Keza MacDonald

@mackeza.bsky.social

12314 Followers 259 Following

Guardian video games editor, exhausted millennial. Author of SUPER NINTENDO and co-author of YOU DIED: The Dark Souls Companion. She/her 🏳️‍🌈 https://linktr.ee/super_nintendo

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid
An extremely malformed Pikachu and Squirtle adorn a t-shirt with an upside down Pokéball
Children of Time by Adrian Tchaikovsky
A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers
To Be Taught if Fortunate by Becky Chambers
Ducks by Kate Beaton
Lights, Planets, People by Molly Naylor
Said the Dead by Doireann Ní Ghríofa
Knitted Van Gogh in his fisherman's beanie and on-trend cardigan
The book Queer as Folklore by Sacha Coward
The graphic novel Blankets by Craig Thompson
A printout of a proposal for Keza's book, next to a copy of the actual book
The graphic novel Seconds, by Bryan Lee O'Malley
Radical Love by Neil Blackmore
The cover of Spent, a graphic novel by Alison Bechdel
Keza outside a display of her books in Topping's bookstore in St Andrews
Keza and Chris smiling like loons
Keza sits on a green couch next to her book, Super Nintendo
Keza beaming at her book launch party in a shirt with little secret Pikachus on
Lady Gaga and her favourite Pokémon Jigglypuff sing a duet
Keza's book Super Nintendo: The Game-Changing Company That Unlocked The Power of Play
Chart from my Steam roundup showing how much time was spent playing new games (92%) vs recent vs classic. At the bottom it shows the 14% stat
Use the code OCTOBER25 for 25% off Super Nintendo, out February 2026
Keza holds a copy of her forthcoming book, Super Nintendo
The US cover for Keza's forthcoming book Super Nintendo, out Feb 3
The UK cover of Keza's forthcoming book, Super Nintendo, out 12 February 2026
You owe it to the reader to be honest about your feelings, not to hedge based on how you think the reader will feel. This sounds obvious, but I still see writers do it all the time. If you're playing a game that seems great or that you think other people will like, but you are finding it a boring dirge, write about why you're finding it a boring dirge, even if the answer lies in you and not the game. Trust readers to find the writers that align with their tastes, rather than sacrificing your own taste in favour of the imagined reader's or a false objectivity. Trust that clear expression of your honest feelings is the most valuable thing you have to offer as a critic. When appropriate, write about what makes a game interesting and remember that whether a game is good or bad is often the least interesting thing about it. Trust the reader to draw their own conclusions. These last two ideas may seem to be in conflict, but try to hold both ideals at the same time, loosely. Videogames are better than ever and there are more videogames being made than ever. This also means your readers' time is more valuable than ever and you should therefore raise your standards.
A deranged hand drawing of Kate Middleton for sale on Facebook Marketplace for the princessly sum of £25