Mara Delacroix
Editor & RPG Lead
Has a 300-hour save in every Final Fantasy and strong opinions about fast travel. Writes our longest reads.
Step right up · Carlton, Melbourne
Where Every Game Is a Grand Show
RPG deep-dives, indie gems, speedrun tactics and reviews with no sponsor spin — written by a small crew of Melbourne players who actually finish the games.
Our Booth
A Little Fairground for Big Game Talk
Started over lattes on Lygon Street
EmberStorm Kingdom began in 2019 as a group chat between four friends arguing about save-scumming in a Carlton café. We turned those late-night rants into long-form articles, and the blog now ships two to three deeply-researched pieces every week — no clickbait, no rushed launch-day scores.
We play to the credits before we write
Every review on the site comes with an honest hour count and whether we actually rolled credits. We buy most games ourselves, disclose any review codes up front, and re-visit older posts when patches change the verdict. If a game is a mess, we say so — kindly, but plainly.
Attractions
What We Cover Under the Big Top
RPG Deep-Dives
3,000-word breakdowns of builds, lore and endgame in the RPGs we can't put down — from Baldur's Gate 3 party comps to hidden Persona social links.
Speedrun Tactics
Route notes, glitch explainers and pacing guides written with runners from the Melbourne speed scene — beginner-friendly, frame data optional.
Honest Reviews
No score before credits. Each review lists hours played, our biggest gripe, and whether it's worth full AUD price or a wishlist-and-wait.
Indie Discoveries
A weekly spotlight on small-studio games — many from Aussie devs at PAX Aus — that deserve more than a footnote in the storefront charts.
Patch Notes Explained
We translate cryptic balance patches into plain English so you know what actually changed for your main before you re-download 40GB.
Local Meetups
Monthly co-op nights and tabletop-meets-video-game sessions at Carlton venues — free to join, BYO controller, first round of arcade tokens on us.
The Ringmasters
Meet the Crew Behind the Curtain
Theo Nakamura
Speedrun & Tech Writer
Former any% record holder for a platformer he won't name. Explains frame data like it's a bedtime story.
Priya Salvatore
Indie Scout
Spends PAX Aus playing every demo booth twice. If a two-person studio ships something special, she's already emailing them.
Callum O'Rourke
Community & Events
Runs our Carlton co-op nights and answers every reader email — usually with a game recommendation you didn't ask for.
From the Crowd
What Readers Are Saying
★★★★★
"Their Elden Ring boss guide got me through Malenia after two weeks of rage. Clear, funny, and no 20-minute video to sit through. Bookmarked forever."
★★★★★
"I trust their reviews more than any score aggregator. When they said to wishlist-and-wait on a big launch, they were dead right — it fixed half its bugs a month later."
★★★★★
"Found my favourite indie of the year through their Saturday spotlight — a tiny Adelaide studio I'd never have seen otherwise. Went to a Carlton co-op night too, lovely crew."
The Weekly Ticket
Every Friday: one great read, three quick picks
No spam, no partner promos — just what we published and what we're playing. Unsubscribe in one click, always.
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Come Say Hi
Got a Tip, Pitch or Just Want to Chat?
Reader questions, indie dev pitches, corrections, co-op night RSVPs — it all lands in the same inbox and a real person reads it. We usually reply within two business days.
- Phone+61 3 9347 5263
- Email[email protected]
- Studio76 Lygon Street, Carlton VIC 3053
- Open Desk HoursMon–Fri, 10am–5pm AEST