Going Off Mic

Push to Talk will continue, though on a less regular schedule.

I started writing this newsletter almost two years ago because I felt I had a lot of things to say about video games. After spending a decade working on games like League of Legends, Teamfight Tactics, PUBG, Apex Legends, and Omega Strikers, I was overflowing with thoughts about the “interactive entertainment” industry as both a commercial enterprise and an artistic medium.

Exactly 90 weekly editions later, I’ve said just about everything that was on my mind. Push to Talk’s archives include 28 essays sharing everything I know about games marketing and communications, along with 51 reported stories featuring interviews with people doing incredible work in and around games.

My belief going into this project was that games are set to become the preeminent artform of the 21st century. After having these conversations, I’ve updated that opinion: They already are.

Writing this newsletter has opened some very unexpected doors. Before it was bought and gutted, my favorite games culture website Polygon.com approached to ask if they could syndicate Push to Talk’s editorial features. Then, the world’s largest venture capital firm asked if I’d consider helping them with their own newsletter, which later led to a full time job that’s turned out to be more rewarding than I could’ve imagined.

Most surprising, though, has been how much I look forward to the reactions from regular readers. Starting this newsletter has been one of the most fulfilling choices I’ve ever made, in no small part because of the messages sent in every week from the regulars. The emails and Discord DMs from old friends, the texts from former coworkers. You all know who you are. I genuinely love each of you.

Next week I’ll publish the last weekly edition of Push to Talk, featuring an interview with a person I think most exemplifies the beauty of games as a medium for expression.

Grant Kirkhope composed the soundtrack to my childhood. He’s behind the music for games like Goldeneye 007, Banjo-Kazooie, Donkey Kong 64, Perfect Dark, Star Fox Adventures, Viva Piñata, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, and the Mario + Rabbids series. Kirkhope’s music is so instantly recognizable and infectious that decades into his career, TikTokers who make references to his earliest work are still raking in views by the millions:

I would make the case for Kirkhope as one of the five greatest ever composers for games. And most people don’t realize that Kirkhope was also, for over a decade, the de-facto voice actor behind Donkey Kong, a character that was present for the birth of the commercial video game industry and who remains relevant today.

After next week’s Kirkhope profile, I’ll keep Push to Talk going on an irregular cadence. You can still expect occasional interviews and essays, though whether that’ll be monthly or bi-monthly or even less regular than that isn’t yet decided. I’ve liked having an excuse to reach out and talk to amazing people working in gaming. So if you’ve enjoyed Push to Talk and want to see more, stay on the list.

I do also have one other thing in the works: a project I’m cooking up with my longtime friend

Jason Killingsworth

, the mastermind behind the luxury book publisher Tune & Fairweather. We’re making something tangible, beautiful, and heavy. Readers of Push to Talk will probably like this new thing. It involves that strange, toga-wearing birdman up at the top of this article.

To all the readers, thank you. See you next week.