A brief digression from my usual anime & video games focused writing to respond to a newly proposed segment of the left coalition, the Subaru Socialist. Why it misses the mark, and why co-opting a brand already associated with leftist causes in a new identity formation is bad vibes.
A search for a piece of furniture spirals into thoughts about the crush of slop that is taking over arts and entertainment. Late capitalism is coming for culture, our last refuge in this miserable world.
Down with the no good adults! A deep dive into the Newtype philosophy of Gundam 0079, Zeta, & Double Zeta and Tomino’s vision for the new generation.
It’s the 40 year anniversary of Zeta Gundam, and looking back, it still has a lot to say about finding a masculine identity as a Newtype in 2025.
When the truth becomes a danger to the state, violence is deployed so the ruling class can maintain power. How does truth win? How do we fight state power?
On a dreary day in October, I realize that Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is nothing short of a horror story. To wish for Aeris to live once more, and not let the dead past be, we are wishing to be cursed. Haunted by our past and trapped in the neverending present.
When is a food item considered taboo? How does it reach such a designation? In Delicious in Dungeon, the party brings their own philosophies of food to the table. When eating monsters is the only way to survive, how far can you go maintaining your ethical stance?
When we leave the emotional labor of memory creation to the machine, what effect does it have on how we remember someone? Do the memories stored in our hearts sync up with memories stored on our phones?
How do we make sense of time? It can be running out, or we can have all of it in the world. It can be of the essence, it can stand still. We wish we had more of it, but one day, ours will be up. How we view the precious little time we have on this planet is at the center of Frieren.
Depictions of Hawaii in anime are often an essentialized, tourist brochure friendly view of the islands. While the devastating fires burned in West Maui, anime boys pose on a beach for a photoshoot, and tourists keep showing up, their trip to paradise won’t be interrupted.
The word “married” has weight. It matters. Particularly as LGBTQ+ people in Japan fight for their right to be married. Gundam: The Witch From Mercury gave us a canon queer romance that ended with a married lesbian couple. Until Bandai Namco PR decided it wasn't.
Avoiding spoilers for a game as big as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is no easy feat. But what does it feel like to know next to nothing about it?
Kyoto Animation produces work with an emotional resonance that can’t be matched. Let’s look at a few reasons why.
Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba is filled with epic fights and sublime animation that have drawn in fans the world over. Why it works so well can be traced back to Greek Drama, bull fighting, and Roland Barthes’ essay World of Wrestling.
The Final Part of a series on Immersion and Narrative in video games. Maybe it’s the games industry itself that needs an adjustment so that we, the player, can take time to be reflexive. A final look at the idea of games as film, games as worlds, fandom, and where games can go from here.
Part Two of a short series on Immersion and Narrative in video games. By going back to fundamentals and creating worlds that players want to hang out in, do games like Undertale and Omori do a better job of creating immersion and stronger narrative connections for the player?
Part One of a short series on Immersion and Narrative in video games. In their quest for cultural legitimacy, video games have adopted cinematic qualities in their design. By taking from the medium of film, are games better for it? Or is video game as film an exercise in futility?
Gamification has taken over our world. From Uber to Amazon to social media clout chasing, we are stuck playing games in our lives that ultimately have no win condition. Using the charming indie RPG OMORI and McKenzie Wark’s book Gamer Theory let’s dive into the insidious nature of gamification.
As young people in Japan worry about their future prospects, the allure of escaping to a nostalgic past seems to be just the ticket. Anime airing today are taking viewers away from the capitalist drudgery of the big city to the simple life of a rural Japan that exists only in a dreamworld of nostalgic escapism.
As the fallout for Activision Blizzard continues in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment and mistreatment of women in the workplace, one has to wonder if anything will actually change in the games industry.
