Top 5 Best Things About Being A Guides Writer

After 300 something articles, playing a bunch of games I wouldn't usually touch with a ten-foot barge pole, and a whole lot of "can I please guide Destiny 2?", I have become pretty familiar with my role as guides writer. I entrenched myself in the world of SEO, I know the kinds of content players are actually looking for, and I even installed Roblox on my laptop. The latter is the truest sign of commitment. Yet as my time in the role comes to an end, some of you may be wondering about the day-in-day-outs of a true guides writer. What are the benefits? Are we actually any good at games? And what kind of skills do we pick up along the way? I'm here to answers all of those with a list (and an SEO-friendly one at that) of the top five best things about being a guides writer. Let's get into it! 

• We don't really have any relevant articles to link here, so go read this Shredders review, which is to date, the lowest score I have ever given during my time in the industry. 

Top 5 Best Things About Being A Guides Writer: You Play Games (Like All The Time)

Without a doubt one of the best things about being a guides writer is that you get to play games all the damn time. Now, of course you are going to spend a lot of time writing about those games, but thankfully at GGRecon we are given the time to actually root out the facts, and immerse ourselves in the latest and greatest games. And we have been eating good since the new year, having personally played through Rainbow Six Extraction, Dying Light 2, Sifu, Destiny 2: The Witch Queen, Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Dawn of Ragnarok, and… Shredders. Oh, and all of those were review codes, so I'm saving pennies in the process. 

However, beyond the fun of simply playing a game, it also allows you to expand your horizons. Personally, I'm an FPS guy with an affinity for live service titles like Destiny and Apex Legends. But being a guides writer means you get to dive into games you would never usually experience. For me this was titles like Sifu, the odd touch of Elden Ring, or maybe a wee bit of Gran Turismo 7, games that ultimately would have passed me by if work hadn't thrown them on my desk on a Monday morning. Sometimes, you do get the stinkers - I'm looking at you Roblox - but there is a fun element to expanding your gaming horizons, which allows you to be more knowledgeable of the industry as a whole, and get involved in more conversations.

Top 5 Best Things About Being A Guides Writer: You Can Pretend You Are Good At Games

Everyone that plays games knows that knowledge is power. It is the principle that has propelled guides to become one of the most valuable sectors of games writing. And in a world where knowledge is power, a guides writer can come across like a pretty powerful adversary. Long gone are the days when my Destiny 2 pal has to explain how to get some powerful weapon, or which gear is currently the meta. Don't worry about it bud, I already have it. Oh, you don't? Let me break it down for you. The power dynamic has truly shifted. 

Top 5 Best Things About Being A Guides Writer: My Girlfriend Let Me Buy A TV

Gaming is an expensive hobby, and it can be hard at times to build up the funds to purchase that half-grand console, the £70 first-person title, and let's not even get started on PCs (one can but dream). However, having the excuse of "it's my job" backing me up every time I hogged the living room television to play the latest release, I was eventually able to secure my own television for my office. Now my girlfriend can get back to rewatching Grey's Anatomy in peace, while I'm securing the hottest of dubs in my own dedicated gaming space. Ws all round. 

Top 5 Best Things About Being A Guides Writer: Become The Screenshot Master

Screenshotting is an integral part of being a guides writer, so naturally you become quite good at it. Lemme tell you, after six months of screenshots on Xbox and PlayStation, I have become a veritable screenshot master. Whether it is a raw snap of gameplay, or an expertly composed use of photo mode, I've done it all. HUD? Never heard of her.

But how are we getting these screenshots from console to computer? Maybe you've got that one friend that is lucky enough to get 60+ screenshots of Ratchet and Clank sent their way. Maybe you've got that USB ready to go. Or maybe you are uploading to One Drive... thanks, Xbox. Once you become a guides writer you will exclusively play video games like a rehearsed E3 advert. That means lots of slow walking, and plenty of thoughtful stances as you stare off into the distance. 

Top 5 Best Things About Being A Guides Writer: You Can Write About Anything

Once you have written guides about games, you can write anything about… well, anything. With the SEO algorithm favouring those coveted 300-500 words, you'll laugh at the younger you that struggled to meet a word count in their secondary school essays. Need 300 words about how a game was delayed a week? No problemo. Wondering if something is coming to Game Pass? Here's 500 words, friend. Even at parties when asked if you liked a recent game, you'll bypass the required yes or no response for a 10-minute TED talk with the appropriate keyphrases sprinkled throughout. 

Those are my top five best things about being a guides writer. It's been a good run, and until next time, GGs. Oh, and for old times sake, check out everything we know about Apex Legends Season 13.