Jake Buchalter-Staff Writer

Staff Writer

Staff Writer

August, 2012
5+ Years in the Gaming Journalism Industry, 10+ Years Experience in the Design & Illustration industries, & 25+ Years of Experience gaming in general
Indie Games, Roguelike, Fighting
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About Jake Buchalter

Jacob Buchalter (he/him) is a full-time Staff Writer based in the US and is an all-around creative media-obsessed individual who truly cares a bit too much about pop culture media, art, and all things gaming. He also streams games to show his obsessions over at FoolJuice on Twitch.

Jake is a perfectionist honestly to his own detriment, as he'll almost always at least triple-check any information he puts into any article to make sure it's correct (feel free to let him know if there's anything he missed).

Additionally, Jacob Buchalter is an absolute lore fiend when it comes to any IP, and will almost always have all the lore in his brain ready to gush about if anyone ever gives him an excuse to do so. 

Jake also has a relatively diverse background in the creative industry, as he has worked in many different fields and has experience with a lot of different mediums & formats. Lastly, Jake has a deep love and respect for any artist in the gaming industry, especially in regard to character design or UI/UX design, since he has illustration, design, and motion graphic experience himself. 

Proudest Gaming Achievement

Getting every Steam Achievement in a game called Enter the Gungeon. That game has a truly overwhelming amount of content in it and it only gets more difficult the further you go, so fully clearing it out was not only a ton of fun but also incredibly rewarding. 

Favorite Games

My favorite games list is always growing every year, but off the top of my head, I would say Enter the Gungeon, Hades, Hades 2, Metal Gear Solid IV: The Phantom Pain, Skul: The Hero Slayer, Risk of Rain 2, Deep Rock Galactic, any Monster Hunter game, Remnant 2, Bloodborne, Tiny Rogues, and Atomicrops. 

Industry Focus

My focus in a broader sense is on the gaming industry as a whole, with a secondary focus on the different artistic fields related to gaming such as UI Design, UX Design, Character Design, Environmental Art, Effects Design (AKA VFX), and so on.

In a more specific sense, my focus is typically on the roguelike, soulslike, and all-around indie areas of the gaming industry as a whole. I've put so much time into so many different roguelikes as well as soulslikes, and I have so much respect for indie developers for the massive workload they take on to create a game. 
 

Latest

Lies of P - Side Quests You Shouldn't Skip
Lies Of P: 7 Best Side Quests You Don't Want To Miss

Lies of P has many more side quests in it than players likely expected, and while not all of them are worth the time investment, a few absolutely are.

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Monster Hunter Rise: Best Endgame Charge Blade Builds

Charge Blades in the Monster Hunter games are known as one of the most complicated options for a reason. Here are some of the best endgame builds.

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Lies of P: Every P-Organ Upgrade

There are 7 entire Phases of P-Organ Upgrades to get through in Lies of P, and some of them are only accessible in NG+ and beyond.

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Lies Of P: The Best Attack Fable Arts, Ranked

There are three types of Fable Arts in Lies of P, Utility, Defense, and Attack Fable Arts. Here are some ranked examples of the strongest Attack ones.

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Lies Of P: Best Early-Game Ergo Farming Locations

With how difficult Lies of P ends up being towards the second half of its story, a lot of players will end up Ergo farming to even the scales a bit.

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Lies Of P: The Best Daggers, Ranked

There are only a handful of Daggers for players to use in Lies of P. But, the ones that do exist, have some pretty incredible handles and blades.

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Lies Of P: 7 Things You Should Sell To Merchants

While items are more important in Lies of P than they are in a lot of other Soulslikes, there are still a handful of them only good for selling.

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Lies Of P: 7 Best Items To Have On Your Lower Belt

Having three different quick bars to use in Lies of P is pretty convenient, and here are the best tools at Pinocchio's disposal for the lower belt.

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Lies of P: What Each Thrown Usable Item Does

There are quite a few more throwable items in Lies of P than players likely expected. And, most of them are pretty useful, here's what they all do.

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Starfield: 8 Loot That Is Not Worth Picking Up

The amount of different lootable items in Starfield is honestly a bit overwhelming. Let's go over which items to keep and which to ignore.

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Starfield: Scan Booster Guide

Scan Boosters are an Outpost Module many players find themselves ignoring entirely. However, there is more to this module than it appears.

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Starfield: Outpost Greenhouse Guide

Those finding themselves constantly lacking in Organic Resources in Starfield absolutely need to look into Greenhouses and how to set them up.

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Starfield: Animal Husbandry Guide

Learning how Animal Husbandry works in Starfield is a bit of a confusing process if the player doesn't have any help. So, here's how to set it all up.

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Starfield: How To Mine Asteroids

Mining Asteroids is another one of those hyperspecific features in Starfield that players had no idea even existed. Here's how the process works.

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Starfield: What Are Coast Biomes?

Coast Biomes in Starfield are something the game doesn't really explain, and many players aren't even aware of their existence or function.

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Starfield: 6 Best Spacesuit Mods

While there aren't a ton of different modification options for the spacesuits in Starfield, there are some that really make an impact overall.

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Starfield: 10 Best Items For Research & Crafting

The sheer volume of different minerals, materials, & resources players will need in Starfield is immense. So, here are the best ones to look out for.

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Starfield: How To Complete Supply Missions

Supply Missions in Starfield are a pretty involved undertaking. They're also very overwhelming, so let's go over exactly how to complete them.

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Starfield: How To Use Fueled Generators

Fueled Generators seem to be a Power Source many Starfield players are avoiding. But, here's why they should be using it the most.

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Starfield: Where to Get Biosuppresant

There are resources in Starfield that players will stumble across, but not know how to reliably find on their own, and this includes Biosuppresants.