London based Gaming Union has global following
A former Fanshawe student has a hand in the development of a new online video game news and reviews publication.
Kyle Wynen, a former broadcast journalism student, and avid online games enthusiast, worked closely with editor-in-chief, Darryl Kearvell when the foundations of Gaming Union (GU) began in the fall of 2008.
“At the end of 2007 I met Darryl Kearvell when we had him on our then-new podcast,” said Wynen. “We became good friends, and continued to develop more video game fan-sites as a hobby, until we eventually cracked the idea of joining together to make a network of websites, with a professionally run video game news and reviews website at the core.”
Based in London, Ontario the site is rapidly making a name for itself around the globe as it employs staff in the U.S. and the U.K.
Since opening in April of 2009, the site has had over two million page views as a result of their collaborations, editorial content and the vast relationships the now successful company has built within the gaming industry and local support of Londoners.
“Gaming Union has been great so far. What started off as nothing more than a dream has definitely become a reality, but there is still a long way to go,” said Kearvell.
“We still have a lot of goals to achieve, and it's what continues to drive us forward. That, and the fact we get to play games for a living and travel the world.”
A former video games columnist for the Interrobang, Wynen has combined his passion for online video games with developing a website that has grown popular among not only Londoners but is sweeping the world faster than anticipated.
“We were very fortunate as a new company to have been granted media passes to the most important annual event in the gaming world, the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, better known as E3 earlier this year,” said Wynen. It allowed us to forge relationships with some of the world's largest publishers (such as Activision, EA, Ubisoft and Sony), and our contacts and our reputation within the industry quickly grew.”
Wynen admitted the individuals involved with GU all have a vast amount of knowledge and dedication to what they love to do.
“We're very gamer oriented in that we ourselves know games extremely well, and cater directly to what the majority of gamers are crazy about. Most video game journalists aren't actually gamers and don't come from a gaming background, we however grew-up on games and then became journalists. It gives us quite the editorial edge and insight,” admitted Wynen.
For now GU operates out of Wynen's home office, which he plans to move to London's downtown core this time next year.
“As we currently work out of a home office, we simply can't accommodate more staff at present, so our plans to relocate to downtown London are developing hand-in-hand with our plans to expand our staff,” said Wynen. “We've already received inquires about the positions we'll be looking to fill. We're also looking to take on interns, and that also requires an office, so we're looking to move to a proper office exactly for the reason of expanding our staff, new opportunities, and also it would be a nice change of atmosphere.”
GU recently took part in the Tokyo Game Show 2009. This accomplishment alone is what sets GU apart from its competitors.
Wynen stressed that networking is vital to an individual's success and emphasizes to other fellow students and citizens of London that “you have a ridiculous amount of resources, try using them to their fullest and you'll succeed too.”
For further information regarding the website or getting in touch with Kyle feel free to email him at: kyle@gamingunion.net.
Kyle Wynen, a former broadcast journalism student, and avid online games enthusiast, worked closely with editor-in-chief, Darryl Kearvell when the foundations of Gaming Union (GU) began in the fall of 2008.
“At the end of 2007 I met Darryl Kearvell when we had him on our then-new podcast,” said Wynen. “We became good friends, and continued to develop more video game fan-sites as a hobby, until we eventually cracked the idea of joining together to make a network of websites, with a professionally run video game news and reviews website at the core.”
Based in London, Ontario the site is rapidly making a name for itself around the globe as it employs staff in the U.S. and the U.K.
Since opening in April of 2009, the site has had over two million page views as a result of their collaborations, editorial content and the vast relationships the now successful company has built within the gaming industry and local support of Londoners.
“Gaming Union has been great so far. What started off as nothing more than a dream has definitely become a reality, but there is still a long way to go,” said Kearvell.
“We still have a lot of goals to achieve, and it's what continues to drive us forward. That, and the fact we get to play games for a living and travel the world.”
A former video games columnist for the Interrobang, Wynen has combined his passion for online video games with developing a website that has grown popular among not only Londoners but is sweeping the world faster than anticipated.
“We were very fortunate as a new company to have been granted media passes to the most important annual event in the gaming world, the Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, better known as E3 earlier this year,” said Wynen. It allowed us to forge relationships with some of the world's largest publishers (such as Activision, EA, Ubisoft and Sony), and our contacts and our reputation within the industry quickly grew.”
Wynen admitted the individuals involved with GU all have a vast amount of knowledge and dedication to what they love to do.
“We're very gamer oriented in that we ourselves know games extremely well, and cater directly to what the majority of gamers are crazy about. Most video game journalists aren't actually gamers and don't come from a gaming background, we however grew-up on games and then became journalists. It gives us quite the editorial edge and insight,” admitted Wynen.
For now GU operates out of Wynen's home office, which he plans to move to London's downtown core this time next year.
“As we currently work out of a home office, we simply can't accommodate more staff at present, so our plans to relocate to downtown London are developing hand-in-hand with our plans to expand our staff,” said Wynen. “We've already received inquires about the positions we'll be looking to fill. We're also looking to take on interns, and that also requires an office, so we're looking to move to a proper office exactly for the reason of expanding our staff, new opportunities, and also it would be a nice change of atmosphere.”
GU recently took part in the Tokyo Game Show 2009. This accomplishment alone is what sets GU apart from its competitors.
Wynen stressed that networking is vital to an individual's success and emphasizes to other fellow students and citizens of London that “you have a ridiculous amount of resources, try using them to their fullest and you'll succeed too.”
For further information regarding the website or getting in touch with Kyle feel free to email him at: kyle@gamingunion.net.
