Author Profile

Robert (or Rob if you're lazy) is an assistant editor of Push Square, and has been a fan of PlayStation since the 90s, when Tekken 2 introduced him to the incredible world of video games. He still takes his fighting games seriously, but RPGs are his true passion. The Witcher, Persona, Dragon Quest, Mass Effect, Final Fantasy, Trails, Tales — he's played 'em all. A little too much, some might say.

I grew up reading gaming magazines, and always wanted to write my own reviews about the games I loved. I got a chance to do just that while I was a college student, writing for several small gaming blogs in my spare time. I was also an avid reader of Push Square back when it was just Sammy. When the site came looking for new writers, I jumped at the chance. The rest is (ancient) history.

Experience

Robert began his games journalism career in 2012 as a freelance reviewer. In 2013 he joined Push Square as a Staff Writer, before moving into his current role as Deputy Editor in 2016.

In this role, Robert continues to write across the website covering news, reviews, guides and features.

More than anything, I just enjoy writing about games that resonate with me. There’s great satisfaction to be found in sharing your passion with a willing audience.

Timeline

  • 2012: Begins his career as a freelance reviewer
  • 2013: Joins Push Square as a Staff Writer
  • 2016: Becomes Deputy Editor of Push Square

Expertise

The first console Robert ever owned was the PlayStation 1, followed by a suitably long list of PlayStations! He’s also owned all of the main Nintendo handheld and home consoles from the mid 1990s onwards.

He chose the PlayStation 4 as his favourite console of all time, simply because so many of its games went on to become some of his absolute favourites.

RPGs are my favourite genre, because they tend to focus on characters and world building, which immerse me more than anything.

Robert’s Favourite Games

From the Archive

We asked Robert to pick out his three favourite pieces of work from across his personal archive, and tell us why he picked them!

The Witcher 3: Best Character Builds

My most-read article ever is a character builds guide for The Witcher 3, which I slaved over back when the game was brand new. I thoroughly enjoyed putting it together, and it was amazing to see it perform so well over the years.

Mass Effect Legendary Edition Review

Mass Effect is my favourite trilogy in gaming, and I like to think I did the games justice by writing an in-depth review of the Legendary Edition, which basically encapsulated a decade's worth of my thoughts and feelings.

Interview: Falcom Boss Talks Everything Trails, Reverie, Importance of Western Fans, and More

As a big fan of the Trails series, interviewing Falcom's president was a big deal for me. This interview from 2023 is my favourite to date, thanks to some fantastic answers.

Username
ShogunRok
Articles
12,221 (488 reviews)
First Article
Wed 21st, November 2012
Avg. Review Score
7.2
Find Them On
Muck Rack
  • News Diablo 3's Gigantic New PS4 Patch Is Almost an Expansion, and It's Out Soon

    Loot glorious loot

    Just when you thought that your best looting days may have finally been over, Blizzard jumps back into the fray and prepares to unleash a whole new Diablo III patch that typically adds a ton of new stuff to the game. In fact, the upcoming update is so big that it's practically what you'd expect from a slice of downloadable...

  • News Your PS4 May Be DOOMed This Summer

    Possible release date leaked

    DOOM has had some decent hype behind it ever since it made its gameplay debut back at Bethesda's E3 2015 press conference, but things have been a little quiet over the last few months with regards to the shooter in general. Indeed, one thing that we're still missing is confirmed release date, but thanks to a possible...

  • News PlayStation VR Will Cost You at Least $400 Says Research Group

    Place your bets

    We're not exactly sure what the sweet spot is for PlayStation VR's yet-to-be-announced price point, but we do think that Sony will probably want to go with something lower than the Oculus Rift's recently revealed $599 tag. With that in mind, it perhaps comes as no real shock that research group SuperData predicts that the PS4 headset...

  • News Capcom Hasn't Ruled Out a Sequel to Dragon's Dogma

    Stoking the flames

    Dragon's Dogma is an often overlooked open world role-playing release from Capcom, which released on the PlayStation 3 back in 2012. While the game wasn't perfect, it's safe to say that we absolutely loved it, and we've stated on numerous occasions that we'd love to see some sort of remaster on PlayStation 4, as well as the...

  • News PS4 Exclusive Horizon: Zero Dawn Doesn't Place Importance on Map Size

    The open world dilemma

    Upcoming PlayStation 4 exclusive Horizon: Zero Dawn is building up to be an ambitious undertaking for first-party studio Guerrilla Games. Supposedly a sort of action role-playing game hybrid that's set in a big open world, many interested onlookers have no doubt been pondering upon the size and scope of the release, and thanks...

  • News You Can Try Gorgeous RPG Odin Sphere on PS4 Tomorrow

    Japanese demo is out on the 8th

    If you're eager to get an early look at upcoming action role-playing game remake Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir, then you may be happy to know that a demo for the release will be available tomorrow on the Japanese PlayStation Store. Naturally, those of you who have a Japanese PSN account will be able to nab it. The...

  • News Whoops, Sony Made a Mistake with Your January PS Plus Games

    War does change

    We sincerely hope that you weren't super excited to play the blockbuster that is Legends of War: Patton's Campaign on your PlayStation Vita this month, as Sony has stated that its inclusion in January's PlayStation Plus game selection was a mistake. Damn and blast, etc. Thankfully, all hope is not lost, as the company has revealed...

  • News PS4 Sells Over 1 Million Units in Japan in 2015

    Could be worse

    Okay, okay, we get that the Japanese console market is in decline - we just posted a story about it, in fact - but Sony will at least feel that something positive has been achieved with the PlayStation 4 in 2015. The company's newest system sold 1.2 million units in Japan last year according to Famitsu's annual hardware and software...

  • News Japan's Console Market Wasn't Too Hot in 2015

    Lowest figures in 26 years

    We all know at this point that Japan's console market has shrunk. We could go on and on about the factors that have lead to such a decline, but let's just cut straight to the chase: 2015 saw the market hit a 26 year low. What this means is that the overall value of the market continued to fall, with it being worth ¥321...

  • News Your Character Can Now Look Like the Bloke From the Trailers in The Elder Scrolls Online

    You'll have to bring your own beard, though

    The Elder Scrolls Online: Tamriel Unlimited is offering up several new costumes in its premium Crown Store - but one in particular has caught our eye: the so-called Nord Hero Armor. Instead of running around looking like a relatively generic adventurer, you can now don the attire of that mighty Nord...

  • News You're Getting a New Yu-Gi-Oh! Game on PS4 Later This Year

    By the Blue Eyes

    Who's up for some more Yu-Gi-Oh!, then? Konami's announced that a new duel monsters based video game will be launching worldwide near the end of 2016, but there aren't really any concrete details to go on just yet. The working title for the PlayStation 4 release is Yu-Gi-Oh! Online Game, which obviously suggests that it'll have a...

  • News Japanese Sales Charts: PS4 and Vita Continue Strong Seasonal Performance

    Brothers in arms

    The latest sales charts from the East are in, confirming that the last seven days have once again been pretty darn solid for the Japanese market. As expected of the season, hardware figures continued to enjoy a healthy boost, as PlayStation 4 sales increased to 65,427 units, while Vita managed a very respectable 63,811 units...

  • News Don't Expect Any More Street Fighters in Tekken 7

    That'd be Tekken the p*ss

    In case you haven't heard, Akuma is going to be in Tekken 7. The intimidating Street Fighter character certainly looks the part in his reveal trailer, but does his inclusion mean that we might see other cameos in Namco's upcoming brawler? Apparently not, according to senior game designer Michael Murray. In an interview...

  • News Mass Effect: Andromeda Is in a Playable Form Right Now

    Still on target for late 2016

    We'll be the first to admit that this isn't a huge slice of news - especially when it originates from a series of BioWare employee tweets - but it would appear that Mass Effect: Andromeda is now playable, at least to some degree. In other words, the game's development cycle is supposedly going smoothly. "Just finished...

  • News Naruto Storm 4's Latest Gameplay Trailer Makes Way for a New Generation

    Kids these days

    The introduction of new generations and the responsibility of passing knowledge down to them has always been a key theme of Naruto, and we suppose that's what Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4's latest trailer is all about. The video's only a short one, but we get to see newcomers Boruto and Sarada in action as they beat the...

  • Feature 20 Japanese PS4 Games to Watch in 2016

    Beasts from the East

    At this point in the PlayStation 3's life, many disgruntled gamers would have told you that Japan's software outlook was bleak. Sony's homeland was struggling to adapt to the new high definition era, with developers seemingly unable to get a firm grip on working with fresh hardware. It was a tough time to be a fan of Japanese...

  • News Your January PlayStation Plus Games Are Available to Download Now

    Don't all rush

    The PlayStation Network went down yesterday for a rather lengthy 12 or so hours, but it's now back online, and it's brought your PlayStation Plus offering for January along with it. Good news, we suppose. In case you've been left out of the loop, this month's games include the brand new Hardware: Rivals and fantastic Grim Fandango...

  • News PSN Down Just Days into 2016

    That was fast

    Oh dear, and there we were praising the PlayStation Network for its stability over the holidays. Sony's online service is currently down for us here in the UK, and we're now getting reports that it's offline for many of you Americans, too. Follow us on Twitter for PSN updates At the time of writing, we can't even sign in, and Sony...

  • News Final Fantasy XV Is 'Not Going to Be a Love Story'

    Stop the sop

    Mainline Final Fantasy games have always been emotionally charged - even if they're a little heavy handed at times - and Final Fantasy XV will likely be no different. However, speaking with Examiner, ever-talkative director Hajime Tabata has stated that the upcoming role-playing release is "not going to be a love story". "That's not...

  • News Key BioWare Developer Leaves Mass Effect: Andromeda

    Making sense of the stars

    Chris Wynn, otherwise known as Mass Effect: Andromeda's senior development director, has ended his career at BioWare. Wynn was originally taken on by the developer in 2013 to help with the upcoming sci-fi project. So, what does this mean for the highly anticipated role-playing release? Thankfully, according to the Canadian...

  • News 2016 Is the Year of VR, Says Sony London Producer

    Sink or swim

    With PlayStation VR still set to release at some point during the first half of this year, it's safe to assume that Sony's currently gearing up for a big marketing push in the near future. It's still unclear whether or not the PS4 headset will actually be a hit with consumers - as is the case with virtual reality in general - but that...

  • News You're Getting Free Stuff in Destiny Later This Week

    Xurtainly something

    Stash of Strange Coins running a bit low? Need a few more Motes of Light? Nah, who are we kidding, no one needs more Motes of Light - but Bungie's giving them away all the same. On the 7th January, the developer's dishing out some goodies in Destiny to celebrate the new year. You'll be able to gather your 15 Strange Coins and 15...

  • News Infinity Ward Sounds Excited for Its Turn with Call of Duty in 2016

    Duty calls

    Phwoar, there's nothing like a vague tweet to get you hyped for an upcoming release. This time around, veteran Call of Duty developer Infinity Ward is hitting the hype train, writing that 2016 "is going to be incredible". For those out of the loop, this year should mark Infinity Ward's turn with Activision's mega franchise. The series is...

  • News Dynasty Warriors 9 Will Probably Be Announced This Year

    Here we go again

    Dynasty Warriors 8, the last main Dynasty Warriors title, released back in 2013, but even though its core has been expanded upon with the likes of Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends Compete Edition on PlayStation 4 and Dynasty Warriors 8: Empires, we honestly thought that we'd see an official reveal for the inevitable Dynasty...