Opinion by Matt S. One of the most common words you’ll hear from people when talking about video games is “consumers”. People who buy and play games are “consumers.” The game developers and publishers are creating “products” and “content” for their fans, the “consumers”. This way of thinking hurts the…
Read MoreArticle by Harvard L. If you’re a fan of RPGs, you probably enjoy a fair bit of repetition. Hopefully, that’s not a controversial statement, but if you’re inclined to disagree, I have a simple experiment for you. Load up a copy of Dragon Quest (the original) and start a new…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Of all the deep dives into human psychology that you can do, I think that games that deal with some application of Game Theory would have to be my favourite. What causes people to work together, or in opposition to one another, and how mutually assured…
Read MoreVideo by Matt S. As I was reviewing Dry Drowning – an amazing game that I very nearly missed – I was reminded of an issue that I have with the way that we talk about games, and it has to do with genre. How we organise and categories games…
Read MoreGame Theory by Matt S. The seven-entry narrative arc that comprises the Yakuza series (0 through to 6) is considered by many to be a crowning glory of video game storytelling, and rightfully so. The arc takes Kiryu, his friends, rivals and special ward (Haruka) from impetuous youngsters right through…
Read MoreGame Theory by Matt S. Final Fantasy X turns 20 years old this year (yes, I do feel old now). Over that time it has been frequently re-released – originally exclusive to the PlayStation 2, you can now play it on your PlayStation 3, 4, Vita, Nintendo Switch, PC, and…
Read MoreGame Theory by Matt S. With Persona 5 Strikers just around the corner (and review embargo lifting in a few days), I figured I’d publish this piece that explains some of the underlying thinking that has gone into the Persona 5 mini-series. Let me know your thoughts! Persona 5 is…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Quantum Suicide has been a very long time coming. We first wrote about the game back in 2016, saw it in action in 2017 at TGS, and thought then that things were coming together nicely. As happens so often with video games, though, things didn’t come…
Read MoreGame Theory by Matt S. Note: To be upfront and fair, there are major spoilers for Death Come True and The Caligula Effect ahead. Don’t read on unless you’re comfortable reading discussion about the endings of these two games. Four years ago, an artist named Matsuda Keiichi produced a wonderful…
Read MoreFeature by Harvard L. This is a long-form essay covering the three BioShock games in the lens of art criticism. Spoilers abound. And, also, the focus on art criticism means there will be little assessment of how well the games are made or how fun they are to play, there…
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