Fitzroy · Melbourne · Since 2019
Where Australian gamers slow down and level up.
NovaSprint.fun is an independent gaming blog run out of Smith Street, Fitzroy. We publish indie deep-dives, frame-perfect speedrun breakdowns and honest hardware reviews — no hype, no paid placements.
hand-tested on real hardware, every single week
- 480+
- Long-form articles
- 1,200+
- Speedruns analysed
- 94k
- Monthly readers
Our mission
Slow journalism for a fast medium.
We started NovaSprint in a share-house off Brunswick Street because the games we loved were getting five-word reviews. Today a small crew of four writers, one video editor and a rotating cast of community contributors spend real time with each game — often 20 to 40 hours — before a word goes live. We cover the Australian scene loudly: local studios, Melbourne meet-ups and the speedrun community that gathers at our Thursday nights.
- No paid reviews, no affiliate pressure
- Every score is backed by logged playtime
- Australian studios featured first
From the desk
Inside the NovaSprint studio
Snapshots from review sessions, community nights and the tangle of cables we call an office.
Review rig #2 mid-benchmark — 42 tabs of spreadsheets open.
What we cover
Six beats, reported properly.
Tap a topic to see how we approach it — and what a typical piece looks like.
Long-form features on Australian and international indies. Expect 2,500+ words, developer interviews and a spoiler-tagged second half. Recent subjects include a Melbourne-made metroidvania and a two-person roguelike from Perth.
Frame-by-frame analysis of record-setting runs, annotated route maps and interviews with the runners themselves. We time everything against the leaderboard splits so you can see exactly where the seconds go.
Controllers, handhelds, headsets and mechanical keyboards, bench-tested for two weeks minimum. We buy most units ourselves; anything on loan is disclosed in the first paragraph.
Practical shortlists priced in AUD for real budgets: 'Best handheld under AU$500', 'Starter sim-racing setup under AU$1,200'. Prices are checked against Australian retailers, not converted from US MSRP.
Recaps and previews of PAX Aus, Freeplay, and the smaller Fitzroy meet-ups. If a studio is hiring or a jam is running, you'll read about it here first.
Our community reading-and-playing group. Each month we pick one older title, play it together and publish a round-table. Membership is free; drop-ins welcome at the Smith Street desk.
Reader mail
Trusted by Australia's most stubborn gamers.
A few notes from the inbox and comments — lightly edited for length.
"Your Hades II speedrun breakdown saved me a genuine week of trial and error. The annotated route map is the single most useful thing I've read on this game."
"I bought the handheld you rated second, not first — because your guide was honest about the fan noise. That kind of nuance is why I actually trust these reviews."
"Came for the indie coverage, stayed for the Backlog Club. Finally finished Disco Elysium because a room full of strangers held me accountable."
"Thursday speedrun night is the best part of my week. NovaSprint feels less like a blog and more like a local you can actually walk into."
"The buyer's guides are priced in real Aussie dollars from real stores. Do you know how rare that is? No sneaky USD conversions."
"Their review of my studio's game was the fairest we got anywhere — praised what worked, and was specific about what didn't. That's all we ask."
Get in touch
Pitch a story, or just say hi.
Tips, review requests, Backlog Club sign-ups or event invites — the desk reads everything. Drop by Smith Street during open hours or send a note below.
Phone
+61 3 9419 8821Email
[email protected]Studio
57 Smith Street, Fitzroy VIC 3065
Open hours
Wed–Fri 11am–6pm · Thursday speedrun night from 7pm