Five big questions shaping video games in 2025, 09/01/2025
And no, I don't know when GTA VI is out 😤
The Brothers Krynn
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6d
The big question I have is how in the bloody hell does one break into the business without being in a big city!?
Latest Gaming Articles
Prototyping is Often a Waste of Time
Look in your heart, you know it's true
The other day a friend of mine shared that, as someone who’s worked in games since the PS2 days, he missed when teams decided up front what game to make and then made it, rather than relying on prolonged prototyping.
10 Big Predictions for Video Games in 2025
Plus: Find out who won the predictions for 2024!
Listen to this week’s episode
Video games I played in 2024, part 2
Following up part 1, its finally time for my mini reviews of the games I played in the 2nd half of 2024, and also go what I think were the best games this year afterwards. I was visiting family for new years so this is a little bit later than I normally do it, but anyway here we go.
What did you mean by "I appreciate that the main character (Nine Sols) is basically an asshole and a villain". The main character did bad things sure, but he's far from an asshole and definitely not a villain compared to the rest of the cast imo.
Insights from the movie "Groundhog Day". Again...
An essay on video games, reincarnation and a way to combat the rise of authoritarianism.
Note: I am republishing this article because I mistakenly opened comments only to paid subscribers. I guess I needed a re-do. How fitting. All are welcome to comment.
In the old days, I was a liberal Democrat, and my comrades believed in social welfare and promoted a strong central government that could take care of us all. Part of that ethos was living in service to others as a good in itself.
Then the Liberal Establishment became co-opted, wandered off into a world of worshiping The Science (TM) and burying CO2 and shunning people who are guilty of microaggressions.
Now I am a pen-wielding warrior for freedom and my comrades are libertarian capitalists who see individual competition as the highest guide to life.
I'm grateful for friends like Madhava who retain the spirit of service, compassion, and cooperation, even as we take a stand against the mad megalomaniacs who are using medical deception in their bid to take over the world.
Hi Madhava! Lovely article, and very interesting to read the bit about Groundhog Day. I never saw that movie.
I second the belief that acting “as if” reincarnation and karma as real can change one’s perspective dramatically on the world. Everyone we meet becomes someone whom we have met before- which creates a curiosity that heightens the interaction. Every meeting becomes also a reminder that we have karma with that person.
One of the ways I’ve come around to acting “as if” something is real is what I call the “carpenter entering a new house” analogy:
For the average person who doesn’t know how buildings are built: when they enter a new house, they notice the things for which they have pre-existing concepts: the colors, familiar smells, the types of furniture.
But when the carpenter or builder enters a new house, they notice specifics: how it was built (timber frame? ICF? Steel load bearing beams? ) They can picture in their mind the steps necessary to build the structure - because they have the concepts already in mind.
The same analogy can be made for any type of speciality: clothing construction. Silicon chip design. Identifying physical maladies.
Back to reincarnation and karma: if one takes the time to work with the ideas of reincarnation and karma, thinking them through in a organized fashion, then when an opportunity arises, such as meeting a new person, the concepts are available. (“Oh! This is someone whom I have met before. We have pre-existing karma. I wonder what it is? What am I going to do to make this meeting as beneficial as possible for both of us?”)
One of the ideas described by Steiner about why reincarnation was removed from Christian theology (Council of Nicaea 325 AD) is that there was a certain wisdom to causing people to believe they had to work really hard in one life…personally, I think this was greatly distorted by the subsequent ideas of confession/absolution as removing sin.
The standard Gospels reference the reincarnation of Elijah as John the Baptist in a couple of places. I’m not sure how that is interpreted within Christian churches now.
Great to read your piece, as always.
Video games can save lives
How DeusEx helped with depression
CONTENT/TRIGGER WARNING: This issue of LFG: Learning from Games contains descriptions about someone’s experience with major depressive disorder. Please feel free to skip this issue if you aren’t comfortable with the topic.
"Paranoid" Video
New Video Out Today
HELLO VERY EXCITED ABOUT THIS NEW SONG it’s called “Paranoid” and it’s one of my favourite PUP songs we’ve made in forever. We also made a kinda mental video for it, with the 5th member of PUP, Jeremy Schaulin-Rioux.
The MAGA Games Continue
Day 27 Is Another Wild One
This was supposed to be the week of Squid Game 2, and Beast Games (if you have kids, you know).
Thanks for the play-by-play, David. I frankly don’t have the bandwidth for this bullshit. But a seat in the stands is fascinating so long as I can still leave at any time. Please let that freedom continue.
Yes, folks, racism is not a glitch in MAGA, it's a feature. Duh. Thanks for keeping up with these folks, David, so I don't have to.
Video: Beyond Stoicism
Episode 13 of “Meet the Greco-Romans”
Welcome to another entry in our occasional series of video chats with authors and translators who have written about the philosophy, culture, and history of the Greco-Roman tradition.
Hello! I purchased Beyond Stoicism on Audible and I’m thoroughly enjoying it so far. It mentions there was a PDF supplement that was available for the audiobook, but I can figure out where to find it. Can you advise? Thank you!
Thank you for the helpful introduction
Caution - Disturbing video
Boy experiencing horrific V2K.
This is outrageous and unacceptable!
I pray that my Father in Heaven protect and defend this poor child against any and all attacks, in the all powerful name of Jesus. So be it. All glory be to God the Father in Heaven.
That is simple inhumane to do this to a child. Only psychopaths in league with demonic forces could perpetrate these torture experiments. I have all the letters ready to send. Who will open them if the old members are still using the addresses? Should I wait until after the 20th to send the snail mail? I found Tulsi’s email address- how about the others. It would not allow me to send to JD Vance from the library computer.
Video: The garden
pink white snakeskin flower,
Play Silly Games, Win Silly Prizes
The other day, I stumbled across this image, and I couldn’t stop thinking about how much it resonated with me. It captures something I often remind myself: Play silly games, win silly prizes.
Excellent content! Thank you Laura!
Does Nintendo Switch come with games?
Your snazzy new Nintendo Switch won't count for much if you've nothing to play on it
If you’ve been eyeing Nintendo’s hybrid console in 2025, you might wonder if the Nintendo Switch comes with games. After all, the Wii came bundled with Wii Sports, which acted as a fantastic proof-of-concept game for Nintendo’s motion-controlled console, and the Wii U Deluxe bundle came with Nintendo Land.
Macro Tear Sheets Video
A breakdown of the week ahead
Video Breakdown of the Macro Tear Sheets and WHERE we are in the macro regime: (Youtube Link)
$2000 College Video Contest
For College Students
Special Jan 6 Video
Officers Harry Dunn and Michael Fanone, on what the election meant and the way forward
We’re getting close to the 4th anniversary of January 6th. Ever wonder how the officers that defended the Capitol on Jan 6 really feel, especially after the election? Wonder no more.
Officers Harry Dunn and Michael Fanone please know that a huge segment of Americans absolutely revere you and know you are hero's. Your testimony is recorded and history will show you 💯 did the right thing under tremendous circumstance's and we have the highest respect for you. Trump and his thugs will go down in history as the most corrupt disgrace to darken our democracy. THANK YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE AND YOUR SACRIFICES.
This is literally bringing me to tears! You three are true profiles in courage. God bless all of you and others who won’t back down on doing the right thing.
Special Kinzinger-Sykes Video
Adam Kinzinger and I try to explain it all.
Something a bit different for the weekend.
I follow both of you and it was great seeing you two together. I hope our support and comments help you both understand that you are not alone or as Charlie says "we are not the crazy ones". I am a democrat but I appreciate both of you and your commitment to democracy. We will walk this road together. Thanks!
I disagree with Charlie's comment that Never Trump has been a complete failure.
Whether it's Charlie, The Bulwark, Lincoln Project, George Conway's Pyscho PAC, AK, Liz Cheney ... , you've provided places for concerned citizens to feel a sense of community in questioning our current politics. Weak candidate Kamala lost to Trump but the the fight for decency and democracy must continue. All the Never Trump factions reinforce Charlie's notion that I am not the crazy one.
Love your content! How do you feel about Light Therapy Lamps?
Thank you! This vlog came at exactly the right time for me. I'm looking to replace bad habits with beneficial practices, so being out in the sun for 15-20 minutes between 10 am and 2 pm is going on the list. And, I can ground at the same time. I think I'm also going to add sardines to my diet for its other benefits as well.
Asmodee (SE:??)
IPO tabletop games specialist
“Second, because woke doctrine parses the world into bad oppressors and good victims, victimhood awards moral superiority, virtue points, to those who cling to it. Cry-bullies.”
Perfectly describes a few in my extended family. Woke cry-bullies !!!
I think it was Rush Limbaugh who used to say. Paraphrasing, “If you offend someone with the truth, it’s their problem not yours”
Excellent article and a great reminder of what woke people are really all about.
My own daughter has the infection and hasn't spoke to me in 2 1/2 years. She knew how I would react but went there anyway. We used to be so close, but now she can just write me off like yesterday's news. I even told her how much I loved her and would always be there for her after the disagreement, but her own feelings of being offended overrode that love. Woke is a mind control cult, it destroys families as well as the infected person's future. Their self awareness just disappears like a fog and their sympathy/empathy along with it. God help us.
The Darkest JRPG of the 90s - Suikoden The Children of Hurin of Japanese Literature/Video-Games: Introducing Empress Windy
There are few games more gut-wrenching, more heart-wrenching and bleaker than Suikoden. In some ways the greatest of all the 90s J-RPGs it was a game that dared take a lot of risks that no other games would or could. It conveyed a great deal with very little, and was in a lot of ways as inspired it seems by a classic Chinese novel as it was by Children …
Thanks for the mention!
I'm not sure if she fits the comparison, but there's always Helen from Iliad in terms of "trading up." One has to consider how the influence of 'the gods' took over different people in terms of reading the old works. But certainly I'd use that as a classic example of the woman going for the bad boy over a King of a husband, ruining an Empire, and driving multiple areas into war. Beyond simply the Iliad and Odyssey, there are plays such as Helen by Sophocles about her after the story of the Iliad.
Of course, as stated, she's not the 'evil empress' in there.
The art of playing video games really, really fast
How to watch and enjoy the Olympics of speedrunning—and do it for charity.
Welcome back! 2025 has begun and it’s already been a pretty long year. The Golden Globes has jumpstarted Oscar season anew. Las Vegas has been overrun in equal parts by robots and those who love them. Wrestling went global just in time for everyone to see
This is a beautiful writeup of my favorite gaming event of the year.
AGDQ was my gateway drug into watching speedrunning for all the reasons you laid out. It’s a really fun window into a wild world of super-skilled players doing things I can’t even begin to imagine. (The race to beat all of the uploaded levels in Super Mario Maker last year wasn’t exactly speedrunning, but was great for all of the same reasons, IMO!)
The Top 10 Video Games of 2024
And more on the January 2025 episode of PURELY ACADEMIC!
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