You might know me, you might not, but my name's Patrick Klepek, and I'm the newest addition to the Kotaku family. I've been writing about video games in various forms since I was 14-years-old, and spent most of the past four years as the news (and horror) editor at Giant Bomb.
Yep, 14-years-old. I somehow convinced my parents to let me travel from Chicago to Atlanta for E3 1998, where Metal Gear Solid debuted, and coerced E3's organizers to let me walk around. My dad was with me the whole time, too. He even sat in on my first appointments with companies, in which surprised but gracious PR people suddenly learned I was still growing up. I was hooked early and have doubled down on the decision ever since. The gaming community has treated me exceptionally well over the years, and I've tried to pay it back to them in kind.1
Even if you're unfamiliar with my byline, it's still possible you've read some of my work. I broke the first news about Infinity Ward's troubled relationship with Activision after Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 shipped, and was one of the first to report about Microsoft's decision to completely reverse course on its heavy criticized DRM policies for Xbox One. (I was technically beaten by another, relatively unknown outlet by a minute or two. Credit where credit is due!) I'm also responsible for getting Halloween and They Live director John Carpenter to answer my emails, which has resulted in a series of entertaining and ridiculous stories on Giant Bomb.
It's an honor to join Kotaku and reunite with my former boss, Stephen Totilo. We worked together at MTV years ago, and I learned much from him. I'd hoped there would be a reason to reunite someday. The stars aligned late last year, and I decided to come on board. I've met and hung out with many of Kotaku's stellar writers in the past, and I'm now looking forward to calling them colleagues. It's clear I'm joining an already talented group.
As talented as this personal highlight from playing Dark Souls, though? I cannot say yet.
I'm pretty sure my new title at Kotaku is senior reporter. It means I'll be spending most of my time researching, reporting, and telling stories. Reporting has been my bread 'n butter for years, even as I've taken detours into video. Sometimes, those stories will be breaking news. Other times, it's trying to explain why the gaming scene is the way it is. You know, like attempting to figure out whyHalo: The Master Chief Collection shipped in such a broken state. (Though seriously, if you know, drop me a line at patrick.klepek@kotaku.com).
There's a good chance you're following me from Giant Bomb, too. In that case, my work is going to be a little different over here at Kotaku. You're not going to see as much video on a daily basis. In my goodbye letter from last week, I'd promised news about Worth Reading, Spookin' With Scoops, and other features I'd become known for previously. It's possible others will continue what I started at Giant Bomb, but that's also out of my hands. I had so much fun doing those features, though, and I intend to develop some new variation of them. Importantly, I'm going to keep sharing links to my favorite writing and streaming horror games. Stay tuned.
I'm not sure what else there is to say, so ask away in the comments! Some random facts:
- I was born and raised in Chicago, but moved to San Francisco after college. After my father passed away, my wife and I decided to come back to the midwest. It's cold here.
- Outlets I've written for in chronological order: 1UP, MTV, G4, EGM, Giant Bomb.
- I turn 30-years-old next month, which is both humbling and terrifying.
- Pizza is great, and deep dish pizza is king. (Specifically, Pequod's is the best.)
- The Chicago Bears are not great, but I root for them anyway. At least it's not the Jets.
- Yoshi's Island might be Nintendo's best platformer. TOUCH FUZZY, GET DIZZY!
- Mega Man 2 or Deus Ex is my favorite game of all-time, depending on the day.
- No film scarred me more than my first viewing of The Blair Witch Project.
- I could use a haircut, and I'll probably get one on Saturday.
- It's a little too early for stores to be putting out Valentine's Day stuff, don't you think?
- I'm always looking for a new horror movie to watch, so send me your suggestions!
- Majora's Mask is my favorite Zelda game. People who don't like it are weird.
If you want to get in touch, drop me an email at patrick.klepek@kotaku.com. My inbox is always open. Truly. I read every email sent my way, and do my best to actually respond to all of them. You can also follow my ramblings on Twitter, and ask me questions publicly on Tumblr. If you have a story you'd like me to look into, please let me know! For now, it's time to get to work.
Just so you all know where you can keep up to date with him from now on :) Thoughts?
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