Merry Christmas from 8-Bit Girl!

Hi everyone,

Firstly, sorry for not posting that often as of late - life has been pretty hectic in the past few months. I hope to rectify this in the new year.

This is just a quick blog to wish you all a very Merry Christmas, and all the best for 2017! Thanks for all your support, via here, Facebook and Twitter over the past year - you're all great. :)

To finish things off, here's a photo of my kitten Percy making himself at home in my Disney Christmas tree (it's been impossible to steer him away from it!).

Have a great one!

8-Bit Girl xx 

Happy New Year from 8-Bit Girl!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Happy New Year to you all! 2015 was a year of many changes for me. Along with 8 of some of my closest friends, we founded Geek Mash, a blog that provided a space for us all to write about our geeky interests. We also started a YouTube channel that I have been a part of.

As part of 8-Bit Girl, I have been trying to blog here and there when I get a chance, and launched my YouTube channel. This year marks the first year I tried streaming my gameplay! 

2016 brings more of a focus on 8-Bit Girl again whilst I pursue my freelance writing career. I also intend to update my YouTube channel a bit more.

So, thank you for all the support, and happy new year! I wish you all the best, and I'll see you for another round of 8-Bit Girl...and more!

Love,

8-Bit Girl / Kayleigh xx

Merry Christmas from 8-Bit Girl!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Thank you to everyone who has been reading my posts throughout the year on both this blog and Geek Mash. I am also chuffed to bits to have a supportive following on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. I hope you continue to stick around...they'll be more in 2016!

To all of you reading this, I hope you have a fantastic Christmas, and I wish you the very best for the new year. 

2016 is an exciting new chapter of my life, part of which has begun now, just before Christmas. I am now a freelance copywriter and blogger who is writing from home, so I'll also be getting this updated when I can too!

Stay tuned from me. Have a good one guys. :)

Love

8-Bit Girl x

8-Bit Girl: YouTube & Twitch Updates!

This week, I finally started off my own Twitch account, and I added some new gameplay stream videos to my YouTube. 

Both are in their early days, and I plan to be streaming much more, especially when I get hold of a PS4 camera. 

Please follow both accounts to keep up to date with my gameplay. I look forward to uploading more soon!

Twitch: http://www.twitch.tv/8bitgirl_/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/8BitGirlVideos

8-Bit Girl Plays: Dead Nation & Hohokum

On the 28th April (the day before my 27th birthday, it turns out), I teamed up with my good friend Jason once again to live-stream some gaming on his Twitch channel. 

This time around, we tried out zombie game Dead Nation, and the cute, quirky and strangely hypnotising Hohokum. In Dead Nation, we set up a voting game, giving viewers the choice to vote between two options every time (e.g. #A for more zombie spawns, or #B to lower difficulty). It's safe to say that those watching liked to give us a hard time by spawning hoards of the undead at every given opportunity (thanks for the times when you did go easy on us though!).

Hohokum was a more laidback affair, with no real direction on what to do in the game. You're basically left to figure it out yourself. This weird little indie title was strangely cute, quirky and definitely hypnotising. It's also free on Playstation Plus in May...

Read on to see the videos, and be sure to check out Jason's Twitch channel for more.  

Trying Out Surgeon Simulator with Jason...and Failing!

Two weeks ago, I joined my friend Jason on Surgeon Simulator, where we live-streamed my efforts on Twitch. I knew it was a hard game to master, but I didn't expect to be as awful at it as I actually ended up being. 

However, my terrible surgeon skills just made the whole experience that much funnier. It's safe to say though, that I will definitely not be switching my writing career for one in the surgery field...

Keep reading for the whole list of our videos. You can check out more on Jason's Twitch channel here. 

8-Bit Girl's First Time on Twitch!

So Tuesday night I recorded my first ever Twitch plays with my friend Jason, aka MrTiredHippo on Twitch. As a lot of my friends know I am a bit of a wuss when it comes to horror films and games, he threw me in at the deep end and started off with some unsettling games; Outlast and Silent Hill's PT demo. 

Check out both recorded games below. I hope you enjoy seeing me jump, especially to the PT demo! I shall be doing more in the near future. 

Outlast
We didn't play this one for long, as we suddenly figured the PT demo will bother me more. And everyone seems to like seeing me jump and act like a fool!



Silent Hills PT

Watch out for the moments where both of us completely jump at the ghostly encounters. I was incredibly on edge throughout this. Silent Hill has always really got under my skin! You can see our first proper jumpy moment at a mere 2 mins, 52 seconds in. 


Follow Jason and myself on Twitter for more updates on any of our Twitch plays (together or separately).

What would you like to see me play next? 

Let me know in the comments!

8-Bit Girl Joins Geek Mash!

You may have noticed that posts on here have become a little sporadic as of late. 

Whilst recent life changes (a breakup, move into my flat, for example), may be part of the cause of this, behind the scenes, me and my friends have been cooking up a brand new blog that we are now pleased to unveil and collaborate on...

Vote For Me in the UK Blog Awards!

My blog 8-Bit Girl is up for public voting in the National UK Blog Awards!

Being nominated for an award and making in into the voting stage was a good enough achievement for me, but I would love to get further! 

Please vote for me and this blog by visiting the link below. Please note, that whilst I appreciate your willingness to vote, only one vote per person is accepted by the judging panel, so don't go spamming!

Thank you to everyone who votes for me and my blog. I really appreciate that there is a bunch of you out there that enjoys reading my posts, even if they are few and far between when things get a little busy!

Please vote here: http://www.blogawardsuk.co.uk/candidates/8-bit-girl-2/

Happy Christmas from 8-Bit Girl!

To all my readers, followers, friends and family,

Thank you for all the support throughout the year! Whilst I may not have been as active as I usually am at times, I have always enjoyed updating this blog and seeing your interactions with each post. 

Happy Christmas to you all, and I wish you all the best for 2014. Here's to another year of 8-Bit Girl!

Kayleigh

To My Readers-A Note About My Situation

Hello all,

Recently you may have noticed that my posting here on 8-Bit Girl has somewhat reduced. Last week I was in bed with the flu, followed by some personal issues. 

I started my new job today, working as a copywriter from 9am-5.30pm, plus I am also continuing with my paid freelance work when I am home. 

This means that it does not leave me much free time for myself to be honest! So, I have decided to lessen 8-Bit Girl a little...at least until things settle down. Whilst I may not post every single day, I will at least be trying! I'll also be reachable on Twitter and 8-Bit Girl's Facebook to interact with you all, talk games and the rest of it.

Thanks for being so understanding,

Kayleigh 

I'm back!...sort of.

I'm back!...sort of.

Please accept my apologies for no blog posts since Tuesday. Sadly my internet box has broken. Wi-Fi isn't working at all, and I've only just got the ethernet cable working. However, it is very touch and go, but I'll be updating when it is behaving!

The internet will be fixed on Monday by a Virgin engineer, so in the meantime, I'll be posting if and when the internet is working. Please keep checking back, and don't forget to enter my contest! (the previous blog post has all the details).

Thanks,

Kayleigh

Insert Coin Clothing Giveaway Winner Is...

Thank you to everyone who entered my competition to win a £25 Insert Coin Clothing voucher. I got 150 entries in total, which is the most I've ever had for a giveaway!

Participants could choose one of three ways to enter: Twitter, Facebook or by sending me an email. I then wrote down each person's name and they were all assigned a number each. I then used the random number generator online to pick one lucky winner.

The winner of the voucher is Aaron Davidson!

Congratulations! I shall be getting in touch with you shortly with details about your voucher!

Again, thanks for entering, and I shall be running another giveaway very shortly, so please keep checking back!

Kayleigh

Dance Central 2 Makes Me Look Like An Idiot!

I love Dance Central 2. Not only can I credit it to one of the reasons behind my weight loss (healthier eating, tons of walking, Wii Fit and Your Fitness: Evolved being the others), but it's a lot of fun too.

The finisher moves in particular seem to be quite amusing, so I thought I'd upload three screenshots of me doing these silly dance moves in tonight's session. Why not make fun of yourself from time to time? :P

Ending a rap song with a silly move like this....brilliant.

Bond style poses at the end of La Roux's "Bulletproof"

The cheesy grin/gurn was totally necessary!

8-Bit Girl Colouring Book Commissioned for Charity!

With a co-writer whom this topic is relating to, I thought it was perfect time to tell you all about Colour For Causes.

Colour For Causes provides cute colouring sheets and activity books for children, that can be downloaded in a PDF format once a £1 or more donation to one of the chosen charities (either Mind or MS Trust) has been pledged.

My co-writer, Anna, who you may have seen post on here quite regularly lately, suffers from mental health difficulties. I decided to donate towards Colour for Causes and commissioned a book centred around my blog, 8-Bit Girl, games and us two blogging ladies. 

The book, available in PDF format, is now available to purchase, via donating on the Colour For Causes site. All proceeds will be going towards mental health charity Mind, to help people, like Anna, who suffer from day to day with a mental illness. 

The book is 10 pages long, and has various colouring sheets and activity pages in it. The sample pages below are free for you to use and appreciate. (of course, the PDF pages are much bigger though!)

Front Cover!

Tomb Raider!

Don't forget to write what book you want in the donation comment!

It's a fantastic book with adorable illustrations...plus, it's all going to a great cause...every last penny of it!

Donate here!

Thank you to everyone who has shown some kindness and bought themselves a copy. We hope you like the book, and thank you for donating towards a charitable cause!

Kayleigh Powis
8-Bit Girl

Competition Time!

Currently I am running a competition to win a £25 voucher to spend on Insert Coin Clothing's online store. You can enter in one of three ways, which you can find on the giveaway blog post. Make sure you enter before the closing date! (24/08/12).


And another competition is on the way...
Not only am I currently running this, but I shall be having a fantastic giveaway once I hit 1,000 followers on Twitter! If you haven't already, please go and follow me at @8_BitGirl. The quicker hit the 1,000 follower mark, the quicker I can give away some more stuff! I'm not giving away any prize details though...as I always feel that a surprise is much better at this stage!


I'd appreciate it if you can spread the word of both of these competitions. The more people that enter, the merrier, and the more people who read 8-Bit Girl...well, that just makes me utterly happy!


Thank you all, and good luck if you have entered for the voucher!


Kayleigh

8-Bit Girl Turns One! :D

Happy Birthday 8-Bit Girl!

Yes, today marks the blog's 1 year anniversary. This time last year I had just posted my first ever blog entry, had no dedicated Twitter or Facebook, and absolutely no readers. Now, I'm here with a 450+ fanbase on Twitter, close to 200 on Facebook, and god knows how many of you actually just come to the blog to read it...but judging by my daily pageviews, it's quite a lot!


I want to take this time to say thank you for all of the support. Without all of your kind comments, shares of my posts, etc, I probably wouldn't still be here one year on.


So I'll share with you my first ever post for 8-Bit Girl once again. Hopefully in a year my writing has progressed somewhat, and my posts have got a little better. I'll let you all be the judge on that one. :) L.A. Noire-Worthy Of All The Hype?


I'll (hopefully) be giving the blog a bit of a revamp soon, with a new banner, logo etc, and I plan to continue my reviews, interviews, news posts etc, as long as you all want to keep reading them!


Thanks guys!




Kayleigh x

Help Me With My Freelance Journalism Course!

Hello all,

Some of you may remember that I had set up a donation pool via my Paypal to pay for a Freelance Journalism course that I was planning to start.

I want to take this opportunity to thank the few people who were kind enough to donate some money towards my ambition! It wasn't enough to start my course, but I decided to take the plunge and start the course regardless.

However, things are going to be incredibly tight as I try to fund myself through this for the next six months. I'm not one to enjoy sending out pleas, but my donation pool is still open. 

I start my course on the 23rd January, and after I've paid for my course in six months I shall hold a diploma for Freelance Journalism in my hand. Whilst I understand this may not actually get me an easy pass into the tough world of journalism, and some of you might have questions about the value of taking courses online, I'm taking it for enjoyment, to develop my writing and get a taster of things along this line of work. Also, I shall be put on a freelance register at the end of it, and guaranteed at least one publication of an essay during my course. 

Also, for those of you wondering if this course is legitimate. I have thoroughly checked it through, and yes, it is fine. It's with the British College of Journalism, and is a fully online course. I shall be expecting my first assignment and work through on the 23rd January. 

If you feel kind enough to donate money towards this, then I'll be forever grateful. You can do this by clicking this donation link.

Once again, I thank everyone from the bottom of my heart who has already donated, or is now planning to. You're the people who have helped 8-Bit Girl to grow into a pretty busy blog, and I hope you continue to enjoy it for many months to come!

Thank you,

Kayleigh Powis

Donate!

Happy New Year!

Well, on writing this, we're officially two hours in to 2012! 

I'm taking this opportunity to wish you all a very happy new year. Let's make this a good one!

I'm looking forward to a brand new year with 8-Bit Girl, which I hope will bring plenty of exciting opportunities for myself, and some interesting reads for all of you.

Thank you for being so supportive of 8-Bit Girl. I've now got quite a following, and so many of you have emailed, commented, or Tweeted me your kind words about it. So again, I thank you.

All the best for 2012!

Kayleigh

Win a copy of Gua-Le-Ni!

Christmas is just around the corner, and what better way to celebrate than by winning a brand new game for nothing!


I recently reviewed and played Gua-Le-Ni, an excellent puzzle style title available to purchase on the iPad. Now I've been given two redeem codes to giveaway to two of my readers, just in time for Christmas. 

For a taster on what to expect, check out the two posts I previously did on the game below:

Read the review here.

Read the interview with it's creator, Stefano Gualeni here.

So, how do you actually get to win a code? Well, it's simple. I've got myself a Twitter for 8-Bit Girl, which is @8_BitGirl. You need to retweet this message (RT)

and FOLLOW my Twitter to enter! You can retweet as many times as you want, but I'll only be counting you once. :)


On the 22nd of December I shall put all the names of the Twitter re-tweeters on one of those randomiser things, and the two that are randomly selected shall win a code each! I shall inform you via Twitter, and direct-message you the code!


So, go do it everyone, and good luck! 


Kayleigh Powis