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Mik Deitz

Mik Deitz is a queer freelance culture journalist with bylines at Fanbyte, Polygon, Paste, and more. They’re interested in how stories affect our lives, but also are a big sucker for polished gameplay. Follow them @dietdeitz for tweets about current work or, on special occasions, rants about Sonic’s feet.

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Star Trek Resurgence

Star Trek Resurgence

Star Trek Resurgence

Meet ‘Star Trek: Resurgence,’ the Telltale-esque narrative game lost in time

Choice-based adventure games went from being a dime-a-dozen to virtually non-existent. Does the genre need to return as it once was?

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - MARCH 16: A GameStop store operates in a strip mall on March 16, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. The gaming retailer, which is scheduled to report earnings on March 21, saw its stock price jump more than five percent today.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - MARCH 16: A GameStop store operates in a strip mall on March 16, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. The gaming retailer, which is scheduled to report earnings on March 21, saw its stock price jump more than five percent today.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - MARCH 16: A GameStop store operates in a strip mall on March 16, 2023 in Chicago, Illinois. The gaming retailer, which is scheduled to report earnings on March 21, saw its stock price jump more than five percent today.

A (bittersweet) link to the past: My 2023 nostalgic odyssey to GameStop

An odyssey to a former brick-and-mortar game haven becomes a chance to reminisce and wax poetic: It's time to visit GameStop.

Link in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Link in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

Link in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom

I’m no grump, but I’m not excited about ‘The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom’

Don't get me wrong, the game looks incredible. But I haven't gotten excited for it, and that means something is amiss.

Ark Survival Evolved

Ark Survival Evolved

Ark Survival Evolved

The bottom line killed the dinosaurs: Notes from a freelance gaming journalist, year one

"Games journalism is a dying field, but not hopeless!" reports one writer who finds optimism amid the SEO and algorithm-appeasing chaos.

Layla reading a book in Redfall

Layla reading a book in Redfall

Layla reading a book in Redfall

Promising the moon and (Red)falling in Massachusetts: The anatomy of a developer’s ambitious failure

Game development is hard, but overpromising is easy. Is all the trend-chasing and "innovation" worth it for a messy final product?

Teslagrad Cover

Teslagrad Cover

Teslagrad Cover

‘Teslagrad’ is mid, so why did I beat it anyway?

My time with 'Teslagrad Remastered' wasn't special or particularly enjoyable. But I still beat it. Did I waste my time?

SEGA Union Real

SEGA Union Real

SEGA Union Real

‘Sonic’ developer SEGA of America is going fast toward unionization

'Sonic' developer SEGA of America joined the ranks of studios attempting to unionize. Here's why it's the most important issue right now.

Twitter Paid Verification

Twitter Paid Verification

Twitter Paid Verification

‘Fortnite’ dev Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney uses playground logic to defend Twitter Blue

Twitter Blue verification might be a broken system, but Epic CEO Tim Sweeney is happy to defend it to get back at his high school bullies.

Dead Island 2

Dead Island 2

Dead Island 2

The wild, winding insanity that is the history of ‘Dead Island 2’

After nearly a full decade in development under three separate developers, 'Dead Island 2' is finally out. But what took so long?

Farewell, sweet ‘Dreams,’ you were always too good for us

True to its name, 'Dreams' attempted to allow creators to fulfill their wildest wishes. Sadly, that wasn't enough to keep us from waking up.