Karaoke Revolution @ Official Xbox Magazine:

My review of Karaoke Revolution, an Xbox 360 music game developed by Blitz Games and published by Konami, for Official Xbox Magazine. Also appears in the Holiday 2009 print issue, in stores now.

Preview: ModNation Racers (PS3) @ 1UP

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 09:02:05 -0600

Preview: ModNation Racers (PS3) @ 1UP:

My hands-on preview of ModNation Racers, a PlayStation 3 kart racer developed by United Front Games and published by Sony Computer Entertainment America, for 1UP.com. Ventured up to Vancouver to see and write about the game last week, which was my first time in Canada since 2007, when I previewed Assassin’s Creed for 1UP in Montreal.

Review: LittleBigPlanet (PSP) @ GamePro

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:16:07 -0600

Review: LittleBigPlanet (PSP) @ GamePro:

My review of LittleBigPlanet for PSP, developed by SCE Cambridge Studio and Media Molecule and published by Sony Computer Entertainment America, for GamePro.

Modern Warfare 2: 10 Things... @ What They Play

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:57:35 -0600

Modern Warfare 2: 10 Things... @ What They Play:

My feature article, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2: 10 Things Parents Should Know, for parents’ gaming website What They Play.

Review: Ghostbusters (PSP) @ GamesRadar

Tue, 10 Nov 2009 21:32:42 -0600

Review: Ghostbusters (PSP) @ GamesRadar:

My review of the PSP version of Ghostbusters: The Video Game, developed by Red Fly Studio and published by Atari.

November/December 2009 print contributions

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 13:06:12 -0600

I meant to update with the November 2009 issues a couple weeks back, but it’s the busiest time of year and I’ve been constantly strapped for time. It’s stressful at times, but the opportunities have been amazing, and I certainly can’t argue with better-than-usual income when we’re saving for a wedding.

Anyway, I’ve been knee-deep in print work recently, doing a steady stream of reviews and other articles. I now have all the November and December magazines with my articles in them, so I’m going to do one big post with all of them.

The November 2009 issue of Official Xbox Magazine has two reviews from me: a 1/3 page review of Ion Assault for Xbox Live Arcade on page 72, and a 1/3 page review of Invincible Tiger: The Legend of Han Tao for Xbox Live Arcade on page 84. I also meant to do a post earlier about the demo disc that comes with each issue — starting with (I believe) the October issue, they started including the complete text and score of every previous Xbox 360 review on the disc, and it’s awesome to be a part of that.

Over in the November issue of GamePro, you’ll find a one-page review of Darkest of Days for Xbox 360 on page 76, and in the November issue of Nintendo Power, the Community section has a one-page article from me on page 94 about a Chicago-based artist who submitted some fanart based on Major League Eating: The Game on WiiWare.

The stars aligned for December 2009, resulting in me having articles in five separate magazines, including a brand new one for me and one I hadn’t contributed to in more than a year.

In this month’s issue of Official Xbox Magazine, you’ll find three reviews from me: a 1/3 page review of Tornado Outbreak on page 69, and 1/6 page reviews of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and Cabela’s Outdoor Adventures on page 77. In GamePro, I have a 2/3 page review of Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 on page 79. Nintendo Power has another Community piece from me, this one about a reader’s Zelda and Mario-inspired artwork on page 93.

My review of Naruto Shippuden Legends: Akatsuki Rising for PSP on page 86 of this month’s PlayStation: The Official Magazine is my first article for them in more than a year, but luckily not the last: I’ve completed reviews for the next two issues already. And December 2009 marks my first contribution to Otaku USA, an anime and manga-focused bimonthly mag that devotes a few pages to games each month. In this issue, you’ll find a review of Pangya: Fantasy Golf on PSP on page 104. I’m not nearly as into anime as I was years ago, but it’s cool to be able to expand into other types of magazines, and hopefully I’ll have a chance to do more for them at some point.

As for upcoming issues, I should have work in three Holiday 2009 issues, one of which should (barring timing changes) feature a whopping six reviews from me. It was a crazy couple of weeks, but I’m psyched about the opportunity. I’m already working on January 2010 issues, and it looks like I’ll be in four magazines that month, but again, things can change at the last minute.

Preview: Sega Racing Classic (Arcade) @ 1UP

Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:16:43 -0600

Preview: Sega Racing Classic (Arcade) @ 1UP:

My hands-on preview of Sega Racing Classic, an upcoming arcade game that was location testing in the Chicago suburbs. Marks the first time I’ve covered an arcade game, as well as shot video and taken off-screen images for coverage. All of the coverage was exclusive, as no other websites had shown video, clear in-game screens, or posted impressions prior to this. Props to my lovely fiancee for helping out immensely.

Feature: Joe Madureira Interview @ 1UP

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 01:15:53 -0500

Feature: Joe Madureira Interview @ 1UP:

My feature interview with Joe Madureira, a famed comic artist known for his work on the Uncanny X-Men, who now is finishing up work on THQ’s new action IP, Darksiders. Conducted this 35-minute phone interview last Wednesday; posted version is actually trimmed down, believe it or not, and still comes out to five pages of text.

Review: DJ Hero @ Official Xbox Magazine

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 20:11:17 -0500

Review: DJ Hero @ Official Xbox Magazine:

My review of DJ Hero, a rhythm game developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision/RedOctane, for Official Xbox Magazine. Will appear in the Holiday 2009 print issue, as well.

Review: Tekken 6 @ GamePro

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 20:13:15 -0500

Review: Tekken 6 @ GamePro:

My review of Tekken 6, a fighting game developed and published by Namco Bandai, for GamePro.

Review: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves @ Geek.com

Mon, 19 Oct 2009 09:11:21 -0500

Review: Uncharted 2: Among Thieves @ Geek.com:

My review of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves, a PlayStation 3 action game developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony, for Geek.com. It’s really excellent, in case you can’t tell from the glowing text.