Back in the day, I did a short stint as a video games journalist for a fledgling site started by a friend of mine, who I met at a now vanished brick-and-mortar video game shop. The gig exposed me to a number of indie developers, trying to get noticed in an evolving landscape. Steam had made it possible to get their games listed and distributed without the cost and risk of producing physical inventory, and hoping that GameStop would carry your product. Some of these games were really good, and some of them were rubbish. Being a gamer on a budget (a wife, kid, and mortgage put some limits on game spending), it occurred to me that a review site for inexpensive games would be really helpful.
So, I started a column called “Diamonds in the Rough,” where I would review a game from Steam’s bargain bin, talk about it’s good, bad, and other bits. The rules were that the game had to cost $5 or less, so that, if the game was good, you could skip a latte, a bag of chips, or one and a half Chalupas (yeah, Taco Bell, I see you goosing up your prices), and instead enjoy a couple hours of fun out of a game you might not have heard of otherwise.
Life happened pretty hard not long after that. I had a health emergency. Somewhat connected to that, I ended up changing jobs. My journalism lapsed, and to this day my readers await the third and final installment of my coverage of the brand new TooManyGames convention. Their anticipation haunts me still.
But I’m in a good place now, and the independent game development community has blossomed. Humble Bundles make it possible to stretch your gaming dollars ever farther than before, while Steam and GOG.com regularly provide deep discounts on games. There are all kinds of ways to spend your money on games, and I’d like to provide whatever assistance I can in picking games that you’ll like.
And if the game is no good, you can always get a snack instead 🙂
Snack Money Gaming 
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