In the first Fave This podcast of 2018, Gita Jackson and I discuss the controversy around fans shipping Rey and Kylo Ren as a couple in Star Wars (31:08) what the No Man’s Sky community is up to, and where open world games go next. Listen below. Download the MP3 here.

The Weekend In Esports: Wrapping Up The Overwatch League’s First Week 

OWL got off to a cracking start last Wednesday and hasn’t slowed down since. In addition to introducing esports to a larger audience and sparking important conversations about diversity and team management, there were also a bunch of really great games. Hopefully the quality continues today as the league’s last three matches of the inaugeral…

This Week In The Business: Welcome To Flavor Country

QUOTE | “When you’re spending a lot of money, you have to justify your project by saying it’s going to appeal to a lot of people, which essentially means it cannot be a strong flavor. I think by definition you just have to be more mainstream.” – Alex Hutchinson (lead designer on the Sims 2…

This Weasel Is The Key To Hearthstone‘s Hottest New Deck

Every once in a while, a formerly crappy Hearthstone card finds its place in a deck and works so well that it starts to look like it might actually be good. A while back, that card was a Hungry Crab. Today, it’s a fedora-wearing rodent called Weasel Tunneler. If there’s one thing you should know…

Overwatch Player Uses Doomfist To Obliterate Pharah And Mercy From Orbit

Doomfist may not be able to fly, but he sure can fall with style. Even in the techno-magical cartoon world of Overwatch, what goes up must come down. Player wahw_ow, however, decided that the laws of gravity needed assistance in grounding a pesky Pharah/Mercy combo, and, in the heat of a gridlocked team fight on…

Lone Echo Lets Me Experience A Beautiful Zero-Gravity Friendship 

With an interesting deep space setting, a clever zero-gravity movement system and plenty of hands-on interaction, Ready At Dawn’s Oculus exclusive Lone Echo ticks all the technical boxes required to be an excellent virtual reality game. But its greatest feat is making me believe a woman could ever love an unfeeling robot like me. It’s…

What Are You Playing This Weekend?

The weekend is for trying to find a bar in NYC showing Overwatch League. I think I found one but I have to call to confirm. I feel weird phoning a sports bar to ask about video games, but my colleagues’ writing about seeing it live is getting to me. Also, video games. I’m going…

My Hunt For The Mysterious Man Or Machine Controlling The Blizzard Arena’s Light-Up Halo

The Blizzard Arena stage has a massive light-up halo on the ceiling that serves as a progress bar for Overwatch objectives. As a team captures a point, the halo fills up with that team’s colors. It’s an impressive illustration of who’s winning. And it’s all manual. Or so I’ve been told. The other elements on…

Ask Dr. NerdLove: My Girlfriend’s Friends All Hate Me

Hello all you florescent death antelopes, and welcome to Ask Dr. NerdLove, the only dating advice column to win that coveted chicken dinner. This week, we’re tackling the drama that friends can bring to our relationships. What do you do you do when your relationship is amazing, but your girlfriend’s BFF’s hate you? How do…

Man Arrested For ‘Swatting’ Call That Led To Murder Charged With Involuntary Manslaughter

Twenty-five-year-old Tyler Barriss was charged today in Kansas for involuntary manslaughter and two other counts in the wake of a swatting call that led police to kill an unarmed 28-year-old at his home. The maximum sentence varies but if found guilty, Barriss could face a hefty fine and years in prison. Police say that Barriss…

Ten Things Call of Duty: WWII Players Want Fixed

As you might expect, the Call of Duty community is being very vocal about changes they want to see in WWII on social media outlets such as the WWII subreddit. And they have a point: Two months since the launch of the latest Call of Duty, there are still many improvements that could be made…

My First Night As A Philadelphia Fusion Fan

I’m too old for this. “This” is the official viewing party of the first match of the Philadelphia Fusion, the Overwatch League team owned by Comcast. I’m 34, and I’m at a college bar in West Philadelphia on a Thursday night. It’s crowded. I’m surrounded by cosplayers, cheerleaders, college kids and actual kids. I did…

And The Destiny Merry-Go-Round Spins Again

Stop me if you’ve heard this one: In September, Bungie releases an online first-person shooter. A few months and a disappointing expansion later, the game is in trouble. Fans are mad; lots of people are quitting. Bungie vows to do better and sets about making improvements. Patient fans are eventually rewarded with a better game.…

A Game That Got A New Level For Every Day Of 2017

A Road to Aweis an exploration game featuring hundreds of M.C. Escher-inspired digital worlds. Developer lectroniceadded a new location every day throughout 2017, creating a gorgeous series of mazes, monuments, and museums. It’s this week’s indie pick. Space in A Road to Awe shifts and contorts to form winding pathways. Each new map is a…

Xbox One’s Backward Compatibility Is Fantastic

We often criticize gaming platform makers for their missteps, so let us also praise them when they do something great: Xbox One’s backward compatibility feature is nothing short of perfection. Setting up my Xbox One X over the holiday reminded me that I had been meaning to get around to playing Lost Odyssey, an Xbox…

Out today for the Switch, Azkend 2: The World Beneath is an adventure that plays out in a series of enjoyable match three puzzles. It’s a premium game, so there’s no buying power-ups or lives, which is nice. Switch owners can even use touchscreen controls, making it the best console version of the game yet.

Video Game Lobby Group Slams Newest Trump Comments As ‘Repulsive’

The video game publishers’ lobbying group in Washington, the Entertainment Software Association, has denounced comments reportedly made by president Donald Trump during an Oval Office meeting with lawmakers on Thursday where he is saidto have called African nations and possibly Haiti “shithole countries.” The lobbying group had previously voiced support for presidential policy. The president…

Sims 4 Toddlers Now Get Your Jokes

The Sims 4 had a small patch yesterday, and as ever, there were some amusing patch notes. You will now be given enough time to take care of your neglected baby after the warning “you neglected your baby” notification appears. The Pile of Discarded Food that results when a toddler throws their food on the…

Look At This Giant Detective Pikachu Amiibo

The 3DS game Detective Pikachu is coming to the west in March, The Pokémon Company said today, and with it comes a giant Amiibo that’s nearly double the size of a standard Pikachu. Detective Pikachu, which launched in Japan in March 2016, will be out in North America on March 23, 2018. Last month, actor…