Interview with Dwayne Jenkins: On PR, Indie Discoverability, and the Future of Games Media

Game journalism, PR, and game development are often treated as completely separate worlds. Dwayne Jenkins proves otherwise. Having served as Managing Editor at Vice (Waypoint), PR Manager at Sandbox Strategies, and currently as Ambassador at Inevitable Studios, he has operated across almost every layer of the games industry. Having immense respect for his versatile background and unique trajectory, it’s fair to say that Dwayne is a true gem in this industry — a passionate advocate and a voice worth cherishing. In this interview with PixelPact, Dwayne shares his perspective on the struggles facing indie developers, the ongoing pressures on games media, and his work with Glizzy's Indie Corner.

Dwayne, you’ve sat on almost every side of the table: from editor at Waypoint to PR Manager at Sandbox Strategies, and now Ambassador at Inevitable Studios. How has that transition shifted your perspective on game journalism and the games industry as a whole?

It’s a unique perspective I’m honored to have had the chance to gain and process over the last couple of years! When you’re a games journalist, you rarely see the inner machinations of the industry. Shifting to public relations is a well-known pivot in the field, but nothing quite prepares you to see how the system works from the other side of the endless barrage of emails you wade through as a journalist.

PR is nothing like being a direct part of a game development team, though. My Ambassador run with Inevitable Studios has been nothing short of amazing! It perfectly blends everything I’ve built so far: Writing, Editing, PR, Games Journalism — hell, I’ve even analyzed builds, narrative documents, and planned the team’s social media efforts! At this point, I’ve been a part of nearly every layer of the games industry!

The conclusion I’ve drawn? There’s never been a more difficult time to be a passionate creator. If it’s not unprecedented layoffs, it’s endless crunch. Even if you do everything right, there’s a chance you and your team will be unceremoniously kicked to the curb, forced to suddenly find something new while processing a traumatic event. You can apply that sentiment to both games journalism and game development and sadly find numerous recent examples.

I can only hope this interview isn’t that evergreen.

You’re participating in Glizzy's Indie Corner. What made you want to join this specific initiative, and what role do platforms like this play in today's media landscape?

Hilariously enough, I had quietly sworn off games journalism after VICE. But Shaun (hi, Shaun!) made a miraculous connection with Jack and Lockie (Glizzy’s co-founders), and a few months later — after reading all his articles and seeing how much freedom he had — I asked him if he’d introduce me to the Glizzy team. The rest, as they say, is history!

I earnestly believe Glizzy and platforms like it that prioritize indie game discoverability (whether through individual or group efforts) can assist in “stabilizing” the games industry. A blind man can see all the industry’s current faults and shortcomings, and it rarely has anything to do with the developers who toil and sacrifice for their work.

The indie scene has so much of the creativity and love I remember from gaming before executives realized they could make millions of dollars from it. So, where the AAA level struggles with ballooning costs and fickle start-and-stop initiatives, the indies become more important than ever before. It’s all about giving as much visibility to indie games as possible so people know they exist. I’m frequently floored by the games I happen to find across my socials I wouldn’t have heard about if one person hadn’t posted about it. That needs to change.

Many indie developers struggle immensely with discoverability. Having worked in both editorial roles and PR, what is the biggest mistake developers make when pitching their game to journalists?

When it comes to pitching journalists specifically, you must consider the value proposition for the journalist. Why should they cover your game over the tens of hundreds in their inbox right now? What’s special about your project?

Unless you have a preexisting relationship with a journalist where you’re decently certain they’ll respond to you consistently, you have to get creative to capture their attention. After all, they’re stretched thin as it is. Plus, you have the disadvantage of being “indie,” a label which can unfortunately carry some negative heft. Don’t get me started on fighting for attention when the AA and AAA titles roll into town.

Every “layer” of contact matters. For emails, it’s the subject line, the headlines in the email itself, the first paragraph, the placement of links to any trailers or press kits — every second counts from the instant your pitch is seen by a journalist. If you want to maximize your chances of engagement? Throw a polished beta or demo their way! A small hands-on experience can make all the difference if someone is on the fence regarding your project!

You’ve led editorial strategy for sites focused on massive traffic (like Ranker and PC Invasion) as well as culture-focused platforms like Waypoint. How do you grow a large audience without losing the site’s unique identity and quality?

Generally, I’d say offering audiences something they can’t get at another outlet always helps early on. Positive word-of-mouth goes a long way in gaming! Let the personalities and interests of your team shine through, and over time, people will pick up on that sincerity and stick around! Your team is a website’s identity.

As a former reviewer, you've spent years analyzing finished games. Now, at Inevitable Studios, you’re involved earlier in the process with creative writing and build analysis. How does your experience as a critic help you improve a game while it’s still in development?

Busting out the pedantic games journalism tricks actually make build/narrative analysis deeply gratifying! Before my games journalism career kicked off in earnest, I was the Head Editor at an indie book publishing company. Before that, I worked at my local library. Books and comics helped develop my narrative analysis skills, and my love of gaming since I could form coherent thoughts helped me articulate what “feels” right and wrong when testing a build.

If I could go back in time and pen my own path, I’d become a QA Tester and work my way up from there. I’m extremely good at finding all those small but glaring bits and bugs in a game!

With shifting business models, editorial layoffs, and the rise of freelance networks, traditional games media is under real pressure. How do you see the future of independent game journalism unfolding?

I feel like independent games journalism is reaching a point where there are simply too many options — especially with people feeling the pinch from an unstable economy. If you love indie games, you’re likely subscribed to one or two indie outlets you really enjoy. That says nothing of the quality of the others, to be clear, but it becomes a game of personalities.

In some cases, even the “biggies” bleed subscribers because their base simply can’t afford to support them. Every other week, a notable games journalist goes independent and starts a newsletter, a Substack, a Patreon, a podcast, a whole new website.

It’s impossible for one person to support everyone. There’s a financial and attention tax. Unfortunately, unless things radically change economically, I can’t help but feel the bulk of indie outlets will disappear as they stop being able to justify the lack of funds or time to keep committing to their work. Then, a new issue emerges: the few big indie outlets bottlenecking fresher voices against the established ones, inadvertently — or more concerning, intentionally — creating a class of gaming gatekeepers with audiences who won’t challenge them. It becomes a “Who Watches The Watchmen?” scenario. If the world of traditional games journalism collapses tomorrow and is replaced by self-sustained indie outlets, what’s stopping the new guard from falling into the bad habits and practices of the old guard?

This potential issue is made worse by the fact we’re losing the ability to have civil conversations among one another and immediately want to be “right” over being “correct.” (Which is amplified tenfold in gaming communities.) It creates a dangerous framework for a sect of journalism that’s accustomed to exaggeration and hyperbole to attract viewers.

But that’s merely my hypothetical dystopian future of independent games journalism. Maybe I’ll be proven wrong — which I desperately want to be! Perhaps the continued bloodletting from traditional games media will force a coalition of these outlets to work together (but separately) to form a healthier games journalism standard. I’m rooting for that outcome, for sure!

What piece of advice would you give to both aspiring game journalists and indie devs who are trying to carve out their spot in an increasingly crowded market?

Indie devs. Indie journos. Listen up and listen good.

For my devs: Don’t give up on your passions. Keep creating that game, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Growing up, Psychonauts was the indie game to understand me when I was afraid to be me. Someone out there needs your vision. Try to resist the urge to chase trends, otherwise your game will end up being one of one thousand in a genre released that month. Whatever weirdo idea you have, don’t shy away from your instincts. So often, we forget many indie megastars like Slay the Spire, Hollow Knight, and Stardew Valley succeeded because they followed their own blueprints. Be bold. (And come find me at Glizzy because I’d love to play and highlight your games!)

For my journalists: Protect yourself above anything else. If games journalism is all you’ve ever wanted to do, I’d never dissuade you from trying to break in. Yes, games journalism is on fire at the moment with many talented writers and editors being thrown out in the cold. But here’s a short, bulleted list of what I want you to keep in mind if you decide it’s a field you need to be in.

• DON’T MAKE GAMES JOURNALISM YOUR PRIMARY SOURCE OF INCOME. If you listen to nothing else here, please absorb that. If you end up at one of your favorite outlets, great! But be part-time. Use that pen (or keyboard) to explore other opportunities outside of gaming! Write fanfiction, short stories, submit your work to magazines/outlets or publish your own novels, anything. But the land of traditional games journalism is completely, totally fucked. I’ve seen too many great writers chewed up and spit out by that machine to ever encourage anyone to put all their occupational eggs in that basket.
• SAVE EVERY PIECE YOU WRITE AS A PDF. From your first article to your last, here’s what I want you to do after every completed piece. Preserve. Your. Work. Google how to save a webpage as a PDF and store everything you write as you go along. It’s easy, and it protects your body of work just in case you randomly wake up to a miserable email and are locked out of your workspaces. Trust me on that.
• CONSIDER BECOMING A CONTENT CREATOR INSTEAD. I mean it. If you like being in front of a camera (or not — your personality matters most), start a YouTube channel. You could bring some friends along for the ride, if they’re game! Review and discuss your passions in gaming on your own terms. Is there a guaranteed Sims-esque money glitch waiting for you? Likely not, but it allows you to establish yourself and gives others a rundown on who you are and what you like. If you happen to become successful, hell yeah! Cling onto that career for as long as you can (and save some money with every paycheck; you’ll thank me later).

Otherwise, that’ll do it from me! If anyone reads this and wants to chat about anything I talked about here (or otherwise), you can easily find me on LinkedIn and/or Bluesky! Finally, I want to give a big thanks to Sander for giving me a space to talk shop for a while!