About Matthew Byrd
Matthew Byrd
Matthew Byrd covers the gaming industry including indies, consoles, PCs, iOS and Android apps, as well as topics related to entertainment and technology.
Why Destiny 2 is Gaming’s Most Successful Failure
October 1, 2019 | Matthew ByrdIt’s strange that success and failure are often treated as two opposite things when most people and things you’d consider to be a success probably had to fail at least a few times to “make it.” It’s just the … Read More
Why The Last of Us Part 2 Needs a Multiplayer Mode
September 26, 2019 | Matthew Byrd2014’s The Last of Us is best remembered for its incredible single-player campaign. It told the story of a man with little left to live for who must escort a young woman who could very well be humanity’s last … Read More
15 Years Later: What Was the Best Game of 2004?
September 17, 2019 | Matthew ByrdWith the possible exception of 1998 and 2007, 2004 might just be the best year for video games ever. It was a special time that saw some of the best games ever made released within a few weeks of … Read More
Why Disney Selling Foxnet is Good for Gaming
September 12, 2019 | Matthew ByrdThere’s a chance you’ve never heard of Foxnet, but believe me when I say that you need to know about them.
Foxnet was a gaming division of Fox that primarily focused on making mobile titles. Three of their biggest … Read More
Is World of Warcraft Classic the Best Game of 2019?
September 9, 2019 | Matthew ByrdWorld of Warcraft is a 15-year old game that has received 15 years worth of updates. While it has outlasted just about all of its MMORPG competition, World of Warcraft‘s retail version is not where the game was 15 … Read More
Hearthstone: 10 Things That Have Killed The Game
August 12, 2019 | Matthew ByrdHearthstone, Blizzard’s entry into the CCG genre, isn’t dead. It still earns a fair amount of money, it’s still played by quite a few people, and it still has some presence on streaming and video platforms.
In the eyes … Read More
10 Most Divisive Games of All-Time
August 12, 2019 | Matthew ByrdThe most divisive games of all-time typically share one thing: they blend the brilliant and the bad.
If the following games were just bad, they wouldn’t have a legion of defenders. If they were strictly brilliant, they wouldn’t inspire … Read More
15 Best Selling Video Games Ever, Ranked
July 30, 2019 | Matthew ByrdThe premise of our breakdown of the best selling video games ever is very simple.
We know what the rankings for the best selling games ever looks like. The numbers are set in stone. However, what happens when you stack … Read More
Quake vs Doom: Which Franchise is Better?
July 29, 2019 | Matthew ByrdThe recent ports of some classic Doom titles to Nintendo Switch and the now-ended Quakecon event have left many thinking about the glory days fo two id Software shooters.
But between Doom and Quake, which franchise was best? We’re … Read More
The Weird History of Stephen King Games
July 23, 2019 | Matthew ByrdWith IT: Chapter Two right around the corner and some theaters across the nation preparing screenings of classic Stephen King films, you may be wondering if there is any way for gamers to get in on this fun. Actually, … Read More
News
Why PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X Will Depend on Single-Player Games
January 24, 2020 | Matthew Byrd
I’ve always supported single-player games, but there was a point in my life when I would actively root against multiplayer titles. There was really no good reason why, but in my mind, at that time, I saw multiplayer games … Read More
Why Did Call of Duty Dominate Video Game Sales This Decade?
January 17, 2020 | Matthew Byrd
Figures compiled by the NDP Group have seemingly revealed the top-selling video games of the decade. In many ways, the list (which accounts for revenue as well as total sales) is not that surprising. Grand Theft Auto 5 and … Read More
Why Xbox Killing Console Exclusives Is a Good Thing
January 13, 2020 | Matthew Byrd
Head of Xbox Game Studios Matt Booty caused quite a stir recently when he revealed that the Xbox Series X will not feature any Microsoft exclusives for years to come.
What does that mean? Well, it means that for … Read More
Articles
Why Did Call of Duty Dominate Video Game Sales This Decade?
January 17, 2020 | Matthew Byrd Figures compiled by the NDP Group have seemingly revealed the top-selling video games of the decade. In many ways, the list (which accounts for revenue as well as total sales) is not that surprising. Grand Theft Auto 5 and … Read More
Make Me a Quake as Fast as You Can
January 16, 2020 | Robert Endyo
Recently I watched a great short interview from Noclip with Tim Willits, a former director and co-owner at id Software of the Quake franchise. He went through the history of Quake and discussed some of the development processes … Read More
Why Xbox Killing Console Exclusives Is a Good Thing
January 13, 2020 | Matthew Byrd Head of Xbox Game Studios Matt Booty caused quite a stir recently when he revealed that the Xbox Series X will not feature any Microsoft exclusives for years to come.
What does that mean? Well, it means that for … Read More
Reviews
Rage 2’s use of Open-World design does not work
June 4, 2019 | Robert Endyo
Recently, I finished Rage 2. I set out in the game with the hope that it would deliver something reminiscent of the magnificence of Doom while drawing some of the enjoyable open-world aspects of an Avalanche developed game. I … Read More
PlayStation Now: Does it Need to Change to Survive?
March 25, 2019 | Matthew Byrd
In many ways, PlayStation Now is shaping up to be Sony’s biggest missed opportunity of the PS4 era.
PlayStation Now sounded like a pretty exciting service when it was first revealed in 2014. At the very least, it offered … Read More
Crackdown 3 or Anthem: Which is More Disappointing?
February 21, 2019 | Matthew Byrd
February 2019 was supposed to be one of the biggest months for games in recent memory. Headlined by titles like Metro Exodus, Crackdown 3, and Anthem, many gamers were left wondering just how they were going to play all … Read More
Opinion
Playing a Game vs. Watching a Playthrough
January 25, 2020 | Robert Endyo
I recently saw a poll on twitter asking the question “Can you be a fan of a game if you’ve only watched a playthrough of it?” The results were a resounding “yes,” but I found myself disagreeing with this … Read More
How Do You Decide What Game to Play?
January 21, 2020 | Robert Endyo
Being an adult came with some great advantages when it came to gaming. Namely that, with an income, I’ve been able to buy several of the games I want to play. Combining that with bundles, event-based sales, and now subscription … Read More
Make Me a Quake as Fast as You Can
January 16, 2020 | Robert Endyo
Recently I watched a great short interview from Noclip with Tim Willits, a former director and co-owner at id Software of the Quake franchise. He went through the history of Quake and discussed some of the development processes … Read More