Letter from the Dean: Welcome to Waypoint High School

Hey, hi, hello. I'm Austin Walker. You might know me as the editor-in-chief of Waypoint, VICE's website about video games and games culture. But for the next week, you can also think of me as the Dean of Waypoint High School.

What's Waypoint High School?  Well, normally it's around this time of the year that a site like ours takes a look back at the year to offer some sort of final evaluation. Some of our favorite sites use this opportunity to give recognition to the outstanding games that came out, to talk about some of the biggest stories in gaming, and to generally reminisce about the year we've had.

We wanted to do that too… but we also wanted to offer the Waypoint spin on it. So, instead of offering you list after list, we, uh, opened a fictional high school and made a yearbook.

Waypoint High School is where all of the rad game characters of 2016 went to class, developed crushes, and learned about the world outside. And now, those exiled princes, troubled clones, and cyber-samurai are graduating. Which means it's time for a yearbook!

Throughout this week, we'll be giving out senior superlatives to our favorite games, digging into the year's biggest trends and stories (by way of the clubs, teams, and extracurriculars of Waypoint High), and we are following our favorite characters through their adventures together via original art… and fanfic. Yes. That's happening.

None of this could've happened without my amazing staff, our incredible freelancers, and our unbelievably talented artists and designers. So if read an article or fit you love or see an illustration that knocks you off your feet, please reach out and tell the person responsible! Looking forward to seeing you all in 2017. Until then, remember the Waypoint High School Motto: "Vivete. Discite. Ludite." Live. Learn. Play

Header by Janine Hawkins.