The Future of Side Quest: It's Super Bright! (Patreon)

Hey!

Today, I have some pretty exciting news: CLS is pleased to welcome its fourth freelancer to the team, a talented writer named Sophia Narwitz. You may know Sophia from her byline on Niche Gamer, where she holds the title of Senior Staff Writer. You may also know her from her occasionally snarky Twitter account. I’m not much a bomb-thrower these days, but then again, I suppose someone has to be.

CLS’ content currently revolves around four people: Me, Dagan, Chris, and Dustin. I run the business, host or co-host the shows, and generally act as producer and coordinator. Dagan co-hosts KnockBack, and is responsible for all of the logos and various art used on and for the shows, including all of the special pieces used for CLS-related (and real) holidays, Patreon perks, et cetera. Chris is the co-host of Sacred Symbols. And Dustin edits all of the podcasts. (And, of course, I’d be remiss not to also thank our occasional contributors, like my best friend Ramon, who has written all of Colin’s Last Stand’s various theme music.)

In other words, we already have ourselves quite a team.

The thing is, our team is incomplete, and Sophia strengthens our squad in a way that allows us to take better care of perhaps Colin’s Last Stand’s most neglected show: Side Quest. When I began Side Quest in the Fall of 2017, I intended on doing a video a week, if I could, and at least a few a month. As time has worn on, though, and as the content has piled up (both KnockBack and Sacred Symbols were launched after Side Quest), our humble YouTube show has become an afterthought. It’s almost impossible for me to have any sort of functioning life, do all of the other content I do, and still get Side Quest done.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. And moving forward, it won’t be. Sophia is taking over Side Quest as its Lead Writer, and the episode that went live today -- A Brief History of Konami -- was researched and written by her. I edited the script, made some additions and subtractions, and massaged it to be my own (as I’ll still be reading all of the VO). But she did the heavy lifting, and she’ll continue to do so moving forward, as Side Quest will be delivered reliably on an every-other-Wednesday schedule moving forward. Off weeks for Side Quest will usually (if not virtually always) be filled by Let’s Plays and/or Reviews. And, as I love to review games, I’ll continue leading those videos up from stem to stern, writing and editing on my own. The same can be said for topics where only my voice makes sense. But I want Side Quest to be a collaboration moving forward, because I think it'll be a way stronger and more consistent show that way.

The reality is, Colin’s Last Stand has become a podcasting network first and foremost, which is awesome. And I truly believe that shows like Sacred Symbols and KnockBack will remain our bread and butter for years to come. But who doesn't want more bread and more butter? I really like bread and butter. I also really like Side Quest. I like having a presence on YouTube. And I wanna keep making videos. Sophia is the woman that’s gonna help us keep that engine fueled and running reliably, and while her first few videos will be shows already voted on in months past by the CLS Patreon audience (a Moriarty always pays his debts), we’re eventually gonna flex into topics that allow us to explore every aspect of gaming: Business, Politics, Design, Culture, and so on.

Alongside Sophia joining the team is an increase in responsibilities for Dustin. The reason CLS podcasts sound so great is because Dustin is a meticulous and obsessive editor just like I am, and he does a really awesome job there. Dustin will now be editing Side Quest, too, working in concert with Sophia to deliver the goods every 14 days. And, hey, if the show starts doing really great, drives some Patreon traffic, and gets positive buzz from you guys and gals, there’s no reason why we can’t get the show eventually going on a weekly basis. It just has to make business sense to do so. I suspect we’re gonna get there. That's up to all of you.

Most of you know my philosophy here on Patreon, but for those that don’t: I always want to add value, so that you simply get more and more from your subscription. Bringing Side Quest back into the fold as a regular show means that we can begin to hold elections for topics again, which we'll begin doing in June. That means that $2+/month subs who already get to vote for Sacred Symbols Let’s Plays and KnockBack topics, alongside having the opportunity to submit questions, comments, concerns, thoughts, and ideas to Sacred Symbols and KnockBack, will now have three elections to participate in each month instead of two. Boom!

And, with an eye towards my “free” audience as well (who I also love very dearly), know that Side Quest will be available to you at the same time as everyone else. The MP3 version of each episode will continue to be a Patreon exclusive, but you’re free to watch at your convenience, and even make your own audio files if it’s more convenient for you than video. I simply ask that you don't profit off the show's audio, or post it anywhere for private or public consumption.

But if you do have a few extra bucks a month, we’d love to have you as a subscriber here on Patreon. There's merch, too! And for the thousands of you that already support CLS: I see you. Thank you.

Colin’s Last Stand is growing. =)

More soon. -Colin