Have questions?  Comments?  Concerns?  Want to request a review of a specific game? Just want to troll? You can email me at Variand@NerdBacon.com.

Don’t be jealous of the hat.

Alias:  Variand

Real Name:  Gerald

Email:  Variand@NerdBacon.com

Twitter:  @Variand

Gamertag:  Rukhan

PSN:  Variand

Steam:  Variand99

Primary Systems:  XB1 / Xbox 360 / PS4 / PC

List of reviews:  Click Here

Video games and I have had a passionate love affair for nearly the entirety of my life.  Or maybe it’s more correct to say I’ve been stalking them for over 25 years.  However you wish to put it, video games are more than just a hobby or past time for me; they are a major focus of my daily life.  I’ve played them, tested them, and even made a few of my own, and now I review them.

“I hold no game sacred, and every game is an experience and a lesson in an ever evolving world of digital entertainment worthy of analysis and comparison.” – Variand

History & Credentials

When I was a teenager, my time was split between skateboarding (thanks to a heavy influence of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater), playing video games (mostly Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater), reading/writing, and web design.  I’ve spent the rest of my years dabbling back in and out of web design, and began learning more and more languages.  I still help out with coding on a few websites here and there, including helping out on Nerd Bacon when possible, but it’s definitely not my primary focus anymore – and neither is skateboarding for that matter.

While attending college at Saint Petersburg College in my early 20’s, I went on to receive A’s in both my only 2 game related courses – Introduction to Game Programming and Survey of Game Design; I helped revise the course material and syllabus for the former, and was forever changed by the latter.  While there, I competed in SPC’s first ever “SEMMY” award for Best Video Game Creation with a 2D side scrolling shooter and won.  I would later go on to win the subsequent two years, making it a hat-trick.  Luckily during that time, I was working as an overnight security guard, and was allowed to work on homework and projects while on the job.  I was even allowed to play my Xbox 360, which is the number one cause of my bloated gamerscore.

Shortly after college and after finding a new job, I began writing again after a nearly 10 years hiatus.  Revisiting an old story I’d begun writing first when I was 16 and attempted to rewrite when I was 19, I finally completed my first novel-length manuscript for which I’ve yet to find a publisher.  During that time, I’d also worked on ideas for more stories, but more importantly, continued with my ideas for games.  To this date, I’ve nearly 20 high level game design documents which, to my extreme annoyance, share amazing similarities to games that have been released; though my game design docs were written several years before the games would have entered development.  (I’m looking at you Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood!  You thief!)

After only 2.5 short years with my last job, I was given a job offer from a worldwide known company that had just recently entered the Point of Sale/Commerce business.  The job was in the Research Triangle Park area, so I was forced to pack up and move from Sunny Florida to Raleigh, North Carolina.  In preparation for the move, I began looking up housing for rent on Craigslist.  For S&G’s, I clicked on writing gigs and found a site looking for video game reviewers.  Needless to say, it was the Nerd Bacon post.

“Surfing the web one day he came across Nerd Bacon and sparked up a conversation with The Cubist and Nerdberry. Their shared interests led to a solid foundation, and Variand’s expertise led to a stronger relationship.” – Meet Team Nerd Bacon

I would spend the next several months writing reviews and attempting to help with other areas of the site such as fixing bugs and even building site enhancements.  That status widget off to the right there?  I made that from scratch.  Eventually, I would become the Editor-in-Chief, where I would assist all other writers with polishing and perfecting their reviews before they are published.

As of June 12, 2014, I resigned as Editor-in-Chief due mostly to time constraints.  Now I am back to being a regular contributor where I can do what I really enjoy:  Playing Games and Writing.

Gamer Bio

Favorites:

Favorite Game Genres:  Action/Adventure, RPGs, Simulation, City/Colony Builders, Shooters, and more.
Favorite Game Features:  Story and Characters, Character and World Customization, Reactive Worlds, Dragons, and anything unique and fun.
Favorite Game Themes:  Science Fiction (Future/space) and Low-Fantasy (Fuck elves)
Most Desired Game Type:  A 3rd person Action RPG with Colony/City Building and tower defense. Will never happen.

Consoles Currently Owned:

PC | NES | SNES | Game Boy | Xbox | Xbox 360 | Xbox One | PS2 | PS3 | PS4 | PSP | Android Tablet

Nerd Bio:

I’m a Star Wars dork who watches Star Trek and wishes he had a firefly class 03-k64 midbulk transport ship where I could raise my pet dragon.  I’ve built my own computers since I was 11.  I’m a complete Grammar Nazi.  I cosplay when I go to conventions and RenFests – ’nuff said.

Here’s a nerdy slideshow:

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Anything else you want to know about me?  Ask me a question.  I’ll add in an FAQ if I get enough questions.