Our team of staff writers has continued to grow since last summer! We’re excited to introduce readers to some of the new(ish!) names to the Punished Backlog community. We hope you enjoy reading their work as much as we have.
Writer profiles are below, alphabetically by first name.
Alexia Dahlin (she/her)
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Favorite games: The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess (I wrote about Midna for our recent best femme characters list here), The Elder Scrolls: Skyrim, Teamfight Tactics, Civilization VI (with Gathering Storm), and a revolving door of new releases. I love games that have deep lore and strategy games I can play for fun. I’m here for the nostalgia and cozy vibes.
Articles Alexia wants to write: I want to explore more about the interactions between hyper-capitalism and video games, and video games as an art form. On a less serious note, I love writing about cozy games and gaming as a third space! (My first piece here was “The Fast Fashionization of Cozy Games.”)
Other hobbies/interests: Outside of video games, I can often be found exploring cute cafes, embroidering my favorite characters, and reading or writing heavily world-built sci-fi and fantasy stories!
You have an infinite budget and infinite time. What kind of video game do you make? I’d love to make a video game about a lonely widowed grandma who moves from the big city to a small town and becomes part of the community by “adopting” the latchkey kids who live there and doing cute grandmotherly activities and acts of service for them and their families. At the end of the game, you design your funeral and say your final farewells to your much beloved adopted grandkids, who have since moved away and/or started their own families. When they come back for your funeral you get to see them as well-established adults and see your impact on them.
Lightning Round!
- Hottest Gaming Take: I don’t know if it’s that hot of a take, but fishing minigames are the worst type of minigame
- Least favorite game(s): Stardew Valley’s fishing minigame, but really, I don’t know because I usually avoid games I know I would hate
- Favorite console/generation: Wii
- Presumed dead game series you’d like to see make a return: actual edutainment games (JumpStart, I miss you)
- Gen 1 starter Pokémon: Bulbasaur
Allison McDaniel (she/her)
Toledo, Ohio
Favorite games: Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing New Horizons, The Sims 3, Super Mario Bros. (NES), Wii Sports
Articles Allison wants to write: Listicles are my favorite, but I enjoy reviewing indies too. I love finding hidden gem games and sharing with others! I’d also like to try more op-eds.
Favorite piece Allison has written so far: My favorite piece I’ve done so far is “5 Indie Switch Releases That Deserve Your Attention.” It was a blast searching through the Nintendo eShop for upcoming indies that looked good. I love finding hidden gems and sharing with others!
Other hobbies/interests: Outside of gaming, I enjoy reading memoirs and romance novels, keeping up with new Apple technology, and spending time with family. I also really love comedy and am taking improv classes! I’m a huge fan of actress Mary Tyler Moore and classic sitcoms like The Golden Girls and The Mary Tyler Moore Show. I like to watch stand-up too, and have been regularly keeping up with Taylor Tomlinson’s new show After Midnight on CBS.
You have an infinite budget and infinite time. What kind of video game do you make? I would make an Animal Crossing game where you can actually talk and hang out with your villagers. Like, I want to see a movie with Sherb or play basketball with Tad. Maybe even include a virtual playground where you can meet other players from around the world. Basically, I want a game where you can better connect with others.
Lightning Round!
- Hottest Gaming Take: Super Mario Wonder was just okay. The difficulty between levels were too drastic for me and that didn’t sit right. I also don’t think Nintendo went all in on the game enough for it to be “revolutionary” as I didn’t like the mixture of both old and new mechanics. Either completely stick to what we know and love, or make something we’ve never seen before.
- Least favorite game(s): Palworld and any EA Sports game. In Palworld, I’ve learned that I don’t like fighting to survive and I think most sports games are a snooze fest.
- Favorite console/generation: I LOVE Nintendo 64, but we have it so good right now in the Nintendo Switch era, so Switch it is! I absolutely adore the hybrid nature of the console and the insane amount of games we can play.
- Presumed dead game series you’d like to see make a return: I’d love to see a new Castlevania or Star Fox game!
- Gen 1 starter Pokémon: Squirtle
Alyssa Payne (she/her)
Tacoma, WA
Favorite game(s): Dragon Age: Origins, Final Fantasy IX, World of Warcraft, Portal 2, Super Paper Mario
Articles Alyssa wants to write: I’d love to do some backlog reviews, cover story-heavy games and indie gems, and write pieces focusing on representation in games.
Alyssa’s favorite piece that she’s written so far: I really enjoyed writing my two entries (Cassandra from Dragon Age: Inquisition and Freya from Final Fantasy IX) for our Best Female Video Game Characters list. Taking a moment to reflect on the strength, courage, and overall coolness of each character was inspiring, and it made me realize that I’d love to write more profiles in the future.
Other hobbies/interests: Bookstores are my happy place. I’m reading rom-coms and thrillers right now, but I also love a good fantasy novel. When it comes to music, I enjoy playing piano, and lately I’m listening to Chappell Roan, The Aces, and Taylor Swift. I also love baking desserts and decorating them (cakes, cookies, you name it).
You have an infinite budget and infinite time. What kind of video game do you make? A fantasy RPG where the protagonist is a magician (inspired by the Darker Shade of Magic series from V.E. Schwab).
Lightning Round!
- Hottest Gaming Take: Unpacking is more stressful than it is relaxing.
- Least favorite game(s): Call of Duty. I’ve really tried (and failed) to get into it.
- Favorite console/generation: Wii, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
- Presumed dead game series you’d like to see make a return: Viva Piñata! I’d also take a revival of Nintendogs
- Gen 1 starter Pokémon: Bulbasaur
Ben Rashkovich (he/him)
Portland, OR (now) + Washington, DC (soon)
Favorite game(s): Chrono Trigger, Cave Story, Hollow Knight, Celeste, Elden Ring. I guess I’m all about beautiful pixel art, Metroidvanias, brutal parrying and platformers, and the sensation of battling the desolation of history, nature, or fate. I don’t know, man, these games just rock.
Articles Ben wants to write: Lifting up the indie scene in video games, board games, and TTRPGs.
Ben’s favorite piece that he’s written so far: I’m proudest of my rundown of upcoming TTRPGs I’m most excited about this year. It took awhile to research and write, but I found it gratifying to imagine the sorts of play experiences I could get from a tabletop game that I haven’t yet found in D&D or the other big players. I love having my expectations of form and genre contested, and this article gave me opportunity in spades.
Other hobbies/interests: Reading fantasy, scifi, and rulebooks; posing unhinged discussion questions in my group chats to get ’em popping off on a Tuesday morning; watching standup comedy on YouTube and thinking “I could do that!” but I’m a coward; watching movies and pretentiously complimenting the mise-en-scene; generally bemoaning stuff. I also like making and eating sandwiches.
You have an infinite budget and infinite time. What kind of video game do you make? Bloodborne 2. Because apparently that’s what it takes. A hoonter must hoont.
Lightning Round!
- Hottest Gaming Take: Oxenfree is not good. (Sorry Amanda 🙁 )
- Least favorite game(s): Cards Against Humanity, Ticket to Ride, Sushi Go
- Favorite console/generation: SNES, as a nostalgic millennial who will never own a home
- Presumed dead game series you’d like to see make a return: Worms. Lol.
- Gen 1 starter Pokémon: Charmander, are you insane? Obviously.
Gary Wilson (he/him)
Boston, MA
Favorite game(s): Bastion, Persona 4, SUPERHOT, Threes! Give me things with great story or weird Indie hits!
Articles Gary wants to write: I’ll be continuing to work on Therapy Gaming, and also a few pieces on niche RPGs and Apex Legends eSports!
Gary’s favorite piece that he’s written so far: I’m most proud of my Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons piece, but I also love my entry on NFL Street for Remakes We’d Love To See. I stand by it!
Other hobbies/interests: Besides games, I spend a lot of time outdoors! Hiking, vegetable gardening, and playing with my puppy nephew are the biggest factors. I also got way into bread during the pandemic, and have kept it up!
You have an infinite budget and infinite time. What kind of video game do you make? Absolutely a remake or reimagine of the Legacy of Kain series. The lore established is intriguing, and who doesn’t love time-traveling ghost demons?
Lightning Round!
- Hottest Gaming Take: The Last of Us was always bad.
- Least favorite game: SimCity 2013 remains the most disappointed I have ever been
- Favorite console/generation: Xbox 360
- Presumed dead game series you’d like to see make a return: Ahem, Legacy of Kain
- Gen 1 starter Pokémon: Charmander
Krista McCay (she/her)
Favorite Games: Lethal Company. I’ve put over 100 hours into it since it came out and I spend so much time laughing while playing it. Sonic Adventure 1 and 2 because I absolutely adore the Chao Gardens. Pretty much all of the older Mario games—Mario Party 7, Mario Kart Double Dash, and Mario Golf especially, as we played them a lot for family game nights when I was a kid. The Time Crisis series; it’s my go-to every time I go to an arcade.
Articles Krista wants to write: I’d love to explore writing more on the process of game development, from how the concept was thought up to the finer details of character design and actually coding the game.
Krista’s favorite piece she’s written so far: I’d have to go with “It’s Time for Games to Catch Up to Modern Gender Diversity.” I don’t often have the time to write about social issues in relation to gaming, so it was nice to have that opportunity.
Other hobbies/interests: I love gardening and arts and crafts, anything that lets me get my creative juices flowing. I’m also slowly learning to code on the side!
You have an infinite budget and infinite time. What kind of video game do you make? For me, some of my favorite video games imbue the player with a lot of emotion, like Grimms Hollow (which I wrote about recently in our Best Femme Protagonists list). If I was to make a game, I would want players to have an emotional experience that they wouldn’t have if they had chosen any other game. Preferably, it would have lots of exploration, and any choices the players made would affect how their game went.
Lightning Round!
- Hottest Gaming Take: I think that people can get too hot-headed in online gaming.
- Least favorite game: I bought Immortals Fenyx Rising on sale and I just never really got into it.
- Favorite console/generation: Early to late 2000s Nintendo, like the Gamecube and the DS handhelds.
- Presumed dead game series you’d like to see make a return: I would really love to see a Fur Fighters or Metal Arms remake.
- Gen 1 starter Pokémon: Bulbasaur
Zack Gulinello (he/him)
Derry, NH
Favorite games: Super Mario 64, Hollow Knight, Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Chibi-Robo
Zack’s favorite piece that he’s written so far: For the last handful of years I’ve been watching every movie nominated for the Best Picture Oscar, but this was the first year I put all my thoughts down in writing. I found the process to be very rewarding and sharing the piece with other movie fans during award season led to some great discussions which I really enjoyed!
Other interests: Movies, Boston sports, vinyl records, board games, my dog, Buttons
You have an infinite budget and infinite time. What kind of video game do you make?: I want a mash-up of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom and Dark Cloud very badly. Tears of the Kingdom has mastered exploration and creativity, but Dark Cloud’s weapon management and town building would be the perfect complements to create a true masterpiece. Let me play as the Sages (with their own unique weapons) and we’re really cooking with gas.
Lightning Round!
- Hottest Gaming Take: The concept of creating an “Open World” is ruining gaming by encouraging vast, empty sandboxes instead of tightly made, well populated, interesting stories. (I shared more of this in Episode 3 of the Punished Podcast!)
- Least favorite game: Kingdom Hearts 3
- Favorite console/generation: GameCube for the nostalgia but Switch for the catalog
- Presumed dead game series you’d like to see make a return: I’ve written about Chibi-Robo already, but I need sports games for the Switch. Where did NFL Blitz, NBA Jam, or even Mario Superstar Baseball go?
- Gen 1 starter Pokémon: Charmander
Get To Know The Punished Backlog
- Check out our Punished Favorites series which invites writers from the site to weigh in on a prompt, like video games we’d really love to see get the remake treatment or the best cozy video games.
- Take a listen to the Punished Podcast and hear from us, literally.
- Did you enjoy the questions? They were written by Sam Martinelli, one of the Editors here. Amanda Tien, another Editor, organized this edition of the round-up and made the graphics. Lead Editor David Silbert manages all of our recruitment. Explore our masthead to get to know more of our writers.
- Interested in writing with us? Consider joining us!
