The holiday season is always bat-shit crazy around these parts, which is not unusual for most folks who work covering the gaming industry. Publishers love to crank out a heap of games right before the colder months hit, and they don’t tend to let-up until right about now. That’s great news for us game journo freelancers, as there’s usually a glut of overflow work available for a few solid months. But hot damn, is it a pain to keep up with blogging during the busy season. I’ve been making a solid effort, and I’m also considering making some design and writing changes to this site in the near future as I roll out some other projects. Until then, this remains a repository for my work, my random thoughts about whatever, and my music-related stuff.
Borrowing a handy little updating trick from fellow freelance comrade Andrew Hayward, here’s a massive info dump on all the print work I’ve done over the past few months. I’ve got a busy year ahead, so it’s upward and onward. Figured I’d just get this up before I dive back into the fray. Here’s a quick visual rundown of most of the print mag issues I’ve contributed to over the last couple of months. I may have left a few issues out due to my inability to find the actual copies buried in the stacks of hell that have accumulated in my office.
First up: Nintendo Power. I started writing for the mag in Oct. 2009, and I’ve been fortunate to have my work appear in every issue ever since. There’s a lot of new pieces I have in the pipeline, which I’m pumped about. Anyhow, I can’t find the Dec. 2010 issue, but I’m pretty sure my epic piece on this awesome live action Mega Man fan film ran in that issue. For the Holiday 2010 issue, I wrote another Mega Man themed Community piece, this time about a dude who made this insanely detailed mosaic out of screen shots from the first six Mega Man games. That appears on pg 94. and my review of Rune Factory 3 on DS also appears on pg. 89. In the January 2011 issue, I have a small community piece on pg. 94 highlighting some slick Princess Peach art made entirely with painted bottle caps. In the February 2011 , issue that just hit newsstands, I have two community pieces on the inventive charity fundraiser, Mario Marathon, and a piece on a working LEGO Metal Slug tank that all appear on pages 92, 93, and 95. That’s it for now. I have a bunch of stuff queued up for the next few issues and some other pieces I’m still working on.
Next up: EGM. This past summer, I was lucky enough to do some writing for the newly relaunched EGM/EGMi, and it’s been a pretty steady gig. In the Dec. 2010 issue, I have a news feature that explores the online gaming payment models for the three major console publishers, with a specific focus on the impact and implications of the semi-recent Xbox Live Gold subscription price hike. That shows up on pg 14, and I also have a short second-opinion review of Super Scribblenauts on DS that can be found on pg 74. In the January 2011 issue, a bunch of my recent EGM/EGMi review scores appear in a large recap found on pg. 77. I also have a news feature article on page 16 that looks at the Schwarzenegger vs. ESA/EMA case being looked at by the Supreme Court and the impact it could have on the sale and development of violent video games. In the recent February 2011 issue, I have a full-page review of the excellent Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective on DS (found on page 75).
And finally: PlayStation: The Official Magazine. I started doing a monthly two-page review roundup of PSN games for the magazine back in late 2009 as well as some review write-ups of larger games. Since the re-design a few months ago, I’m still writing monthly blurbs on PSP Minis, downloadable demos, free goodies, and whatnot, though my byline doesn’t appear under these pieces. I do this every month. Some month I also contribute larger reviews of PSN games. In the January 2011 issue, I have a short review of Blacklight: Tango Down on pg 85. For the February 2011 issue, I wrote up reviews of Spelunker HD, Worms Battle Island, and Pac-Man Championship Edition DX that appear on pages 86 and 87. In addition to my regular PSN stuff, I have a few other reviews appearing in the next issue as well.
Alright, alright. Enough self-indulgent word wanking. Time to get back to work.
Holy redesign, Batman?! If you haven’t already noticed, things are a little different with the Nov. issue of PlayStation: The Official Magazine. This issue gets a major facelift and restructuring with some cool new layout tweaks and minor changes here and there. My monthly two-page review write-up of PSN titles won’t be appearing any more in the same format, but I’m still contributing heavily to PSN-related content in the magazine. I tackle the DLC Roundup, Minis Roundup, and a hefty portion of the Best Games section, and I’ll still be contribution other pieces from time-to-time. For starters, you can peep my review of Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World: The Game on pg. 85. Love Love Love it, despite it’s few flaws. I’m a sucker for 8-bit art and chip music, but the game has some sturdy legs to it beyond aesthetics. Also, chip-punk rockers Anamanaguchi did the entire soundtrack, and man is it sweet. You can buy it separately on iTunes, which I have done. Great listening. Anyhow, that’s all for now. More PTOM related stuff coming up!
Hey gang, the August issue of PlayStation: The Official Magazine is out and about. Awww, isn’t it cute? Here’s a quick rundown of the stuff I have in it. On pages 90 and 91, the PSN Games section is loaded with (mostly) good stuff. This time around I tackled After Burner Climax, The Secret of Monkey Island Special Edition, Patchwork Heroes, Hyperballoid HD, and NBA Unrivaled. I have some other good stuff coming up in the next few issues, including some larger PSN game coverage. Thanks!
After evil subterranean excursions in Badman, I was anxious to dig into What Did I Do To Deserve This, My Lord?! 2. It’s a rad sequel with some solid improvements. My full-page review is in the June issue on pg. 78. It was also a good issue for downloadable games. This month’s PSN Games review column covers the retro-tastic Mega Man 10, Greed Corp, Echoshift, and Super Pocket Tennis. You can find those write-ups on pg 90 and 91. The next issue should be out soon, and there’s more downloadable goodness to come.
I was late posting info on the April issue, but I’m back on the ball now. In addition to my regular two-page PSN game reviews column, the May 2010 issue of PlayStation: The Official Magazine also has a full-page review of Last Rebellion on pg. 84. As for this month’s downloadable gaming reviews (pages 88 and 89), I covered the marvelously charming Fret Nice, Vandal Hearts: Flames of Judgement, Assault Heroes, and Hustle Kings. Hey also, while I have your attention: hit up pages 52-55 for an entertaining feature on PS2 box art reviews by fellow freelance comrade 
So I saw this issue on the news stands en-route to PAX East but completely forgot about it in the chaos vortex that comes along with cramming over 50,000 geeks in a single building. In my PlayStation Network Games review column in the April 2010 issue of PTOM, I tackle Matt Hazard: Blood Bath and Beyond, Battle Fantasia, Puzzlegeddon, Polar Panic, and Frogger Returns. I also give my recommendations on PSOne downloads and game add-ons, so check out all that good stuff if you can. I already have the May 2010 issue in hand and will be posting about that shortly, as it has an extra piece I wrote in addition to my monthly PSN rundown.
If you can still find a copy on news stands, check out the March issue of PlayStation: The Official Magazine for my monthly PSN Games section write-ups in the back of the mag. This month I tackle Pixeljunk Shooter, Diner Dash, Call of Duty Classic, Revenge of the Wounded Dragon, a handful of PSP Minis and more! There’s some great stuff out on the PlayStation Network now and tons of new sizzle-tastic games coming out shortly. They’re a great way to fill in the down between mega-hit releases. Oh yeah, and check out that cover. Crysis 2? That’s freakin’ HOT!
Now that the Feb. 2010 issue of PlayStation: The Official Magazine is finally out, I supposed I can talk a bit about my new steady gig. I started doing some sporadic freelance work for PTOM last year with a few reviews and a feature that I was particularly excited about. After a brief lull for an issue or two, I’m happy to be back in the game. Not only that, I’m super stoked to be heading up the PlayStation Network Games section with a two-page spread of downloadable game reviews each month starting with the latest issue. My first installment tackles Braid, Star Trek: D-A-C, Peggle, Gravity Crash, Military Madness: Nectaris, and more. Stay tuned, because we’ve got some great stuff coming up in upcoming issues. Thanks!
Nathan Meunier - Freelance Writer / Author / Indie Game Developer 