January 30, 2018 Eric Swain External Sources

The Moving Pixels Podcast: The Best Games of 2017

The first podcast of the new year. Nick and I count down our Top 7 favorite games of 2017. Why Top 7? Because there were only two of us and that got us as close to 15 games that we’d normally do with 3 people doing a Top 5. The big news is at the end of the episode we announced that we are moving away from a biweekly format to a monthly one. The fact of the matter is that this podcast is essentially a hobby and it was taking up a lot of time for most of us. | more

January 11, 2018 Eric Swain Thoughts

2007: Ten Years Later

Back in 2014, Tony Zhou, of Every Frame A Painting fame, wrote a blog post about the best films of 2004. It wasn’t stating what they were, but rather a survey of what the critics said they were, a glance at the box office and then comparing the two against what films stood the test of time a decade hence. He went on to use that data to explain why certain films lasted and why they did over certain other films in the same year. I took inspiration from the first part of that effort. | more

July 6, 2017 Eric Swain External Sources

TGC Game of the Year 2016 Addendum

I struggled a bit with my game of the year list, mainly because I was trying to squeeze more games than would fit. 15 games into 10 slots at final count. I debated whether I should increase the list to 15 to accommodate all the games I wanted to mention. I also did think about forgoing the top 10 format entirely. With an alphabetical list I could put as many as I wanted onto the list without getting wonky with the numbering system. | more

July 5, 2017 Eric Swain External Sources

TGC Game of the Year 2016

July 5, 2017 | Filed under: Game Issues, Recent Posts and tagged with: End of Year, Game of the Year Time got away from me. I could have passed on doing this altogether, never published it and nobody would have cared, but I’d know. I’d know and that would gnaw at me. This is a wrap up to 2016. In a way, this is an exercising of the last remnants of that year. Things haven’t improved overall, but carrying on any psychic baggage that could otherwise be compartmentalized away from the present is something I don’t want to do and cannot afford myself. | more

May 17, 2016 Eric Swain Game Issues

TGC Game of the Year 2015

May 17, 2016 | Filed under: Game Issues, Recent Posts and tagged with: End of Year, Game of the Year This is late. Way later than I ever wanted it to be. Though, giving up on the whole video game critic thing for about 4 solid months last year really cut into my being able to present anything. To my satisfaction at least. Last year, from around the middle to end of July through the end of November I just did not care to take any significant part of the video game critical community. | more

January 31, 2015 Eric Swain Game Issues

TGC Game of the Year 2014

January 31, 2015 | Filed under: Game Issues, Recent Posts and tagged with: End of Year, Game of the Year Before I get into what I felt were the best games of 2014, that I played, I want to talk about the concept of list itself. It may seem unnecessary. All that may seem necessary is a bare bones ten line list of the titles and be done with it. That wouldn’t be acceptable in my case. I’ve kind of painted myself into a corner regarding the issue and now have to put my money where my mouth is. | more

January 19, 2015 Eric Swain External Sources

Moving Pixels Podcast: Our Best Games of 2014

It’s that time of year again, the one where critics and websites all sit around and have fun talking about the games they liked over the past 12 months. As per usual, I’m still working out what my best of year list will look like. I’m still playing games for instance that could make it on. Lots of catch up happens at the end of year and, for me due to my CD commitments, into January. That list is still incoming. As for our discussion, it is really interesting to see our unique perspectives come through our lists. | more

January 31, 2014 Eric Swain Game Issues

TGC 2013 Game of the Year

January 31, 2014 | Filed under: Game Issues, Recent Posts and tagged with: End of Year, Game of the Year A running theme in my life is that I’m always behind, always late, which is why you are getting my list for my 2013 games of the year at the end of January of 2014. I wanted to give myself more time to actually play some games because my December is usually concerned with other matters. I got some played, but nowhere near as many as I would have liked. | more

January 6, 2014 Eric Swain External Sources

Moving Pixels Podcast: Our Best Games of 2013

Our first podcast of the year at PopMatters is up and it’s us looking at last year’s games. Chris, Nick and I rundown our top 5 games of the year or rather we start off by doing that, but near the end it sort of goes off the rails and we end up talking about a few more. Only two games appeared on more than one list and one appeared on all three lists. We also get to talk about some honorable mentions. Then, and I forgot about this, we wrap up by discussing the very concept of Game of the Year awards. | more

January 12, 2013 Eric Swain Game Issues

TGC 2012 Game of the Year

January 12, 2013 | Filed under: Game Issues, Recent Posts and tagged with: End of Year, Game of the Year I wanted to get this done earlier. In fact, I like having my game of the year post before the end of the actual year. For the last two years that meant taking time out of New Years Eve celebrations for typing it up. That didn’t happen this year because of my next point. I have played more games last year from that year than I have ever done so before. | more