Category: External Sources

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

So How Did I Do on TWIVGB

Well Ben Abraham was away from the internet last week, something to do with spelunking I think, and asked me to step in as writer of the This Week In Video Game Blogging feature again. I don't know what it is, but every time I take up the task the internet decides that this is the week to get super prolific. So, we I ended up writing what I believe to be the second longest TWIVGB...so far. It didn't help that my list of links doubled about an hour before I should have written the damn thing. | more

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

My Stint at TWIVGB is Over

Well I did my two weeks at Critical Distance writing the This Week in Video Game Blogging feature. I can honestly say that I have even more respect for Mr. Ben Abraham. How he can keep that up week after week is beyond me. Maybe it had something to do with the fact I was new and hadn't gotten used to it. Maybe it had to do with the first time I did it was the most prolific week ever in quality video game criticism. I don't know, but hats off to you man. And if you ever need a fill-in (hint hint) you know where to go. | more

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

Working for the Weekend on Critical Distance

As some of you may know, or care, Ben Abraham will be gallivanting off to GDC thanks to the generous contributions from around the blogosphere, proving once more that some people have way too much free time on their hands. All kidding aside, I'm sure Ben will do a bang up job covering the event. For those of you who don't know him and will be going, he'll be the one introduced as the Permadeath guy.  He will also have an Australian accent and probably be the only one with a tan. | more

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

VGHVI Podcast Appearance

Last Thursday I played Bioshock during the simultaneous VGHVI playthrough, while talking on Skype with Denis Farr, Roger Travis, Micheal Abbot and several others. Roger took that conversation and made a podcast out of it. He was doing the recording and unfortunately Skype kept kicking him out so he didn't get everything, probably for the best. He does a wonderful job editing out a lot of the blank spaces and stumbles. Note for next time: if VGHVI decides to do another single player playthrough, choose a game less audio intensive. | more

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

Indie Game Spotlight – Today I Die

Over at the CreativeFluff design blog I spotlighted Today I Die, an indie game that came out around April of this year from designer/developer Daniel Benmergui. Go play it before reading anything below. It's a short game and worth it. Today I Die is a game that firmly wears the arty badge and wears it proudly.  It's a simple puzzle game that has an interesting take on the point and click adventure game genre. Using floating words to alter the poem, you change the world and your avatar's state of being. | more

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

Indie Game Spotlight – Small Worlds

The game was made for Casual Gameplay's design contest #6 with the parameters to incorporate this content's theme: Explore. Were I to judge in the contest I would look to how well it incorporated the theme, as a critic I am looking at what that means within the game. I recommend playing it here before continue reading. Small Worlds is a simple game. It has three buttons: left, right and jump. And that's all the game needs. You are in an environment that you cannot see until you begin to move around and explore. | more

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

Indie Game Spotlight – Norwegian Wood

Over at the Creative Fluff design blog I've started a new, hopefully weekly feature called, in case you couldn't guess, is Indie Game Spotlight. I've decided to highlight a different indie game each week. These games don't have the huge marketing push of the AAA titles so they can use any and all attention they can get. These aren't reviews or critiques, just bringing attention to a title I think deserves some attention. | more

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

Three Appearances on the CDC Podcast

I wasted far too much time trying to figure it out or putting it off feeling something would come to me. Well here they are. The show notes pages of the three podcast. They have instructions on how to get it. If you can please rate it on iTunes and become a regular listener if you like intelligent people discussing games intelligently. Episode 1 Episode 2 - Descent into Dissonance Episode 3 - Showing, Telling, Performing Narrative Don't forget those are only the episodes I appear on, there is another great episode afterwords. | more

Eric Swain External Sources, Recent Posts

Video Game Hall of Fame and Signs of Better Things

Yesterday over at Kotaku they had an article discussing the idea of a Video Game hall of fame. Where would this museum be? Ottumwa Iowa. Now before you go, 'what the hell is Ottumwa?' it does have some semblance of legitimacy for the honor. That city is known as the Video Game Capital of the World. The title of course is self induced, but the reason for it is back in the 1980s Ottumwa held an enormous gathering of the best arcade gamers in the world, including Billy Mitchel. | more