Video Game Deep Cuts: From Shenmue 3 To Super Mario Poetry
The following blog post, unless otherwise noted, was written by a member of Gamasutras community. The thoughts and opinions expressed are those of the writer and not Gamasutra or its parent company.
[Video Game Deep Cuts is a weekly newsletter from video game industry ‘watcher’ Simon Carless (GDC, Gamasutra co-runner, No More Robots advisor), rounding up the best longread & standout articles & videos about games, every weekend.
This week’s roundup includes a look at the long, long-awaited Shenmue 3, a book of poetry about Super Mario World, a great video on loneliness in games, Disco Elysium, Vader Immortal, and so much more. Hope you dig it all!
Steam’s discoverability strides & Steam Labs(Simon Carless / Game Discoverability Now! / Substack – ARTICLE) “With all the sourness about Steam and game discoverability that’s sometimes going on, I did want to note that I – personally – feel like the company is making an effort recently. This post by Valve’s Alden Kroll – published in early October – about Steamworks improvements lists a bunch of the changes, Steam Labs being one of the most notable.”
‘It’s cool now’: why Dungeons & Dragons is casting its spell again(Keith Stuart / The Guardian – ARTICLE) “Originally released in 1974, Dungeons & Dragons is having what we now call “a moment”. The company behind the game, Wizards of the Coast, which bought the rights from original creator TSR, estimates that there are currently 40 million players worldwide, with new starters up 25% year on year, as its popularity grows and rules are translated into new languages.”
17 reasons to be thankful in games(Brendan Caldwell / RockPaperShotgun – ARTICLE) “I do recognise the emotional benefit of reflection, which is what this questionable holiday is all about. Being thankful. There are many small things we videogamers take for granted, the stuff you don’t even think about. But tiny “quality of life” things still deserve a grateful thumbs-up. Here are 17 things to be thankful for in games.”
Shenmue 3: a review(Andy Kelly / PC Gamer – ARTICLE) “It’s an ideal setting for a Shenmue game, a series famous for its languid, aggressively deliberate pacing. This is a game as slow and meandering as the old man strolling through Bailu’s marketplace deciding which kind of steamed bun to have for lunch. And the village’s steadfast resistance to a changing world, to the creep of modernisation, neatly reflects Shenmue 3 itself.”
Stephen Sexton: ‘For me, death and Super Mario have always been connected’(Stephen Sexton / Irish Times – ARTICLE) “One Friday evening, my mother came to pick us up in her red Vauxhall Corsa with a big, mostly yellow box with a black L-shaped panel on it, and, in red, the words “Super Nintendo”. Even now I can summon from somewhere in my DNA that sheer, cardiac joy. Now that I think about it, it’s not too much of an exaggeration to say that for me, death and Super Mario have always been connected. [SIMON’S NOTE: LTTP, but this serious poetry book is legit, 100% Super Mario World-themed.]”
The NES console was discontinued in 1995. These developers are still making games for it.(Luke Winkie / Washington Post – ARTICLE) “It’s the sort of thing you’d expect to see gathering dust on the back shelf of a vintage game store. But Micro Mages was released last year, nearly 25 years after the last NES was manufactured, thanks to a crop of game developers refusing to let these classic consoles die.”
Artificial Loneliness(Jacob Geller / YouTube – ARTICLE) “I slept as never before, a stone on the river bed, nothing between me and the white fire of the stars but my thoughts, and they floated light as moths. [SIMON’S NOTE: spectaaacular video on being lonely in video games.]”
Disco Elysium offers a dark mirror to my mid-life crisis(Alec Meer / RockPaperShotgun – ARTICLE) “In the yard below, a corpse hangs from a pine tree. I can’t stand the stench. So I venture a few bolder things. About violent protest. About communism. About workers. It scares me. I don’t know where it leads to. I don’t know what I really believe, but I want to believe in something. Maybe it will make the bough bend a little.”
Are indie games too cheap?(Alex Wiltshire / PC Gamer – ARTICLE) “Gunpoint and Heat Signature sit squarely in the standard pricing for indie games on Steam. But if Heat Signature only gained Steamspy’s average number of sales, it would have netted Francis a loss. He spent $260,000 on its production, including paying an artist, a programmer and for music, and after Steam’s cut, Francis would have a $43,000 overdraft to show for four years’ work.”
‘Ring Fit Adventure’ Treats All Exercise the Same, and That’s a Problem(Patrick Klepek / VICE – ARTICLE) “Running a meaningful distance requires understanding of proper breathing techniques and a certain amount of endurance, so when I started playing Ring Fit Adventure, I ramped up the difficulty, figuring it would be necessary for the game to make a dent. The problem? Ring Fit Adventure treats difficulty universally, which means every exercise is suddenly set to hard.”
The Human Side of Those Who Cheat at and Hack Games(Aimee Hart / EGM Now – ARTICLE) “What about cheating is so appealing in the first place? Was it the faux-strength that came with dominating other players, or was it something else entirely? After all, surely it couldn’t be called an accomplishment to win over other players while having an unfair advantage. It was a conundrum that I was determined to solve.”
How developers left violent combat behind to create kinder games(Malindy Hetfield / Eurogamer – ARTICLE) “But with the years, whether that’s due to hyper-realistic styles making the violence in games seem more gruesome than ever, or simply out of a need for more gentleness in an increasingly relentless world, the number of games that re-think combat or forego it altogether has risen. I’ve been speaking to the developers of several upcoming games to ask them why they’ve started to look for alternatives.”
Embracing the Co-Op Studio Model in Indie Games(Various / GDC / YouTube – VIDEO) “In this 2019 GDC panel, developers Scott Benson, Ted Anderson, Steve Filby, Ian Thomas and Bethany Hockenberry discuss life as indie developers, share their experiences forming workers co-ops, and talk about the benefits of the co-op model for small and midsize studios.”
The $0 Marketing Game Guide(Victoria Tran / Medium – ARTICLE) “Let’s talk a little about the strategies we use at Kitfox. For some context (and you can understand what resources we have/do not) — we’re a team of 9, released 5 games, developing 2, and publishing 2 more. It’s my full time job to do the community, PR, events, marketing, social, etc. Tanya, our captain, helps out with marketing and any key decisions.”
Vader Immortal is what a ‘theme park film’ actually looks like, and it’s great(Adi Robertson / The Verge – ARTICLE) “Vader Immortal can’t make you literally feel the burn of Mustafar’s lava. On the other hand, Void experiences like Secrets of the Empire are short mini-stories built for groups. Vader Immortal is about the length of a feature film, and its narrative is the kind of bizarro mystical hero’s journey that made people fall in love with Star Wars in the first place.”
What Does A Healthy Publisher/Developer Relationship Looks Like (With Real Contract Details!)(Ryan Sumo / Gamasutra Blogs – ARTICLE) “Publisher and developer relations have always been fraught with peril. There is a natural imbalance that occurs when a much more experienced entity with capital deals with a financially naive developer that wants to put their art out into the wider world. Recent news has borne this out, as I have heard of another publisher mistreating or wilfully misleading a developer.”
No Players Online has a second, secret phase. Sorry you missed it.(Mikhail Klimentov / Washington Post – ARTICLE) “No Players Online is a tough game to review for two key reasons. First, there’s nothing stopping you, the reader, from playing and beating the game right now, in the next 20 minutes. I would encourage you to do just that. Play it and make up your own mind.”
10 lovely-looking indie games to look out for in 2020(Colin Campbell / Polygon – ARTICLE) “Every year, an event called Day of the Devs in San Francisco showcases some of the most promising indie games currently in development. This year, the event’s seventh, was no exception. The dozens of games on display show how indie gaming remains a source of originality and artistry.”
The Second Life That Wasn’t(Mark Hill / EGM Now – ARTICLE) “The books are time capsules of the hopes of dozens of SL users and Linden staff interviewed for them, and looking back on them today reveals a medley of the mundane, overoptimistic, and insane. There are predictions of long term government and media presence mixed with basic etiquette tips mixed with a look at Second Life’s sex work community.”
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[REMINDER: you can sign up to receive this newsletter every weekend at tinyletter.com/vgdeepcuts – we crosspost to Gamasutra later, but get it first via newsletter! Story tips and comments can be emailed to [email protected]. MINI-DISCLOSURE: Simon is one of the organizers of GDC and Gamasutra & an advisor to indie publisher No More Robots, so you may sometimes see links from those entities in his picks. Or not!]
Best Cyber Monday Amazon Gaming Deals 2019: Console Bundles, Games, And More
We are nearing the end of Cyber Monday, but that doesn't mean there aren't any more deals. Amazon's sale is still going strong with a heck ton of gaming, tech, and entertainment deals to boot. We definitely did not expect Cyber Monday to outshine Black Friday when it comes to the prices, but Amazon has proven us wrong with some of the lowest prices we've seen on certain items.
Below, you'll find some of the best Cyber Monday 2019 deals at Amazon right now, including consoles, games, tech, and accessories. Please note some of the following game deals have an additional discount attached that will be reflected at checkout; we've indicated your final price with the additional price cut below. Plus, catch up on more of our Cyber Monday coverage for great game deals at Walmart, Best Buy, and other retailers.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 12-03-2019, 05:26 AM - Forum: Windows
- No Replies
Spear phishing campaigns—they’re sharper than you think
Even your most security-savvy users may have difficulty identifying honed spear phishing campaigns. Unlike traditional phishing campaigns that are blasted to a large email list in hopes that just one person will bite, advanced spear phishing campaigns are highly targeted and personal. They are so targeted, in fact, that we sometimes refer to them as “laser” phishing. And because these attacks are so focused, even tech-savvy executives and other senior managers have been duped into handing over money and sensitive files by a well-targeted email. That’s how good they are.
Even though spear phishing campaigns can be highly effective, they aren’t foolproof. If you understand how they work, you can put measures in place to reduce their power. Today, we provide an overview of how these campaigns work and steps you can take to better protect your organization and users.
Figure 1. Percentage of inbound emails associated with phishing on average increased in the past year, according to Microsoft security research (source: Microsoft Security Intelligence Report).
Step 1: Select the victims
To illustrate how clever some of these campaigns are, imagine a busy recruiter who is responsible for filling several IT positions. The IT director is under a deadline and desperate for good candidates. The recruiter posts the open roles on their social networks asking people to refer leads. A few days later they receive an email from a prospective candidate who describes the role in the email. The recruiter opens the attached resume and inadvertently infects their computer with malware. They have just been duped by a spear phisher.
How did it happen?
In a spear phishing campaign, the first thing an attacker needs to do is identify the victims. These are typically individuals who have access to the data the attacker wants. In this instance, the attackers want to infiltrate the human resources department because they want to exfiltrate employee social security numbers. To identify potential candidates they conduct extensive research, such as:
Review corporate websites to gain insight into processes, departments, and locations.
Use scripts to harvest email addresses.
Follow company social media accounts to understand company roles and the relationships between different people and departments.
In our example, the attackers learned by browsing the website that the convention for emails is first.last@company.com. They browsed the website, social media, and other digital sources for human resources professionals and potential hooks. It didn’t take long to notice several job openings. Once the recruiter shared details of jobs online, would-be attackers had everything they needed.
Why it might work: In this instance it would be logical for the victim to open the attachment. One of their job responsibilities is to collect resumes from people they don’t know.
Figure 2. Research and the attack are the first steps in a longer strategy to exfiltrate sensitive data.
Step 2: Identify the credible source
Now let’s consider a new executive who receives an email late at night from their boss, the CEO. The CEO is on a trip to China meeting with a vendor, and in the email, the CEO references the city they’re in and requests that the executive immediately wire $10,000 to pay the vendor. The executive wants to impress the new boss, so they jump on the request right away.
How did it happen?
In spear phishing schemes, the attacker needs to identify a credible source whose emails the victim will open and act on. This could be someone who appears to be internal to the company, a friend, or someone from a partner organization. Research into the victim’s relationships informs this selection. In the first example, we imagined a would-be job seeker that the victim doesn’t know. However, in many spear phishing campaigns, such as with our executive, the credible source is someone the victim knows.
To execute the spear phishing campaign against the executive, the attackers uncovered the following information:
Identified senior leaders at the company who have authority to sign off on large sums of money.
Selected the CEO as the credible source who is most likely to ask for the money.
Discovered details about the CEO’s upcoming trip based on social media posts.
Why it might work: Targeting executives by impersonating the CEO is increasingly common—some refer to it as whale phishing. Executives have more authority and access to information and resources than the average employee. People are inclined to respond quickly when the boss emails—especially if they say it’s urgent. This scenario takes advantage of those human power dynamics.
Figure 3. The more targeted the campaign, the bigger the potential payoff.
Step 3: Victim acts on the request
The final step in the process is for the victim to act on the request. In our first example, the human resources recruiter could have initiated a payload that would take over his computer or provide a tunnel for the attacker to access information. In our second scenario, the victim could have wired large sums of money to a fraudulent actor. If the victim does accidentally open the spear phishing email and respond to the call to action, open a malicious attachment, or visit an infected webpage, the following could happen:
The machine could be infected with malware.
Confidential information could be shared with an adversary.
A fraudulent payment could be made to an adversary.
Catch more phishy emails
Attackers have improved their phishing campaigns to better target your users, but there are steps you can take to reduce the odds that employees will respond to the call to action. We recommend that you do the following:
Educate users on how to detect phishing emails—Spear phishing emails do a great job of effectively impersonating a credible source; however, there are often small details that can give them away. Help users identify phish using training tools that simulate a real phish. Here are a few tells that are found in some phish that you can incorporate into your training:
An incorrect email address or one that resembles what you expect but is slightly off.
A sense of urgency coupled with a request to break company policy. For example, fast tracking payments without the usual checks and procedures.
Emotive language to evoke sympathy or fear. For example, the impersonated CEO might say you’re letting them down if you do not make the urgent payment.
Inconsistent wording or terminology. Does the business lingo align with company conventions? Does the source typically use those words?
Encourage users to communicate potential phishing emails—It’s important that users flag phishing emails to the proper team. This can be done natively within many enterprise email systems. It can also be helpful if users talk with their peers about the phishing emails they receive. Spear phishers typically don’t send blast emails; however, they may select several people from the same department or with business relationships. Talking will alert other users to be on the lookout for phishy emails.
Figure 4. Enhanced anti-phishing capabilities are available in Microsoft Office 365.
Deploy technology designed to block phishing emails—If users don’t receive the phishing email, they can’t act on it! Deploy technology that can help you catch phishing emails before they land in someone’s inbox. For instance, Office 365, one of the world’s largest email providers, offers a variety of protection against phishing attacks by default and through additional offerings such as Microsoft Advanced Threat Protection (ATP) anti-phishing. Importantly, Microsoft has both been advancing the anti-phishing capabilities of Office 365 (see Figure 4 above) and improving catch rates of phishing emails.
Get in touch
Reach out to Diana Kelley on LinkedIn or Twitter or Seema Kathuria on LinkedIn or Twitter and let them know what you’d like to see us cover as they talk about new security products and capabilities.
Also, bookmark the Security blog to keep up with our expert coverage on security matters. Also, follow us at @MSFTSecurity for the latest news and updates on cybersecurity.
Random: Yes, We’re Getting Untitled Goose Game Socks
Untitled Goose Game is one of the stand-out releases for Switch this year, offering a unique puzzle experience which just so happens to place you in the role of the world’s most horrible goose.
The potential for malicious fun is obvious, and it would appear that developer House House is looking to bring that sense of anarchy into the real world with – wait for it – Untitled Goose Game socks. And you know what socks double as? That’s right – sock puppets.
That’s right, you too can own your own horrible goose and have it on the end of your arm for whenever an opportunity for mischief raises its head. Or, you could be boring and simply use them as socks.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 12-03-2019, 05:26 AM - Forum: Lounge
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Cyber Monday Best Tech Deals Under $50
This Cyber Monday is full of great deals on some of the most expensive game consoles and other products, but these big-ticket items aren't the only things with discounts. There are quite a few fantastic Cyber Monday deals on tech and gadgets under $50 that would make great gifts for yourself or anyone in your heart. From the Sega Genesis Mini and tablets to headphones and smart devices, there are a ton of Cyber Monday tech deals under $50 that are worth checking out.
There also some great discounts on PS4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch controllers that you don't need to break the bank on. We've gathered the best tech deals under $50 during Black Friday and collected them in a list for you below.
Of course, we'll keep our eyes on all retailers and update accordingly. Right now, there are some great deals on the Sega Genesis Mini, headphones, and much more.
The Genesis Mini is Sega's shot at the micro-console market. It boasts 42 games, including many of the Genesis's best games like Sonic the Hedgehog, Streets of Rage II, and Revenge of Shinobi. It also comes with two three-button controllers, an HDMI cable, and a power cable and adapter.
Nowadays everyone has a camera built into their phone, but it's still fun to take pictures using instant film cameras with friends and family, especially during the holidays. The Fujifilm Instax Mini 9 is a compact instant camera that prints your picture immediately after taking it. Walmart has them for $50 for Black Friday.
Fitbits are a great way to get some extra motivation to get out there and start walking, running, or cycling. This Cyber Monday has a ton of discounts on Fitbit activity trackers, all of which you can see below.
Skullcandy Hesh 3 Over-Ear Bluetooth Wireless Headphones | $50 ($100)
The Skullcandy Hesh 3 is a great pair of wireless headphones, especially at its Black Friday price of $50. Not all colours are available for as low as $50, though they are still discounted.
Cowin KY02 True Wireless Bluetooth Earbuds | $40 ($70)
True-wireless earbuds are incredibly exciting, especially if you're someone like me who often gets his wired headphones trapped in doors, on chairs, and anything else I get even somewhat close to. The Cowin KY02 are high-quality earbuds, and if you're looking for a pair, this Black Friday deal is worth taking advantage of.
Anker makes some excellent earbuds and speakers, and the Anker Soundcore Motion Q is a great, waterproof speaker that is going for $35 during Black Friday.
The Roku Streaming Stick+ 4K is a portable Roku that gives you access to the entire suite of streaming services, including Netflix, Hulu, and DIsney+ as well as many more. It also comes with a voice-enabled remote. All you need to do is slap it into an HDMI port on your TV, and you're off to the races. It goes for $29 this Black Friday.
The Roku Premiere+ is normally the cheaper, less-portable Roku with a standard remote control that doesn't feature voice control. If the Roku Streaming Stick+ ever sells out, then the Premiere+ is still an excellent option to watch pretty much any streaming service under the sun.
The Logitech Harmony 665 10-device remote works with more than 200,000 devices including Apple TV, Roku, and your Xbox One--this particular remote doesn't work with the PS4. You can sync it with up to 10 devices and control all of them.
Fire TV Stick 4K with Alexa Voice Remote | $25 ($50)
Amazon's Fire TV Stick 4K is now going for $25 for Black Friday. It lets you stream Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and much more in 4K, all controllable with the Alexa voice remote.
If you're looking for an affordable way to get streaming on your TV and be able to control it with your voice, then this Google Smart TV kit is going for $35 during Black Friday. The bundle includes the 1080p version of the Chromcast, which you'll need to use your smartphone to cast things to. The Home Mini, on the other hand, can also be used to control music and various other facets of your smart home.
This is the premium version of Google Home. It comes with a much better speaker than the Mini while still retaining the same Google Voice Assistant. That means this can control your Chromecast, music, and more. It's going for the fantastic price of $49 during Black Friday.
The Chromecast Ultra is Google's 4K streaming option. Of course, you'll need to cast your content to it with a smart device, but you will be able to watch any available 4K content in the resolution it was intended.
Vizio makes televisions and accessories that are both affordable and of excellent quality. Their 2.0 sound bar sounds great and only costs $48 during Black Friday, down from $78.
Amazon's tablets are cheap for a reason: they're nowhere near as powerful as an iPad. However, they're great for reading e-books, watching Netflix, or any other media-based activity. It boasts 1.5 GB of RAM in both 16 GB and 32 GB storage options.
The Fire 7 Tablet is Amazon's cheapest tablet, its screen coming in at only seven inches. It's equipped with 1 GB of RAM and is best used for reading and watching different kinds of media.
There is a wide selection of DualShock 4 cololurs on sale at Walmart for $39 during Black Friday. Even the latest colours--Electric Purple, Red Camouflage, Rose Gold, and Titanium Blue--are discounted.
Several Xbox One controllers are on sale at Walmart for Black Friday. The sale includes basic colours as well as special-edition pads like the Gears 5 limited-edition controller and the Sport Blue variation.
PowerA Enhanced Wireless Nintendo Switch controllers for $29
PowerA Enhanced Wireless Nintendo Switch Controllers | $29 ($45)
PowerA's enhanced wireless controllers are a lot cheaper than Nintendo's Pro controller, and while they don't support features like HD Rumble and NFC reading, they do boast remappable back paddles. You can easily remap those back paddles to any button on the controller, giving you the freedom to keep your thumbs on the analog sticks for as long as possible--this feature is particularly great for games like Fortnite.
T-Mobile 5G service launches across US, minus high-speed mmWave
T-Mobile launched its nationwide 5G network on Monday, one that covers more than 200 million people across the United States. But, customers expecting high-speed connections may be disappointed by the promotion of the carrier’s 600MHz spectrum and nearly no mmWave rollout.
Announced with a press release on Monday, T-Mobile declared it has launched the “first nationwide 5G network” in the United States, with its signal providing service in more than 5,000 cities and towns, and more than 1 million square miles. It claims the network covers more than 60% of the population, with an emphasis on providing coverage in rural locations.
The carrier also takes time to call out its competitors, including Verizon and AT&T, with the former said to have enabled its 5G network to work in “parts of outdoor areas of 18 cities and in a few stadiums,” while the latter’s apparently works only for businesses in 21 cities and for consumers in “parts of 5 cities later this year.” There is also mention of how Verizon’s 5G networks are blocked by “walls, windows, and leaves,” while T-Mobile’s works through walls.
Further attacks are made on cost, with T-Mobile offering 5G access at the same cost as LTE, while simultaneously pointing out Verizon requires a monthly fee on top or the use of an expensive price plan, while AT&T makes it available in the most expensive plans.
At the same time, T-Mobile has announced it has started taking preorders for the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 5G and the OnePlus 7T Pro 5G McLaren, shipping December 6. The carrier is also launching its first prepaid 5G service on December 6 under the Metro brand.
T-Mobile’s network is only part of the 5G package
While this does try to paint T-Mobile in a favorable light and working for regular users instead of richer customers who can afford the more expensive plans, the carrier is disingenuous with its marketing.
What is known as 5G is actually the use of two different types of connections —standard 5G and mmWave. While the first is relatively similar to 4G LTE in terms of robustness and reach, it is also quite similar in terms of speed, with relatively little boosts in connectivity anticipated.
By contrast, mmWave is the higher-frequency bands above 6GHz, which offer potential gigabit speeds to users. However, mmWave cannot travel as far and can be easily interfered with by a wide assortment of materials, with carriers so far electing to use the technology in cities and other high population density locations. The mmWave network is what T-Mobile is addressing in Verizon’s 5G implementation in regards to lack of penetration.
T-Mobile’s network functions on 600MHz bands, which it claims it has reserved for 5G only, with its network to be enhanced with Sprint’s 2.5GHz spectrum once the merger of the two carriers closes. This all relates to the lower-frequency and robust 5G connection, not the high-speed mmWave.
The attacks on the other carriers for limited deployments of their own 5G networks is effectively comparing T-Mobile’s 5G network against mmWave. The other carriers are also anticipated to roll out general 5G coverage across the United States in the future, which will bring them in line with T-Mobile.
T-Mobile has been working on mmWave —but is not rolling it out to a wide audience at this time. It has made similar small-scale deployments of the technology as the other carriers have over the last year.
Apple is currently anticipated to ship 5G-enabled iPhones in fall 2020, though recent analyst speculation suggests that while 5G will be offered across the board, mmWave support may only be available on a few of the new models, not all of the handsets.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 12-02-2019, 10:59 PM - Forum: Windows
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Creating dolls that reflect and engender pride in being African
Inside the gleaming white storefront, Khulile picked up a doll to show a customer who wandered in off the street in Ferndale, a suburb of Johannesburg, where the shop is located.
Sibahle Collection, which started in Khulile’s garage in 2017, quickly grew into this shop, where she transferred the business in 2018.
The doll, dressed in a bright orange and yellow print with small black polka dots, had a skin condition called vitiligo, which causes the skin to look patchy. The woman touched the doll with fascination, looking up at Khulile with soft, sad eyes.
“Do you know what this would have done for my self-esteem, if I had grown up with a doll that looked like me?” she said to Khulile.
*****
Though the mission of Sibahle Collection is for every child to grow up aware of the beautiful and rich diversity that the world has to offer, the beginning of Khulile’s story didn’t start with every child. It didn’t even start entirely with her own child. It started when Khulile herself was a child.
Every morning in the township of Newcastle, several miles south of Johannesburg, Khulile would wake at dawn. She’d stoke the coal fire to warm up the house and place a concrete brick into the fire. Then, she’d wrap the brick in newspaper and hold it close to her body to keep her warm in the bitterly cold Newcastle winter, while she walked to school.
One morning, as she stood outside holding her hot brick, she turned around to take in the rows and rows of impoverished homes in the low-income housing where she lived. Smoke poured out of the roofs, each warmed by a coal fire just like hers. Suddenly, Khulile caught the faint whisper of fate on the wind, as sure and silent as the gentle snow falling around her.
“This isn’t your destiny.”
At that moment, she knew it. She wanted something other than what life had handed her. And she would go get it.
*****
Khulile was raised by her great grandmother, and then her grandmother when her great grandmother passed away, because in her culture a child who was born out of wedlock could not go live with her mother’s new family if the mother married.
“My mom was about to marry my stepdad. She had no choice but to leave me behind, as dictated by our culture” Khulile said, shaking her head in disapproval.
She pushed herself hard in school—harder than anyone else she saw. Education became the vehicle she’d use to usher in her bright future.
Nintendo Applies For Five Poké Ball Plus Patents In Japan
The Poké Ball Plus arrived as an accessory alongside the release of the Pokémon Let’s Go games last year. It was created to enhance the overall experience of catching ’em all – by allowing players to take their pocket monsters with them on the go, and could also be used as a single-handed controller in both entries.
In Sword and Shield, the accessory can no longer be used as a controller, but you can still take your Pokémon for a walk and earn rewards. So, are there any future plans for this device? While there have been no formal announcements from Nintendo, according to Japanese Nintendo, the company recently applied for a total of five “new” game controller patents – all linked to the Poké Ball Plus. Here’s the rundown:
The patents aim to properly arrange components in a spherical controller, to enable various operations using a game controller, to properly arrange components in a spherical controller, to improve the degree of freedom for a structure for light emission in a game controller, and to provide a game controller in which components are properly arranged in a substantially spherical game controller.
As usual, there’s no guarantee anything new is necessarily on the way as these are just patents. It could simply be business as usual for Nintendo to ensure its designs remain protected.
What are your thoughts about this trademark? Have you used your Poké Ball Plus with Sword or Shield? Let us know!
Codemasters Acquires Project CARS Dev Slightly Mad Studios
During the Wii U generation, London-based developer Slightly Mad Studios was working on a game called Project CARS. It was meant to be the definitive racing sim for Nintendo’s system at the time but got cancelled in 2015. The final release (on other platforms) was well-received and a sequel followed in 2017.
Fast forward to earlier this week, and Slightly Mad has now been acquired by the British developer and publisher Codemasters for $30 million (£23.3 million). According to GameIndustry.biz, the studio currently has three projects in development: a mobile version of Project Cars, a “Hollywood blockbuster movie” game, and one based on its own intellectual property.
As noted in the official announcement, both companies share a rich history of creating “AAA racing games” so this is seemingly the perfect match and is expected to reinforce Codemasters as a global powerhouse in the development of racing titles.
Codemasters – with the help of Feral Interactive – recently released GRID Autosport on the Switch with additional features and enhancements. Perhaps the chances of seeing a Slightly Mad game on a Nintendo system are now better than before.
Xbox Insider Release Notes – Alpha Ring (2002.191118-2000)
Hey Alpha ring users! Today’s Xbox Insider Release Notes highlight the latest fixes, known issues, and features coming to your console. Starting at 2:00 p.m. PT today, users will receive the latest 2002 Xbox One system update (build: 19H1_RELEASE_XBOX_DEV_2002\18363.9048.191118-2000). Keep reading for more details.
System Update Details:
OS version released: 19H1_RELEASE_XBOX_DEV_2002\18363.9048.191118-2000
Available: 2:00 p.m. PT – November 22, 2019
Mandatory: 3:00 a.m. PT – November 23, 2019
This update contains the same features as 1911 and lays the groundwork for what’s to come in 2002, so while you’ll find fixes and known issues listed below, please keep an eye out for feature announcements as they’re ready to be previewed. Thanks, as always, for your passion for helping make Xbox One system updates the best they can be prior to release to GA!
Note: This will be a full update that is approximately 4GB in size.
Fixes for Alpha
We’ve heard your feedback, and we’re happy to announce the following fixes have been implemented for this 2002 build:
Game Streaming
Various connectivity fixes for users while streaming.
System
Updates to properly reflect local languages on the console.
Various stability fixes and improvements.
Known Issues for Alpha
We understand some issues have been listed in previous Xbox Insider Release Notes. These issues aren’t being ignored, but it will take Xbox engineers more time to find a solution. We appreciate your patience at this time!
Audio
Users who have Dolby Atmos enabled and console display settings set to 120hz with 36 bits per pixel (12-bit) are experiencing loss of Dolby Atmos audio in some situations.
Workaround: Disable 120hz or set Video Fidelity to 30 bits per pixel (10-bit) or lower.
Dolby Access
Users are unable to complete the setup for Dolby Atmos in the app and the app is not recognizing Dolby Atmos headphones.
Note: This is an issue with the Dolby Access app and the app developers are aware and investigating.
Profile Color
Sometimes users may encounter the incorrect Profile color when powering on the console.
Are you not seeing your issue listed above? Make sure to use Report a problem to keep us informed of your issue. We may not be able to respond to everyone, but the data we’ll gather is crucial to finding a resolution.
Learn more about feedback and how each ring is differentiated in the following links:
For more information regarding the Xbox Insider Program follow us on Twitter and join the community subreddit for support and updates. Keep an eye on future Xbox Insider Release Notes for more information regarding your Xbox One Update Preview ring!
