Recently, Chris had the chance to talk with one of our favorite personalities from the world of games. Justin McElroy was at Joystiq for years, before becoming a founding member of Polygon. He's also the host of the hilarious My Brother, My Brother, and Me podcast. Justin sat down and talked with us about the formation of Polygon, creative burnout, his many successful podcasts, and more!
Hey Justin. Thanks again for
agreeing to be interviewed. Don't worry, there's only ten questions!
Q:
First off, can you give us a brief overview of who you are, and what you do at
Polygon?
I'm the managing editor, which is basically a coordinating
role. I try to keep our department heads of news, features and reviews working
in sync. I also fill in for our editor-in-chief Chris Grant when needed.
Q:
In addition to Polygon, you also have quite a few side projects going on. The
most recent of which is your television podcast, “The Satellite Dish” with your
lovely wife Sydnee. How did that come to be?
Sydnee and I had done a few goofy semi-shows before, but
never anything too formal. We had been drinking wine one night and Two and a
Half Men was about to relaunch with Ashton Kutcher and both of us admitted we
were curious about how it would go, even though we'd never watched. So we
decided to watch and record our reaction, which was our first show, Losing the
Sheen. After a while, the gags got stale, so we branched out to all of TV.
Q:
You also appear on the wildly popular humor/advice podcast My Brother, My Brother, and Me with your brothers Griffin and Travis. I don’t think I’ve ever
known brothers to be as close as you guys seemingly are. Did you three have as
close a relationship being starting to do the show?
We had always been close, but the show was actually created
to help all of us stay in touch better, as we all moved to separate locales.
I'd recommend it to anyone, actually. Make a podcast, stay in touch.
Q:
Do you ever get overwhelmed, attempting to create so much content on a
near-weekly basis? Do you see yourself slowing down at some point?
Sometimes I feel creatively drained, for sure. But when that
happens I try to contrast myself with people who have actual, difficult jobs
that are actually hard and I'm able to suck it up.
Q:
How did you get into videogame journalism? Everyone seems to have a unique
story about breaking into the business.
I did my first game reviews at 12 in the local newspaper.
After I got my degree in acting and directing, I decided to pursue writing as a
career (go figure). I actually started in traditional journalism, covering
local government and education for a couple of newspapers. I picked up game
writing on the side and somehow pushed my way into a full career.
Q:
Polygon is a sort of Voltron of gaming press. When did you guys come together
for the first time? Was there ever a point where you second guess your decision
to join the team?
We all were in the same room for the first time in February
of this year, but we'd been assembling the team for a month or so before that.
It was really lucky that we were able to able to get most of the people on our
team, it just sort of lined up that way. As far as second guessing, I was
obviously totally conflicted about leaving Joystiq and a team of people I
loved, but I just felt like it was time for a new challenge.
Q: The layout and depth of coverage at Polygon is quite unique amongst gaming sites. How do you see the field changing in the future?
I wouldn't dare to guess.
Q: Can you remember (or talk about) any particularly big faux pas you’ve made in your career?
When I first wrote this post http://www.joystiq.com/2007/04/14/bungie-confirms-x-button-functionality/
it had a big picture of the XBox Guide button on it. I have no fucking idea
what I was thinking. I mean, it's got a big X on it, I guess, but still.
Q:
On the flip side, is there a particular story, review, etc. you’re particularly
proud of from your career? Any stories that got a lot of comments/ discussion
you weren’t expecting?
I think I'd have to say the Joystiq Podcast. If people know
who I am, it's almost certainly related to my work on that show. It took folks
a while to come around, but once they did, they really embraced me on the show
with Chris and Ludwig, and it meant the world to me. A real community formed
around that show, and I think that's what I'm proudest of.
Q:
We like to end our interviews with this simple question. What is your favorite
game of all time?
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion.
Thanks, Justin!
And we leave you, with this classic:
And we leave you, with this classic:
For more of Justin's work, check out:
Christopher Linendoll might have a man-crush on Mr. McElroy. He can be reached via Twitter, or found in the hummus section of your local grocery store.
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