The Outer Worlds 2 from Obsidian is set to be his inaugural first-party Xbox release, priced at $80 (£70). While the cost of games on the Nintendo Switch 2 is notably high, particularly as Sony’s PlayStation 5 titles have been trending in that direction, you might assume this development wouldn’t ignite a debate among gamers. Yet, it has. The increasing prices of video games continue to be a hot-button issue, especially with the ballooning budgets typically associated with blockbuster titles today. Nevertheless, Outer Worlds 2 promises a more expansive and intricate experience compared to its 2019 comedic sci-fi predecessor, and one could reasonably argue that the price reflects this enhanced value.
I thoroughly enjoyed the original Outer Worlds. It was vibrant with the signature dark humor expected from an Obsidian RPG (the studio behind Fallout: New Vegas). The lush, saturated universe filled with vibrant flora, bumbling activities, and eccentric characters provided joy for approximately 20 hours, although the combat left something to be desired.
According to game director Brandon Adler, Obsidian was aware that gunplay in the Outer Worlds required enhancements from the outset, especially when developing a sequel. “We valued this feedback, so we completely reassessed our approach,” he mentioned during an interview following the Outer Worlds 2 presentation in Los Angeles. “We also consulted with Hello. Everyone…they provided us with an extensive list of suggestions, advising us on what to target and how to improve our weapon analytics.”
Obsidian’s research has yielded impressive results. Not only are there more weapons to engage with in Outer Worlds 2, but they also feel rewarding to fire and offer a variety of combat tactics based on different encounters. A solid stealth approach allows players to sneak into enemy territory without a trace, should they choose to avoid confrontation. In the original game, firing was fun but could often lead to moments of disdain before entering into large battles. This has shifted in the sequel; I found enjoyment in every encounter, skillfully aiming and executing moves as I descended upon my targets.
“We didn’t want mere tweaks. Every weapon feels distinctly unique, each with its individual purpose,” Adler expresses. “You can take these weapons, apply mods, and create all sorts of imaginative combinations.”
The game also harnesses the capabilities of its upgraded engine (Unreal Engine 5) and modern hardware, making the world feel larger than before. For instance, entering a building no longer requires loading screens that could momentarily pull players out of the immersive experience. “These small details contribute significantly to the overall atmosphere,” Adler states. “Exploration is paramount for me; I want players to feel compelled to delve into this expansive universe, explore every avenue, and investigate even the tiniest features.”
Outer Worlds 2 promises a more expansive setting, refined combat mechanics, and an abundance of customization options, alongside its role-playing elements that can dramatically affect gameplay, including enhanced character perks and flaws. Although Adler refrained from commenting on the $80 price point, it is evident that this sequel stands on its own merit.
When Pragmata was unveiled five years ago, the specifics of what Resident Evil publisher Capcom was creating remained uncertain. The initial trailer presented an eerie, futuristic scene featuring an astronaut and a blonde girl, yet it offered little clarity on the game’s direction. The anticipated 2022 release slipped away, leading to a “pause indefinitely”, leaving many to wonder if Pragmata would actually launch in 2023.
Everything changed on June 4th, when a new trailer premiered during the PlayStation Showcase. The blonde girl is revealed to be a combat-ready android, teaming up with an astronaut named Hugh (naturally) amid an intense battle within a space station. The following weekend, I had the opportunity to play for about 20 minutes at the Summer Game Fest. Long, troubled development cycles are often a bad omen, yet my experience was surprisingly promising.
Pragmata opens with the astronaut Hugh Williams lying unconscious among metallic wreckage. A young girl dressed in an oversized blue jacket with long, flowing blonde hair (a peculiar choice, if I’m being honest) stumbles across Hugh while grappling with a large case nearby. After finally managing to topple it, she opens the case to reveal a device that emits the Lunafilament nanowave, which she uses to repair his suit.
We discover that they are located on a lunar space station, where a robotic security system mistakenly identifies Hugh as an intruder, leading to a confrontation. I was not prepared for how enjoyable the combat would be.
In Pragmata, the robotic enemies all possess robust shields, rendering Hugh’s arsenal (which can be expanded by locating various firearms in the environment) largely ineffective. Fortunately, the girl, now identified as Diana, has the ability to hack these foes, making them vulnerable—all while dodging attacks as she perches on Hugh’s shoulder.
To navigate the robots’ mainframe, you’ll need to use the face buttons on the controller to disarm their shields temporarily, reaching a green tile arranged in rows and columns. This must be done quickly, and while dodging their strikes, which often resulted in failed attempts and resets, creating a genuinely thrilling (and fun) battle scenario.
Hacking in Pragmata evokes the urgency of calling in a Stratagem in Helldivers 2, requiring swift yet deliberate button presses under intense pressure. Each gunfight becomes a moment of high tension: different robot types necessitate various hacking strategies, and they scatter in confusion once compromised. During my brief session with Pragmata, I encountered an array of opponents and weaponry.
Just as someone tapped me on the shoulder to signal the end of the demo, I found myself captivated by the combat (unfortunate timing just before the Big Boss showdown). Despite the protracted development period of over five years, the gameplay feels refreshingly new.
Pragmata is set to launch on Xbox, PlayStation, and PC in 2026.
Hong Kong authorities have issued a warning regarding mobile games created in Taiwan, labeling them as “separatist” and potentially leading to legal repercussions.
The game, Inverted Front: Bon Fire, allows players to “swear allegiance” to various groups associated with significant issues or targets in China, including Taiwan, Hong Kong, Tibet, Uyghur, Kazakhs, and Manchuria, with aims to “overthrow the communist regime,” referred to as the “People’s Republic.”
While some elements of the game’s narrative and place names are fictional, the website claims that it is a “non-fiction work” and that any resemblance to the PRC’s actual institutions, policies, or ethnic groups is “intentional.”
Players can also opt to “leave the Communists and defeat all enemies,” which has elicited strong reactions from authorities, including the Communist Party of China (CCP).
On Tuesday, Hong Kong police remarked that the inverted front “defines an armed revolution and promotes independence between Taiwan and Hong Kong,” criticizing the game.
Downloading the game may lead to accusations of possessing inflammatory materials, and in-app purchases could be construed as financially supporting a developer “for activities of secession or subversion,” the police noted.
Recommendations for the game could be seen as an “incitement to abdication.”
In this inverted worldview, the communists are portrayed as conquerors of surrounding regions, ruling with unprecedented cruelty as a colonial force, causing many to flee. Decades later, only Taiwan is depicted as “dodging lasting deterioration.”
The game prompts players to consider whether Taiwan can remain safe by avoiding provocations or whether “we should learn from the mistakes of the past 30 years that allowed today’s communists to grow into giants.”
In player descriptions, the game characterizes the communists as “heavy, reckless, and incompetent,” accusing them of “corruption, embezzlement, exploitation, genocide, and pollution.”
On its Facebook page, the developer, known as ESC Taiwan or Taiwan’s Overseas Strategic Communication Working Group (ESC), stated that it gained attention. On Wednesday, the game claimed it topped download charts in Hong Kong’s app store after a surge on Tuesday night.
“We recommend that users change the country or region of their Apple ID to successfully download the game.”
The developers have committed to not actively filtering or reviewing words or phrases in the game, addressing recent concerns about censorship in Chinese-created or related games. The location of ESC Taiwan remains undisclosed.
Police warnings regarding this game are part of a broader crackdown on democratic dissent in Hong Kong, where the CCP has tightened its grip on the city. In 2020, Beijing implemented national security laws in Hong Kong, with the city government’s approval, criminalizing widespread dissent.
Critics accuse the authorities of weaponizing these laws to target opposition voices, including activists, politicians, labor unions, journalists, media, and children’s literature.
As the protests surged in Los Angeles other areas of the city witnessed a collaborative gathering of gaming journalists and developers showcasing new games during the annual summer festival this week. The core issue remains advertising writes Correspondent Alyssa Mercante in her dispatch. .
Summer Game Fest (SGF), a yearly festival and marketing extravaganza based in Los Angeles, was initially established to rival the popular E3. After a few years, it has now taken its place. The 2025 event served as a thoughtful reminder of the significant shifts in the gaming industry since the pandemic. While E3 dominated the city’s convention center in downtown LA, SGF has taken a different route, nestled amid the fashion district and close to Skid Row. Few gaming companies participate, and public access is limited, with cosplaying mainly for marketing.
The highlight of the event was hosted by Geoff Keighley, a beloved figure in the gaming community, during a live show at YouTube Theatre near the airport, streamed to millions. Tickets were available for purchase. Some gaming enthusiasts and small content creators expressed that attending in person wasn’t worth the expense, as they could easily catch the lengthy stream online, leading to severe traffic congestion while leaving Inglewood.
This year’s event had its challenges, including a test gate crash, yet it felt like the most documented one ever. Participating in SGF is a luxury, but it also presents a chaotic blend of marathons and sprints. During brief intermissions, if you manage to snag one, you would gulp down canapés, wash them down with Red Bull, savor a surprisingly delightful gamer-branded ice cream, and attempt to jot down your thoughts.
Find your peace…urban jungle. Illustration: Kylyk Games/Assemble Entertainment
Throughout the weekend, I witnessed numerous games, many of which I can’t disclose, but once again, the standout titles were the indie games. These are memorable not just for their originality or quirkiness, but also because they typically impose fewer restrictions during play, allowing developers to be more open to inquiries, free from the pressure of a looming audience.
At 1 PM, I dove into a lively Media Indie Exchange party and was quickly captivated by Urban Jungle, a plant-themed game that resonated with my newfound interest in gardening. Arranging plants in an adorable little room provided a fleeting moment of tranquility amidst the bustle of people exploring various indie titles.
Then there was Petal Runner, a pixel-art RPG reminiscent of Pokémon titles from the Game Boy era. Published by IAM8bit and conceived by two individuals who connected through Instagram comments on Cyberpunk artwork, it’s a charming, non-violent RPG. Instead of the usual tactic of capturing cute creatures to make them fight, players help them find new homes and “calibrate” through a variety of retro mini-games. They then ride their bikes (inspired by the programmer’s love for Tron: Legacy) to deliver another pet. In just 15 minutes, its contemporary chiptune soundtrack, appealing color palette, and adorable creatures won me over.
On the other hand, ThickAs a Thief is a multiplayer stealth game. Developers mentioned aiming to create a multiplayer experience that steers clear of three “black holes”: shooters, PVP combat, and pure action gameplay. The result feels like a blend of Assassin’s Creed and Dishonored. Sneak through maps set against a dark early 1900s backdrop, infused with bursts of vibrant colors, while contending with other players and thwarting security and civilians in your path.
Slay your dragon… Monster Hunter now. Photo: Niant
I also had the chance to experience a new season of Monster Hunter Now from Niantic, the creators behind Pokémon Go. This augmented reality game immerses you in a real-world environment filled with Capcom’s iconic monster lore, streamlining epic battles into quick, minute-long skirmishes (compared to potentially hours in the main series). Additionally, I played a new four-player party game, Lego Party. Together with two other journalists, we joyously screamed as our Lego characters tumbled over one another during mini-games or fought for gold bricks in a race to the top. It was a blast, and we laughed heartily while enjoying this game we felt was needed to shake off the lethargy of the day.
Regardless of the size of the dev teams or variety in projects, every game I engaged with this weekend emanated boundless passion and creativity. This reflects the unwavering commitment that drives so many in this industry, paired with advancing technology that allows small teams (sometimes just one or two individuals) to craft beautiful and intricate games. Seeing fellow journalists and developers enthusiastic and wide-eyed was an adrenaline rush, especially as many of us grappled with job uncertainties, recent layoffs, or concerns about our futures.
Nonetheless, it was impossible to overlook the larger scenario unfolding in LA, which cast a somber shadow over this otherwise light-hearted weekend of gaming. Protests erupted in the city on Saturday, with citizens rallying against harsh, extremist anti-immigrant policies. The constant hum of helicopters served as an eerie soundtrack to the weekend. Many attendees, from within and beyond the state, were notably concerned about the mounting events. We exchanged updates in discreet conversations, whispered about the National Guard, and advised each other to travel in groups for safety. On Sunday night, countless journalists and developers were advised against leaving Downtown due to LAPD’s determination to contain the area and quell the protests.
On the concluding day of SGF, we pondered the strangeness of previewing video games amidst such politically charged times. Some shared tales of playing kickoff demonstrations featuring tanks and soldiers, only to suddenly hear the whir of helicopters overhead, sparking confusion about whether they were still immersed in a game or confronting reality. Alyssa Mercante
What to Play
Tension sci-fi…changes. Photo: 11-bit studio
From the creators of Frostpunk, It Will Be Changed is an intriguing sci-fi strategy game where a stranded space worker, Yang, generates clones of himself to assemble a team sufficient to escape an exoplanet before the approaching sun incinerates everything. The twist is that each clone embodies a different alternate universe incarnation of Yang, presenting unique challenges. Envision being trapped within a distant base solely with your altercations.
I initially presumed Alters would lean towards a comedic tone, occasionally light-hearted and amusing, but surprisingly, it seamlessly incorporates survival elements in Base Building. I certainly intend to engage with it further.
Available on: PC, PlayStation 5, Xbox Estimated playtime: 20-30 hours
What to Read
Fear…Resident Evil Requiem. Photo: Capcom
Keith and I tuned into a continuous stream while Alyssa covered the ground at the summer game fest showcase and trailer from the UK, evaluating the most intriguing games showcased.
The standout announcement was likely the new Xbox handheld, though its unveiling was shrouded in confusion. The ROG Xbox Ally X (why does Microsoft consistently botch nomenclature?) is an Xbox-branded variant of an existing portable PC model. Nonetheless, Alyssa was thrilled with its performance during her brief demonstration.
We were also deeply engaged in playtesting a plethora of gameplay on the Nintendo Switch 2. For reviews, Keith covered the console, while I focused on the flagship game, Mario Kart World.
What to Click
Question Block
While the guest issue remains ambiguous this week, as always, if you have any queries or feedback regarding the newsletter, feel free to hit reply or reach us at buttons@theguardian.com.
The ninth major entry in the survival horror franchise returns us to the ruins of Raccoon City, mixing cinematic action with psychological terror. The story focuses on FBI agent Grace Ashcroft, but how will she fit into this iconic series?
The newest project from Sega’s Ryugotoku Studio, known for Yakuza, is a historic action-adventure set in early 21st-century Japan. The team offers a compelling mix of shadowy detectives, street gangs, and jazz music.
An exciting collaboration: James Bond teams up with the creators of the Hitman series for a reimagined adventure that focuses on Bond’s origins and legends. Featuring globe-trotting espionage, stealth, and gadgets, it is an exhilarating video game reminiscent of Goldeneye.
Players of this charming rural life simulation will step into the shoes of garden magicians exploring the shadowy aspects of their village. Developed by Failbetter, known for narrative-driven games like Sunless Sea, the team is developing something truly unique here.
Big Walk
A Big Walk. Photo: House House
Australian developers House House, known for their surprise hit Untitled Goose Game, now present players with bird-like creatures embarking on a quirky co-op adventure in an island filled with whimsical puzzles. A nostalgic experience reminiscent of 1970s children’s animation.
A surprising twist comes from Game Freak, the creators of Pokémon, presenting a dark, post-apocalyptic action-adventure in a ravaged Japan threatened by machines and monsters. Players use flora as weapons alongside their loyal dog companions in a captivating narrative experience.
Dosadiva
Dosadiva. Photo: Outer Loop Games
The Outer Loop team, creators of Thirsty Suitor, brings us a vibrant sci-fi narrative where two sisters take a stand against malevolent corporations by cooking real meals for their community. Expect a blend of spices and heartfelt tales.
Blippo+
Blippo+. Photo: Panic
Not exactly a game but rather a peculiar TV simulator, Blippo+ invites players to surf through bizarre alien broadcasting networks filled with surreal soap operas and glitchy FMV experiences. The question remains: does the outlaws of the Hypnotic Universe meet Radio Time? Absolutely, bring it on.
Did you ever think there would be a mashup of Muppets and Mike Tyson Punch-Out? Well, now you can! At the Summer Game Fest, new developer Sans Strings Studio showcases the power of Unreal Engine 5 to bring forth this surreal boxing adventure, aptly named for the absurdity it represents.
Paralives
Paralives. Photo: Paralives Studio
Following the success of Inzoi, players will engage in a single-player life simulation filled with customization options without the need for DLC. With ample opportunities to interact with characters and their beloved pets, it’s set to offer a rich experience.
A Steampunk adventure crafted by the team behind Wasteland and Saints Row, this title features a dystopian city where residents enhance themselves with clockwork body parts. Intriguing elements reminiscent of Bioshock raise the stakes!
Persona 4 Revival
Persona 4 Revival. Photo: Atlus
In an exciting announcement, Atlus confirmed the remake of the iconic 2008 role-playing adventure filled with occult rituals and chilling murders in rural Japan. Further details remain scarce, but the anticipation is palpable.
Inheriting a creaky old hotel, you’ll spend 30 days solving puzzles and renovating while navigating its labyrinthine corridors. Mixing creepy adventures with refurbishment elements, this game was a standout moment at the Xbox showcase.
Keeper
Keeper Photo: Double Fine
Created by the developers of Psychonauts, this quirky new game allows players to control anthropomorphized lighthouses exploring coastal areas accompanied by seabird companions. What intriguing concoction drives this studio?
Everything Will Rise
Everything Will Rise. Photo: Speculative Agency
The gaming world may not need another deck-building strategy game—unless it’s a courtroom drama where environmentalists are suing corrupt billionaires over river pollution. It’s a timely narrative crafted by an Amsterdam-based studio.
tOne intriguing aspect of the console launch is the element of surprise in the first batch of games. Who could have guessed that the standout title for PlayStation would be Fireworks Simulation (Fantavision), or that the most entertaining offering in the inaugural GameCube lineup would involve racing with gigantic, transparent gloves (Super Monkey Balls)?
The most recent addition to this mix is Konami’s Survival Kids, the sole new third-party title in the Switch 2 Opening Wave. This latest entry in the cult series of Tropical Island Survival Sims by the publisher originates from Game Boy Color and was revised for the Nintendo DS under a new moniker, despite not achieving widespread international success. Players, in groups of up to four, find themselves marooned on a mystical archipelago, requiring them to gather resources, craft tools, locate food, and explore vibrant cartoon landscapes. While four players can join online, the game also supports game sharing on Switch 2, allowing one owner to connect wirelessly with others and play together.
A vibrant, manga-style setting… it’s still from Survival Kids.
Photo: Konami Digital Entertainment
Andrew Dennison, the head of game developer Unity, considers this feature to be one of the key highlights of Switch 2. “With Splitscreen, a single console renders two different game views,” he explains. “With GameShare, one view can be compressed and streamed. It renders everything three times and transmits it to the other consoles. As long as you understand the specifications of the technology, the advantages of GameShare are enjoyable. You don’t have to own the game to play.”
In contrast to survival games like Don’t Starve or Project Zomboid (or even Lost in Blue), Survival Kids does not impose lethal consequences. Although a shortage of food will slow your progress, you won’t actually starve to death. If you perish, you simply respawn nearby. “We wanted to ensure the game is enjoyable for players of all skill levels,” Dennison adds. “It’s a balancing act. I don’t want to bore experienced gamers, but I aim to streamline challenges without oversimplifying them to the point of being irrelevant.” Due to a strict NDA surrounding Switch 2 hardware, developers had limited access to external testers, resulting in Dennison testing the game within his niece and finance department.
Collaboration is key… Survival Kids
Photo: Konami Digital Entertainment
Crafting tools plays a vital role. By combining vines and sticks, players can create a fishing rod for useful items. Building an umbrella allows navigation across wide canyons. There’s no cumbersome item management; players can simply retrieve what they need from a magical spit bucket. All tools are organized in Basecamp rather than menus, allowing easy access to essentials.
Much like Overcooked, Survival Kids emphasizes streamlined cooperation and well-split tasks. It’s quicker for two individuals to chop wood and break rocks, thus establishing a labor team. Meanwhile, a culinary expert is essential for gathering plants and preparing food, which fuels the energy required for climbing cliffs and transporting heavy items. “We’ve put a lot of effort into enhancing our customer experience,” remarks Richard Jones, creative director at Konami Digital Entertainment. “This is how Basecamp functions as a communal spot. It’s essentially a shared kitchen.”
Unlike many contemporary survival sims, Survival Kids is not entirely open-ended. The objective is to explore multiple islands, providing a sense of an escape room. Players can also revisit levels for extra attempts. Despite its family-friendly appearance, the game features intriguing, challenging physics-based puzzles with various solutions. Additionally, it maintains a playful tone and humor. This is likely due to the fact that many developers at Dennison and Unity’s Stratford-Upon-Avon office previously came from Codemasters and Rare.
Will Konami bring more classic titles to Switch 2? “I know there are other Konami teams that are keen on this platform, and we can support them,” says Jones. “I’m keeping my fingers crossed for at least two more projects from Konami.” For now, Survival Kids appears to be an excellent pilot for family game sharing on the new console.
This year’s unexpected gem, Blue Prince, is a true marvel in the realm of video games. It features an architectural puzzle set within the enchanting mansion inherited from quirky relatives. The estate is brimming with mysteries, allowing you to choose from various rooms each time you reach a door. The game delves into the dynamics of the house and our existence, evoking feelings of nostalgia and melancholy, making our surroundings appear more austere.
Edison Mansion, Maniac Mansion
Photo: Lucasfilm Games
This Addams Family-inspired Queen Anne mansion boasts a sharp façade and ominous windows. Skywalker Ranch adds an intriguing twist to this early LucasArts adventure, where strange occurrences keep you on your toes, and the demons you encounter reveal unexpected charm. While it may not be the ideal living situation, the residents make for unforgettable neighbors.
Spencer Mansion, Resident Evil
Photo: Capcom
Nestled amidst the ominous Arkray Mountains by Raccoon City, the Spencer Mansion resembles what might happen if a movie villain dabbled in architecture. This expansive estate features Second Empire Style elements with oil paintings, vintage furniture, and beautifully concealed rooms. However, prospective buyers should be aware that it is essentially a sprawling trap filled with menacing puzzles and creatures.
Finch House, What Remains of Edith Finch
Photo: Giant Sparrow
Inspired by the Alaska Goose Creek Tower, Finch House serves as a tribute to the tragic family that once resided there, which is why the bedroom feels like a sealed museum. The chaotic stack of floors creates an ambiance reminiscent of navigating a pop-up book. Living here may seem appealing, but you’ll need a sturdy support for every step. On the bright side, the bookshelves are loaded with classics like Gravity’s Rainbow, Slaughterhouse-Five, and House of Leaves, perfect for indulging in postmodern literature.
Jetset Willy, Mansion
Photo: YouTube
Among the most remarkable video game homes, this peculiar mansion finds itself in disarray after indulging in a potent drink. The rooms evoke the dizzying sensation of a hangover, with chaotic elements like stomped boots and a toilet seat in disarray. The beauty of this iconic platformer lies in its blend of domesticity and surreal horror, where boundless bedrooms and an ominous fridge heighten the surreal experience. Intriguingly, there’s even an entrance to Hades within the floor plan.
Island Cottage, Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Photo: Nintendo
Nintendo’s dreamlike examination of capitalism approaches the essence of a dollhouse for adults, encouraging players to personalize their own living spaces. Beyond selecting wallpaper and incorporating indoor plants, you can even fill the atmosphere with music played by local animals. While this may seem whimsical, the pressure to meticulously curate one’s environment represents a middle-aged inclination, highlighting a reality where one cannot access such a home without being tethered to a hefty mortgage.
Snow Peak Ruins, Zelda: Twilight Princess
Photo: Nintendo
What’s your favorite Zelda dungeon? The charmingly snowy ruins can be considered the most beloved aspect of Twilight Princess, despite the game boasting superior puzzles and greater rewards for defeating adversaries. This warm refuge among the mountains stands out as the coziest space in the series, with a welcoming contrast to the frigid outdoors, enhanced by the presence of two gentle yetis who tend to a bubbling pot of stew.
Croft Manor, Tomb Raider
Photo: Square Enix
Lara Croft’s Country House initially served as a tutorial zone, but it quickly developed into a distinctive aspect of the series. Croft is not merely an acrobat but an enigma. Her abode features strangely proportioned rooms, characteristic of PS1 titles when they ventured indoors, alongside a hedge maze and even a gym. Interestingly, Croft has a dedicated room for her harpsichord, and her eternal butler, weary and trapped, makes for an amusing addition.
Luigi’s Mansion
Photo: Nintendo
Luigi’s Mansion stands as the first game to reveal the personalities of Nintendo’s plumbers. Interestingly, this is not solely because they traverse vibrant, whimsical realms, but because Luigi confronts the mundane chaos of domestic life. Although the mansion is teeming with ghosts, it retains the charm of bookshelves, rich carpets, ornate lighting, and a suitably-sized kitchen, making it the ideal refuge amidst the hustle of the Mario universe, encapsulating a serene representation of a singular location.
Lighthouse, Beyond Good and Evil
Photo: Mobygames
Jade, a photojournalist rather than a soldier, embarks on an adventure in a fantasy realm reminiscent of Europe instead of the US or Japan. Instead of conventional mansions or high-tech bases, she calls a lighthouse home along the foggy coast of a tranquil water world. This lighthouse serves as both a refuge and an orphanage, and it’s delightful to uncover the intricate details incorporated by the designers, from playful chaos in Jad’s living quarters to crayon artworks.
Botany Manor
Photo: White Thorn Game
Players are drawn into the charm of Botany Manor through engaging puzzles, focusing on identifying the right conditions for various flowers to thrive. However, the beauty of the surroundings ensures that players linger until the game reaches its conclusion. The setting resonates with the elegance of early 20th-century England, situated somewhere between the worlds of Jeeves and Flora Poste, with colors and calmness evoking a sense of tranquility amidst the quirky pottery decorating the cliffs.
Carnovas Estate, Phantasmagoria
Photo: Sierra
When novelist Adrian Delaney retreats to this secluded New England estate for inspiration, she revels in grand fireplaces, maze-like corridors, and real Gothic chapels. However, her enthusiasm wanes upon discovering the sinister presence looming over the estate, intent on dispatching her, resident by resident. Heavily influenced by the genius of Edgar Allan Poe, adventure designer Roberta Williams crafted this mansion into the epitome of gore and scattered horror—a must-see for fans of the genre.
While the Cannes Film Festival is typically not linked to video games, this year it hosts a unique collaboration. “Lili” is a joint project created by the New York-based game studio Ink Story, known for 1979 Revolution: Black Friday, which explores the narrative of Iranian photojournalists as well as a modern adaptation of Macbeth presented by the Royal Shakespeare Company.
“It’s an incredible opportunity to have my first video game experience showcased at Cannes,” shares Vasiliki Honsari, co-founder of Ink Story. “People often say they aren’t familiar with gaming and may only give it a quick try. However, once they engage, you can sense their growth in empowerment within the film industry.”
Although the Cannes Festival’s immersive competition launched in 2024, the lineup rarely features traditional video games. “VR films and projection mapping are central to this initiative,” explains Navid Khonsari, Vassiliki’s husband and another co-founder of Ink Story. Nonetheless, “Lili” integrates live-action sequences with gaming mechanics, similar to titles like *Lies* and *Immortality*. The lead, Zar Amir Ebrahimi, previously won the Best Actress award at Cannes three years ago.
Centered around the character of Mrs. Macbeth, Lili portrays her as the determined wife of a Basij officer (a paramilitary volunteer group within Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard). Much like the original play, she plots a murder to elevate her husband’s position. “What fascinates us is Lady Macbeth’s manipulative nature,” Navid explains.
“Her societal limitations based on gender compelled her to strive for a leadership role,” he adds. “Had she been a man, she could have become one of the greatest kings, but as a woman, she had to navigate a restrictive system. Our character Lili shares this experience.”
Players take on the role of a member of Hecateb, a group of hackers allied with Macbeth’s witches. You access Lili’s cellphone and computer while keeping an eye on her via a CCTV camera in her home. Key themes include surveillance and censorship. At one point, Lili attempts to view a YouTube Makeup Tutorial but is thwarted by the state firewall. This unpleasant voyeuristic dynamic is intentional. “We all participate in the problem of surveillance, looking and spying on one another,” comments Navid.
“She’s suffocating beneath the various masks she wears”… Zal Amir Ebrahimi from Lili. Photo: Ellie Smith
You can help her bypass these barriers, leading to a memorable scene where she wraps her head in cling film before applying eyeliner and lipstick. “This makeup ritual symbolizes her attempts to adapt to a world where she cannot express her identity,” Vassiliki points out. “We’ve highlighted the multiple layers of masks she bears, portraying the choking nature of her existence.”
Set for release in late 2026, Lili may eventually transform into a theatrical production, according to RSC’s Saraelis. Navid mentions plans for a film adaptation, utilizing some of the same footage from the game. This indicates an increasingly blurred line between gaming, cinema, and theatre, and it’s unlikely that this will be the last project the RSC takes on with gaming.
“I’ve always been intrigued by the intersection of games and theatre,” remarks Ellis, who initially proposed the collaboration to Ink Story. “We collaborated with top Shakespeare scholars. Professor Emma Smith from Oxford was instrumental in the dramaturgy of this project,” notes Ellis. Smith believes that if Shakespeare were alive today, he would be writing for games; Ellis concurs, emphasizing, “He was an innovator.”
Last week was a challenging period for video game journalism. Two key figures from the veteran site Giant Bomb, Jeff Grubb and Mike Minotti, announced their exit after the recent removal of a particular podcast episode. The 888th installment of the Giant Bombcast reportedly included the section on new brand guidelines, which has since been withdrawn from public access. Just days later, it was revealed that the prominent US site Polygon is set to be sold to Valnet, the parent company of Screen Rant and Game Rant. Consequently, job losses are expected. This follows the 2024 sale of Reedpop, which included four major UK gaming sites: Eurogamer, GamesIndustry.biz, Rock Paper Shotgun, and VG247. Redundancies have been rampant.
It’s disheartening to witness such long-standing platforms, known for their substantial audiences and solid reputations, being handled like mere commodities. Regarding the sale of Polygon, Vox CEO Jim Bankoff stated: “This transaction lets us focus our efforts and investments on other key growth areas in our portfolio.” Honestly, it feels disconcerting to see a decade of progressive gaming discourse turned into off-the-shelf assets. Valnet claimed: “Polygon is set to achieve new editorial standards through dedicated investment and innovation.” However, one must wonder how this will transpire with a significantly downsized team.
Undoubtedly, corporate press releases and the familiar robotic jargon from industry pundits have not quelled the anger and skepticism surrounding these exits. Writing for Aftermath, journalist Nathan Grayson remarked: “While Polygon’s traffic may have been less than stellar, Giant Bomb had a dedicated listener base thanks to its unique blend of personalities. One has to question whether any of the CEOs involved in these transactions have ever listened to a podcast that isn’t focused on maximizing shareholder value.
Jim Bankoff, CEO of VOX Media, captured at the 2022 Code Conference. Photo: Jerod Harris/Getty Images from Vox Media
Video game journalism has long been a precarious balancing act amid various commercial pressures. In the early days of gaming magazines, advertising revenue often came from the very companies whose products were scrutinized by the press. Throughout my tenure as a magazine editor, I witnessed advertisers withdraw their support following unfavorable critiques of their products. Yielding to such pressures jeopardizes the trust of our readership, which is our most valuable asset. While publishers may have significant influence, losing audience trust could lead to their downfall.
As these magazines transitioned to websites, advertising remained a crucial revenue source. Today, the landscape is more complex; with influencers on platforms like Twitch and YouTube emerging, the industry appears less reliant on dedicated gaming journalism sites. It seems that companies looking to acquire gaming sites are focused more on brand names than on the creative, experienced teams behind them. Recent investigations revealed that Valnet was accused of turning acquired properties into mere content mills focused on “SEO Bait.” Valnet hasSince been involved in legal disputes regarding this issue.
As gaming evolves into a live service sector with billions of paying customers, journalism’s compensation rates have stagnated.
The current tech landscape seems to reward the mechanization of creativity. Unquantifiable and costly, human insight is often perceived as an obstacle to streamlined growth and market penetration. While AI gains traction, one might wonder if automating content generation for video game walkthroughs, produced in milliseconds, could suffice.
The catch, however, is that writing game walkthroughs is labor-intensive and requires skillful gameplay, adept interpretation, and the capacity to foresee player needs. Reviews are inherently subjective, influenced by personal experiences. Podcasts offer a friendly chat-like atmosphere. Top-tier gaming journalism elucidates the industry while uncovering issues that might otherwise be obscured. Those who excel in this arena have years of gameplay, writing, and inquiry experience; they understand gamers’ thoughts.
This dilemma resonates across all artistic mediums, from film to music. Tech moguls anticipate that their brand acquisitions will engage audiences, expecting passive consumers to absorb whatever is presented. However, it’s not mindless content we seek, but innovative ideas and craft. Fortunately, independent sites are emerging at an impressive rate, such as the UK-based VGC and the US-based Aftermath, both of which are building substantial followings. While audiences may be deceived temporarily, it’s increasingly apparent that poorly staffed digital content machines can only churn out secondhand ideas, hoping that the hollow echoes of lost credibility will withstand the test of time.
What to Play
Fear With Highrook is both terrifying and fascinating. Photo: Nullpointer Game
Each month, I review twelve indie video games that experiment with collectible card battle mechanics reminiscent of Magic The Gathering and Yu-Gi-Oh. One standout is Fear With Highrook, where a group of explorers delves into a haunted mansion to uncover the fate of a missing nobleman’s family. The game features a challenging world akin to a complex board game, combining item discovery with skill card upgrades for character enhancement. Drawing inspiration from Poe and Lovecraft, it offers a beautifully crafted experience filled with ideas and arcane treasures for aficionados of both space and Gothic horror.
Available on: PC Estimated playtime: Over 10 hours
What to Read
Lucia Caminos, co-protagonist of Grand Theft Auto VI. Photo: Rockstar Game
Fraud has plagued video gaming since its inception, impacting countless players in online multiplayer shooters. Explore this feature detailing Riot Games’ battle against cheaters in League of Legends and beyond, highlighting the ongoing struggle between developers and hackers.
Many exceptional video games have been on the brink of disaster due to poor design choices during development. An extensive interview with former Sony President Yoshida reveals how he salvaged Gran Turismo by advocating for playable non-racing characters.
Although I adore video games, many modern tech products cultivate their own myths and folklore. This BBC feature explores fascinating cases, like Ben owned – the story behind the haunted N64 cartridge that captivated gaming forums in 2010.
After finishing your read, check out Rockstar’s latest teaser for the upcoming Grand Theft Auto VI. A recent trailer has emerged alongside new screenshots and details about key characters Jason and Lucia, hinting at the game’s delays until May 2026.
Limited options exist… the gaming scene is grappling with breakthroughs in VR like The Meta Quest. Photo: Meta Connect/AFP/Getty Images
This week’s question comes from Guy Bailey who reached out to me via Blue Sky:
“I’m a fan of sim racing in VR, while my son loves Vrchat and the friendships formed within various worlds. Half-Life Alyx is a phenomenal experience, and most individuals who try VR rave about it. Is this the peak of VR?”
This query has lingered in the VR community since the Oculus Quest launched in 2019, which was meant to rejuvenate modern VR. While over 20 million Quest headsets and 5 million PlayStation VR sets have been sold, we are not collectively spending substantial time in virtual environments.
Several factors contribute to this trend. Motion sickness is one culprit—many individuals (particularly women, as outlined in studies) experience nausea after even brief usage. Regardless of how engaging the software, discomfort can prevent enjoyment. There are also neurological and physiological discrepancies when we navigate visual settings that conflict with our bodily sensations. We’ve all seen humorous videos featuring gamers colliding with walls while lost in VR.
Moreover, VR can make us feel exposed and awkward, particularly when wearing a bulky headset at home. Such elements likely explain why companies like Apple are favoring augmented reality over intensive virtual experiences. Thus far, their approach hasn’t succeeded in establishing a consumer-centric platform.
In most instances, the content available isn’t enticing enough for general audiences. It’s a cliché, but the fact remains: there’s no definitive “killer app.” I’ve got a PlayStation VR headset that’s gathering dust, while my sons only occasionally engage with the Meta Quest 3. Their favorite experiences are often limited to brief sessions.
For many of us, VR needs to evolve to engage our senses—touch, taste, and smell.
If you have a topic you’d like to discuss or a question for the newsletter, please reach out to me at pushingbuttons@theguardian.com
when game designer and entrepreneur Henk Rogers first encountered Tetris at the 1988 Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show, he immediately recognized its uniqueness. “It was just the perfect game,” he reflects. “It appeared very simple yet was fundamentally captivating, making me want to play it repeatedly. There had never been a demo for a game I hadn’t experienced before.”
Rogers is now a co-owner of the Tetris Company, which oversees and licenses the Tetris brand. Over three decades, he has gained fame equivalent to that of the game itself. The intrigue surrounding his acquisition of distribution rights from the Russian agency Elektronorgtechnica (Elorg) has been transformed into a dramatic Apple TV+ film featuring Taron Egerton. “I suggested that either Johnny Depp or Keanu Reeves should portray me, but it seems they were too old,” says Rogers.
Upon reading the script, casting was only one of his concerns. “It was appalling. I was clueless about how the script would translate into a film. It felt like a disaster… a car chase?”
Induces trance… Nintendo’s Game Boy Tetris. Photo: Graeme Robertson/The Guardian
However, during his pivotal journey to Russia in 1988, nothing could be more daunting than the KGB interrogation awaiting Rogers. Tetris has since become one of the most successful video games in history, selling over 520 million copies, although it was originally conceived by Alexei Pajitnov. This collection of mind-bending tetrominos was on the verge of being kept behind the Iron Curtain, confined to the Soviet regime.
Fortunately, a complex web of international rights agreements among multiple companies, including Robert Maxwell’s Mirrorsoft, ultimately led the Dutch Rogers, residing in Japan, to forge deals for handhelds. On his arrival in Moscow with a tourist visa, the KGB scrutinized Rogers closely. He managed to enter the state-owned enterprise Elorg, which held a monopoly on all Soviet-produced computer software. Upon meeting the mysterious coder behind this mesmerizing game, Rogers quickly realized he had been misled. The rights to Tetris had been “sold” without Russia’s knowledge, much to the displeasure of the Soviets.
“I was in a room with seven individuals, some of whom were KGB operatives, subjected to intense questioning for hours, like, ‘Who is entering the Soviet Union?'” recounts Rogers. It was there he first crossed paths with Pajitnov. “Alexei was initially skeptical of me because he had encountered other individuals seeking Tetris’ rights before. He perceived them all as slimy capitalists wanting to make a quick buck.” The film’s portrayal of this encounter stays true to reality, complete with tense interrogation scenes and KGB surveillance matching Rogers’ account.
“Once he learned I was a game designer, Alexei’s demeanor shifted entirely,” remembers Rogers. “Alexei had never met a game designer before… in the Soviet Union, there was no gaming industry, so game design was merely a side project amidst other work.”
Pajitnov in 1989. Photo: SIPA Press/Rex Features
Curious about another enthusiast, Alexei discreetly requested that Rogers find him post-meeting. The KGB monitored their every move, sensing the potential worth of the deal, and Rogers was acutely aware of the risks involved. “As a foreigner, I had to tread carefully. So, I waited by the door downstairs, took him to my room in the dead of night, and quietly showcased my version of Tetris.”
Rogers and Pajitnov have remained friends ever since, establishing the Tetris Company in 1996 after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the sale of Elorg’s shares. Until that moment, Pajitnov had not seen any financial reward from the game.
The 2023 film did take some creative liberties (“I was perturbed about events that didn’t transpire in the film, like not witnessing my daughter sing at her recital. It premiered in theaters, and although the audience was particularly discerning, they cheered when they first glimpsed the boy in the game. Together, we received the most enthusiastic standing ovation from the crowd).
However, keen to share the deeper narratives of his journey, Rogers has just published a book titled Perfect Game: Tetris, Love from Russia. This work offers an introspective look at the events that brought Pajitnov’s creation to the world, frequently accompanied by mild corrections to errors, infused with fond memories from Pajitnov.
Pajitnov, Rogers, and Nintendo’s Mountain Village Forest at the company headquarters in Kyoto, Japan Photo: Nintendo Company Limited
The film underscores Rogers’ undeniable charisma and business acumen while somewhat underplaying his significance as a game developer. While living in Japan in 1983, he founded Bullet-Proof Software and created the impactful role-playing game The Black Onyx, which introduced an iconic health bar and introduced the RPG genre to Japanese audiences. The game’s manual was authored by Kenyō Suzuki, who later became the president of Squaresoft, the creators of the Final Fantasy series. The influence of Black Onyx extended even to the legendary Nintendo designer Miyamoto, who remarked that it inspired him to create Zelda.
Is it peculiar that Rogers’ narrative sometimes eclipses that of Pajitnov, the original creator of Tetris? “Alexei and I serve very different roles,” responds Rogers. “In narrating my part of the story, he wouldn’t undertake the same role. He is more introverted. If given the platform, he’d prefer to sit in a room and delve into mathematical discussions.”
“We created it in the desert”… the Tetris effect (2019). Photo: Enhance Games
New iterations of Tetris emerge every few years, with the 2019 psychedelic Tetris effect being a notable recent highlight, developed by Mizuguchi Tatsuya, the creator of the Dreamcast classic Rez. “Gucci — that’s what we call him — is a good friend,” Rogers shares. “We attended Burning Man together, where we redefined the Tetris effect in the desert, creating Tetris in VR and built that product.”
While Rogers still revels in the game (“Minecraft has truly done something innovative”), his priorities have shifted after experiencing a fatal heart attack in 2005. “I’ve wrapped up publishing the game,” he states. “I fully understand the labor involved, the finances required, and how much my heart needs to be committed. Now, my focus is combating climate change.”
Residing in Hawaii, Rogers has spent the last 20 years advocating for the island nation to commit to clean energy by 2030 through his Blue Planet Foundation. If anyone can save our planet, it’s the man who outsmarted Maxwell, evaded the KGB, and brought first the iconic blocks to life.
O Over the last ten years, Dean has built a robust collection of video games, ranging from mainstream blockbusters to niche favorites. His digital library is akin to a cinematic treasure trove, allowing instant access with a simple click. Yet, his son, Sam, has set his sights on just one game: Roblox. This expansive virtual universe and video game, Roblox is the leading title worldwide.
The company reports over 97 million daily active users on Roblox, with around 40% of them, like Sam, aged under 13. In 2024, Roblox generated approximately $5.6 billion (US$3.6 billion) in revenue, mainly from purchases of “Robux,” a form of in-game currency, with the average user spending about $25 a month.
Amid concerns about children’s exposure to bullying and inappropriate content, a recent report highlights the impacts of game monetization on young users.
Experts argue that Australia’s current classification system does not adequately assist child gamers and their parents in navigating the tricky monetization landscape.
New reports from Australian researchers scrutinize the manipulative “dark design patterns” in gaming that encourage spending and confuse children with unclear cryptocurrency transactions.
One recent report from Monash University and the Center for Consumer Policy Research (CPRC) focused on players aged 18 and older, revealing that games designed with dark patterns are almost unavoidable. Of the 800 surveyed, 83% reported “negative effects” from these designs, and 46% faced economic disadvantages, feeling pressured to purchase items and overspending.
Another recent study from University of Sydney researchers sought to understand how children, who represent one-fifth of the gaming population, recognize these mechanisms and perceive the design of video games.
“Concerns about children’s interaction with digital media often lead to panic and policy decisions that overlook the actual experiences of children,” states Taylor Hardwick, lead author of the study.
Hardwick and her team interviewed 22 children aged 7 to 14 and their parents. Each child received a $20 debit card and was instructed to explain their purchases.
Among the 22 children, 18 played Roblox, with 12 spending their entire $20 on Robux. The remaining five used the funds on other games like Call of Duty, Fallout 76, and Minecraft.
Participants expressed concerns about being misunderstood and frustrated by their purchases, especially if they suddenly lost access to their accounts or items.
Sam’s father shared that Sam has spent around $400 a year on Roblox over the past four years, with a recent purchase leaving him disheartened.
Sam had used some of his Robux to buy Godzilla “skins” (digital costumes) in a popular Roblox game called Monster Universe. However, upon logging in, he found his skin had vanished unexpectedly after the game was shut down by Toho, the copyright holder. He did not receive a refund from Roblox.
One major concern raised by Sydney researchers is the impact of “random reward mechanisms” (RRMs) on children. RRMs, like loot boxes, offer players mystery items through lottery-style draws.
While children in this study accepted RRMs as part of gaming, many expressed dissatisfaction with them.
“Even if children talk about game percentages in slang, they don’t entirely grasp the risks of navigating these digital experiences,” the authors note. “Gambling-like mechanisms such as RRMs are harmful and inappropriate for children’s games.”
Recommendations include eliminating RRMs, simplifying refund processes, enhancing account protections for children, and improving transparency regarding cryptocurrency.
Christopher Ferguson, a psychologist at Stetson University, found the study interesting but highlighted the small sample size and questioned the researchers’ definition of “harm.” He argued that while children may feel deceived, the monetization aspects could be more annoying than harmful.
“It’s encouraging that researchers are inquiring about children’s perspectives on their experiences,” he said.
A USTRALIA has attempted to shield children from monetized RRMs by introducing a new classification system that was implemented in September 2024. Currently, games containing RRMs or loot boxes are not recommended for those under 15.
However, these new regulations apply only to newly classified games, and pre-existing games are not required to update their classifications.
Leon Xiao, a researcher from City University of Hong Kong studying loot box regulation, states that Australia faces implementation issues rather than legal ones. He argues that several video games were misrated after the new law came into effect, indicating flaws in consumer education.
A preliminary study by Marcus Carter, co-author of the University of Sydney research, suggests that about 20% of the top 100 grossing mobile games on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store do not comply with Australian regulations. Hardwick and Carter recently noted that Australia’s guidelines “do not fulfill their intended purpose.”
Roblox, with its extensive user-generated content, exemplifies the confusion surrounding ratings. Xiao argues, “Roblox should either be rated or not recommended for players under 15.” However, the game is rated PG on the Google Play Store.
In contrast, Apple’s App Store lists a regional age rating of over 15 years, which aligns with global ratings from Apple that set the limit at 12.
A Roblox spokesperson informed Guardian Australia that developers must use the PolicyService API to comply with jurisdictional requirements, ensuring access only for eligible users with paid random items. Due to an update rolled out to developers in September 2024, paid random items are currently unavailable to users in Australia.
“As a platform for user-generated content, we provide developers with tools, information, and guidelines applicable to various gameplay aspects within games and experiences.
“We are committed to addressing reported content that fails to adhere to guidelines or does not effectively use tools necessary to meet Australia’s local compliance requirements.”
The company strives to inform parents about their children’s purchasing habits, does not store billing information as defaults, and fails to give warnings that real money is being spent during initial transactions. Parents are also alerted via emails regarding high spending activity.
“Our parental controls enable parents and caregivers to receive notifications about their child’s spending on Roblox and set monthly spending limits for their accounts,” said the spokesperson.
Hardwick believes navigating monetization is challenging for parents, who are often busy, informed, and lack resources. She feels they aren’t equipped to manage children’s in-game spending effectively.
Dean is making every effort to guide Sam through these trends, discussing what Sam spends Robux on and why. While Dean acknowledges Sam’s disappointment over the Godzilla skin, he has encouraged Sam to explore a gardening game where he can utilize Robux to purchase new species.
o
I’ve been tidying up my attic for the past few weeks, primarily to ensure its contents don’t collapse the ceiling. However, I have a side quest. My most treasured possession at age 12 was the Casio GD-8 car race watch. This digital timepiece featured built-in racing games on a small monochrome LCD screen. The two large buttons on the front allowed players to maneuver left and right to dodge oncoming vehicles, keeping the game alive for as long as possible. I lost count of how many times it was confiscated by teachers, as I often lent it to the toughest boy in class for protection against bullies. As a socially awkward nerd, this watch was crucial for my survival. I’m quite sure I still have it somewhere, and my resolve to find it has been strengthened by recent discoveries about its value.
Casio began producing digital watches in the mid-1970s, striving to compete on price with technology borrowed from the computer industry. As the decade drew to a close, however, the market became saturated, prompting the company to explore new methods to entice buyers. According to Polygon in 2015, “Casio returned to its original philosophy upon entering the watch market.” Yuichi Masuda, senior executive managing officer and Casio Board member, elaborated: “Watches are not merely timekeeping devices.” He noted a shift toward multifunctionality, incorporating features like phone number memory and music alarms alongside time display.
Takeoff… In 1980, kids play Space Invaders.
Photo: Eugene Adebari/Rex/Shutterstock
At that time, Taito’s Space Invaders was a sensation in Japan. Consequently, in 1981, Casio launched the CA-90/CA-901—a thick calculator watch featuring a space-themed shoot-’em-up, where players shot numbers instead of aliens. “Our aim was to create a lifestyle where games could be enjoyed anytime and anywhere,” Masuda explained.
Was Casio inspired by Nintendo’s Game & Watch series? The iconic handheld games debuted in 1980 with titles like Juggler and Ball, paving the way for classics like Donkey Kong, which later influenced the Nintendo DS. However, Shinji Saito, general manager and chief producer for Casio’s Watch Business Unit, disagrees: “In 1980, when Casio launched the CA-90, we also released the MG-880, a gaming calculator allowing users to enjoy digital invaders. While Nintendo’s Game & Watch also launched that year, the CA-90’s concept stemmed from our own development philosophy prioritizing lightness, thinness, shortness, and low power consumption; we were not inspired by Nintendo.”
In fact, during this period, Casio was innovating with features like data banks, thermometers, and pulse checkers. “The entire range of ’80s watches was vast,” watch enthusiast Andy Bagley notes. “I’ve been collecting for years and still discover models I’ve never encountered before. There were hundreds, including touchscreen watches from the ’80s.”
Past Time… Casio Gaming Watch Page from Vintage Casio Catalog
Photo: Casio
Regardless, the CA-90 became so successful that it spurred a golden age of creativity in Casio’s R&D. Between 1980 and 1985, dozens of game watches were produced—an impressive feat given the limitations of LCD technology at the time, which could display only preset shapes and lacked computer graphics or real animations. Various racing games, shooters like Helifizer and Zoom Zap, and rudimentary platformers like Jungle Star and Hungry Mouse were among them.
Some entries were more eccentric, like Aero Batics, a stunt flying game, and Hustle Monira, which involved catching dinosaurs (as opposed to just dodging falling eggs). There were also basic football and golf simulations. Similar to Nintendo’s Game & Watch titles, these watches showcased visually simplistic game designs that felt like science fiction at the time.
Notably, it wasn’t just tech giants creating game watches in the ’80s. The U.S. company Nelsnick obtained a license from Nintendo to make watches featuring games based on Zelda, Super Mario Bros., and Donkey Kong. Additionally, Seiko had its own ALBA game watches throughout that decade. The most aesthetically outrageous models came from veteran toy company Tiger, which produced bulky LCD game watches in the early ’90s based on movie licenses and arcade hits like Double Dragon and Altered Beast. However, as technology advanced and preferences shifted, the portable gaming market exploded with the arrival of the Game Boy in 1989, effectively ending the Game Watch era.
Today, a thriving collector’s scene exists. “These watches are incredibly sought after and can demand high prices,” Bagley shares. “The downside is that they weren’t very durable compared to all-stainless steel models like the Marlin, so few have survived. In pristine condition, rare and collectible game watches can fetch hundreds to over a thousand pounds.” For collectors like Bagley, these timepieces serve as nostalgic treasures, evoking memories of a time when students were distracted by digital watch beeps rather than social media alerts. “This served as my personal reference guide for the latest models. I eagerly checked the clock section whenever a new catalog arrived to scout for innovations.”
The watch industry continues to take a keen interest in classic video game themes. In 2022, Timex released a limited edition Space Invaders Watch featuring the game’s iconic sounds, and earlier this year, Casio unveiled a collection of beautifully crafted Pac-Man watches, sending fans like me racing to their website’s booking section. For those of us who were nerdy kids in the ’80s, these timepieces felt like the predecessors to smartphones and Apple Watches. Thus, my quest to find my car racing watch is not about its monetary value. It represents a connection to my 12-year-old self, a shared nostalgia for everything lost along the way.
I“I’ve spent over 15 years in the gaming industry, and one of the most frustrating aspects is explaining it at social gatherings. People frequently respond with, ‘Oh, I’m not really into gaming.’ I don’t particularly enjoy croissants, but that’s not the first thing I mention to a pastry chef I meet.”
One of the highlights of publishing my debut novel last year was the chance to sidestep that entirely and say, “Oh, I’m a writer.” I penned a novel. I’m currently working on another project. Now that you’ve wrapped up with work, we can continue our conversation. Nobody says, “Oh, I’m not really reading a book,” which is at least somewhat unlikely to be true.
It’s become evident that I’m not alone in transitioning between these two mediums. Why is that? For many, it boils down to finances. Writing novels is notoriously challenging as a source of income, and novelists have traditionally depicted careers across various fields. A 2022 report by the Author’s License and Collection Association (ALCS) revealed that professional authors earn a median of £7,000 annually from writing. Romance author Mallory Marlowe, whose debut love story became a bestseller last year, notes that her day job in video games supports her writing endeavors. “Fortunately, I receive a steady paycheck,” she states.
At the same time, game writers are facing their own struggles. GDC’s 2025 Game Industry Report indicates that one story designer and writer was let go last year. Naturally, some game writers are now exploring opportunities in other sectors.
Scottish science fiction…like. Photo: Harry Josephine Giles
Occasionally, writers create a direct connection between the two mediums, allowing them to influence one another. Written in both Scottish and English, Harry Josephine Giles’ “Game Like” serves as a precursor to her book “Deep Wheel Orcadia,” a poetry novel capably expressed in the 2022 Arthur C. Clarke Award-winning Orkney dialect. Meanwhile, John Ingold, co-founder of Narrative Game Studio Inkle (known for “80 Days!”), has released two novels set within the studio’s “Game Heaven Vault” universe. Ingold self-published these works. For him, writing them was a means to immerse himself more in the gaming world, but he remarked that “the novel’s plot proved challenging to construct. The main character consistently hesitates to abandon things.”
When I inquire about the primary differences in form from fellow novelist game writers, I’m often surprised by the diversity of responses. For some, it relates to the creative process. The act of writing a novel can serve as an escape from collaborative compromises, while games require immersive teamwork. Joe Dunthorne (author of “Submarine,” “The Tullterants”) has written novels, poetry, and most recently, a memoir titled “Radium’s Child.” Despite setbacks in the gaming industry, he commented, “After the solitude and madness of novel writing, I found relief going into the office each day. Collaborating with game designers was especially inspiring; I marveled at their ability to conceptualize complex, dizzying structures.”
Apocalypse mystery… Salt Sea Chronicle. Photo: Digoot Fabric
Sharna Jackson creates children’s novels, including high-rise mysteries and nine-night quests. She has also contributed to the audio experiences of Die Gute Fabrik’s post-apocalyptic mystery games “Saltsea Chronicles” and “Yoto.” For her, the crucial difference lies in the volume of text available in games: “Many words remain unread or unheard, depending on the player’s choices within the experience.” Some of the most rewarding moments result in “rare occurrences and Easter eggs” that only a select few players may discover. Mallory Marlowe emphasizes the “strange independence” afforded to writers in gaming, yet acknowledges that novelists might take time to adapt to crafting narratives for players who approach story engagement with varying levels of commitment. “Some people just want to press a button and cause chaos,” she points out. “Others dive deep into the narrative.”
Ultimately, nearly everyone I converse with raises the distinct cultural status disparity between games and literature. Jim Munroe (author of “We Are Raccoons,” “Unmanned”) has been crafting games and books for over 25 years. He notes that books are culturally revered in a way that games are not. “Creators are engaged in gaming, despite its lower status,” he observes. Naomi Alderman, author of “Disobedience” and “Future,” echoes these sentiments. During a week when both her novel “The Power” and the game “zombies run!” (a co-creation involving six individuals) garnered awards, her book received attention on the front page of India’s Times, while “zombies run!” barely made a ripple within the specialized gaming press.
Naomi Alderman won the 2017 Bailey Women’s Award for her novel The Power. Photo: Stuart C Wilson/Getty Images
Conversations often circle back to the contrasting societal roles of gaming and literature, with varying responses to this reality. Munroe suggests that the gaming industry often attracts those with a penchant for independence. Marlowe appreciates the curiosity and confusion surrounding the notion of writing for games, cherishing the subsequent discussions. For Harry Josephine Giles, the unique space gaming occupies brings her joy; she underscores that games, being a newer form, have less rigid conventions. Early English novelists like Aphra Behn and Laurence Sterne disrupted norms, fundamentally altering the landscape, while today, only the most experimental novels enjoy similar flexibility. Games—carrying a lower cultural status—remain adaptable. As Dunthorne puts it, “Writing is often a lower priority in game design, and that’s alright. Games aren’t novels.”
Clearly, a new wave of young writers has emerged who grew up as native gamers, seamlessly transitioning between the two cultural forms without perceiving one as inherently superior to the other. Indeed, even in gaming, one might still encounter individuals at social events declaring, “Oh, I’m not really into them.” However, this might simply indicate the opportunity to create something extraordinary and unique while remaining unnoticed.
this haunted house has become a ripe place to set up a strange video game. The layers of Lorelei and The Laser Eyes, Blue Prince, Botany Manor, and Fear of Fear come to mind. A mansion as a place of danger, supernatural danger, unreliable architecture – certainly perfect for an unsettling experience. Or even a stupid experience in an uneasy environment.
Creepy Redneck Dinosaur Mansion 3 has a lot to offer with its title. The first presents it as a conceptual dinosaur hunting adventure in a creepy house run by an ominous old mogul, and quickly reveals to players that they know it’s a video game. So it’s up to us to patch it as we go, broken video games, and to do so.
Players will explore the mansion through text and puzzle vignettes, pushing the limits of all scenarios in the hopes of finding bugs and glitches. This is a big concept, but the game seems interested in conveying the idea rather than showing us what we see or show them in the play itself.
Run by a confused hero, our Butch combat system is a clever little match 3 game. Sometimes it’s a dinosaur with a gun. Sometimes it is a tripwire, sometimes it is a legion of clones – sometimes a clone of his own. Sometimes it talks about vegetables. Sometimes a wig dinosaur. Stupidity is one note, quickly flattened and stored only by the pleasant nature of the puzzle.
Still, to have an effective game of three matches, or frankly, to use Candy Crush, you need to use high-contrast colors to prioritize players. When I played it, it was really hard to distinguish between symbols and otherwise a pleasant flow was interrupted. This visual problem is not limited to puzzles. The entire color palette in this game is muddy. It doesn’t commit Gothicly or bring about total confusion.
The same problem applies to the text. The game is text-based, but the dialogue and descriptive text are just as muddy as the visuals. The jokes work, but they aim to be destructive and shocking (dinosaur romance is a repetitive gag). However, games are about gameplay and game development. This means that much of the explanation is expressed in technical terms. File and version history discussion goes beyond baseball’s internals. So, if you’re a gamer seasoned enough to speed up metalologic, certainly you don’t need to issue an affidavit. Certainly we were all laughing at the dinosaur romance five years ago. The writing is very close to great things. I had to be sharper.
Text-based gameplay 3 of a spooky country dinosaur mansion. Photo: Strange scaffolding
The art style is rough, but not in a way to evoke a deliberate aesthetic. Depending on the text, reality can be said when you complain in a bent way. There is a moment when we disappear into the void and leave the world. Once you get into the internet, you’ll even have some climactic moments. Still, the visuals are punchy. These strange appearances can be triggered by drawings and do not require flashy graphics. Although we recognize that the illustration style is intentional, the game would have been better served in art style, a little more playful or even intentional. Two moments made me laugh when the visual style actually moved into the meta and showed us some of what the game was saying to us.
I wanted to love this game. It’s ridiculous on paper. The odd scaffolding, the developer, is known for being odd – click-holding, in particular, is ominous and experimental, and truly asks what the game is in its execution (there are a lot of clicks and are being watched in the action of clicks). Spooky country dinosaur mansion 3 is certainly creepy and set in a mansion, with dinosaurs and truly satisfying puzzles. Also, there are some great ideas and not one that failed the experiment. It doesn’t bend reality as it hopes, but if it looks high and players can manage places where aesthetics are scarce, they’ll have a great time. They may meet a lovely blonde dinosaur that they can bring home with them.
IIn the early 00’s, off-beat sports games were king. From the slam dunking shenanigans on NBA Street to the absurdity that stops the Mario Striker show, once serious competition has been rethought as a surprising, stupid grim match. But with the arrival of the era of live services, Sports Sims was not about playing pulse pumps, but about collecting more and more expensive virtual trading cards.
Please enter a rematch. This is a refreshing action-packed rethink of a beautiful game. Channel the crude thrills of five sides of the Power League and rematch tactics focused on FIFA teams and put you in a single player studded boot. With third-person action game-like controls, developer Sloclap has guided the channel to create heavy, skill-driven soccer, with martial arts-heavy experiences in previous titles SIFU and Absolver. It’s wonderfully agile, fast, and ferocious. The pass is delivered manually, the shot is curled in the heat of the moment, and the goalkeeper sprints down the half-hearted line, as Oliver Kahn owns. Free slide tackles and bike kicks are the order of the day, and I can’t stop grinning as I win my teammates and each half-line screamer.
“FIFA is a football simulation, and the rematch is a football player simulation,” says Pierre Tarno’s creative director. “In the game, there is no more kick action to pass to this type of pass, so “Let’s make it happen!”
Reflex test… a rematch. Photo: Sloclap
Sifu has also recursively tested the gameplay of the recursive test to kickabout, where you knocked out 7 shades from many martial arts masters. Thanks to high levels of player control, the match is surprisingly quick. Without the other 10 controllable players, the rematch is a game of constant movement. Sprints take valuable stamina and keeping the “Do” button at all times is always a quick way to FIFA. Thankfully there is a hidden trick underneath the knee pads. The tap on the bumper allows for a sudden, fast-speed explosion. Tied to another meter, this emergency boost is perfect for chasing a striker in a box or for throwing away a defender snapping on his heel. Immediately, I balance my midfield and defensive play and charge my goalmouse scramble in a true, crude way.
Sport the art style, a Breath of the Wild, some French Impressionism, and animated speed lines, and sprint through each rendered pitch. Scoring the goal will distort the virtual environment around you, change the Smash Bros style that has changed the background of the stage, and align the main team’s home stadium as the ball hits the back of the net with an explosion of color.
According to Tarno, Rematch’s visuals were an attempt to recreate the soft, dreamy look of paintings inside an immersive 3D stadium. But despite its charming cartoonish look, there is a welcome lack of feats against the super’s movements and gravity that fills the screen. “We once built up running the wall into the game,” he says.
A game of constant movement… a rematch. Photo: Sloclap
This is a world with a bright aesthetic and outlook. Instead of taking place within the normal Grimm Dark Dystopia of video games set in 2065, Sloclap offers a refreshing optimistic view of the future. The environment focuses on renewable energy and natural landscapes. One stadium is wrapped in a dam that generates hydraulic power, while another sees a match unfolding under the hillside with rotating wind turbines.
“We wanted to dream of a world where humanity made the right choice. It’s worth sharing cooperation and resilience on and off the pitch,” Tarno says. “It’s really about the joy of playing with friends.”
When the control finally clicks, you’ll be fully invested in the Ramshackle team. Just like Sloclap’s previous output, the rematch is about mastery. This is a game where the avatar begins with high power. In the world of Rematch, offsides, fouls, and merciless, Var is a thing of the past, and futuristic footies can’t slow the action. “I think players who are not soccer fans will be surprised that they can still enjoy football games because it’s so intense and dynamic,” Tarno says.
Since rematches are only online, the ball call system allows players to raise their hands as they scream and ask for the ball. Rematch’s futuristic footy has more to do than the touch of an Overwatch. I find the squad-driven approach and accurate manual aim as satisfying as setting goals as it scores. The rematch also shares the sense of Rocket League and Arcade relatives, but the rematch delivers a more reasonable approximation of the game, as Psyonix’s unstoppable hit watch players launch Hot Wheels-like vehicles into comical, big football.
The rematch is full of fun player customizations and you can design everything from choosing avatar earrings from your home or away kit. There are even vitiligo selectors and options for customizable prostheses for players to match a more comprehensive vision of the future. The rematch is a paid release, with additional items being sold in in-game currency, which is said to result in roughly half of the cosmetic items being unlocked through play.
Regardless of price range, Tarno is keenly aware that only one is really important. “There is no secret formula in game development,” he says. “The only way to achieve commercial success is to make a very good game. It’s more true about gaming than any other entertainment industry… Gamers are very discerning viewers. They are often very analytical, and the mechanisms and what works and what doesn’t work… If the game isn’t good enough, it simply doesn’t succeed.”
This month’s open beta is essential for a tweak rematch. That was promising in the first half, at least so far. I went into the demo, hoping for disposable fun like a Mario striker, leaving me with sweaty hands. Sloclap’s mission is to bring the pleasant sensation back to virtual football, and based on what he’s banded about this colorful pitch so far, the rematch has the depth to reach the big leagues.
For months, Nintendo, the maker of famous video game series like Super Mario Bros. and Donkey Kong, had expected the morning of April 2nd to be a celebration.
For many fanfares, the company has announced the price and release date for the Switch 2, a new video game console for eight years. At an event in New York City, Nintendo’s US President Doug Bowser took to the stage as fans cheered on the arrival of the new game to accompany the console. Mario Kurt, Donkey Kong, Kirby.
That same day, President Trump announced tariffs that piqued the global stock market and put the Mario Party at risk. The new switch took place in Vietnam, one of the countries on the tariff list.
Two days later, Nintendo said it could delay pre-orders for the Switch 2 and raise the price from $450. It was unclear how expensive it was. But on Wednesday, Trump said he has been slowing the expansion of tariffs in Vietnam and many other countries for 90 days. Nintendo has yet to say how delays will affect the price of the Switch 2.
Nintendo’s Whip Saw Experience shows the wider disruption Trump has caused for technology makers and the uncertainty of what the market will look like for consumer technology in the coming months.
In a statement before Trump delayed the expanded tariffs of countries other than China, Nintendo said it plans to release the Switch 2 in June, but did not set a date on whether to resume pre-orders or announce new prices.
Gamers had already taken thousands of people to social media sites like X and Reddit to complain. It is a common practice in the industry for gamers to blame the high costs of corporate greedy consoles and games, but instead they have denounced Trump.
Gamer and Philadelphia writer Jake Steinberg visited New York last week to perform a Switch demonstration.
“People were always saying this modest and they always said, ‘we’re going to keep politics out of the game,’ so the irony is extreme,” Steinberg said. “Well, I’m here.”
For years, Nintendo has been making game consoles in China. However, it moved most of its production to Vietnam during Trump’s first term in 2019, moving into tariffs and the threat of trade war between China and the United States.
These operations appeared to be nothing as Trump’s plans announced last week threatened heavily new tariffs on goods from Vietnam (46%), Japan (24%), Malaysia (24%) and Cambodia (49%).
However, due to the delay announced Wednesday, Nintendo may be one of the lucky ones. The majority of home appliances, including smartphones and other gaming consoles, are still made in China. And they are expected to be subject to a 145% tariff, which is larger than a few days ago. Like most countries, products made in Vietnam still suffer from 10% tariffs.
According to Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter, the delay will increase production and inventory over 90 days, and increase inventory in US inventory. However, for other tech companies like Apple that normally don’t start producing new iPhones until a few months before the release date, that may not be an option.
Nintendo has ended up playing a sensitive game where they decide how much they can raise prices without chasing away gamers who already feel $450 is steep enough, or ultimately, how much they can raise prices without retaining hope that they won’t be hit by the expanded tariffs.
For gaming companies like Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft, selling consoles is just one aspect of their business. If a customer chooses not to purchase a new console, they will not be able to purchase software for the game itself that sells at a higher margin than the hardware.
Pachter added that the cost of consumer tech products could rise all the way, but he added that prices for buzzy items people have been waiting for for years, like the Switch 2, the first console Nintendo released since 2017. He estimated that if the Trump administration proceeded with tariffs, the new costs for Switch 2 could increase by up to $100.
“No one is waiting for a TV to buy on June 5th, so you’re not sure if the TV prices will go up,” Patter said. “They will notice it gradually, but it’s different with the launch of such a product.”
In an interview with news media before Trump’s tariffs were announced, Nintendo’s Bowser said the expected costs of future tariffs were not taken into account at the console’s $450 price. However, analysts are primarily disputing the claim, referring to the $340 price for Switch 2, which is sold in Japan. (Nintendo spokesman said that Japanese models are limited to Japanese, so some are low cost reasons.)
Nintendo will likely wait for the dust to settle down in Trump’s tariff disruption before announcing new prices, said Doug Creutz, an analyst at investment firm Cowen. He added that there is still a possibility that Trump will withdraw from tariffs entirely.
“They don’t need to change prices again,” Krutz said. In the decision, he said he weighed the company: “Are we willing to make less profits in the US? Do you want to protect our profit margins?”
Nintendo has not delayed pre-orders for Switch 2 elsewhere in the world, where costs vary from region to region. $442 in the UK, $435 in Australia and $450 in Canada. Nintendo still does about 30% of its manufacturing industry in China, which it uses to supply non-US buyers, says David Gibson, an analyst at MST Financial.
In the short term, it helps offset some of the costs by the end of February, Nintendo had already shipped 746,000 units of Switch 2 to the US.
“It protects them in a quarter,” he added. “But then the price will be total duties.”
Nintendo is not just a high-tech company that places importance on the trade-off of increasing product prices. Similarly, Apple moved part of its manufacturing industry from China to Vietnam in 2019. Other console manufacturers, such as Sony and Microsoft, will face a similar dilemma when they manufacture their next console, scheduled to be released around 2027.
“We’re going to be attacked by all the big appliance companies, including Samsung, LG, Apple, major TV makers, gaming consoles,” Gibson said. “That’s everything.”
after Nintendo’s exciting one-hour live stream, we gained more insight into the highly anticipated sequel to the Switch on Wednesday. But how does the Switch 2 perform? Following the online presentation, I had the opportunity to test the new console for approximately four hours at a press event held at the Grand Palais in Paris, in a white box exhibition hall adorned with Nintendo red accents and lined with high-end TV screens and Switch 2 consoles. Additionally, there was a 90-minute roundtable discussion with three key figures behind the console: the hardware design lead, the producer, and the director. Here is what I discovered.
game
Smooth ride… Mario Kart World for the Nintendo Switch 2. Photo: Nintendo
Mario Kart World In this version, titled Playable Cow Adash, the knockout tour mode is featured. This mode replaces the traditional three-lap circuit with a sprint across a vast world map. With 24 racers, it is twice as fast as its predecessor, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. As you progress, large checkpoints appear on the horizon, with four racers dropping out at each checkpoint. This continues until the final stretch, where the Final Four is revealed. I anticipate Mario Kart Royale will be a fierce competition. The gameplay is intense, exciting, and incredibly smooth, reinvigorating even the most seasoned Mario Kart players.
Additionally, there is a more traditional Mario Kart experience for those who prefer it. You will race through various compositions of the world map, from driving through Boo’s cinema to running through the Toad brand manufacturing factory. Changes from the previous game include new weapons, less agile skids, less claustrophobic tracks, and a stylish ease similar to Stephen Van Zandt.
Super Mario Party Jamboree
Strange… Super Mario Party Jamboree. Photo: Nintendo
Mario Party, a Nintendo party game franchise, offers a variety of board games and mini-games where players can compete against each other. The series allows Nintendo to showcase the quirky side of their hardware, with the camera functioning well in the mini-games I tried. One of the mini-games, called the Goombalancing Act, involves catching falling Goombas and stacking them on your head. The game utilizes the built-in camera and microphone, creating fun and interactive gameplay experiences.
Drag X Drive combines elements of Nintendo’s Rocket League and wheelchair basketball, providing players with a unique and engaging gaming experience. The game features different modes that require precision and accuracy, making it challenging yet enjoyable.
Hardware
Repetitive hops…Nintendo Switch 2. Photo: Nintendo
Switch 2 represents an incremental upgrade rather than a complete redesign. The focus is on practical improvements that enhance the overall user experience. It boasts a wider model with a larger screen, providing a more modern and refined feel while still maintaining durability and comfort in handheld mode. The Joy-Con controllers feature large buttons that feel sturdier and more comfortable, making the gameplay more enjoyable.
In terms of performance, Switch 2 excels with minimal loading times and smooth gameplay, showcasing its capabilities even with graphically intensive games like Cyberpunk and Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The Pro Controller offers enhanced joystick functionality, maintaining compatibility with previous generation controllers for added convenience.
verdict
Nintendo faces the challenge of following up on the success of the original Switch and expanding its user base amidst a changing gaming landscape. With the Switch 2, Nintendo aims to build on its established fan base while appealing to a broader audience. The new console’s impressive performance and innovative features position it as a strong contender in the competitive home console market, demonstrating Nintendo’s commitment to delivering top-notch gaming experiences.
IT is a game about love and identity, but there is also Forklift track races. It’s a game about bloody revenge, but while you’re waiting for retaliation, you can buy lottery tickets and visit the arcade. When BAFTA recently asked gamers to vote for the most influential game of all time, it’s unclear whether even the most enthusiastic Sega fans have gambled on the success of the singular Dreamcast adventure from 1999.
How did this happen, especially given that the game is considered a financial failure at release? It won’t be able to recoup the incredible development costs of that time (for the reported $70 million, you’ll now get about a third of Horizon’s banned West or Star Wars outlaws). Well, nostalgia is interesting. So is the concept of cultural influence. When it was released over 20 years ago, Shenmew was a strange thing. This is an open world role-playing adventure that follows martial arts student Ryozuki in search of revenge for his father’s murder. But there were plenty of fights and puzzles, but there were plenty more. The game used an internal clock to switch between day and night and cycled through seasons. In many cases, Ryo had to kill time by wandering the Yokoshiro streets in the mid-1980s, as people needed to speak (or beat) (or beat) at certain times were available. You can go to the shop, play old Sega Arcade games and visit the hot dog stands. The world was filled with quirky characters and odd mini-games, including the aforementioned forklift race.
What players also enjoyed was the systematic and strangeness of the story. While designer Suzuki spent the 1980s, he had made some of the best arcade games of all time including Burner and Outrun after Hang On, he was a stickler for credibility and simulation. He also loved experimenting with gameplay conventions. Shenmew has led to the adoption of quick time events. This is a highly choreographed action scene in which the player determines the action by following a specific button prompt. For example, it was controversial, but interesting. Even in the game, players are pretty wooden voice acting and closed clipped conversations. To this day, the idea of Ryo wandering through the dock asks, “Do you know where I can find the sailor?” For those who know it, it’s comedy gold.
This was the first time an epic, immersive role-playing adventure has been portrayed in elements of life simulations and dating games to expand a player’s interactive repertoire. Later titles such as Grand Theft Auto III expand on this idea, but it can be said that the concept of a living, exploreable world came from Shenmuye and seasoned everything that continued from Assassin’s Creed to Skyrim.
Shenmew won the sequel and then the third title to close the trilogy. I was at video game event E3 in 2015 when Yu appeared on stage at a Sony press conference and announced that the Shenmue III was in development. It was a pandemonium. Certainly, Super Mario Bros. is more influential as they popularized the concept of platformers and video game mascot characters. It’s a destiny, as it made first-person shooter games the most important genre in PC games. But I like the fact that Shenmue won, I love Sega and it’s not just because I edited the Dreamcast magazine of the time. That’s because it shows that gamers still enjoy the weird and exotic games. If so, there will be some weird and exotic games. In Shenmuye’s non-gi-sama kids’ success, it certainly shows that action, dating and stupid games still have hilarious effects, like Yakuza and Dragon games.
I like to stop fighting for a moment, head to the dock and think that players looking for sailors are always happy.
Bafta largely Influence video game all Complete time list
1. Shenmew (1999)
2. Doom (1993)
3. Super Mario Bros. (1985)
4. Half-Life (1998)
5. The Legend of Zelda: The Ocarina of Time (1998)
I Do not play the game. Points are not displayed. I haven’t reread the book either and rarely re-watch movies or TV shows. There are so many new, bigger, better things that come out every day, and there’s too little time to consume them. However, I made an exception with the teenage mutant ninja turtles. Because the original was very special.
I’ve come towards the end of the ZX Spectrum play day. I was in college and was only interested in it if the teenage mutant ninja turtle was in tall glass and was in the Mandelabar for happy hour prices. However, the game went home in the summer to get me crazy and became the most difficult video game I’ve ever completed. And when I started re-releasing the PS4, which will be offered as part of the TMNT Cowabunga collection, it worries me. (PlayStation Plus Essentials March)
I’m worried that my gaming brain has played a lazy modern game. There, you are spoiled to vomit in the place and spitting collision detection, so it can become a priest, which will result in a discoloration of memory in this golden game.
I was right!
Collision detection is at the relentless Meinik Minor/Megaman level, but through trial and error, we have rediscovered what makes the game easier. The level structure is soft so you can kill enemies from platforms or walls above or below. I also remember that I can “hot swap” the turtle. This means using Donatello on long poles. The rhino is a small metal dagger, similar to the cutlery Elon Musk had balanced with Mar Lago’s fingers. It’s even less useful. To kill enemies with Raphael in this game, you need to get close enough to smell the toppings you had on pizza.
I played this for 2 hours after death. It was the first time I’d throw a controller at the wall since I stopped FIFA.
The night reminds us of an A-level exam as many of us have finished as it was back then, and at that bloody underwater level, we need to soften the bombs under the dam within time limits. You cannot overcome that level without hitting multiple radioactive weeds. I can’t believe I completed it that day and I’m worried that it was one of the things I imagined in the 90s.
Such a terrifying, clunky gameplay will not serve your purpose in 2025.
Or is that possible?
I endured on the second day. I thought the way to get through the bad dam levels was to crash all the enemies and exchange turtles hot when the energy was low. (And in the sense that it is “remembered,” it means “searched Reddit.”)
Most importantly, we discovered that this re-release has an inverted rewind button! You can go back 30 seconds for every failed pixel jump! I’d like to read the game manual, but I’m a guy in his 50s. I don’t read any more instructions than asking for directions when I get lost.
I completed the level and was treated with the sweetest sentence ever written in the history of video games. April said: “The dam is safe. Let’s go home.”
Supported by this, I broke the next few levels over the next few days. It’s difficult to have a rewind button, but it recalibrates the overall attitude of the game. You can’t charge it to the level you can do in today’s games. This was a time when we literally had to move forward, wait, and enemies appeared, learn patterns, and move. You need to slow down your full play method. And that’s not a bad thing. In 2025, life will move at 10 billion miles per hour. I wake up three times on the night to check who is trying to break into who.
My heart and mind are resumed and I reaffirm the greatness of this game. The scrolls and boomerang weapons are immeasurable. I put them there in pure fun with Doom’s BFG, Golden Eye’s Golden Gun, and Worm’s Holy Handren bullet.
I even learn to love the indecipherable nature of block-like graphics. The mutant toad looked recognizable, as did the shredder and his foot soldiers. So did the cheeky space monkeys, but they turned out to be in fact a giant flea. Most enemies are like an 8-bit Rorschach test, and their identity is the result of projections from my subconscious. So it could be the wild butterfly I’m trying to kill, but it could also be my feelings of inadequacy in men.
I’m so glad that I didn’t give up on this game. Because we’ve never done anything like children. You had one game a month. You played it. You continued doing that. We are now diletantes of games, jumping from one subscription service to another, but we may not even actually go through the list of games.
I’m only in the middle. But I will become a soldier through all my hard-earned inches. And it becomes completely Kawabunga.
Many people around the world now associate Tuesday’s Shrove – the day before Christian Lent that marks the traditional East Feast – with pancakes.
Pancakes are enjoyed by cultures worldwide in various shapes and sizes. French crepes, American griddle cakes, and Indian dosas are just a few examples of these versatile fried batter circles that offer endless sweet and tasty possibilities.
To ensure pancake day success, a bit of science can make a big difference. Materials chemists and food scientists Professor Matt Harting and Professor of Fluid Mechanics Ian Eames have shared their insights to enhance your favorite pancake recipes.
1. Replace regular milk with buttermilk
To achieve the perfect stack of fluffy American pancakes, consider substituting regular milk with buttermilk. Buttermilk adds a unique flavor profile to the pancakes and contains key molecules like diacetyl, aldehydes, ketones, amino acids, and lactic acid that enhance both taste and texture.
If you don’t have buttermilk at home, adding lemon juice to the batter can mimic the acidic effect of buttermilk.
2. Add melted butter to the batter
Melted butter in the pancake batter helps achieve a golden brown color and rich flavor due to the Maillard reaction. Butter ensures consistent thermal contact with the hot pan and contributes to the browning process.
Pro-tip: If using buttermilk, consider adding more baking soda to balance the acidic environment.
3. Use the Golden Ratio
The perfect pancake balance depends on the baker’s ratio, which determines the thickness and texture of the pancakes. For British pancakes, a ratio of 100g flour to 200ml milk is recommended.
4. Let the batter rest!
Allowing the pancake batter to rest for about 30 minutes helps relax the gluten in the flour, resulting in lighter pancakes with a smoother texture.
About our experts
Matt Harting is an associate professor of chemistry at the American University of Washington with expertise in food chemistry.
Ian Eames is a professor of fluid mechanics at the University of London and has conducted scientific studies on pancake-making.
tHis year was 1962 and you just woke up in the shadows of the Cumbria Front Scale (now Seller Field) nuclear power plant five years after a devastating meltdown. They are trapped in a considerable isolation zone surrounding the accident scene, so they must remain alive long enough to understand how to escape. A rather challenging task by the presence of aggressive cultists, illuminated monsters, and very territorial terrorist bees. Imagine a stalker. But set in northern England, an Oxford-based developer rebellion heads towards what’s in storefronts.
Fallout may seem like another obvious inspiration in this illuminated game world, but after playing the two-hour demo, it is clear that the game will draw more charm from the classic British sci-fi. Here, lush woodlands, the Rugoro River and dry stone walls are trapped in the picturesque Lake District. But around you are 1960s cars and tanks, abandoned farm buildings, burnt-out ruins of strange sounds and symbols that suggest something very ominous is happening. The development team can see it in the dirty, dislocated scenes around you about Dr. WHO, Wicker Mann, with John Wyndham’s novel as a key inspiration. As you approach the phone booth and pick up the ringing handset, you may hear unembodied voices warning you about the obviously friendly characters you encounter on the road. You will get lost in caves and ghostly monsters and infect you with a delusional mental virus. This is so many Quatermass John Partwee Ella.
Something ominous is happening…Atomfall. Photo: Rebellion development
It’s a while before you hit a gang of druids stalking the undergrowth and suddenly enter into battle. But in other survival games like the stalker spirit and escape from Tarkov, I have to resort to cricket bats, magical improvised melee weapons, or rusty guns that don’t matter whether I fire a few successful ammunition. The developers say they want the game to come back to life badly. You are not a Super Soldier. Everywhere, there are small trinkets to clean, from apples to machine parts.
When the character isn’t trying to get you tattered with bats, they may provide you with information and trading opportunities. It appears that they can wander freely through the overgrown farms and desolate industrial buildings looking for clues as to what happened here. Beware of the shining green blue bee nests hanging from the tree – those people Really territory. And toxic.
Here hell is looking for clues as to what happened… Atom Fall. Photo: Rebellion development
Even my short demonstrations have a lovely ominous tension in the air. Relying on the false handgun and explosive device you stuck together, the blue Peter style, adhesive tape on both sides, and what you find at abandoned military checkpoints adds a sense of despair and disaster.
I have found some of the menu and weapon choices tricky. For games that rely heavily on stealth, it’s very easy to accidentally ruin the shotgun because you haven’t loaded it in advance. But this is from a survival game. Often it’s better to wander around in the grass longer than engage with enemies (though it may not be clear where you are covering and where you are not). Many.
Atomfall looks like an interesting amalgam of a stalker. , Resistance: Human Falls, everyone went to joy. Several role-playing elements are lobbed. I think there’s a lot to depend on what happens to the mystery at the heart of the game.
What does it mean that apocalyptic adventure takes place in the countryside of England? To capture the horrifying dignity of ’70s public relations films about playing Triffids, Daemons, or Frisbee near an electric substation, you need more than a quaint cottage with local accents. But the fact that we have a survival adventure in the Lake District is something that excites us as its beautiful, supernaturally recharged environment.
IS Lara Croft Hot? This is the question that has been troubling us for nearly three decades. She made her debut on the cover of Face Magazine in 1997 alongside the tagline “larger than Pammy.” TV special aimed at uncovering the “real” tomb raider. But what does science have to say about it? In a world where American academics are hesitant to use the term “woman” without jeopardizing their research funding, it is reassuring to see that a betting site named Casino Days has taken on this important task and recently compiled a list of “the top 10 most attractive video game characters according to science.”
Using the so-called “golden ratio” – which assesses beauty based on facial proportions – the company discovered that Lara Croft ranks as the second most attractive video game character in the virtual realm. Ultimately, claiming the top spot is Geralt of Rivia from The Witcher series.
The rest of the rankings include Arthur Morgan from Red Dead Redemption in fifth place and Yennefer of Vengerberg from The Witcher in eighth place. What’s most surprising about these findings is not the ongoing fixation on the attractiveness of video game characters, but rather the enduring popularity of these familiar faces. When will we see Guybrush Threepwood on the list? Mario must be wondering when his turn is. Sporting a pointed, pixelated chest is one thing, but coordinating the hat with the shirt under those dungarees during a hard day of plumbing? That takes dedication. Consistency. Blessing.
Hello, is it me you’re looking for… The dashing protagonist 3 of Luigi’s Mansion 3. Photo: Nintendo
Real scientists, this time, have discovered that “good behavior” can make one’s face appear even more attractive to others – with sincerity being deemed more attractive than deceit, but men losing points for appearing aggressive. So, judging video game characters based on the symmetrical perfection of their faces seems somewhat antiquated.
According to “science,” the most captivating video game characters include Bella Goth from The Sims, Harvey from Stardew Valley, King of Hyrule, the Red Ghost from Pac-Man, and Flo from Diner Dash. If we continue to assert rankings and ratings on each other, even hundreds of years later, why stop now – can’t we at least tone down our desires a bit? Can’t we acknowledge the allure of the perpetually fiery king in those mobile game advertisements?
Brutally taken away…Guybrush Threepwood. Photo: Lucasarts
Unfortunately, a press release from Casino Days has crowned Princess Zelda as the most attractive video game character. Not only is this tragic due to its sexist undertones, but also because Zelda embodies a multitude of femininity. Does she have too many resemblances to Ganondorf, and like Princess Peach before her, can’t she catch a break without being objectified? The text itself highlights the dangers of being cute and blonde in a world dominated by malevolence, forcing Zelda to constantly assert her identity as cute rather than just blonde. Will she have to reveal more skin to prove her worth? (Most likely, yes. Those Bokoblins mean business.)
Isn’t she cute and blonde? Zelda: The Legend of Zelda: The Kingdom’s Tears Photo: Nintendo
We are living in a time of significant transformations and upheavals. And by that, I don’t mean that World War III is looming on the horizon. I mean that the women in games are getting a facelift, with Ciri in Witcher 4 likely lost some of her allure because she matured. So, amidst all the chaos and evil in our world, some things remain constant – everyone can agree that from left to right (B, A, start) – Lara Croft and Geralt of Rivia are hot. Regardless of what comes next, it’s evident that we will continue to debate the attractiveness of lines of code for years to come.
In the summer of 1985, I embarked on a lengthy pilgrimage from my home in Cheadle Hulme to the charming Hammersmith Novotel in London for the Commodore Computer Show. As a 14-year-old gamer, I saw this as an opportunity to play the latest games and check out new gaming accessories. However, my main goal was to visit specific exhibitors that I was eager to see. Upon arrival, I noticed a long line of kids at small stands, most of them waiting to get their show program signed by arcade games champion and ZZAP reviewer Julian Lignoll. As a devoted subscriber, I remember the excitement of waiting in that line. I didn’t experience that level of awe again until I met Sigourney Weaver a quarter of a century later.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who remembers that day. In his fantastic new book, The Games of a Lifetime, Rignall himself recalls the surprise of being swarmed by fans. He writes, “We didn’t anticipate that. I didn’t realize that readers were so interested in us, but I loved it.”
However, I don’t think he should have been so surprised. In the mid-80s, during the heyday of C64 and ZX Spectrum home computers, magazines like Crash, ZZAP, and Computer & Video Games were the primary sources of news and opinions about new games. There was a scarcity of information about game developers at the time, so magazine reviewers became industry stars and influencers of that era, even before the rise of social media.
“It was really Dickensian”…Zzap! 64 magazines. Photo: Chris Daw / Bitmap Books
What I find most captivating about Rignall’s books is tracing his journey from Seaside Arcade Tournaments to game development editing and eventually becoming the editorial director at Mammoth Video Game Site IGN. As a child, I pictured a lavish, high-tech publishing office in a sleek modernist building. However, Zzap! 64’s origins were in a small rented office in Yeovil. Rignall recalls, “We were all crammed into one room with a few C64s tucked away in the broom cupboard. Video games were always considered lowbrow, but in those early days, it was truly Dickensian.”
Major magazine companies weren’t as glamorous as one might think. When Rignall worked for C&VG in 1988, he transitioned from a relatively small newsroom to the sprawling EMAP headquarters in Farringdon, London. As he remembers, “It was a dusty pit with typewriters, smelly carpets, and outdated interior fixtures that looked like they hadn’t been updated since the 1970s. Oh, and ashtrays filled with cigarette butts were everywhere.”
Matt Bielby, who went on to launch legendary game magazines Superplay and PC Gamer, transitioned from being a C&VG junior writer to joining Sinclair at Dennis Publishing. “Dennis was even dingier and smokier than EMAP,” he recalls. “It was housed in several small buildings along the northern end of Oxford Street at Tottenham Court Road; initially, we were stacked on top of each other with computer shoppers, kits precariously balancing on shaky desks… I had to share a desk initially.”
In the mid-80s, Your Sinclair emerged as a pioneer of a new style of irreverent and personality-driven gaming journalism. Earlier home computer magazines focused on programming tips and articles about printers and word processing software, but these new publications put games front and center. Sinclair’s founding editor, Teresa Morgan, drew inspiration from reading Smash Hits at just 17. She recalls, “They had a distinct voice and made their writers visible. So, intentionally, we included caricatures of reviewers in the magazine. Everyone could express their personality, making readers feel connected to us.”
This connection sometimes led to strange encounters. “I remember receiving all sorts of odd things in the mail,” says Morgan. “Someone once sent me my own toenails.”
Like Smash Hits, Your Sinclair became known for developing its unique language and humor, creating silly photo stories reminiscent of Jackie magazine, and covering quirky games like a lawnmower simulator developed by magazine contributor Duncan McDonald. Readers were active participants, with their letters and artwork becoming essential elements of the magazine’s content. Rignall reflects, “By the early ’90s, when we launched the Average Machine, the magazine was 100% designed to be interactive. Text pages, Q&A sections, and editorials were essentially proto-social media before the term was even coined. Readers were encouraged to send in crazy photos, sketches, drawings, you name it. We aimed to create a sense of community run by its members.”
Multi-format Forever… Computer & Video Game Magazine Photo: Chris Daw/Bitmap Books
However, the traditional magazine production process was a different story. Before desktop publishing software came into play, everything was done manually. “You would type it up on your Apricot Proto PC, save it to a disk, then hand it over to the typesetter,” Rignall explains. “They would print a galley (print-quality text), cut it out with scissors, and lay out the pages with glue along with photos and other design elements.”
Taking screenshots was an art form of its own. By the time I started at Edge Magazine in 1995, the process had turned digital. I had a program that allowed me to capture screenshots from the console, which then connected to my Mac via a video card. But in the ’80s, it was a different story. “We took screenshots by placing a film camera in front of a clean TV screen and snapping a photo of it,” Rignall recalls. “I had to set up blackout curtains in the game room, turn off all lights, and create a dark environment. It was challenging because I had to synchronize the camera.”
In essence, the production of game magazines was slow, labor-intensive, and at times chaotic as small, young teams churned out dozens of reviews each month. “It’s no wonder that magazines in the mid to late ’80s were riddled with errors,” Rignall comments. “Typos, incorrect information, text in the wrong place, missing elements, inaccuracies… you name it. The process was an absolute mess.”
Yet, in a way, this chaos was part of their charm. Game magazines pushed the limits of publishing technology, and when the digital age arrived, they were often at the forefront of innovative publications using software like Pagemaker and Quark Xpress. Morgan reminisces about launching Zero in 1989, aiming for a more sophisticated gaming magazine. “It had a glossy, highly designed look. We won the European Magazine Award for two consecutive years.”
These magazines were at the heart of video game culture, offering a window into an exciting new world. “The industry was very tight-knit – everyone knew each other,” Morgan recalls. “We had a healthy sense of competition. We would often have developers visit the office, or we’d go to their homes and interview them in their pajamas.”
“100% designed around interactivity”…Mean Machines Magazine. Photo: Chris Daw/Bitmap Books
However, by the late 1980s, the focus shifted from home computers to consoles, with readers seeking direct information from Japan, the birthplace of gaming. Rignall notes, “The one who started writing about Japanese content for British audiences was Tony Takouji in 1987, which kicked off a series of CVG average machines that I took over a year later. I stumbled upon a Japanese bookstore near the EMAP office in 1988, and it was a goldmine. I couldn’t understand what was written until translators were found a month or two later, but I could decipher the game from the screenshots.”
Rignall’s book serves as a memoir of the gaming industry, exploring how games from Battle Zone to Forbidden Forest challenged Western notions of interactive entertainment for both players and journalists. By the time I entered the industry, it had evolved into a more stable and professional environment. Future Publishing operated out of a beautiful building in Bath, while Edge shared Beaufort House, a former Georgian pub, with titles like Super Play and Game Master. It was a thrilling time with great magazines, yet we carried on the legacy of the chaotic magazines that came before us in our spirit, work ethic, and humor.
Morgan looks back fondly on those times, recalling a memorable experience at a Microprose press event. “It was for the Tom Clancy flight simulator. They invited 10 journalists, and we all went on a light aircraft. Wild Bill Steely, MicroProse co-founder and ex-fighter pilot, did loops. I took turns with my sick bag. There was a champagne breakfast on the boat… and the camaraderie with the YS team was incredible. We got to play the game before anyone else. I’ve never laughed that much. It felt like the start of something special.”
In recent months, game makers have faced challenges with age classifications for video games. Age ratings are meant to assist parents in determining if a game is suitable for their children. However, incorrect labels can mislead consumers and impact the success of a game.
Balatro is a poker game created by an anonymous developer known as LocalThunk. The game relies on chaos, with constantly changing conditions that challenge players to form the best possible poker hands. Players earn in-game money to buy new cards during each round, adding an element of strategy. Despite its initial success, Baratoro faced classification issues when it was labeled as a gambling game.
Originally rated for ages 3 and older, the game was later reclassified as suitable for adults only. This decision caused Baratoro to be removed from digital storefronts in Europe and Asia. The publisher, PlayStack, appealed the decision but faced obstacles in various regions.
Ultimately, after updates and appeals, Baratoro received a Pegi rating of 12 or higher, resolving the classification issue. The experience highlighted the challenges of rating systems and the impact they can have on game sales.
Pegi clarified its standards for assessing games that depict gambling, aiming to provide fair and accurate classifications. The case of Baratoro led to the development of a more detailed classification system for games involving gambling.
While the reclassification brought relief to publishers, it also raised questions about age rating systems and their ability to inform consumers about game content. The evolving nature of rating systems reflects the need to adapt to changing cultural expectations in the gaming industry.
Balatro’s journey highlights the importance of clear and accurate age classifications for games and the ongoing need to ensure that players understand the content they are engaging with.
bThe reality competition series of East Games and Amazon Prime Video is hosted by YouTubers MrBeastnot a well-made show. That’s certainly expensive Show, Beast, the alter ego of Jimmy Donaldson, 26, of Greenville, North Carolina, likes to remind viewers frequently. The series is a shocking feat for viewers outside of YouTube territory, especially Donaldson’s territory: 1,000 contestants, and 1,000 contestants filmed on a 1,107 camera system, $5 million They fight each other with the prize money. Donaldson. For the competition, Donaldson and his group designed warehouse war zones modeled after the squid game of the Netflix dystopian series, built bespoke cities, and purchased private islands (and also included Lamborghini and others). (It will be given along with other gorgeous prizes). The contestants who are eliminated in the first episode are dropped into invisible depths through the trapdoor. There is a pirate ship with cannons.
But due to all the exaggerated displays of wealth, the show still looks terrible. Many point out that the central conceit of the show has broken Americans’ psychological battles for abandoned it and lavish prizes. For our age of clothing, Donaldson a Self-style Willy Wonka figure.
Certainly, Beast Games has rotten rot, but it’s a terrible, compelling core, but it also conveys its surface. At the style level, the show erases any remaining lines between YouTube and TV. Beast Games has a higher production budget than any of MrBeast’s YouTube videos, reaching over 360 million subscribers in 15-30 minutes. (Almost everything incorporates the concept of a basic magnet, bound by the ocean, stuck in the great pyramids, or helping the blind man to see again. looks Like YouTube content, content is an operator word (Donaldson made the first three episodes available on YouTube).
And it’s popular. Beast Games is currently from Amazon Prime Video The least viewed non-script series So far, it has reached 50 million viewers in 25 days (although it is worth noting that Amazon has not disclosed what counts as “viewers”). It reached number one on Amazon in 80 countries. According to Netflix, in 2021, Squid Game reached 142 million households for reference. The show is not a change of ocean. Many reality shows look awful. Many Americans have long consumed YouTube videos as sources of entertainment, but as television changes both shape and function, it’s a line in the sand.
What is TV in 2025? Is it a device? style? format? It’s hard to say – the content is Shift from linear platforms to streaming platforms device usage shifts to YouTube. In the US, people watch YouTube on TV more than any other device, CEO Neal Mohan declared in him Annual letter This month, “YouTube is a new TV.” YouTube doesn’t make television in itself, but it does. Global viewers Streaming According to the company, last year there was over 100 million hours of “content” on television screens. 400m hours Probably an audio-only podcast month. The company closed its original division in 2022, but is now promoting children’s entertainment. We are looking for a dedicated head of family entertainment and learning Second half of 2024.
Functionally, YouTube may not be as new as the next evolution. Formally, they are converging. YouTube talent (and digitally native influencers like Tiktok talent) I had a hard time breaking into Hollywood. Despite the vast numbers of fans, the spirit of the platform – the incentive structure of more eyeballs, ring light glare, the maximalist aesthetic for the biggest audience – is a dovetail with evolving Hollywood logic.
As one Mrbeast director I said time: “These algorithms are toxic to humanity. They prioritize addictive isolated experiences over ethical social design, all with advertising alone. That’s not MrBeast I have a problem. Next It’s a platform that encourages someone like me to study holding graphs so that videos can be made more addictive. In other words, value-neutral entertainment for the arts. Content as a means of end. This isn’t much different from the business logic of streaming platforms. Hollywood has its own race for its viewers. The rise of mid-TV, Major cheap Netflix gloss, Infinite scrolls in the “Content” library – It reflects the spirit of MrBeast’s lowest common denominator attention economy.
After all, Donaldson leads the Amazon show, which styled after the Netflix original series. This is explicitly fixed in “entertainment.” The show, as it says, “making history of entertainment,” is the biggest, brightest, most shocking, and most interesting. Similarly, products with no complexity, value, or even storytelling, due to the one value of attracting attention. Using Entertainment’s MrBeast-Ifive as Vox’s Rebecca Jennings Please put it downthe line between content, entertainment, television and influencers is more blurry than before. He went beyond what divisions remained – does Hollywood subscribe?
IT is said to host a magical artisan cheese festival every 100 years, a small fishing village on the south coast of an unknown fantasy realm. As an ethically produced dairy adventurer and fan, you decide to take part in the legendary event and arrive at the dock of a small boat with a few gold coins and dreams. This is the worst role-playing adventure background I've ever experienced, and by chance it's the only one I've ever designed.
The game-making package RPG maker has been around since 1992, the first version to be released on Japanese PC-98 computers. Since then, development has been handed over from veteran Japanese developer ASCII to Enterbrain and then to Chiyoda-based Gotcha Gotcha games, with dozens of installments coming up. Although it has become increasingly complicated over the years, RPG makers have no development experience and remain a very intuitive way to make adventure games.
The package comes with thousands of pre-built maps, buildings, characters and items that creators can use and modify. But you can also start from scratch and create your own assets and create unique games. Your project can be shared with the RPG maker community, and several highly acclaimed indie games have been programmed into the program, including To the Moon, Corpse Party, and Omori. Artisan Cheese Quest can tell you not to participate in them.
Exclusive screenshots of the RPG Maker's Artisan Cheese Quest. Photo: NIS America
To be fair, the game only took me and my 19-year-old son Zac, using the PlayStation 5 version of RPG Maker (released February 21st). Initially, we chose swamp locations from many types of ready-made maps. It mainly offers traditional fantasy and sci-fi options. Then we chose the characters – cute little anime style warriors. From here we begin the actual process of creating a game that offers challenging things. Everything that takes place in the world is called events and is necessary to create the events necessary to build a set of conditions using a very simple visual programming language.
If you've tried Scratch, a popular coding tool used in schools around the world, you're probably at home. Suppose you want to hide the magic key in the treasure chest: Place your chest on the map and place the key inside using the menu system. Add a locked door and then place the state on that door. If the player has a key, the door will open.
Using the same system, you can add branch dialogs with characters, plan enemy patrol passes, and ultimately create a combat system. During lockdown, Zack and I used scratch to create a very simple maze game, where we led the mouse towards a block of cheese, so we stuck to the game design expertise established here. I've done it. They built a tavern, installed the tavern interior to the main landscape map building, added characters to provide hints, and hidden artisan cheese festival passes in a small island treasure chest. We didn't use the original assets, but we wrote all the dialogue. The story – find the pass, open the tavern door, eat cheese – was completely ours. Remember us for the best narratives of this year's BAFTA Games Award.
PlayStation 5 RPG maker. Photo: NIS America
Most importantly, this process was very enjoyable. I was able to choose background music and sound effects and cried with laughter in search of very inappropriate options. Our treasure chest cried out as you opened it. The villagers barked randomly and groaned. And no matter how basic the end result is, you still get that thrill of making something that works and looks like a real game. Once you get used to the system, your ambitions grow: we later added zombies wandering around the map complaining about his lactose intolerance.
I'm not going to lie – the system is intuitive, but it gets Very Requests when you start thinking about creating a multi-stage boss encounter or designing a character leveling system. If you don't deal with game mechanics where long routines, subroutines, or game mechanics are confused with each other, then there's a long way to go. Certainly, whenever we didn't know how to make something work, the online gaming community helped us. There are hundreds of videos on YouTube, and there are many helpful people on Reddit. But we feel that it's some way from making something a little more similar to commercial games.
Perhaps at some point in the future, Artisan Cheese Quest will be one of the best Fromage-based fantasy role-playing adventures available on the PlayStation 5. For now, I'm going to continue adding stupid sound effects until they become interesting. Honestly, don't hold your breath.
During a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, Harrison Ford commended voice actor Troy Baker’s performance in the latest video game featuring Indiana Jones. Ford emphasized that stealing his essence doesn’t require artificial intelligence, but rather good ideas and talent. The ongoing strike by SAG-AFTRA Union video game performers is primarily focused on the use of AI in the industry. The union is advocating for compensation, consent, and transparency when it comes to AI-generated performances. Major video game publishers like Activision Blizzard, Disney, Warner Bros, and Electronic Arts are involved in the conflict, resulting in the absence of English voice performances in recent titles such as Destiny 2: Heresy and Genshin Impact. Voice actor Sarah Elmaleh, chair of the SAG-AFTRA committee negotiating with the gaming industry, echoes Ford’s sentiment on the importance of human-to-human interactions in game performances.
Many video game developers are open to meeting the union’s demands, with over 160 video game productions already signing AI protection contracts. However, major publishers are still pushing back against some of the union’s proposals. SAG-AFTRA is battling to prevent motion capture work from being classified as “data” rather than “performance” in the gaming industry. Despite the challenges, Elmaleh remains resolute in fighting for actors’ rights and fair compensation across all entertainment sectors. Ford’s advocacy sheds light on the importance of safeguarding actors’ work and preventing exploitation in the digital age.
As negotiations continue, the struggle for fair treatment of actors in the gaming industry persists. The commitment to protecting performers’ rights remains a top priority for SAG-AFTRA, as they push for industry standards that uphold the value of human performances over AI-generated replicas. Ford’s intervention serves as a reminder of the ongoing battle for recognition and compensation for all actors, regardless of their level of fame or the medium in which they work.
The developer of soccer management games has decided to cancel the release of the 2025 game due to multiple delays.
Sports Interactive (SI) has confirmed that FM25 has been scrapped, and they will focus on upcoming games, typically released in November. SI, a subsidiary of Sega, issued an apology to fans for the “hard decision” to cancel the game due to technical difficulties.
“I know this is extremely disappointing, especially with the game’s release date being delayed twice already,” the statement read.
The developers had intended to introduce “significant technical and visual improvements to the series for years,” but found it unattainable.
They explained: “While many aspects of the game met our expectations, the overall player experience and interface fell short. Releasing FM25 in its current state would have been below our standards. We could have fixed issues, but that wouldn’t have been fair. Additionally, expecting players to purchase another game later in the year is unrealistic due to the timing of the football season, so we chose not to exceed the March release date.”
SI also confirmed that they will not update the 2024 game with 2025 team and roster information, but will provide full refunds to fans who pre-ordered FM25.
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Many years ago, during the progress of Civilization II, I began my career as a writer for the video game magazine Edge. As an enthusiast of the original Civilization game, I was eager to review its sequel and impressed the editor enough with my comprehensive analysis of the complex turn-based strategy game that I nearly lost my job due to my addiction to playing it non-stop for two weeks instead of writing my assigned articles. This led to a stern warning about my performance and ultimately ended my tenure as a game writer. Consequently, I did not review the next four installments of the series. Now, Civilization VII is making a comeback, and I find myself facing this captivating nemesis once again.
This game has always been a favorite among me and many other fans, offering a compelling simulation of building an empire from ancient tribes to modern superpowers. As a player, you have the opportunity to establish cities, gather resources, research new technologies, send out settlers, merchants, and armies, and expand your influence through peaceful relations or conquest. Victory can be achieved through military prowess, cultural dominance, or economic power, depending on your chosen playstyle. Each campaign offers a unique experience, making it a game that has withstood the test of time.
Extra nuances … civilization VII. Photo: 2K game
In this latest installment, Firaxis has made some significant changes, deviating from guiding a single civilization through the entire campaign. Instead, players now choose different leaders with unique attributes and guide them through three distinct historical ages, each time selecting a new country to control. Each country brings its own units and buildings, adding depth to the gameplay. The game structure encourages continuity and strategic decision-making, enhancing the overall experience.
bIf you were a passionate gamer before the age of the Internet, chances are you were also an avid reader of gaming magazines. Publications like Crash, Mega, PC Gamer, and the official PlayStation Magazine have been fixtures in the industry since the early 1980s, fostering lively communities through their letter pages. Unfortunately, many of these magazines were not preserved and have been forgotten over time, unlike music and movie publications. As a former game journalist in the 1990s, I recall seeing hundreds of issues of popular game magazines like Super Play and Edge Masters being discarded like trash, which was disheartening.
However, for many veteran gamers and video game enthusiasts, these magazines hold historical significance and provide nostalgic joy. Surviving copies of classic game magazines are highly sought after on platforms like eBay. The Internet Archive features scanned copies of these magazines, but legal issues with copyright owners can limit access.
Fortunately, there are organizations dedicated to preserving game magazines. The Video Game History Foundation, a nonprofit organization focused on preserving gaming history, recently announced the launch of a digital archive where enthusiasts can read and study magazines online. This archive will eventually include over 1,500 issues of US game magazines, art books, and other printed materials, all fully searchable for easy access to information on gaming history.
In a recent video introducing the archive, VGHF Library Filsalbador stated: “Whether you are a die-hard fan or just a curious observer, there is something for everyone.”
The VGHF, founded in 2017 by game historian Frank Cifaldi, is working to create archives that academic institutions and museums can use to study gaming history. While the focus has traditionally been on preserving games themselves, there is a growing recognition that magazines offer valuable context. John Hardman, creative director and co-CEO of the National Video Game Museum in Sheffield, notes that game magazines provide insights into players’ relationships with video games, serving as a time capsule of gaming culture.
Game magazines often reflect the specific demographics of their audience, showcasing industry trends and cultural norms. Advertisements from the 1990s to the early 2000s frequently depicted women in revealing outfits, even for genres like military shooters and strategy sims. This marketing strategy targeted teenage male audiences, as explained by museum curator Anne Wayne. The content of these magazines offers a unique perspective on the gaming community and the discussions and trends of the time.
The US Video Game Historical Foundation digitizes classic video game magazines archives. Photo: VGHF
Both VGHF and the National Video Game Museum rely on donations to continue their preservation efforts. Recently, the museum received a complete collection of PC Gamer magazines from a generous collector, including all cover demo disks and inserts. Magazine publishers also play a crucial role in preservation, as seen with Future Publishing’s archival efforts.
Reflecting on the history of video games, it’s clear that the industry’s trajectory was not always straightforward. Game magazines challenged the notion that technological superiority guarantees success, offering a less linear perspective on the industry’s evolution. As you explore the VGHF digital archive, you’ll see that the success of consoles like the Sega Mega Drive, PlayStation, and Nintendo Wii was not always a foregone conclusion. In times of uncertainty for the gaming industry, these magazines serve as vital historical records, shedding light on a complex and ever-evolving landscape.
I was captivated by Lonely Mountains: Downhill, a simplistic mountain biking game that was released in 2019. obsessed I played those tracks repeatedly until I mastered the art of braking, skidding a tire on a rock, getting stuck in a tire and being flung off, speeding down a straight path, and carefully navigating over ledges. Like a Lycra-clad mountain goat. The serene soundtrack of chirping birds and rustling leaves (occasionally interrupted by the harsh thud of riders colliding with rocks) made the experience very soothing for me. However, what truly drew me in was the Zen-like focus required to descend the mountain, speeding down without crashing 300 times. I honed my skills to perfection, finely tuning my trajectory to make the difference between cutting a second off my run and veering off track, leading to a crumpled heap.
For years, I had eagerly anticipated the release of a snow sports-themed sequel. Instead of sun, rocks, and dirt, there was now glistening snow, and bicycles were replaced with skis. It seemed unbelievable at first, but after a few initial runs on the snowy mountains, I humbly realized I had a lot to learn. I struggled with turns while applying the brakes, found myself sliding backward on hills, constantly bumped into trees, missed jumps, and tumbled across frozen lakes in confusion. The challenges in each course seemed daunting, and my first multiplayer race was a humiliating experience.
Just you and nature…single player mode. Photo: Megagon Industries
However, after a few hours of practice, I found myself gracefully carving through more challenging courses while immersing myself in the soothing sounds of snow. Achieving a seamless run down the mountain, with the wind in my ears, felt exhilarating. But when I missed a turn and ended up in a ditch, the enchantment was quickly shattered, prompting me to return to the checkpoint and start over.
This rhythm of triumph and failure still resonates with me in Lonely Mountains: Snow Riders. The minimalist soundscape, visually stunning representation of natural landscapes, and the sense of achievement from conquering a course remain as captivating as ever. While there are areas that could be improved, such as adding more customization options for the skier, the high difficulty from the start and precise controls pose challenges for new players in progressing through the mountain. Additionally, the introduction of multiplayer racing and team skiing comes with its own set of drawbacks.
Currently, the multiplayer aspect is plagued by technical issues shortly after release. When multiple players appear on screen at once, such as at the start of a race, the game experiences shaking or freezing temporarily. In a game where every millisecond counts, losing control, even momentarily, can make it unbearable to play. I encountered crashes while loading courses, got kicked out of multiplayer games, and saw other players mysteriously lose connection. While these issues may be addressed by developers in the future, for now, they remain a hindrance to the overall experience. The core problem lies in the wide variability of player skill levels.
In an 8-player race, 3 participants may swiftly descend the mountain within 3-4 minutes, while others take considerably longer. Once you cross the finish line, you can either skate aimlessly or watch lower-ranked players struggle in the same section repeatedly. This can be disheartening, especially if you happen to be the unlucky last player.
Massive Freeze…Multiplayer options need fixing. Photo: Megagon Industries
The team mode requires cooperation to navigate mountains, set checkpoints, and revive fallen players, but the concept seemed lost on the players I encountered. I found myself descending the mountain like a medic while others raced past me, eventually regrouping at base camp with players who seemed content to linger. Thank you all for your company and assistance!
LLast year on Joe Rogan’s podcast, Elon Musk claimed to be one of the best Diablo IV players in the world, and surprisingly the leaderboard backed him up. For those who haven’t enjoyed it, Diablo is one of the most relentlessly time-consuming video games out there. You spend hundreds of hours building your character, cutting through demon armies, and refining your skills and equipment to maximize hellspawn cleansing efficiency. I probably played it for about 5 hours last year, but stopped right away out of fear of wasting my life. Most of the people who play are young, often male, and have plenty of time to spend on the internet and play games. So it’s the same demographic as a lot of mask stans.
It was perfect for hardcore gamers to believe that someone who tweets all day and runs several businesses is also an elite player who has poured hundreds of hours into Diablo. This made him approachable. This was reflected in his preferred image of being the hardest working man alive. But then Elon made the mistake of actually playing the game live on X, and it quickly became clear that something was wrong. Looks like Elon Musk could be. fake gamer.
On January 7, Musk played Path of Exile 2, a very Diablo-esque hack-and-slash game released late last year. His character was very well formed. Suspiciously so. Viewers noted that he had better gear than some professional streamers who play this game all day every day, but he didn’t understand what that statistic meant. It didn’t seem like it was. I haven’t played Path of Exile 2, so I can’t independently evaluate these claims – apparently unlike Musk, I’m willing to admit that I’m no expert on any particular game – but , within hours many discrepancies were revealed that his play and commentary had been precisely laid out. on Reddit and on YouTube video. (He also posted questionable garbage elden ring build Back in 2022, it was dredged for further evidence. ) Apparently Musk forgot that we geeks are known for our attention to detail.
I’m encouraged… Has Mr. Musk ever paid someone to play Diablo IV? Photo: Blizzard Entertainment
What this suggests is that Elon Musk is paying other people (presumably in China) to play these games on his account in order to appear much more successful than he is. It means that it is. This practice is known as boosting and can be very embarrassing.
This infuriated the very people Musk was trying to woo with his gamer tendencies. Mr. Asmongold, a successful streamer and YouTuber himself very popular among right-wing youth, criticized Mr. Musk on the issue. In response, Musk accused Asmongold of being a “not his own man” who was beholden to “bosses” and posted screenshots of their DMs as evidence. This proves that Musk also doesn’t understand how YouTube works. Because in those DMs, the video editors Asmongold chops up clips for him are not his bosses. Interestingly, this feud continues to this day.
Grimes, a musician who has three children with Musk, over the weekend. tweeted In his defense. “For my personal pride, my children’s father stated that he was the first American Druid to wipe out Jill’s Slaughterhouse in Diablo, and finished that season as the best in America. I would like to,” she wrote, clearly of her own free will. . “I observed these things with my own eyes. There are other witnesses who can prove this. That’s all.” Her next tweet was rather heartfelt. “Sigh.”
There’s no shame in being bad at video games. To be honest, by internet standards, I think most people are bad at video games. What’s embarrassing is being bad at video games and pretending you’re not. You can’t claim to be an elite gamer without putting in the effort.
It amazes me that at some point, appropriation of geek authenticity became an issue. When I was a kid, there was absolutely no value in being good at games (most unfortunately, I was a young Mario Kart and GoldenEye 007 genius). When I finished Dark Souls, none of my college friends bought me a beer. But now there is respect and trust in people who are talented gamers. You can make a good living on YouTube, Twitch, or the esports circuit. Apparently, he’s now so respected for being so good at the game that the richest man in the world might believe it’s worth his time to fake it.
It was completed by Musk at the 2019 Electronic Entertainment Expo. Photo: Adam S Davis/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
The real irony here is that Musk is being accused of doing the exact same thing that toxic nerds have been accusing women of for decades. Let’s say you’re playing a first-person shooter game online and you’ve reached near the top of the leaderboard. A grumpy guy in voice chat might accuse you of letting his boyfriend play. Any woman writing about video games in any capacity has to deal with comment threads that claim they don’t actually know anything about video games and are just making things up. Women who play games on Twitch keep getting told that they’re doing it for attention (please, no one wants your attention).
As a teenager, this very gendered condescension made me so angry that I tried to be very good at the games I played. Because I was so happy to see the faces of the boys who told me they don’t play games. That’s when I give them their ass in Halo. I’m too old and don’t have much time for that anymore, but luckily there are now entire TikTok and Twitch accounts dedicated to it. In other words, women who excel at male-dominated games like Call of Duty will weed out the men who give a shit. They are in the lobby. I would be willing to pay a lot of money to see one of these women have a live match with Elon Musk.
Amidst the endless X-stream of bad jokes, rants, and cringe-worthy memes, Musk has tweeted a lot about DEI in gaming. This is a fabricated argument that the left has invaded a sacred gaming space with woke men to destroy it. This rhetoric appeals to the kind of people co-opted by Gamergate years ago, disaffected young people that former Trump strategist Steve Bannon wisely recognized as invaluable to his cause at the time. Designed to be loved by people.
What a delicious irony that it’s apparently Musk himself, not women or minorities, who pretends to be a hardcore gamer in order to manipulate people for his own ends.
YouTube sensation Jimmy, also known as “Mr. Biggest reality contest show ever created.” And by most accounts, he achieved his goal.
Beast Games, halfway through production, has dominated Amazon’s charts in over 80 countries, now holding the top spot among streaming platforms. The show, hailed as the number one unscripted program in history, attracted over 50 million viewers in just 25 days.
Inspired by Netflix’s K-drama “The Squid Game,” Beast Games mirrors the show’s premise, color scheme, sweatsuits, and cash motivation but with a louder, more American take.
With a budget exceeding $100 million, Beast Games stands as the most expensive competitive show to date. Funding mostly came from Donaldson’s own pocket to cover prizes, accommodation, staff, and elaborate filming locations.
The result is a spectacle, but not the inspiring one MrBeast envisioned. It reflects America’s current state, akin to a slow-motion luxury liner disaster sinking under the waves. A grim reminder for future generations of the greed and self-destruction in society.
Part of Beast Games’ allure is its unscripted format, offering a raw portrayal of real contestants vying for a chance at generational wealth. However, the show’s depiction of capitalism and exploitation raises concerns.
Beast Games takes cues from the Netflix hit Squid Game. Photo: No Joo-han/Netflix
Beast Games blurs the line between entertainment and exploitation, with contestants subjected to degrading challenges for a shot at wealth. MrBeast’s role in the show’s narrative raises questions about ethics and responsibility.
Beast Games embodies the dark side of American society, offering a stark commentary on wealth, influence, and morality. The show’s portrayal of competition and exploitation highlights deeper societal issues and challenges.
In May of last year, an unidentified individual on a forum leaked information about the upcoming game in the Like a Dragon series, known for its Japanese gangster stories filled with melodrama and absurdity. The leaked details described a film titled Project Madrantis, featuring the series’ most theatrical and violent villain, Goro Mashima “Mad Dog,” as an amnesiac pirate. The leak was dismissed as too outlandish to be true. However, in a surprising turn of events, Sega unveiled the game at the 2024 Tokyo Game Show in September, confirming the existence of the pirate-themed game set in Hawaii.
Matlantis serves as the pirate haven in the game, resembling a Las Vegas on the sea where pirate captains engage in coliseum battles and place bets. The ships are armed with various weapons, including cannons, pistols, machine guns, and rocket launchers, allowing Captain Majima to navigate the waters around Hawaii and engage in high-seas battles. On land, Majima can explore Hawaiian ports, interact with locals, and take on various challenges, including fighting a polar bear named Stephanie.
There was nothing like this in the golden age of piracy… Take aim at your enemies with RPGs. Photo: Sega
Hiroyuki Sakamoto, the chief producer of the series, reflects on the evolution of the Like a Dragon games, stating that long-time fans have become adept at predicting the studio’s next moves. Despite the challenges of surprising these dedicated fans, Sakamoto emphasizes the importance of character development and storytelling in the series.
The Like a Dragon series is celebrated for its authentic portrayal of real-world locations in Japan and beyond. Hawaii serves as the backdrop for the latest installment, Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, leveraging existing assets to expedite development. While the game is expected to release in February of the current year, Sakamoto underscores the significance of character-driven narratives in creating a compelling gaming experience.
In Sakamoto’s view, the essence of the Like a Dragon series lies not only in its settings but in its characters’ depth and interactions. The game’s narrative explores themes of belief, emotion, and camaraderie, even amidst the turbulent seas of pirate life.
Nintendo has officially unveiled the Nintendo Switch 2, the highly anticipated successor to the popular Switch console that has sold 150 million units. The release date is set for the second half of 2025.
The original Nintendo Switch made its debut on March 3, 2017, introducing hybrid gaming consoles to the market. Players could enjoy gaming on the go with the detachable controllers or connect to their TV at home. The Switch 2 follows a similar concept, featuring a larger screen and a redesigned controller that attaches magnetically to the side. The versatile controller can be used like a mouse or held in hand like a traditional joystick, and also offers motion control capabilities.
A brief trailer showcases the new Mario Kart iteration running on the console.
This release marks a significant evolution for Nintendo, known for its history of innovation in the video game industry over the past 40 years. The Nintendo 64, released in 1997, introduced analog sticks for 3D character movement control, while the Wii in 2006 revolutionized home gaming with motion control games like Wii Sports. The Virtual Boy in 1995 dabbled in early VR technology, and the Wii U was the first console with a screen in the controller. Nintendo’s consoles have always been distinct in design, name, and features with each new generation.
The Nintendo Switch 2 will be compatible with all existing Nintendo Switch games, allowing players to carry over their Marketplace purchases to the new console upon launch later this year.
The gaming industry has faced challenges recently, with layoffs, longer development cycles, and uncertainty over business models. Analysts and commentators anticipate that the release of the Nintendo Switch 2 will reinvigorate sales and excitement in the sector.
More details will be revealed on April 2nd, with Nintendo hosting events worldwide later in the month for fans to experience the new console. A lottery will open on January 17th at 2pm for the chance to win tickets to attend.
FFrom pinball to pachinko, humanity has spent billions of hours fascinated by the whimsical effects of physics on metal balls. it's entertainment, barionaireperhaps reached its zenith. The premise is childishly simple. You drop the ball onto the pyramid-shaped course and watch helplessly as it clatters towards the gutter at the bottom. Along the way, the ball bounces off pins and bumpers it encounters along the way, causing special effects and gradually accumulating dollar-based points along the way.
Some bumpers, colorfully rendered as anthropomorphic characters, are straightforward in nature. They might add a little cash to the pot or produce a second ball. Others are more complex, such as reversing gravity or teleporting a ball to another location. Initially the board is mostly empty, but each time you roll you have the opportunity to strategically add one of three new bumpers to your layout, thereby increasing the amount of points you can earn on your next run.
Here lies the challenge. It takes 5 attempts to build a cash pot that meets or exceeds a level's financial goals. If this goal is not achieved, the game is over. Once you address a challenge, your next goal will increase exponentially. You'll soon need to make virtually tens of thousands of dollars per ball just by strategic bumper placement and the luck of the bounce. At first it's a pedestrian-only Bagatelle-esque board game, but it soon becomes a carnival of firework-like effects, with fountains of coins and balls cascading down, setting off dizzying chain reactions.
It's a simple joy to watch your score accumulate through outlandish multipliers, and while the physical aspects of the game are completely passive, you'll be able to find the most beneficial bumper placements in the game's 55 spaces. There is a world of strategies to find out. board. The year begins with a seemingly simple yet obsessive challenge.
IIt’s an interesting oddity in video game history that one of the greatest horror titles of all time debuted on the Nintendo GameCube, the toy-like console known for some of the cutest titles in the Zelda series and Animal Crossing. But in 2002, Capcom announced five exclusive titles to shore up the struggling platform. That included Resident Evil 4, which is technically the 13th title in the franchise. This title would be considered its pinnacle when released three years later. It was an exciting new breath of life for the survival horror genre.
You wouldn’t guess all this from the game’s very pedestrian setting. Six years after the collapse of Umbrella Corporation, smoldering police officer Leon Kennedy is sent on a mission to retrieve the kidnapped daughter of the U.S. president, who has been found in a small village in rural Spain. For some reason well known to the Secret Service, he is aboard alone.
But with this B-movie premise, the film fundamentally challenged the conventions of the Resident Evil series and the survival horror genre itself. By moving the action from the rainy Midwest of Raccoon City to the Spanish countryside, Capcom thrust Regifan (and Leon himself) into an entirely unfamiliar environment. This sense of chaos is amplified by the traditional limp zombies (obviously inspired by George A. This continued even when the nobles were infected with parasites and replaced by axe-wielding, savage, swift countrymen. These feisty creatures more closely resemble the infectious maniacs depicted in Danny Boyle’s modern zombie film 28 Days Later, and are no doubt an influence on “Register 4” director Shinji Mikami. there is no. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and the obscure Lovecraftian horror film Dagon, which was actually set in Spain, have also been cited by fans as possible inspirations.
The action feels frighteningly close to… Resident Evil 4 (2005).
Photo: Capcom
Producer Hiroyuki Kobayashi said in an interview that the theme of this work is “collective fear.” Throwing swarms of ganados at players instead of small groups of zombies increased the pressure, causing outright panic on more than one occasion. The game’s rudimentary AI allowed enemies to sneak around behind the player instead of mindlessly tripping straight up.
But most importantly, Resi 4 pulled the player’s gaze downward from a floating third-person perspective to an intense over-the-shoulder perspective. This made it easier to aim at enemies compared to earlier Resident Evil games, which were frustratingly insensitive, but more importantly, it emphasized a sense of specificity and proximity. . The action is graphic, with teeth and ax blades coming terrifyingly close together. Mikami then said that while he never expected this to be such a revolutionary feature, it’s a feature that has inspired all generations of brawler adventures, including Gears of War (and 2018’s God of War reboot). He said he was an inspiration.
Also: Dead Space designer Ben Wanat
Referenced EA’s Cosmic Horror Shooter Joins ‘Resident Evil 4 in Space’ and ‘The Last of Us’ Designer Ricky Cambia
talked about And looking at it now, the sense of interdependence between Leon and Ashley certainly foreshadows the fragile relationship between Joel and Ellie.
The new shoulder camera has changed the tempo of the entire Resi experience, with an emphasis on action and gunfights. A tense silence still prevailed for several minutes as we explored the farm and castle grounds strewn with dank corpses. But then a bloody siege ensued as huge waves of warriors surged through muddy lanes and dimly lit industrial tunnels. The set-piece encounter became the stuff of legend. From ferocious dogs lurking in an ornate garden maze to giant snake beasts in a lake, this game has a thrilling menagerie of boss enemies to contend with. Surprisingly, players are even reminded of inventory management, with fond memories of relentlessly refilling attaché cases to contain more goods purchased from shadowy traders.
In 2023, Capcom released an amazing updated version, bringing thrilling Grand Guignol fun to a new generation. But going back to the original still works. Every now and then a video game comes along that fans love, but game designers love even more. And these games will ultimately change the approach of the entire industry. Super Mario 64 was one of them, and so was Doom. I have to add Resident Evil 4 to that list.
ILooks like it’s going to be a fun vacation. A week spent tending to the absentee landlord’s garden in a remote village in the Netherlands. Birds chirping in the trees, a picturesque church just across the path. But there’s something wrong with designer Tom van den Boogaart’s surreal and quietly creepy puzzle game. All the tools are missing and the villagers are strange and have been warned not to go out at night. Additionally, the sky is a hallucinogenic red and orange haze, and you can sometimes see someone watching you from behind a door or through a window. What the heck is going on?
Grunn is somehow part gardening sim, part point-and-click adventure, and part survival horror thriller. Once you’ve found your scissors and trowel, you can spend your time sorting hedges and digging up molehills, but you can also explore small hamlets and their lonely haunted places. You can often find discarded Polaroid photos that provide photo clues as to where the next tool is. You may find tools and puzzle items. There is a day/night cycle in the background, and as you venture out into the darkness, strange glitches and ghostly beings can be glimpsed at the edge of your vision. As you explore, you will have to fight against dangers that can cost you your life. Then I start all over again, relying only on my memories and photos.
As a result, you feel like you’re trapped inside an Alejandro Jodorowsky movie. Ominous and strange, yet beautiful and compelling. Everywhere you look, there are eerie images, from skeletons lying on riverbanks to strange children sitting alone in bus stops and ferry cafeterias. The puzzles are clever and challenging, and the blocky, discordant visuals make the entire environment feel like the uncanny valley of the mind. If you’re looking for a completely different kind of challenge in a decidedly unnatural open world, Grunn offers more than the gentle rural idyll it was initially promised.
IIn the West Bank city of Nablus, Rashid Abueide operates a nut roaster to support his family. Additionally, he is an award-winning game developer. A decade ago, amidst the escalating 2014 Gaza war, he created a compelling video game titled “Lilya and the Shadow of War” which depicts a man’s quest for safety for his daughter and himself. However, amidst the falling missiles, it becomes evident that safety is unattainable. Initially rejected by Apple upon release in 2016 due to inappropriate content, the decision was eventually reversed after a week of protests.
Despite the acclaim and attention “Lilya” received, Abueide struggled to secure funding for his next game through conventional means. His envisioned game, “dream on the pillow,” narrates the story of the 1948 Nakba and reflects on the Arab-Israeli conflict through a mother’s folklore. Rejected nearly 300 times for being contentious and risky, Abueide’s games challenge the narratives surrounding the Palestinian experience, which has long been taboo.
Historical Background…The game’s timeline switches between the protagonist Om’s past and her horrifying present. Photo: Rasheed Abueide
Currently, as conflict rages in his homeland, Abueide is resolute in telling the Palestinian narrative. With the collaboration of a dedicated team, he initiated a crowdfunding campaign to bring “Dreams on a Pillow” to life.
Despite challenges, the team successfully reached its fundraising goal through Launch Good, a platform that acknowledges Muslim causes. This achievement covers a significant portion of the game’s development costs, paving the way for further funding opportunities as the project evolves. Abueide expresses gratitude for overwhelming support and emphasizes the importance of portraying the Palestinian plight in gaming.
“I want to send a message.” Rashid Abueide, who operates a nut roaster in Nablus. Photo: Rasheed Abueide
“The Dream on the Pillow” draws inspiration from a mother fleeing with her infant, inadvertently carrying a pillow and recalling her childhood in Palestine. The game interweaves her journey post-Tantura massacre with nostalgic dreams, using the pillow as a key element for progression but also triggering nightmares. Abueide anticipates a two-year development timeline, underscoring the project’s significance with contingency plans in place for potential interruptions.
Abueide’s ultimate goal is for players to empathize with the Palestinian experience, understanding the lasting impact of past conflicts on present realities. By shedding light on the ongoing struggles of the Palestinian people, he aims to prompt an informed and empathetic response from players.
IIn the 1990s, turn-based RPGs were unstoppable. From Pokemon to the multi-million selling PlayStation Final Fantasy game, there's never been anything cooler than using drop-down menus to defeat blocky beasts. And then the new millennium arrived. As computing power blossomed and Western games became more popular, traditional Japanese RPGs slowly but surely became obsolete.
“What Final Fantasy used to do, which was make the turn-based genre more realistic and grounded, no one is doing that anymore. That's where we want to be,” said Guillaume Broche, CEO of Sandfall Interactive and creative director of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Citing the 2007 Xbox 360 classic Lost Odyssey as the last true big-budget turn-based RPG, the former Ubisoft employee founded a studio with a mission to advance the genre.
The result is Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Although the name is enigmatic, this ambitious French epic takes inspiration from France's 20th century Belle Époque and Surrealist painters. A lavishly staged adventurer's party traverses shimmering worlds in a dreamlike setting, from a Little Mermaid-esque underwater kingdom to a grand Gothic mansion.
What sets Expedition 33 apart from the pack is not just its setting and aesthetics, but its fast, fluid combat. “I played so many turn-based RPGs that I got a little burnt out,” shrugs Broche. “So we wanted to make turn-based combat feel more interactive and different, requiring skill and offering something fresh for players like me.”
Shimmering with a dreamlike quality…Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Photo: Sandfall Interactive
Each attack requires a well-timed button press to be successful. Dodge and parry are performed in real time during enemy attacks, and if you successfully parry or dodge, your HP will be recovered and you will be able to counterattack. Jumping was introduced midway through the demo, adding more dynamism as each party member jumps out of the way of an attack.
“Aspects of Belle Époque and Art Deco are present throughout, from the costumes to the decor to the environment,” says Brochu. We wanted to push that aesthetic as deep as possible into every aspect of the game. ”
The developers are being tight-lipped about specific plot details, but the plot focuses on an expedition team with one year left to live. Every year, a mysterious painter paints a new figure on a distant tower, and people of that age disappear into ashes. Seeking answers, the group attempts to locate and kill the painter, and discovers the bodies of the previous explorers.
“The story we developed is darker in tone, writing, and characters than traditional JRPGs,” Broche says. “[Games such as] “Star Sea'' and “Octopus Traveler'' are so-called love letters that remind us of the past. We don't think of ourselves as a love letter at all. We're certainly inspired by it, but we're taking a different approach when it comes to art style, presentation, and gameplay. ”
The high fidelity and sombre tone are reminiscent of the aforementioned Lost Odyssey, an impressive feat for a game made by just 30 people. The opaque cutscenes we've been shown so far have left me scratching my head, but there's a flair and dynamism to this world that's hard to resist. If you have any interest in this genre, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a must-see.
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