Tag Archives: essays

The Key Beats of Interactivity

Posted on January 20, 2025 by Jason L Blair

Back in the Summer of 2021, I taught two courses on Critical Game Analysis for Bradley University. My friend David got me connected there. I took over the classes he originally intended on teaching but couldn’t due to the workload … Continue reading →

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The Danger of Forever Games

Posted on December 30, 2024 by Jason L Blair

From video gaming’s earliest days, designers have been imagining a dizzying array of worlds, play styles, and ways to entertain. From Pong to Zork to Adventure to Mega Man to Halo and far beyond, gaming has been a platform for … Continue reading →

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Old Man with a Dream

Posted on December 23, 2024 by Jason L Blair

In many ways, the past few years have been wonderful to me. Far beyond my dreams, in fact. A newfound love, an ever-strengthening bond with my kids, new friends and family, and new opportunities all provided light to me after … Continue reading →

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Roots Pushing Through

Posted on July 4, 2017 by Jason L Blair

I think I’m starting to understand the concept of putting down roots. Staying in a place for a while. Staying at a job, a company for a long time. It’s…weird for me. I never felt a connection to my hometown. … Continue reading →

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Operation Awesome: Revelations on Story

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Jason L Blair

This is gonna be mostly old hat to most writers, I reckon, but every author goes through their own journey and such so this is new and revelatory to me, at the very least. I’ve been doing a lot of … Continue reading →

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Hey, Wanna Hear Something Crazy?

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Jason L Blair

I don’t remember the exact date that I went crazy, but I remember the weeks preceding it. In mid-June 2004, I got sick. I didn’t know what it was at first. I worked during the day at a local internet … Continue reading →

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New Year’s Revelation

Posted on January 3, 2014 by Jason L Blair

Obvious revelation that reared its head into my brain a bit ago so I thought I’d share. Doing nothing leads to doing more nothing. Most folks know that. But the inverse is also true. When you do something, especially if … Continue reading →

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I Want to Do More. I Want to Do Better.

Posted on April 3, 2013 by Jason L Blair

I spent last week at the largest gathering of video game developers in the world: the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, California. It was amazing. It was five intense days of lectures, networking, and learning. I met a wide … Continue reading →

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The Dream Job

Posted on April 4, 2012 by Jason L Blair

Last Friday, March 30th, I accepted an offer for the job of my dreams. This past Tuesday, April 3rd, I declined the position. Forgive me for not naming names, but this isn’t the studio’s story. This is mine. But, really, … Continue reading →

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AdventureGamers.com: Top 100

Posted on December 19, 2011 by Jason L Blair

Top adventure gaming website AdventureGamers.com has launched a thirty-year retrospective of the Top 100 Adventure Games. Jack Allin, the editor, had the enviable* task of compiling feedback from the staff and herding us cats as we wrote up our reasons … Continue reading →

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