Daily Archives: June 21, 2020

Gaming conventions and conferences all over the world were canceled because of the pandemic. Fans have been thirsty for gaming news and updates since. However, Gamelab Live, a conference geared towards developers, has managed to put up a star-studded lineup of speakers for their conference. Most notably, Phil Spencer, the man behind the Xbox, will be delivering a keynote address. The lineup has plenty more notable personalities too.

The Gamelab conference is one that is geared towards the industry, rather than the consumers. The purpose of the conference is to reach the professional and developmental side of the industry, rather than speak to the fans directly.

Therefore, the expectations are not as high as it could be. We shouldnt really expect any groundbreaking announcements from the conference, regardless of the eminent people speaking.

Also Read YouTube Tech Community reacts to the PS5

The conference has confirmed the presence of Mike Pondsmith (who is currently working with CD Projekt Red on Cyberpunk 2077). Amy Hennig, who was the lead director on the Uncharted series at Naughty Dog, will also be present.

More notable personalities include Shawn Layden, former President of worldwide operations for Sony (also the guy who comes out first at the PlayStation E3 presentations). Sticking with Sony, Mark Cerny, the lead architect on the PS5, would also make an appearance.

Rather than give his own presentation or keynote address, Mark will be speaking to Ken Levine, the creator of Bioshock. Ken Levine is one of the most respected game developers and creative directors in the industry, after his work on Bioshock 1, 2, and Infinite.

He has since parted ways with 2K Gamesand is now at the helm of a smaller studio. He carries a very interesting perspective with him, as one who has been at the top of the AAA gaming space, and who is now working in the indie scene.

Altogether, the lineup for Gamelab Barcelona is stacked. We as fans may not have much to look forward to in the event. However, the industry may be better off overall because of it.

You can stream the panels for free from June 23rd to 25th. General passes can be obtained from the official website.

Stay tuned to this space for more updates.

Go here to read the rest:

Xbox Head to Discuss Consoles Launch and Impact in the Gaming Industry - Essentially Sports

Great moments in PC gaming are bite-sized celebrations of some of our favorite gaming memories.

(Image credit: 505 Games)

Year: 2016Developer: Giant Squid Studios

In Abz you swim with lots of sea creaturesfish, squid, orcasbut the whales leave an indelible mark. As you emerge from an underwater tunnel, the opening frames a whale parent and child, playing together. You and these two whales, the child three times your size and the parent unthinkably massive, have the same destination. And so do the rest of the pod, who rush into scene just as the music soars.

(Abz's music is an important part of why moments like this land with such impact, backed by orchestral swell that's overpowering. It's not every game that has its own harp ensemble in the credits.)

It's hard not to be intimidated by how small your diver suddenly seems when the camera pulls back to capture the difference in scale. Blue whales can grow to almost 100 feet. That is too long. When a school of yellow-tailed fish rise to pass you the camera zooms in to frame them, at which point the yawning jaw of one of the whales suddenly gapes wide. For a moment you think you're about to be eaten with the fish but it's just a trick of perspective, and the whale's mouth closes beside you. For a moment its eye is shut, as if relishing the meal, then it opens to regard you. You're not food, you're a traveling companion.

The whales accompany you to the ocean floor before playfully twirling a goodbye. They've been Virgil to your Danteno, that's not a Devil May Cry referenceguiding you to the underworld, where the water's dark and the creatures strange. Here you'll confront the shark who has been dogging your progress throughout Abz. The whales provide a moment of levity and grandeur before things get dark.

I have thalassophobia, a fear of open water, and I play games like Abz as a way to confront and challenge it. (Subnautica, though it's a great game, gives me the actual shakes.) Swimming with whales is something I could never do in real life, but I came close in Abz and it took my breath away.

See the rest here:

Great moments in PC gaming: Swimming with whales in Abz - PC Gamer

"I was expecting to record a really exciting, hype moment showing the first time I see all the accessibility settings, but basically the second I started up the game, I was hearing a text to speech read off every single accessibility option. To be honest, the floodgates just kind of opened," Saylor told CNN.

"I couldn't stop crying for a solid 10 minutes. It was like everything I had been working for in the past five years, my efforts with disability consulting and advocating for more accessibility in games, finally paid off. This is literally the first time we have ever seen a game have this many features."

The game, which launches June 19, is a sequel to The Last of Us, a 2013 action-adventure game developed by Naughty Dog and released exclusively for Playstation. At the time of its release, it was labeled "the game of the decade, a cultural phenomenon within the video game industry," according to Saylor.

For years, fans have been anxiously waiting for the sequel, which continues the story of Ellie, the 14-year-old heroine of a post-pandemic world impacted by a fungal plague that turns people into zombies.

In the game, players must evade or kill both cannibalistic zombies and hostile humans to protect Ellie, who is immune to the infection and possibly holds its cure. The Last of Us Part II takes place five years after the events of the previous game and is played from Ellie's perspective.

Along with stunning visuals and breathtaking landscapes, the game comes with a diverse array of accessibility features that will provide disabled players with an especially unique gaming experience.

"This is a first time we have seen a game where every piece of text on screen had text to speech in it," Saylor said. "Anyone without visual impairment could actually close their eyes and be able to play this game with all the settings turned on. That's how powerful it is."

Working with disabled gamers on accessibility options

Emilia Schatz, one of the lead gameplay designers of The Last of Us Part II, said she was inspired to expand accessibility options after receiving a letter from a gamer. The player was unable to finish another Naughty Dogs game when they got stuck at a point where they had to repeatedly press on a button to escape during a fight.

"It's heartbreaking for me as a game creator because that person is so passionate about playing our game but there was just this moment that all of a sudden blocked them. We found that it's often a relatively small thing that can unlock an entire game for some players," Schatz told CNN.

"I think there hasn't been a huge awareness of how games are inaccessible to a wide group of people. A lot of developers have -- no pun intended -- a blind spot for things that don't personally affect them. Hopefully our game brings attention to the fact that there (are) things that can be done to affect players in such a positive way. It's absolutely worth everyone's time to try to fit it into their development schedule."

The gaming studio worked alongside numerous accessibility consultants, including Saylor, who offered ideas on the types of features needed. While many of the changes were simple and fairly easy to implement, Schatz said their goal was to "raise the bar and figure out what are the extents to how much we can make a game accessible."

For players with motor or physical disabilities, there's the option to customize all of their controls. They can also turn on cues that will point them toward the way forward and toggle the option to hold buttons instead of having to repeatedly press them.

For the hearing impaired, there are subtitles that cover not only dialogue, but combat action, too. They can also adjust what events cause the controller to vibrate, toggle prompts to keep them aware of nearby enemies and receive prompts telling them when to dodge in combat.

For the visually impaired, there is a text-to-speech option. It narrates many aspects of the game, from which options they're selecting in the menu to what weapon they have just equipped and how much ammo remains. They can also swipe the touchpad to receive status info on Ellie and toggle high-contrast mode, which will highlight the geometry of the world and brightly color enemies, allies, interactable regions and more.

There are special audio cues they can toggle to create unique sounds depending on a variety of in-game factors. The first type is called Traversal Audio Cues. These will trigger when there is an obstacle a player can vault, or when there are ammunition, bricks or bottles to pick up. Then there are Combat Audio Cues that indicate when an enemy is within takedown range, when they've taken one out or when their reticle is pointed at an enemy.

"We are excited to see these changes get out into the world and have other games adopt them to show that even in a game as seemingly inaccessible as our game, where you need to run, shoot at people, hide behind cover, evade people and jump across gaps, all those things that seem impossible for blind players are actually not impossible," Schatz said.

"There are ways we can make it work."

Continuing the fight for accessibility options

When a player launches the game, the first thing to appear is a screen offering various accessibility options. For disabled players, this is both new and unexpected -- and for many gamers, this is the first time they actually feel seen.

Saylor was not the only gamer to have had such an emotional reaction when playing The Last of Us Part II. Courtney Craven, another gamer and member of the accessibility community, was also left in tears after playing the game.

"Accessibility is still pretty new, unfortunately," Craven told CNN. "A lot of times we'll turn on a game and just be disappointed. Either the subtitles are microscopic so you can't read them or there's no visual cues to go with sounds. For hard of hearing players like me, there's a lot of features I need in a game to make it an equitable experience for me. But this game left me feeling pure joy."

Craven said she was blown away by how much attention and effort was put into just the accessibility portion of the game. Playing the game made it "very obvious" that developers were committed to play testing with disabled players, she added.

With an unprecedented display of options and aids, the game is well suited to a diverse community of gamers, whether they are blind, hard of hearing. struggle with mobility issues, or a combination of them all.

For many gamers like Craven who aren't used to playing video games and actually "being good at it," The Last of Us Part II is life-changing.

"This definitely sets the bar extremely high for other developers to not only reach this standard but also overcome," Saylor said.

"It's had a huge impact on disabled players who will be able to pick this game and actually play it. No doubt this has made history. We will be looking back at this moment as accessibility before The Last of Us Part II and after The Last of Us Part II. And this is just the beginning."

CNN's Benjamin Levin contributed to this report.

Read more here:

A blind video gamer got emotional after seeing The Last of Us Part II's extensive accessibility options for players with disabilities - CNN

Rather than one heavily focused week of E3 press conferences we're basically sliding through a summer-long schmear of them this year, as various publishers, studios, and media outlets make announcements over the course of June and July. It's different, to be sure, but there's still a heck of a lot to keep up with!

This past Saturday we hosted our annual PC Gaming Show, EA Play happened on Thursday, and there's been plenty of other news along the way as IGN, Guerrilla Collective, and the Future Games Show all hosted events and broadcasts.

So many games. And so much news! Here are the biggest PC gaming stories from this week:

Icarus is a sci-fi co-op survival game from DayZ creator Dean Hall

Dean Hall announced Icarus, and while the teaser trailer didn't show us all that much, it sounds like an interesting, session-based take on survivaland it'll be free to play when it launches in 2021. Here's everything we know about Icarus so far.

Escape from Tarkov's new map will be its largest yet

We got a nice look at the upcoming and expansive city map, and learned that the Customs map is getting bigger, too.

Total War Saga: Troy brings mythical heroes to bronze age infantry warfare

It's the earliest setting the Total War series has tackled.

Persona 4 Golden is out on PC

The port of the PS Vita version of the PS2 game finally made its way to PC. We've got a glowing review here, too.

And there was lots, lots more on our show! You can see everything else that was announced on The PC Gaming Show right here.

Star Wars: Squadrons channels X-Wing vs TIE Fighter with dual campaigns, multi-stage fleet battles

There are some promising details in the few minutes of footage from Squadrons, which is due out October 2. James broke down more about the combat, too.

Apex Legends is coming to Steam, getting crossplay

EA has been busy moving lots of games to Steam lately, including The Sims 4 and Titanfall 2.

EA is making a new Skate game

That's great news, but at this early stage we don't really know anything about it, except that it's happening.

These may be the first real images from Dragon Age 4

Fans held their breath but there was no official announcement, just a few tantalizing glimpses of what Bioware is working on. Which is probably Dragon Age 4.

To stay up-to-date on PC Gamer's news and features, you can follow us on Twitter and Facebook, subscribe to our newsletter, listen to our weekly podcast, or just refresh the homepage waiting for whatever happens next.

See the original post here:

The biggest PC gaming stories this week - PC Gamer

Happily for anyone who struggles to summon much interest in raw tech specs, last weeks PlayStation 5 broadcast was heavy on games. Having seeded details about the consoles hardware and performance throughout the year, Sony opted to show what developers have been doing with that speed and power.

Of the 28 games shown, nine were from Sonys own studios, meaning they will be playable only on PS5. A further 14 were whats known as timed exclusives, meaning that theyll be available on PS5 first and may also launch on PC.

Exclusive games have always been the shining beacons that attract players to an expensive new console, but arguably their role has been diminishing for at least a decade. Microsoft, particularly, has completely changed its approach to its own studios games in recent years, offering up all of them on PC and Xbox and packaging them up as part of a 7.99-a-month subscription to Xbox Game Pass instead of charging 50 for each. Xbox bosses have even repeatedly stated that, in their ideal world, Xbox games would be playable on any screen or device. Meanwhile, the biggest game publishers, including 2K, Ubisoft and EA, almost never make a game for a single platform any more, instead selling them across PC, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch.

However, Simon Rutter, PlayStations EVP for Europe, says that for Sony exclusive games are hugely important. More important, I think, than theyve ever been. Through their proximity to the systems designers, PlayStations studios are able to really extract the most out of the system performance and thats a really valuable attribute for a platform holder to have. [PlayStation] can rely on a studio network that can really show off the innovations that were trying to put across when the exclusives are as powerful as Marvels Spider-Man or Horizon, they are important games that people want to play.

Take Gran Turismo, the hyper-realistic racing game that has been synonymous with PlayStation since the 90s. Gran Turismo 7 is going to benefit from almost every single technological enhancement that we have in PlayStation 5, says Rutter. The loading times will be next to nothing compared to what they have been in the past. Sitting in the cockpit, the 3D audio allows you to hear the thunderous roar of a Ferrari behind you or in front of you, and you can recognise the difference between that and the engine noise of a Maserati. Driving the car using the DualSense controller, youll have a different feeling in your hands from the smooth undulating tarmac of a racetrack, compared to the gritty sensation on a gravel track. Pressing a soft accelerator will feel very different than pressing on a stiff brake pedal or gear paddle.

Sonys approach is a reminder that games consoles are about more than tech specs; their features, and the selection of games that their manufacturers curate, create a culture around them. Nintendo specialises in consoles that are portable, flexible, family friendly and fun. Xbox, historically, has always put connectivity at the forefront, centring games such as Halo and Forza that you play online with friends. Sony, meanwhile, likes to invest in a diverse portfolio of games to attract players who like to feel as if theyre on the cultural cutting edge.

That comes at a cost, however 50-60 per game and, in the conspicuous absence of pricing details for the PlayStation 5, there is speculation that the console could push 500. Add in a monthly online-play subscription and youve got a very expensive hobby. For players, the games have to be pretty great to justify it.

Horizon: Forbidden West (Sony/Guerilla Games)Gran Turismo 7 (Sony/Polyphony)Demons Souls (Sony/FromSoftware/Bluepoint)Returnal (Sony/Housemarque)Destruction All Stars (Sony/Lucid Games)Astros Playroom (Sony/Japan Studio)Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart (Sony/Insomniac)Sackboy: A Big Adventure (Sony/Sumo)Marvels Spider-Man: Miles Morales (Sony/Insomniac)Bugsnax (Young Horses)Deathloop (Bethesda)Ghostwire: Tokyo (Bethesda)Godfall (Gearbox Publishing/Counterplay Games)Goodbye Volcano High (KO-OP)JETT : The Far Shore (Superbrothers)Kena: Bridge of the Spirits (Ember Lab)Little Devil Inside (Neostream Interactive)Oddworld Soulstorm (Oddworld Inhabitants)Project Athia (Square Enix/Luminous Productions)Solar Ash (Annapurna Interactive/Heart Machine)Stray (Annapurna/Blue Twelve Studio)Tribes of Midgard (Gearbox Publishing/Norsfell)The Pathless (Annapurna Interactive/Giant Squid)

Go here to read the rest:

PlayStation 5: exclusive games 'more important than ever', says Sony - The Guardian

#BlackLivesMatter its the hashtag gaming giants were once mum about, but amid nationwide anti-racism protests spurred by the brutal murder of yet another black American, PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo and more have changed their tune.

But why have big-name conglomerates been silent for so long?

Perhaps they thought condemning racial injustice would be too controversial, which, if you think about it, is baffling. All Americans are entitled to a speedy trial and impartial jury, according to the Sixth Amendment. But oddly enough, advocating for those constitutional rights to apply to everyone, regardless of skin color, is somehow incendiary in 2020. Its bewildering, but then again, racism has never been rooted in logic.

Racism is far more insidious than the virus thats been plaguing the world it seeps into the minds of hiring managers, loan officers, realtors, and in the case of police brutality, our very own law-enforcement authorities. Believing in the myth of racial inferiority, they subsequently pin disadvantaged communities down in their positions of power.

Black Americans such as Mike Brown, Eric Garner, Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd and Breonna Taylor took their last breath in the hands of ill-intentioned police officers who killed them before they could exercise their Sixth Amendment right. With Floyds murder being the greatest impetus, these widely publicized deaths sparked global outcry from all backgrounds and ethnicities not only are people demanding change within the police force, but theyre urging all the powers that be to dismantle systematic oppression.

Enter PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo and other gaming giants all have made statements on Twitter denouncing racism and pledging support for the black American community.

Joshua Rivera of The Verge and Ethan Gach of Kokatu both wrote thought-provoking pieces about the video-game industrys anti-racism advocacy on social media. Rivera and Gach insinuated that these tweets lacked sincerity and gaming giants are just latching on to a trending topic as a marketing tactic, and for most companies, I suspect theyre right.

Call me a cynic, but I dont believe that big-name businesses entities that solely exist to make money will go to bat for marginalized communities purely out of the goodness of their hearts. The only way to impel businesses to support just causes is to accurately answer Whats in it for me?

Case in point: Valve, the company behind Steam, was conspicuously silent while other gaming giants chimed in on Black Lives Matter. Independent developers began yanking their games off of Steam to protest Valves muteness.

Its clearer than ever that the owners of [Steam] feel beholden to a base of angry white male gamers, Art Sqools Julian Glander announced on Twitter. This makes me especially sad because I feel that some of these people are the people who most need to hear the message of Black Lives Matter.

Glanders statement influenced a handful of other indie developers to follow suit. If I continued to profit from [Steam], Id be complicit with their silence on hate, Ghost Time Games founder Gabriel Koenig tweeted.

As a result, on June 17, Valve responded to Glanders tweet by announcing that they are sponsoring the Game Devs of Color Expo and supporting the Black Voices in Gaming event.

I reached out to Glander, and I asked him if he intended to restore his games on Steam after Valves sponsorship tweet. Im done with Steam, Glander told me. Im really happy to see them starting to sponsor POC events, but their toxic culture is pretty well documented at this point and goes a lot deeper than this current #BLM moment.

Koenig agreed. Thats great, he said about Steams POC expo support, but I dont think its enough. I know maybe its bad business, but I feel its so unethical to remain silent when your supporters are people slinging hate around.

The moral of the story? Glander gave an answer to Valves implicit Whats in it for me? question, and it was If you continue to remain silent, Ill be the catalyst behind a developer boycott that will jeopardize your bottom line.

Appealing to businesses hearts wont impel gaming giants to make any meaningful changes, but we can mobilize transformation by imperiling their pockets. We should also remind gaming giants that theyre missing out on cash-cow opportunities by not tapping into black creatives. The film industry, for example, missed out on a plethora of Black Panthers and Get Outs by stifling black directors. In the same way, the video game industry is sabotaging itself by icing out black talent.

Diverse companies produce 19% more revenue, according to a study conducted by the Boston Consulting Group. Also, McKinsey researchers discovered that diverse teams are 33% more likely to outperform their competitors. The value and ROI-potential of non-homogenous workplaces is clear as day.

PlayStation, Xbox, Nintendo, Electronic Arts (EA), Ubisoft, Activision Blizzard, Square Enix, Riot Games, Bethesda, Capcom and Niantic all seem to understand the advantages of diversity they all have promised to foster inclusiveness alongside their Black Lives Matter tweets. But interestingly, when Gach from Kokatu contacted these companies and asked how they planned on following through with their pledges, Gach received radio silence (save for Capcom).

I decided to replicate Gachs experiment. I reached out to the aforementioned 11 gaming giants and asked them about their future plans to support the Black Lives Matter mission (as they pledged in their tweets).

As of this writing, Ubisoft was the only company to reply to Laptop Mag thus far:

Diversity is a key pillar to Ubisofts success. We recognize that our workforce and the games we create must reflect the diverse backgrounds, experiences and neurodiversity of our players. Ubisoft donated $100,000 to the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund and Black Lives Matter and have created a forum for the Black video game development community by hosting our third Black Game Pros event on July 17. On a local level, Ubisoft NCSA has committed $1,000,000 over the next five years to improve diversity and inclusion in our workplace and communities. We recognize there is more to be done and are committed to doing this work through both local and global initiatives.

As a huge Just Dance fan, Im not surprised that Ubisoft was the first to respond. The dancers and choreographers on their Just Dance teams have always been as diverse as their music selection. At the same time, Ubisoft is self-aware enough to assess its workplaces and conclude that more needs to be done.

PR contacts from Xbox, Nintendo and Niantic have kindly replied with interest and told me theyd circle back to me after reaching out to their respective teams. If I do receive a statement from these three gaming companies, I will update this article with their comments.

The other companies EA, Activision Blizzard, Square Enix, Riot Games, Bethesda and Capcom did not respond to requests for comment.

I cant help but wonder if Gach and Rivera are correct in their insinuation that these companies are unresponsive because theyre all tweet and no bite; theyre pandering to their socially conscious consumer base, but they dont have any substantial plans to promote diversity.

Gach and I may not receive many replies, but at the very least, we hope our emails and calls challenge top-level leaders to confront their own internal biases and push them to develop concrete blueprints on how they plan to fulfill their commitment to diversity.

Today's best Just Dance 2020 deals

Just Dance 2020 - Xbox One...

Just Dance 2020 - Xbox One

Just Dance 2020 Standard...

Just Dance 2020 - Xbox One

Read more here:

Gaming giants tweeted #BlackLivesMatter but are they actively supporting it? - Laptop Mag

Your first instinct might be to spend all your ongoing spare time in lockdown scrolling through your social media feeds, reading more or bingeing something new on Netflix. But theres an argument to be made for getting even more analog with your entertainment that is, opting for a board game, be it a puzzle, tabletop board game or card and dice game. Spending as little as 15 minutes playing a board game could go a long way in refreshing your day, especially during work hours. Besides, board games can be incredibly fun if you find the right one for you.

Your specific taste in games might differ from everyone else's, so try to watch a video overview of the game or download and read the rules ahead of time to see whether the game might be ideal for you, says W. Eric Martin, author of The Infinite Board Game. Martin is also the news editor at online gaming resource BoardGameGeek, home to a database of more than 115,000 tabletop games and two million registered users who rate and review games, upload game images and more. To spare yourself some frustration, Martin recommends watching a full rules tutorial before investing time or money into a game, such as those by Rodney Smith of the YouTube channel "Watch It Played," which partners with BoardGameGeek.

Given the ever-expanding world of video games and gadgets, board games might sound a little outdated on paper (or rather, on your table). But the statistics show otherwise: Market research from Reportlinker found the board game industry is expected to reach a global value of $12 billion by 2023, a nine percent uptick from 2017.

If youre new to the modern game scene, Martin recommends consulting BoardGameGeeks yearly gift guide, a curation of BBG staff picks and volunteer game experts. Their 2019 collection, for example, features go-to choices for someone curious about what games are like these days. The games in that guide, Martin said, came out between 1995 (Catan) and 2010 (7 Wonders), so they're far newer than the mainstream games with which most people are familiar. Those mainstream options wont surprise you: Monopoly, Scrabble and The Game of Life are some examples and theres nothing wrong with those, Martin reminds.

They're also old enough to have proven themselves as excellent choices for gamers of all types, he said.

When choosing the right game for you, it might be worth it to consult its weight. Its a five-point scale BBG uses to loosely assign a level of complexity to a particular game. Weight levels include:

BoardGameGeek notes, however, that weight is a subjective term. Users vote on a games particular weight by factoring in elements like the complexity of a games rulebook, how much luck is involved and how long it takes to play the game you can consider it a board gamers equivalent to a Goodreads review.

To help guide your journey to a new board game, we consulted Martin on the best board games to consider right now, noting BoardGameGeeks guidance on how many players it supports (board game expansions often allow for additional players), how long its likely to take and how users weigh it, on average.

Think of Ticket to Ride as the Monopoly of the railway system with a lot more tension. Collect the most points by placing a like-colored set of train cards on the board to connect cities, building longer routes via Destination Tickets throughout the game and boasting the longest continuous railway system at the end of the game. [Its] our go-to recommendation, especially for new gamers, says Lincoln Damerst, the director of media at BoardGameGeek. It has the slimmest rule book at only four pages (half of which are illustrations) that is super easy to digest and it has an Amazon Alexa skill to teach you and play along with you.

2 to 5 players | 30 to 60 minutes | Weight: 1.85

To build an entire town one tile at a time, grow and complete roads, grasslands, cloisters, monasteries and more by positioning your tiles on the board, which features southern French landscape. You have the option of widening the scope of your own territories or placing your token in your opponents way to shield them from dominating the map, too and you can form alliances. Sometimes, you can combine forces, though, and each profit at the expense of other players, says Martin.

Let our news meet your inbox. The news and stories that matters, delivered weekday mornings.

2 to 5 players | 30 to 45 minutes | Weight: 1.92

In each of the three ages of the game, players collect cards to help them build one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, which have either immediate or latent benefits. While the goal is for your civilization to reign supreme, you can still collaborate with players directly next to you, selling resources like clay, wood and glass, buying resources they produce and sharing insider knowledge and research.

2 to 7 players | 30 minutes | Weight: 2.33

Formerly known as Settlers of Catan, players expand their territory on settlements, roads and cities using resources like wood, stone and brick that may or may not yield a return on investment. Success in the game relies on trading and negotiating with other players. Damerst notes the rule book is a bit intimidating but gameplay is simple and straightforward. The player interaction through the trading of goods and on-board interplay with no conflict was like nothing we had seen before, he says, noting that after playing it the first time he was eager for a second round.

3 to 4 players | 1 to 2 hours | Weight: 2.33

In keeping with the times, this cooperative game forces you to join intellectual forces with other players in order to eradicate a widespread disease. Each player assumes a role be it scientist or medic and collaborates to devise new treatment strategies. Taking place throughout cities all across the globe, youll collect cards to treat outbreaks in various hotspots. Martin says the game has a cinematic feel since youll be playing as an unlikely hero who has to see whether you can find the solution to the problem whatever that might be in the nick of time.

2 to 4 players | 45 minutes | Weight: 2.42

In this Medieval-themed card-drawing game, youll begin with nothing but a hand of 10 copper and estate cards the latter of which youll eventually want to get rid of. The goal is amassing ever more victory and treasure cards, which allow you to buy even more valuable expensive cards. Cards allow you to interact with the hands of other players, for better or worse. Martin calls the game akin to the story of the man who started with a paperclip and traded his way to a house.

2 to 4 players | 30 minutes | Weight: 2.36

Azul is for design lovers as much as it is for thrill seekers. Each player uses their individual game board to decorate a Portuguese palace with tiles from a shared supplier. Earn points for collecting tiles that contribute to a cohesive design, such as rows and columns of the same color. While its fairly straightforward, Damerst says Azul gets tricky when you have to draft tiles you dont need, which gives you negative points. To that end, Martin adds, You want to grab exactly what you need to complete tasks so that you can reopen that workspace again next round, ideally stealing tiles from others or forcing extras in their lap so they're penalized.

2 to 4 players | 30 to 45 minutes | Weight: 1.77

Ever played a card game of Kent during recess at school? The Mind which Damerst calls one of his favorites takes this type of stealthy card game to another level. Play cards from your hand to the table in ascending order (one card on the first round, two cards in the second and so on). If youre in a bind, use the card that lets everyone play their lowest card, or forfeit a life in order to continue playing in order, explains Damerst. The catch is that you cant talk to each other or indicate in any way what you have in your hand, and you can only intuit when to play. In practice, The Mind feels like a magic trick that you're playing on yourself. You can't imagine that you can possibly do this, yet you surprise yourself again and again, says Martin.

2 to 4 players | 15 minutes | Weight: 1.09

Wingspan is the ultimate way to gain a birds eye view of nature, thanks to what Damerst calls fantastic art and production value. Here, youll be responsible for a mini ecosystem, forced to allocate varying supplies of food tokens found in a bespoke bird feeder dice tower, eggs laid via mini colored eggs and birds found on unique playing cards to build a chain of wildlife preserves across four habitats. Each species has its own needs and special abilities, and you want them all to live together as harmoniously as possible, says Martin.

1 to 4 players | 40 to 70 minutes | Weight: 2.38

Scattegories heads, this ones for you. Each teams spymaster provides clever one-word clues to assist their teammates in identifying the secret word that belongs to their team in a field of seemingly random words that include those of the other team. For example, youll need to think of a single code word that inspires players to guess words like check or trip. The goal is to guess words in your teams color while avoiding the other teams cards.

2 to 8 players | 15 minutes | Weight: 1.30

The rest is here:

Best board games to play in quarantine, according to experts - NBC News

Health Minister Adrian Dix, seen here on March 14, 2020, has asked B.C.s former childrens advocate, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, who has also been a provincial court judge in Saskatchewan, to investigate the allegations.

The Canadian Press

A former judge and independent watchdog is investigating allegations of racist games played in B.C. emergency rooms in which health care workers guessed the blood alcohol levels of Indigenous patients.

Health Minister Adrian Dix announced the investigation on Friday, calling the allegations beyond disappointing. Such games would be racist, he said, and would have an obvious negative effect on patient care.

The Mtis Nation BC reported the allegation to the ministry on June 18, said the organizations chief executive officer, Daniel Fontaine. During an online Indigenous cultural safety training program, a health care worker described a game in which emergency room staff predicted what the blood alcohol level of Indigenous patients would be, Mr. Fontaine said in an interview. He said it appears to be played at multiple hospitals.

Story continues below advertisement

One of the workers said that they play a game called Price is Right,' where we guess what the blood alcohol level is, and you have to be the closest to the actual test results, but you cant go over, he said. They were giving a very detailed accounting of this game, and that was captured in this training program and, of course, it got out and was brought to my attention.

Mr. Dix said he learned of the allegations on the evening of June 18 from his deputy minister, and asked Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond that night to lead the independent investigation.

While reports of racist treatment of Indigenous patients are common, the idea of wagering on alcohol was a punch in the gut, said Cheryl Casimer, political executive of the First Nations Summit Task Group. She said she trusts Ms. Turpel-Lafond to conduct a thorough investigation, but the province will ultimately have to deal with those who participated in the game.

We need to know who these individuals are and where do they practice, Ms. Casimer said. Were calling for the highest level of discipline for those individuals, because we dont need those individuals in the health care system.

The Hospital Employees Union said the shameful and sickening behaviour needs to be addressed quickly.

The BC Nurses Union offered its support for the investigation and said the union is committed to fighting racism, but declined to comment further until after the investigation.

Premier John Horgan condemned the alleged actions in a statement: I am outraged by reports of ugly, anti-Indigenous, racist behaviour at multiple health-care facilities in B.C., he said. This behaviour degrades the standards and provisions of health care in our province. It cannot stand. There is no excuse.

Story continues below advertisement

Just a day earlier, the Premier said the province needs to start collecting race and ethnicity-based data across ministries to help inform government policy. He asked the provinces privacy watchdog to help find a way to allow the data to be gathered.

Mr. Dix declined to say where the alleged incidents took place or when, saying no one has been disciplined and the allegations have not been proven.

He said he wants to await the findings of Ms. Turpel-Lafond, the first Indigenous woman appointed to Saskatchewans provincial bench, and who earned a reputation as a strong and fearless investigator when she was B.C.s first representative for children and youth.

She will follow the facts, wherever they lead, Mr. Dix told reporters. He said he will make her findings public.

Mr. Dix said the allegations underscore a broader problem. It is beyond dispute that there are people who have suffered in our province from systemic racism in many fields, and health care is one of those.

Mr. Fontaine said a March, 2019, report by the Provincial Health Services Authority found that Indigenous people face racism when seeking medical care. He said he expects the provinces investigation to look into incidents outlined in that report.

Story continues below advertisement

I dont know why we couldnt have done this when that report was compiled, he said. Im hoping that Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond will find out who knew about these reports, when did they know about them, why was no action taken, and why are we talking about this in June, 2020, when this was all catalogued months, if not years, ago.

B.C. Health Minister Adrian Dix says staff at one or more ERs in B.C. allegedly played a racist game to guess the blood-alcohol level of patients, particularly those who are Indigenous. The Canadian Press

We have a weekly Western Canada newsletter written by our B.C. and Alberta bureau chiefs, providing a comprehensive package of the news you need to know about the region and its place in the issues facing Canada. Sign up today.

Continue reading here:

Allegations of racist games in B.C. emergency rooms investigated - The Globe and Mail

Attendees pass by an Alibaba.com display at CES 2019 in Las Vegas.

David Becker | Getty Images

Check out the companies making headlines before the bell Friday:

Alibaba, JD.com Alibaba and JD.com handled a record $136.51 billion in sales during 618, one of the biggest shopping events in China. Alibaba reported a gross merchandise value of just over $98 billion during the event. JD.com said transaction volume totaled $37.99 billion.

Occidental Petroleum Occidental shares climbed more than 4% after a SunTrust analyst upgraded the energy company to "buy" from "hold." The analyst also raised his price target on the stock to $25 per share from $13 a share, implying a 12-month upside of 27% from Thursday's close. "We believe Occidental is in position to continue improving its balance sheet through internal and external means," the analyst said.

DraftKings DraftKings said it has priced a 40 million common stock offering at $40 per share. Goldman Sachs and Credit Suisse are the lead underwriters of the offering. DraftKings shares rose more than 1% in the premarket.

Disney An analyst at Wells Fargo hiked his price target on Disney to $118 per share from $107 a share. The analyst maintained his "equal weight" rating on the stock, however, noting "we remain more pessimistic than most on the potential length and depth of the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on Parks operations + Studio production."

Penn National Gaming The Pennsylvania-based casino operator said it has resumed operations in 30 of the company's 41 properties, sending the stock up more than 3% in the premarket.

Spotify Shares of the music streaming giant jumped 2.5% in the premarket after Rosenblatt Securities hiked its price target on the company to $275 per share from $190 a share. The firm also raised its fiscal 2021 revenue forecast for Spotify to $10.46 billion from $10.17 billion as the company lands exclusive podcast deals with Joe Rogan and Kim Kardashian. "We not only see attractive monetization potential from these exclusives, we envision future leverage to premium subscription pricing and label negotiations," according to Rosenblatt.

CarMax CarMax shares climbed more than 1% after the used-car seller posted a quarterly revenue that beat analysts' expectations. The company reported sales of $3.23 billion for the first quarter, topping a FactSet estimate of $2.71 billion. Comparable sales fell 41.8% on a year-over-year basis, but that was better than a consensus forecast of a 51.3% decline.

Slack Goldman Sachs downgraded Slack to "sell" from "neutral," citing the potential for an "enduring battle" with Microsoft's Teams platform for market share. "While we continue to view Slack as a best-in-class team messaging offering that is favored by the technical community, we expect MSFT Teams to continue to try and leverage its packaging within Office 365 to drive increased adoption, thus creating the potential for a more competitive environment," Goldman said in a note.

Novavax An analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald hiked his price target on Novavax to $88 per share from $45 a share, citing "recent additions of well-known and established biotech veterans to the executive team." The new price target implies an upside of 48.5% over the next 12 months. Novavax shares gained about 4% before the bell.

See more here:

Stocks making the biggest moves in the premarket: Alibaba, Penn National Gaming, Spotify & more - CNBC

Over the years, there have been some terrific games released on a variety of platforms.

The question, however, that is often debated is what is the best video game of all time?

Well, thanks to Metacritic we now have a list of the top 100 video games ranked by their metascore, which is the weighted average that the computer game received from some of the worlds best critics.

So, without further ado, here are the games listed from 100-81.

100 Burnout 3: Takedown - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Xbox

Starting at number 100, Burnout 3 was certainly the game for encouraging stunning crashes, massive pileups and with a multiplayer mode consisting of more than 100 events and 40 tracks, it was certainly a game packed full of incident.

99 - Tom Clancy Splinter Cell Chaos Theory - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Xbox

Next up is a title from Tom Clancys Splinter Cell spy franchise. Playing as Sam Fisher, you are sent on numerous series' of missions to investigate and eliminate threats originating from North Korea.

98 - Grim Fandango - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PC

A LucasArts title where you as the player need to help the Department of the Deaths Manny Calavera solve conspiracy theories that threaten his existence.

97 - Metal Gear Solid - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PlayStation

Another classic spy franchise where the gamer takes control of the man known as Snake and you have the challenging task of regaining control of secret nuclear weapons from terrorist hands.

96 - Jet Grind Radio - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Dreamcast

A game released on the SEGA Dreamcast platform. You are part your own graffiti crew and must lay claim and protect your own territory from rival taggers.

95 - Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros 3 - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Gameboy Advance

Everyones favourite Nintendo character makes his first appearance on the list. Super Mario Advance 4 is a terrific demonstration of platform gaming at its best. It features eight huge worlds, boss battles and fun mini games.

94 - Street Fighter IV - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PlayStation 3

The classic fighting game Street Fighter comes in at 94, featuring appearances from favourites such as Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li and Guil as well as the inclusion of new characters such as Crimson Viper, Abel and Rufus.

93 - The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PC

A single player title which requires the gamer to protect the world of Tamriel from demons while at the same time foil sinister-plots to take over the kingdoms throne.

92 - Ninja Gaiden Black - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Xbox

This is the sequel to Ninja Gaiden. The game requires you to reprise the role of the ninja known as Ryu Hayabusa and includes a number of new missions.

91 - Halo 3 - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Xbox 360

Halo 3: Combat Evolve is the third title in the ever-popular Halo series. This involves returning as The Master Chief to earth to finish what was started in Halo 2.

90 - BioShock Infinite - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PC

The adventure PC game known as BioShock Infinite is next. Playing as former Pinkerton agent Booker DeWitt, you are sent to the lost city in the clouds to rescue the young lady Elizabeth. Along the way, DeWitt will need to engage in combat among the clouds as well as master the power of a wide range of new weapons and abilities.

89 - Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Xbox 360

Call of Duty 4 is certainly an incident packed and exciting addition to the popular franchise. This Activision title also successfully builds on the Call of Duty 2 online experience.

88 - Quake - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PC

The game that is very much known for its frightening death-matches. You also have the added bonus of 32 single player levels to get stuck into.

87 - Sid Meiers Civilization II - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PC

The first strategy based game that appears on the list. Civilization II begins at the Old Stone Age in 4000 BC and it certainly encourages exploration of unknown territories and ultimately expanding your Empire.

86 - The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Xbox 360

A single player title that requires the gamer to protect the world of Tamriel from demons while at the same time foil sinister-plots to take over the kingdoms throne.

85 - Gears of War - Metascore: 94 - Platform: Xbox 360

Starring as lead war hero Marcus Fenix alongside his fire team, you are tasked with fending off the onslaught of merciless warrior fiends. Overall, this game is a terrific blend of tactical action and horror.

84 - Madden NFL 2004 - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PlayStation 2

The 2003 PlayStation 2 Game of the Year comes in next. This Classic American Football series created by Electronic Arts provided the most realistic NFL Playbooks ever and provided multiple formation variations.

83 - Grand Theft Auto: Vice City - Metascore: 94 - Platform: PC

This RockStar title released on the PC in 2003 had a number of enhanced features including enhanced sound and improved graphics. It is easy to see why this game was awarded the Metacritics 2003 PC Game of the Year.

82 - Mass Effect 2 Metascore: 94 - Platform: PlayStation 3

This shooter game appears next on the list. Mass Effect 2 is part of a trilogy of science-fiction titles, which are set in world of uncharted planets and dangerous alien life.

81 - BioShock Metascore: 94 - Platform: PlayStation 3

This is the secondBioShock game that appears on this list. After your plane crashes into icy uncharted waters, you must explore a city hidden beneath the surface, which is controlled by Ecological AI.

You can see what games made 80-61 here.

More here:

The 100 greatest video games of all time according to their Metacritic score (100-81) - GiveMeSport