For years now the games industry, media, and community has been calling for the Australian government to do something to support the games industry. We look over at places like Poland and Canada, which have become thriving hubs of game development and the arts thanks to government investment, and can’t…
Read MoreOpinion by Matt S. We had another round of the discourse last night in the Australian video game scene. Our national broadcaster (the ABC, but no, that’s not America’s ABC) published an investigative report, titled “Are you being played,” which was, principally, a look into microtransactions, loot boxes, and whether…
Read MoreOpinion 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 MoreOpinion by Matt S. I’ve touched on this topic often enough in the past, but I saw a tweet this morning from a game developer that annoyed me enough that I felt like it was worth re-iterating on here, because it speaks to a common attitude towards games that are…
Read MoreImagine if the Louvre Museum in France came out with a statement to the effect of “the Mona Lisa is really old content and it costs too much to continue to preserve. So, since we have newer paintings to show off, we hereby announce that we’re going to throw that…
Read MoreOpinion by Matt S. As far as I’m concerned, the biggest problem that faces gaming as an art form is how easy it is proving to be for developers to use it for the purposes of pure propaganda. Whether it is an explicit recruitment tool for the army, or simply…
Read MoreOpinion by Matt S. There was some interesting news from outside of the games industry that is nonetheless of some meaningful relevance to video games for the reaction that is has provoked. The company that preserves the work of Dr. Seuss has decided that it will no longer publish six…
Read MoreArticle by Matt S. China, as one of the oldest continuous cultures and nations on the planet, has a long and deep literary history. Some of its greatest masterpieces were written well before Europeans invaded places like America and Australia and re-drew the maps to suit their colonial expansion. Across…
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…
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