There has been a bit of a renaissance in American animation lately: shows are being aired that take more chances and explore more complex themes and characters. As with every new generation of talent, these shows are being made by people who seek to fix a lot of the problems they saw in their shows growing up, both in the shows themselves and the things surrounding them. READ MORE
Ryan shows Andrew and Graham the minimalist free-running world of Lemma, a game with clear Mirror’s Edge inspirations, in this episode of Snack Time. There may be more to this one than meets the eye, though! Watch and find out what we mean.
New episodes of Snack Time post every two weeks. You can check out the Snack Time archive for some great shows you may have missed!
Over the years, I have become quite adept at navigating a 3D space. I can remember a time when I struggled lining up jumps, or assessing the width of a gap that I needed to get over. I can recall getting endlessly lost and turned around as I learned to position a game camera. I even have memories of when I was learning the limitations of this type of movement, learning where I could and couldn’t go and what types of places in a given level I could reach. Within a few hours of playing Lemma, my preconceived notions were shattered, and I felt like I was learning these techniques all over again. The way the game approaches freerunning and platforming are new and exciting, and I was constantly surprised at all the things I could do. READ MORE
Attack on Titan has proved itself to be a popular anime and manga. With success both in Japan and with Western audiences, a game adaptation was inevitably. 3DS title Attack on Titan: Humanity in Chains released in Japan in 2013, and has finally made its way to the West. Taking advantage of the 3DS’s local wireless and online play, is Humanity in Chains able to capture the exciting story and battles of the series? READ MORE
I enjoy novels focusing on a character whose motivations and questions mirror my own darker side. Two recent examples, The Magus (John Fowles) and The Magician’s Land (Lev Grossman), both explore the plight of the young man, and what is he to do? The Magus is a cryptic chasm of false starts, true shocks spiraling the narrative down a hole so deep, I don’t know if I’ve climbed out yet.
There were so many times I asked the very same question the main character did, he might as well have been me. What just happened? Was I there? Who is in on this? Is anybody in on this? What does this all mean? Questions still flood my memory and I’m unable to breach the surface to breathe. What just happened? How am I 31? Did I really do that play? Were they laughing at me? Did I say the wrong thing at a social gathering six weeks ago? Is everybody aware I said the wrong thing? My inner frustration grows, moreso when I’m not even sure if I should do something about it. READ MORE
