Monthly Archives: May 2020

Boosting the booze: Ingredient innovations and ‘healthier options’ key to survival for APAC alcohol sector – FoodNavigator-Asia.com

Posted: May 15, 2020 at 7:46 am

As of last year, healthy growth was still being predicted by experts for the alcoholic beverage market in APAC, such as by analyst firm Mordor Intelligence which expected a CAGR of 4.41% for the sector between 2020 to 2025, and Statista which expects revenue for the market to hit US$540bn in 2023, up from US$480bn in 2019.

Much of this growth was, and still is, expected to come from China, which holds held the largest market share of alcoholic beverages in the region, followed by Japan, India, and Australia.

However, the recent COVID-19 pandemic has hit many F&B industries hard, and alcoholic beverages have felt the brunt of this, especially with lockdowns throughout the region banning foodservice operations such as restaurants and hotels, thus depriving the sector of its major source of business.

In Australia, for instance, trade body Alcohol Beverages Australia (ABA) has reported that overall alcohol consumption in Australia is lower than it was at the same time last yeardue to pubs, bars, clubs and restaurants closing.

Our beer, wine and spirits producing members are all telling us that sales lost through on-premise pubs, bars, clubs and restaurants has only marginally been made up for by an increase in packaged retail liquor sales, said ABA CEO Andrew Wilsmore.

Indications are that overall sales and volume loss range from 10% to 30%, with many small producers even more severely impacted as they are unable to access the retail channel or have had to close their cellar/brewery/distillery door.

These findings have been echoed by alcohol beverage firms throughout the APAC region. According brewery giant Asahis public relations manager Kristin Chiu, the firm also saw a decrease in sales from the food service sector (restaurants, cafes, hotel), especially after Japan announced a month-long nationwide state of emergency.

Sapporo Breweries Public Relation Manager Yasuhiro Nagumo reported similar findings, telling us that beer sales in March 2020 only reached 89% compared to the same period last year, and that more people were purchasing alcohol on e-commerce during this period.

It seems that there are fewer opportunities to drink alcohol at restaurants, and more opportunities to drink at home. As a result, more consumers are buying alcohol through e-commerce, he said.

Kavalan Distillery Taiwans first whiskey label has also seen the impacts that lockdowns can have on alcohol sales. Its Global Public Relations Officer Kaitlyn Tsai told FoodNavigator-Asia that although it managed to maintain its local Taiwanese revenue because the country did not impose strict lockdowns, restriction in its other markets worldwide meant a drop in overseas sales.

The negative impact cannot be quantified at this moment, but it is not as severe as expected and recent sales are gradually recovering, said Tsai.

That said, it has not all been doom and gloom for the firm as off-trade sales (retail) have increased since the pandemic, as has e-commerce which has soared.

Product innovations with local ingredients have been particularly prominent in the industry, as can be seen by Kavalan having focused on fruits native to Yilan, the district where its distillery is located in, for its newest whiskey launch.

Our number one selection whiskey this year will look at more subtropical fruits like mango, pineapple, and green apple, whereas the number two will be have floral and herbal notes. As for our first gin in the portfolio, we will include the normal juniper and anise, but also include fruits native to Yilan like red guava, starfruit and kumquat, said Tsai.

The same has been seen in the craft beer sector as well, for example Singapore sustainable brewery Crust Brewing, which brews beer from surplus bread, has created a beer using ulam raja (the Kings salad) which is a herb commonly consumed as a raw vegetable by communities in the South East Asian region.

Crust was also impacted by COVID-10 and had to shift more to direct consumer sales from its previous B2B business model to survive, as well as put a lot more focus on collaborations with local breweries, e.g. launching a 12-pack of mixed beers, each one from a different brewery.

We started off as a B2B company, but when COVID-19 hit we saw a lot of investment interest and commitments affected, which was understandable given the situation, so we made a shift to selling more B2C, and surprisingly, have done pretty well given everything, Crust Founder and CEO Travin Singh told us.

It did affect us quite badly at the initial stage, but right now I would say were doing better than when we were only doing B2B.

Watch the video below to find out more.

In addition to COVID-19, the industry has also had to deal with changes such as a rising health awareness trend amongst APAC consumers a major challenge for the industry, especially as alcohol is not commonly associated with health.

It is for this reason that many major brands have opted to widen and diversify their portfolios, adding healthier choices in hopes of retaining consumer interest.

HEINEKEN APAC Marketing Transformation Director Sarah Maddock told FoodNavigator-Asia. [In] recent years, consumers, especially Millennials and Gen Y drinkers, have increasingly become more health conscious and that drove the introduction of Heineken 0.0 to the market, [giving] the consumer a zero-alcohol Heineken with only 69 calories and without compromising on taste.

These drinkers [are] also a generation that prefers lighter, easy to drink beers which is why we put Tiger Crystal (light brew with 4.3% alcohol as compared to regular 5%) in multiple countries, and Heineken Silver (smoother brew) in Vietnam were put on the market for that reason as they take away some of the bitterness that traditionally appeals to more mature beer drinkers.

This is not to say that Heineken and Tiger have not been impacted by COVID-19 though Although she chose to remain coy on details, HEINEKEN APAC Heineken and Tiger Brand Director Maud Meijboom said that some impact has been seen, though it has widely differed based on brands and channels.

Where countries have had to close F&B outlets and implement some form of lockdown as part of safe distancing measures, yes, we see an impact on the sale of our beers, Meijboom told us.

The impact differs by brand, for example whether they have a significant footprint in the F&B outlets. For newer products it also depends on what channels we are looking at. For example, new products we have launched in retail are performing in line with the trend in that channel.

Low-to-no-alcoholic beverages are a must-mention here when it comes to the rise of the health trend in alcohol, and apart from Heinekens Heineken 0.0, other big firms such as Kirin have also picked up on this.

Kirin Brewery recently released its non-alcoholic beer, Kirin Greens Free in Japan to meet demands of consumers with increasing health concerns, and the firms Corporate Communications spokesman Ataka Takashima told us that this was an important area for the firm.

Non-alcoholic beers constitute just 5% of all alcohol in Japan and while it may not seem much, it has been growing 3% over the last three years, he said.

Japans alcohol tax will be reformed in October this year, which will likely lead to [more] existing beer consumers shifting to non-alcoholic beers.

Kirin also has another non-alcoholic beer option with a health focus, Kirin Karada Free, which claims to reduce body fat.

Another direction that the alcoholic industry in APAC has taken is to innovate using unique ingredients such as hemp and dairy.

One example is Australias The Cannabis Co., which has become known for its hemp-based gins. Its secret ingredients are called terpenes, essentially natural organic compounds, rich in flavour and aroma, that are found in cannabis and hemp.

We carry three very distinct, premium gins in our current portfolio: The Myrcene (40% ABV/alcohol-by-volume), The Jilungin Dreaming (42% ABV) and the High Seas Navy Strength (58% ABV), The Cannabis Co. Brand and Strategy Director Martin Dybalski told us.

The terpene myrcene provides The Myrcene Gin with a bright, fresh, grassy herbaciousness, whereas limonene provides Jilungin Dreaming with delicate, lingering notes of candied citrus and b- caryophyllene provides the High Seas Navy Strength with a sweet, dry and spiced profile.

[All] three are very distinct from one another, [and although] its a little unfair comparing a premium to a regular product, Id say the biggest differences between our gins and regular gins are found in aromatics, complexity and quality of grain spirit/mouthfeel.

Although Dybalski made sure to emphasise that the firm makes no health or therapeutic claims for its products, many terpenes are being studied for potential health benefits.

[A] lot of terpenes found in Hemp are being studied for their potential medicinal benefits, with some early research showing promising anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and anti-carcinogenic effects, he said.

That said, innovating with this unique product carries with it some unique challenges too.

[One] of the most immediate obstacles were facing is building our digital presence on platforms like Facebook, as at present, Facebook policy prohibits advertising of any consumable hemp or Cannabis products across the platform globally, he added.

Another example in this category is Hong Kongs OH CBD beer, which claims to be anti-hangover according to Henry Leung, founder of the start-up OH5 Company.

Although more research is still needed to be done by scientists to look into the effects of combining CBD and alcohol, however we believe there is certain therapeutic value that can be present, he said.

Some reports have suggested blood alcohol level can be lowered while reducing some of the alcohols toxic effects on the liver.

Bottom line is, the way our body takes in and metabolise CBD and alcohol is complex, and everybody is different, an individuals response to a CBD infused beer is largely dependent on genetics. So, everyones experience may be different.

OH CBDs beer contains a citrus flavour with floral notes, inspired by hops and hemp. According to Leung, hops and hemp are both are from the Cannabaceae family, and are close relatives.

He added that he also faced challenges with his unique product in Hong Kong, because the awareness of CBD there is relatively limited.

Unlike in Canada and US, they have many CBD products like chocolate, candies, coffee, and even cocktails mixed with CBD oil, he said.

OH CBD had planned to release its second batch of beer at the end of February, but also had to also production due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Due to the coronavirus, no one is going out now, so we are focusing on promotion, creating awareness of our products, and working on recipes, said Leung.

Dairy has also been a rising star in alcoholic innovation for instance, Lewis Road Creamery and Kahlua teamed up to form a liqueur enriched with cream.

We re-mixed our fresh, rich cream with Kahlas original and legendary coffee liqueur, [blending] 100% Arabica coffee with subtle aromas of vanilla and chocolate combined with rich cream, Lewis Road Creamery General Manager Nicola O Rourke told FoodNavigator-Asia.

We also blended fresh New Zealand cream and real, rich chocolate with a touch of triple distilled premium spirits [to form our] Chocolate Liqueur.

[Both] these liqueurs are different as they dont have unnecessary additives, just liqueur and our fresh homogenised cream as it should be.

Another rising trend in the APAC alcohol industry is sustainable production, such as reducing food waste or using recycled water.

This is growing particularly quickly in Singapore, such as with Singhs firm Crust Brewing which brews beer using fresh surplus white bread as a means to minimise food wastage in the country, where food wastage rose 30% to 40% from 2008 to 2018.

The bread is used to substitute 30% of grains in beer production [and we have] plans to further reduce waste, including using spent grains, the by-product from beer production as a possible animal feed or fertiliser, Singh said.

The company is currently developing a bread-based spirit as well.

Craft brewery Brewerkz is also in collaboration with Singapores national water agency, Public Utilities Board (PUB) to brew beer using treated water using NEWater, Singapores own brand of recycled water.

While the sector certainly faces it challenges, most experts remain optimistic about its future prospects.

Kavalans Tsai emphasised to us that drinking in Asia, such as in Taiwan, has traditionally been associated with business occasions, but has gradually evolved to become a social experience.

These days with economic development, more Asians, especially the younger generation, arelikely to associate drinking with personal occasions and enjoy alcohol purely for fun, she said.

China wine industry expert Emilie Steckenborn also told us that millennial consumers in China are likely to lead the e-commerce boom for the wine industry in China, which is slowly emerging out of its lockdown.

E-commerce can provide rich information about a wine at [younger consumers] fingertips, which they crave, plus they can get reviews and descriptions of flavour, origin, storage conditions and so on even face-to-face retail businesses may not know some of this information, she said.

All in all innovation and flexibility, whether it comes to marketing, retail or product innovation, is clearly the way forward for alcoholic beverage firms in APAC both big and small to make it through the current crisis and those that master this are likely to emerge stronger.

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Boosting the booze: Ingredient innovations and 'healthier options' key to survival for APAC alcohol sector - FoodNavigator-Asia.com

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Q&A: What is ‘unmasking’? – The Southern

Posted: at 7:42 am

Answer: During routine, legal surveillance of foreign targets, names of Americans occasionally come up in conversations. Foreigners could be talking about a U.S. citizen or U.S. permanent resident by name, or a foreigner could be speaking directly to an American. When an American's name is swept up in surveillance of foreigners, it is called "incidental collection." In these cases, the name of the American is masked before the intelligence is distributed to administration officials to avoid invading that person's privacy.

Unless there is a clear intelligence value to knowing the American's name, it is not revealed in the reports. The intelligence report would refer to the person only as "U.S. Person 1" or U.S. Person 2." If U.S. officials with proper clearance to review the report want to know the identity, they can ask the agency that collected the information perhaps the FBI, CIA or National Security Agency to "unmask" the name.

Unmasking requests are common, according to Michael Morell, former CIA deputy director and host of "Intelligence Matters" podcast.

"Literally hundreds of times a year across multiple administrations. In general, senior officials make the requests when necessary to understand the underlying intelligence. I myself did it several times a month and NSA adjudicates the request. You can't do your job without it," he said.

Morell emphasized that unmasking is not the same as declassification. "When a name is unmasked, the underlying intelligence to include the name remains classified so leaking it would be a crime."

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National Intelligence Report Shows The FBI Never Gets Warrants For Its Backdoor Searches Of NSA Collections – Techdirt

Posted: at 7:42 am

from the 'shows'-is-perhaps-a-strong-word-for-something-hidden-17-pages-in... dept

The Intelligence Community's latest transparency report [PDF] contains even more evidence of the FBI's inability to follow the law when helping itself to the NSA's collections. The infamous "backdoor searches" of the NSA's Section 702 collections -- which sweep up millions of electronic communications every year -- have always been a problem for the FBI. (But it's a problem the FBI likely doesn't mind having.)

Communications and data related to US persons are supposed to be minimized before being accessed by the FBI. The FBI may have permission to access this collection, but the impossible-to-stop "incidental" collection of US persons' communications means the FBI is supposed to use warrants when searching the data using US person queries. This mandate only applies to certain cases: criminal investigations not related to national security. The built-in minimization procedures are supposed to take care of the rest of the agency's backdoor searches, supposedly ensuring the FBI can't use a foreign-facing communications collection to spy on Americans.

In practice, this almost never works. It certainly didn't work in every case listed in the ODNI's latest report. Elizabeth Goitein, writing for Just Security, says the report contains more depressing admissions from the FBI. Every time the FBI has accessed US persons communications in cases where it's required to get a warrant, it hasn't bothered to get a warrant.

As minimal as this requirement is, the 2019 statistical transparency report reveals that the FBI has failed to comply with it in literally every relevant case. According to a table in the report, there were six instances in 2018 in which the FBI reviewed the contents of Americans communications after conducting a backdoor search in a criminal, non-national security case.

[...]

The same table indicates that the FBI obtained a warrant to review the contents of those communications exactly zero times. Similarly, for 2019, the table lists one instance in which the FBI ran a backdoor search in a criminal, non-national security case and reviewed communications content, but zero instances in which it obtained a warrant.

There's another caveat that could have salvaged these warrantless backdoor searches, making them compliant with the law. But, nope. This one doesn't work either.

[T]he requirement to obtain a warrant applies only when the investigation has reached a particular stage (namely, when it is designated as a predicated investigation). A footnote in the ODNI report, however, states that the Department of Justice reported each instance to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court as a compliance incident. That means the warrant requirement appliedand was violatedin each case.

The news that the FBI violated the warrant requirement in every backdoor search fitting these parameters should have been front page news for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. But the ODNI apparently doesn't want this sort of information to be easily discernible in its ironically-named "Transparency Report." As Goitein points out, this news was buried in a footnote and inferred from a table on page 17. No public statement has been made by the ODNI or the FBI about its inability to secure warrants when warrants in the few instances are required.

Some may shrug this off as being of limited importance because there were only six violations. But that number only covers a single month in 2018 and those were only discovered because the DOJ decided to engage in some oversight for a change.

It's not like it's tough to adhere to the minimal demands Congress has made of the FBI when searching 702 collections. But apparently the FBI isn't up to it.

[T]here is nothing complicated about the requirement Congress imposed; it should have been an easy matter to educate FBI agents about their new obligation. There is no imaginable excuse for a compliance rate of zero percent.

The requirement has been on the books since the beginning of 2018. The FBI still couldn't find a way to comply with the warrant mandate several months later. This isn't acceptable, not when the agency is using a foreign-facing collection that's subject to almost zero oversight to search for communications incidentally swept up by the NSA's dragnet. It has continually abused this privilege to search unminimized communications and engage in domestic surveillance while pretending to be only interested in foreign terrorists. The FBI is a serial domestic abuser. For too many years, Congress and the FISA Court have been its enabler.

Filed Under: 4th amendment, backdoor searches, constitution, fbi, nsa, surveillance, warrants

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The NSA has Values and Baby Monitors Go Hi-Tech – CTech

Posted: at 7:41 am

Interview | Former NSA chief: Values must not be compromised in the name of security, not even during a pandemic. Mike Rogers, who was named head of the NSA at the height of the Snowden scandal is acutely aware of how fragile the public trust is in the intelligence entities of the democratic nations. Read more

AI baby monitor startup Nanit raises $21 million. Nanit develops a machine learning and computer vision-based monitor that tracks and analyses babies sleep. Read more

Israel Innovation Authority doubling down on strapped tech startups. Sagi Dagan, Vice President, Growth Division says the authority is determined to give the industrys good companies a longer runway to survive the pandemic. Read more

Bucking the trend, Spot.IM announces major employee recruitment. "We have the power to recruit workers, even at times like this, because we are funded by people and companies that believe in us and our unique solution," says CEO. Read more

Automated legal contract startup LawGeex raises $20 million. LawGeex develops software that automates legal contract reviews for customers including HP and General Electric. Read more

Pitango leads $5 million seed round for digital health startup Alike. Currently still in stealth mode, Alike develops an AI-based system that helps patients monitor their own condition. Read more

Fuson leads $17 million round for Israeli autotech company IRP. IRP develops energy-efficient high-performance engines and controls for electric vehicles. Read more

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Blame NSA for May 9 Disaster – Referee Wilson Sey, man in centre of the fateful game – GhanaWeb

Posted: at 7:41 am

Sports News of Wednesday, 13 May 2020

Source: ghanaiantimes.com.gh

Referee Jacob Wilson Sey

Retired referee Jacob Wilson Sey, who was at the centre of the May 9 Disaster game between Hearts of Oak and Asante Kotoko that saw 127 football fans lose their lives, has fingered the then National Sports Council (NSC) now Authority, as the main course of the disaster.

Opening up on the events that led to one of the worst stadium disasters in Africa 19 years ago, he stated emphatically that the then NSC simply did not take their responsibilities seriously enough, insisting that the blame should be laid at their doorstep.

The then NSC at that time did not play their role well at all. How can all exit gates be locked at that particular point in time when the game was over,? he quizzed, adding that is not the practice across the world.

Throwing light in an interview with Kumasi-based FOX Fm on the purported incident that led to the crowd violence on the day, the then Takoradi-based referee revealed that he ignored an infringement in the lead-up to the Ishmael Addo equaliser.

Hearts made a move towards the goal area of Kotoko. During that move, there was an infringement which my assistant F.D. Arthur raised his flag and that foul was going the way of Hearts and not Kotoko as being stated in some quarters.

According to him, Hearts Emmanuel Osei Kuffour had the power to move on; so I signaled my assistant to put down the flag and allowed play to continue and the fast-paced Ishmael Addo picked the ball and scored.

The thing is that the normal Ghanaian football fan will say because the flag was raised the goal should not be allowed without knowing the reason behind the decision.

In refereeing, if you are about to take an infringement that would be a disadvantage to the attacking team, you do not have to whistle but rather give them the advantage and that is what I applied during the game. Most fans got the interpretation wrong on the day.

Revealing how he was appointed as the centre-man for the game, Mr Sey said he together with referee McCarthy and Essel Walker were the three centre referees and two assistants picked for the game. However, on the morning of the game at the pre-match, a lot was cast and the mantle fell on him.

He stated that as match officials, they did their work to the fullest according to the dictates of the trade.

The educationist further revealed that on that fateful day, comments before and during the game from persons whom he thought were so responsible, affected the game.

People were preaching blood-bath should they lose. Hearts were on top during that time even though both teams played well. However, because Kotoko had some back-up players, most people felt that was their time. The manner Kotoko defended in that game was so good and beautiful.

He expressed no regrets for officiating that particular game, but was sad seeing innocent souls perish because of the negligence of the Sports Authority.

Send your news stories to and via WhatsApp on +233 55 2699 625.

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Cyberpunk 2077 dictionary and timeline – the Cyberpunk universe explained – GamesRadar+

Posted: May 14, 2020 at 6:10 pm

The Dark Future of Cyberpunk 2077 isn't a nice place to be. In fact, it's a minefield the uninitiated aren't likely to survive. Cyberpsychosis can turn your mild-mannered neighbour into a killing machine. Your thoughts could be stolen via hacking. Megacorporations own almost everything, including you. Basically? It's bad news. The key to avoiding a dirt nap is knowing your enemy. That's where the Cyberpunk Red: Jumpstart Kit comes in. It's a tabletop prequel to the video game that gives us our best look yet at the dangerous world of Cyberpunk.

To get you up to speed, we've gathered all the key info and Cyberpunk 2077 lore you need to know in this primer. That includes a dictionary of common terms you're sure to encounter in the game itself, not to mention a timeline to give you a sense of what's happening in the Cyberpunk universe. There's plenty to draw from; the series has been going since the 1980s and is arguably one of the best tabletop RPGs around.

Strap in - we've got a lot to cover.

Because the franchise has been around in one form or another since the 1980s, a Cyberpunk 2077 timeline is almost essential to unpick the story so far. There's almost 40 years of lore to absorb, after all. To bring you up to speed as quickly and easily as possible, we've pulled together an abridged version of Cyberpunk's rich background right here.

But before we dive into the Cyberpunk 2077 timeline, it's worth pointing out that this isn't supposed to be a possible 'version' of our future. Instead, it takes place in an alternate reality - Cyberpunk history diverges from our own in a few nasty ways. The Cyberpunk Red TRPG gives us a good overview of how (and when) things went wrong, so we've listed the most important events below.

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The best cyberpunk games of all time – Digital Trends

Posted: at 6:10 pm

Exploring dystopian worlds resplendent with cybernetic enhancements and megacorporations, cyberpunk continues to evolve the more its science fiction-based future becomes reality. The following interactive interpretations of the subgenre draw upon a wealth of insight, whether it be in human relation, technological prowess, or even video game development. It is not so much the story or even the characters, so much as it is the world that marks the best cyberpunk games of all time.

In the wait for the postponed release of Cyberpunk 2077, these games are the best way to quell that ever-growing appetite for cyberpunk. Otherwise, escape through other options, from the best VR games to the most satisfying 2020 indie experiences.

Before the now-iconic Silent Hills playable teaserand Death Stranding, Hideo Kojima followed up Metal Gear with a cyberpunk classic, called Snatcher. Upon its 1988 release, despite limited sales, the graphic adventure garnered an immediate cult following. The narrative follows an amnesiac who joins an agency hunting Snatchers, or robots killing and taking the place of humans. With its semi-open world, coupled with thought-provoking themes and novel visual elements, Snatcher remains a benchmark in science fiction gaming and a must-play Kojima title.

Like Neuromancer by William Gibson, Philip K. Dicks Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep is a pivotal novel in the expansion of the cyberpunk subgenre. Its Hollywood rendition, Blade Runner, would go on to become even more renowned, evolving into the face of cyberpunk and influencing many years worth of media in its likeness. Though it may not be remembered as well as the novel or film, Virgin Interactives Blade Runner, released in 1997, captured a similar essence as its predecessors. Rather than replicate Ridley Scotts work, Westwood Studios instead told a story that intersected with the original, following Ray McCoy on a quest to destroy the last remaining replicants. Blade Runner stands among the best cyberpunk games of all time for granting fans an interactive experience within its remarkable world, now the inspiration for various cyberpunk offshoots.

Made all the more enigmatic from spiritual successors, like Deus Ex and BioShock, 1994s System Shock opened the doors on interactive cyberpunk and horror. The gameplay of System Shock alone was an innovative step forward in the industry, dropping players into the 3D environment of a space station in the year 2072. Reminiscent of 2001: A Space Odyssey, the story of System Shock is led by an unspecified hacker in an attempt to thwart an evil computer system, known as SHODAN. A remake of the famed original is currently being developed by Nightdive Studios for release sometime this year.

For an isometric strategy game, Syndicate proved itself to be an outlier with a cyberpunk story and gameplay elements that set it apart from all the rest. It was released in 1993 by EA and garnered immediate success. The player assumes control of a corporation with the goal of global dominance through the aid of taxation and cybernetically enhanced operatives. Once a country is taken over by these pawns, the player can accrue money through taxation, but only if they are vigilant. If a country is pressured for too much, the citizenry may start a coup. Surviving assassination attempts via government agents or rival syndicates is also a key component of the game. Syndicate not only sparked various expansions, but also a sequel and reboot.

Without a doubt one of the greatest video games of all time, packing an emotional punch at every turn in its expansive narrative and exploration of a world riddled with tyranny, Final Fantasy VIIis exemplary of Japanese cyberpunk. The 1997 original PlayStation experience emulates Akira in many ways, showcasing the evil megacorporation of Shinra hoarding the planets last remaining sustainable resource. Cloud, the main protagonist of Final Fantasy VII, is unwittingly flung into class warfare, going up against not only Shinra but the potentially world-shattering Sephiroth. The recently released Final Fantasy VII Remake is a testament to the greatness of its predecessor, giving only a tiny glimpse into the epic cyberpunk adventures of Avalanche and their fight to save the planet.

Deus Ex was a critical success upon its 2000 release, spawning several re-releases, PC mods, sequels, and prequels that would inevitably cement it as a video game series with unreplicable stature in the industry. The initial title tracks JC Denton, a United Nations Anti-Terrorist Coalition agent with nanotech augmentation, which ranges from 18 different in-game options. A central mechanic in Deus Ex is player choice, allowing players a multitude of varied avenues for mission completion. What makes the cyberpunk title stand out most is its heavy-hitting narrative based in an alternate history, wherein real-world conspiracy theories are fact. With six titles in the series, the last of which was seen via 2016s Mankind Divided, Deus Ex is due for a welcome return.

Simon Parkin of The Guardian says it best: its a clich that invites clichs: sprawling, neon-lit, Blade Runner-esque. Still, over-familiarity with the aesthetic does little to blunt the fierce appeal of Cloudpunks game world. Released mere weeks ago, Cloudpunk offers players a chance to visit a true cyberpunk world as an immigrant named Rania. The player is tasked to pick up and drop off packages at the behest of the Cloudpunk delivery service. The various adventures across the city, which is outlined by crisscrossing vehicles and high-rises, is what makes a seemingly laborious playthrough the hallmark of Cloudpunk. Not only is the games world mesmerizing, but its cyberpunk-laden story is compelling. The more Rania traverses the innards of the futuristic city, the darker Cloudpunk becomes.

Based in the city of Cloudbank, a well-known singer by the name of Red acquires a powerful sword, called the Transistor, following a botched assassination on her life. Through the help of robotic commandos, known as the Process, the malignant Camerata stops at nothing to hunt down Red and retrieve the lost artifact. Transistor, despite being an isometric RPG, still enjoys greatness through a wondrous narrative uplifted by an even more evocative soundtrack. The game was nominated for many accolades, inevitably walking away with IGNs Best Art Graphics and the D.I.C.E. Sprite Award in 2015. Due to its subversion of the more commonplace cyberpunk themes, Transistor remains among the best in the subgenre.

Inciting new ways of thinking about world traversal and surface lighting in video game development, Mirrors Edge gave cyberpunk new vibrancy. The action-adventure platformer, which was developed by EA DICE and published by EA in 2008, takes place in a dystopian near-future city, wherein a totalitarian and militaristic government reigns supreme. The player controls Faith Connors, one of many runners, navigating her across rooftops and ventilation shafts with their own varying degrees of impediments. Rather than explore a dark noir and neon-tinged world like others among the best cyberpunk games, Mirrors Edge instead focuses on minimalist and luminous environments that serve as the players only savior.

Bloober Team, known for horrors like Layers of Fear and Blair Witch, delivered a simultaneously terrifying and intriguing experience with 2017s Observer. In the year 2084, following a digital pandemic that wiped out large swaths of the globe, a megacorporation rules over Poland using detectives, known as Observers. After a cryptic phone call from his long-lost son, Daniel Lazarski uses his investigative prowess to find and hopefully save his only child, yet inevitably finds himself spiraling into damnation. The cyberpunk horror is getting a next-gen facelift with additional content available later this year upon the debut of the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.

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Cyberpunk 2077 Details Its Gangs and Factions – ComicBook.com

Posted: at 6:10 pm

When Cyberpunk 2077 releases via the PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X, PC, and Google Stadia, it will transport players to Night City, a megalopolis where people are equally obsessed with three things: power, glamour, and body modifications. It's a major urban area, home of many gangs and organizations fighting for power and influence. And of course, players will come across and interact with all of these different factions.

Using the game's official Instagram account, Polish developer CD Projekt Red previewed the various gangs and factions players will come across during the game. From a blindly violent group that uses ultra testosterone and animal supplements to a faction that defends sex workers, Night City is full of different groups. Some hide behind their ideals. Others are simply bad news. And a few of them are pure evil.

Below, you can read more about the game's various gangs and factions, which include the 6th Street, Voodoo Boys, Tiger Claws, Totentanz Club, Valentinos, The Mox, and the Animals.

At the moment of publishing, it's unclear if there are more gangs and factions in the game, but for now, this is all CD Projekt Red has revealed.

Cyberpunk 2077 is set to release worldwide on September 17 via the PS4, Xbox One, PC, and Google Stadia. It's also in development for PS5 and Xbox Series X.

For more news, rumors, leaks, and all other types of coverage on the game, be sure to check out all of our past and most recent articles pertaining to the game by clicking right here.

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Ghostrunner: Everything You Need to Know About the Cyberpunk Game – CBR – Comic Book Resources

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After months of minimal news following its reveal last year, Ghostrunner finally received a free demo, giving fans a clearer idea of what's in store.

With all the hype surroundingCyberpunk 2077, some might have lost sight of another cyberpunk game in the works. IfGhostrunnerwasn't on your radar before, it should be now. Ghostrunneris an upcoming first-person action hack-and-slash game set in an dystopian cyberpunk universe that's being developed by One More Level.The game was first revealed in a trailerlast year which promised fast-paced and high-adrenaline combat. Since then, we've only gotten mere glimpses of the game through screenshots, videos and rare demos at conferences such as PAX.

To say that the information regarding the gametrickled out slowlyis an understatement. However, that all changed on May 6 when the developers released a public demo on PC, available until May 13. With this sudden wealth of information, let's take a look at what we know about the game so far and what we can expect from its full release.

Related:Cyberpunk 2077: Trailer, Story, Gameplay, Release Date and News (So Far)

In terms of story, there's a lot that's up in the air. The only things we know for certaincome from theGhostrunnerofficial website. According to the website, the worldis in a sorry dystopian state where life doesn't amount to much and death is always close by. However, it also hints that the world was not always this bleak and miserable.It refers to an "apocalypse" thatruineda once shining civilization. Even more mysterious is the presence of a tower that "houses the survivors of the apocalypse."

As the main character, players are tasked with ascending the tower and figuring out the truth about what really happened to the world. Thistask is complicated by the fact that there are many foes adamant on hunting the player down for the augmentations and technology underneath their skin. From the cinematic trailer, we can also assume that the game will feature some kind of boss battle encounter with that Dr. Octopus-esque person. Thankfully for the player, the main character is far from a push-over.

Related:Wait, Does Animal Crossing Take Place in a Post-Apocalyptic World?

InGhostrunner, players take control of an augmented living weaponcapable of things beyond the scope of a normal human. Imagine if you took the cybernetic ninja, Genji, fromOverwatchand gave him the supernatural abilities from theDishonoredseries. The result of that concoction would be theGhostrunnerprotagonist.

From what we've seen in the demo, players are able to wall-run, use a grappling hook to get onto platforms, bisect foes in one clean sword swing, deflect bullets, dash, slow time and slide their way to victory. And this was all just from the demo. In the full game, it wouldn't be surprising if players could upgrade preexisting abilities or install new software to learn new skills. For example, it would be incredibly useful if playerswere able to unlock infrared sight to see enemies through walls. All of these abilities are necessary to survive in Ghostrunner, as combat can end in the blink of an eye.

Related:Microsoft Is Really Pushing 'Smart Delivery' - Here's What It Is

Ghostrunner's gameplayrequires players to move fast andthinkfaster. Much like Mirror's Edge andDishonored, there are a lot of movement mechanics in the game, all of which players must master in order to have a chance at surviving.This is clear from the demo in whichplayers have to dodge bullets, wall run, slow time and jump all within milliseconds of each other. Movement is essential because players are only equipped with a katana,a weapon that is only effective when you're close to an enemy. There's no time to rest because, if you stop, you're going to get perforated by the trigger happy enemies.

Obviously, the gameencourages players to move fast, and this is further underlined by the way death works. Inmost games, death is followed by a loading screen and areturn to acheckpoint, butGhostrunnertakestheHotline Miami approach.Players respawn immediately after death with little to no wait time. With one simple button press, players are back in the game, free to try again. This system helps keep the break-neck pace of the game consistent.

Overall, Ghostrunnerlooks to be a promising cyberpunk action game. With all the current mechanics and the possible addition of more, Ghostrunner might just be a big hit. Currently, there's no official release date, but it's slatedto come to PC, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in2020, so keep an eye out.

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Philip Hou is based in Portland, Oregon. He has been playing video games since his fingers were capable of holding a SNES controller. Philip is also a huge fan of fighting games, particularly those from Arc System Works. Other than playing video games, Philip enjoys drawing, hanging out with friends, and working on his "Youtube career".

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Cyberpunk 2077 Could Revive the Immersive Sim | CBR – CBR – Comic Book Resources

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Despite marketing itself as an RPG, Cyberpunk 2077 is an immersive sim, a genre that has often gone overlooked despite critical acclaim.

The immersive sim as a genre has been foundational to the advancement of modern video games, emphasizing player choice, creative decision making and interactive worlds. Yet it is also a genrethat has historically sunk studios and offered little in the way of profit or mainstream success for those who make them. However, despite masquerading as an RPG,Cyberpunk 2077'simminentrelease hasonce again providedthe immersive sim with an opportunity to expand its appeal to a much wider audience.

For over two decades, game developers have attempted to make the immersive sim a mainstream genre. But despite their continued efforts, it seems as if the genre has forever relegated its appeal to a niche audience due to the relative complexity of the moment-to-moment gameplay that is characteristic of immersive sims. Though games like PreyortheDeus Ex series have put a spotlight on immersive sims and have received endless critical praise, neither hasbeen particularly financial success for their respective studios. Developed in the early 1990s during a time of great experimentation and creative freedom in the industry, from the very beginning, the immersive sim seems to have survived despite itself.

Related: Cyberpunk 2077: Trailer, Story, Gameplay, Release Date And News (So Far)

When immersive sims first emerged onto the scene in their earliest incarnations la theSystem Shockgames, their gameplay advancements and innovations wereso monumental that gamers of the time were left with few other points of reference to describe this new genre. Most playersdisregarded these early games as poor Doom and Half-Life clones respectively.

Though these games received critical acclaim at the time and continue to be hailed as progenitors of immersive sim design philosophy, both titles failed commercially during their initial releases. This is partially due to mishandled marketing, but also a lack of understanding or interest on the part of the gaming audience.

Unfortunately for fans and developers of immersive sims, the continued lack of mainstream interest inthe genrehas been a continued trend over the last twenty years. Despite receiving somewhat of a resurrection during the last decade, with multiple Bioshock, Dishonoredand Deus Ex games having been released, none of these modern immersive sims have turned enough of a profit toencourage developersto make the genre a staple of modern game releases.

Related: Shadowrun: Why You Should Try The Beloved Cyberpunk Tabletop RPG

In fact, the only times an immersive sim has reached mass appeal is when the emergent gameplay systems and action-RPG mechanics have been streamlined to the point of near nonexistence.This is the case withthe Bioshock franchise, which (while having elements of the immersive sim) still plays far more like a traditional first-person shooter.

However, with the release ofCyberpunk 2077 right around the corner, the potential for a real, complex immersive simfinally reaching the mainstream is here. While the past eight years of marketing hype forCyberpunk has put an emphasis on its history as a tabletop RPG and the incredible potential for unique role-playing scenarios within the game world, it becomes ever more clear that CD Projekt RED's latest game is less of a regular RPG, but is instead the most complex, detailed immersive sim that gamers have ever seen.

Related:Four Indie Games to Keep You Hyped for Cyberpunk: 2077

During an E3 2019 interview with YouTube personality, YongYea, a quests director on theCyberpunk development team was quoted as saying, "We paid lots of attention in adding this level of non-linearity in terms of gameplay...We've put a lot of attention and focus on giving the player the freedom to play the game the way they would want it to be played." Clearly, CD Projekt RED has been hard at work ensuring that their latest game is full to the brim with player choice and emergent gameplay. These are hallmarks of the immersive sim, as arefirst-person sneaking, hacking and shooting gameplay trifecta.

With that said, ifCyberpunk 2077manages to live up to its immense hype and become the summer blockbuster it is shaping up to be, the potential for more games to take advantage of the immersive sim design philosophy will be bigger than ever before. Regardless of Cyberpunk 2077's success, or lack thereof, there will likely still be immersive simsreleased from time to time. However, if it is not a financial hit, it could spell disaster for other immersive sims in development, such as System Shock 3 and theSystem Shock Remake, and make it unlikely that the genre will ever make the leap to the mainstream.

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Kurt Larson is a writer, filmmaker, musician, and avid gamer living life in the ever rainy municipality of Portland, Oregon. Kurt is a video game features writer for cbr.com, the arts and entertainment editor at the Advocate newspaper, lead editor of Venture magazine, film critic, and general purpose ideas guy. When he's not busy putting virtual pen to paper, Kurt enjoys composing original music for guitar and bass, tinkering with computers and electronics, and binging YouTube, among other things.

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