chris-suellentrop
Latest
Slate's 'Game Club' kicks off third year
Out of the handful of mainstream media outlets that handle video games in a capacity beyond when controversy strikes or the occasional blockbuster's release, Slate.com's "Game Club" annually gets together for a critical discussion on the year in games. This year's crew includes Chris Suellentrop, Leigh Alexander, Mitch Krpata and Jamin Brophy-Warren, and covers everything from the beauty and simplicity of Canabalt to the "shocking and meaningless" Modern Warfare 2 airport scene (their words). Rather than present a top 10 list list like some mainstream publications choose (we're looking at you, Time Magazine!), the group discusses various themes that pervaded their favorite (and less than favorite) games of 2009. You might call it "game criticism," but we just call it "an interesting read."
The Gaming Club sounds off on the year in video games
Hope you like words, because there are plenty of them to be found in Slate's first annual Gaming Club piece. The newly inaugurated feature focuses on a once-around discussion of the year in games with some of game journalism's powerhouse personalities: Newsweek's N'Gai Croal, MTV's Stephen Totilo, the New York Times' Seth Schiesel, and Slate's Chris Suellentrop.A light read this is not. Suellentrop, Totilo, Schiesel and Croal trudge deep into a spoiler-laden discussion of what 2007 will mean in the great big book of video game history. Triple-A titles like Bioshock, Halo 3, and Super Mario Galaxy are both praised and heavily critiqued, while smaller titles like Desktop Tower Defense and Everyday Shooter are discussed as having been more emblematic of 2007 than we realize.Overall, the piece is a poignant look at the year behind us, and much more than simply a "game of the year" discussion. Further updates to the feature are forthcoming, with a total of eight letters between the four journalists arriving by Wednesday. Definitely worth the read.
