Oscar Taylor-Kent
Writer / Editor / Journalist
With years of experience across print and web,
I'm here to help your writing come to life
About
Hi! I'm Oscar, editor of PLAY Magazine and formerly of Official PlayStation Magazine! Across the past 10 years I've delved the depths of the gaming industry, beginning in games publishing before moving across to media, where I've been lucky enough to work with some great clients including EDGE, PC Gamer, Kotaku UK, Waypoint (Vice), SFX, and more.While I have an insatiable appetite for producing fun content about games, I also love to work on bigger projects with the teams to help nudge ideas along for their beginnings to finished product! If you need something written, edited, or just need to draw from the well of power that has fuelled my way through the industry over the last several years, then I'd love to hear from you.
Want to get in touch to discuss a project or commission? I'd love to hear more about what you're working on and how I can help!
[email protected]
Some Of my excellent clients:
Experience
Editor
6.5 years of experience in games media at Future Publishing.
- Editor of PLAY Magazine, one of Future's leading print gaming brands, since issue #4
- Games Editor & Deputy Editor of Official PlayStation Magazine since issue #149
- Over 80 issues printed
Freelance
It's been my pleasure to contribute to some excellent publications across my eight plus years of freelance, including EDGE, PC Gamer, GamesRadar, Waypoint, Kotaku UK, Official Xbox Magazine, Games Master, SFX, and more - across so many different audiences.
Events
I've journeyed the world in search of pure gaming energy, including industry events E3, Gamescom, and Comic Con. I've also travelled the globe on individual games studio visits to meet teams and play early access builds to deliver cutting-edge coverage across all development stages.
PR & Marketing
Before games media, I worked for publisher PQube as a PR & Marketing Assistant for 4 years. Duties included the usual PR & marketing duties, plus writing and editing copy for manuals and documentation, editing JP>EN localisation, and delivering presentations at conventions.
Services
Freelance Journalism
Need a review? A preview? An opinion? A feature? An event attended? I'm able to quickly deliver snappy writing that's fun to read and informative, tailored to suit your readership.Check experience to take a look at what I've delivered in the past!
Editing
I've worked as a magazine editor for several years. Whether you need me to comb through something you've already delivered, or help with organising and shaping your outlet or section therein I'd be happy to be of service. I can operate on a per-job basis, or on a day rate.
Writing To Spec
Need some copy writing that falls outside the scope of journalism? I can apply my years of industry experience to write to your brief, be it assembling creative projects like art books, to providing words for websites, product descriptions, manuals, and more! Just get in touch and I'd be happy to discuss specific needs.
Mock Reviews
All the benefits of my journalism experience without the publicity. Years of delving deep into games to deliver thorough features and reviews have made me intimate with the process, so why not benefit from that with insight tailored for you? I'm happy to provide feedback on games-in-progress, including mock reviews. Get in touch to tell me more about what you're working on!
Game Editing
Putting together a game with some terrific writing? All the more reason to give it another pass. I'm able to work with a variety of ways of presenting your in-game text (including Twine, Renpy, and simply Excel) to give you a pass to the depth that you require, be that copy edits or something deeper. Rates may vary depending on project length and budget, so let me know what you're working on!
Portfolio
Interested in taking a look at what I've done before? You can find a more complete list of work on MuckRack, and examples of my broader experience, like my work as the editor for gaming magazines or my time in PR on the experience page.But as you're here, let me take you through some of my work that exemplifies the range of what I can do!
Cyberpunk 2077
(Official PlayStation Magazine)
It's always exciting to interview any developer, but it's always a special joy to talk to someone super dialled into to a very specific part of the process. Especially multiple at once. This Cyberpunk 2077 feature almost reads like a bunch of mini-features. Martha Jackowiak took me through designing the fashion trends of Night City, Ben Andrews discussed bringing his concept art for the guns and cyberware to life, and Paweł Mielniczuk broke down how they think about character design and bringing personality to the city's vehicles.
Final Fantasy 14: Endwalker
(PC Gamer)
Appearing in both print and on the web, I tackled this huge review of the expansion that capped off a decade long MMORPG storyline. It was an honour to have PC Gamer ask me to cover something so integral to PC gaming. I've reviewed many huge releases over the years (God Of War Ragnarök, Elden Ring, Read Dead Redemption 2, to name a few), but the online component was a challenge - server loads making even getting into the game a challenge. But I was happy to be among the first to deliver a fun and deep dive into just how the anticipated new chapter fared.
Live action Gaming
(Official PlayStation Magazine)
I've always had a fascination with FMV and the use of live action video in gaming. Studios who use it are always deeply passionate about doing so, yet their approaches can be so unique. Here, I assembled four interviews with developers who'd recently released such games, across trips to their offices, email exchanges, and video calls. It includes The Infectious Madness Of Doctor Dekker (D'Avekki Studios), Telling Lies (Sam Barlow, Half Mermaid), Erica (Flavourworks), and Remedy Entertainment (Control).
How LA Noire Rewards You For Being A Bad Cop
(Waypoint - Vice Gaming)
The launch of LA Noire Remastered provided the perfect jumping off point to re-evaluate Rockstar and Team Bondi's pulpy homage. This op-ed presents a reading of the game where even some of the clunkier systems in the game help portray the broken system detective Cole Phelps is wrapped up in.
10 Easy Rare Achievements You Really Should Have Unlocked
(Xbox On)
I always find listicles fun to tackle, but some of my work for Xbox On stands out where I produced a few scripts for the team during the period it was based in Bristol (including video capture). Officially part of the Xbox brand, it was great to get the chance to balance that branding with writing for two different hosts with their own unique personalities. Working on a project with a lot of moving parts was great, as well as getting to see my words brought to life thanks to the talented team.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake 44-page supplement
(Official PlayStation Magazine)
(four-page snippet of piece here)
I tackled this huge Final Fantasy 7 Remake supplement after attending an early hands-on with the game and having the opportunity to talk to the development team. For this one, I didn't just plan out the standalone mini-magazine's content, but wrote the whole thing as well. This included a dedicated interview (above), and working parts of the discussion throughout reflections of the original game, and how specific gameplay elements like combat have evolved. I also included dives into the backgrounds of various characters and how they play, comparison shots to the original, and a look at the whole FF7 Compilation.
And there's more! Take a look at a bigger portfolio on my MuckRack page HERE!
