Why?  The Mission Statement of Grunt Free Press.

What is the point of this site?  There's a million gaming blogs out there, as well as dozens of "professional" joints... why make another?  What's the need?

  Well...

• I've yet to find any sites that reflect my opinion. 

  "Everyone has different tastes", sure.  I can respect that.  I also can't help but get the nagging feeling that there's a homogeneous "taste" in mainstream gaming media.  I listen to a number of gaming podcasts and visit a fair amount of sites, and there's an inescapable air of solidarity.  I can't count the number of times a topic is brought up only to have a half dozen hosts/journalists all circle jerk in agreement no matter how divisive the subject matter.  They all seem to be cut from the same cloth, and in a business based primarily on opinions there seems to be one "right" school of thought you must agree with or face being fired/ostracized.

  And no, I'm not part of the "Gamergate" crowd or whatever.  I'm not part of any crowd... that's kind of the point.  I just think Gone Home is a complete piece of shit and zero alcoholic, Southern California-based journalists who hang out with each other at events, met the developers, and were given the game free of charge agree with me.  So fuck them.  They're way off base or out of touch with my "tastes". 

• Fuck censorship.

  Kind of related to the point above, but specifically where can anyone go to discuss a hobby without being censored to shit?  I've been a loyal, respectful member of dozens of gaming communities, and even on my best behaviour I've managed to get banned from some, got pissed off and left others.  They all seem to relish in censorship in one form or another; be it straight up word filtering, deleting sensitive posts, or self-imposed sacred cows cemented by the members of the community themselves.  I've been fucked with by moderators, gang-shamed by Social Justice Warriors, and had profiles altered by site owners because I wouldn't follow their nebulous bullshit rules or I said some naughty word/badmouthed something the collective hive mind worshipped (the Metal Gear series is a piece of shit, too). 

  Rather than censor myself it seemed a no-brainer to just carve out a safe place where I could take the gloves off.  That's not to say I'm going out of my way to be controversial or offensive, I'm just speaking my mind.  "But why all the swearing?  It's immature."  Because I can.  Eat my shit.

• No deadlines and I pay for my games.

    I receive zero funding for the games I play/review, or any money from advertising.  I work a miserable full time labor job (at night, no less).  You'll never hear me complain about having to go to the store to pick up a game because a publisher wouldn't send it to me or the shipment was late.  I'm not playing "reviewer builds".  I use my own money to purchase the games I play, so the price of the games can and probably will factor into how I view them.  I'm not rushing through the critical path of a game to meet a deadline to assure this site gets hits.  I usually don't stop playing a game to take detailed notes, or write an academic thesis (loosely) about the social impact the game has on the world at large afterward.  I'm playing the game, digesting it, then sharing my thoughts just like everyone else.  An odd concept, I know...

• I don't give a shit about trends.

   I don't care how many units a console sold, how many followers an industry personality has, or what company got voted best/worst of the year.  I try to look at each game/movie/topic as it's own thing and respond with my personal insight accordingly.  I'm not going to gush over a game because it contains a new concept or subverts an old one; how does it hold up on it's own merits?  Remember when critics and commentators were somewhat respectable and would avoid the hype and trailers so they could go into an experience with fresh eyes?  That was a long time ago, but I'll try my best to bring that spirit back.  That's not to say I don't peruse news sites; I like to keep up with what's going on and what's coming out and have no problem with discussing those topics.  I pride myself in cutting through the marketing bullshit and seeing the "news" through the forest of bullshit.  Don't agree/want to add comments?  Contact me through Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram.  Oh, wait... I don't use that garbage.  Stop going out of your way to be advertised to, you clowns.

• SPOILERS!!!

  You'll never see that warning here.  As stated above I'm not receiveing any preview copies/early access to products.  If I can purchase and complete a game anyone else can as well.  It's not a diligent analysis/discussion if there's tiptoeing around relevant plot points or mechanics that show up at the end of a game.  If there's something I'm interested in I go out of my way to avoid any spoilers, and that usually means just avoiding any coverage about it period.  If there's something I'm curious about but don't want to commit to then please, tell me all you know about it so I can decide for myself; once my mind is made up I'll stop listening/watching/reading and go experience it first hand.  I have this sinking suspicion many reviews that are scared to give out spoilers are hiding something (like Gone Home is really boring dungheap), or the reviewer actually hasn't finished the game yet and is biding his/her time and just copy and pasted someone else's thoughts in the meantime.

• Transparency

  Ask me anything.  Really.  To kind of sum up the theme here: I'm not beholden to any outside entities, so I'm not at risk of losing sponsors or burning bridges.  I'll answer any question asked as thruthfully and candidly as possible.  There's nothing for me to lose except maybe my pride, and that's in short supply.  For instance: why did I use bullet points when the body of text under them are only slighly related and I seem to be rambling with no plan in mind?  Because I am.  It's fitting for the "mission statement" of the site; I do things loose and fast because I want to get back to playing games.  Or: why does this site seem so thrown together and janky?  Same answer, really.  I'm working on it.

  There will be a permanent Feedback Form at the bottom of the "Community Shit" tab for any feedback/questions/suggestions you have.  I'll post one here as well for the fuck of it: