Do you like fun?

Us too! Strategic Play is, first and foremost, a newsletter about things that people do for fun, specifically, strategic games. If you like strategy, or you like games, then you will like Strategic Play.

We define “strategy”, “games,” and “strategic games” very broadly, because the point is not to be gate-keepers. If you go to any military program (and we have) you will hear as many definitions of strategy as there are students, teachers, and even janitorial staff. Similarly, visit any local game store, attend any Comicon, talk to anyone who has a custom set of dice, and you will hear a dozen definitions of what is or is not a game. That is a good thing! We want to encourage the conversation, because there is so much to learn from each other.

In fact, this newsletter will fill a similar role as a game. The point of the game is to play the game and have fun in the playing. We will talk about the other things that can come out of games, but any game well played will build relationships with other people you play with. Similarly, while it would be great if this newsletter produces profound insights, we care much more about encouraging the relationships. It really is about the friends you make along the way.

What does the newsletter look like?

This newsletter is written for everyone from people with casual interests to professional game makers and players. Most of the content will come from people who are enthusiasts and professionals, because those are the people who care enough to write a blog post. The editorial team will work to keep writing accessible, but you should not feel ashamed citing this newsletter in articles, term papers, or theses. Strategic Play fits in the gaming space between gaming journalism and academic writing.

At the outset, we expect the newsletter to publish weekly. Each publication will be mostly text, and strive to fit between 1,000-2,000 words. Early publications will mostly comprise interviews, essays, battle-reports, and spotlights of relevant individuals. As the publication develops we hope to broaden coverage to include event announcements, art, and other game-related content.

We do not currently offer a paid tier, and do not have plans to include a paid tier in the near future. If enough people express interest, we will consider offering a paid tier to be able to sponsor additional content. A paid tier might enable us to sponsor a correspondent to a gaming convention, for example, or commission relevant art. If we offer a paid tier in the future, the main content will always remain free.

Do you have thoughts?

Great! We want to hear them. We currently accept proposals. Drop an email to our editor dbenson@valensglobal.com with “Strategy Play Proposal” in the title. We can, for the moment, also accept short completed essays if you already have content created, but we recommend contacting the editor for any guidance.

One kind of submission we would especially like to publish are “Battle Reports.” Although gaming battle reports can take many forms in the gaming community, what we want is for people to share what they did and what they learned. Well written reports are always preferable, but if you played a game with your friends and want to share what happened, please send it our way.

The most important thing we want in launching this venue is to encourage information sharing. There is a lot of good information which is not written down anywhere but which should be. Too many people have to relearn lessons that dozens if not hundreds of people who have gone before them have already learned, for want of a place to learn from those forebears. We recognize there are already outlets, and we are not trying to replace them, and are interested in collaborating whenever possible. We simply see a niche and want to fill it.

Disclaimers

Strategic Play is a publication by Valens Games. Valens Games is a company that makes and hosts games. This newsletter is not to promote Valens Games or its products.

We are self-consciously styling our position in the market after Bell Labs Technical Journal, or the many newsletters published on cybersecurity by cybersecurity firms. They too were and are sponsored by companies, but serve as outlets for people in and out of their company to share information. At least at the outset, you will see more content about Valens’ games than other games, but that is just because we have people around to write those things up. Please consider writing up your thoughts.

It is partly because we are a corporate outlet that we believe we have an advantage. Many, if not most, other games related publications that are not purely journalistic are run by people in their spare time. If something comes up in life, then the publication has to take a back seat. We do this for a living, and so can prioritize getting material out. If the publication alone can support itself, then perhaps we will spin it off, but until that time we hope that our professional work is an asset rather than a hinderance.

We will strive for editorial neutrality as much as possible. Come one. Come all.