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Editorial Highlights

When Is A Video Game Allowed To Die?

If we all take the "nothing is eternal" comment to heart, Fortnite will not literally last forever. One day, perhaps in the absurdly far future, Epic Games will stop adding new content to Fortnite. Some number of years later, Fortnite will go offline, and the game as we knew it will be dead.

Maybe companies can stop killing games, but that won't stop games from dying. And the folks who make online games should at least consider how they'll give their games a merciful death when it's time.

The Legend of Korra molded a theme out of metalbending

The sequel, The Legend of Korra, did far more than just continue The Last Airbender’s story — the series showed how society, with the tools that Aang and his Team Avatar had left behind, transformed after that shift. In the world of Avatar, the invention of metalbending, introduced as a level-up by Airbender character Toph Beifong, but in full effect after the 70-year time jump in the sequel series The Legend of Korra, is the best example of how political ideologies and the spiritual nature of bending were naturally intertwined.

How Red Dead Redemption 2 Attempts (and Struggles) to Emulate the Modern Western

Every time the black bars letterboxed the screen during Red Dead Redemption 2, I knew that the “video game” portion of this experience was on hold. I couldn’t help but feel frustrated that Rockstar (and the game’s writers) were plopping a movie in front of me instead. It is relatively obvious that Rockstar’s recent games are meant to invoke the feelings of familiar films, but reading and hearing the thoughts from my peers had me realize that many of us—the Housers included—simply have it wrong when analyzing this game’s relationship with the Western film genre.

How Daredevil Season 3 Depicts the Fight Against Real and Present Fears

Daredevil season 3 will obviously not solve any of our real-life problems—but it demonstrates that something as fantastical as the MCU can be very powerful by recalling realistic imagery and sentiments. In a society where people are fearful to live their regular lives under the threat of violence, however real or false that threat may be, and with bad actors exploiting that very fear, we need a fantasy like Daredevil. Season 3 is all about how he earned the famous moniker “the Man Without Fear.”

Video Game Presidents Were Meant to Be Funny (Until They Weren't)

The presidency is a monolithic concept in U.S. culture for pretty obvious reasons — as the leader of the nation, anything they do or say is instantly influential and important. As a result, the president of the United States is often reflected back in our popular culture. Once the president is involved in a story, you know shit’s about to get serious. Any piece of fiction is sure to represent a heightened reality to some degree, but this is always a telltale sign that some irreversible threshold has been crossed.

Unpacking in real life: how I handled the stress of managing physical spaces

I’m told that the idea of constantly moving between places is a very “American” concept. Whereas my family in the Philippines is accustomed to staying in the same family home for generations, I’ve been moving from one new space to another — twice in the past year, in fact. It is a stressful ordeal every time, but around the time of my most recent move, I happened to be playing Unpacking from developer Witch Beam. What resulted from playing the puzzle game was an enlightening recontextualization of how interacting with my personal physical space affects my mental space — and I loosened my anxiety over building a complete, “perfect” home.

Editorial/Features Collection

Below is a comprehensive collection of original articles written by Chris, ranging from opinion pieces, analytical essays, media impressions, and historical primers.

GameSpot •

It's Almost Annoying How Fun Splitgate 2 Was

Shooters are having a moment in 2025, with Battlefield 6 and Arc Raiders topping the charts and attracting large player counts as the year comes to an end. The former title is a return to form for a legacy franchise, while the latter leads the charge for the fledgling extraction-shooter genre. Left in the dust in the shooter space, however, is Splitgate 2, a game that its makers thought would revitalize a genre they saw as growing stale.
ComicBook.com •

The Greatest Paper Mario Game Isn't the One You Think

If you ask any Paper Mario fan, there are two distinct eras in the 25-year history of the subseries: The golden age of character-driven RPGs, and the more experimental games with simpler gameplay and stories. Most of those fans would likely point to 2004’s Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door as their favorite, and for good reason. But looking back at the heyday of Paper Mario, one installment arguably stands out on top.
ComicBook.com •

Star Wars Outlaws Should've Starred the Best Character in the Franchise Over Kay Vess

There’s nearly endless potential in the Star Wars universe to create new planets, cultures, characters, and other concepts, so it’s hard to blame any creator who gets to play in that IP sandbox for leaving their personal stamp on the world. Still, as I was playing Ubisoft’s Star Wars Outlaws, which stars original protagonist Kay Vess, I couldn’t stop thinking about a preexisting character in Star Wars lore and how I’d rather be playing as her instead.
GameSpot •

When Is A Video Game Allowed To Die?

If we all take the "nothing is eternal" comment to heart, Fortnite will not literally last forever. One day, perhaps in the absurdly far future, Epic Games will stop adding new content to Fortnite. Some number of years later, Fortnite will go offline, and the game as we knew it will be dead.

Maybe companies can stop killing games, but that won't stop games from dying. And the folks who make online games should at least consider how they'll give their games a merciful death when it's time.
Stacker •

The bestselling video game consoles of all time—and dramas behind them

These figures provide video game enthusiasts with a snapshot of a fast-moving industry. You might see one console succeed over its contemporaries due to its stronger software library, or perhaps because it had an innovative feature that attracted nongamers into purchasing it. Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft have each had triumphant successes and very public failures—and their sales numbers show it.
Stacker •

From 'Spacewar!' to 'Starfield': A history of video gaming

Video game properties have permeated mainstream popular culture, with characters like Mario and Sonic the Hedgehog achieving the same recognition as Mickey Mouse, and "The Last of Us" becoming the first video game adapted into an Emmy-nominated show.

Of course, this level of success took decades of build-up. What is now a major pillar in the entertainment world started as mere projects to tinker with in the early days of computing.
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