merritt k Aug 12, 2022. 5 minute read
A Brief History of Pinball Spin-Off Games
Pinball has been around much longer than video games, so it makes sense that developers and publishers who were looking to extend their market reach in the 90s and 2000s might build off of successful titles and characters by basing pinball games on them. Sometimes, this meant actually licensing out…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 11, 2022. 1 minute read
The Legend of Acrius Sweep is Coming to Destiny 2
The Legend of Acrius is maybe one of the least-used Exotic weapons in Destiny 2. It’s a short-ranged Power shotgun that dates back to the earliest days of the game, and while it can be fun to blast groups of enemies with it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a single…
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NEWS
merritt k Aug 11, 2022. 1 minute read
Several Exotics Are Getting Anti-Champion Abilities in Destiny 2
There’s a new TWAB up detailing sandbox changes coming to the next season of Destiny 2, and wow are there a lot of them. Seemingly every weapon archetype is getting some form of tweak, many of which are intended to improve underperforming perks and abilities. One notable change is coming to…
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NEWS
merritt k Aug 11, 2022. 1 minute read
What Does “New Adventures Available” Mean in Destiny 2?
If you play Destiny 2, you might have occasionally seen a message pop up on the side of the screen noting “New Adventures Available.” If you started playing in the last couple of years, you might not have any idea what this message actually means. “Adventures” aren’t referenced anywhere in the…
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GUIDES
merritt k Aug 11, 2022. 2 minute read
Throwback Thursday: Designasaurus Was Part Art, Part Dino Sim
When I was in elementary school, we had a modest computer lab full of machines that ran MS-DOS and a number of “edutainment” titles, some of which I’ve already discussed in this column. One that hasn’t yet come up is Designasaurus. In part, that’s because for years I had only a…
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merritt k Aug 10, 2022. 1 minute read
Two Falls is an Upcoming Narrative Game Set in 1600s Canada
Not many games are set in Canada, and fewer still are set in Canada’s past. But the upcoming narrative title Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina) is looking to change that. Set in 17th Century Canada, the game explores the perspectives of two characters: Jeanne, a shipwrecked girl from the French colonies, and Maikan,…
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NEWS
merritt k Aug 10, 2022. 3 minute read
How Should Destiny 2 End?
Endings aren’t something we often talk about when it comes to live games. But everything ends, and presumably Destiny 2 will wrap up at some point before the heat death of the universe. Now, that’s going to involve a lot of angst over servers shutting down and other logistical issues, but today…
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merritt k Aug 10, 2022. 2 minute read
The Dads Who Became Obsessed With Games Then Quit
A few months ago, I wrote about my dad’s favorite games. When I posted that piece on Twitter, I asked my followers to tell me about their dads’ favorite games. A curious phenomenon emerged — that of the father who briefly became obsessed with a certain video game and then never touched…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 9, 2022. 4 minute read
Games in the Rear View: The Retro Obsession
At some point over the last decade, I stopped looking forward to games and started looking backwards. I don’t know when it happened, but the shift is real — I’ve been writing a column about educational and freeware titles for the past few months, and I was doing a streaming…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 9, 2022. 3 minute read
The Most Relaxing Nintendo Switch Games
Gaming is a land of contrasts. Sometimes, you’re looking for a nail-bitingly difficult experience that demands all your attention. Other times, you just want to vibe. Here, then, are some of the most relaxing Nintendo Switch games out there, for when you’re just looking to chill out and have a…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 8, 2022. 3 minute read
The Best Games About Cats for International Cat Day
It’s International Cat Day, distinct from Caturday I suppose, so here’s a list of the best games about cats. Yes, cats appear in a lot of other games — I could have included Animal Crossing, or Skyrim, or even the recently re-released Darkstalkers, but these are games where you primarily play as or…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 8, 2022. 4 minute read
Month of the Week: November 2002 in Games
November is typically a busy month for video games, as publishers scramble to release their titles for the holiday buying season. 2002 was no exception. The Xbox and GameCube had hit stores a year earlier, with the PlayStation 2 having been around a while already, and all three consoles were…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 5, 2022. 2 minute read
Xur Has Survivor’s Epitaph With a Weird Masterwork in Destiny 2
Xur is back in Destiny 2 for the weekend, and can be found in the Winding Cove in the EDZ. In what has become something of a running theme with him lately, he’s selling some weapons with Masterwork perks that they shouldn’t have. In this case, he’s got a Survivor’s Epitaph with…
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NEWS
merritt k Aug 5, 2022. 5 minute read
The Best Nintendo Switch Puzzle Games
The Switch, like the Game Boy long before it, is the perfect platform for puzzle game lovers. The classics are well-represented on Nintendo’s console, as are newer series. If you’re looking for a game that tests your quick thinking abilities, these will do it. Here are the best Nintendo Switch…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 4, 2022. 5 minute read
The Best Games About Vampires — V Rising, Vampyr, and More
Vampires are having a real moment in video games right now. Of course, the bloodsucking creatures of the night have been with games for decades — the allure of playing as a supernatural predator or fighting against them has been a popular subject since as far back as the NES.…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 4, 2022. 2 minute read
Throwback Thursday: Nick Arcade and Early Video Game TV
In one of the first entries in this column, I wrote about Video and Arcade Top 10, Canada’s answer to Nick Arcade. Now, finally, it’s time to give that latter show its due. I never saw as much of Nick Arcade as I did of Video and Arcade Top 10. I think it aired…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 4, 2022. 2 minute read
GigaBash Shows the Beauty of a Simple Idea Done Right
I miss Power Stone everyday. And while it seems like Capcom isn’t bringing the chaotic multiplayer brawler back anytime soon, we may have a worthy replacement in the form of GigaBash, the new monster-battling game from Malaysian studio Passion Republic Games. The latest heir to the long legacy of games about giant monsters…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 3, 2022. 3 minute read
The Best Nintendo Switch Games Under $10
There are plenty of full-price retail releases on the Switch, many of which are excellent games worth checking out. But the console is also home to a number of games with substantially lower price points that are also great playthroughs. If you’re looking to pick up a new game without…
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FEATURES
merritt k Aug 3, 2022. 2 minute read
Bungie is Keeping Quiet About Destiny 2 Season 18
The lead-up to season 17 of Destiny 2 went a little differently than most seasons in recent memory. Rather than reveal bits and pieces of upcoming content through This Week at Bungie posts, in-character Twitter takeovers, and so on, Bungie kept the entire project a secret until just hours before release.…
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NEWS
merritt k Aug 2, 2022. 3 minute read
Frogun Illustrates the Dangers of Leaning on the Classics
I grew up with 3D platformers. Since my family mainly owned Nintendo consoles, I played a lot of them — from the genre-defined greats like Super Mario 64 to the abominable Blues Brothers 2000. When I first spotted Frogun on Steam a while back, the game recalled some of those titles for me — a…
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