It’s possible to love a video game. To be devoted to it, to value what it does for you, and how it makes you feel. To want the best for it. Not in the same way you love a person — or at least, I hope not. But take a look at any major fan convention for video games, movies, TV, or almost anything that develops a subculture, and you can see this love is real, active, and powerful. And of course, profitable. And if it’s possible to love a video game, then of course it’s possible to fall out of love. To feel disconnected from what first drew you to it. To realize that it isn’t giving you everything it once did, and you can’t give it what it needs from you. Especially if what it needs is regular digital purchases in order to get a competitive advantage in gameplay. I loved Overwatch once. I don’t anymore. How that happened is, I think, worth examining. This Dear John letter is a broad history of the game Overwatch itself, and its relationship with both its own players and the company that made it. The honeymoon phase In 2016, Overwatch was a big deal. A Team Fortress 2-style team shooter, made by the people who brought us Starcraft and Diablo, with incredible character designs that looked like Pixar had decided to reboot G.I. Joe? Players couldn’t get enough of it. And indeed, for the first couple of years Overwatch was a 600-pound Winston of the gaming landscape, dominating game coverage, showing up constantly on Let’s Plays, and causing an excited... Continue reading at 'PC World'
[ PC World | 2022-11-01 15:51:22 UTC ]
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Calvin Kasulke’s Several People Are Typing is out now in paperback from Anchor Books, so we asked him about routine, empathy, and what to re-read. * What time of day do you write? I am an inveterate night owl. It’s not the optimal arrangement for a life. I’ve tried to follow the path of... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-09-30 08:52:53 UTC ]
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Boys' Love is a subgenera of manga that is particularly popular among women, but why is that? One writer explores. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-09-14 10:35:00 UTC ]
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If you loved these popular novels, try picking up a nonfiction book that pairs perfectly with it, like The Martian and Packing for Mars. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2022-09-08 10:38:00 UTC ]
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When the “Crime Junkie” co-host’s debut novel came out, it didn’t seem real until she signed copies to the sound of boarding announcements. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-09-01 19:00:31 UTC ]
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Her first short-story collection, "The Girls’ Guide to Hunting and Fishing," was translated into more than 30 languages and became a best-seller. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-08-05 16:41:12 UTC ]
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In his grouchy, funny memoir, “A Factotum in the Book Trade,” Marius Kociejowski writes about what a good bookstore should feel like, famous customers he’s served and more. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-07-18 18:02:04 UTC ]
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When CJ Hauser published “The Crane Wife” in The Paris Review, an essay about repressing her needs in a relationship, calling off a wedding, and going to study whooping cranes on the Gulf Coast, it quickly became a viral hit. Three years later, her 17-piece memoir in essays of the same name... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2022-07-14 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Grief is one of those experiences that seems like a black-out to me. To comprehend the magnitude of what death really means—that concept of forever—is so challenging on an intellectual level that part of us shuts down in response so we can attend to the thought. Or use all our energy to escape... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2022-06-30 08:51:08 UTC ]
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"Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow," by Gabrielle Zevin, is a novel about video game makers who came of age with Donkey Kong and fell in love. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-06-28 16:07:16 UTC ]
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The best literary fiction is in some ways a simple character study. It is a roadmap into the interiority of a specific character: the way they think, how their identity impacts their relationships, and what decisions get made in response to the socio-political pressures shaping their lives. But... Continue reading at Electric Literature
[ Electric Literature | 2022-06-24 11:00:00 UTC ]
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Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri teamed up on a picture book about imaginary creatures and hot salsa. It took on a life of its own. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-06-23 09:00:15 UTC ]
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We spoke with YA author Jenna Evans Welch about the process of seeing her 2016 debut, 'Love & Gelato,' adapted for the screen. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-06-16 04:00:00 UTC ]
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A selection of books published this week; plus, a peek at what our colleagues around the newsroom are reading. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-06-08 09:00:02 UTC ]
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What happens when animation geeks get the greenlight to produce whatever they want? You get Netflix's Love, Death and Robots, an anthology series that's meant to remind viewers that cartoons aren't just for kids. You'd think that would be a foregone conclusion in 2022, decades after anime has... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2022-05-21 13:00:32 UTC ]
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The acclaimed science-fiction writer turns his hand to nature writing in a book that’s part hiking journal, part history lesson Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-05-21 11:00:28 UTC ]
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Wilde, a sixth-generation funeral director and the author of 'All the Ways Our Dead Still Speak' (Broadleaf, May 24), explains his experiences with grief, ghosts, why he's now going forward by looking back. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2022-05-11 04:00:00 UTC ]
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This faithful Netflix adaptation of a popular webcomic and graphic novel tells a heartwarming boy-meets-boy tale through live action and animation. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2022-05-09 20:44:12 UTC ]
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Susanna Clarke’s ‘Piranesi’ is one great book that’s hard to categorize. What hard-to-classify novels do you enjoy? Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-05-07 12:00:25 UTC ]
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The son of the Vietnam-era defense secretary recounts the "paradox" of their relationship. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-05-06 12:00:37 UTC ]
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Ali Smith's first novel since her seasonal quartet takes place in our pandemic-inflected world. Continue reading at The Washington Post
[ The Washington Post | 2022-05-04 11:00:00 UTC ]
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