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Category Archives: Opinion

The Huffington Post takes victory lap after pressuring game developer into censoring their game (Opinion)

Posted on May 21, 2019 by Blake Worrell One comment

In their relatively short life as an entertainment medium, video games have a rich history of “killing.” Since the advent of the hobby, there have been games in which players are tasked with killing criminals, soldiers, politicians, police officers, lawyers, zookeepers, movie stars, circus acrobats, babies, animals, even sushi chefs. For activists journalists at The Huffington Post, however, only one

Proposed legislation will ban pay-to-win games; the last remaining arcades start packing it up

Posted on May 9, 2019 by The Splintering Staff Leave a comment

U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) will propose legislation banning “pay to win” features and in-game “loot boxes” in games for children under 18 and games with a wide user base but “whose developers knowingly allow minor players to engage in microtransactions.” The proposed legislation empowers the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and state attorneys general to treat pay-to-win features and loot

We go behind the curtain with “Movie Men: Crowded Theater” (interview)

Posted on April 23, 2019 by Blake Worrell 2 comments

Earlier in April, writer Jeremy Lott launched an Indiegogo campaign for Movie Men: Crowded Theater, an all-new one-shot graphic novel written by Lott and featuring illustrations by Doug Curtis. We got a chance to have a friendly back and forth with Lott, who was gracious enough to respond to our questions on the Movie Men project.* As always, the answers

Sony blames #MeToo movement, video streaming sites for its PlayStation censorship policy

Posted on April 17, 2019 by The Splintering Staff 15 comments

On Tuesday, Sony finally revealed details on why it has taken such a censorious stance towards mature-themed content in Japanese games. The company has adopted a new internal regulatory board (based in California, the pearl-clutching capital of the world) to scrutinize and approve games submitted for publishing on PlayStation platforms. It’s important to note that Sony’s new review board is

Comic store owner “Perch” reflects on the industry’s February sales numbers

Posted on March 18, 2019 by Blake Worrell One comment

A lot of folks like to make hay out of comic book sales numbers every time new information is released. One of the more objective & insightful voices commenting on the comic book industry is Perch, an anonymous comic book shop owner who has appeared on several social media channels including the Larry King and Alterna Comics YouTube channels. Below

Yet another study confirms that video games don’t lead to real-world violence

Posted on March 12, 2019 by Blake Worrell 8 comments

A University of Oxford study published earlier this year confirms – yet again – that playing violent video games does not lead to real-world violence. Published in The Royal Society, the study is described by Oxford University as “one of the most definitive to date, using a combination of subjective and objective data to measure teen aggression and violence in

Review: “Jawbreakers: Lost Souls”

Posted on February 20, 2019 by Blake Worrell 6 comments

It seems like those predisposed to hate Jawbreakers take it far more seriously than the creators do. Jawbreakers: Lost Souls was never intended, nor was it advertised as a deep social commentary. It was always pitched as a politics-free, action adventure graphic novel, and that’s exactly what Lost Souls delivers. Lost Souls quite literally “hits the ground running,” as the

Reflection: IDW’s Sonic the Hedgehog reboot

Posted on January 1, 2019 by The Splintering Staff One comment

Our boy Zealous Fox has some choice words for IDW regarding their run on Sonic the Hedgehog so far. Check out the video below to hear his thoughts! IDW: Sonic The Hedgehog (Year 1 Deep Dive/Thoughts) | The Last Hedgehog https://t.co/pNMFdfzUcE — ZEAL – TGSWZ (@ZealousFoX) December 31, 2018 Thanks for reading & Happy New Year!

PS4 version of “Dead or Alive Xtreme 3: Scarlet” hit by Sony’s recent censorious turn

Posted on November 21, 2018 by The Splintering Staff 2 comments

The updated version of Dead or Alive Xtreme 3 is the latest victim of Sony’s new censorship policies, as several items which were available in the original version of the game are being removed from the upcoming Dead or Alive Xtreme 3: Scarlet. These items include the “jet black fan” and “gold fan” used for loosening clothing, as well as

Stan Lee’s legacy of pushing boundaries and freedom of expression

Posted on November 13, 2018 by The Splintering Staff Leave a comment

There’s several memorials to the late, great Stan Lee at the moment, but as is often the case, the outspoken RazörFist highlights several of Lee’s lesser-known contributions to western culture, including his history with pushing back against the restrictions of the Comics Code Authority, pioneering anime in the West, and his dedication to freedom of expression I feel it’s worth

Remembering Stan Lee – my favorite moment

Posted on November 12, 2018 by Blake Worrell One comment

I never met Stan Lee. I only knew the Stan Lee public persona through cameos, public appearances, and of course, through his work. There are already a large number of online memorials following Lee’s passing on Monday, many of whom are from friends, colleagues, and those who actually met Stan the Man over the years. I can’t honestly assert any

Shirrako’s YouTube channel banned, restored after Vice attacks his “Red Dead Redemption 2” video

Posted on November 7, 2018 by R Leave a comment

On Wednesday, prominent gaming YouTuber “Shirrako” had his channel completely shut down after posting a video clip of Red Dead Redemption 2 depicting the protagonist punching, incapacitating and ultimately killing a non-playable background character in the game. These types of gameplay interactions should be no surprise to those familiar with Red Dead Redemption 2 – and most other games by

“Welcome to the new ’90s” – Sony insists that XSEED censor “Senran Kagura Burst: ReNewal” in the West (opinion)

Posted on October 17, 2018 by The Splintering Staff 6 comments

In a unsettling turn of events, the release of Senran Kagura Burst Re:Newal has been delayed for both PlayStation 4 and PC. Why? According to the game’s publisher, XSEED, Sony has insisted that a feature of the game called “intimacy mode” be removed. XSEED has chosen to do so rather than not release the game in the West, but the

Maybe us old codgers should calm down about “Duck Hunt” and try reading a book

Posted on September 19, 2018 by Blake Worrell Leave a comment

Comedian Seth Rogen lit a small Internet fire this week when he took to Twitter and “revealed” a relatively unknown feature of Duck Hunt on the original NES. The world was stunned to learn that the onscreen ducks could actually be controlled by a second player. This revelation came as a shock to many, as I couldn’t even count how

25 years after Mortal Monday – the home versions of “Mortal Kombat” celebrate silver anniversary

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Blake Worrell 15 comments

While the arcade version of Mortal Kombat celebrated its silver anniversary last year, today marks the 25th anniversary of Mortal Kombat‘s release on home consoles. The one-on-one martial arts fighting phenomenon Mortal Kombat landed in stores on September 13, 1993, for the SEGA Genesis, Super Nintendo, Game Boy and Game Gear. Publisher Acclaim spent millions to market their port of

How many more people have to die before Shenmue III comes out?

Posted on August 22, 2018 by R 2 comments

It’s a good thing that SEGA just released Shenmue I & II HD, because fans still waiting for Shenmue III are going to have to wait quite a bit longer for the long-awaited sequel to see the light of day. Now scheduled for release on 27 August 2019, it will have been more than four years since Shenmue III was

No, Saudi Arabia didn’t ban 47 games in a single day, and that’s just the start of the false reporting

Posted on July 17, 2018 by Blake Worrell One comment

I like to give Australians a bit of crap over how miserably their government approaches mature-themed video games, but truth be told, Australia has nothing on the over-the-top nonsense that comes out of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This week, several Western news outlets reported that the Saudi Arabian government had added 47 games to the list of those banned

Nintendo finally releasing more classic arcade games on Switch; 5 Arcade Archives titles that we want to see

Posted on July 17, 2018 by Blake Worrell Leave a comment

At E3 2018, Nintendo announced their plans to release more classic arcade titles on the Switch eShop as part of its “Arcade Archives” program. Priced at $7.99 a pop, Nintendo added the original Donkey Kong as well as the previously Japan-only Sky Skipper to the list of already available digital games, with the latter arriving on the eShop this week.

E3 Wrap-Up: Devolver Digital’s press conference is a breath of fresh air

Posted on June 18, 2018 by The Splintering Staff 3 comments

The first rule of marketing is focus on your audience. Know your buyer, and direct your marketing towards those you expect will buy your product. Simple, right? So why did only one presentation at E3 2018 seem to take this creed to heart? Nearly every presentation and press conference at E3 2018 was bogged down by focus tested language and

Rumor – New Superman game from Rocksteady to appear at E3; 5 things we want to see

Posted on June 8, 2018 by Blake Worrell Leave a comment

The word on the street is that Rocksteady, the developers behind the Batman: Arkham series, will show off a new Superman game at E3 to be followed by a cover story in next month’s issue of Game Informer. While this isn’t the first time a similar rumor has circulated, Rocksteady is certainly due a new game in the near future

Valve treats customers as adults; won’t police content on Steam

Posted on June 7, 2018 by The Splintering Staff Leave a comment

Valve doesn’t want to be your mom. The PC game distributor announced today that they will not remove games or software from their Steam platform unless the product in question is either flatly illegal or “trolling” users. This decision follows a series of controversies regarding whether to allow risqué Japanese titles or games that mimicked school shootings on Steam. While

Is DC in panic mode over Bendis’ take on the Man of Steel?

Posted on May 22, 2018 by Blake Worrell 3 comments

DC clearly had big hopes when they poached long-time Marvel writer Brian Michael Bendis to helm their Superman books starting with the six-issue Man of Steel mini-series in May. However, sources at DC Comics indicate that the orders from comic book stores for Bendis’ Man of Steel series have been far lower than they expected. DC went as far to

How a Star Fox Racing game could work

Posted on May 18, 2018 by Blake Worrell Leave a comment

Rumors have been flying left and right that Retro Studios is developing a Star Fox racing game for the Nintendo Switch, possibly titled Star Fox: Grand Prix. Reactions to this prospect ranged from excitement to dismay, leading almost the entire Internet left asking “Why not F-Zero?” No matter your take on a possible Star Fox racing game, the minds of

Capcom aims to revive dormant IPs, which do you want to see?

Posted on May 13, 2018 by Blake Worrell 2 comments

On Wednesday, Capcom posted an overview of its strategies and plans for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2019. As part of that, the company provided insight into growth strategies, and its focus going forward. Capcom first highlighted that, with new titles, it will “regularly release titles for major IP while also utilizing dormant IP and remakes”. A part of the

IDW’s new leadership have their work cut out for them

Posted on May 7, 2018 by The Splintering Staff One comment

In late April, comic book publisher IDW announced that John Barber would be the company’s new Editor-in-Chief, and Anita Frazier would be the new Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. Barber in particular has a long resume in the comic book industry, including well-regarded stories at Marvel Comics such as Old Man Logan and Marvel Zombies as well as