This is what makes The Pixels more than just another website about game reviews.
WHO WE ARE
The Pixels is a community critique hub featuring diverse thinkers and opinions, writers from all walks of life with a variety of interests. We don’t just cover retro gaming. We don’t just handle the latest hotness. We distinguish ourselves from games writing that boils down to pointing out what is racist, sexist, or problematic and leave the cultural critiques for others. I’m not saying cultural issues are unimportant. I am saying that other sites can make that their brand.
At The Pixels, we create content around the games themselves. It’s in the subtitle: Elemental Video Game Critiques.
Don’t like the sound of modern mainstream games journalism? Change can happen but it will require abandoning anything resembling shills, fanboyism, review bombing, rage baiting, click baiting, leaks baiting, or false headlining. It’ll require uniting around a commonality: the fact that we all like video games.
WHAT WE NEED
You. We are always looking for friendly, articulate, productive contributors who are passionate about gaming and writing. Writers are our lifeblood.
Whether you run a blog, you’re thinking of starting one but don’t want to deal with the hassle, you’re looking for a haven of writers to be a part of, or you just love gaming and you want to express your thoughts about any game on any platform from any era, you’re welcome to join our party.
The fact is there’s just too much gaming to cover it all. We need more writers who want to dig in, help us craft the kind of content you’d like to see in the world, and create with us!
WHAT WE DO
We host a range of video game-themed content from writers around the world: long-form critiques, short-form reviews, editorials and opinion pieces, analyses, recurring series, group collaborations, more personal blog posts, first impressions and highlights, musical interludes, podcasts, and livestreams!
You can read more about our main types of content, as well as how our 10-point grading scale breaks down, on our Instruction Manual page.
The Pixels is primarily a criticism site. Our formatting is easy to follow and a requirement for all reviews and critiques. Reviews/critiques should ideally be for games we’ve never reviewed before, so you can see our Archive for a list of games we’ve tackled.
HOW TO JOIN
Please be aware that we are a hobbyist site and cannot offer financial compensation at this time.Â
If you’re interested, email me (thewellredmage@the-pixels.com). Simple as that. We can start a dialogue.
I will ask for a sample or samples of your work and you should have an idea of what kind of content you’d like to create for the site when requesting to join. I can lend some assistance with editing but I prefer our collaborators have a firm grasp of the English language, and also wield some demonstrable writing skills and interest in writing (or content of another kind if that’s your shtick).
There is a Rule of Three in effect: a new writer is a guest writer until they have successfully had three (3) posts published on The Pixels. After that, they will be able to join the core writing staff. Staff writers are given access to the press keys that we handle (with care), advance copies of games provided with the expectation of providing coverage. This rule is in effect to sort through writers who will submit productive content and those who won’t. I’ve spent a lot of time in the past onboarding new writers who would only produce a single post before moving on. We wish them the best but we also are looking for writers who want to feel at home here.
Your first submission must be a pitched article that represents a trial post to see if you can adhere to our guidelines.
Stick to our formatting, honor our ideals, keep things generally family-friendly, share your own personal thoughts without recycling what they’re saying over at Metacritic… it sounds pretty easy, right? It is. Games writing doesn’t have to be hard.
This remains a private site, not a professional one, and I believe in enjoying the writing process. You retain authorial rights to your posts here, which you can take down or alter however you see fit (within the previously described rules). That said, productivity and reliability will make you a comfortable fit with The Pixels. If you pitch an article, claim a game to review, or handle a press key, we will need your assurance that you will follow through.
Things that will get you removed from the site: 1) not sticking to the format, 2) being combative with editors, 3) not following through on the posts you said you would submit, 4) claiming too many games for review and again not following through, 5) general misbehavior: lack of maturity/unprofessionalism, attacking persons rather than critiquing games, using harsh language or NSFW content in your posts, lack of respect, being discouraging, mocking political, religious, racial, ethnic groups or orientations, etc. Again, if you want to join the mobs shouting about the latest problematic problem or tribal allegiance in a subculture war, you’ll find many other possible sites to write for.
What is the value of a good written piece about a video game? It’s priceless. A well-written, well-thought-out post can provoke new thoughts, reinvigorate discussion, shift general consensus, and challenge ideas both new and old. A post like that can alter somebody’s opinion on a game so they give it a second chance or affect what title they choose to play next. Such a post reaches across vast distances and speaks to the mind and the heart.
If that sounds like adventure to you, then please… join the party.
Become a Writer!
*Name:
*Your blog/publication/website/channel/social media:
*Please provide two links or attachments to your writing samples (preferably gaming related):
*Your systems/consoles:
*Your proposed focus as a writer (new games, retro games, console, PC, handheld, etc.):
*Why are you interested in joining The Pixels?:
*Display name on The Pixels:
*Are you willing to submit your work to an editor before it’s published?:
*Are you willing to follow The Pixel’s formatting (here) for posts?:
*Are you willing to keep your posts generally family-friendly in tone and language?:
*Do you have any questions?:
*Pitch for your first contribution (which may or may not be accepted, keeping in mind we are mainly a critiques/reviews site):
Please email your answers to thewellredmage@gmail.com
Hey there! We cofollow on Twitter and I actually just DMmed you.
I’m definitely interested in joining the discourse and further tainting the internet with my gaming thoughts. Actually, I’m always looking for a new place to pontificate about the innate primacy of Zelda II. Fight me. My own blog, GhettoGamer.net, is already festooned with Zelda crap, so maybe it’s time to spread.
Looking forward to connecting with you and grinding out some content.
Hello! I would love to contribute if thats okay! I have a general nerd blog but games are reviewed for nostalgia and just because. I would kindly contribute if allowed. Thanks!
Hi and thank you for the follow! I would love to begin a conversation with you about joining the our writing team and what that all entails. Would you be available to send me a PM on Twitter or Discord or FB? Or an old fashioned email works too.
With Nintendo 64 now in tow, we think we could bring some
fun to your entourage. (Also our love of online free to play)
+ Would love to feature The Well Red Mage on our summer
blog tour if that would be of any interest to you? All the best!
We’re always welcoming more members to our team for long-form, analytical reviews of games, if that’s what you’d be interested in writing! What’s this about a summer blog tour?
Yes, maybe it is destiny because the first 4 games we have acquired for
our N64 collection have not yet been reviewed on your illustrious blog.
The blog tour is just our way of showing the love for some of our favorite
Wordpress blogs that have brought us so much enjoyment in cyberland.
Converse more via PM on Twitter?
Sounds good! PM me there!
Mage Against the Machine! Nicholas Mage! Streets of Mage! Sorry, I have nothing to contribute but lame puns 😛
All more than welcome! 😀 I cracked up at these!
Maybe I should write a book of puns. It would be a real mage turner 😀
Yessss! MOAR.
This is a really cool site, and I would love to contribute. I’ve written a few reviews on my blog (you can find them at gamegato.wordpress.com) about games you haven’t written about. It would be my pleasure to contribute if you’re interested.
Thank you very much! We’ve put a lot of blood, sweat and joy into this place. We’re all the more excited to share it with contributors and guest writers! Thanks for expressing your interest. Would you be available to contact me through a private message on Twitter or Facebook? Then we can talk details. It’ll be my pleasure to get you situated here as soon as possible! We just gained two other contributors recently so we’re very excited!
I actually do not have a Twitter or Facebook account. It would be best to contact me at:
reidvanderwerf@gmail.com
Alrighty, I sent you an email. I look forward to our chat.
I want to talk to you about some projects I’m working on and also about your site in detail. Would you mind emailing me so I have your preferred email address for the conversation?
jakestewart@dpadpress.com
Sure my email is atoxon.theshining@yahoo.com
You could also contact me via private message on Twitter @thewellredmage
or Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewellredmage/
Heyo. Are there any more spots in the magic school available this quarter 😉
Well I think we can squeeze in a few thousand more 😉
Haha. So, I just skimmed through the backlogs and it appears you have yet to do a Shovel Knight review. Or did I miss it? I’m nearing the end of my first playthrough and would like to do a review of it when I get done. I also saw that you had a Punch Out post!… and you and I even made a similar joke about racism to the *exact* same picture. That’s an awkward and embarrassing feeling. I’m going to do a little trimming now.
I have yet to play Shovel Knight! I’m looking forward to picking that title up on the Switch, actually. It’s some kind of extended version if I remember right. That Punch-Out!! post was for an article which appeared in the news at the time about someone discovering a previously unknown visual cue in the game. Weird! I definitely do not even remember that joke you’re referring to! Haha!
If you’d like to write a review, we can talk details on the Facebook page (using the instant messenger on our Well-Red Mage Page). I can get you your own custom mage sprite and everything!
Whew! I’ve changed my post now. Again, looking through the backlog, and seeing some of your gaming faves I’m sure you’re absolutely gonna love Shovel Knight!
I’m not on facebook :\, is there any other way we can chat that works for you? I’m on Twitter (@wakalapi) if PM’ing there works for you.
Oh yes, Shovel Knight has been high on my list for some time. Die hard Mega Man fan here and from what I’ve seen that thing oozes classic Mega Man. No worries! Twitter will work great! I’ll contact you later on today about the process. 🙂
Great! Looking forward to hearing from you
Oh, this is Reuben. Keep on forgetting to add my name…
Am I welcome to join your party? If so, I’d love to write a couple of reviews for you here and there. It would be awesome if you or the Rage Mage could do a couple of guest articles for us and Stuff and That as contributors, too, but it’s up to you – as is the other decision. No idea what Mage I would be if this did happen!
Hi, Reuben! Thanks for your interest! This has been one of the most exciting parts of blogging: meeting and recruiting contributors. Do you have a facebook? It’s easiest to chat at length there using the messenger through our FB blog page. https://www.facebook.com/thewellredmage/
Yeah, here’s my account. https://www.facebook.com/reuben.saunders.14