It's been a while since I last posted anything. And trust me, I'm beating myself hard over that, other than over my obviously deteriorating "English skillz". Since I started dabbling in ghostwriting and freelancing, I haven't had the time to write any reviews. Some of you on here that I've made friends with from various discussion groups (if you're still lurking around) know that this site was never intended to be a private blog, but it's a space to put my reviews out there. So if I'm not writing anything relevant, this site is going to be rather idle. But lately I've been reflecting a lot about my writing journey, and about maybe it's time I brought it somewhere, as well as how my writing style has evolved over the years.
My background is cognitive ergonomics, but even without that, I've always been interested in people. I've always been curious on what makes people do things, and the story behind their reasoning. And from there, I started to become interested to discover the reasons why I find some games enjoyable, and some don't, and subsequently, how other players may experience the games differently than I do. That's what brought me to learning about the psychology behind game designs.
When I started this site, it was intended to be a platform to put my reviews out there. Nothing more. Just a hobby. Then it started to lean a little bit towards being a gaming news site, albeit a rather casual one at that. But reviews and in-depth analysis have always the core of this site, and that pretty much shaped my writing style. Early one, I've always had a hard time summarizing reviews when I had too much to talk about. My Dark Souls 2 review for example, is rather long. It was super fun to write, and so satisfying to read, but not so much if you're not its writer. In fact only a couple of people read that review.
I have learned a lot from my experience of writing about video games. And I mean, a lot. Fortunately for me, this site works as an archive for my work as well. Once in a while, I'd go through my previous posts to see how my writing has evolved. At some point, it got better. Then at another point, it got worse. But I'm very comfortable with my current progress and level. That said, there's always more room to get better.
I have learned a lot from my experience of writing about video games. And I mean, a lot. Fortunately for me, this site works as an archive for my work as well. Once in a while, I'd go through my previous posts to see how my writing has evolved. At some point, it got better. Then at another point, it got worse. But I'm very comfortable with my current progress and level. That said, there's always more room to get better.
Nowadays it's getting harder to gain readers, as people have moved on from review magazines and jumped ship to video reviews. That makes me think about my approach a lot, and I feel like writing shorter but more compact reviews might be a good, new approach. At the same time, I need to keep myself from lazy-writing, which itself is another story. Regardless, I thoroughly enjoyed re-reading my review on Trials Fusion. It's not as long as the Dark Souls review, but it's sweet and hits the right length. If the two most current reviews ("Skyshines Bedlam" and "Domina") are of any indication, then I feel like this is the right writing style and approach to take.
And that's why this site plays such an important part of my growth as a writer.
Not to mention, this site is an important part of my English-learning journey. They say you learn more by doing, and I understand that now. I may not be the most technical English learner out there, but writing reviews has helped me tremendously improve my English over the years. It's such as expressive and versatile language, and it helps me to think and see things much clearer.
Right now, I don't know where I'm going with reviewing games, and writing in general. But I do know that it's something I will keep on doing. Cheers!
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