Jason Schreier
Jason Schreier | |
|---|---|
| Born | May 10, 1987 United States |
| Occupation(s) | Author, journalist |
| Years active | 2010–present |
| Known for | Investigative journalism on video game industry, books "Blood, Sweat, and Pixels", "Press Reset", "Play Nice" |
Jason Schreier (born May 10, 1987) is an American author and journalist with a focus on the video game industry. From 2011 until 2020, he contributed to Kotaku, earning acclaim for his investigative coverage of industry challenges such as crunch culture. In April 2020, Schreier transitioned to the technology division at Bloomberg News.
Early life
Schreier was born on May 10, 1987, and completed his studies at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study at New York University in 2009, graduating with a degree in writing.
Early career
Initially working as a freelance reporter covering local news stories, Schreier joined Wired between 2010 and 2012, where he concentrated on technology and video games. He also wrote a weekly column focused on Japanese role-playing games for Joystiq and contributed articles to publications such as Kill Screen, Edge, Eurogamer, G4TV, GamesRadar, and Paste.
At Kotaku
In approximately 2011, Schreier was brought on board by Stephen Totilo, then editor-in-chief of Kotaku, as a full-time news reporter. Established in 2004 under the umbrella of Gawker Media, Kotaku was a prominent outlet for video game news. Schreier quickly became known for revealing insider information about game development, particularly shedding light on the pervasive practice of "crunch time"—the extended overtime periods developers endure to meet project deadlines—across both major and independent studios.
In 2017, he published Blood, Sweat, and Pixels: The Triumphant, Turbulent Stories Behind How Video Games Are Made, which explores the demanding realities behind creating video games.
His investigative journalism frequently uncovered troubled or abandoned projects through confidential sources within development teams. Among his notable exposés were the challenges Bungie encountered during the creation of Destiny, the downfall of Visceral Games’ Project Ragtag culminating in the studio’s closure, and the problematic release of Electronic Arts and BioWare's title Anthem.
A 2013 article by Schreier detailing the cancellation of Prey 2 disclosed internal communications from Bethesda and is thought to have resulted in Bethesda blacklisting Kotaku, cutting off pre-release access and interviews from 2015 onward. Both Schreier and Sean Murray, founder of Hello Games, received death threats following Schreier’s reporting on delays for the highly anticipated No Man's Sky.
After the ownership changes following the Bollea v. Gawker lawsuit, Kotaku became part of G/O Media in 2019. The new management’s tighter control over content led to significant unrest across former Gawker properties, notably at Deadspin. In April 2020, Schreier departed from Kotaku, citing dissatisfaction with G/O Media’s editorial policies and leadership. He remarked, "I’ve been through a lot of cataclysmic shifts because it always felt like... we were guided by people who cared about journalism, and unfortunately, I'm not sure that’s the case anymore."
At Bloomberg News
Following his departure from Kotaku, Schreier became part of Bloomberg News in April 2020, where he maintained his focus on reporting about the video game sector and its development processes.
While working at Bloomberg, Schreier released his second book, Press Reset: Ruin and Recovery in the Video Game Industry, which explores the instability within the gaming business. Published in May 2021, it achieved status as a New York Times bestseller in the non-fiction category. His third publication, Play Nice, detailing the evolution of Blizzard Entertainment, was issued in October 2024.
Podcasts
Schreier serves as a co-host on the podcast Triple Click, collaborating with former colleagues from Kotaku, Kirk Hamilton and Maddy Myers. The show is distributed through the Maximum Fun network.
Personal life
Residing in the vicinity of New York City, Schreier identifies as Jewish. On June 24, 2018, he wed Amanda Coleman, a litigation attorney at Cravath, Swaine & Moore, whom he met during their time at NYU.