The Chant is a game detailing the story of Jess, a girl looking to heal from the grief of her recently deceased sister. As Jess, we are sent on a mission to explore the island in search of uncovering the truth behind the retreat's purpose, and along the way, we encounter some otherworldly enemies. The never-ending nightmare that unseemly mocks the horror genre, never really quite grapples us with fear or tension, the same way it does with boredom. What makes it worse, is the game was marketed as a choice-based story game that would affect the outcome of your gameplay as a result, similar to titles like Until Dawn and The Dark Anthology Series, but when you actually start to play, you realize it is a narrative action-adventure game more similar to Alan Wake,  if anything. The choices you make will only lead to 1 of 3 different ending outcomes, which frankly, none of them really satisfy the time you spent walking this nightmare of an island. I will say,  The Chant tries t...

                     Mafia: Definitive Edition   is a fantastic narrative driven by the cab driver, Tommy Angelo, who quickly gets wrapped up in a series of (un)fortunate events leading up to his new job as a Mafia soldier under the Salieri family in the city of Lost Heaven. This game is full of adrenaline, with tommy guns blazing and high-speed chases. The game is set in the decade of the 1930s, with Tommy making his rounds, until, (as old Mafia fashion would have it) chaos ensues. This game shines in not only its great storytelling and voice acting, but the visuals are remarkable (in the cutscenes, anyway). This game had me hooked until the moment I started playing, and may I mention, I was glued to this game, beating it in only two sessions of playing it.                     I didn't get to play the original game when it was first released in 2002 on PC or...

      Tell Me Why   is hopeful in its approach to match its successful predecessor Life is Strange, and in some ways it does, but for the most part, it doesn't seem to ever hit the same. We follow Tyler and Alyson through their journey to piece together their past using their telepathic powers, to find out the truth about who their mother really was during their childhood. To Tyler, she seems to be more insatiable, but Alyson seems to make her out to be more forgiving, but what version is the truth? That'll be up to you to decide.     The biggest draw factor of conversation for the game, is the discussion of Dotnod's decision to make one of their protagonists (Tyler), transgender. I think it was a smart move to make, considering that there needs to be more inclusion of the LGBTQIA community in media, if we are ever going to reach wide acceptance. There are a few consequences within the story itself that complicate the decision, such as, referring back to Ty...

In the growth of the past 30-40 years, we have seen video games create a monstrous industry devoted to consumers. Esports have evolved to multi-million dollar competitions with such games as Call of Duty and Fortnite. With the continual innovation of this industry, it begs the question: Is this too much for the sense of a hobby. Controversies surrounding the genre have battled numerous health reports, in-house controversies such as sexism, over-worked employees, and even the attempt to define a video game disorder for those who play too much. Although the sensible answer would be to use it in moderation, it can not always be the case for those who professionally seek a career either working to create or play these games for profit. Should excess playtime be reserved for those who profit from such avenues, or should they be held accountable for the same consequences? Even if they were exempt from such scrutinies, what about those who grind their time trying to join them in the f...