Too old to break in to games journalism?

[shoinan]

Hello, my name is Sinan. I'm 25, currently unemployed and thirsty (the two aren't linked, just coincidental)

I've just completed a degree in biomedical science, having switched from medicine late in the degree after a particularly horrible realisation that I was in the wrong career. After some long thinking, and then some more, I decided to pursue what had been a goal from a much younger age which now had rejuvanated me, which was to be in the videogame industry. A little more about my background - my A-Levels were ABB (Biology, Chemistry, Maths) with an C grade at AS for Information Technology. My degree is 2:1.

At the moment I'm pretty much reading, writing, playing and reading, trying to work out a next step for myself. I'm looking into getting a job as a games tester or some other lowbie job within a gaming company for now, mostly for money and CV purposes, and at the same time continuing my research. Between the reading (see above) I've also been doing some writing on what I've been playing - mainly reviews on my Facebook profile for friends to see and deeper stuff for myself to work on as longer projects. I've always been something of a closet writer, and shy to show my stuff to friends for fear of mockery but they are all telling me that my games journo work is pretty good, and as such I've started to seriously consider it as a possibility. However, as with the industry in general, I'm wary of trying to apply for positions when I'm 7 years older than everyone else and without anything relevant to show for it. I'd really appreciate any advice and suggestions anyone who knows about this sort of thing, at the moment it's all a bit daunting but definitely exciting as a prospect. Cheers,

Sinan.

[yaustar]

Q. Too old to break in to games journalism?
A. No.

[shoinan]

Thanks for answering, and that's reassuring. I've been asking around and getting the same response. I'm trying hard to push forward, submitting things to online magazines and generally researching.

If anyone has any further advice, I'd appreciate it. And if anyone's interested, I've started a blog here and would love feedback. Ta muchly,

[Sadr]

If, during all this time of researching and blogging you still have a considerable amount of time left on your hands, I'd suggest finding a small, realistic indie project to offer your assistance to for as long as you please. It could be anything from PR manager to any other kind of creative position you think you might be able to handle.

I promiste you, the second you start working alongside a group of other people towards a shared goal, the experience just seems to start flowing in with no end.