Top Audiences Last Week!

 

Top 10... let's go!

USA

France (Big jump this week)

Germany

United Kingdom

Canada

Australia

Japan

Turkey

Hong Kong

Singapore

So Close:

Sweden

Brazil

India

          

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Nintendo Of America hit with another labor complaint this year?!

As reported by Axios, this new labor complaint comes just months after a similar complaint was sent to the National Labor Relations Board... stemming from an employee seeking better work conditions. 

I could mention the firm that's also under fire, but... they're working for Nintendo to provide U.S. contractors.

The complaints allege that the companies have "coercive rules", and retaliated in a sneaky way that resulted in a worker either being disciplined or discharged for engaging in protected activities along with others. This may seem like fluff, but Axios explained that these types of complaints generally arise when employers interfere with employees discussing workplace conditions and unionizing.

Nintendo and the firm have yet to reply to requests for comment. I'm sure they're going to remain as silent as possible until they get a game plan in place. I won't say that my issue with Nintendo years back (2nd party development related) confirms that they can't be trusted, but... would I put it past them to do something like this? I wouldn't put it past any company, but they're playing with fire if it's true.

I can't put a stamp on whether it's actually true or not (Nintendo's not going to admit it in my opinion) but... there's a weird same going on here. The prior complaint was brought to light by Kotaku who said the worker was allegedly terminated after inquiring about unionization in a company meeting. Nintendo fired back on that one and said the worker was terminated because they divulged information that was supposed to be confidential. I don't know if this is true or false, but Nintendo has a bigger voice than the worker.

Something happened at that time though, because more of that... weird same came out when current and former contractors at Nintendo began to speak out to media outlets like Axios about infuriating conditions. 2022 isn't the only time this occurred either.

Axios mentioned complaints about... conditions across the industry (my guess is to avoid pointing the finger directly at Nintendo) and said that the complaints were mainly based on excessive hours + negative work conditions + low pay. So there's that, but regarding the current complaints... the NLRB is currently investigating the complaints, and if it's true... I hope this works out well for the dev team members.

Developers, this is certainly something to learn from. If Nintendo is truly doing this to contractors or employees in general, it's messed up. Think about what it could ultimately do to them and any developers considering such. If more contractors/workers get burned (via termination) that could result in a domino effect because more work falls on the remaining team... and some of you know all too well what happens when you're burned-out. The company is nothing without the team.

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Splatoon 3

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Is the Surface Laptop Go 2... Worth the Buy?

 

While working on a pending project... I got a little sidetracked eyeing the Surface Laptop Go 2. The first version turned my head, but what features do the Surface Laptop Go 2 have that make it worth the purchase?

Let's jump in.

Before I speak on anything else, I have to point out the fact that the laptop has a 12.4" PixelSense touchscreen... which isn't the biggest. So if you were looking for a bigger laptop... keep looking, but... if you were looking for a laptop on the smaller side... this will likely be the smallest quality option you will find. By the way, even if I own other laptops, a well-equipped smaller laptop wouldn't turn me off if it has specific factors I'm looking for. I'm not always in the mood to handle a larger laptop... and I know a number of people in that boat... and one of the perks of this laptop is that it only weighs in at 2.48 pounds... making it the lightest surface laptop thus far.

The Surface Laptop Go 2 comes in Platinum, Sage, Ice Blue, and Sandstone. Platinum has more of a professional touch in my opinion, but the Sage + Sandstone models look nice also. The Ice Blue is... cool (and blue is my favorite color), but... I would love to see this one in a different shade of blue.

This laptop features a full-size keyboard and rocks a 10-point multi-touch screen. 

Before I forget: The 12.4" PixelSense display has the same resolution of 1536 x 1024 (148ppi) screen... as the original Laptop Go.

One thing I'm not crazy about with the entry model... is the RAM and the memory (yikes). 4GB? That's a no-no, I think they all should be 8GB to give the actual laptop justice and bump the storage up on the others. 128GB SSD comes with the entry and mid-range models. 256GB SSD could be for the mid with more for the higher end. I know that some of you don't use as much storage as some of us so aim towards your needs (I can use up 128GB within a few hours). Looking at the price, I'd say if you plan to get your hands on this at all... grab the mid-range at least but it's only $50 less than the best model sooo... consider the best option.

By the way, Microsoft showcases Xbox Game Pass on this laptop, but... that would only make sense with the games playable with lower specs or Xbox Game Pass Ultimate which gives you the ability to play from the cloud. I mention this for the parents who may see the games and assume this is a gaming laptop.

For Artists:

I would say that the Surface Laptop Go 2 is also a missed opportunity for artists who want a 2-in-1 for drawing... but that's a segue into getting a Surface Go 3 (if you don't mind the keyboard attachment cover). I was just thinking of the Surface Laptop Go 2's best model at least having the ability to be folded back so that it can be drawn on. It's light, you can use it as a laptop, and it could've been an awesome drawing tablet alternative that you could fold back and use a Microsoft Surface Pen on. It's easy to shrug that off though... because you can get the Surface Go 3 with 8GB RAM + 128GB SSD for less than the entry Surface Laptop Go 2. The entry for the SG3 is $399.99, adding a keyboard attachment/cover would still land you at about $70 less (though you're looking at 4GB RAM + 64GB eMMC storage).

You can always connect an external drawing tablet, but... I'd suggest the Surface Go 3 for artists, while those looking for a small(er than average) laptop to consider the Surface Laptop Go 2.

Additional specs are as follows:

One Touch sign-in w/ Finger Print Power Button (excluding the base model)
Quad Core 11th Gen Intel Core i5-1135G7 Processor 2.42 - 4.2GHz
Firmware TPM 2.0 (for security purposes... like with Bitlocker)
Windows 11 Home
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate 1-month trial (cloud gaming, but don't forget your controller)
Ambient light sensor
1 USB-C port
1 USB-A port
3.5mm headphone jack
1 Surface Connect port (for your charger and Surface Dock connection)
720p HD f2.0 camera (front-facing)... though the best version should've been 1080p
Dual far-field Studio Mics
Omnisonic Speakers with Dolby Audio Premium: I haven't had the opportunity to sit down and experience the Omnisonic speaker like that... so I can't really tell you where they land on the cool point meter, but they're utilizing Dolby Audio Premium. Dolby Audio Premium delivers a virtual surround sound experience... so if these speakers deliver in quality... the software will do the rest.
WiFi 6
Bluetooth 5.1
Battery life (up to) 13.5 hours

I personally wouldn't drop the coin on the Surface Laptop Go 2... but if I did, I'd go for the best version. That said, realistically, it doesn't have what I'm looking for... and I wouldn't want it to collect dust because of that. If I had a specific project that required me to travel frequently, I'd add this to a comparison list... but I think the specs would lose out to the competition (even under the same brand).

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First 30: Trek To Yomi

TREK TO YOMI

As a vow to his dying Master, the young swordsman Hiroki is sworn to protect his town and the people he loves against all threats. Faced with tragedy and bound to duty, the lone samurai must voyage beyond life and death to confront himself and decide his path forward.

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Top Audiences Last Week!

Top 10... let's go!

USA

Germany

United Kingdom

France

Netherlands

Canada

Australia

Hong Kong

Japan

Sweden

So Close:

China

Switzerland

Costa Rica

Play Chorus Demo... now!

          

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Warcraft Mobile... Scrapped: 3 Years Down The Drain After Financing Dispute

 

Warcraft Mobile could have delivered the WoW-like action some gamers have sought on the go, but... the desired terms didn't ultimately match up. I think it's weird though, because wouldn't you agree on such terms ahead of development?

How in the hell do you get 3 years deep into development with more than 100 developers covering objectives for the title before terms are finalized? Once it's set, it's set... is how I think it should be prior to moving forward (that's how I structured agreements between small devs & publishers). They may have put it on the backburner as far as finalizing the agreement, but if Activision Blizzard & NetEase are going to continue their relationship... they may have to take a step back and revise things.

I think a revision would be better than potentially axing such a money maker, but I understand how things can change if the money gets... funny. You already know who Blizzard is, but if you aren't familiar with NetEase... they're China's #2 game company. NetEase is also the co-creator of... Diablo Immortal.

I hope the relationship survives and changes are made for the better because game projects shouldn't go... poof this far in, and sadly this isn't the first time head-turning projects have been tossed.

For more info on this, check out the Bloomberg article, I just had to chime in and give my two cents.

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