Independent gaming journalism · Sydney
Games examined with the seriousness they have long deserved.
Silver Game Odyssey is an independent editorial publication based in Surry Hills. We produce long-form reviews, hardware analysis, and industry reporting free of scores inflated by publisher pressure.
Who we are
A masthead built for readers, not algorithms.
Founded in 2016 by three former print critics
Silver Game Odyssey began as a fortnightly newsletter circulated among a handful of Sydney developers and grew into a full editorial masthead. Our founders spent years inside legacy games media and left frustrated by the pressure to publish thin, timely takes over considered ones. Every article we run is edited twice, fact-checked against primary sources, and held to the standard we once wished our own editors had kept.
Reader-funded and free of publisher influence
We take no advertising from platform holders and accept no paid placements. Roughly ninety per cent of our operating budget comes directly from subscribers who pay AU$9 a month for the full archive. That independence lets us return review copies when a publisher attaches conditions, and it means our verdicts answer to no one but the reader who trusted us enough to open the page.
Our method
How a review reaches publication.
Independent acquisition
We buy retail copies wherever possible so no publisher can dictate embargo terms, review conditions, or the version we are sent to test.
Full completion
A critic finishes the campaign and logs a minimum of twenty hours before writing, noting performance across the platforms most readers actually own.
Second-editor review
Every draft passes to a second editor who challenges the argument, verifies factual claims, and confirms the verdict is supported by the body of the piece.
Publication and updates
We publish with a dated verdict and revisit it after major patches, appending a note whenever a game changes materially from launch.
What we cover
Five editorial desks, one standard.
Long-form reviews
Our flagship format: 2,000-to-4,000-word critical essays that treat design, narrative, and craft as subjects worth sustained attention. Reviews run only after completion, carry a dated verdict on a ten-point scale, and are revisited when a game meaningfully changes.
Published weekly · Free to read for seven days
From our readers
Trusted by a discerning readership.
The only outlet I trust to tell me whether a game runs before I buy it. Their benchmark charts talked me out of an expensive card and saved me a fortune.
I subscribed for the reviews and stayed for the reporting. Their piece on studio closures in Melbourne was the most careful coverage anyone published that year.
A rare masthead that revisits its verdicts after patches. I've watched them raise a score and explain exactly why. That honesty is worth the nine dollars.
Common questions
What readers ask us.
Do you accept advertising from game publishers?
No. We take no advertising from platform holders or publishers and accept no paid placements of any kind. The publication is funded almost entirely by reader subscriptions, which is what allows us to return review copies when conditions are attached.
How much does a subscription cost?
Membership is AU$9 per month or AU$90 per year and includes the full ad-free archive, early access to major reviews, and the Friday dispatch. New reviews are also free to read on the web for their first seven days after publication.
Why do your reviews take so long to appear?
Because a critic finishes the game before writing a word, and every draft passes a second editor. We would rather publish a considered verdict a week after launch than a rushed one on embargo day. Timeliness never outranks accuracy here.
Can I pitch a story or send a tip?
Yes. Freelance pitches and confidential tips are welcome through the contact form below or by email. We read every submission, protect our sources, and respond to serious pitches within five working days from our Surry Hills newsroom.
Get in touch
Subscribe, pitch, or send a tip.
Join the Friday dispatch or reach the newsroom directly. Our editors are in the office Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 5:30pm AEST, and answer correspondence in the order it arrives.
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Phone+61 2 8399 0847
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Email[email protected]
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Newsroom63 Foveaux Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010