I'm stepping up to the plate at Polygon

Posted by Samit Sarkar on June 11, 2012 04:23 pm 31

Hey! I'm Samit Sarkar. I'm a newly hired Reporter at Polygon, and I'm here to talk about two of my favorite things: video games and sports.

I've been writing about video games on a freelance basis for over four years. If you recognize my byline, it's likely from Destructoid — where I was hired to cover sports games and ended up wearing many other hats as well — but I've also contributed to Best Buy's @GAMER magazine in recent months.

I got my start in this business by filling a niche: Destructoid didn't really have anyone on staff who cared seriously about sports games (and as far as I can tell, the site was not, and is not, alone in that regard). I started playing video games and sports at about the same age, so this area of focus was a natural fit for me. (Unfortunately for my waistline, I stopped playing sports a long time ago, but kept playing video games.) I now play all kinds of games, but I still harbor a special love for sports titles.

When I began writing about games in early 2008, I didn't initially think it would be much more than an extension of a fun hobby. As I continued, I started to more seriously entertain the thought of video game journalism as a career. And now, I'm tremendously excited to turn pro at Polygon, where I'll be working alongside some of this field's brightest minds and most talented writers. I'm hoping that my particular background and interests will offer a new angle that you'll find worthwhile, as I bring you stories about video games and the people who make them.

Thanks for bringing me on, Polygon. And thanks for reading this. We're going to do great things together.

-Samit