EA Sports is revealing the Madden NFL 21 player ratings this week through ESPN, and that continued on Tuesday with the announcement of the game’s next 99-rated player and more.
McCaffrey also earned a 99 rating in Madden NFL 20, but it took 10 games for the Madden ratings adjusters to boost his rating to the highest level in the game. This year, he’s a 99 out of the gate and will have to perform well on the field to retain that rating.
McCaffrey is also the highest-rated running back overall in Madden NFL 21. The next closest is Derrick Henry (93), followed by Nick Chubb (92), Ezekiel Elliot (92), and Saquon Barkley (91).
In addition to his 99 overall rating, McCaffrey has earned the highest overall “juke” rating, at 96. He’s known to be a slippery and shifty runner who is hard to tackle, and this is reflected in his juke rating.
McCaffrey is not the fastest running back in Madden NFL 21, however–he’s not even close. McCaffrey doesn’t rank inside the top ten for speed; the top honor goes to Raheem Mostert, who has a 95 rating for speed.
Madden NFL 21 is coming on August 28 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One. It will also be coming to the next-gen PS5 and Xbox Series X, with free upgrades for current-gen owners through EA’s Dual Entitlement program. For more details check out our Madden NFL 21 pre-order guide.
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Harvest Moon, and now Story of Seasons, have thrived on their personality above all else. With each entry in the series offering fresh story and minimal improvements to gameplay, replaying one of the older titles is asking for disappointment, even if it has a new coat of paint. Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town brings the 2003 Game Boy Advance title into 2020 with enjoyable cutesy graphics and personality, but does little to add depth to the already outdated gameplay..
After choosing from an extremely limited set of character customization options, you set out to take over a farm left to you by your late grandfather, where you once spent the summer 20 years ago. It’s unclear why your character left whatever life they had behind, but you are quickly thrust into the day-to-day work of maintaining a farm, starting with crops.
Growing crops is one of the main methods of making money, but progression is slow. You can’t improve your crop yields in any meaningful way until the option to buy better farm soil becomes available in the second year, which is 25 to 30 hours into the game. Upgrading the watering can allows you to tend to more crops at once, but the increased stamina usage makes for minimal improvement to your crop yield.
Upgrading tools improves your ability to farm slightly, but the best way to maximize crop output is through the Nature Sprites that live in the town. Tucked behind the church, seven Sprites live in a hut, waiting for you to make friends with them. You gain their trust by speaking with them and giving them gifts that they like, similar to befriending people in town. Once a certain level of friendship is reached, you can request they help with one of three farm chores: watering crops, picking crops, and caring for livestock.
The catch here is that the Sprites aren’t very good at these chores to start with and need to be trained through playing minigames. Each chore has a corresponding minigame; the watering minigame and livestock minigame are both enjoyable, entailing tile memorization and frantic chicken feeding respectively, while the crop-picking minigame is a glorified button masher. But because you need to play the minigames dozens upon dozens of times to make meaningful progress, the novelty of them wears off quickly. And because all seven Sprites need to be leveled up individually, you could spend the majority of your playtime repeating these minigames with little in the way of a reward.
There are no overall goals or quests for you to work towards, which leaves you lost as to exactly why you’re putting all this effort into the farm except for personal satisfaction and the promise of getting rich. Your actions and progression have little impact on Mineral Town and the Nature Sprites, lessening the sense of accomplishment you could get from turning the abandoned land into a thriving farm.
Farming isn’t the only moneymaking avenue, as you can also spend your days mining and fishing. Unfortunately, neither activity pays very well nor are they actively enjoyable to do. Successful mining is based entirely on luck and an abundance of stamina recovery items. Every floor has a bunch of rocks you can break to try to find ore. The only way to progress further into the mine is by using a hoe on the dirt, and there’s no indication of where the ladder might be. Using the hoe drains your stamina, and if you aren’t lucky, you could easily waste the majority of your stamina bar searching for the way to descend, sending you out of the mine empty-handed and frustrated.
Upgrading your hammer and hoe doesn’t improve your mining skills, and there aren’t checkpoints in the mine, so you have to start from the first floor every run. The ore itself doesn’t sell for very much and you don’t need more than a handful of each to upgrade all of your tools. Gems are worth more but can only be found in the lake mine, which is only available during winter. You never improve at mining and the payout doesn’t make up for needing a ton of stamina items to get into the lower levels.
In the same vein as mining, fishing is based mostly on luck. While upgrading the fishing rod does increase your chances of getting bigger and better fish, the entire mechanic is based on waiting for an exclamation point and pressing the action button, which isn’t engaging and quickly becomes dull. If done correctly, you might catch a fish. Or a branch. Or a can. Or the fish might get away. All of this is a roll of the dice, on top of a mechanic that is fairly mind-numbing to start with. There are different species of fish that you can catch, but their sell value is only dependent on their size–small, medium, or large–which defeats the purpose of any species variety.
Farming isn’t the only moneymaking avenue, as you can also spend your days mining and fishing. Unfortunately, neither activity pays very well nor are they actively enjoyable to do.
All of these activities are mainly there for the purpose of earning money, one of the primary barriers to progression. Nothing in life is free, and nothing in Friends of Mineral Town is cheap. Upgrading tools, farm buildings, and your house all cost thousands of in-game dollars, which is hard to come by for the majority of the first year. With crops yielding produce on a weekly basis and other income avenues not paying nearly as much, purchasing anything becomes a big decision, one that happens far too infrequently to keep you interested.
Animals are equally expensive, to the point where you don’t break even on the investment for at least one year. In addition to being a financial burden, the game discourages its own system of getting more animals for cheaper prices. While it costs less to impregnate a cow than it does to buy one, there are four variants of cows, and getting one pregnant just duplicates it, so all four variants must be bought at full price if you want to produce all four types of milk.
Friends of Mineral Town really shines the most in the moments between the struggle for financial solvency. Mineral Town is quaint, full of characters that are full of personality and character. The majority of characters are tied to one of the many shops around town, most of which feature unique family dynamics that unfold for you as you become more acquainted with the townsfolk. The friendship system is the same as for the Nature Spirits, with daily gifts and interaction progressing friendship levels. Running around town to give out gifts to people is tedious and time-consuming, but the story scenes are more than worth it, offering interesting and funny insights.
The bachelors and bachelorettes of Mineral Town also have a separate heart meter, that unlocks character events after reaching certain milestones. The events are tailored to each character and typically involve their family life and opportunities for you to side with them to gain bonus points. These play out like an enjoyable soap opera that provides light-hearted drama at every turn.
Mineral Town captures the feeling and look of a happy small town well, and the moments spent with the people in town almost make the tedious work worth it.
All romanceable characters have distinct personalities, likes, and dislikes–even the town doctor, fittingly named Doctor. The dialogue repeats frequently, usually dependent on relationship levels and location of the character. Despite this, each character speaks with distinct slang and style, which makes them feel unique. The game’s charming art style and design create the feeling of pleasantness that interacting with townsfolk should. Mineral Town captures the feeling and look of a happy small town well, and the moments spent with the people in town almost make the tedious work worth it.
Throughout each year, town events take place, ranging from horse derbies to cooking contests and even chicken fights. While these events are colorful and showcase the town, in the first year you frequently get sidelined for not having the proper upgrades or animals to participate, which is frustrating. The organizer of the event will usually guilt trip you in advance for not being able to participate, adding to the frustration.
After an entire year has passed, new items and upgrades become available to you, but the timing of these items can be inconvenient. In Spring of Year 2, strawberry seeds become available in the general store, but not until halfway through the season. Strawberries produce multiple yields from one plant, so planting them halfway through the season feels pointless and you instead have to wait an entire year to actually plant them. Other issues, like the general store being closed the first two days of the season occasionally–so you can’t buy that season’s seeds until three days in–are frustrations that serve no real purpose.
Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town feels closer to a remaster than a remake, with the majority of in-game mechanics feeling antiquated by modern standards. Shallow systems combined with inflated upgrade prices makes progress a slow trudge, with the rewards rarely feeling worth it. Interacting with the people of Mineral Town offers a nice, romantic look at small-town farm life, but the rest of the game fails to sell it.
Death Stranding has one main collectible in the form of memory chips. There are 56 total memory chips available to collect. You can donate memory chips to delivery terminals around the game world to upload and view their data. Restoring your first memory chip will grant you the trophy or achievement “A Thirst for Knowledge,” while restoring all 56 memory chips will grant you the “Fount of Knowledge” trophy or achievement. You can come across most memory chips while exploring the world, but some have specific requirements to spawn, and many are just plain hard to find.
Here’s where to find all 56 memory chip locations in Death Stranding, plus some tips on making your hunt for them easier. Check out our updated Death Stranding review for our impressions, plus thoughts on how it runs on PC.
How To Find Memory Chips
Memory chips are small, shiny objects that you will be able to spot by their distinct sparkle. A glowing blue memory chip icon will also mark their location both in-world and on the map. Memory chips will only show up as an icon on the map when other players have marked it. If you find one and it isn’t marked on the map, do your fellow porters a favor and place a marker on it.
What To Do With Memory Chips
Once found, memory chips can be donated to delivery terminals and their data decrypted and restored. You must deliver all memory chips to terminals in order to get the Fount of Knowledge trophy–just collecting them is not enough.
Memory chips are flash drive-like objects that contain relics of cultural data from the world before the mass extinction event. Each contains information on things like classic movies, music and soundtracks, plastic model kits, vehicles, entries from personal diaries, and even “lore” on more mundane “artifacts,” like coffee cups.
Once you restore the data on a memory chip, you can access it via your cufflinks by opening up options, navigating to the Data section of the sidebar on the left, and scrolling down to Memory Chips. From this screen, you can see which memory chips you still have to find, and read the data for the ones you’ve already registered.
All Memory Chip Locations And Requirements
Below you’ll find a list of every memory chip in numbered order. This is not the most natural order you will find the memory chips in. Instead, scroll to the lists below this table, where we’ve broken out memory chips by general region, and use the following table for more detailed reference on location and requirements. If you miss a memory chip before moving on to the next region, you don’t have to worry. At no point do any of the memory chips become impossible to collect or inaccessible, so you will eventually have a chance to collect them all.
#
Memory Chip
Region
Location / Requirement(s)
1
Frame Arms: Byakko
Eastern
Near some mossy rocks by the Waystation West of Capital Knot City
2
Frame Arms Girls: Byakko
Eastern
At the Wind Farm, up some stairs and on top of some grating in a corner
3
Frame Arms: Kagetora
Central
In the back of a cargo truck on the east side of Lake Knot City, by the loading bays on the waterfront side
4
Frame Arms: Genbu
Central
At the base of the radar tower just south of the Weather Station
5
Frame Arms: Mingwu
Central
In a cave of collapsed highway near the northern end of Mama’s Lab
6
Kotobukiya Ludens Girl Model
Central
On top of a large transport truck parked on the south end of the Distribution Center North of Mountain Knot City
7
Prime 1 Studio 1/2 Scale Ludens statue
Central
On some rubble in the wide open area with all the broken columns just north of Mountain Knot City
8
Sentinel 1/6 Ludens Action Figurine
Central
On the ground inside a large cave west of Mountain Knot City, near where the large river forks
9
Max Factory Ludens figma
Central
On top of some rubble near the tar lake on the east side of South Knot City
10
Good Smile Company Nendoroid Jumbo Ludens
Western
Inside the Edge Knot City terminal, in the back corner
11
Christine
Central
On top of a rock underneath a large rocky overhang, slightly northeast of the Distribution Center South of Lake Knot City and the Elder Shelter
12
Godzilla
Central
On a rock in the small tar puddle at the bottom of the crater at Mountain Knot City
13
The Walk
Central
On top of the mountain just northwest of the First Prepper shelter [Requires: Level up First Prepper and read the email “Food Tastes Better When You’re Up High!”]
14
Stand By Me
Central
On a walkway leading to the large tower at the Incinerator West of Lake Knot City, accessible by running up its sloped side to the roof and climbing over [Requires: Level up Waystation North of Mountain Knot City and read the email “I Saw Another One of Those Glowing Things…”]
15
Big Fish
Eastern
On top of a shipping container in the container port at Port Knot City
16
Fright Night
Central
At the base of a small rocky structure near the water south of the massive crater
17
Matango
Central
On the ground near all the Cryptobiotes, on the east side of the large rocky structure east of the Distribution Center South of Lake Knot City
18
The Seven Samurai
Eastern
Up on a ledge inside the cave near the MULE Camp, slightly southwest of the Distribution Center West of Capital Knot City
19
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Central
On the west side of the collapsed bridge across the river west of South Knot City and Mama’s Lab
20
Dr. Strangelove
Central
On the ground on the south end of the heart-shaped lake near Heartman’s Lab, on the beach between the two rounded parts
21
Eggshell Carving
Central
On an army cot inside a tent at the MULE Camp south of Lake Knot City
22
Glasscraft
Central
On the ground near a large, rocky structure at around the halfway point between Lake Knot City and the Distribution Center South of Lake Knot City, or between the Engineer and the Craftsman shelters
23
Coffee Cup
Central
On top of the reddish orange rug inside a large tent in the MULE Camp northeast of the Timefall Farm, or just directly west of the large collapsed bridge
24
Soap bubble
Central
On the roof of the Timefall Farm, accessible by running up the sloped ramp in the back
25
Frozen Soap Bubble
Central
On the ground on top of the cliff overlooking Heartman’s Lab from the west
26
Dandelion Seeds
Central
On the ground by the rubble of the cabin on top of the big metal platform up in the mountains, southwest of the First Prepper shelter–the same location where you meet Deadman at the cabin
27
Wine Glass
Central
On the ground in a cave in the snowy, mountainous region west of the Mountaineer shelter
28
Pottery
Central
On top of a ledge on the huge tower south of Mama’s Lab
29
Snow Crystal
Central
On a metal walkway attached to one of the large square buildings on the southeast end of Mountain Knot City
30
Fused Silica
Central
Inside a pool of water in the vog crater at the bottom of the ravine to the southwest of the Paleontologist shelter [Requires: Level the Paleontologist to 5 stars and read the “Much Respect to Porters Everywhere!” email–bring a gas mask!]
31
Reverse Trike: “Ride” Type
Central
Near a cave at the base of the cliff near the huge waterfall
32
Honda NSR250R
Central
On a white table inside a large tent at the MULE Camp, near the halfway point between Lake Knot City and the Distribution Center South of Lake Knot City
33
Honda Rebel 500
Central
On a shelf on the second floor of the old warehouse in the MULE territory north of the Timefall Farm
34
Triumph Bonneville Bobber
Central
Next to a pile of books on a black couch in a large tent at the MULE Camp just southeast of the Distribution Center South of Lake Knot City
35
Triumph Street Triple RS
Central
On top of a white shipping container in the junkyard behind the Junk Dealer’s shelter
36
Yamaha MT-09
Central
On a white table inside a tent at the MULE Camp northwest of the Distribution Center South of Lake Knot City
37
Yamaha RD500LC
Central
On a sleeping bag on an army cot inside the big tent at the MULE Camp far west of the Waystation North of Mountain Knot City, or just southwest of the Incinerator West of Lake Knot City
38
Kawasaki Z1 (900 Super Four)
Central
On a red toolbox cabinet inside a tent at the MULE Camp in the swampy region south of the Distribution Center North of Mountain Knot City
39
Kawasaki Ninja H2R
Central
On an army cot inside the large tent at the MULE Camp west of the Paleontologist shelter and south of the Evo-Devo Biologist shelter
40
Harley-Davidson Pan America 1250
Western
On the ground next to the submerged truck near the Distribution Center North of Edge Knot City
41
Death Stranding/Low Roar
Eastern
Just east of Port Knot City, on the ground near one of the light blue shipping containers by the water
42
Lucio Fulci’s Horror & Thriller Compilation
Eastern
In the corner of the roof of the Incinerator West of Capital Knot City
43
Profondo Rosso Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Eastern
On a rooftop near Capital Knot City, accessible with a ladder [Requires: Read the email “A Weird Glowing Object in Capital Knot City”]
44
Thelma Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Central
On a palette inside an open white shipping container in the warehouse at the halfway point between the Craftsman shelter and the Waystation North of Mountain Knot City
45
dawn/SILENT POETS
Eastern
Between Distribution Center West of Capital Knot City and Port Knot City, near some rocks under a large rocky archway
46
Low Roar/Low Roar
Central
On the ground near a large riverside rock north of the abandoned warehouse in MULE territory
47
0/Low Roar
Central
On top of a square shipping container inside the loading bay port on the south side of Lake Knot City
48
Once In A Long, Long While…/Low Roar
Central
On the ground down inside the canyon east of the Distribution Center South of Lake Knot City, against the east edge of the map
49
God Of War Original Video Game Soundtrack
Eastern
On some rocks on the slope between the Wind Farm and Distribution Center West of Capital Knot City
50
Bronson Soundtrack
Central
On the ground in the mountains west of the Waystation North of Mountain Knot City
51
Valhalla Rising: Original Soundtrack, by Peter Peter & Peter Kyed
Central
At the base of the torii gate-like monument up on the mountain south of the Timefall Farm
52
Nicolas Winding Refn The Wicked Die Young
Central
On some rocks next to one of the upper floors of the the huge building submerged in the snow, to the southeast of Mountain Knot City
53
My Life Directed By Nicolas Winding Refn
Western
On the sidewalk at the deadend near the collapsed road, ground level
54
An Unknown Man’s Journal: Part 1
Central
On the ground near some rubble in a destroyed building near the ruined shelter
55
An Unknown Man’s Journal: Part 2
Central
In the bed of a pickup truck on the collapsed highway northeast of the tar lake near South Knot City
56
An Unknown Man’s Journal: Part 3
Central
Inside Peter Englert’s shelter [Requires: Complete Episode 9 and read emails from Higgs]
Eastern Region Memory Chip Locations
This is a list of memory chips located in the Eastern Region where Death Stranding’s opening chapters take place. You may not necessarily find these in the order listed.
#1 – Frame Arms: Byakko
#2 – Frame Arms Girls: Byakko
#15 – Big Fish
#18 – The Seven Samurai
#41 – Death Stranding/Low Roar
#42 – Lucio Fulci’s Horror & Thriller Compilation
#43 – Profondo Rosso Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
#49 – God of War Original Video Game Soundtrack
#45 – dawn/SILENT POETS
Central Region Memory Chip Locations (Lake Knot)
This is a list of memory chips located in the Central Region, where the bulk of Death Stranding’s chapters take place. This first part accounts for the memory chips located on the eastern, Lake Knot side of the region, before the snowy mountain section. You may not necessarily find these in the order listed.
#3 – Frame Arms: Kagetora
#4 – Frame Arms: Genbu
#5 – Frame Arms: Mingwu
#9 – Max Factory Ludens figma
#11 – Christine
#14 – Stand by Me
#16 – Fright Night
#17 – Matango
#19 – The Bridge on the River Kwai
#21 – Eggshell Carving
#22 – Glasscraft
#23 – Coffee Cup
#24 – Soap bubble
#28 – Pottery
#31 – Reverse Trike: “Ride” Type
#32 – Honda NSR250R
#33 – Honda Rebel 500
#34 – Triumph Bonneville Bobber
#35 – Triumph Street Triple RS
#36 – Yamaha MT-09
#44 – Thelma Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
#46 – Low Roar/Low Roar
#47 – 0/Low Roar
#48 – Once In A Long, Long While…/Low Roar
#51 – Valhalla Rising: Original Soundtrack, by Peter Peter & Peter Kyed
#54 – An Unknown Man’s Journal: Part 1
#55 – An Unknown Man’s Journal: Part 2
#56 – An Unknown Man’s Journal: Part 3
Central Region Memory Chip Locations (Mountain Knot)
This is a list of memory chips located in the Central Region, where the bulk of Death Stranding’s chapters take place. This second part accounts for the memory chips located on the western, Mountain Knot side of the region, including the snowy mountains section and everything that lies west of that. You may not necessarily find these in the order listed.
#6 – Kotobukiya Ludens Girl Model
#7 – Prime 1 Studio 1/2 Scale Ludens statue
#8 – Sentinel 1/6 Ludens Action Figurine
#12 – Godzilla
#13 – The Walk
#14 – Stand by Me
#20 – Dr. Strangelove
#25 – Frozen Soap Bubble
#26 – Dandelion Seeds
#27 – Wine Glass
#29 – Snow Crystal
#30 – Fused Silica
#37 – Yamaha RD500LC
#38 – Kawasaki Z1 (900 Super Four)
#39 – Kawasaki Ninja H2R
#50 – Bronson Soundtrack
#52 – Nicolas Winding Refn The Wicked Die Young
Western Region Memory Chip Locations
This is a list of memory chips located in the Western Region where Edge Knot City resides. You may not necessarily find these in the order listed.
Cyberpunk 2077 is coming in November following a delay, but while the wait keeps stretching out, there’s been a steady drip-feed of content to keep us excited. We’ve got a hands-on report with the game, there’s a comic coming in September, and now there’s some new concept art for us to enjoy.
These three pieces, tweeted by the game’s official account, showcase Santo Domingo. It’s one of the oldest areas in Night City, the game’s setting, and according to the tweet “corporations use it as a testing ground for industrial projects,” meaning that it’s a mix of freshly-built factories and slums, with opulent megabuildings stretching into the sky but a lot of inequality at ground level.
You can check out the art in the tweet below. It doesn’t represent the look of the final product, necessarily, but it looks great.
Santo Domingo is one of Night City’s oldest districts. Corporations use it as a testing ground for industrial projects, destroying old factories just to build new ones, while residents scrape a desperate living in crowded megabuildings — wishing for something better. #ConceptArtpic.twitter.com/yGThsOdn5z
Unfortunately, the artists behind this work are not credited in the tweet.
Cyberpunk 2077 will come to PS5 and Xbox Series X at a later date as a free upgrade, so if you pick the game up on PS4 or Xbox One, consider which next-gen system you’re planning on buying first. Ahead of the game’s release, be sure to check out our detailed Cyberpunk 2077 pre-order guide to learn about the various editions and bonuses available. And though the special Xbox One X may be sold out, there are several other Cyberpunk 2077-themed accessories still up for purchase.
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Two men from Victoria, Australia have been reprimanded for leaving their homes to play Pokemon amid a spike in coronavirus cases in the state.
In a briefing with press today, Victoria’s deputy commissioner Rick Nugent spoke about the hundreds of fines issued in recent days for breaches of the recently introduced rules, and he singled out some Pokemon players in particular.
“The reasons for leaving your premises are well-known–I can say they don’t include playing Pokemon,” Nugent said. “A couple of mates out in the car travelling around playing Pokemon doesn’t fit within those reasons to leave, and those males were issued with infringement notices.”
Nugent is presumably referring to Pokemon Go, a game that asks its users to leave their homes in search of Pokemon.
Also during the briefing, Nugent said police reprimanded a person who was so committed to eating their KFC that they refused to leave the establishment where dine-in is not allowed. “A person ordered KFC and sat in the restaurant and refused to leave. Police attended and the person still refused to leave, wanting to finish their KFC,” Nugent said.
The next wave of Smash Bros. amiibo, featuring two of the DLC characters introduced in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, is arriving on October 2. Nintendo has confirmed on Twitter that figurines of the two characters, which were previously announced alongside Min-Min, will both release on this date.
From this date, you’ll be able to pick up Joker from Persona 5 and Hero from the Dragon Quest series as amiibo.
Although there are multiple models of Hero in the game, only one seems to be available as an amiibo. Historically, characters with multiple models have sometimes released with variants, including Bayonetta and Corrin. Whether we’ll see figurines for the other versions of Hero in the future remains to be seen.
You’ll be able to use these amiibo even if you have not purchased the characters, although you will not be able to play as these characters yourself. Amiibo fighters level up as they fight with or against you, learning from how you play, and are ultimately capable of becoming much stronger fighters than the game’s standard AI.
Nintendo has slowed down amiibo production since the Switch released, but the other DLC characters–including Banjo-Kazooie, Terry, Byleth, and Min-Min, plus five unannounced fighters–will also receive amiibo figurines.
For more on amiibo, check out this article about the competitive amiibo fighting scene, where players pit their trained amiibo against one another.
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Positive queer representation in older cartoons is extremely rare, but two different Scooby-Doo projects from the last 20 years tried to do something different with the character Velma. As reported by Buzzfeed, both James Gunn’s 2002 live-action movie and Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated intended to present Velma as gay–but neither project was ultimately allowed to do so.
Asked by a fan on Twitter if he could make a version of Scooby-Doo where Velma is openly a lesbian, the Guardians of the Galaxy director said that he had planned on doing this with his original film. “Velma was explicitly gay in my initial script,” Gunn says. The studio objected, though, and this aspect was watered down until it no longer existed.
I tried! In 2001 Velma was explicitly gay in my initial script. But the studio just kept watering it down & watering it down, becoming ambiguous (the version shot), then nothing (the released version) & finally having a boyfriend (the sequel). 😐 https://t.co/Pxho6Ju1oQ
Gunn had previously intended to make a more satirical, R-rated version of Scooby-Doo, but this was ultimately not allowed. As Pink News points out, there’s a deleted scene that involves Velma kissing Daphne, which was excised entirely from the film.
Whether Velma’s sexuality would have been handled respectfully in this original version is impossible to know–although the film we ended up with is not particularly well regarded.
Tony Cervone, a producer on Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated revealed that Velma absolutely is gay in the animated series–even if the show never explicitly states it. In a post to Instagram, Cervone confirms that Velma and Marcie were in a relationship, and that fans who suspected it were correct.
“I obviously don’t represent every version of Velma Dinkley, but I am one of the key people that represents this one,” Cervone writes. “We made our intentions as clear as we could ten years ago. Most of our fans got it. To those that didn’t, I suggest you look closer. There’s no new news here.”
In a since-deleted comment, saved by Twitter account Pop Crave, Cervone addresses the relationship Velma has with Shaggy in the show, saying that she “acted off” because it was “wrong for her.” He explicitly says that she is gay, not bisexual, and that she and Marcie are “a couple” after a reset in the show. “You can not like it, but this was our intention,” he states.
Cervone does not say why Velma’s sexuality is not made more explicit, but Warner Bros. animation does not have much of a history with positive gay representation. The show ended in 2013, and many fans who have understood Velma to be a gay woman now know that this was the intention for the character.
In the latest iteration of Scooby-Doo, Scoob!, Velma’s sexuality is not touched upon.
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Deathloop, the upcoming PlayStation 5 and PC title from Arkane, is going to be a violent experience. You’ll play as Colt, who is being hunted by and has to take down multiple assassins, and naturally you’re going to kill a lot of people. As such, a lot of the game’s art and marketing so far has featured weapons and people wielding them.
However, the latest concept art shown off on the game’s Twitter account is much calmer, and focuses on some of the interior designs the team has worked up for the game. Nice staircases? The game has them. A music feature wall with a guitar and records affixed to it? Very chic. And look at those planter boxes!
It’s a shame you’ll likely get blood on those polished floors.
The game’s kitschy retro-future style is captured well in this concept art–the game looks stunning in-motion.
Games for Change has announced the 2020 awards recipients following a virtual ceremony. The big winner was Media Molecule, but the socially conscious-focused awards gave accolades to games across several categories. This marks the 17th year for the awards, which honors game developers who strive to make a social impact through immersive media.
Media Molecule’s Dreams was awarded Game of the Year along with the Most Innovative award. Sky: Children of Light was the second-most awarded game, taking home both the People’s Choice award and Best Gameplay. It earned the popular award with more than 14,000 votes. Games for Change says this year’s awards received more than 14 times as many votes as prior years.
Other award winners included Sea of Solitude (Most Significant Impact), Best Learning Game (Rabbids Coding), Resilience (Best Student Game), and The Holy City (Best XR For Change). The ceremony also honored Gordon Bellamy with the Vanguard Award for his work creating inclusive LGBTQ+ spaces in the gaming community, and Humble Bundle with the inaugural G4C Giving Award. Microsoft was given the Industry Leadership award.
“The 2020 Games for Change winners are redefining the boundaries of technology, empowering an ever-diversifying audience, and exemplifying what it means to use technology for good,” said G4C president Susanna Pollack, in a statement. “These winning games exemplify ‘play’ as we know it by delivering experiences that transport us, connect us and even strengthen our inner resolve with inventive and joyful narratives and clever mechanics.”
Games for Change 2020 Award Winners
Game of the Year and Most Innovative Game: Dreams
Best Gameplay and People’s Choice: Sky: Children of the Light
Most Significant Impact: Sea of Solitude
Best Learning Game: Rabbids Coding
Best Student Game: Resilience
Best XR for Change: The Holy City
G4C Vanguard Award: Gordon Bellamy
G4C Giving Award: Humble Bundle
G4C Industry Leadership Award: Microsoft
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