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TRENT STEPHENS
COMMUNITY WRITER
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LOCATION
Eastlake, Ohio
I am currently 19 years old and am a freshman at Ohio University. I have the aspiration of someday becoming a journalist of some sort. Of course games journalism would be my dream job, but I know how hard of a field it is to get into. But, I figure if I start writing about games here, it can only improve my chances for the future.
TWITTER  onlywonderboy
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FEATURED POST
Fighting-game
I Wish I Was Better at Fighting Games
I'm a pretty good gamer. So why do I suck at fighting games? Just some general musings on the fighting game genre as a whole and my experiences with it.
Thursday, April 19, 2012 | Comments (11)
POST BY THIS AUTHOR (5)
Moneysoft
Micro$oft? (Xbox Live Price Hike)
My personal take on the recent Xbox Live Gold price increase announcement. Suspicious timing and why it economically makes sense.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010 | Comments (11)
Fireemblem
The Genre That Alludes Me: The Strategy RPG
Two examples of my attempts to get into the Strategy RPG genre, and why they were both failures.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010 | Comments (4)
2guys_1title
My Podcast Addiction
This is a broad look into the gaming podcasts I frequently listen to. Along with this generalization, I also take special note of several shows I feel stand out. All shows mentioned should at least be given a shot. If you are looking to get into gaming podcasts, this will hopefully get you started in the right direction.
Monday, July 05, 2010 | Comments (8)
2guys_1title
M-Rated Demos vs. DLC
This opinion piece takes a look at the standards in place set for M-Rated DLC versus M-Rated Demos. Isn’t 17 the acceptable age for M-Rated games?
Tuesday, June 22, 2010 | Comments (4)
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COMMENTS BY THIS AUTHOR (23)
On Trent Stephens'  I Wish I Was Better at Fighting Games
"Yeah. I can string together basic combos, but nothing crazy invovling character switiching or anything."
Thursday, April 19, 2012
On Trent Stephens'  I Wish I Was Better at Fighting Games
"Skull Girls is actually very fun. Not too much of a heavy investment for only $15. Although you might want to wait til they patch the move list into the game."
Thursday, April 19, 2012
On Trent Stephens'  I Wish I Was Better at Fighting Games
"Yeah, I totally understand what you mean. I just meant it to be an example of the crazy things some people can do with very little time after the games release. "
Thursday, April 19, 2012
On Trent Stephens'  Micro$oft? (Xbox Live Price Hike)
"Right right, my mistake."
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
On Dennis Scimeca's  The spectre of Michael Pachter
"A lot of people have recently called out for a tiered payment plan after the recent price increase of Xbox Live, but I feel as though $100 is a bit much. Honesty, I think it should be something like $30 for online and party chat, and then $60 (although i would have still preferred $50) for other features such as Netflix."
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
On Trent Stephens'  Micro$oft? (Xbox Live Price Hike)
"I also agree with that, I don't think that was their intention at all. It was a calculated move to make more money and anytime a move like that is made, it just feels like the users are the ones getting shafted, regardless of if they are only spending $10 more a month."
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
On Trent Stephens'  Micro$oft? (Xbox Live Price Hike)
"@Bryan I agree with that you're saying, and I hope my post came across at least somewhat rational. I don't want to seem as though I am someone who rages at the slightest thing. And you are right, $10 really isn't all that much. I just take issue with the principle of the matter. I'm sure Xbox Live was profitable before, and now I guess it's just going to be that much more profitable now."
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
On Trent Stephens'  Micro$oft? (Xbox Live Price Hike)
"@Jason That's a comparison that many people are making, but I feel as though cable TV and Xbox Live are too very different services. As Jeffrey pointed out, he has no option but to pay the full $60 for functionality that he does not use, while with cable services you are able to pay more or less depending on how many channels you want to get. I understand it's a business and all, but this just came out of no where."
Wednesday, September 01, 2010
On Mitch Dyer's  The BioShock Backlash: Negative Responses to BioShock Infinite
"It really was a no win situation for them. Even if they had called the game something else, people would just complain that it's still like Bioshock in the sky. At least this way there is a chance for the stories to be connected in someway."
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
On Thomas Lin's  Xbox Live Arcade Trend Watch: $15 Price Point Becoming the Norm
"The most common argument I hear from people who defend the $15 price point is that "it's only $5 more dollars." While this is true on a per game basis, with so many quality XBLA games coming with this extra $5 mark up really starts to add up."
Friday, August 13, 2010
On Trent Stephens'  The Genre That Alludes Me: The Strategy RPG
"Can't say that I have tried any of those, if I were to try a Western strategy-RPG which would be best?"
Thursday, August 12, 2010
On Jon Irwin's  Do Game Stories Actually Matter?
" 

I see what you’re saying, but I’m one of the people who you stated would disagree. The way I see it, compelling stories in games enhance the experience and make it better. The mechanics of Mass Effect and Metal Gear would be nothing without the characters and story behind them. Also I feel as though a game with great mechanics could benefit from a good story. The best example of this that I can think of is Boarderlands. Although the game had good mechanics, and enough fun weapons to annihilate the entire population of earth twice over, it felt like it was missing something. That something was a compelling story. I just thought how much more fun I would be having if I had more motivation to find out what was happening next in the story.
 
Also I don’t really understand why you should feel that you have to actually change the story to feel it’s necessary for a game. Like you said, in books and films the reader/viewer respect have no input on how the story unfolds. With a game, just because you are moving the story along I don’t feel that means that you are obligated to make choices about how the story unfolds. You’re just a character in the story and thus your options are limited to how that character would act.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
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