About Derek Ex Machina

Hi! I'm Derek L.H., an editor, author, and game developer - and this is Derek Ex Machina, a blog and corner of the internet dedicated to exploring and celebrating video games, film, and storytelling.

I come from a creative writing background and bring with me an ultimate mission: to create stories that will change peoples’ lives. To accomplish such an ambition is not only to come up with and write stories, but also to appreciate and share the stories that have shaped us and informed our creative visions and worldviews. That’s what this blog is dedicated to - to intellectually engage with meaningful storytelling and discuss what can be learned from it for our own storytelling. My aim for this project is to write reviews, analyses, and essays of the media that have positively enriched my life and let you learn about why.

Derek Ex Machina is a project born of admiration for storytellers. My commitment is to honor the passion of creators to bring their stories to life by discussing. That said, I also want this to also be a fun space where we can have open discussions about media and what makes us admire stories, games, and movies.

Outside of this blog, I am currently writing a novel targeting publication in 2025 and am also beginning work on writing and developing an independent game. I’ve done a mix of technical writing, copywriting, and QA testing over the years and am aiming to work in the video game industry long-term.

My favorite video games are Role Playing Games - I specifically refer to myself as a JRPG enthusiast. I also love fighting games, platformers, and most of what Nintendo releases. My favorite game of all time is Xenoblade Chronicles X and some of my other favorite games include Xenoblade Chronicles, Xenoblade Chronicles 3, Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy IX, Persona 5 Royal, Tales of Arise, Tales of Symphonia, Shin Megami Tensei IV, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, and Bayonetta.

While I adore Role Playing Games, I also value diversifying my media diet and playing as many different types of games as possible. This also applies to the likes of movies, TV shows, anime, and books.

Some of my all-time favorite films include Interstellar, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Blade Runner 2049, Past Lives, Porco Rosso, and Castle in the Sky.