r/Games Is Closing For April Fool’s Day, And Here’s Why

r/Games, one of the biggest gaming communities on the internet, is closing on April Fool’s Day. In a message posted on the popular subreddit today, mods explained that they’re taking things “a little more seriously” this year, and that means closing down /r/Games for the day.

“In recent times, it’s come to our attention that what has been intended to be a forum for the potential spread of knowledge and involvement in video games has instead become a battleground of conflicting ideas,” the mods explained. “Ordinarily, this isn’t an issue; discussion by its very nature is certain to bring argument, but when that argument descends into vitriolic attacks between individuals on a regular basis with no chance at deescalation, that’s when, put simply, something’s got to give.”

The mods went on to say that r/Games is becoming “increasingly responsible” for perpetuating the “combative and derogatory schools of thought” surrounding misogyny, transphobia, homophobia, and racism, among other things. “Now is the time to stymie the flow of regressive ideas and prevent them from ever becoming the norm,” the mods said.

“Though certain memes (such as ‘gamers rise up’) surrounding gaming are largely viewed as a humorous interpretation of a mindset, at the core of the humor is a set of very serious issues that affect all gaming enthusiasts,” they explained. “By showing disdain or outright rejecting minority and marginalized communities, we become more insular. In this, we lose out on the chance to not only show compassion to these people, but also the chance to grow our own community and diversify the demographics of those involved in it.”

While the mods do take action against perpetrators by removing comments and banning bad actors, a underlying fundamental issue persists: “the notion that it’s okay or acceptable to ridicule and demonize traditionally disenfranchised and marginalized members in the gaming community,” the mods said. “This is not just an issue in r/Games or on Reddit alone; this is an issue deeply embedded in the ranging depths of the internet, frequently in communities that center around the discussion of games.”

The mods went on to say that they continually see “condescending, dismissive, vindictive, and pessimistic attitudes” on r/Games, and they posted examples of some of the problematic comments and threads they witness regular. “We must closely examine our own communities, in an effort to encourage acceptance and inclusion, to foster a healthy community in which we value empathy and respect.”

While there are many deep issues, the mods said, there are also reasons to be optimistic.

“Though the industry as a whole has suffered a great deal of trials and tribulations, we also are fortunate enough to be at a point in time in which there seem to be a glut of fantastic games, from major AAA titles down to near-anonymous indie projects that come out of nowhere.

“So let’s revel in what’s available to us, and also appreciate the myriad of backgrounds that we as gamers come from. Our differences in experiences comprise the diversity in the content that we consume, and by allowing ourselves to appreciate those differences, we change our perspectives and interpretations; this applies not only in games, but life as a whole.”

This April Fool’s Day, the r/Games mods are asking people to consider contributing to charitable organisations that support LGBT+, women’s health, POC, and other groups. You can see a full list of the charities and find out how to support them in this Reddit post.

r/Games is expected to re-open on April 2, and on that day, the mods will hold a discussion regarding the decision to close the subreddit.

The Walking Dead Season 9 Finale Review

Warning: Full spoilers for The Walking Dead’s Season 9 finale, “The Storm.”

“The Storm” may not have given me exactly what I needed/wanted, regarding my asinine wish list for a Season 9 finale, but it did lift us up and out of the death toll-heaviness from last week’s “The Calm Before.” It’s still technically aftermath, but we’ve skipped ahead a few months later. We’re not dealing with instant ramifications of Alpha’s brutal beheadings.

Sure, the end of “The Calm Before” established that a few days had gone by before the credits rolled, but getting an actual mini-jump this week helped the story immensely. And I really liked the staging of these final three Season 9 chapters: The flashback-heavy ep followed by the shocking body count (which would usually be a finale) followed by a totally different adventure/crucible altogether.

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Sony Is Closing PS4 Racing Game Driveclub’s Servers Next Year

All online servers for Sony’s PlayStation 4 racing game Driveclub will be turned off next year, the company has announced. The shutdown will take place on March 31, 2020, and it applies to Driveclub, Driveclub VR, and Driveclub Bikes, Sony said in a statement.

The games will continue to be playable in its offline modes, and players can still earn Trophies, but Driveclub is a heavily multiplayer experience, so the game will lose a significant amount of functionality in March 2020.

Sony will stop selling all the Driveclub games and related DLC and season passes for each title on August 31, 2019. Paul Rustchynsky, the former head of Driveclub developer Evolution Studios, said on Twitter that Driveclub is being de-listed due to “licensing reasons.” As for the server shutdown, he said that comes down to a “business decision.”

It’s not just Driveclub that’s losing online functionality. Sony’s PlayStation 4/PlayStation VR title StarBlood Arena will have its online servers terminated on July 25, 2019. This game requires an online connection for everything, so it will be completely unplayable after that date.

Driveclub launched in October 2014, and it faced serious server issues at release. Despite that, the game reached 2 million copies sold as of October 2015, and the Sony-owned developer Evolution Studios continued to support it with numerous and significant updates over time, improving the experience.

In March 2016, Sony closed evolution Studios, though the game saw continued support by other teams within Sony.

Driveclub and StarBlood Arena will become the 19th and 20th PlayStation 4 games to have their servers switched off. Some of the other closed-down titles include Gran Turismo 6, MLB The Show 15, and Drawn to Death, among others–here’s the full list.

Avengers: Endgame: Marvel Toys May Reveal Thanos’ New Weapon

Potential spoilers for Avengers: Endgame.

Marvel has given us our first look at new statues and action figures of characters in Avengers: Endgame, and the Thanos statue may have revealed a new weapon for the Mad Titan that may be used in the upcoming film.

Marvel and Diamond Select Toys have partnered to bring this Marvel Movie Milestone “Avengers: Endgame” Thanos Resin Statue to life. It sits at 16-inches tall, will cost roughly $500, and only 1,000 are being made.

The statue features Thanos ready for battle in his armor, with an in-tact Infinity Gauntlet and something new – a dual-bladed weapon that very much fits with Thanos’ philosophy that everything must be perfectly balanced.

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Games for Your Inner Historian

I love history. I have historical books, movies and texts on every shelf at home and a big fat history degree on my wall that’s mostly useful for… well, articles like this.

Being a history nerd also means that when a game takes inspiration from a particular historical epoch, it makes me all the more interested. I know that history isn’t for everyone, and not every game needs a solid historical basis, but I’ve always seen games as a way to explore thoughts and ideas in a way that no other medium can – and not everyone wants to sit through a three-hour lecture on the Russian revolution.

So let’s take a look at a handful of games and game series that have built an incredible experience on top of a solid historical underpinning. To be clear, these aren’t experiences that will give you a totally realistic depiction of a time period, but they do give you some of the flavour of the age; whether that’s culture, politics, warfare or any number of other elements. And yes, because I can’t resist I’ll also point you in the direction of further information to complement – or build upon – what you might get out of each game.

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