The first breakout video game of the year is also the most outrageous. Palworld, dubbed “Pokémon with guns” by the internet writ large, takes base elements of survival games like Rust and mixes them with collectible, edible little creatures for a satirical twist. (Yes, you can give your adorable companions …
Read More »Mass Layoffs Are Causing Big Problems in the Video Games Industry
As games like Baldur’s Gate 3, Alan Wake II, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Spider-Man 2, and so many more marked 2023 as a year of instant hits and commercial success, developers were suffering. Layoffs rolled across the industry worldwide, knocking out a reported 6,500 jobs from …
Read More »The 'Sex Update' for 'Cult of the Lamb' Is a Good Sign for Horny Video Games
The pitch is straightforward: What if this video game had sex? Fortnite needs sex. Among Us needs sex. Every game deserves a sex update, so the meme goes. In November, Cult of the Lamb, Massive Monster’s adorable, animal-themed roguelike about building and maintaining a cult, got in on the action: …
Read More »Video Game Adaptations Could Keep Beating Marvel at the Box Office in 2024
One of the more amusing TikToks that followed the announcement of the forthcoming Legend of Zelda movie riffs on a scene from the animated series Drawn Together. In it, the blue-caped Captain Hero sits in a wheelchair at the bottom of a staircase next to the text “Zelda fans when …
Read More »Brazilian Gamers Aren't Waiting for Hollywood. They're Building Their Own Cons
A large group of young people are cosplaying as their favorite characters. Others are wearing T-shirts with similar motifs and bright, colorful hair. This scene is typical to many conventions around the globe, but here in São Paulo, it’s different. Many of the attendees are Black and brown Brazilians. Their …
Read More »This Art Exhibition on Video Games Breaks You Out of Your Comfort Zone
As I wandered through the exhibition Difference Machines: Technology and Identity in Contemporary Art, my mind felt like it had been hit by several lightning strikes. This exhibition, currently at Chicago’s Wrightwood 659 gallery, showcases the work of 17 artists who have been working in digital spaces for decades, focusing …
Read More »The 8 Best Video Games of 2023
When it comes to the best video games of 2023, it was all about revisiting familiar realms. Whether it was through sequels, returning franchises, or long-awaited remakes, the pleasure was finding new things to enjoy in old games. Larian Studios created a breakout hit based on one of the most …
Read More »The Fight Tearing the Game Awards Apart
Geoff Keighley had a lot to talk about. Onstage at this year’s Game Awards, the host, who is also the event’s creator and producer, took an in-person and online audience through hours of trailers, announcements, celebrity appearances, and awards. His event has become, almost by default, the biggest show in …
Read More »The Death of E3 Signals the End of Gaming’s Most Extravagant Era
E3 is finished, for good this time. The Entertainment Software Association confirmed today that the event will not be happening in 2024 or any time thereafter, bringing 28 years of the video game industry’s most prolific trade event to a sudden, unceremonious end. E3’s demise isn’t wholly unexpected. The annual …
Read More »Sony’s New Access Controller Reveals a Big Problem in Adaptive Gaming
For the past five years, engineers at Sony have been developing the PlayStation 5’s answer to the Xbox Adaptive Controller, finally completing a triumvirate of accessibility-focused controllers for all three current-gen consoles, including the Nintendo-licensed Hori Flex. The palm-sized, turtle-shaped Access controller arrives three years into the lifecycle of the …
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