Category: Gaming

DC/Warner Brother’s Announcements at Fandome 2021

On By Noah Furcht-HeafitzIn Brand, Gaming, TelevisionLeave a comment
When Is DC FanDome 2021? - Push Square

https://www.pushsquare.com/features/live-watch-the-dc-fandome-2021-livestream-right-here, Sammy Barker

Warner Brothers and DC Comics held their second annual “Fandome” event this past Saturday at which they revealed a number of trailers and sneak peeks of upcoming tv shows, movies, and games. The movie trailers shown include: The Batman, Black Adam and, The Flash. The movie sneak peeks included Aquaman 2 and Shazam 2. New tv shows that were announced include Peacemaker, Batman: Caped Crusader, Aquaman: King of Atlantis, and a yet to be named CW show about a girl who doesn’t know she has superpowers that stars Kaci Walfall. Shows that have been announced to have a new season coming include: Batwoman, The Flash, Superman & Lois, Supergirl, Legends of Tomorrow, Stargirl, Harley Quinn, Young Justice, Titans, and Doom Patrol. The games displayed at this event includes Suicide Squad: kill the Justice League and Gotham Knights.

The Batman trailer that was displayed is the second that has been put out for the upcoming film. This trailer notably showed off the inclusion of the characters Catwoman and The Riddler as well as Robert Pattinson’s take on the Caped Crusader. The Batman has been slated for a March 4th 2022 release. Dwayne Johnson was quoted as saying he was “born to play Black Adam,” before introducing that movie’s trailer. Said trailer also marks the on-screen debut of superhero group The Justice Society of America. Black Adam is set to hit theaters on July 29th 2022. The Flash movie trailer features a number of different versions of The Flash played by different actors as well as both Ben Affleck’s and Michael Keaton’s versions of Batman. The Flash is set to premiere on November 4th 2022. Only behind the scenes looks at Aquaman 2 and Shazam 2 were shown as the films aren’t far enough into production to warrant having trailers. John Cena’s Peacemaker character who debuted in last Summer’s Suicide Squad film’s HBO Max series was announced to be debuting on January 13th 2022. lastly, in video game news, Both Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League and Gotham Nights are AAA titles in the vein of the preexisting Batman series of video games. 

This article interests me for four key reasons. One, because I am a fan of a lot of the intellectual properties that are being represented in upcoming films and shows. Two, due in large part to the delays necessitated by the pandemic a part of me had long since accepted that DC up and stopped trying to compete with Marvel before seeing these announcements. Three, I’m particularly fond of Batman The Animated Series and this article notes that the upcoming Batman: Caped Crusader series is very reminiscent of it. And four, there seems to be a wide variety of different types of films and tv shows being produced. This is notable because my main issue with the DC films and tv shows of a few years ago is that most of them were sold on being “gritty” and “realistic” takes on the characters they were representing.

Barker, Sammy. “Live: Watch the DC Fandome 2021 Livestream Right Here.” Push Square, Push Square, 16 Oct. 2021, https://www.pushsquare.com/features/live-watch-the-dc-fandome-2021-livestream-right-here.

Lyons, Kim, and Chaim Gartenberg. “The Biggest Announcements from DC FanDome.” The Verge, The Verge, 16 Oct. 2021, https://www.theverge.com/2021/10/16/22729057/biggest-announcements-dc-fandome-batman-black-adam-hbo-warner.

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Twitch Sues Users Over Allegations of Harassment

On By emmaspaethIn Censorship, Ethical Issue(s), Gaming, LGBTQ+, Streaming, Video GameLeave a comment

Twitch files lawsuit against two users responsible for targeting and harassing Black and LGBTQIA+ streamers 

Photo Via MIKKELWILLIAM/GETTY IMAGES on Wired.com

On Thursday, September 9th, Twitch filed a lawsuit in US District Court for the Northern District of California against two users for violations of terms of services. The users CruzzControl and Creatine Overdose are accused of spamming the chats and comments of black and LGBTQIA+ streamers with racist and homophobic hate speech. Thousands of streamers have been targeting in these ‘hate raids’.

The two accounts are believed to have used bot software to spam channels with hundreds of hate comments within minutes, forcing some users to suspend streaming. Twitch alleges the account CruzzControl operated nearly 3,000 bots in recent hate raids. The two accounts were initially suspended after complaints filed against them before permanently banning their accounts.

The lawsuit follows one week after Twitch users initiated a boycott on the streaming platform over hate speech, using the hashtags #ADayOffTwitch and #DoBetterTwitch. Thousands of users banded together for a one day boycott of Twitch to pressure the streaming platform to take action against recent hate raids. In response, Twitch banned thousands of accounts using hate speech and created new chat filters to block slurs and racist, homophobic and bigoted language from entering chats and comments.

China’s Weird War on Kid’s Playing Video Games

On By Noah Furcht-HeafitzIn China, Gaming, Political, Video GameLeave a comment
(https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/coronavirus-spike-china-video-game, Frank Connor)

China’s national video game regulator The National Press and Publication Administration announced this past Monday that they’ll be banning children from playing video games Monday through Thursday and further limiting them to four hours of playtime on Fridays, weekends, and holidays. This policy went into effect last Wednesday. This regulation comes as a result of the Chinese government’s blaming video games for causing nearsightedness and addiction in youths. This is also not the first time China has restricted children’s ability to play video games as, in 2019, they banned the playing of video games by minors between the hours of 10 p.m and 8 a.m and restricted the amount of time children could play video games during weekdays to 90 minutes. The Chinese government intends to enforce the new playtime restrictions by way of requiring minors to register games under their real names and requiring video game companies to implement software that asks for said real names. China’s government has also expressed animosity towards video game publishers in the past. One such example being their 2018 nearly nine-month-long prohibition on the approval of video games. This being incentive for video game creators to implemented the aforementioned software. Some game companies like Tencent have already begun asking for user’s real names. Children can notably circumvent the software that’d restrict their playing games by simply using the gaming accounts of adults. It is for this reason that the Chinese government asks for family cooperation. The Chinese government has been implementing ways to prevent video game addiction in youth since 2018. Despite this, the government has also promoted e-sports and cloud gaming the former of the two incentivizing a video game training regimen that begins at a young age. China’s youths are also banned from spending more than 400 yuan (about $62) a month on games. Last week South Korea announced it would get rid of similar regulations that saw people under 16 banned from playing video games between midnight and 6 a.m. Console gaming in China was banned for more than a decade leading up to 2015. This led the Chinese populous to gravitate towards PC and mobile gaming. Companies like Nintendo and Sony are attempting to introduce their consoles into the market but are still experiencing “minuscule” sales because of this.

This article interests me because, while I was aware that the Chinese government was oppressive I didn’t know that they had and were reinforcing a stance on the hours during which children could play video games. Beyond that I think it’s interesting that a government as oppressive as China’s still can’t get around the fact that people can just use other people’s accounts to get around the playtime hours they’re trying to enforce. I also find it odd that the government is pro-e-sports; almost as if they expect and are promoting this illegal practice.

Liao, Shannon. “China Restricts Young People to Playing Video Games Three Hours a Week.” Spokesman.com, The Spokesman-Review, 3 Sept. 2021, http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2021/sep/05/china-restricts-young-people-to-playing-video-game/.

The Department of Defense is Warning People Not To Use Tiktok And Here’s Why:

On By Kirsten BeachIn Cable, China, Consumer behavior, Content Restriction, Distribution, Gaming, Marketing, Online Safety, UncategorizedLeave a comment

The App Tiktok has taken over social media it seems, with tens of millions of Americans downloading the app just this year, but with these increased downloads came a great deal of controversy surrounding the app.

For those who are unfamiliar with the app, TikTok is a popular social media app that allows users to express themselves by uploading and share short-form videos. However, because the app is developed by a Chinese company, there has been a lingering concern that information of U.S. citizens could be compromised or revealed. For this reason, the Defense Department is particularly worried–especially as it relates to military personnel.

Specifically, The Department of Defense created an advisory memo in regards to the app which stated that:

TikTok (formerly Musical.ly) application 12.2.0 for Android and iOS performs unencrypted transmission of images, videos, and likes. This allows an attacker to extract private sensitive information by sniffing network traffic.

Now, although changes have been made to the app since then that claim that user information is safe, there have still been national concerns surrounding the app and security.

If you are an avid Tiktok user, how does this make you feel?

Mind Reading Technology (It Really Works!)

On By David SonIn Brand, Consumer behavior, Gaming, Technology, Uncategorized, Virtual RealityLeave a comment

Mind reading technology is the latest gadget that is going to blow your mind. With this new possibility, “the future is now” has a whole new meaning. With a growing number of companies beginning to focus on “Brain-Computer Interface”, this industry is expected to reach around $1.5 Billion by the end of this year.

The devices use sensors to record brain signals on the scalp. By tracking where the eyes are focusing, the devices can control an object without physically moving. A company such as NextMind has created a prototype that can create commands on objects. NextMind CEO, Sid Kouider, says the eyes are only used to see, but the vision process and interpretation is in the brain. Brain-Computer Interface uses that information in the brain to process what commands to make. For instance, a subject was able to change the color of a lamp only using her thoughts. Another example is how a subject was able to mute, change channels, or change the volumes only by focusing her eyes on a certain part of a screen.

As this device is still in its beginning phases, companies using this technology are already focusing on what could come next. As E-Sports and gaming communities have skyrocketed over the past few years, there are unlimited amount of possibilities in how Brain-Computer Interface systems can be used.

NextMind’s technology is not available to the public yet, but a developer kit is being sold to other companies who can add applications to the product. Contributing ideas and technologies in order to release the best product they can offer.

Another company such as BrainCo focuses on the frontal cortex of the brain. While the technology is similar, BrainCo has used the technology on VR games. In one game, the harder the player focuses on the rocket ship, the faster the rocket ship moved. Different colors light up on the front of the headband depending on how hard the user is focusing. This technology can be brought into education, because it can train kids on how to focus better.

Brain-Computer Interface can be very effective in prosthetics as well. It can enhance the response and reaction of controlling a prosthetic limb. As the user builds a connection with the prosthetic limb through Brain-Computer Interface, it can begin to learn habits of brain signals and respond even quicker.

Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/10/ces-2020-mind-reading-technology-lets-you-control-gadgets-and-games.html