It was too much of a time commitment for me to keep writing for Aeropause, so I stopped. Shane, the editor-in-chief, is very personable and was very understanding. If anyone reading this has the time to write for a gaming blog, I’d recommend sending your details to Aeropause.
It was a great experience, but I’m not sure that I’m cut out for the blog-style reporting. I think that the most successful gaming blogs relay information on a very tight schedule. Ideally, contributors should be posting multiple times a day and offering recent news coverage with a unique angle.
Of secondary importance (at least for new blogs) is new content such as editorials and considered commentary. These establish the site as unique and can further solidify the community of readers. Unfortunately, new content takes time to write and can sometimes be lost within the tidal wave of news stories.
My favourite posts
My posts to Aeropause were generally unique content because I wasn’t really interested in news reporting. Not that I think it isn’t important! The other Aeropause writers do an excellent job reporting on up-to-the-minute news, but I chose to focus on articles. Here are a few of my favourite posts (including various comments from readers).
Christ, you got that blogosphere down to the smallest detail.
The Wii is Obviously Not Just A GameCube
You’re pretty much the only site covering it this way. Good on you for an original presentation
Nintendo Viral Marketing Conspiracy?
I have it on good authority that Reggie helped plan the faking of the moon landing…
The Colour of Next-Gen Gaming?
This article should be deleted, at least thats my point of view… still it is making us think a bit more about it… mmm
The Colour of (A Lot of High Profile) Next-Gen Games
i think the topic shouldnt be about the colortones of these games but rather the “setting” of the game… cliche’ “post apocolyptic” or “desolate future
My article series
I wrote two article series for Aeropause, each discussing how games are changing and where they may be headed. My first series, The Changing Face of Gaming, was fairly alarmist to jarr people into considering what is happening in the current marketplace. It was made up of three articles:
- Death of a Salesman: What happens to retailers when most games are distributed online?
- Death of a Collector: What happens to casual game collectors when old games are emulated and new games need to be patched?
- Death of the Disconnected Gamer: Is offline play really possible in future? Will stereotypes die if gaming becomes truly mainstream?
My second series, An Alternative Future, was kind of a call-to-arms for the gamers (consumers) to assert themselves in the conversation with producers that happens everytime they decide to buy a game. I wrote it almost as a response to how futile the first series felt.
- Don’t Buy Horse Armour!: Online distribution is a new market without established price points. Consumers need to assert their position to negotiate reasonable terms.
- Don’t Give Away Your Content: If they want to charge you for their content, expect something in return for your content.
- Why Do We Always Play At Your House?: Is it a good idea for gamers to be dependant on servers run by console manufacturers or game publishers? (What happened to community servers and peer-to-peer?)
I wish all the best for Aeropause. They have a great team of writers who are all true gamers. They also have a number of dedicated readers who have made my efforts feel appreciated and worthwhile! Thanks! 🙂
Thanks again, Nick! Be sure to fill us in on what you’re working on in the game world.
OMG…. you said ‘For Serious!’ in your blog post!!!
The the gaming blog soup just got a little less tasty, but thats life! Keep on trucking Nick!
Good luck, Nick. I enjoyed your work.
Thanks everyone! I didn’t realise how many ideas I got to share through Aeropause until I started writing this post!