The Impact Factor

News & Views

7/2/16-7/8/16

Happy Friday everyone! As I wrap up my vacation, I’m bringing you all one last brief News & Views. It’s going to be a real kick in the pants to go back to lab, but I’m excited to have more time to spend on The Impact Factor stuff, too!

News & Views collects the week’s best video game writing and puts it all into one convenient place. Check out the links below for stories about how gaming can make impatience worth billions, how the underplayed Battleborn is all about kickass women, and what the reality TV show Survivor can teach us about emergent game design.

And of course please check out the brand new episode of The Impact Factor podcast that was posted today! You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, or if you prefer other methods, check out our SoundCloud. We’re on YouTube too!

Spotlight

What Survivor can teach us about emergent game design

Matt Perez, Kill Screen

Worth Reading

Unlocking the Truth, Video Games, Metal and Being an Awkward Black Kid in NYC

Yussef Cole, Medium

The design origins of drifting in Mario Kart

Bryant Francis, Gamasutra

The changing face of game demos

Ryan Hamann, Fanpup

From Dragon Age to games that foster behavioral change

Brian Crecente, Polygon

BioShock 2 is the underrated human heart of the BioShock trilogy

Richard Cobbett, Eurogamer

E3 2016: One Last Dance at the Videogame Trade Show

Holly Green, Paste

With Comments

Zarya From Overwatch Has Become A Gay Icon, Ironically

Cecilia D’Anastasio, Kotaku

Zarya is awesome.

Clash of Clans proves that our impatience is worth billions

Casey Johnston, The New Yorker

Even I, as a seasoned and skeptical lifelong gamer, have been seriously tempted to spend money on Clash Royale. Whereas spending money on Hearthstone feels like a value (akin to buying cards in real life) spending money on Clash Royale would feel way to much like funding impatience. I hold steadfast. For now.

You Probably Didn't Play It, But the Story of 'Battleborn' Was All About Badass Women

Kaitlin Tremblay, VICE

What a bummer. Battleborn was a huge flop. Gearbox is one of the best big game devs in the business that focus on having strong women, LGBTQ characters and minorities featured prominently in the games. I’m glad to see Battleborn continues that trend. If only it were a better game, too. Still, well worth commending.