Not quite psychological warfare: Safe House review

This review can also be found at The Yorker, here. Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington) is an ex-CIA agent who’s widely respected and somewhat feared by intelligence agencies worldwide for two reasons. Firstly, he’s a psychological genius; secondly, he makes a living stealing …

» read more

Running from your relationships: Catherine review

This review can also be found at The Yorker, here. Video games aren’t too great at dealing with relationships; especially sexual ones. Often, when sex comes up in a game, it’s as a ‘reward’; and if the game is particularly immature, as …

» read more

Location: Always the Urbanite

This article is a Destructoid Bloggers Request, found here. I love living in the city – while many resent the crowded streets, the tall buildings and the subtle background notes of consumerism and pollution, it’s what I grew up around, and I …

» read more

Alcohol Infusions and You

It seems like a common trope for university freshmen to make ‘Skittles Vodka’. Depending on how they go about the process, it results in some pleasantly colourful booze or a strange sludgy mess; but there’s a solid idea there. If you have …

» read more

Dating Sims: Romance for those who don’t know better

This article is hosted on The Yorker, found here. Dating Simulators. It’s a genre that’s been around longer than you might think, surprisingly constrained to obscure Japanese titles, and even then, ones essentially indie developed and distributed for DOS. For the uninitiated, …

» read more

Time Shenanigans! Final Fantasy XIII-2 Review

This review can also be found at The Yorker, here. Note: I have discussed Final Fantasy XIII recently, found here. I’d suggest giving it a quick read; as much of what I have to say here, relates heavily to that game. Okay, so to be …

» read more

Desert Living: Bombay Beach Review

This review can be found at The Yorker, here. Living in poverty is trying. So is living in a desert, and miles away from any major settlement. What was once advertised as a thriving tourist resort in the 50s is now a …

» read more

Have You Read… Norwegian Wood

University is difficult. Not just the academics, but the social side more than anything else. We are forced to sink-or-swim in a setting where we initially know no one, and rarely have old friendship groups to rely on. And yet at the …

» read more

Review: Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 2

This review was written for The Yorker and can be found here. While Pokémon has the genre neatly cornered, it’s not the only “Collect & Battle” experience out there. The ability to create and arrange your own specialised team for whuppin’ ass is addictive …

» read more

Have You Played: Final Fantasy XIII

This feature was written for The Yorker and can be found here. While Square Enix could be reasonably blamed for having a hand in the endless torrent of Video Game Sequels, the gameplay of the Final Fantasy titles varies wildly – for better or …

» read more

The Language of Hip-Hop: A Lot More Than ‘Ass’

This article was done for the Phonograph, can be found here. Okay, so we live in a world where Big Sean can release a song called “Ass”, where the lyrics consist mostly of just that word. Granted, if you’ve been paying attention to Top-40s …

» read more