"Where is all the good writing about games?"
As we approach the end of the year–err, the Western colonial calendar year at any rate–the discourse of critical games writing naturally makes an annualized turn toward reflection on the bigger picture–be that via industry trends, communities of play, genre shifts, or…
It’s often said that game developers and critics speak two different and incompatible languages. To this attitude, Clint Hocking exists as a strong counterpoint: he’s a veteran developer known for several beloved games as well as the coiner of one of game criticism’s…
This week’s roundup is (almost) all about failures: failures of game design, failures of fandom, the failures in the material world which are in turn reflected by the games we produce and consume, and more. I find it’s the kind of writing…
Happy December, readers. Has it really been three months already? There’s a whole lot of quality writing this week on Red Dead 2 and Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey. This doesn’t come as a surprise to me: both have been out for a few…
It’s been a busy week for games criticism, and that’s rad. Fallout 76 and Pokémon: Let’s Go! are among the big recent releases making their way through the critical circuit, and while there’s plenty of writing out there on each, the discourse…
I’ve been thinking a lot this week about my editorial voice, and how to try and use it for good. Specifically, I’ve been thinking about how to balance the level-headed approach I believe curating quality games criticism demands with the subjectivity I…
Where is all the good writing about games? That’s Critical Distance’s slogan, prominently displayed on the website, just beneath the title. Our ongoing project, which I work my absolute hardest to honour, is to answer that question in an inclusive and accessible…
CALL FOR PITCHES NOW CLOSED Thank you to everyone who submitted! If you weren’t one of our five Critical Compilations this time, we’ll be reaching out the next time we open a CFP! Hey! Did you know Critical Distance is turning 10…
It feels like we’ve gotten here too quickly. 2018 is on the way out, and it’s we’re not far away from the new year. In addition to holidays just around the corner, this month is National Novel Writing Month for the writers…
This is the first week in a while where there hasn’t been a big-banner Triple-A release trying to take up all the critical oxygen in the room. Well, I suppose Square Enix did send The Quiet Man out to die this week,…