This level of candid is unheard of even for Substack, and I enjoyed every line of it. Besides being an excellent 100 subscribers hooray post, it also gave *me* a bunch of ideas, not the least of which is the sneak peak into your plans you're giving; I might steal that!
But also, extremely excited for your 007 First Light speculation and all of the October spookiness. Congratulations again; I'm sure your next 100 will come sooner than you think.
Congratulations on your milestone, your Substack is one of my favourites to read. I particularly enjoyed your Nintendo console history/reviews, so looking forward to the Xbox series (and maybe others?)
Thank you very much! Really nice to know that and I'm glad you enjoyed the series because I also enjoyed writing it. Episode 1 of Xbox is actually already up if you want to give that a read and there is more to come. Beyond Xbox? I've been mulling over doing a Sega series or a PlayStation one but I've not decided yet.
I’ve been somewhat interested in a Sega Master System for years now too but writing about it would push me to make the purchase, it and its games are thankfully very cheap in the UK
I played an ungodly amount of the very first Rome: Total War when I was younger - something about the setting, the action, the little men screaming and falling into disarray, all just kept me engaged through dozens of hours of miserable bureaucratic management of my ungrateful subjects and doubly ungrateful Roman family. No other Total War has clicked with me, though I still need to give the Warhammer ones an honest shot - the spectacle of the battles is enticing, and I've had a good friend egging me on for a few years.
To be honest it's not fundamentally changed much at all, just over time it became less about strategy, positioning and formations and more about hero characters, unit stats and spamming general abilities.
There came a point with 2013's Rome 2 when I surrounded an enemy general with heavy infantry and watched him cut them all down with elaborate execution animations and spattering of blood and I realised "God, they've ruined these games."
Congratulations to you, sir! Much deserved milestone, your Substack is one of my favorites. You write really engaging articles, you have a unique voice, and you don't just regurgitate information from other outlets.
I think your roadmap looks solid and I eagerly await your Switch 2 game reviews in particular.
And many thanks to you! Really awesome to hear you enjoy the Journal so much, I really, purposefully try to weed out parts of my writing where I feel myself speaking somebody else's opinions so I'm glad you pick up on that.
There'll be plenty of those coming, that's for sure. The 1 release a month timetable Nintendo seem to have for us is quite ideal for writing and it's even spurred me on to scoop up a few games that weren't on my radar.
Looks like this post did quite well. Interestingly, my recent "7 months on Substack" post did well too, so I guess people are more interested in such things than I would have thought.
I've been surprised too, truth be told. My assumption whenever I'm writing is that the reader cares about the subject, not me but maybe there's less truth to that than I thought.
I spent 7 years self-studying Russian and then I worked my ass off to win a scholarship to a prestigious UK university, about 6 months into my time there, I realised I hated going and then the war started so the light at the end of the tunnel: a year studying abroad and essaying, was removed. I wanted to work translation/interpretation for the EU. After the final in a long string of course unit/IT fuck ups by the faculty, I had a big I quit moment and left it all behind.
Yeah, that was partially my thinking. Probably depends on the reader and if one is brand new to the publication.
Re: Career - Well that is too bad. Given you were able to get in that way, you obviously have some significant intelligence and/or drive. I hope you find the right path.
FWIW, seems like teaching English in Asia or wherever might be an interesting route.
I enjoy that Substack isn't about having a gimmick or building a parasocial relationship with the audience. I've long disliked YouTube for breeding that kind of thing and I don't see it here, it's also why, above all else, I try to tell the truth about myself or the topic.
Yeah it wasn't a fun time for sure, I have a few career ideas in mind I'm looking into (and teaching English abroad is one I've considered) just got to get my health and my ethics back into the shape where I can seize opportunities that arise. Thank you for the compliment too.
First of all, congratulations on achieving 100 subscribers! I really enjoy reading your posts and I can't wait to see what else you have on your roadmap.
I'm specially happy that you found a place where you can write about what you live and make genuine connections. I identify with your struggle as well, and seeing you achieving the 100 mark gives me a good incentive to keep writing.
Here's for the next 100! It won't be long until you get there!
Thank you very much! I enjoy writing them and if I don't? Well, they tend to end up on that pile of articles that never made it.
I was a bit apprehensive about opening up in that way but I'm glad you and others could identify with it. You'll absolutely get there, I'm sure. For me? The first 50 were painfully slow but then I gained the rest in about 5 weeks, hang in there!
Let's hope not! Every time I log on and see that number go up it's a little morale boost
I can’t believe it’s been 7 months already! This year is flying by! Well done for being so consistent. 🎉 I do have a similar feeling around lockdown having never left me. I’m trying to work on that feeling and being more social this year but it’s hard and tiring.
I’m glad writing and the community here is a comfort.
I am loving the roadmap idea and the themes you have planned. 🎉 looking forward to some great topics from you soon.
In regard to keys, the one I did get was by messaging a developer directly.
I do find the reviewing before a game releases sort of stressful so I stopped trying. You can also create an account on key mailer but I have been offered keys there by small publications that I’ve not heard of. 😅
My thoughts too! I've had a few moments while writing where I've hearkened back to an older post and thought "They'll remember, it was only a week or two ago." And then had to scrap a paragraph because I realise the post I'm referencing was back in April or something. I hope one day we get some answers about lockdown and what it was they actually put into us with those jabs. My covid cleared in just a few days but ever since the lockdown I've had some other persistent health issues that I can't seem to get rid of, it's unsettling stuff.
Glad there's some stuff there you're looking forward to! There's a few bigger indie game reviews I want to get off my list too, I want my opinions on most of the industry's important hits to be out there and indies are no exception.
I might give it a go in future, though part of me worries because I can be really picky about games and just not be in the mood to play that specific kind of thing. I've had games before I booted up, played for 5 minutes, just decided I had no interest in then not picked up until years later.
I’ve enjoyed reading your Nintendo posts and would love to hear more thoughts about the games and franchises. So I’m looking forward to the Metroid Prime review (and game)!
Do you think Zelda games will keep leaning into the sandbox gameplay direction?
Are you excited about the new Pokémon Legends game? I’ve been disappointed that they’ve done so little with such a great and popular IP. The games haven’t fundamentally changed much from the gameboy games. Although I liked that Arceus felt a little more innovative.
And what’s up with their other series like Star Fox or F-Zero that don’t get much love?
I'm glad you've enjoyed them, they're probably my favourite things to write and judging by my open rates, I think most of my core subscribers are here for Nintendo, even if my other reviews appeal to Substack more generally. I'm looking forward to it a lot too! I have a lot of love for Metroid and I hope Prime 4 really leans into the time travel aspects.
It's funny you ask this because this also almost became an article: my anxiety around the Zelda IP.
I've mentioned it before in my posts but the first games I ever played were Pokémon Sapphire and the Wind Waker + Ocarina of Time bonus disc on Gamecube, so the Zelda franchise is very close to my heart and I have a lot of love for the older 3D titles. I loved Breath of the Wild: it rekindled my love for gaming as a whole at a time where I was about ready to set it aside for other hobbies but Tears of the Kingdom is a game I've tried twice to finish and never managed it, the game is really fun and worth playing but it felt very derivative and unnecessary to me. I'm generally a bit tired of the modern Zelda aesthetic and gameplay now and wouldn't mind them sitting the Switch 2's lifetime out until the very end like they did with Super Mario Bros. Wonder for 2D Mario.
Do I think they'll do that? No chance. I hope it's not true but my gut feeling is that now the proverbial Rubicon has been crossed, classic-style 3D Zelda is gone for good.
My feelings on Pokémon and Legends Z-A are quite a lot more negative. I was a massive Pokémon fan all my life until the 3DS where Pokémon X and Y made me give up the franchise for good. I returned to it in 2023 by playing Pokémon Sword which was... alright, a decent game but nothing special and then I marathoned a lot of the older ones and had a go at Arceus. I think Pokemon has fallen into what I'm going to call Sonic Syndrome: it hasn't been any good for a really long time, so even a 7/10 game with pretty glaring flaws like Legends Arceus seems like a 10/10 to the fandom. I hope Legends Z-A is good but Game Freak's track record and the fact that it's based around the entries that killed my love of the franchise doesn't fill me with hope; I'll buy it a while after launch, unless it gets crazy high review scores.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say they just don't have any new ideas. I think Star Fox and F-Zero were a lot of the same thing each time and in the case of F-Zero: which was pretty blatantly based on Formula 1, the arrival of games like Wipeout and real, high quality F1 titles kind of removed its niche in the market.
When I first started this Substack, I tried to strip as much of myself out of my writing as possible and it's almost been a process of adding me back in. I think after so many months a bit of candid was needed.
Feel free to pick up a few! Now the initial 100 barrier has been crossed I'd love to collaborate more with other writers.
Truly can't wait to see how First Light turns out, I'm a massive Bond fan.
This level of candid is unheard of even for Substack, and I enjoyed every line of it. Besides being an excellent 100 subscribers hooray post, it also gave *me* a bunch of ideas, not the least of which is the sneak peak into your plans you're giving; I might steal that!
But also, extremely excited for your 007 First Light speculation and all of the October spookiness. Congratulations again; I'm sure your next 100 will come sooner than you think.
Congratulations on your milestone, your Substack is one of my favourites to read. I particularly enjoyed your Nintendo console history/reviews, so looking forward to the Xbox series (and maybe others?)
Thank you very much! Really nice to know that and I'm glad you enjoyed the series because I also enjoyed writing it. Episode 1 of Xbox is actually already up if you want to give that a read and there is more to come. Beyond Xbox? I've been mulling over doing a Sega series or a PlayStation one but I've not decided yet.
If you did a Sega hardware series that would be amazing, there is a lot of bizarre history in that one.
I’ve been somewhat interested in a Sega Master System for years now too but writing about it would push me to make the purchase, it and its games are thankfully very cheap in the UK
I played an ungodly amount of the very first Rome: Total War when I was younger - something about the setting, the action, the little men screaming and falling into disarray, all just kept me engaged through dozens of hours of miserable bureaucratic management of my ungrateful subjects and doubly ungrateful Roman family. No other Total War has clicked with me, though I still need to give the Warhammer ones an honest shot - the spectacle of the battles is enticing, and I've had a good friend egging me on for a few years.
To be honest it's not fundamentally changed much at all, just over time it became less about strategy, positioning and formations and more about hero characters, unit stats and spamming general abilities.
There came a point with 2013's Rome 2 when I surrounded an enemy general with heavy infantry and watched him cut them all down with elaborate execution animations and spattering of blood and I realised "God, they've ruined these games."
Congratulations to you, sir! Much deserved milestone, your Substack is one of my favorites. You write really engaging articles, you have a unique voice, and you don't just regurgitate information from other outlets.
I think your roadmap looks solid and I eagerly await your Switch 2 game reviews in particular.
And many thanks to you! Really awesome to hear you enjoy the Journal so much, I really, purposefully try to weed out parts of my writing where I feel myself speaking somebody else's opinions so I'm glad you pick up on that.
There'll be plenty of those coming, that's for sure. The 1 release a month timetable Nintendo seem to have for us is quite ideal for writing and it's even spurred me on to scoop up a few games that weren't on my radar.
Looks like this post did quite well. Interestingly, my recent "7 months on Substack" post did well too, so I guess people are more interested in such things than I would have thought.
What was the effect on your desired career?
I've been surprised too, truth be told. My assumption whenever I'm writing is that the reader cares about the subject, not me but maybe there's less truth to that than I thought.
I spent 7 years self-studying Russian and then I worked my ass off to win a scholarship to a prestigious UK university, about 6 months into my time there, I realised I hated going and then the war started so the light at the end of the tunnel: a year studying abroad and essaying, was removed. I wanted to work translation/interpretation for the EU. After the final in a long string of course unit/IT fuck ups by the faculty, I had a big I quit moment and left it all behind.
Yeah, that was partially my thinking. Probably depends on the reader and if one is brand new to the publication.
Re: Career - Well that is too bad. Given you were able to get in that way, you obviously have some significant intelligence and/or drive. I hope you find the right path.
FWIW, seems like teaching English in Asia or wherever might be an interesting route.
I enjoy that Substack isn't about having a gimmick or building a parasocial relationship with the audience. I've long disliked YouTube for breeding that kind of thing and I don't see it here, it's also why, above all else, I try to tell the truth about myself or the topic.
Yeah it wasn't a fun time for sure, I have a few career ideas in mind I'm looking into (and teaching English abroad is one I've considered) just got to get my health and my ethics back into the shape where I can seize opportunities that arise. Thank you for the compliment too.
First of all, congratulations on achieving 100 subscribers! I really enjoy reading your posts and I can't wait to see what else you have on your roadmap.
I'm specially happy that you found a place where you can write about what you live and make genuine connections. I identify with your struggle as well, and seeing you achieving the 100 mark gives me a good incentive to keep writing.
Here's for the next 100! It won't be long until you get there!
Thank you very much! I enjoy writing them and if I don't? Well, they tend to end up on that pile of articles that never made it.
I was a bit apprehensive about opening up in that way but I'm glad you and others could identify with it. You'll absolutely get there, I'm sure. For me? The first 50 were painfully slow but then I gained the rest in about 5 weeks, hang in there!
Let's hope not! Every time I log on and see that number go up it's a little morale boost
I can’t believe it’s been 7 months already! This year is flying by! Well done for being so consistent. 🎉 I do have a similar feeling around lockdown having never left me. I’m trying to work on that feeling and being more social this year but it’s hard and tiring.
I’m glad writing and the community here is a comfort.
I am loving the roadmap idea and the themes you have planned. 🎉 looking forward to some great topics from you soon.
In regard to keys, the one I did get was by messaging a developer directly.
I do find the reviewing before a game releases sort of stressful so I stopped trying. You can also create an account on key mailer but I have been offered keys there by small publications that I’ve not heard of. 😅
My thoughts too! I've had a few moments while writing where I've hearkened back to an older post and thought "They'll remember, it was only a week or two ago." And then had to scrap a paragraph because I realise the post I'm referencing was back in April or something. I hope one day we get some answers about lockdown and what it was they actually put into us with those jabs. My covid cleared in just a few days but ever since the lockdown I've had some other persistent health issues that I can't seem to get rid of, it's unsettling stuff.
Glad there's some stuff there you're looking forward to! There's a few bigger indie game reviews I want to get off my list too, I want my opinions on most of the industry's important hits to be out there and indies are no exception.
I might give it a go in future, though part of me worries because I can be really picky about games and just not be in the mood to play that specific kind of thing. I've had games before I booted up, played for 5 minutes, just decided I had no interest in then not picked up until years later.
I’ve enjoyed reading your Nintendo posts and would love to hear more thoughts about the games and franchises. So I’m looking forward to the Metroid Prime review (and game)!
Do you think Zelda games will keep leaning into the sandbox gameplay direction?
Are you excited about the new Pokémon Legends game? I’ve been disappointed that they’ve done so little with such a great and popular IP. The games haven’t fundamentally changed much from the gameboy games. Although I liked that Arceus felt a little more innovative.
And what’s up with their other series like Star Fox or F-Zero that don’t get much love?
I'm glad you've enjoyed them, they're probably my favourite things to write and judging by my open rates, I think most of my core subscribers are here for Nintendo, even if my other reviews appeal to Substack more generally. I'm looking forward to it a lot too! I have a lot of love for Metroid and I hope Prime 4 really leans into the time travel aspects.
It's funny you ask this because this also almost became an article: my anxiety around the Zelda IP.
I've mentioned it before in my posts but the first games I ever played were Pokémon Sapphire and the Wind Waker + Ocarina of Time bonus disc on Gamecube, so the Zelda franchise is very close to my heart and I have a lot of love for the older 3D titles. I loved Breath of the Wild: it rekindled my love for gaming as a whole at a time where I was about ready to set it aside for other hobbies but Tears of the Kingdom is a game I've tried twice to finish and never managed it, the game is really fun and worth playing but it felt very derivative and unnecessary to me. I'm generally a bit tired of the modern Zelda aesthetic and gameplay now and wouldn't mind them sitting the Switch 2's lifetime out until the very end like they did with Super Mario Bros. Wonder for 2D Mario.
Do I think they'll do that? No chance. I hope it's not true but my gut feeling is that now the proverbial Rubicon has been crossed, classic-style 3D Zelda is gone for good.
My feelings on Pokémon and Legends Z-A are quite a lot more negative. I was a massive Pokémon fan all my life until the 3DS where Pokémon X and Y made me give up the franchise for good. I returned to it in 2023 by playing Pokémon Sword which was... alright, a decent game but nothing special and then I marathoned a lot of the older ones and had a go at Arceus. I think Pokemon has fallen into what I'm going to call Sonic Syndrome: it hasn't been any good for a really long time, so even a 7/10 game with pretty glaring flaws like Legends Arceus seems like a 10/10 to the fandom. I hope Legends Z-A is good but Game Freak's track record and the fact that it's based around the entries that killed my love of the franchise doesn't fill me with hope; I'll buy it a while after launch, unless it gets crazy high review scores.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say they just don't have any new ideas. I think Star Fox and F-Zero were a lot of the same thing each time and in the case of F-Zero: which was pretty blatantly based on Formula 1, the arrival of games like Wipeout and real, high quality F1 titles kind of removed its niche in the market.
I'm a fairly new subscriber, and pretty new to Substack too! But, I love the detail and humor you write into your posts!
I definitely look forward to reading more from you with the ideas you have in your plans, especially Metal Gear Solid Delta!
Congrats on the 100+ subscribers, looking forward to your future articles!
Welcome aboard! And to Substack too.
Thanks a lot for your encouragement and let's hope Delta is good.
Really appreciate your kind words.
When I first started this Substack, I tried to strip as much of myself out of my writing as possible and it's almost been a process of adding me back in. I think after so many months a bit of candid was needed.
Feel free to pick up a few! Now the initial 100 barrier has been crossed I'd love to collaborate more with other writers.
Truly can't wait to see how First Light turns out, I'm a massive Bond fan.