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Critical Path: How to Review Videogames for a Living
Critical Path: How to Review Videogames for a Living will tell you what you need to know and what you need to do to make a run at this career, for real. This includes how to write compelling reviews, how to pitch yourself as a writer, how to tackle some tricky ethical quandaries, and yes, even how to get free games. Based on Dan Amrich’s own experience as a game journalist for more than 15 years, it’s advice that can serve you for your entire career, from press start to game over.
332 pages, Paperback
First published February 15, 2012
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141 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 29, 2015
This book has some great advice on writing game reviews and discusses intriguing ethical challenges for the games journalist, including how to handle freebies and dealing with criticism from readers. I also liked the interviews with PR officials, who provide great insights into how videogame companies work with journalists to get coverage of their games.
I always enjoy reading books by journalists because they tend to be written in a very accessible style. Dan Amrich is great at this--he sounds like a buddy offering you some honest and friendly career advice.
The book is not perfect, however. Sometimes, Critical Path feels like it's written for someone who has never had ANY office job before. For example, there is a chapter dealing with how to dress for a job and how to handle office politics. I also found some of the advice on journalism as a general industry to be a bit obvious. That said, I am a journalist who has had journalism jobs for almost ten years. If you are a student who is thinking about getting a writing job, you might find this advice valuable.
I noticed a few typos, at least in the Kindle edition. However, they were not major enough to get in the way of the reading.
There are not many (if any) other books specifically about games journalism. If you're thinking about a career in this field, Critical Path is a fantastic primer.
I always enjoy reading books by journalists because they tend to be written in a very accessible style. Dan Amrich is great at this--he sounds like a buddy offering you some honest and friendly career advice.
The book is not perfect, however. Sometimes, Critical Path feels like it's written for someone who has never had ANY office job before. For example, there is a chapter dealing with how to dress for a job and how to handle office politics. I also found some of the advice on journalism as a general industry to be a bit obvious. That said, I am a journalist who has had journalism jobs for almost ten years. If you are a student who is thinking about getting a writing job, you might find this advice valuable.
I noticed a few typos, at least in the Kindle edition. However, they were not major enough to get in the way of the reading.
There are not many (if any) other books specifically about games journalism. If you're thinking about a career in this field, Critical Path is a fantastic primer.
September 10, 2015
Dan Amrich has over 25 years experience in the oft-maligned games journalism field. He is something of an elder statesman in the industry, and has finally collected his knowledge in Critical Path: the first book of its kind. This book provides everything an aspiring writer could hope to find.
October 17, 2023
Outdated as a career-path due to the oversaturation of online "gurus" creating a post-informational culture disregarding the encompassment of ideological uniformity defined by the regurgitation of fact, the baseline theories of Dan Amrich create a bedrock for a new critique known as the Postmodern Death Loop within margins of Amrich's personal musings in-critique to a new majority of men whose lives are now engrossed with virtual reality fantasy supplementing both the real-world and traditional modes of media were outside directing such as workplace employment becomes obsolete to a technocracy due to failing realizations of community post-realization of harm the New York school of thought has rasterized within community mindsets in the American ideological exportation of racism. Notice how this critique has nothing to do with video game reviews. A decent introduction to Fine Art gaming in-direction to control of visual aesthetics through ideological curation.
December 14, 2023
Amrich writes in short chapters and a friendly tone this great introductory manual for aspiring (video game) journists — and human beings. With some useful exercises and interesting anecdotes, it's a fun and galvanizing read, even when the author doesn't shy away from the issues in the profession.
This book is so good that most of it can possibily work for any aspiring journalist, not just video games one. And I know plenty of pro journos (or, "journos") who need to read some chapters here because they forgot, or never knew, some basics.
Lost the fifth star because in 2023 it's a bit outdated, as it was published in 2012 when the print magazines still had their share. Those parts explaining how print magazines work might not be useful today, but they're still fun to read and somehow important from an historical point of view.
And, well, the focus is on the US system, obviously.
This book is so good that most of it can possibily work for any aspiring journalist, not just video games one. And I know plenty of pro journos (or, "journos") who need to read some chapters here because they forgot, or never knew, some basics.
Lost the fifth star because in 2023 it's a bit outdated, as it was published in 2012 when the print magazines still had their share. Those parts explaining how print magazines work might not be useful today, but they're still fun to read and somehow important from an historical point of view.
And, well, the focus is on the US system, obviously.
June 17, 2015
http://www.themaineedge.com/buzz/walk...
“Critical Path: How to Review Video Games for a Living” is the best kind of guidebook - the kind written by someone who has already scaled the mountain that you hope to climb. Dan Amrich knows plenty about all facets of the business. But perhaps most importantly, he can write and write well.
Anyone out there who dreams of reviewing video games (or reviewing anything, really) professionally should own a copy. Let Dan Amrich help you find your way along the “Critical Path.”
“Critical Path: How to Review Video Games for a Living” is the best kind of guidebook - the kind written by someone who has already scaled the mountain that you hope to climb. Dan Amrich knows plenty about all facets of the business. But perhaps most importantly, he can write and write well.
Anyone out there who dreams of reviewing video games (or reviewing anything, really) professionally should own a copy. Let Dan Amrich help you find your way along the “Critical Path.”
July 14, 2013
Dan brings a lot of experience, insight, and wisdom to the subject of being a game critic. Critical Path is an interesting, entertaining read with lots of great info for aspiring game journalists. The focus here is primarily on writing game reviews and working on staff for a game publication. Freelancing is covered to a far more limited extent than I would have liked, but I enjoyed Dan's approach and pleasant writing style.
April 17, 2012
Quite a comprehensive and humorous guide for getting into the business of reviewing games and getting paid for it! Even helpful for those who don't get paid to do it, as I write for a small gaming website. Reading through this book made me take a closer critical look at the way I write my reviews and I hope will make them better for readers!
May 21, 2016
I was more interested in the critical writing chapters of the book than the video game magazine/web-site stuff TBH.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews