HORIZON is basically an indie games press conference.
Historically, every year, I was very excited about E3. I'd look forward to it for weeks. During the expo, I would keep up with every detail of news. Yesteryear, I felt this enthusiasm measurably wane. This year, I only watched Nintendo's E3 Direct, aftwards saying "Alright. I'm all set." I didn't feel compelled to watch every extra trailer, nor watch every trailer repeatedly, nor refresh game news sites every 15 minutes. I just felt like "Hey, these games look okay, and I look forward to trying them some day."
I think HORIZON has supplanted what used to be E3's place, for I. I honestly don't care about the big console games anymore. The extent of my excitement for larger budget stuff is home on 3DS, and even Vita and PC - which were previously alien worlds for I. Handhelds have really always been my home. It's a comfortable place which I have complete control over, a mobile home with everything I need in one little package. No need to keep up with LCD 3D HDTV surround sound 1080p graphic upgrade 2000 BC v4.0 DX. They just sell me one system, and then it's ready for over half a decade of new game releases. My little mobile home that fits in my pocket, a personal space. Entire worlds existing in my pocket, worlds I can transport myself to any time I want, anywhere I want.
More and more, I'm becoming less interested in boarding the hype train and ingesting the months/years-long, spoon-fed, addictive propaganda drug before a game launch. All I need to do is watch some gameplay footage, or read a developer interview, and from that I can determine whether or not I'll enjoy the game in any capacity, and whether it meets my personal criterias enough to support it with my money. After that, it's simply a matter of waiting until after release. I keep a list of release dates and games to keep an eye on, since not all games have release dates.
Of course, this approach doesn't apply to all games. There are a few where I'll follow every update. For example, I've been keeping an eye on Peter Molyneux's _Godus_ every Sunday, when 22cans releases a new development video update. I think whenever Gaijin Games stops milking Runner2, I'll follow their development closely as well. Alex Neuse is a smart dude and has some awesome ideas.
Since Pokémon Gold and Silver, I spoiled so much of nearly every Pokémon game before it even released. Looking at every latest screenshot, watching every new trailer, reading all the latest news and interviews. Starting with Black and White, though, and continuing this 2013 autumn with X and Y, I am intentionally avoiding all the news, screenshots, and trailers. I can tell you for certain that playing Black and White for the first time, without spoilers, was one of my most thrilling game experiences in recent memory. While I didn't end up totally liking that pair of games, I'm still so happy I chose to keep it spoiler-free, and I'm _really_ looking forward to doing the same with X&Y.
Somehow, now, I can appreciate almost all games. I used to be very critical and picky. In many ways I still am - you must maintain your own tongue and manage your money, time, and effort budgets. But so many quality independent games are special in some way to the people making them, and they offer me something special to experience with them. A memory to build and come back to in 20 years. A thought generated which can germinate into a great oak of change or a new way of approaching some aspect of life. The amount and variety of experiences hiding in the grass for me to encounter are both overwhelming and exciting.
