kind words game review: a rare haven of companionship
Online games have long been notorious for toxicity amongst players. A 2019 study said that 74% of US gamers have experienced harassment in online multiplayer games, with offensive names and trolling or griefing topping the list of incidents1. As an…
new plague inc. cure mode where you stop pandemics in response to covid-19
If there’s one game that has made headlines in the current COVID-19 crisis, it’s Plague Inc. The 2012 mobile game saw a tenfold surge in players as early as January, with more than a 100k downloads in 30 days1. As…
why i’m playing zelda: breath of the wild during the covid-19 pandemic
I’ve wanted to write about The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild for a long time, because of the profound impact it had on my life and the lightbulbs it lit up in my game design brain. In fact,…
creating moments at chabot space and science center
Nestled in the Oakland hills, the Chabot Space and Science Center has educated the community as a non-profit institution for more than a century. It originally opened as an observatory in 1883, moved to its current location in 1915 and…
stagecoach greens review: mini golf designed for interesting choices
Last week, I headed over to Stagecoach Greens in San Francisco with my teammates for an afternoon of mini golf under the scorching California sun. There’s a lot to like about the venue, such as the outdoor bar, the picnic…
maker faire bay area: tips, tricks, review
A couple of weekends ago, I attended my first ever Maker Faire in the Bay Area. Although I had previously exhibited a VR game called An Ant’s Life at the Pittsburgh Maker Faire, this was the first time I was…
loot boxes should not be banned, and video games are not evil
Loot boxes have recently become a hot topic of the gaming world. In 2018, Belgium ruled that loot boxes were in violation of their gambling laws and banned them, citing concerns with a young audience1. This made waves across big…
building a game about the berlin wall
When I visited Berlin, I was struck by how profoundly the city impacted me in the 2-3 days I was there. Wandering around on foot from the Brandenburg Gate to Checkpoint Charlie to the Reichstag Building, I was surrounded by…
assassin’s creed’s virtual notre-dame proves the value of video games
When the devastating fire ravaged the roof and toppled the spire of the Notre-Dame cathedral in Paris on the Monday of Holy Week (15th April 2019), I, like the rest of the world, was shocked and heartbroken. Having visited Paris…
