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There was once a time when you had to truly defeat a video game. Rather it was Super Mario Brothers or Doom, these games offered such insurmountable challenges that it was as if the bits of software were maliciously sentient. Now, however, there is a stark contrast. But, don’t worry. Things have definitely changed over the years, but they have changed for the better. Within the ages of Atari, NES, SNES, PlayStation, and Xbox, games were simply different. Games were not as long. With only a few hours worth of content programmed into each piece of software, video game developers were met with a unified issue. Players were finishing their games far too quickly. This may not immediately seem like an issue. After all, time spent does not inherently equal money well spent. However, there is an underlying issue with players finishing their games too early. Since the earliest days…

Video game publishing titan Ubisoft recently released their latest edition to the Far Cry series. Working off of the success of the companion system within Far Cry 5, the recently released Far Cry New Dawn features a series of compatible player companions. This time, however, there are two characters in particular that have each stolen the hearts of gamers everywhere. Far Cry New Dawn was released worldwide Feb. 15, 2019. Set in the fictional realm of Hope County, Montana, the game takes place 17 years after the occurrences of Far Cry 5 and acts as a direct sequel to the previously released title. Far Cry New Dawn features a gun-for-hire and fangs-for-hire system, offering players the ability to have an NPC tag along with them on their adventures. Each NPC companion offers different advantages on the field of combat when implemented by the player, leaving a few tactical options of…

For quite some time the Steam store has been gamers’ one stop shop for all PC gaming. Epic Games has since decided to offer some stiff competition. However, one of the program’s recent free games has suffered a minor setback. Following the meteoric rise of the battle royal phenomenon that is Fortnite, parent company Epic Games decided to offer their own platform for digital PC game sales. To help themselves stand out from among the dominant force of Steam, Epic Games Store has been giving away free games every two weeks to the store’s loyal customers. Among them, the famous metroidvania title Axiom Verge recently hit the Epic Games Store as part of the free games service. However, the title hit a bit of a snag. Axiom Verge was first released back in 2015 on PS4 and PC. A PlayStation Vita edition was included later in 2016, with a Nintendo…

The 22nd annual DICE Awards, held by the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences, just went down in Las Vegas. To perhaps few gamers’ surprise, Sony Santa Monica’s God of War completely stole the show. God of War won the highly praised Game of the Year award, while also managing to wrangle in a whopping nine awards from the total 23 categories. Speaking at the event, Meggan Scavio, president of the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences, offered a few words. “Tonight, at the 22nd Annual DICE Awards, the interactive entertainment industry gathered together from all over the world to celebrate their trailblazers – the very best in video games and the teams who – with their amazing talent and vision – have created boundary defying experiences that have captivated global audiences. On behalf of the Academy, I congratulate not only this year’s incredible nominees, but the esteemed winners chosen by…

One of the most underrated games I have played in recent history is Batman: The Telltale Series. I loved the idea of a choice-based adventure for a young, inexperienced Dark Knight, and I found myself lost in the world of Gotham in a different way than I ever had before. However, I have never met another person who has played this game, and it makes me think I may be the only one who got to enjoy this excellent series. As I mentioned earlier, the choice-based adventure concept was great for a Batman game. It was such a cool experience to be Bruce Wayne and make crucial choices and decisions that would hopefully be best for Gotham City. It made the player feel like they were Bruce Wayne himself and showed how tough it would be to be Wayne and make split-second, potentially life-altering decisions. There are also parts where you must…

Crowdfunding has become somewhat controversial as of late. For every story about a successful crowdfunding campaign, there seems to be a tale about a crowdfunding recipient running off with their spoils and leaving backers high and dry. That being said, crowdfunding may still be precisely what the gaming industry needs right now. Before we delve into the nitty gritty of crowdfunding, let’s look at another aspect of the gaming industry. AA developers are about to be in high demand. Within the world of gaming, the industry did away with the term “blockbuster” years ago in place of calling massive, highly funded, world-class games “AAA.” Still, the meaning is analogous to blockbuster. Some AAA developers include Bethesda, DICE and Infinity Ward. The issue with AAA gaming is that it has reached a level of success similar to film. A blockbuster film requires massive sums of funding to produce. Consequently, the films…

Recently, it was exposed that Thomas Cheung, a popular video game influencer and employee of Hi-Rez Studios, makers of SMITE, Paladins and Realm Royale, was arrested in Operation Interception. Operation Interception was a sting, much like the Chris Hansen “To Catch a Predator” series, where suspects were caught soliciting sex from a minor. While innocent until proven guilty, the allegations and the evidence presented so far are very serious. Of course, sadly in our society, this isn’t a once off situation. These busts occur frequently and the work of our officers and legal system work diligently to protect society from this kind of harm. What makes this situation relevant to the gaming community is that Elvinelol was a popular influencer, affiliated with many gaming brands and ran the local Twitch Atlanta Community (not affiliated with Twitch). He attended gaming conventions where attendees of all ages gather to celebrate gaming. He…

Square Enix’s hit series Kingdom Hearts has been around since way back in 2002. Well, the seventeen-year-old franchise just hit another major milestone. The first Kingdom Hearts immediately snared the attention of gamers around the world. Featuring a crossover universe of Disney, beloved Square Enix characters and a slew of new faces, the game offered a vibrantly new and interesting experience. Since the release of the first game, Square Enix has released well over a dozen titles across a bevy of gaming platforms. The latest in the series is Kingdom Hearts 3, the final edition of the series’ main trilogy. The game was released Jan. 25 on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One respectively. The title features the series original main character Sora, as the character is swept off to a battle between darkness and light. Set to search for the key to return hearts and the seven guardians of light,…

The recent hype around Obsidian Entertainment’s new The Outer Worlds title has drawn an interesting point. AA developers can still lure the attention of the video game industry’s exponentially growing video game audience. It’s a good thing too, because we need those developers now more than ever. First off, before breaking down why we need smaller developers, let’s dig into why The Outer Worlds is getting so much attention right now. Obsidian Entertainment includes members of the development team involved in the original Fallout franchise. Video game titan Bethesda purchased the rights to the franchise before producing Fallout 3, Fallout Shelter, Fallout 4 and Fallout 76. Obsidian was later contracted to make Fallout: New Vegas, however. Bethesda has been receiving some heat from fans as of late. Many hardcore fallout fans were seemingly underwhelmed by Fallout 4 following the critical success of Fallout 3. Beyond that, the release of Fallout…

Oh, how the times have changed in the gaming realm. There once was a time where you bought a game for $60 and you were satisfied. You beat it to completion and were left feeling at peace, knowing that you achieved all you possibly could. Then somewhere along the line, the idea of DLC (downloadable content) slowly crept its way into the gaming world, and it has not only changed how we play games, but how developers make them as well. More often than not, if you want to play a game in full in today’s day and age, you have to fork over some extra dough. In addition to the $60 you already pay, you then have to pay $20 – $25 for that season pass to get all of the DLC that will be coming out in waves in the months ahead. And you aren’t going to not…