Welcome back to the Aftermath newsletter, your weekly roundup of everything that happened at the site from me, Riley. This week we've got journalism drama, players doing hilarious things in games, the horrors of customer service, and more. If you'd like to read all the blogs, all the time, please consider becoming a subscriber. Your support makes Aftermath possible. |
Streamer Playing Through GTA IV With Traffic Speed At Max: ‘If Life Is Suffering, Why Not Choose More Suffering – And More Life’
Nathan talks to a streamer trying to navigate the self-created horror of GTA IV cars moving faster than the speed of light. Pro tip: watch the video clips, they're hilarious.
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Yes, Kamala IS Brat
Gita digs into the Kamala Harris/ Charli XCX meme and explores the universe of "it girls" surrounding it.
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Valve's Baffling Deadlock Decisions Don't Need Defending
I dive into the journalism drama of the week: The Verge's writeup of Valve's not-at-all-secret secret game, which the company would rather no one mention.
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Heck Yes, Put This Game In My Hands
Yesterday I learned that the developers of biking game Lonely Mountains: Downhill plan to release a skiing game this year, Lonely Mountains: Snow Riders. This is big news for me, a guy who loves games about snow, and also the games developer Megagon Industries makes.
I love Lonely Mountains: Downhill, a 2019 game about steering a tiny bike down increasingly scenic but treacherous slopes. The primary way you level up your bikes in the game is by completing challenges, many of which are time-based, my least favorite kind of challenge but which I can't stop trying to pursue. The game rewards practice and familiarity, but also a thrilling combination of making good choices at the right time and just hurling yourself off a jump or cliff and having the confidence to sort out the consequences. It's a hard game for me, who tends to panic at speed both in the game and on my real life bike, but its bright, blocky environments also make it sort of relaxing. I often pop into the game, which has maintained a steady flow of content and daily challenges, when I find myself aching for the feeling of biking around in the woods.
So I'm psyched to see what their skiing game will look like, and especially what the developer does with the way snow changes and widens a landscape. Also now I want to play Lonely Mountains: Downhill, but I should probably go ride my actual bike up and down some hills instead--a hilly ride last week with a friend revealed how completely out of shape I am for climbing hills, which probably has better real life applications than mastering the same in a video game. But I look forward to Snow Riders scratching my winter sports itch, especially as snow gets harder and harder to come by. |
Here's some good stuff from around the internet this week:
- This Slate article about the demise of the Cartoon Network website
- Tim Sweeney being Tim Sweeney over at Game File
- This hyper-local look at America's oldest bike lane and a way to avoid biking on it by The New York Groove
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Aftermath has two podcasts: Aftermath Hours, where we discuss the week's biggest gaming news, and 52 Pickup, where Gita Jackson and Alex Jaffe take you through the world of the greatest DC Comics series you've never heard of. Check them out on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcasts. |
And that's the week! Midway through writing this newsletter my apartment ceiling started leaking, so I'm actually going to regret hitting "send" on this one because it means I have no excuse not to deal with Problems. I hope you have a better weekend than it looks like I am going to have. |
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