Writer | Editor | Indie Game Expert

Jen Simpkins

Hello! You've found me on T̷̨̨͍̣̺̰̩̠͕̮͆̽̂͑̏̑H̸͚̤͔̞͂̈́̿E̶͕̝̠̯̫̣͒ͅ ̸̡̢̳͙̝̠̼͛̔̉͘I̵̊̈́̀͗̈́̅ͅŅ̶̳̫͓̱̞̣̂̄͘ͅͅṮ̶̡̛̝͚̼̜͉̟͙̬͔̼͉̟̑̎̐̐E̴̛̪̲͕̘̪̣̮͉̎̀̆͆̀̈́̏̒͘͘Ȓ̸̛̮̫̘̯̠͇͖̌͋́̐͜͝ͅŅ̶̡̡̦͎̪̱̙̺͖̯̈́̀̔̑̑̍̓̒͑̉̋̓̚E̵̟̹͚͇͛̏̄̀̃̆̋̄͘͘T̸̰̻̭͇̼̱̽́̓͑̈́̈͘. I write games for money and post nonsense for free. Get in touch if you want to make something cool together.

Jen Simpkins

I write games!For over a year, I've been leading writing and narrative design at a startup game studio. My main responsibilities include building the world and characters, writing dialogue and quests, and collaborating with our artists, designers and audio director.
DON'T ask me any questions! (Imagine me pressing the back of my hand to my forehead with maximum dramatic aura.) It's so super-secret. I couldn't possibly tell you any more about it. Unless you interview me for a job and then I will show you.

Before this, I was on the live design team at Media Molecule (PlayStation), working on all things words and shipping playable updates for creative UGC game Dreams - so, in-game content such as dialogue and info text, as well as promotional materials.

I love writing and making my own small games in my free time - like this Twine horror interactive fiction I made for the AMaze Berlin 2024 game jam.

I will also talk your ear off about the cool stuff you can make with Bitsy. Here's a weird game I made about the tooth fairy for a "Tooth"-themed game jam.

My favourite fiction genres to write are comedy, horror, sci-fi, surrealism, and slice of life. I'm all about building intrigue, complexity and player trust in my worlds - then using that to deliver simple, human messages. _{(aka - I would love to write a Disco Elysium, an Outer Wilds or a 1000XRESIST someday.)}

I make magazines!I started my career in print game magazines. I was editor of Edge, where I secured industry-beating exclusives with a strong focus on championing innovative indie initiatives (such as Playdate).

At Media Molecule, my team and I had a blast putting together promotional publications for the Dreams community, and for Mm's games - often in-fiction, such as this game manual for Tren, and this tourist brochure for The Land Of Lost Dreams.

I make time to lend my voice to independent print publications whose approaches I admire. Check out my recent features about dress-up games and history's weirdest game peripherals in ON Games Journal and A Profound Waste Of Time.

My areas of non-fiction writing expertise include game reviews and consultancy, feature writing and developer interviews, indie games, UGC games, alternative and niche hardware, and AI and machine learning.

I find hidden gems!As a critic, I was well-known for my eye for the next big thing in small games. I love building relationships with indie developers, and leveraging my platform to lift up innovative ideas. I also liked Balatro before it was cool.

I helped found, and led, the Editorial and Curation departments at Media Molecule. Our team was all about identifying and platforming Dreams community creations - both in-game and on the web - to support talented artists, and further promote Dreams. You can read all the articles my team and I ever wrote here.

I'm a communications pro!Over the past 10 years, I've written more feature articles, news blogs, game reviews, client emails, press releases, stream scripts, social media posts, copy edits and crisis-management documents than I can count. (I never was any good at maths.)

Here's a non-exhaustive list of publications I've written for:

And here are some links to some recent highlights of mine that you can read for free:

Seaman - Time Extend (feature for Edge/GamesRadar+)
Jen Simpkins ON playing dress-up (interview for ON Games Journal)
All Hallows': The Land Of Lost Dreams is calling... (news article for PlayStation Blog)
What is The Backrooms, and why is it appearing in Dreams? (Dreams blog feature)
Creator Profile: HalfUp (Dreams blog creator interview)

I do stuff in front of a live audience!
Here's one of three annual Dreams awards shows that I wrote:

Me livestreaming the entries to the BBC's Brand New Planet jam with Dr. Brian Cox:

And me on stage presenting awards to indie creators at my beloved AMaze Berlin:

I won some awards!

Channeling Limes Guy here.

I love money!
But in, like, a cool way. Get in touch via email, LinkedIn or BlueSky, and let's talk about working together.