Culture

Game Companies Say They’re Supporting Black Lives Matter, But Few Are Offering Specifics

As protests over the killing of George Floyd by police spread throughout the country last weekend, some of the gaming industry’s biggest companies put out statements in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. But while a few have shared some specifics about what they’re doing to help fight systemic racism, almost none of them…

Dead Cells, the outstanding roguevania about death, rebirth, and killing many things, is now available on Android devices. It’s the full game with no ads, a mobile-friendly auto-hit mode, and support for Bluetooth controllers, all for $8.99.

How’s It Going?: Work Edition

Gosh, it’s Wednesday. Welcome back to our daily open thread. I don’t think I’ve sent or received a work email this week that doesn’t include the line “I know it’s a weird time, but…” It’s strange, but it feels kind of nice that so many people are acknowledging that things aren’t business as usual. (Not…

Track: Autumn Sweater | Artist: Yo La Tengo | Album: I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One

After Curfew

Lucia Massucco is a concept artist who has worked on games like Endless Legend You can see more of Lucia’s stuff at her ArtStation page

Sega Is Releasing A Game Gear Micro

To mark the company’s 60th anniversary, Sega has decided to take one of its most notorious systems and re-release it in micro form. It’s not the Dreamcast or the Saturn, though; rather, it’s the handheld Game Gear. It’s launching on October 6 in Japan for ¥4980, which roughly translates to USD$45. There will be four…

Sonic 3D Blast Is Better In 2D

Before Sonic Adventure, Sega’s blue mascot made his first foray into the third dimension with 1996’s Sonic 3D Blast for the Sega Genesis and Saturn. It wasn’t great! But now we have a 2D total conversion thanks to independent developer Sotaknuck, which takes the story and aesthetics of Sonic 3D Blast and reimagines them in…

Put Zappa In Guilty Gear Strive, Dammit

Arc System Works recently shared the results of a survey taken by players of the Guilty Gear Strive closed beta. The most interesting findings come from the character request section. Players from around the world left some surprisingly uniform responses, and sadly, my favorite character is nowhere to be seen. Zappa is Guilty Gear at…

Destiny 2‘s Current Season Is Hurtling Toward A Confusing End [Update]

Pyramid ships. Planet eaters. A new alien race. Bungie is teasing a ton of upcoming stuff in Destiny at the moment, but so far, none of it looks like it’ll arrive in time to save the current season. With one week left on Season of the Worthy, the massive Almighty spaceship that was sent hurtling…

Street Fighter Event Benefiting Black Lives Matter Demolishes Fundraising Expectations

Last night, the Street Fighter subreddit organized an online Street Fighter V tournament to raise money for Black Lives Matter charities in response to the recent police murder of George Floyd, a black Minnesotan, and ongoing attempts by activists across the country to hold law enforcement accountable. They ended up collecting just under $15,000 from…

CD Projekt Red has delayed its Night City Wire livestream for Cyberpunk 2077 until June 25 following the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests The event was originally planned for June 11, but the company said it’s pushed it back because “more important discussions are happening right now.”

Mario 64‘s Unofficial PC Port Will Look Glorious Once Modders Get Done With It

Ever since a fan-made PC version of Mario 64 was released last month, modders have been having fun updating the nearly 25-year old Nintendo 64 game to give it a fresh, modern look. Mario 64 on PC is the work of fans reverse engineering the game’s code last year. After it was publicly released last…

Animal Crossings’ Sharks Don’t Do Fish Crimes But I Love Them Anyway

Hot on the caudal fin of Tripwire Interactive’s bloody aquatic epic Maneater, Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ summer season fills its seas with man-eating beasts. Animal Crossing’s sharks don’t actually eat people and can be caught by a single human holding a flimsy fishing pole, but that just makes them more lovable. Nothing like standing on…

Pokémon Sword and Shield‘s Isle Of Armor DLC Drops June 17

According to information released today initially on the official Japanese Pokémon website, the first DLC from Pokémon Sword and Shield’s expansion pass, The Isle of Armor, brings new pocket monsters and fresh adventures to the games on June 17. The website and accompanying trailer show off new features coming in The Isle of Armor on June…

Track: Sad Song (Live) | Artist: Liam Gallagher | Album: Liam Gallagher MTV Unplugged

Track: Hate The Police | Artist: Mudhoney | Album: Boiled Beef & Rotting Teeth

Next Call Of Duty Seasons Delayed Because “Now Is Not The Time”

The latest rollout of new Call of Duty content, for Modern Wafare, Warzone and Call of Duty: Mobile, has been postponed due to the current violent police actions against American citizens A short statement released by Activision says that “while we all look forward to playing” the new stuff, “right now it’s time for those…

Gotta Go Fast

Quentin de Warren is a freelance concept artist and illustrator who has worked for clients like Fantasy Flight and Games Workshop. You can see more of Quentin’s stuff at his personal site and ArtStation page

Sonic Fan Site Closes After 21 Years Following Very Bad Black Lives Matter Tweet

TSSZ, a Sonic fan site that had been running since 1999, closed over the weekend, not long after the site’s owner posted a very bad tweet comparing the plight of Black Americans and the Black Lives Matter movement to…some stuff that fictional video game character Sonic the Hedgehog has been through. Though the Tweet in…

A now-deleted Destiny 2 teaser sure makes it look like the game is soon headed to Jupiter’s icy moon of Europa. You can still watch Eris Morn trudge through the snow in the short Instagram video announcing a June 9 reveal. Europa was planned for Destiny 1 but later cut