Studying Pixels

Video games do not just tell stories and show us more or less pretty pictures. By means of their procedural rhetoric, they “make claims about the world, which players can understand, evaluate, and deliberate”, says Ian Bogost in his influential article The Rhetoric of Video Games (2008). Join us as we unpack the concept of procedural rhetoric and test its applicability to contemporary video games...

With its departure from the established formular and the introduction of a range of new mechanics, Pokémon Legends: Arceus has us excited and disappointed at the same time. In our review we go over everything that Arceus excels at and all the ways in which it falters...

Understanding the workings of computers, coding, and technological infrastructure is one of the most imperative skills of the 21st century. Even more important then is to introduce children to such concepts. But how? – With the award winning children’s book series Hello Ruby, our guest Linda Liukas rethinks how to convey computer education in an approachable yet equally compelling manner...

The Triforce is one of the most recognizable symbols in gaming, but did you know that it finds its origins in Japanese history? Often these symbols that pop up in video games have deep roots in history, culture, and even religion, and the Triforce is no different...

Time for another one of our special episodes, a brief break from the regular business, and instead a tense guessing game. Listen to us struggle as we try to find whatever game we might be thinking of in 20 questions. Did you get any of them right before we did?

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It is the biggest acquisition in video games so far and we are…surprised to say the least. But what does Microsoft’s planned acquisition of Activision Blizzard actually mean for video game culture, for the way we play, and for the market of the future? Come along as we discuss limitations and possibilities.

In our side quests, we then dive into some NFT chatter as we cover the GDC’s annual State of the Game Industry report as well as several cases of copyright infringements...

Learning any language is a lengthy and, at times, tedious endeavour. So why not make the process as fun as possible? – On his YouTube channel Game Gengo (ゲーム言語) our guest, Matt, does exactly that. Because how could learning Japanese be more fun than learning with video games?

In our side quests we then review the language learning game Influent, discuss the announcement of PS VR2, and Dan’s affection for Deltarune...

It is time to reminisce! This week we are taking a brief breather to think back to our childhood. Join in as we get swept away by heartwarming and bittersweet tales of the past.

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It is the most wonderful time of the year, that is: time for our little Christmas special. So we look into our glass bowl with glee to tell you about how Bobby Kotick resigns from ActivisionBlizzard, all the details of Sony's next PlayStation VR headset, and which game will win Game of the Year 2022.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everybody!

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The swastika is certainly one of the most affective historical symbols. Under its banner, terror, hatred, racism, and profound crimes against humanity have been committed. In Germany, video games were not allowed to display the swastika for a long time at all, which has only changed in recent years. Together with the cultural historian Dr...