Quality Over Quantity...
Well, here we are. November 2021, and it’s been another tumultuous year filled with emotion for everyone, I’m sure. For DashGamer.com, we had goals set which I believed we achieved and then some. With contributors across the board, we were able to publish over 100 reviews, and cover multiple AAA titles in Gaming and Anime. We dabbled in opinion pieces, and had the opportunity to be represented at the biggest stage, E3. Dash & Holmesy: Take Your Hearts wrapped after four years of covering Persona 5 content, while Operation PlayStation continued to thrive with promising numbers across our podcast platforms and YouTube.
As proud as I am to attain these goals, I do feel a change is needed in what we produce and how we publish it, so that’s why we have decided to take a completely different direction heading into 2022. The goal will be simple; in gaming, less quantity and more quality. As fun as it can be to have the privilege to cover any and all major releases, we’re going grass roots with the website and want to push more opinions on the content we’re passionate about, than the promoting filler. That time can be allotted to other types of articles or podcasts we’re looking to make in 2022. Saying that, we’re also going to be casually approaching content without a need for daily articles, opinion pieces or reviews. We want to give our contributors as well as myself time to digest anything they’ve played or viewed.
We have a renewed mission statement, that is why I’ve re-instated our branding “Gaming, Anime and Manga” with an obvious twist. We don’t want to be another boring gaming website that falls within the category of continuously churning out subpar reviews. That’s why effective from today, we present to you our new outlook in publishing DashGamer content. I can’t guarantee it’s going to be everyone’s cup of tea, and sure we may be saying goodbye to some, but I believe it’s what’s right and necessary moving forward. We hope to have your support in the new year as we venture into an unknown period for the site, but it’s very exciting to launch a “soft reboot” per se.
Before I leave you with our updates, I just want to thank you the reader for taking precious time out of your day to come by and divulge in any of our past content. We sincerely appreciate it, and hope you leave with something worthwhile. We are approaching the Holiday period steadfast, and in saying this DashGamer.com will be taking our annual Holiday break from December 3, 2021 and then return on January 3, 2022 with our new line-up of content. I do wish you and yours a safe Holiday season, and hope to see you in the new year!
Live in your world...
So here’s the biggest change that will be happening in 2022. DashGamer will primarily place it’s focus on PlayStation moving forward. We do have a few Nintendo based articles up our sleeves for the year, and opinion pieces heading into 2022 will not necessarily be restricted to the blue brand, but our coverage and reviews will mostly be directed towards Sony’s platform. Don’t get us wrong, we’ll have the occasional exception – not that I’ve been handcuffed by specific people within the industry that have already demanded I review Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 upon its release, or anything – but I will stand by my statement of PlayStation being the premiere brand in all of gaming right now. There are arguments that can be made against it, and yes this is going to be the perfect opportunity to talk about it with other creators. PlayStation will have a strong presence on DashGamer, with reviews from either first party or third party studios and publishers, which has an influence on our decision to steer our purview to the PlayStation 5 platform, exclusively.
An Otaku's Outing...
At the beginning of 2021, I personally set out to expand our Otaku offerings above Anime reviews. I failed. Problem? Time. Trying to cover every major gaming and anime release, it starts to become a tussle between priorities and things of importance. This is partially why we’ve decided to take a different route in 2022. We want to reinstate an emphasis on our Anime and Manga channels, and not just have it included in our logo. I will say we adequately covered many major Anime premiere’s and releases across multiple channels, the Manga part of it all fell to the wayside. That’s why we’re going to be placing efforts into the light literature and reviewing some of the greatest Mangaka available.
From My Hero Academia, Death Note, Attack on Titan to Solo Leveling and Jusutsu Kaisen. I’m most definitely excited to be reading these excellent stories, and sharing my immediate thoughts with you all. From narrative to artstyle, there’s depth that can be uncovered from the medium that I really want to dissect. Even translations from Manga to Anime adaptation; differences from source material and what doesn’t make the final cut in its animated counterpart. Definitely an exciting portion of our new content plans.
It's Good News Week...
As previously mentioned, while we’re focused on outputting PlayStation based content this may be where the exception will lie, mainly in the opinions sub-category. But we’re looking to relaunch News from January 3, with a casual approach. There are plenty of websites that cover gaming news 24/7, and let’s be honest, do an outstanding job at it. While we’ll highlight major events, DashGamer will be taking an impartial, nonchalant route. We want everyone to be informed and entertained when reading our coverage.
Opinion pieces will be more-or-less what already exists on the site, no big changes there however, with less reviews means more time to brainstorm. I personally have a ton of ideas in mind that I want to take into the new year, including thoughts on retro games, streaming, esports and other topics. We’re also looking to interview key people within the industry and community. We’re already talking with notable names in relation to development, publishing, gaming, anime and streaming so look out for those in weeks to come.
In the interim we’ll be removing our Instanews Widget, however we will continue to post tidbits across social media.
The Operation Recommences...
Operation PlayStation will return in March 2022, with an overhauled format and brand new hosts. We’re proud to produce one of Australia’s premiere PlayStation podcasts, and are excited to return to it next year. With DashGamer’s renewed outlook and grassroots plan in firmly setting our focus on Sony’s platform, it’s going to be a real pleasure in relaying thoughts and real time reactions in audio-visual form once again.
More details on Operation PlayStation’s exact relaunch date, and new faces in mid-late January, 2022.
Finally, an Anime Podcast...
Yep, it’s finally happening. Anime Addiction will premiere in February 2022. We’re excited to be producing a podcast, where we can talk all about our love for the genre, whether it be a serialised anime or a feature length film. Anime Addiction will compliment DashGamer’s Anime Analysis, as we look to expand beyond our written content within our Otaku hub, DashAnime.
More details on the exact launch date, and hosts will be revealed in mid-late January 2022.
Mental Health...
The Brain Game is more of a personal journey. Inspired by good friend, Dane Pevy’s Pushin’ Through Blu podcast, this will be a weekly mental health check where I will document my experiences through content creation, anxiety and depression. I’ll record this every Friday morning, and post that afternoon. I may also invite some friends to come on and discuss their own experiences from time-to-time, but it will mainly be a solo podcast documenting my own struggles. It’s not a diary or anything, more or less a dialogue of experiences that I will share in hopes of helping others understand the trivial pursuit of mental health.
The Brain Game begins Friday January 11, 2022.
Slight delay...
Earlier last month, I announced an exciting new podcast that had been in the works since last holiday season. My Mum, Our SNES and Me will coincide with our SNES 30th anniversary celebration content, where my Mum and I will reminisce on memorable moments with our favourite retro gaming console of all time, the Super Nintendo and its esteemed library. We did have a target launch date in mind, but that has been pushed back slightly in favour of new podcasting equipment, that has just arrived this week.
With that said, the series will now premiere Friday December 3, 2021 at 6AM AEDT on the Dash & Holmesy: Take Your Hearts podcast feed. Click here for our original announcement.
The DashGamer Awards 2021...
Of course, it’s that time of year again where we celebrate the latest and greatest in gaming. The eighth annual DashGamer Awards are fast approaching, and we’re thrilled to hand out a slew of accolades that are most well earned from Game of the Year, Best Dev, The Chameleon and more. Much like last year’s awards, they will be chosen by website contributors, and again streamlined without the fluff of unnecessary categories.
Of course, you’ll be able to see our nominee’s leading up to the awards themselves, which will be announced Friday December 3, 2021 at DashGamer.com/awards.
