A new documentary about the Cambridge Analytica/Facebook scandal recently came out on Netflix. While I do recommend reading up a bit on how the scandal happened before watching it, I think it does a good job of showcasing what happened and more importantly, the amoral, opportunistic nature of nearly everyone involved, even those who now claim to be on the side of good. I give my impressions.

On the morning of July 25th, the CBC published a story on two young fujitives who are currently running from accusations of murder. Despite them having no criminal or violent past, in a desperate attempt to keep a story in the headlines with no new details to share, they attempted to once again link "online gaming" and their social introversion as they reason they murdered three people in cold blood. It is hack reporting at its worst and something even the modern CBC is supposed to be better at than this. I rant about it.

Please share this podcast around and take the time to file a formal complaint with the CBC if you agree with this.

The CBC story I reference in the episode:  https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/teens-manhunt-homicides-mcleod-schmegelsky-1.5222515

How to file a complaint with the CBC (select CBC Shows and News):  https://cbchelp.cbc.ca/hc/en-ca/requests/new

LianaK video on how games can relieve depression: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1PifTY4nCk

Every time I see a Reddit or Twitter thread bemoaning the modern state of video games, it's always talking about AAA titles like they're the only games that exist. Almost without fail, every time I try to point out the entire world of creative, inexpensive, consumer friendly indie games that are out there, I get downvoted or some other kind of push back from these same people. In a true ramble with no preparation, I expand on why this might be and what we can maybe do about it.

Indie Showcase impressions video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lAPMFUqbFnw

If you buy the game on PC and are OK using the Epic Games Store, use Creator Tag PXAbstraction at checkout to help support my content.

Shakedown: Hawaii is the latest effort from Retro City Rampage developer Vblank Entertainment. It's a pixel art, open-world game that's a little bit of GTA and a little bit of an arcadey crime empire simulator. I quite enjoyed it and give me impressions on it.

Press code provided by Vblank Entertainment.

The new AMD Ryzen 3000 line of CPUs has had a lot of hype behind it and based on reviews from its July 7th launch, it hasn't disappointed. However, fewer are talking about the obscene prices the accompanying motherboards have. As someone who was planning to build a new rig soon, this has taken a lot of the wind out of my sails and I think it's mostly because of the greed of the motherboard makers. I talk about why and why I think this will probably be short lived.

In the time I've been making YouTube videos and streaming, the term "influencer" to describe someone who makes content and "networking" to describe the act of community building, have both become common parlance. I really dislike the origins of these words and how they're being utilized and offer some thoughts on that.

This is the audio version of a written blog post that you can find, along with some extra links and images at https://geekbravado.com/?p=1232.

CD Projekt recently opened pre-orders for the PC collector's edition of Cyberpunk 2077. It was a complete disaster, screwing over a number of the company's most die hard fans, myself included, who were ready to drop $250US, instead finding listings that went up late (or not at all) and scalper bots grabbing most of the pre-orders before any of us had a chance. CD Projekt and their partners have been silent on the matter ever since.

This is an  open letter to CD Projekt, explaining my frustration as a massive fan and asking them to at least say something on the matter, if not do something to make it right.

A Plague Tale: Innocence is a new AA game from a small publisher and a studio that's known for mostly licensed games and it kind of came out of nowhere without a ton of fanfare. It's also my Game of the Year so far. Hear why I think you should definitely give this a look if you're into single player, story heavy games.

A Plague Tale: Innocence is out for PC, Xbox one and PS4.

Use one of the links below to buy a discounted, legitimate Steam key and help support my channel and my Developer Relations efforts with theSHED:

Fanatical - http://fanatical.pxa.ca

Another year of E3 has come and gone and to my great surprise, a lot of people are calling it a disappointment. I talk about that, why I think E3's relevance is returning as we enter the age of the "influencer" and how this year's theme is definitely subscription services and what that means for the gaming public going forward.

To the great surprise and happiness of many Star Control fans (myself included), it was announced yesterday that Stardock and Paul Reiche & Fred Ford have amicably settles the legal mess surrounding the rights to Star Control. Not only that but they did so in a way that will allow both of them to keep making their own games for the series and also, the agreement contains some hilarious, legally binding clauses that only this group would have come up with. It's a great day for Star Control fans and I talk about the agreement and why I think this is such a great thing.

Ars Technica article on the settlement:  https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2019/06/stardock-and-star-control-creators-settle-lawsuits-with-mead-and-honey/ 

Previous episodes on this subject: https://anchor.fm/geekbravado/episodes/Episode-20-Jan-2---2019---The-Star-Control-Legal-Mess-e2s7mq / https://anchor.fm/geekbravado/episodes/Episode-22-Jan--7--2019---The-Star-Control-Legal-Mess-Part-2-e2t5u9