Gaming journalism may sound serious, complicated, or reserved only for people who have been in the media for years. In reality, it all starts very simply: you love video games, you follow what’s happening in the gaming world, and you want to write about it. If you have the will to learn, try new games, and turn your impressions into text, you already have a good start.
One of the most interesting things about writing for a gaming portal is the opportunity to receive game codes. This means that the editorial team sometimes gets access to games that can be tried out and processed for the portal. Sometimes these are small indie titles, sometimes medium-sized projects, and sometimes larger games from well-known publishers. Of course, this doesn’t mean that games are just handed out or that it’s enough to just take a code and disappear. The point is clear: you get a game, try it out, and in return, you write an article, impressions, a review, or a presentation.
This is a great opportunity for anyone who loves discovering new titles. Not every game has to be a big hit, nor does every game have to be completed to the end. For some titles, it’s enough to write initial impressions, explain what kind of game it is, and who might find it interesting. If the game is particularly good or interesting, a longer text can emerge from that. In this way, the author gains experience, the portal gets content, and readers receive a recommendation or a warning about a game they might not have noticed yet.
The second major advantage is press accreditation. These are journalistic applications for gaming fairs, events, presentations, and other industry activities. With press accreditation, a journalist can gain access to events where new games are presented, talk to developers, try out demo versions, and gather information for articles. For someone who loves the gaming industry, this can be a very interesting experience because you no longer observe everything from the outside, but have the opportunity to be closer to what’s happening.
Of course, press accreditations do not come immediately and are not guaranteed for everyone. They depend on the event, the editorial team, available spots, and the seriousness of the application. But if someone writes regularly, shows responsibility, and truly wants to participate in the work of the portal, such opportunities can open up over time. This can mean attending local events, online presentations, digital fairs, or larger international gaming events.
The third advantage is meeting people from the gaming industry. Through working on the portal, you can come into contact with developers, publishers, PR agencies, distributors, other journalists, and content creators. This is not only useful for networking but also because you start to better understand how the entire industry functions. You see how games are announced, how press materials are sent, how reviews are created, how interviews are arranged, and how the media follows new titles.
The fourth advantage is experience. Writing for the portal helps you learn how to write news, how to craft a headline, how to structure a review, how to briefly explain a game, and how to turn your opinion into text that someone will actually read. This may sound difficult at first, but it becomes easier with each new article. The first text may not be perfect, the second will already be better, and after about ten texts, you will start to see your own progress more clearly.
The fifth advantage is the portfolio. Every published text remains as proof that you have done something. If one day you want to apply for a job, internship, collaboration, or some other media opportunity, you can show your published articles. This is much better than just saying that you love games and would like to write. Published texts demonstrate effort, interest, and concrete activity.
The sixth advantage is that you can write about what truly interests you. Some people love indie games, some big AAA titles, some horror games, some sports games, some retro games, some hardware, and some the gaming industry in general. A gaming portal needs different topics and different authors. Not everyone has to write the same. In fact, it’s best when everyone finds the area that suits them the most.
The seventh advantage is the feeling of participating in something. You are not just someone who reads news and comments on games, but someone who creates content for other players. Your text can help someone discover a new game, decide whether to buy something, learn important information, or simply read an interesting review. This is a small but concrete contribution to the gaming community.
Simply put: if you write for a gaming portal, you can get the opportunity to try out games, write about them, build experience, get published texts, get to know the industry, participate in events, and become part of the team that follows what they love. It’s not necessary to know everything right away. It’s important to have the will, responsibility, and desire to learn.
If you love video games, want to try titles from indie projects to larger AAA games, are interested in press accreditations, gaming events, and writing for an audience that shares the same interest, contact the portal Virus.hr at email redakcija@virus.hr and become part of our team.
