Hello, and welcome to my new Hey Poor Player column: 8-Bit Chronicles, wherein I analyze classic arcade-munchers of the 80's! Giving I already host another column (Sleeping With The Enemy), I'm certain this is rather left-field, so let's break down how this came to be and what it'll entail.
As readers may recall, I announced last fall I'd be covering Arcade/8-Bit video games after 2019's New Year. The reasoning was simple: given their brevity, they'd serve as excellent outlets for maintaining a consistent writing output. As opposed to the 1500-2000 word caps I typically uphold for Leave Luck to Heaven, these would gravitate towards 1000 words -- a reflection of their pick-up-and-play breadth, if you will.
This endeavor originally began as a Leave Luck to Heaven project -- actually, this very post originally hosted an early Donkey Kong rough draft -- but a spark of inspiration hit after a remarkably optimistic Hey Poor Player meeting last week. Truth be told, we're finally initiating big plans for the site, as we've begun outlining plans for consistent, user-appealing features in comprehensive guides and appealing listicles. However, having achieved recent success in retro gaming news such as "The Legend of Zelda Minus World Discovered" and "Tetris NES “Kill Screen” Bypassed; Level 33 Reached", I knew the enduring mass interest for these beloved classics would be the path forward in distinguishing our little mom and pop site.
With myself already planning to cover retro games for this blog, 8-Bit Chronicles was born. Originally, I intended for these reviews to be published here, too, but after careful input from my editors, these articles will remain exclusive to Hey Poor Player. Not to worry, though: as always, I'll not only continue providing these archival posts announcing their arrival, but they'll be included within The Archives in their appropriate categories.
True to its name, 8-Bit Chronicles will focus entirely on covering classics from the beloved 80's era; however, it'll only focus upon arcade games and games derived from pick-up-and-play arcade philosophies, which entails the likes of Pac-Man, Mario Bros., Bubble Bobble, Dig Dug, and Gradius. In other words, you won't be seeing anything in the vein of Castlevania or Mega Man II; as always, that'll remain Leave Luck to Heaven's wheelhouse.
Speaking of turnover rates, I plan on publishing these reviews twice a month. There's no set schedule for this -- lapses between each article may range from two-to-three weeks -- but when considering the other output I'll be juggling (manga/new game reviews, guides, and your occasional Sleeping With The Enemy article) alongside Leave Luck to Heaven, I felt this was the most suitable number.
Finally, I should mention that with 8-Bit Chronicles being a burgeoning project, its compositional style is not set in stone. Whereas this analytical Donkey Kong piece provides a side of fun history, not every game will adhere to that direction; for instance, I couldn't just pick any one game within Paste's 10 Great Arcade Games listicle and carry on as if everyone knows them, right? As noted in the opening blurb, 8-Bit Chronicles is about studying everything from cherished classics to obscure gems, so while naturally each article will examine if the games hold up, they'll all ultimately subscribe to various purposes. 8-Bit Chronicles will function as both an evolution of my writing and of itself, so I hope you look forward to its growth.
With the monotony of news-and-reviews having long settling in, this is the exact kick-start both Hey Poor Player and I desperately needed. As an aspiring game historian and journalist, I see it as a duty to myself and my readers to travel through time and analyze the pixelated building blocks of our beloved gaming industry. Wish us luck on this venture!
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