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2025-06-06 07:32:58 ·

After the flood: Malecón de Villahermosa in Villahermosa, Mexico, by Taller Mauricio Rocha, TaAU and Alejandro Castro

With reclaimed land previously allocated to cars, the Grijalva River boardwalk offers generous public spaces and reconnects the Mexican city of Villahermosa to its river
In Villahermosa, nature reigns supreme. Surrounded by rivers, lagoons, wild vegetation and the scorching heat of a humid tropical climate, the city’s identity is shaped by intense and unpredictable natural forces. The capital of the Mexican state of Tabasco was founded in 1564 on the banks of the Grijalva River, a vital trade route that has significantly shaped the city’s development. For locals, the river has long been both blessing and threat; major floods have been recorded since the 17th century. A devastating flood in 2007 submerged what officials estimated to be 80 per cent of the city, damaging or destroying more than 120,000 homes.
In the aftermath of the inundation, high concrete retaining walls were built along both banks of the Grijalva River to prevent further flooding. While this was an understandable measure at first glance, it consequently caused residents to lose both their visual and physical connection with the river. As a result, people moved, particularly from the western bank where the historical centre is located, to new areas further away from the Grijalva River. The riverfront was left to deteriorate into a troubled zone. On the eastern bank, the neighbourhood of Gaviotas was already considered unsafe before the flood, yet it maintained more of its residential character.
In 2022, 15 years after the dramatic flood, then‑president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, more commonly known as AMLO, announced the construction of a new 6km‑long riverfront promenade in Villahermosa, the capital of his home state. The idea was to enable the population to once again take pride in and live with their river, looking to Paris and Rome as examples. The monumental task, with its large urban scale and the population’s psychological trauma, was entrusted to the Ministry of Agricultural, Territorial and Urban Developmentas part of their Programa de Mejoramiento Urbano. This programme aimed to use architecture as an ‘instrument of social transformation’. High expectations were placed on these projects; architects were asked to create ‘places of national pride’ while improving everyday living conditions.
The architectural trio of Alejandro Castro Jiménez Labora, Mauricio Rocha Iturbide, and Óscar Rodríguez Castañeda, along with their teams, were commissioned to design a linear park along both banks of the Grijalva. Each architect contributed their strength: Castro brought his expertise in poetic urban furniture; Rocha his sensitive and atmospheric architectural approach; and Rodríguez his thoughtful urban and traffic planning skills. The SEDATU team provided technical and participatory expertise, enabling contextual sensitivity by sharing essential information about the site’s topography, soil conditions and water flows.
From the city’s existing observatory, the Torre del Caballero landmark, visitors enjoy an excellent view over the redesigned riverbanks. The historical centre and the Gaviotas neighbourhood now form a single ensemble, while the intervention carefully responds to the different conditions found along the length of the river. The project’s main objective is to reclaim some of the land previously allocated to cars and create a promenade for pedestrians and slower vehicles, punctuated with public spaces and facilities. On both sides of the river, cars are now limited to just one or two grey asphalt lanes. Running alongside are generous cycle paths and pedestrian walkways made of earth‑coloured concrete. Speed bumps in the same material and colour connect the pavements on either side of the road while helping to limit traffic speed to 30km/h, further enhancing pedestrian safety.
Several design elements are found along almost the entire promenade. A ribbon of light‑grey benches delineates the edge of the elevated riverfront; stone walls, steps and ramps are used to negotiate the slight changes in level; planters and lush vegetation soften the transition to the walkways, creating a welcome buffer from street traffic. The most visually striking components are the tall, red‑pigmented concrete light poles on the elevated path, adorned with elegant L‑shaped steel light fixtures, which establish a strong and cohesive visual rhythm.
Only upon closer inspection you notice the 2007 retaining walls peeking through the dense tropical vegetation. Removing these unattractive concrete barriers was never an option; they stand as a symbol of successful flood protection for the local population. The architectural team ingeniously built the elevated promenade atop the existing wall – an effective concealment from the street side while simultaneously inviting residents to reconnect with the Grijalva.
At the foot of the observatory, directly below the retaining wall, the earth‑toned concrete platforms of the Carlos A Madrazo Becerra Park stretch towards the river. Visitors can access the park via a ramp from the promenade on the western bank or by ferry from the opposite side. In the park, concrete furnishings invite visitors to linger among tropical vegetation set against tall natural stone walls. Importantly, it is a space that is durable and requires minimal maintenance – a survival formula for public parks in the Mexican context. Small traces on the concrete benches reveal that the park weathered its baptism of fire last year: the design accommodates the river’s natural dynamics, adapting to fluctuating water levels without compromising public safety. Beyond providing much‑needed shade, the extensive planting of native, low‑maintenance plants on both riverbanks has improved soil stability.
Above the park, on a broad extension of the elevated pathway, stand three long, elegant buildings with large cantilevered roofs supported by hefty beams resting on distinctive double columns. The tall glass walls that enclose the interiors are set back, creating a visual flow between interior and exterior spaces. While the beams evoke timber construction, they – like the columns – are made of the same pigmented concrete used for the promenade paving. Despite their refined composition, these structures have remained largely unused since their completion over a year ago, neither serving their intended function as restaurants nor hosting alternative uses. Even the beautifully designed park sees only limited public engagement. The ambitious goal of SEDATU with the PMU projects to ‘counteract violence and strengthen the social fabric’ appears, for now, to have fallen short in this area. According to national statistics, Villahermosa ranks first in perceived insecurity among Mexican cities. This sense of insecurity is tangible on the promenade by the city centre, where buildings that look abandoned contribute to an atmosphere of neglect.
The situation is markedly different on the opposite riverbank, in the Gaviotas neighbourhood. Construction of the 3.5km promenade on this side began in 2021 with three open pavilions housing several small kiosks, which quickly evolved into popular taco stands. The Plaza Solidaridad, revitalised by the architectural trio, draws people from the surrounding vibrant neighbourhood. Further south, the final section that was built is a large sports area and children’s playground, which were embraced by the local community even before their official inauguration in February 2024. Especially after sunset, when the air cools, the well‑lit Gaviotas riverfront comes to life. During daylight hours, however, air‑conditioned shopping centres remain the preferred gathering places for the residents of Villahermosa.
Rocha describes the city’s new promenade as a ‘jazz composition’, a striking metaphor that speaks of rhythmic complexity and the freedom to improvise. With just a few designed elements and carefully selected colours, the architects have harmoniously layered the river’s urban spaces. The project is earning international recognition but, in Mexico, it faced sharp criticism and was overshadowed by accusations of nepotism. Castro is a friend of AMLO’s son, and the fact that the intervention took place in the home state of the then‑president, coupled with its substantial budget by local standards, drew considerable attention. According to residents, this undermined public acceptance. When asked about the negative press, Rocha speaks of the need to develop a ‘crisis muscle’; he says architects working on public projects in Mexico must ‘let go of perfectionism’ as much lies beyond their control.
During AMLO’s six‑year term, which ended in 2024, SEDATU implemented 1,300 PMU projects in 193 highly marginalised municipalities across the country. While many of these interventions undoubtedly improved people’s quality of life, the Villahermosa riverside project also reveals architecture’s limitations, exposing some of the programme’s weaknesses: architectural interventions often act as sticking plasters on an extensively damaged urban fabric. They are handed over from a national ministry with comprehensive expertise and funding to local governments lacking the means to sustain them. Although SEDATU conducted participatory consultations during the project’s implementation, this engagement was absent once the project was completed. Public acceptance and appropriation can take time; what this project does is send an invitation out.

2025-06-05
Reuben J Brown

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AR June 2025RoadsBuy Now
#after #flood #malecón #villahermosa #mexico

After the flood: Malecón de Villahermosa in Villahermosa, Mexico, by Taller Mauricio Rocha, TaAU and Alejandro Castro
With reclaimed land previously allocated to cars, the Grijalva River boardwalk offers generous public spaces and reconnects the Mexican city of Villahermosa to its river In Villahermosa, nature reigns supreme. Surrounded by rivers, lagoons, wild vegetation and the scorching heat of a humid tropical climate, the city’s identity is shaped by intense and unpredictable natural forces. The capital of the Mexican state of Tabasco was founded in 1564 on the banks of the Grijalva River, a vital trade route that has significantly shaped the city’s development. For locals, the river has long been both blessing and threat; major floods have been recorded since the 17th century. A devastating flood in 2007 submerged what officials estimated to be 80 per cent of the city, damaging or destroying more than 120,000 homes. In the aftermath of the inundation, high concrete retaining walls were built along both banks of the Grijalva River to prevent further flooding. While this was an understandable measure at first glance, it consequently caused residents to lose both their visual and physical connection with the river. As a result, people moved, particularly from the western bank where the historical centre is located, to new areas further away from the Grijalva River. The riverfront was left to deteriorate into a troubled zone. On the eastern bank, the neighbourhood of Gaviotas was already considered unsafe before the flood, yet it maintained more of its residential character. In 2022, 15 years after the dramatic flood, then‑president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, more commonly known as AMLO, announced the construction of a new 6km‑long riverfront promenade in Villahermosa, the capital of his home state. The idea was to enable the population to once again take pride in and live with their river, looking to Paris and Rome as examples. The monumental task, with its large urban scale and the population’s psychological trauma, was entrusted to the Ministry of Agricultural, Territorial and Urban Developmentas part of their Programa de Mejoramiento Urbano. This programme aimed to use architecture as an ‘instrument of social transformation’. High expectations were placed on these projects; architects were asked to create ‘places of national pride’ while improving everyday living conditions. The architectural trio of Alejandro Castro Jiménez Labora, Mauricio Rocha Iturbide, and Óscar Rodríguez Castañeda, along with their teams, were commissioned to design a linear park along both banks of the Grijalva. Each architect contributed their strength: Castro brought his expertise in poetic urban furniture; Rocha his sensitive and atmospheric architectural approach; and Rodríguez his thoughtful urban and traffic planning skills. The SEDATU team provided technical and participatory expertise, enabling contextual sensitivity by sharing essential information about the site’s topography, soil conditions and water flows. From the city’s existing observatory, the Torre del Caballero landmark, visitors enjoy an excellent view over the redesigned riverbanks. The historical centre and the Gaviotas neighbourhood now form a single ensemble, while the intervention carefully responds to the different conditions found along the length of the river. The project’s main objective is to reclaim some of the land previously allocated to cars and create a promenade for pedestrians and slower vehicles, punctuated with public spaces and facilities. On both sides of the river, cars are now limited to just one or two grey asphalt lanes. Running alongside are generous cycle paths and pedestrian walkways made of earth‑coloured concrete. Speed bumps in the same material and colour connect the pavements on either side of the road while helping to limit traffic speed to 30km/h, further enhancing pedestrian safety. Several design elements are found along almost the entire promenade. A ribbon of light‑grey benches delineates the edge of the elevated riverfront; stone walls, steps and ramps are used to negotiate the slight changes in level; planters and lush vegetation soften the transition to the walkways, creating a welcome buffer from street traffic. The most visually striking components are the tall, red‑pigmented concrete light poles on the elevated path, adorned with elegant L‑shaped steel light fixtures, which establish a strong and cohesive visual rhythm. Only upon closer inspection you notice the 2007 retaining walls peeking through the dense tropical vegetation. Removing these unattractive concrete barriers was never an option; they stand as a symbol of successful flood protection for the local population. The architectural team ingeniously built the elevated promenade atop the existing wall – an effective concealment from the street side while simultaneously inviting residents to reconnect with the Grijalva. At the foot of the observatory, directly below the retaining wall, the earth‑toned concrete platforms of the Carlos A Madrazo Becerra Park stretch towards the river. Visitors can access the park via a ramp from the promenade on the western bank or by ferry from the opposite side. In the park, concrete furnishings invite visitors to linger among tropical vegetation set against tall natural stone walls. Importantly, it is a space that is durable and requires minimal maintenance – a survival formula for public parks in the Mexican context. Small traces on the concrete benches reveal that the park weathered its baptism of fire last year: the design accommodates the river’s natural dynamics, adapting to fluctuating water levels without compromising public safety. Beyond providing much‑needed shade, the extensive planting of native, low‑maintenance plants on both riverbanks has improved soil stability. Above the park, on a broad extension of the elevated pathway, stand three long, elegant buildings with large cantilevered roofs supported by hefty beams resting on distinctive double columns. The tall glass walls that enclose the interiors are set back, creating a visual flow between interior and exterior spaces. While the beams evoke timber construction, they – like the columns – are made of the same pigmented concrete used for the promenade paving. Despite their refined composition, these structures have remained largely unused since their completion over a year ago, neither serving their intended function as restaurants nor hosting alternative uses. Even the beautifully designed park sees only limited public engagement. The ambitious goal of SEDATU with the PMU projects to ‘counteract violence and strengthen the social fabric’ appears, for now, to have fallen short in this area. According to national statistics, Villahermosa ranks first in perceived insecurity among Mexican cities. This sense of insecurity is tangible on the promenade by the city centre, where buildings that look abandoned contribute to an atmosphere of neglect. The situation is markedly different on the opposite riverbank, in the Gaviotas neighbourhood. Construction of the 3.5km promenade on this side began in 2021 with three open pavilions housing several small kiosks, which quickly evolved into popular taco stands. The Plaza Solidaridad, revitalised by the architectural trio, draws people from the surrounding vibrant neighbourhood. Further south, the final section that was built is a large sports area and children’s playground, which were embraced by the local community even before their official inauguration in February 2024. Especially after sunset, when the air cools, the well‑lit Gaviotas riverfront comes to life. During daylight hours, however, air‑conditioned shopping centres remain the preferred gathering places for the residents of Villahermosa. Rocha describes the city’s new promenade as a ‘jazz composition’, a striking metaphor that speaks of rhythmic complexity and the freedom to improvise. With just a few designed elements and carefully selected colours, the architects have harmoniously layered the river’s urban spaces. The project is earning international recognition but, in Mexico, it faced sharp criticism and was overshadowed by accusations of nepotism. Castro is a friend of AMLO’s son, and the fact that the intervention took place in the home state of the then‑president, coupled with its substantial budget by local standards, drew considerable attention. According to residents, this undermined public acceptance. When asked about the negative press, Rocha speaks of the need to develop a ‘crisis muscle’; he says architects working on public projects in Mexico must ‘let go of perfectionism’ as much lies beyond their control. During AMLO’s six‑year term, which ended in 2024, SEDATU implemented 1,300 PMU projects in 193 highly marginalised municipalities across the country. While many of these interventions undoubtedly improved people’s quality of life, the Villahermosa riverside project also reveals architecture’s limitations, exposing some of the programme’s weaknesses: architectural interventions often act as sticking plasters on an extensively damaged urban fabric. They are handed over from a national ministry with comprehensive expertise and funding to local governments lacking the means to sustain them. Although SEDATU conducted participatory consultations during the project’s implementation, this engagement was absent once the project was completed. Public acceptance and appropriation can take time; what this project does is send an invitation out. 2025-06-05 Reuben J Brown Share AR June 2025RoadsBuy Now #after #flood #malecón #villahermosa #mexico

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After the flood: Malecón de Villahermosa in Villahermosa, Mexico, by Taller Mauricio Rocha, TaAU and Alejandro Castro

With reclaimed land previously allocated to cars, the Grijalva River boardwalk offers generous public spaces and reconnects the Mexican city of Villahermosa to its river In Villahermosa, nature reigns supreme. Surrounded by rivers, lagoons, wild vegetation and the scorching heat of a humid tropical climate, the city’s identity is shaped by intense and unpredictable natural forces. The capital of the Mexican state of Tabasco was founded in 1564 on the banks of the Grijalva River, a vital trade route that has significantly shaped the city’s development. For locals, the river has long been both blessing and threat; major floods have been recorded since the 17th century. A devastating flood in 2007 submerged what officials estimated to be 80 per cent of the city, damaging or destroying more than 120,000 homes. In the aftermath of the inundation, high concrete retaining walls were built along both banks of the Grijalva River to prevent further flooding. While this was an understandable measure at first glance, it consequently caused residents to lose both their visual and physical connection with the river. As a result, people moved, particularly from the western bank where the historical centre is located, to new areas further away from the Grijalva River. The riverfront was left to deteriorate into a troubled zone. On the eastern bank, the neighbourhood of Gaviotas was already considered unsafe before the flood, yet it maintained more of its residential character. In 2022, 15 years after the dramatic flood, then‑president Andrés Manuel López Obrador, more commonly known as AMLO, announced the construction of a new 6km‑long riverfront promenade in Villahermosa, the capital of his home state. The idea was to enable the population to once again take pride in and live with their river, looking to Paris and Rome as examples. The monumental task, with its large urban scale and the population’s psychological trauma, was entrusted to the Ministry of Agricultural, Territorial and Urban Development (SEDATU) as part of their Programa de Mejoramiento Urbano (Urban Improvement Programme, or PMU). This programme aimed to use architecture as an ‘instrument of social transformation’. High expectations were placed on these projects; architects were asked to create ‘places of national pride’ while improving everyday living conditions. The architectural trio of Alejandro Castro Jiménez Labora, Mauricio Rocha Iturbide, and Óscar Rodríguez Castañeda, along with their teams, were commissioned to design a linear park along both banks of the Grijalva. Each architect contributed their strength: Castro brought his expertise in poetic urban furniture; Rocha his sensitive and atmospheric architectural approach; and Rodríguez his thoughtful urban and traffic planning skills. The SEDATU team provided technical and participatory expertise, enabling contextual sensitivity by sharing essential information about the site’s topography, soil conditions and water flows. From the city’s existing observatory, the Torre del Caballero landmark, visitors enjoy an excellent view over the redesigned riverbanks. The historical centre and the Gaviotas neighbourhood now form a single ensemble, while the intervention carefully responds to the different conditions found along the length of the river. The project’s main objective is to reclaim some of the land previously allocated to cars and create a promenade for pedestrians and slower vehicles, punctuated with public spaces and facilities. On both sides of the river, cars are now limited to just one or two grey asphalt lanes. Running alongside are generous cycle paths and pedestrian walkways made of earth‑coloured concrete. Speed bumps in the same material and colour connect the pavements on either side of the road while helping to limit traffic speed to 30km/h, further enhancing pedestrian safety. Several design elements are found along almost the entire promenade. A ribbon of light‑grey benches delineates the edge of the elevated riverfront; stone walls, steps and ramps are used to negotiate the slight changes in level; planters and lush vegetation soften the transition to the walkways, creating a welcome buffer from street traffic. The most visually striking components are the tall, red‑pigmented concrete light poles on the elevated path, adorned with elegant L‑shaped steel light fixtures, which establish a strong and cohesive visual rhythm. Only upon closer inspection you notice the 2007 retaining walls peeking through the dense tropical vegetation. Removing these unattractive concrete barriers was never an option; they stand as a symbol of successful flood protection for the local population. The architectural team ingeniously built the elevated promenade atop the existing wall – an effective concealment from the street side while simultaneously inviting residents to reconnect with the Grijalva. At the foot of the observatory, directly below the retaining wall, the earth‑toned concrete platforms of the Carlos A Madrazo Becerra Park stretch towards the river. Visitors can access the park via a ramp from the promenade on the western bank or by ferry from the opposite side. In the park, concrete furnishings invite visitors to linger among tropical vegetation set against tall natural stone walls. Importantly, it is a space that is durable and requires minimal maintenance – a survival formula for public parks in the Mexican context. Small traces on the concrete benches reveal that the park weathered its baptism of fire last year: the design accommodates the river’s natural dynamics, adapting to fluctuating water levels without compromising public safety. Beyond providing much‑needed shade, the extensive planting of native, low‑maintenance plants on both riverbanks has improved soil stability. Above the park, on a broad extension of the elevated pathway, stand three long, elegant buildings with large cantilevered roofs supported by hefty beams resting on distinctive double columns. The tall glass walls that enclose the interiors are set back, creating a visual flow between interior and exterior spaces. While the beams evoke timber construction, they – like the columns – are made of the same pigmented concrete used for the promenade paving. Despite their refined composition, these structures have remained largely unused since their completion over a year ago, neither serving their intended function as restaurants nor hosting alternative uses. Even the beautifully designed park sees only limited public engagement. The ambitious goal of SEDATU with the PMU projects to ‘counteract violence and strengthen the social fabric’ appears, for now, to have fallen short in this area. According to national statistics, Villahermosa ranks first in perceived insecurity among Mexican cities. This sense of insecurity is tangible on the promenade by the city centre, where buildings that look abandoned contribute to an atmosphere of neglect. The situation is markedly different on the opposite riverbank, in the Gaviotas neighbourhood. Construction of the 3.5km promenade on this side began in 2021 with three open pavilions housing several small kiosks, which quickly evolved into popular taco stands. The Plaza Solidaridad, revitalised by the architectural trio, draws people from the surrounding vibrant neighbourhood. Further south, the final section that was built is a large sports area and children’s playground, which were embraced by the local community even before their official inauguration in February 2024. Especially after sunset, when the air cools, the well‑lit Gaviotas riverfront comes to life. During daylight hours, however, air‑conditioned shopping centres remain the preferred gathering places for the residents of Villahermosa. Rocha describes the city’s new promenade as a ‘jazz composition’, a striking metaphor that speaks of rhythmic complexity and the freedom to improvise. With just a few designed elements and carefully selected colours, the architects have harmoniously layered the river’s urban spaces. The project is earning international recognition but, in Mexico, it faced sharp criticism and was overshadowed by accusations of nepotism. Castro is a friend of AMLO’s son, and the fact that the intervention took place in the home state of the then‑president, coupled with its substantial budget by local standards, drew considerable attention. According to residents, this undermined public acceptance. When asked about the negative press, Rocha speaks of the need to develop a ‘crisis muscle’; he says architects working on public projects in Mexico must ‘let go of perfectionism’ as much lies beyond their control. During AMLO’s six‑year term, which ended in 2024, SEDATU implemented 1,300 PMU projects in 193 highly marginalised municipalities across the country. While many of these interventions undoubtedly improved people’s quality of life, the Villahermosa riverside project also reveals architecture’s limitations, exposing some of the programme’s weaknesses: architectural interventions often act as sticking plasters on an extensively damaged urban fabric. They are handed over from a national ministry with comprehensive expertise and funding to local governments lacking the means to sustain them. Although SEDATU conducted participatory consultations during the project’s implementation, this engagement was absent once the project was completed. Public acceptance and appropriation can take time; what this project does is send an invitation out. 2025-06-05 Reuben J Brown Share AR June 2025RoadsBuy Now

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Gizmodo RT hat einen Link geteilt

2025-06-03 08:47:43 ·

George Romero’s Daughter Made a Gay Zombie Movie, With Her Father’s Blessing

With Queens of the Dead, Tina Romero, daughter of the legendary filmmaker George A. Romero, is set to make her first directorial outing, premiering the feature at the Tribeca Film Festival June 7. The filmmaker recently spoke to Entertainment Weekly and reflected on her father’s influence. “I am his kid. There’s no denying it. And he has influenced me greatly.” Romero said. Queens of the Dead will feature Easter eggs to honor her father’s legacy. “And this is his monster, this is his genre. I had fun doing my little Romero nods throughout the film, and we have some good ones,” she shared, including appearances by notable figures such as makeup artist and actor Tom Savini and Dawn of the Dead star Gaylen Ross. “The zombie apocalypse is such a rich sandbox to play in when it comes to social commentary. I can’t be my dad’s daughter without making an attempt at saying something with zombies,” Romero told the magazine. “I did want this to be a film in which I am paying homage to the world and the monster he created, but I’m also introducing my own voice. It’s very much not a film he would make, but it is using his vocabulary and is playing by his rules. As far as the queer element, on one hand, I just feel like the gays need a zombie film. It’s time that we get to have a big gay zombie movie.”

“I didn’t want to touch the genre unless it felt authentic to me,” Romero emphasized. Queens of the Dead revolves around a night in the queer party scene when the nightlife vibes at a warehouse drag show get interrupted by the zombie apocalypse. The inspiration came from intense conflict on social media among party promoters during her stint as a DJ. Romero recounted, “The original promoter posted this manifesto begging the question, ‘When will the queer community stop devouring its own?’ And it hit me like a bolt of lightning. I was like, ‘Oh my God! This would be how I want to explore the zombie genre in this world of queer nightlife.’” The Mandalorian baddie Katy O’Brien plays the fictionalized promoter who leads the film; Romero noted that there’s a special thanks to Tom Cruise in the credits for letting them take the time off their Mission: Impossible shoot to film the horror flick. Romero hopes the film will shine a light on the hunger for more genre films that represent an intersection of gay scream queens with that familiar flair for horror and dark comedy from her father’s roots. The legendary filmmaker didn’t get to see a completed script but mentored his daughter during the development process.

Romero shared, “He said, ‘I love it! Run with it. Go for it.’ Unfortunately, he never got to read the completed script because it took me about seven years to get this developed… but I did have this blessing.” Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
#george #romeros #daughter #made #gay

George Romero’s Daughter Made a Gay Zombie Movie, With Her Father’s Blessing
With Queens of the Dead, Tina Romero, daughter of the legendary filmmaker George A. Romero, is set to make her first directorial outing, premiering the feature at the Tribeca Film Festival June 7. The filmmaker recently spoke to Entertainment Weekly and reflected on her father’s influence. “I am his kid. There’s no denying it. And he has influenced me greatly.” Romero said. Queens of the Dead will feature Easter eggs to honor her father’s legacy. “And this is his monster, this is his genre. I had fun doing my little Romero nods throughout the film, and we have some good ones,” she shared, including appearances by notable figures such as makeup artist and actor Tom Savini and Dawn of the Dead star Gaylen Ross. “The zombie apocalypse is such a rich sandbox to play in when it comes to social commentary. I can’t be my dad’s daughter without making an attempt at saying something with zombies,” Romero told the magazine. “I did want this to be a film in which I am paying homage to the world and the monster he created, but I’m also introducing my own voice. It’s very much not a film he would make, but it is using his vocabulary and is playing by his rules. As far as the queer element, on one hand, I just feel like the gays need a zombie film. It’s time that we get to have a big gay zombie movie.” “I didn’t want to touch the genre unless it felt authentic to me,” Romero emphasized. Queens of the Dead revolves around a night in the queer party scene when the nightlife vibes at a warehouse drag show get interrupted by the zombie apocalypse. The inspiration came from intense conflict on social media among party promoters during her stint as a DJ. Romero recounted, “The original promoter posted this manifesto begging the question, ‘When will the queer community stop devouring its own?’ And it hit me like a bolt of lightning. I was like, ‘Oh my God! This would be how I want to explore the zombie genre in this world of queer nightlife.’” The Mandalorian baddie Katy O’Brien plays the fictionalized promoter who leads the film; Romero noted that there’s a special thanks to Tom Cruise in the credits for letting them take the time off their Mission: Impossible shoot to film the horror flick. Romero hopes the film will shine a light on the hunger for more genre films that represent an intersection of gay scream queens with that familiar flair for horror and dark comedy from her father’s roots. The legendary filmmaker didn’t get to see a completed script but mentored his daughter during the development process. Romero shared, “He said, ‘I love it! Run with it. Go for it.’ Unfortunately, he never got to read the completed script because it took me about seven years to get this developed… but I did have this blessing.” Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who. #george #romeros #daughter #made #gay

GIZMODO.COM

George Romero’s Daughter Made a Gay Zombie Movie, With Her Father’s Blessing

With Queens of the Dead, Tina Romero, daughter of the legendary filmmaker George A. Romero, is set to make her first directorial outing, premiering the feature at the Tribeca Film Festival June 7. The filmmaker recently spoke to Entertainment Weekly and reflected on her father’s influence. “I am his kid. There’s no denying it. And he has influenced me greatly.” Romero said. Queens of the Dead will feature Easter eggs to honor her father’s legacy. “And this is his monster, this is his genre. I had fun doing my little Romero nods throughout the film, and we have some good ones,” she shared, including appearances by notable figures such as makeup artist and actor Tom Savini and Dawn of the Dead star Gaylen Ross. “The zombie apocalypse is such a rich sandbox to play in when it comes to social commentary. I can’t be my dad’s daughter without making an attempt at saying something with zombies,” Romero told the magazine. “I did want this to be a film in which I am paying homage to the world and the monster he created, but I’m also introducing my own voice. It’s very much not a film he would make, but it is using his vocabulary and is playing by his rules. As far as the queer element, on one hand, I just feel like the gays need a zombie film. It’s time that we get to have a big gay zombie movie.” “I didn’t want to touch the genre unless it felt authentic to me,” Romero emphasized. Queens of the Dead revolves around a night in the queer party scene when the nightlife vibes at a warehouse drag show get interrupted by the zombie apocalypse. The inspiration came from intense conflict on social media among party promoters during her stint as a DJ. Romero recounted, “The original promoter posted this manifesto begging the question, ‘When will the queer community stop devouring its own?’ And it hit me like a bolt of lightning. I was like, ‘Oh my God! This would be how I want to explore the zombie genre in this world of queer nightlife.’” The Mandalorian baddie Katy O’Brien plays the fictionalized promoter who leads the film; Romero noted that there’s a special thanks to Tom Cruise in the credits for letting them take the time off their Mission: Impossible shoot to film the horror flick. Romero hopes the film will shine a light on the hunger for more genre films that represent an intersection of gay scream queens with that familiar flair for horror and dark comedy from her father’s roots. The legendary filmmaker didn’t get to see a completed script but mentored his daughter during the development process. Romero shared, “He said, ‘I love it! Run with it. Go for it.’ Unfortunately, he never got to read the completed script because it took me about seven years to get this developed… but I did have this blessing.” Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.

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Paul Donald RT hat einen Link geteilt

2025-06-03 02:09:45 ·

Exciting news in the world of indie horror! "Queens of the Dead," a groundbreaking gay zombie film crafted with the blessing of the legendary George Romero, is making waves on the festival circuit. With Katy O'Brien from "The Mandalorian" leading the cast, this film not only pays homage to Romero's iconic legacy but also boldly embraces diverse storytelling in a genre often dominated by traditional narratives. As a Shader Artist, I’m thrilled to see how visual effects can enhance the unique blend of horror and representation in films like this. It’s a powerful reminder that the undead can be more than just mindless monsters—they can also reflect societal change and acceptance. What are your thoughts on the evolution of horror films and their capacity to tell diverse stories? #HorrorMovies #LGBTQFilm #GeorgeRomero #ZombieCinema #IndieFilm

Exciting news in the world of indie horror! "Queens of the Dead," a groundbreaking gay zombie film crafted with the blessing of the legendary George Romero, is making waves on the festival circuit. With Katy O'Brien from "The Mandalorian" leading the cast, this film not only pays homage to Romero's iconic legacy but also boldly embraces diverse storytelling in a genre often dominated by traditional narratives. As a Shader Artist, I’m thrilled to see how visual effects can enhance the unique blend of horror and representation in films like this. It’s a powerful reminder that the undead can be more than just mindless monsters—they can also reflect societal change and acceptance. What are your thoughts on the evolution of horror films and their capacity to tell diverse stories? #HorrorMovies #LGBTQFilm #GeorgeRomero #ZombieCinema #IndieFilm

GIZMODO.COM

George Romero’s Daughter Made a Gay Zombie Movie, With Her Father’s Blessing

'Queens of the Dead' is hitting the festival circuit and stars Katy O'Brien ('The Mandalorian').

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VentureBeat RT hat einen Link geteilt

2025-05-30 13:55:21 ·

CampFire Studio will launch Soulmask DLC on June 5

Soulmask, a survival sandbox game developed by CampFire Studio and published by Qooland Games, has announced its first major cultural expansion, the free Golden LegendDLC, coming on June 5.
Inspired by ancient Sanxingdui Chinese civilization, the new DLC marks a turning point in Soulmask’s journey. What began in the primal chaos of rainforest survival pushes into uncharted territory, fusing ancient mythical symbolism with sandbox survival exploration systems.
This DLC introduces new masks, exploration zones, and a collection of ornate bronze furnishings that allow players to shape their interpretations of a long-lost ritual civilization.
The free Golden Legend DLC introduces The Golden Mask, an ornate ritual artifact adorned with copper eye protrusions and engraved Kui dragon patterns. Its powers include Divine Sight, where it detects threats and terrain changes from a distance; Heaven’s Watch, which can analyse enemy stats, specialities, and potential; Sunbird Blessing, which yields passive buffs that enhance movement and perception; and The Sunken Altar, where deep in the ocean lies you find a lost branch of Eastern civilization. It’s a new submerged zone that welcomes exploration, featuring shipwreck ruins, ritual relics, and ceremonial architecture wrapped in mythological symbolism.
The DLC also features The Golden Legend Set, a new line of Bronze Age–themed furniture, mask displays, and ornamental props that let players transform their homesteads into stylized ancestral sanctuaries.
Smarter survival through automation
Soulmask players can explore The Golden Legend in free DLC.
Coinciding with the DLC, Soulmask is rolling out core gameplay upgrades to the base game, focused on advancing automation in construction and logistics.
This includes a building planning mode, where players can now record any custom-built structure plans.
Tribesmen will automatically collect resources and rebuild them in other locations, dramatically improving the speed and efficiency of base expansion.It also has an automated logistics system where powered ziplines can be set up between homesteads and resource points, creating a flexible transport network for streamlined material delivery across the map.
These features allow for faster, more organized tribe management and base development, especially for players aiming to build on a larger scale.
Looking forward: 1.0, Egypt, and the future of civilization
Soulmask’s update will offer a lot.
The Golden Legend DLC arrives as a special gift to mark Soulmask’s first anniversary in Early Access – a thank-you to players who have shaped the world through feedback, exploration, and creativity.
Soulmask will exit Early Access with its 1.0 release later this year, alongside a new Egypt-themed DLC. These milestones will continue to broaden the game’s cultural inspirations and deepen its automation systems, offering players new ways to build, govern, and survive across richly imagined ancient worlds.
Producer Zima has described his long-term vision for Soulmask as “the intelligent multi-civilization survival sandbox,” where automation and cultural diversity form the foundation of a dynamic, player-driven experience.

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#campfire #studio #will #launch #soulmask

CampFire Studio will launch Soulmask DLC on June 5
Soulmask, a survival sandbox game developed by CampFire Studio and published by Qooland Games, has announced its first major cultural expansion, the free Golden LegendDLC, coming on June 5. Inspired by ancient Sanxingdui Chinese civilization, the new DLC marks a turning point in Soulmask’s journey. What began in the primal chaos of rainforest survival pushes into uncharted territory, fusing ancient mythical symbolism with sandbox survival exploration systems. This DLC introduces new masks, exploration zones, and a collection of ornate bronze furnishings that allow players to shape their interpretations of a long-lost ritual civilization. The free Golden Legend DLC introduces The Golden Mask, an ornate ritual artifact adorned with copper eye protrusions and engraved Kui dragon patterns. Its powers include Divine Sight, where it detects threats and terrain changes from a distance; Heaven’s Watch, which can analyse enemy stats, specialities, and potential; Sunbird Blessing, which yields passive buffs that enhance movement and perception; and The Sunken Altar, where deep in the ocean lies you find a lost branch of Eastern civilization. It’s a new submerged zone that welcomes exploration, featuring shipwreck ruins, ritual relics, and ceremonial architecture wrapped in mythological symbolism. The DLC also features The Golden Legend Set, a new line of Bronze Age–themed furniture, mask displays, and ornamental props that let players transform their homesteads into stylized ancestral sanctuaries. Smarter survival through automation Soulmask players can explore The Golden Legend in free DLC. Coinciding with the DLC, Soulmask is rolling out core gameplay upgrades to the base game, focused on advancing automation in construction and logistics. This includes a building planning mode, where players can now record any custom-built structure plans. Tribesmen will automatically collect resources and rebuild them in other locations, dramatically improving the speed and efficiency of base expansion.It also has an automated logistics system where powered ziplines can be set up between homesteads and resource points, creating a flexible transport network for streamlined material delivery across the map. These features allow for faster, more organized tribe management and base development, especially for players aiming to build on a larger scale. Looking forward: 1.0, Egypt, and the future of civilization Soulmask’s update will offer a lot. The Golden Legend DLC arrives as a special gift to mark Soulmask’s first anniversary in Early Access – a thank-you to players who have shaped the world through feedback, exploration, and creativity. Soulmask will exit Early Access with its 1.0 release later this year, alongside a new Egypt-themed DLC. These milestones will continue to broaden the game’s cultural inspirations and deepen its automation systems, offering players new ways to build, govern, and survive across richly imagined ancient worlds. Producer Zima has described his long-term vision for Soulmask as “the intelligent multi-civilization survival sandbox,” where automation and cultural diversity form the foundation of a dynamic, player-driven experience. Daily insights on business use cases with VB Daily If you want to impress your boss, VB Daily has you covered. We give you the inside scoop on what companies are doing with generative AI, from regulatory shifts to practical deployments, so you can share insights for maximum ROI. Read our Privacy Policy Thanks for subscribing. Check out more VB newsletters here. An error occured. #campfire #studio #will #launch #soulmask

VENTUREBEAT.COM

CampFire Studio will launch Soulmask DLC on June 5

Soulmask, a survival sandbox game developed by CampFire Studio and published by Qooland Games, has announced its first major cultural expansion, the free Golden Legend (Sanxingdui) DLC, coming on June 5. Inspired by ancient Sanxingdui Chinese civilization, the new DLC marks a turning point in Soulmask’s journey. What began in the primal chaos of rainforest survival pushes into uncharted territory, fusing ancient mythical symbolism with sandbox survival exploration systems. This DLC introduces new masks, exploration zones, and a collection of ornate bronze furnishings that allow players to shape their interpretations of a long-lost ritual civilization. The free Golden Legend DLC introduces The Golden Mask, an ornate ritual artifact adorned with copper eye protrusions and engraved Kui dragon patterns. Its powers include Divine Sight, where it detects threats and terrain changes from a distance; Heaven’s Watch, which can analyse enemy stats, specialities, and potential; Sunbird Blessing, which yields passive buffs that enhance movement and perception; and The Sunken Altar, where deep in the ocean lies you find a lost branch of Eastern civilization. It’s a new submerged zone that welcomes exploration, featuring shipwreck ruins, ritual relics, and ceremonial architecture wrapped in mythological symbolism. The DLC also features The Golden Legend Set, a new line of Bronze Age–themed furniture, mask displays, and ornamental props that let players transform their homesteads into stylized ancestral sanctuaries. Smarter survival through automation Soulmask players can explore The Golden Legend in free DLC. Coinciding with the DLC, Soulmask is rolling out core gameplay upgrades to the base game, focused on advancing automation in construction and logistics. This includes a building planning mode, where players can now record any custom-built structure plans. Tribesmen will automatically collect resources and rebuild them in other locations, dramatically improving the speed and efficiency of base expansion.It also has an automated logistics system where powered ziplines can be set up between homesteads and resource points, creating a flexible transport network for streamlined material delivery across the map. These features allow for faster, more organized tribe management and base development, especially for players aiming to build on a larger scale. Looking forward: 1.0, Egypt, and the future of civilization Soulmask’s update will offer a lot. The Golden Legend DLC arrives as a special gift to mark Soulmask’s first anniversary in Early Access – a thank-you to players who have shaped the world through feedback, exploration, and creativity. Soulmask will exit Early Access with its 1.0 release later this year, alongside a new Egypt-themed DLC. These milestones will continue to broaden the game’s cultural inspirations and deepen its automation systems, offering players new ways to build, govern, and survive across richly imagined ancient worlds. Producer Zima has described his long-term vision for Soulmask as “the intelligent multi-civilization survival sandbox,” where automation and cultural diversity form the foundation of a dynamic, player-driven experience. Daily insights on business use cases with VB Daily If you want to impress your boss, VB Daily has you covered. We give you the inside scoop on what companies are doing with generative AI, from regulatory shifts to practical deployments, so you can share insights for maximum ROI. Read our Privacy Policy Thanks for subscribing. Check out more VB newsletters here. An error occured.

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Den of Geek RT hat einen Link geteilt

2025-05-27 16:56:11 ·

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Finale Review: The Handmaid’s Tale

Warning: contains spoilers for The Handmaid’s Tale series finale.
Finale? More like DVD Extra. The cast of a once-unmissable show reunited one last time for a series of watery-eyed goodbyes and I love yous. 55 minutes of June trundling around a recently liberated Boston remembering things and having feelings? The Handmaid’s Tale hasn’t delivered a more inessential episode since the ‘What Luke Did” flashback in season one.
You know what’s to blame: therapy. It’s taught us concepts like ‘processing trauma’ and ‘closure’ – both useful in their context but ruinous when mistaken for storytelling. Real lives may benefit from being lived with wisdom, growth and acceptance, but fictional ones can afford more chaos. Characters don’t all need to bow out of their story with instructive understanding; some should be allowed to kick their way out pulling a grenade pin between their teeth.

The Handmaid’s Tale made its name as protest art with iconic imagery, a killer soundtrack and attitude to spare. It could have sent June thundering into the flames, but instead, she got this weepy valedictory tour.

A beautifully acted weepy valedictory tour, one should say. The cast of The Handmaid’s Tale never let you down, but on rare occasions like this one, they’re let down by writing that cares more about completing its characters’ emotions worksheets than about entertaining an audience. Don’t mistake me, I’m pleased that June had all of those repetitive reunions – with Serena, with Emily, with Luke, with baby Holly, with her mother, with Lydia, with Serena again… I just don’t feel like I needed to witness ‘em. How about some story instead? Why not let us see, say, Hannah in wartime?
Why not is because that’s all being saved, along with Aunt Lydia’s next steps, for sequel The Testaments, a continuation that this episode dutifully set up without managing to raise much anticipation for.
The series finale wasn’t about looking forward, it was all about looking back. Hence the surprise return of Alexis Bledel’s Emily, who showed up magically at June’s side with a callback to the start of their tentative friendship in season one. Emily was just one of a rollcall of faces from the past. Those also came in the form of cameos from departed friends Alma, Brianna, and Janine’s right eye, as June fantasised about the karaoke night that might have been.
The episode’s closing moments, in which June revisited the Waterford house burnt out by Serena in season three, were another callback. June took up the same window seat position as she had in episode one and delivered the same opening lines to the Margaret Atwood novel that started all this. Except, now those lines were the opening lines to June’s memoir, bringing the show metatextually full circle.
Nothing in the finale mattered so much as its heavily insisted-upon message, which was all about parents fighting to create a better world to keep their children safe. June readied herself to leave little Holly again, bolstered by Emily’s assurance that it didn’t mean she was abandoning her family. Luke planned to reach Hannah by liberating one state from Gilead at a time. Naomi Lawrence returned little Charlotte to her mother to keep her out of a warzone. Even Mark Tuello was conjured up an off-screen son to motivate his military moves.
By the time Holly Sr had declaimed over not being able to keep June safe, and Serena had promised to dedicate herself solely to the raising of her precious baby Noah, it was hard not to feel a little Gilead propaganda going on in terms of children being the only reason that anybody does anything. I don’t recall that being the point Margaret Atwood was making back in 1985.

Nor was the finale’s ultra-serious, highly emotive tone always the way of things in The Handmaid’s Tale. June’s irreverence, not to mention her excellent way with an expletive, is part of what’s made her an attractive lead character over the years. Next to Gilead’s mannered prayer-card conversational style, she’s been a breath of fresh air. In this finale though, June’s wryness was replaced with her telling Serena to “go in grace” like she was issuing a papal blessing, and telling little Holly all about how much mommies love their babies.

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There were flashes of beauty among the sap. The shot of June walking back along the bridge as Boston’s lights turned on was terrific both in idea and execution. Janine getting Charlotte back was a genuine – if unexplored – surprise. “The Wall” being co-opted by revolutionary graffiti and women reclaiming their own names was gorgeous.
Overall though, this was a repetitive and surplus hour that used its screentime to remind us of things that didn’t really require a reminder. June misses Hannah. June once loved Nick. Serena feels bad. The children are our future. We know. You already told us.

The Handmaid’s Tale season six is streaming now on Hulu in the US, and airing weekly on Channel 4 in the UK.
#handmaids #tale #season #finale #review

The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Finale Review: The Handmaid’s Tale
Warning: contains spoilers for The Handmaid’s Tale series finale. Finale? More like DVD Extra. The cast of a once-unmissable show reunited one last time for a series of watery-eyed goodbyes and I love yous. 55 minutes of June trundling around a recently liberated Boston remembering things and having feelings? The Handmaid’s Tale hasn’t delivered a more inessential episode since the ‘What Luke Did” flashback in season one. You know what’s to blame: therapy. It’s taught us concepts like ‘processing trauma’ and ‘closure’ – both useful in their context but ruinous when mistaken for storytelling. Real lives may benefit from being lived with wisdom, growth and acceptance, but fictional ones can afford more chaos. Characters don’t all need to bow out of their story with instructive understanding; some should be allowed to kick their way out pulling a grenade pin between their teeth. The Handmaid’s Tale made its name as protest art with iconic imagery, a killer soundtrack and attitude to spare. It could have sent June thundering into the flames, but instead, she got this weepy valedictory tour. A beautifully acted weepy valedictory tour, one should say. The cast of The Handmaid’s Tale never let you down, but on rare occasions like this one, they’re let down by writing that cares more about completing its characters’ emotions worksheets than about entertaining an audience. Don’t mistake me, I’m pleased that June had all of those repetitive reunions – with Serena, with Emily, with Luke, with baby Holly, with her mother, with Lydia, with Serena again… I just don’t feel like I needed to witness ‘em. How about some story instead? Why not let us see, say, Hannah in wartime? Why not is because that’s all being saved, along with Aunt Lydia’s next steps, for sequel The Testaments, a continuation that this episode dutifully set up without managing to raise much anticipation for. The series finale wasn’t about looking forward, it was all about looking back. Hence the surprise return of Alexis Bledel’s Emily, who showed up magically at June’s side with a callback to the start of their tentative friendship in season one. Emily was just one of a rollcall of faces from the past. Those also came in the form of cameos from departed friends Alma, Brianna, and Janine’s right eye, as June fantasised about the karaoke night that might have been. The episode’s closing moments, in which June revisited the Waterford house burnt out by Serena in season three, were another callback. June took up the same window seat position as she had in episode one and delivered the same opening lines to the Margaret Atwood novel that started all this. Except, now those lines were the opening lines to June’s memoir, bringing the show metatextually full circle. Nothing in the finale mattered so much as its heavily insisted-upon message, which was all about parents fighting to create a better world to keep their children safe. June readied herself to leave little Holly again, bolstered by Emily’s assurance that it didn’t mean she was abandoning her family. Luke planned to reach Hannah by liberating one state from Gilead at a time. Naomi Lawrence returned little Charlotte to her mother to keep her out of a warzone. Even Mark Tuello was conjured up an off-screen son to motivate his military moves. By the time Holly Sr had declaimed over not being able to keep June safe, and Serena had promised to dedicate herself solely to the raising of her precious baby Noah, it was hard not to feel a little Gilead propaganda going on in terms of children being the only reason that anybody does anything. I don’t recall that being the point Margaret Atwood was making back in 1985. Nor was the finale’s ultra-serious, highly emotive tone always the way of things in The Handmaid’s Tale. June’s irreverence, not to mention her excellent way with an expletive, is part of what’s made her an attractive lead character over the years. Next to Gilead’s mannered prayer-card conversational style, she’s been a breath of fresh air. In this finale though, June’s wryness was replaced with her telling Serena to “go in grace” like she was issuing a papal blessing, and telling little Holly all about how much mommies love their babies. Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! There were flashes of beauty among the sap. The shot of June walking back along the bridge as Boston’s lights turned on was terrific both in idea and execution. Janine getting Charlotte back was a genuine – if unexplored – surprise. “The Wall” being co-opted by revolutionary graffiti and women reclaiming their own names was gorgeous. Overall though, this was a repetitive and surplus hour that used its screentime to remind us of things that didn’t really require a reminder. June misses Hannah. June once loved Nick. Serena feels bad. The children are our future. We know. You already told us. The Handmaid’s Tale season six is streaming now on Hulu in the US, and airing weekly on Channel 4 in the UK. #handmaids #tale #season #finale #review

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The Handmaid’s Tale Season 6 Finale Review: The Handmaid’s Tale

Warning: contains spoilers for The Handmaid’s Tale series finale. Finale? More like DVD Extra. The cast of a once-unmissable show reunited one last time for a series of watery-eyed goodbyes and I love yous. 55 minutes of June trundling around a recently liberated Boston remembering things and having feelings? The Handmaid’s Tale hasn’t delivered a more inessential episode since the ‘What Luke Did” flashback in season one. You know what’s to blame: therapy. It’s taught us concepts like ‘processing trauma’ and ‘closure’ – both useful in their context but ruinous when mistaken for storytelling. Real lives may benefit from being lived with wisdom, growth and acceptance, but fictional ones can afford more chaos. Characters don’t all need to bow out of their story with instructive understanding; some should be allowed to kick their way out pulling a grenade pin between their teeth. The Handmaid’s Tale made its name as protest art with iconic imagery, a killer soundtrack and attitude to spare. It could have sent June thundering into the flames, but instead, she got this weepy valedictory tour. A beautifully acted weepy valedictory tour, one should say. The cast of The Handmaid’s Tale never let you down, but on rare occasions like this one, they’re let down by writing that cares more about completing its characters’ emotions worksheets than about entertaining an audience. Don’t mistake me, I’m pleased that June had all of those repetitive reunions – with Serena, with Emily, with Luke, with baby Holly, with her mother, with Lydia, with Serena again… I just don’t feel like I needed to witness ‘em. How about some story instead? Why not let us see, say, Hannah in wartime? Why not is because that’s all being saved, along with Aunt Lydia’s next steps, for sequel The Testaments, a continuation that this episode dutifully set up without managing to raise much anticipation for. The series finale wasn’t about looking forward, it was all about looking back. Hence the surprise return of Alexis Bledel’s Emily, who showed up magically at June’s side with a callback to the start of their tentative friendship in season one. Emily was just one of a rollcall of faces from the past. Those also came in the form of cameos from departed friends Alma, Brianna, and Janine’s right eye, as June fantasised about the karaoke night that might have been. The episode’s closing moments, in which June revisited the Waterford house burnt out by Serena in season three, were another callback. June took up the same window seat position as she had in episode one and delivered the same opening lines to the Margaret Atwood novel that started all this. Except, now those lines were the opening lines to June’s memoir, bringing the show metatextually full circle. Nothing in the finale mattered so much as its heavily insisted-upon message, which was all about parents fighting to create a better world to keep their children safe. June readied herself to leave little Holly again, bolstered by Emily’s assurance that it didn’t mean she was abandoning her family. Luke planned to reach Hannah by liberating one state from Gilead at a time. Naomi Lawrence returned little Charlotte to her mother to keep her out of a warzone. Even Mark Tuello was conjured up an off-screen son to motivate his military moves. By the time Holly Sr had declaimed over not being able to keep June safe, and Serena had promised to dedicate herself solely to the raising of her precious baby Noah, it was hard not to feel a little Gilead propaganda going on in terms of children being the only reason that anybody does anything. I don’t recall that being the point Margaret Atwood was making back in 1985. Nor was the finale’s ultra-serious, highly emotive tone always the way of things in The Handmaid’s Tale. June’s irreverence, not to mention her excellent way with an expletive, is part of what’s made her an attractive lead character over the years. Next to Gilead’s mannered prayer-card conversational style, she’s been a breath of fresh air. In this finale though, June’s wryness was replaced with her telling Serena to “go in grace” like she was issuing a papal blessing, and telling little Holly all about how much mommies love their babies. Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! There were flashes of beauty among the sap. The shot of June walking back along the bridge as Boston’s lights turned on was terrific both in idea and execution. Janine getting Charlotte back was a genuine – if unexplored – surprise. “The Wall” being co-opted by revolutionary graffiti and women reclaiming their own names was gorgeous. Overall though, this was a repetitive and surplus hour that used its screentime to remind us of things that didn’t really require a reminder. June misses Hannah. June once loved Nick. Serena feels bad. The children are our future. We know. You already told us. The Handmaid’s Tale season six is streaming now on Hulu in the US, and airing weekly on Channel 4 in the UK.

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2025-05-26 14:47:25 ·

The Last of Us writers break down the season 2 ending and 4 other big changes

HBO’s version of The Last of Us is pretty good at maintaining fidelity to the lauded Naughty Dog games, especially when it comes to the blocking of major scenes. But in a way, that exactitude only magnifies the ways in which the show deviates from the games. While viewers expected changes — a good adaptation needs to justify a reason to exist — some of the creative changes have been met with mixed reactions from the audience. As the showrunners tell it, these creative liberties weren’t done thoughtlessly.

In a recent press event for The Last of Us, showrunners Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin dove deep into season 2 as a whole over the course of an hour. Discussions often circled back to the wider topic of what’s possible in games versus film, and how these strengths guided their decisions for what the show would explore and how.

On the cliffhanger ending

By the time season 2 ends, the show is ambiguous about what happens to Ellie. The last we see of her, it seems as if she gets shot dead by Abby — only for the show to then transition to a totally different day, before any of that happens.

Apparently, other endings to the season were considered but nothing stuck. “This always felt like the natural end point for the season,” Druckmann says.

Mazin went even further, noting that the choice was made to balance out the changes to the story up until that point.

He says, “we have to take risks as a television show, and HBO is to back us taking risks. But then again, we just did kill Pedro Pascal. They understand that this show is going to be a different show every season, which is a sort of a tricky thing to do when you’re a hit show. You keep asking people like, ‘I know you love this, we’re taking it away and giving you this now.‘ And then, hopefully they go, ‘Oh, well, you know what, we actually really like this.’ ‘Oh, that’s nice. Now we’re giving you this now because that’s how the story works.’”

On adding Gail as a character

Druckmann revealed that they have a “running list” of things that are easier to do in each medium, and changes in perspective are categorized under the TV list. Unlike games, television doesn’t lock you into the perspective of the person you’re controlling; it can be natural for a show to jump around in storylines from scene to scene.

“And obviously in the game, perspective shifts in cut scenes, but they are limited by design, they have to be,” Mazin says. “nothing but cut scenes.”

The ease afforded by TV for different perspectives is partially how the pair arrived at the character of Gail, a therapist in the show who lends Joel an ear. Joel has trouble opening up to Gail, because that would mean admitting that he mowed down a hospital to keep Ellie alive. Gail emphasizes the importance of vocalizing difficult thoughts, which she illustrates by telling Joel that deep down, she hates him. As it turns out, Joel killed Gail’s husband Eugene after he got infected, and it’s something she has never been able to fully get over.

“So, Gail in particular, gave us a moment to figure out, not only where is Joel now emotionally, but what’s the story he’s telling himself?,” Mazin says. “What is the thing he’s most afraid of? And what is his opinion about his actions? And all of that is setting up, ultimately, a moment where he, a) has to finally confront the truth, and then b) has to pay the price.”

As players know, the start of The Last of Us Part 2 focuses on Abby, the daughter of a doctor killed by Joel in the first game. This was meant as a surprise for players. Naughty Dog went to such lengths to contain this piece of information that in an extended preview of the game, a trailer made it look like Joel was still alive during the journey Ellie embarks on. Pulling off something like that, Maizin says, is way harder on TV because “what we can’t do is reproduce the shock of becoming another person.

“In games, you are Joel, you are Ellie, you are Abby, and when that shift happens it’s jarring because you have been someone. But here, we are watching everybody equally on a screen. We may identify with time to time in different ways and we may be conflicted but we’re not them.”

On Alice the dog

In the season 2 finale of TLOU, Ellie arrives at the aquarium in search of Abby. In the games, there’s a dark moment when Ellie kills a dog named Alice at the aquarium — but it doesn’t happen in the show. In the interactive version, the death is particularly brutal because you also spend some of Abby’s storyline with Alice at your side. The valiant pup saves you from danger and is well-loved, and at least one scene depicts playtime with Alice.

Why leave something like that out? Well, Mazin wrote Chernobyl, and in that show, there’s a segment where pets left behind in the nuclear disaster are culled in an effort to prevent further spread of radiation.

“I think you get like one dog murdering episode a lifetime,” Mazin says. “There are two cardinal rules in Hollywood, one, don’t spend your own money, two, don’t kill a dog.”

That’s the jokey reason, anyway. He continues, “Plus, because it’s live action, the nature of violence becomes much more, well, graphic. It’s more graphic because…it’s not like there’s an animation between you and it,it’s very disturbing.”

Druckmann also notes that the timeline of events during the show, the aquarium is sandwiched between a string of heavy moments. Ellie almost dies in one scene, Mel and Owen are killed, and later on, Jessie meets his end as well. “And in our conversation, we’re like thisprobably one too many,” Druckmann says.

On Joel’s last words

In the games, the player does not find out that Ellie spoke to Joel the night before he died until well into the story. The show, on the other hand, parades this pivotal moment right away. Except in this version of events, Joel tells Ellie that he killed all those people at the hospital because he loves her in a way she can’t understand.

“It also speaks to the adaptation process, which is Pedro’s Joel is more articulate, more outwardly vulnerable than Troy Baker’s Joel, and therefore there are these tiny differences that felt appropriate,” Druckmann says. “It’s harder for me to imagine that line coming out of the game Joel.”

The writers wanted to help viewers tie that exchange with the one we see Joel have with his dad earlier in the season. In that episode, Joel confronts his father about his tendency to beat his children. Joel’s dad breaks down and says he’s doing the best he can, and that hopefully, Joel can do a little bit better than he did when he has kids of his own.

Legacy and what we inherit from our parents is a more overt theme in the show. Ellie remarks that she’s going to be a father in one scene that doesn’t happen in the games, and later on, she’s shown picking up a book for Dina’s baby.

On Tommy’s absence

The circumstances surrounding Joel’s death are a tad different in the source material. In the games, Tommy and Joel come across Abby during a patrol. On TV, Dina and Joel collide with Abby’s group while Tommy is seen back in Jackson, defending the town from a wave of infected. In the games, Tommy is the first one to leave for Seattle in search of revenge after Ellie fails to get Jackson’s blessing. For some viewers, this change was frustrating because it made Tommy less active in the story.

As the showrunners see it, Tommy isn’t lessened by these changes. Both Mazin and Druckmann point out that Tommy still sees plenty of action, as we watch him defend Jackson and take down a massive infected monster.

“We thought it would be interesting if, rather than him going, ‘I’m just going to run out there and kill whoever did this,’ especially without a lot of information, that we would give Ellie and Dina that agency.

“But now we know that Tommy is somewhere in there in Seattle, because he and Jesse went after them to save them. And what Tommy does now, once he is outside the confines of Jackson, remember, he’s a veteran. He’s been in war, and we also know that for some time he and Joel were doing some pretty bad things. So, there is the potential of seeing this other side of Tommy, and that is now about him delivering on his promise to his brother, ‘I’m not going to let anything bad happen to that kid’.”

For those keeping track, this list of five changes hardly covers every difference between the show and the games. One of the most controversial changes for the fandom lies with Abby. In the games, Abby sports a buff, imposing frame. Kaitlyn Dever, who depicts Abby on-screen, has a much more svelte silhouette. For some, this casting choice felt too “Hollywood.” We’re told that Abby has been obsessing over Joel since the death of her father, and that she spends years getting ready for that moment. Presumably, this motivates Abby to undergo intense physical training — so viewers attach a lot of meaning to that specific character design.

If you’re wondering why the show didn’t follow suit, though, that’s a topic that Druckmann and Mazin explored a month ago, in the inaugural podcast that accompanies the show. Dever, they said, was initially in the running to be Ellie when the games were being adapted to a movie.

“It was very easy to close your eyes and see her as this character and see that– because this character, going back to what Craig was saying earlier, just has this drive, this passion, this intensity, this intense pursuit of justice, and has to be, like, extremely vulnerable at the same time,” Druckmann said at the time. “And have all these other facets that we haven’t even seen yet. It didn’t take much imagination to view her in that role.”

Here, too, Mazin emphasized the differences between TV and movies. During the podcast, Mazin said that the reason Abby is so muscular in the games is because designers have to think about player experiences. When players change perspective, they expect that their actions will feel different in some way too. An effective way of getting there is by giving characters different ranges in physicality.

TV, though, doesn’t have that constraint. This allowed the showrunners to focus on other aspects of Abby’s character.

“So, to me,” Mazin said, “the key was to find a certain ferocity and a relentlessness. And I think you’ll see some of that as the season goes on and certainly as we go forward with the show.”
#last #writers #break #down #season

The Last of Us writers break down the season 2 ending and 4 other big changes
HBO’s version of The Last of Us is pretty good at maintaining fidelity to the lauded Naughty Dog games, especially when it comes to the blocking of major scenes. But in a way, that exactitude only magnifies the ways in which the show deviates from the games. While viewers expected changes — a good adaptation needs to justify a reason to exist — some of the creative changes have been met with mixed reactions from the audience. As the showrunners tell it, these creative liberties weren’t done thoughtlessly. In a recent press event for The Last of Us, showrunners Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin dove deep into season 2 as a whole over the course of an hour. Discussions often circled back to the wider topic of what’s possible in games versus film, and how these strengths guided their decisions for what the show would explore and how. On the cliffhanger ending By the time season 2 ends, the show is ambiguous about what happens to Ellie. The last we see of her, it seems as if she gets shot dead by Abby — only for the show to then transition to a totally different day, before any of that happens. Apparently, other endings to the season were considered but nothing stuck. “This always felt like the natural end point for the season,” Druckmann says. Mazin went even further, noting that the choice was made to balance out the changes to the story up until that point. He says, “we have to take risks as a television show, and HBO is to back us taking risks. But then again, we just did kill Pedro Pascal. They understand that this show is going to be a different show every season, which is a sort of a tricky thing to do when you’re a hit show. You keep asking people like, ‘I know you love this, we’re taking it away and giving you this now.‘ And then, hopefully they go, ‘Oh, well, you know what, we actually really like this.’ ‘Oh, that’s nice. Now we’re giving you this now because that’s how the story works.’” On adding Gail as a character Druckmann revealed that they have a “running list” of things that are easier to do in each medium, and changes in perspective are categorized under the TV list. Unlike games, television doesn’t lock you into the perspective of the person you’re controlling; it can be natural for a show to jump around in storylines from scene to scene. “And obviously in the game, perspective shifts in cut scenes, but they are limited by design, they have to be,” Mazin says. “nothing but cut scenes.” The ease afforded by TV for different perspectives is partially how the pair arrived at the character of Gail, a therapist in the show who lends Joel an ear. Joel has trouble opening up to Gail, because that would mean admitting that he mowed down a hospital to keep Ellie alive. Gail emphasizes the importance of vocalizing difficult thoughts, which she illustrates by telling Joel that deep down, she hates him. As it turns out, Joel killed Gail’s husband Eugene after he got infected, and it’s something she has never been able to fully get over. “So, Gail in particular, gave us a moment to figure out, not only where is Joel now emotionally, but what’s the story he’s telling himself?,” Mazin says. “What is the thing he’s most afraid of? And what is his opinion about his actions? And all of that is setting up, ultimately, a moment where he, a) has to finally confront the truth, and then b) has to pay the price.” As players know, the start of The Last of Us Part 2 focuses on Abby, the daughter of a doctor killed by Joel in the first game. This was meant as a surprise for players. Naughty Dog went to such lengths to contain this piece of information that in an extended preview of the game, a trailer made it look like Joel was still alive during the journey Ellie embarks on. Pulling off something like that, Maizin says, is way harder on TV because “what we can’t do is reproduce the shock of becoming another person. “In games, you are Joel, you are Ellie, you are Abby, and when that shift happens it’s jarring because you have been someone. But here, we are watching everybody equally on a screen. We may identify with time to time in different ways and we may be conflicted but we’re not them.” On Alice the dog In the season 2 finale of TLOU, Ellie arrives at the aquarium in search of Abby. In the games, there’s a dark moment when Ellie kills a dog named Alice at the aquarium — but it doesn’t happen in the show. In the interactive version, the death is particularly brutal because you also spend some of Abby’s storyline with Alice at your side. The valiant pup saves you from danger and is well-loved, and at least one scene depicts playtime with Alice. Why leave something like that out? Well, Mazin wrote Chernobyl, and in that show, there’s a segment where pets left behind in the nuclear disaster are culled in an effort to prevent further spread of radiation. “I think you get like one dog murdering episode a lifetime,” Mazin says. “There are two cardinal rules in Hollywood, one, don’t spend your own money, two, don’t kill a dog.” That’s the jokey reason, anyway. He continues, “Plus, because it’s live action, the nature of violence becomes much more, well, graphic. It’s more graphic because…it’s not like there’s an animation between you and it,it’s very disturbing.” Druckmann also notes that the timeline of events during the show, the aquarium is sandwiched between a string of heavy moments. Ellie almost dies in one scene, Mel and Owen are killed, and later on, Jessie meets his end as well. “And in our conversation, we’re like thisprobably one too many,” Druckmann says. On Joel’s last words In the games, the player does not find out that Ellie spoke to Joel the night before he died until well into the story. The show, on the other hand, parades this pivotal moment right away. Except in this version of events, Joel tells Ellie that he killed all those people at the hospital because he loves her in a way she can’t understand. “It also speaks to the adaptation process, which is Pedro’s Joel is more articulate, more outwardly vulnerable than Troy Baker’s Joel, and therefore there are these tiny differences that felt appropriate,” Druckmann says. “It’s harder for me to imagine that line coming out of the game Joel.” The writers wanted to help viewers tie that exchange with the one we see Joel have with his dad earlier in the season. In that episode, Joel confronts his father about his tendency to beat his children. Joel’s dad breaks down and says he’s doing the best he can, and that hopefully, Joel can do a little bit better than he did when he has kids of his own. Legacy and what we inherit from our parents is a more overt theme in the show. Ellie remarks that she’s going to be a father in one scene that doesn’t happen in the games, and later on, she’s shown picking up a book for Dina’s baby. On Tommy’s absence The circumstances surrounding Joel’s death are a tad different in the source material. In the games, Tommy and Joel come across Abby during a patrol. On TV, Dina and Joel collide with Abby’s group while Tommy is seen back in Jackson, defending the town from a wave of infected. In the games, Tommy is the first one to leave for Seattle in search of revenge after Ellie fails to get Jackson’s blessing. For some viewers, this change was frustrating because it made Tommy less active in the story. As the showrunners see it, Tommy isn’t lessened by these changes. Both Mazin and Druckmann point out that Tommy still sees plenty of action, as we watch him defend Jackson and take down a massive infected monster. “We thought it would be interesting if, rather than him going, ‘I’m just going to run out there and kill whoever did this,’ especially without a lot of information, that we would give Ellie and Dina that agency. “But now we know that Tommy is somewhere in there in Seattle, because he and Jesse went after them to save them. And what Tommy does now, once he is outside the confines of Jackson, remember, he’s a veteran. He’s been in war, and we also know that for some time he and Joel were doing some pretty bad things. So, there is the potential of seeing this other side of Tommy, and that is now about him delivering on his promise to his brother, ‘I’m not going to let anything bad happen to that kid’.” For those keeping track, this list of five changes hardly covers every difference between the show and the games. One of the most controversial changes for the fandom lies with Abby. In the games, Abby sports a buff, imposing frame. Kaitlyn Dever, who depicts Abby on-screen, has a much more svelte silhouette. For some, this casting choice felt too “Hollywood.” We’re told that Abby has been obsessing over Joel since the death of her father, and that she spends years getting ready for that moment. Presumably, this motivates Abby to undergo intense physical training — so viewers attach a lot of meaning to that specific character design. If you’re wondering why the show didn’t follow suit, though, that’s a topic that Druckmann and Mazin explored a month ago, in the inaugural podcast that accompanies the show. Dever, they said, was initially in the running to be Ellie when the games were being adapted to a movie. “It was very easy to close your eyes and see her as this character and see that– because this character, going back to what Craig was saying earlier, just has this drive, this passion, this intensity, this intense pursuit of justice, and has to be, like, extremely vulnerable at the same time,” Druckmann said at the time. “And have all these other facets that we haven’t even seen yet. It didn’t take much imagination to view her in that role.” Here, too, Mazin emphasized the differences between TV and movies. During the podcast, Mazin said that the reason Abby is so muscular in the games is because designers have to think about player experiences. When players change perspective, they expect that their actions will feel different in some way too. An effective way of getting there is by giving characters different ranges in physicality. TV, though, doesn’t have that constraint. This allowed the showrunners to focus on other aspects of Abby’s character. “So, to me,” Mazin said, “the key was to find a certain ferocity and a relentlessness. And I think you’ll see some of that as the season goes on and certainly as we go forward with the show.” #last #writers #break #down #season

WWW.POLYGON.COM

The Last of Us writers break down the season 2 ending and 4 other big changes

HBO’s version of The Last of Us is pretty good at maintaining fidelity to the lauded Naughty Dog games, especially when it comes to the blocking of major scenes. But in a way, that exactitude only magnifies the ways in which the show deviates from the games. While viewers expected changes — a good adaptation needs to justify a reason to exist — some of the creative changes have been met with mixed reactions from the audience. As the showrunners tell it, these creative liberties weren’t done thoughtlessly. In a recent press event for The Last of Us, showrunners Neil Druckmann and Craig Mazin dove deep into season 2 as a whole over the course of an hour. Discussions often circled back to the wider topic of what’s possible in games versus film, and how these strengths guided their decisions for what the show would explore and how. On the cliffhanger ending By the time season 2 ends, the show is ambiguous about what happens to Ellie. The last we see of her, it seems as if she gets shot dead by Abby — only for the show to then transition to a totally different day, before any of that happens. Apparently, other endings to the season were considered but nothing stuck. “This always felt like the natural end point for the season,” Druckmann says. Mazin went even further, noting that the choice was made to balance out the changes to the story up until that point. He says, “we have to take risks as a television show, and HBO is to back us taking risks. But then again, we just did kill Pedro Pascal. They understand that this show is going to be a different show every season, which is a sort of a tricky thing to do when you’re a hit show. You keep asking people like, ‘I know you love this, we’re taking it away and giving you this now.‘ And then, hopefully they go, ‘Oh, well, you know what, we actually really like this.’ ‘Oh, that’s nice. Now we’re giving you this now because that’s how the story works.’” On adding Gail as a character Druckmann revealed that they have a “running list” of things that are easier to do in each medium, and changes in perspective are categorized under the TV list. Unlike games, television doesn’t lock you into the perspective of the person you’re controlling; it can be natural for a show to jump around in storylines from scene to scene. “And obviously in the game, perspective shifts in cut scenes, but they are limited by design, they have to be,” Mazin says. “[TV is] nothing but cut scenes.” The ease afforded by TV for different perspectives is partially how the pair arrived at the character of Gail, a therapist in the show who lends Joel an ear. Joel has trouble opening up to Gail, because that would mean admitting that he mowed down a hospital to keep Ellie alive. Gail emphasizes the importance of vocalizing difficult thoughts, which she illustrates by telling Joel that deep down, she hates him. As it turns out, Joel killed Gail’s husband Eugene after he got infected, and it’s something she has never been able to fully get over. “So, Gail in particular, gave us a moment to figure out, not only where is Joel now emotionally, but what’s the story he’s telling himself?,” Mazin says. “What is the thing he’s most afraid of? And what is his opinion about his actions? And all of that is setting up, ultimately, a moment where he, a) has to finally confront the truth, and then b) has to pay the price.” As players know, the start of The Last of Us Part 2 focuses on Abby, the daughter of a doctor killed by Joel in the first game. This was meant as a surprise for players. Naughty Dog went to such lengths to contain this piece of information that in an extended preview of the game, a trailer made it look like Joel was still alive during the journey Ellie embarks on. Pulling off something like that, Maizin says, is way harder on TV because “what we can’t do is reproduce the shock of becoming another person. “In games, you are Joel, you are Ellie, you are Abby, and when that shift happens it’s jarring because you have been someone. But here, we are watching everybody equally on a screen. We may identify with time to time in different ways and we may be conflicted but we’re not them.” On Alice the dog In the season 2 finale of TLOU, Ellie arrives at the aquarium in search of Abby. In the games, there’s a dark moment when Ellie kills a dog named Alice at the aquarium — but it doesn’t happen in the show. In the interactive version, the death is particularly brutal because you also spend some of Abby’s storyline with Alice at your side. The valiant pup saves you from danger and is well-loved, and at least one scene depicts playtime with Alice. Why leave something like that out? Well, Mazin wrote Chernobyl, and in that show, there’s a segment where pets left behind in the nuclear disaster are culled in an effort to prevent further spread of radiation. “I think you get like one dog murdering episode a lifetime,” Mazin says. “There are two cardinal rules in Hollywood, one, don’t spend your own money, two, don’t kill a dog.” That’s the jokey reason, anyway. He continues, “Plus, because it’s live action, the nature of violence becomes much more, well, graphic. It’s more graphic because…it’s not like there’s an animation between you and it, [and] it’s very disturbing.” Druckmann also notes that the timeline of events during the show, the aquarium is sandwiched between a string of heavy moments. Ellie almost dies in one scene, Mel and Owen are killed, and later on, Jessie meets his end as well. “And in our conversation, we’re like this [is] probably one too many,” Druckmann says. On Joel’s last words In the games, the player does not find out that Ellie spoke to Joel the night before he died until well into the story. The show, on the other hand, parades this pivotal moment right away. Except in this version of events, Joel tells Ellie that he killed all those people at the hospital because he loves her in a way she can’t understand. “It also speaks to the adaptation process, which is Pedro’s Joel is more articulate, more outwardly vulnerable than Troy Baker’s Joel, and therefore there are these tiny differences that felt appropriate,” Druckmann says. “It’s harder for me to imagine that line coming out of the game Joel.” The writers wanted to help viewers tie that exchange with the one we see Joel have with his dad earlier in the season. In that episode, Joel confronts his father about his tendency to beat his children. Joel’s dad breaks down and says he’s doing the best he can, and that hopefully, Joel can do a little bit better than he did when he has kids of his own. Legacy and what we inherit from our parents is a more overt theme in the show. Ellie remarks that she’s going to be a father in one scene that doesn’t happen in the games, and later on, she’s shown picking up a book for Dina’s baby. On Tommy’s absence The circumstances surrounding Joel’s death are a tad different in the source material. In the games, Tommy and Joel come across Abby during a patrol. On TV, Dina and Joel collide with Abby’s group while Tommy is seen back in Jackson, defending the town from a wave of infected. In the games, Tommy is the first one to leave for Seattle in search of revenge after Ellie fails to get Jackson’s blessing. For some viewers, this change was frustrating because it made Tommy less active in the story. As the showrunners see it, Tommy isn’t lessened by these changes. Both Mazin and Druckmann point out that Tommy still sees plenty of action, as we watch him defend Jackson and take down a massive infected monster. “We thought it would be interesting if, rather than him going, ‘I’m just going to run out there and kill whoever did this,’ especially without a lot of information, that we would give Ellie and Dina that agency. “But now we know that Tommy is somewhere in there in Seattle, because he and Jesse went after them to save them. And what Tommy does now, once he is outside the confines of Jackson, remember, he’s a veteran. He’s been in war, and we also know that for some time he and Joel were doing some pretty bad things. So, there is the potential of seeing this other side of Tommy, and that is now about him delivering on his promise to his brother, ‘I’m not going to let anything bad happen to that kid’.” For those keeping track, this list of five changes hardly covers every difference between the show and the games. One of the most controversial changes for the fandom lies with Abby. In the games, Abby sports a buff, imposing frame. Kaitlyn Dever, who depicts Abby on-screen, has a much more svelte silhouette. For some, this casting choice felt too “Hollywood.” We’re told that Abby has been obsessing over Joel since the death of her father, and that she spends years getting ready for that moment. Presumably, this motivates Abby to undergo intense physical training — so viewers attach a lot of meaning to that specific character design. If you’re wondering why the show didn’t follow suit, though, that’s a topic that Druckmann and Mazin explored a month ago, in the inaugural podcast that accompanies the show. Dever, they said, was initially in the running to be Ellie when the games were being adapted to a movie. “It was very easy to close your eyes and see her as this character and see that– because this character, going back to what Craig was saying earlier, just has this drive, this passion, this intensity, this intense pursuit of justice, and has to be, like, extremely vulnerable at the same time,” Druckmann said at the time. “And have all these other facets that we haven’t even seen yet. It didn’t take much imagination to view her in that role.” Here, too, Mazin emphasized the differences between TV and movies. During the podcast, Mazin said that the reason Abby is so muscular in the games is because designers have to think about player experiences. When players change perspective, they expect that their actions will feel different in some way too. An effective way of getting there is by giving characters different ranges in physicality. TV, though, doesn’t have that constraint. This allowed the showrunners to focus on other aspects of Abby’s character. “So, to me,” Mazin said, “the key was to find a certain ferocity and a relentlessness. And I think you’ll see some of that as the season goes on and certainly as we go forward with the show.”

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2025-05-25 12:28:33 ·

The Best Fighting Games for 2025

Don't Feel Like Fighting? Check Out These Other Terrific PC Games

Brawlhalla

Brawlhalla3.5 Good

The Blue Mammoth Games-developed Brawlhalla is a free-to-play fighting game—available on PC, console, and mobile—that builds upon Smash's wild, character-focused gameplay by introducing unlimited wall-jumps and various other movement options that facilitate fun combat.The expanding character roster also features the likes of G.I. Joe's Snake Eyes, WWE's Randy "Macho Man" Savage, Tomb Raider's Lara Croft, and Street Fighter’s Chun-Li. Many of these licensed fighters require spending cash, but that's fine; it's worth spending for all current and future characters, because this platform-fighter is just that exciting.

Capcom Fighting Collection 2

Capcom Fighting Collection 24.0 Excellent

Capcom continues resurrecting its classic titles for modern audiences with Capcom Fighting Collection 2. This compilation features cool deep cuts not found in previous entries, including Power Stone and Project Justice. Along with the nostalgia, you'll enjoy new upgrades like online multiplayerand revamped display options. If you've had your fill of Street Fighter, this is a great way to broaden your fighting game horizons.
Capcom Fighting Collection 2review

Dead or Alive 6

Dead or Alive 63.5 Good

Dead or Alive 6, much like its immediate predecessor, is one part fighting game, one part fashion show, and one part schlocky action movie. Individually, each of the game's widely differing elements might not stand up to scrutiny. After all, DOA 6 isn't the best fighter, doesn't offer the deepest character customization, and doesn't quite reach the Tekken series' level of story insanity.Still, Dead or Alive 6 is a fun and surprisingly strategic PC game that offers enough freshness to warrant playing with its new Break Blow and Break Hold tools. Plus, the game's familiar Triangle System and Danger Zones are highly entertaining, too.

Divekick

Divekick3.5 Good

Iron Galaxy Studios' Divekick is the most hipster fighting game ever created. It's the product of the indie scene that mercilessly parodies fighting games and their die-hard community, yet demands that you be part of the underground circle to fully get all of the references and in-jokes.It's an odd game, but an interesting one if you open your mind to the insane concept of a two-button fighter based entirely on the idea of jumping and kicking. And 20-second rounds. And one-hit kills. And a line of scrimmage. Yes, Divekick is a fighting game freak show, but one worth checking out.

Dragon Ball FighterZ

Dragon Ball FighterZ4.0 Excellent

Beside Fist of the Northstar and Jo Jo's Bizarre Adventure, there are few anime properties that are as intrinsically suited to the fighting-game treatment as the Dragon Ball series. Spanning multiple series, movies, and generations of characters, Akira Toriyama's manga-turned-anime-turned-game series is all about buff monkey men, humans, aliens, and androids trading blows in actual earth-shattering battles.The series' latest video game adaptation, Dragon Ball FighterZ, ditches the Xenoverse games' arena-brawling model in favor of 3-vs.-3, tag-team fighting on a 2D plane. The gameplay shift is just one of the many reasons Dragon Ball FighterZ is being held aloft as one of 2018's notable titles. Its beautiful design, intense combat, and accessible control scheme add up to a game that anyone can jump into for Super Saiyan thrills.Plus, you can kick Cell through a mountain.
Dragon Ball FighterZreview

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves4.0 Excellent

The King of Fighters series is great, but Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves resurrects the SNK fighter that started it all. Familiar faces like Terry Bogard and Mai Shiranui battle real-life guest characters like DJ Salavatore Gannaci and soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo gather for this excellent take on fundamental, 2D fisticuffs. Rich mechanics add depth to both offensive and defensive play, while comic book-inspired graphics give brawls a distinct visual identity. Crossplay multiplayer shines with rollback netcode.
Fatal Fury: City of the Wolvesreview

Garou: Mark of the Wolves

Garou: Mark of the Wolves4.5 Excellent

Upon its 1999 release, Garou: Mark of the Wolves—a surprisingly deep and visually stunning entry in the long-running Fatal Fury series—was hailed as SNK's wondrous response to Capcom's Street Fighter III. Nearly 20 years later, SNK has finally given the fighting game the proper PC treatment by releasing it with numerous additional graphics options, leaderboards, and rollback, online versus play.Despite removing and downplaying some series-specific elements, Garou doesn't feel any less of a Fatal Fury game, however. It's set in the Southtown, and it features multiple fighters with classic Fatal Fury lineages, whether it's blood relationships to, or martial-arts tutelage from, older characters. Kim Kaphwan isn't in the game, for example, but his sons continue his legacy of swift, combo-heavy tae kwon do kicks.The result is an excellent game that boasts beautiful animation, Just Defend parries, and the strategic T.O.P. system that delivers increased attack damage, limited health regeneration, faster super-meter build up, and an exclusive special attack when your activate the mode.

Guilty Gear Strive

Guilty Gear Strive4.0 Excellent

The Guilty Gear series reigns as the king of anime-style fighting games due to its gorgeous art style, and a rich, demanding, and lighting-quick combat system. Unfortunately, its oceanic depth and mountainous skill ceiling proved inaccessible to the causal player—until now. With Strive, developer Arc System Works streamlines the series’ unique combat mechanics to make them more newcomer-friendly, while retaining the older games' creative richness. Strive comes with fewer extra modes than its predecessors, but there is a lot to love in this PC game, including astounding visuals, impressive character play styles, and snappy, lag-free online play courtesy of top-tier, rollback netcode. Strive is an approachable series entry that shakes up the Guilty Gear formula in the best ways possible.

Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign-

Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign-3.5 Good

Guilty Gear is a niche series within a niche genre, one that's enjoyed a cult following since its first appearance in 1998. With Xrd -SIGN-, developer Arc System Works ditches the series' 2D sprites in favor of 3D cel-shaded graphics in an attempt to expand its audience. Likewise, series creator Daisuke Ishiwatari sought a more approachable play style that maintains the depth and high skill ceiling that long-time Guilty Gear fans love.Still, Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- keeps the series familiar fighting actionthat enables creative offensive and defensive play.
Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign-review

Killer Instinct

Killer Instinct4.0 Excellent

When Killer Instinct debuted for Windows 10 in March 2016, it represented the latest chapter in the continued PC fighting game renaissance. With its arrival, Microsoft's one-on-one game of fisticuffs joined the likes of Guilty Gear, The King of Fighters, Street Fighter, and other high-profile series that now grace the personal computer.Killer Instinct has a combo-heavy engine that caters to both novices and pros, incredibly detailed graphics that boast ridiculous particle effects, and an over-the-top, NBA Jam-like announcer who screams your accomplishmentsat the top of his lungs.Killer Instinct is part of Microsoft's Play Anywhere initiative. So, if you buy Killer Instinct from the Microsoft Store, you'll also be able to play it on Xbox One at no additional cost. It has cross-platform play with Xbox One, too, thus expanding the online player base. There's a Steam version, too. Even better, the game's ridiculously good netcode ensures smooth play across the globe.
Killer Instinctreview

The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match Final Edition

The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition5.0 Outstanding

The King of Fighters '98—with its hops, rolls, blowback attacks, and meter-filling Advance and Extra modes—is one of the best fighting games ever made, so it's no surprise that developer SNK has returned to the title many times since the game's original release.In 2008, SNK celebrated the game's tenth anniversary by porting the team-based fighter to the PlayStation 2 as The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match, a game loaded with extra characters, stages, moves, and gameplay modes. Now, a tweaked Ultimate Match is available for purchase under the title The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition.This version adds numerous graphics options and good, but not great, online connectivity that lets you battle other KOF fans around the globe in 3-vs.-3 action.
The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Editionreview

The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match

The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match4.0 Excellent

Like The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition, The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match is a dream match that eschews a storyline so that developer SNK could include as many characters as possible—even some that are canonically dead, like crime boss Geese Howard. As a result, Unlimited Match boasts one of the largest fighting game rosters of all time, with a 66-character strong lineup.King of Fighters 2002 Ultimate Match continues the series tradition of excellent combat. Although it lacks KOF '98 UMFE's three radically different fight mechanics, Unlimited Match has a lone system that resembles Advanced Mode. This fighting style gives you plenty of offensiveand defensiveoptions for setting up or evading traps. Excellent rollback netcode lets you play people around the world without hiccup.

The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition

The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition4.0 Excellent

The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition brings SNK's incredibly dense, 3-vs.-3, team-based fighter to the PC via Valve's video game marketplace. It's an all-around excellent fighting game, and one of the best in SNK's rich catalog.If you've rumbled with friends and foes in the version that appeared on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, you'll feel right at home here: The intricate combat mechanics, meter management, and the best sprite-based graphics ever seen in a fighting game are brought over successfully in this Steam port.Even better, The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition contains all the console DLC and the King of Fighters XIII: Climax arcade features. Similar to The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match Final Edition, The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition has decent online play, but you can expect some hiccups.
The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Editionreview

The Last Blade

The Last Blade4.0 Excellent

SNK put weapons-based, 2D fighting on the map with 1993's delightful Samurai Shodown, but the developer went on to refine the idea of sword-based combat four years later in a somewhat lesser-known Neo Geo title: The Last Blade.Released to the Steam platform with several contemporary bells and whistles, The Last Blade boasts excellent swordplay, a dozen exquisitely designed characters, and a gorgeous anime- and manga-style presentation that make its 19th-century Japanese setting one of the most beautiful in fighting-game history.

Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite

Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite3.5 Good

Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite has taken its fair share of flack since its reveal, and the venom is not at all unwarranted. The initial trailer for the tag-team fighting game featured dull, washed-out graphics, and Capcom highlighted the new novice-friendly, auto-combo options that are designed to help casuals bust out cool-looking moves in an otherwise hardcore genre. As a result, fight fans were highly skeptical of the game, as was I.Fortunately, my Infinite sentiments changed upon logging several hours with the game. The Infinity Stone hook and the move to 2-vs.-2, tag team action make Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite an incredibly fun PC game to play in both casual and hardcore sessions.Still, Infinite has presentation and MCU-focused roster issues that prevent it from rising to the very top of the fighting game elite.

Mortal Kombat XL

Mortal Kombat XL4.0 Excellent

When NetherRealm Studios released the blood-drenched Mortal Kombat X to consoles in 2015, the one-on-one fighting game continued to evolve via free and paid updates that added characters, balanced the roster, and improved online play. However, the High Voltage Studios-ported PC version of the game received zero post-launch support, much to the dismay of hardcore Mortal Kombat fans.Thankfully, that changed with the Mortal Kombat XL update, a version of MKX that finally gives PC gamers all the extras that console-based fight fans have enjoyed for some time now. I dislike the idea of paying more money for PC content released long after the console version, but it's hard not to love the additions, which include even more fighters, stages, costumes, and gore.Paid DLC added plenty of guest fighters, which has becoming commonplace in the fighting game circle. They include the Predator and Friday the 13th's Jason Vorhees.

The King of Fighters XV

The King of Fighters XV4.0 Excellent

Developer SNK took KOF XIV's core, revamped the MAX meter, added the Shatterstrike counter system, and gave the character models an eye-catching redesign to create one of the best fighting games in recent history. KOF XV features an updated fighting engine that facilitates fast-paced, creative combat, and near-flawless rollback netcode that will keep you knuckling up with online rivals for hours on end.The game's dense with options. You can play the narrative-driven Story mode, use DJ Station to listen to more that 300 music tracks culled from SNK's rich, decades-long game library, engage in casual and ranked online battles, view leaderboards, and check out match replays. In a community-fostering move, SNK included an esports-friendly tournament mode tailor-made for locals and majors like Evo. You can save 15 custom teams, set up brackets and rulesets, and register up to 32 entrants. It's a great touch. In addition, KOF XV lets you join online lobbies to play against others or simply spectate.

Mortal Kombat 11

Mortal Kombat 114.5 Excellent

Mortal Kombat 11 is far more than the guts and gore titles on which the series built its fame. The narrative sequel to Mortal Kombat X, Mortal Kombat 11 uses time travel to pit characters against their rivals in the past in order to alter the present. Whatever.Mortal Kombat 11 continues the series tradition of chop-socky action and otherworldly mysticism to lay the foundation for military operatives, ninjas, gods, and monsters to punch each other squarely in the face. With its character customization, HDR10 support, smooth animations, and new offensive and defensive meters, MK11 is the best Mortal Kombat game to date.
Mortal Kombat 11review

Samurai Shodown

Samurai Shodown3.5 Good

Clashing swords, blood spurts, and tense, measured play define Samurai Shodown, SNK's beloved weapons-based fighting game series. This series refresh, the simply named Samurai Shodown, carries those elements to PC after the game first appeared on console. If you've waited this long in hopes that Samurai Shodown would add many PC-exclusive extras, you may be disappointed; this is largely the same game that appeared elsewhere. Still, Samurai Shodown's unique, defense-orientated gameplay makes it a fighting game to check out for sword-swinging, blood-letting action. Prep for lengthy load times, though.

Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection

Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection4.0 Excellent

Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection, SNK and Digital Eclipse's follow up to the delightful SNK 40th Anniversary Collection, contains all the SamSho games that appeared on the original Neo Geo, plus production art, SNK staff interviews, and a true surprise—an unreleased title that only briefly saw a location test. Overall, Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection is a wonderful piece of playable history, with the only blight against the PC game being its mediocre online components.

Skullgirls 2nd Encore

Skullgirls 2nd Encore4.5 Excellent

Skullgirls 2nd Encore, the update to Reverge Labs's critically acclaimed original game, takes cues from many highly regarded fighting titles and blends it with the series' unique, cartoony, art deco-influenced visual style.However, Skullgirls 2nd Encore's graphics aren't all that separate it from the competition. The indie fighter boasts a Capcom vs. SNK-style ratio system that lets you select up to three characters to battle up to three rival characters, as well as a Marvel vs. Capcom-style assist system. The fighter also has a built-in system that automatically stops infinites, those annoying and abusive combos that never end.

SNK vs. Capcom: The Match of the Millennium

SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium4.5 Excellent

With Match of the Millennium's rerelease, the secret best fighting game in the SNK vs. Capcom crossover series finds a new audience. Featuring an 18-character default roster, and three deep groove systems that replicate beloved the companies' beloved fighting game engines, SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium sees two fighting game universes collide in marvelous fashion.That would be more than enough variety, but Match of the Millennium offers additional goodies. It features standard Sparring, Survival, and Time Attack fighting modes. Olympics, however, is the most intriguing mode, as it lets you indulge in several non-fighting game minigames. For example, you can blast Metal Slug's Mars People in a first-person shooting mode or guide Ghost 'N Goblins' Arthur across pits to snatch up treasure. The Versus points that you earn here unlock extra super moves for the default and secret characters. These contests have the depth of early mobile phone games, but they're a nice diversion from the standard fighting game action.Match of the Millennium is a genuinely entertaining and rich fighting game that combines challenge and strategy with a hefty helping of lighthearted humor.

SoulCalibur VI

SoulCalibur VI4.0 Excellent

The weapons-based combat series has seen its ups and downs over the years, but with SoulCalibur VI, developer Bandai Namco has taken what's worked in the past—swift, strategic combat and robust character customization—and paired it with the new Reversal Edge and Soul Charge battle mechanics to create an engaging PC fighting game that'll shine in all sorts of battles, whether they're between buddies or on big esports stages like Evo.Combat is crisp and rewarding, with a universal control scheme that makes it a breeze to pick up a new character. Each fighter has a horizontal attack, vertical attack, kick, block, parry, sidestep, guard-crushing Break Attack, and Critical Edge super attack. This control scheme will feel familiar to anyone who's played recent SoulCalibur titles, and it leads to some tense combat moments as you attack and defend.

Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection

Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection4.0 Excellent

Film aficionados rely on The Criterion Collection to take vital classic and contemporary movies and present them in thoughtful, information-filled packages for modern audiences. Until very recently, the 40-year old video game industry lacked its own Criterion Collection, letting important pop culture contributions slip into oblivion due to incompatible hardware and software formats, expired licenses, and plain neglect. Thankfully, the games preservation experts at Digital Eclipse have taken up the task, blessing gamers with titles that celebrate classic titles via accurate emulation and a bounty of production-related extras and modern touches. The company's first foray into the fighting game genre is Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection.This collection doesn't include Street Fighter: The Movie, the Street Fighter EX titles, or X-Men vs. Street Fighter, but you will find all the core arcade releases. The lineup includes Street Fighter, Street Fighter II, Street Fighter II: Champion Edition, Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting, Super Street Fighter II: The New ChallengersSuper Street Fighter II Turbo, Street Fighter Alpha, Street Fighter Alpha 2, Street Fighter III: New Generation, Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact Giant Attack, Street Fighter Alpha 3, and Street Fighter III 3rd Strike: Fight For The Future.Even better, you don't just get the games. This collection includes a sprite/animation view, design documents, a historical timeline, and a jukebox. In short, Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection is a love letter to one of the most important video game franchises of all time.

Street Fighter V: Champion Edition

Street Fighter V: Champion Edition3.5 Good

In February 2016, Street Fighter V arrived on PC with many flaws that detracted from the stellar gameplay, including awful server instability, no true single-player mode, and a surprisingly limited multiplayer Battle Lounge. However, over the course of the last few years, developer Capcom released several updates that addressedthose issues while also adding new stages and playable characters.Street Fighter V: Champion Edition, with its fresh and returning characters, new fight systems, interactive stages, Cinematic Story Mode, and cross-platform play with PlayStation 4 owners, finally makes the one-on-one fighting game a title to pick up even for gamers who don't have Evo dreams.
Street Fighter V: Champion Editionreview

Street Fighter 6

Street Fighter 65.0 Outstanding

Following Street Fighter V's lukewarm reception, Capcom had much to prove with Street Fighter 6. Thankfully, the developer not only righted the previous title's wrongs, but exceeded expectations by including nearly everything that fans would want in a contemporary fighting game.The title's powered by the new Drive Gauge, a meter that's full and ready for action at the beginning of each round. With the Drive Gauge, you can unleash the Drive Impact, Drive Parry, Drive Reversal, Drive Rush, and Overdrive moves. It, along with the Dynamic and Modern control schemes, gives you more combat flexibility than any previous Street Fighter game. The result is one of the best fighters ever crafted, one that enables hype-fueled moments in casual and competitive play.
Street Fighter 6review

Tekken 7

Tekken 74.5 Excellent

Tekken 7, like the main-line Tekken games that came before it, is a tale of fathers and sons attempting to murder each other to purge the Mishima clan of the Devil Gene, a magical bit of DNA that transforms certain people into hell spawn.The excellent combat accentuates the narrative ridiculousness. Like its predecessors, Tekken 7 is a fighting game that features simple, limb-mapped controls, massive character move sets, and numerous juggles that let you keep a combo flowing, if you're skilled enough to input the correct move at the right moment. With Tekken 7, the series receives super movesand enhanced, special attacks that can blow through an opponent's attack.Tekken 7 is an incredibly tense game of jabs, feints, and sidesteps, because any hit may lead to a long combo sting. Factor in characters with move sets that emulate real martial arts, interactive stages that let you knock people through floors and walls, and terrific slowdown effects that happen when both fighters' health bars are in the red and they perform close-quarter melee attacks, and you have a fighting game that's essentially an interactive martial arts flick.

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 33.5 Good

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 pits Marvel's superheroes against Capcom's video game characters in a frantic 3-vs.-3, tag team brawl. The 48-character headcount is impressive, but it's the individual characters and visual aesthetic that truly make the game shine.Marvel's side has several popular and obscure characters, including Captain America, Iron Man, Iron Fist, and She-Hulk, and Spider-Man. Capcom's side mainly comprises characters from the company's fighting and action games, including Final Fight's Mike Haggar and Street Fighter's Ryu. The comic book-style graphics, with their bright colors and heavy black lines, gives Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 an eye-popping look.In terms of gameplay, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 builds upon its Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds predecessor by including a three-button control scheme, the momentum-changing X-Factor mechanic, and retooled aerial combat.

Ultra Street Fighter IV

Ultra Street Fighter IV4.5 Excellent

Ultra Street Fighter IV marks Capcom's fourth version of Street Fighter IV and the third version available on the Steam platform. Like vanilla Street Fighter IV and Super Street Fighter IV, Ultra's combat is centered on Focus Attacks, a move that lets your character tank a blow and unleash a counterattack.This final iteration adds five new characters, six new stages, a YouTube upload option, Edition Select, and Double Ultra.It's Street Fighter IV's best and meatiest update, though some balance issues prove a bit irritating in play. Still, Ultra Street Fighter IV is an excellent, competitive one-on-one fighting game.
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The Best Fighting Games for 2025
Don't Feel Like Fighting? Check Out These Other Terrific PC Games Brawlhalla Brawlhalla3.5 Good The Blue Mammoth Games-developed Brawlhalla is a free-to-play fighting game—available on PC, console, and mobile—that builds upon Smash's wild, character-focused gameplay by introducing unlimited wall-jumps and various other movement options that facilitate fun combat.The expanding character roster also features the likes of G.I. Joe's Snake Eyes, WWE's Randy "Macho Man" Savage, Tomb Raider's Lara Croft, and Street Fighter’s Chun-Li. Many of these licensed fighters require spending cash, but that's fine; it's worth spending for all current and future characters, because this platform-fighter is just that exciting. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 Capcom Fighting Collection 24.0 Excellent Capcom continues resurrecting its classic titles for modern audiences with Capcom Fighting Collection 2. This compilation features cool deep cuts not found in previous entries, including Power Stone and Project Justice. Along with the nostalgia, you'll enjoy new upgrades like online multiplayerand revamped display options. If you've had your fill of Street Fighter, this is a great way to broaden your fighting game horizons. Capcom Fighting Collection 2review Dead or Alive 6 Dead or Alive 63.5 Good Dead or Alive 6, much like its immediate predecessor, is one part fighting game, one part fashion show, and one part schlocky action movie. Individually, each of the game's widely differing elements might not stand up to scrutiny. After all, DOA 6 isn't the best fighter, doesn't offer the deepest character customization, and doesn't quite reach the Tekken series' level of story insanity.Still, Dead or Alive 6 is a fun and surprisingly strategic PC game that offers enough freshness to warrant playing with its new Break Blow and Break Hold tools. Plus, the game's familiar Triangle System and Danger Zones are highly entertaining, too. Divekick Divekick3.5 Good Iron Galaxy Studios' Divekick is the most hipster fighting game ever created. It's the product of the indie scene that mercilessly parodies fighting games and their die-hard community, yet demands that you be part of the underground circle to fully get all of the references and in-jokes.It's an odd game, but an interesting one if you open your mind to the insane concept of a two-button fighter based entirely on the idea of jumping and kicking. And 20-second rounds. And one-hit kills. And a line of scrimmage. Yes, Divekick is a fighting game freak show, but one worth checking out. Dragon Ball FighterZ Dragon Ball FighterZ4.0 Excellent Beside Fist of the Northstar and Jo Jo's Bizarre Adventure, there are few anime properties that are as intrinsically suited to the fighting-game treatment as the Dragon Ball series. Spanning multiple series, movies, and generations of characters, Akira Toriyama's manga-turned-anime-turned-game series is all about buff monkey men, humans, aliens, and androids trading blows in actual earth-shattering battles.The series' latest video game adaptation, Dragon Ball FighterZ, ditches the Xenoverse games' arena-brawling model in favor of 3-vs.-3, tag-team fighting on a 2D plane. The gameplay shift is just one of the many reasons Dragon Ball FighterZ is being held aloft as one of 2018's notable titles. Its beautiful design, intense combat, and accessible control scheme add up to a game that anyone can jump into for Super Saiyan thrills.Plus, you can kick Cell through a mountain. Dragon Ball FighterZreview Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves4.0 Excellent The King of Fighters series is great, but Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves resurrects the SNK fighter that started it all. Familiar faces like Terry Bogard and Mai Shiranui battle real-life guest characters like DJ Salavatore Gannaci and soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo gather for this excellent take on fundamental, 2D fisticuffs. Rich mechanics add depth to both offensive and defensive play, while comic book-inspired graphics give brawls a distinct visual identity. Crossplay multiplayer shines with rollback netcode. Fatal Fury: City of the Wolvesreview Garou: Mark of the Wolves Garou: Mark of the Wolves4.5 Excellent Upon its 1999 release, Garou: Mark of the Wolves—a surprisingly deep and visually stunning entry in the long-running Fatal Fury series—was hailed as SNK's wondrous response to Capcom's Street Fighter III. Nearly 20 years later, SNK has finally given the fighting game the proper PC treatment by releasing it with numerous additional graphics options, leaderboards, and rollback, online versus play.Despite removing and downplaying some series-specific elements, Garou doesn't feel any less of a Fatal Fury game, however. It's set in the Southtown, and it features multiple fighters with classic Fatal Fury lineages, whether it's blood relationships to, or martial-arts tutelage from, older characters. Kim Kaphwan isn't in the game, for example, but his sons continue his legacy of swift, combo-heavy tae kwon do kicks.The result is an excellent game that boasts beautiful animation, Just Defend parries, and the strategic T.O.P. system that delivers increased attack damage, limited health regeneration, faster super-meter build up, and an exclusive special attack when your activate the mode. Guilty Gear Strive Guilty Gear Strive4.0 Excellent The Guilty Gear series reigns as the king of anime-style fighting games due to its gorgeous art style, and a rich, demanding, and lighting-quick combat system. Unfortunately, its oceanic depth and mountainous skill ceiling proved inaccessible to the causal player—until now. With Strive, developer Arc System Works streamlines the series’ unique combat mechanics to make them more newcomer-friendly, while retaining the older games' creative richness. Strive comes with fewer extra modes than its predecessors, but there is a lot to love in this PC game, including astounding visuals, impressive character play styles, and snappy, lag-free online play courtesy of top-tier, rollback netcode. Strive is an approachable series entry that shakes up the Guilty Gear formula in the best ways possible. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign-3.5 Good Guilty Gear is a niche series within a niche genre, one that's enjoyed a cult following since its first appearance in 1998. With Xrd -SIGN-, developer Arc System Works ditches the series' 2D sprites in favor of 3D cel-shaded graphics in an attempt to expand its audience. Likewise, series creator Daisuke Ishiwatari sought a more approachable play style that maintains the depth and high skill ceiling that long-time Guilty Gear fans love.Still, Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- keeps the series familiar fighting actionthat enables creative offensive and defensive play. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign-review Killer Instinct Killer Instinct4.0 Excellent When Killer Instinct debuted for Windows 10 in March 2016, it represented the latest chapter in the continued PC fighting game renaissance. With its arrival, Microsoft's one-on-one game of fisticuffs joined the likes of Guilty Gear, The King of Fighters, Street Fighter, and other high-profile series that now grace the personal computer.Killer Instinct has a combo-heavy engine that caters to both novices and pros, incredibly detailed graphics that boast ridiculous particle effects, and an over-the-top, NBA Jam-like announcer who screams your accomplishmentsat the top of his lungs.Killer Instinct is part of Microsoft's Play Anywhere initiative. So, if you buy Killer Instinct from the Microsoft Store, you'll also be able to play it on Xbox One at no additional cost. It has cross-platform play with Xbox One, too, thus expanding the online player base. There's a Steam version, too. Even better, the game's ridiculously good netcode ensures smooth play across the globe. Killer Instinctreview The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match Final Edition The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition5.0 Outstanding The King of Fighters '98—with its hops, rolls, blowback attacks, and meter-filling Advance and Extra modes—is one of the best fighting games ever made, so it's no surprise that developer SNK has returned to the title many times since the game's original release.In 2008, SNK celebrated the game's tenth anniversary by porting the team-based fighter to the PlayStation 2 as The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match, a game loaded with extra characters, stages, moves, and gameplay modes. Now, a tweaked Ultimate Match is available for purchase under the title The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition.This version adds numerous graphics options and good, but not great, online connectivity that lets you battle other KOF fans around the globe in 3-vs.-3 action. The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Editionreview The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match4.0 Excellent Like The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition, The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match is a dream match that eschews a storyline so that developer SNK could include as many characters as possible—even some that are canonically dead, like crime boss Geese Howard. As a result, Unlimited Match boasts one of the largest fighting game rosters of all time, with a 66-character strong lineup.King of Fighters 2002 Ultimate Match continues the series tradition of excellent combat. Although it lacks KOF '98 UMFE's three radically different fight mechanics, Unlimited Match has a lone system that resembles Advanced Mode. This fighting style gives you plenty of offensiveand defensiveoptions for setting up or evading traps. Excellent rollback netcode lets you play people around the world without hiccup. The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition4.0 Excellent The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition brings SNK's incredibly dense, 3-vs.-3, team-based fighter to the PC via Valve's video game marketplace. It's an all-around excellent fighting game, and one of the best in SNK's rich catalog.If you've rumbled with friends and foes in the version that appeared on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, you'll feel right at home here: The intricate combat mechanics, meter management, and the best sprite-based graphics ever seen in a fighting game are brought over successfully in this Steam port.Even better, The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition contains all the console DLC and the King of Fighters XIII: Climax arcade features. Similar to The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match Final Edition, The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition has decent online play, but you can expect some hiccups. The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Editionreview The Last Blade The Last Blade4.0 Excellent SNK put weapons-based, 2D fighting on the map with 1993's delightful Samurai Shodown, but the developer went on to refine the idea of sword-based combat four years later in a somewhat lesser-known Neo Geo title: The Last Blade.Released to the Steam platform with several contemporary bells and whistles, The Last Blade boasts excellent swordplay, a dozen exquisitely designed characters, and a gorgeous anime- and manga-style presentation that make its 19th-century Japanese setting one of the most beautiful in fighting-game history. Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite3.5 Good Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite has taken its fair share of flack since its reveal, and the venom is not at all unwarranted. The initial trailer for the tag-team fighting game featured dull, washed-out graphics, and Capcom highlighted the new novice-friendly, auto-combo options that are designed to help casuals bust out cool-looking moves in an otherwise hardcore genre. As a result, fight fans were highly skeptical of the game, as was I.Fortunately, my Infinite sentiments changed upon logging several hours with the game. The Infinity Stone hook and the move to 2-vs.-2, tag team action make Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite an incredibly fun PC game to play in both casual and hardcore sessions.Still, Infinite has presentation and MCU-focused roster issues that prevent it from rising to the very top of the fighting game elite. Mortal Kombat XL Mortal Kombat XL4.0 Excellent When NetherRealm Studios released the blood-drenched Mortal Kombat X to consoles in 2015, the one-on-one fighting game continued to evolve via free and paid updates that added characters, balanced the roster, and improved online play. However, the High Voltage Studios-ported PC version of the game received zero post-launch support, much to the dismay of hardcore Mortal Kombat fans.Thankfully, that changed with the Mortal Kombat XL update, a version of MKX that finally gives PC gamers all the extras that console-based fight fans have enjoyed for some time now. I dislike the idea of paying more money for PC content released long after the console version, but it's hard not to love the additions, which include even more fighters, stages, costumes, and gore.Paid DLC added plenty of guest fighters, which has becoming commonplace in the fighting game circle. They include the Predator and Friday the 13th's Jason Vorhees. The King of Fighters XV The King of Fighters XV4.0 Excellent Developer SNK took KOF XIV's core, revamped the MAX meter, added the Shatterstrike counter system, and gave the character models an eye-catching redesign to create one of the best fighting games in recent history. KOF XV features an updated fighting engine that facilitates fast-paced, creative combat, and near-flawless rollback netcode that will keep you knuckling up with online rivals for hours on end.The game's dense with options. You can play the narrative-driven Story mode, use DJ Station to listen to more that 300 music tracks culled from SNK's rich, decades-long game library, engage in casual and ranked online battles, view leaderboards, and check out match replays. In a community-fostering move, SNK included an esports-friendly tournament mode tailor-made for locals and majors like Evo. You can save 15 custom teams, set up brackets and rulesets, and register up to 32 entrants. It's a great touch. In addition, KOF XV lets you join online lobbies to play against others or simply spectate. Mortal Kombat 11 Mortal Kombat 114.5 Excellent Mortal Kombat 11 is far more than the guts and gore titles on which the series built its fame. The narrative sequel to Mortal Kombat X, Mortal Kombat 11 uses time travel to pit characters against their rivals in the past in order to alter the present. Whatever.Mortal Kombat 11 continues the series tradition of chop-socky action and otherworldly mysticism to lay the foundation for military operatives, ninjas, gods, and monsters to punch each other squarely in the face. With its character customization, HDR10 support, smooth animations, and new offensive and defensive meters, MK11 is the best Mortal Kombat game to date. Mortal Kombat 11review Samurai Shodown Samurai Shodown3.5 Good Clashing swords, blood spurts, and tense, measured play define Samurai Shodown, SNK's beloved weapons-based fighting game series. This series refresh, the simply named Samurai Shodown, carries those elements to PC after the game first appeared on console. If you've waited this long in hopes that Samurai Shodown would add many PC-exclusive extras, you may be disappointed; this is largely the same game that appeared elsewhere. Still, Samurai Shodown's unique, defense-orientated gameplay makes it a fighting game to check out for sword-swinging, blood-letting action. Prep for lengthy load times, though. Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection4.0 Excellent Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection, SNK and Digital Eclipse's follow up to the delightful SNK 40th Anniversary Collection, contains all the SamSho games that appeared on the original Neo Geo, plus production art, SNK staff interviews, and a true surprise—an unreleased title that only briefly saw a location test. Overall, Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection is a wonderful piece of playable history, with the only blight against the PC game being its mediocre online components. Skullgirls 2nd Encore Skullgirls 2nd Encore4.5 Excellent Skullgirls 2nd Encore, the update to Reverge Labs's critically acclaimed original game, takes cues from many highly regarded fighting titles and blends it with the series' unique, cartoony, art deco-influenced visual style.However, Skullgirls 2nd Encore's graphics aren't all that separate it from the competition. The indie fighter boasts a Capcom vs. SNK-style ratio system that lets you select up to three characters to battle up to three rival characters, as well as a Marvel vs. Capcom-style assist system. The fighter also has a built-in system that automatically stops infinites, those annoying and abusive combos that never end. SNK vs. Capcom: The Match of the Millennium SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium4.5 Excellent With Match of the Millennium's rerelease, the secret best fighting game in the SNK vs. Capcom crossover series finds a new audience. Featuring an 18-character default roster, and three deep groove systems that replicate beloved the companies' beloved fighting game engines, SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium sees two fighting game universes collide in marvelous fashion.That would be more than enough variety, but Match of the Millennium offers additional goodies. It features standard Sparring, Survival, and Time Attack fighting modes. Olympics, however, is the most intriguing mode, as it lets you indulge in several non-fighting game minigames. For example, you can blast Metal Slug's Mars People in a first-person shooting mode or guide Ghost 'N Goblins' Arthur across pits to snatch up treasure. The Versus points that you earn here unlock extra super moves for the default and secret characters. These contests have the depth of early mobile phone games, but they're a nice diversion from the standard fighting game action.Match of the Millennium is a genuinely entertaining and rich fighting game that combines challenge and strategy with a hefty helping of lighthearted humor. SoulCalibur VI SoulCalibur VI4.0 Excellent The weapons-based combat series has seen its ups and downs over the years, but with SoulCalibur VI, developer Bandai Namco has taken what's worked in the past—swift, strategic combat and robust character customization—and paired it with the new Reversal Edge and Soul Charge battle mechanics to create an engaging PC fighting game that'll shine in all sorts of battles, whether they're between buddies or on big esports stages like Evo.Combat is crisp and rewarding, with a universal control scheme that makes it a breeze to pick up a new character. Each fighter has a horizontal attack, vertical attack, kick, block, parry, sidestep, guard-crushing Break Attack, and Critical Edge super attack. This control scheme will feel familiar to anyone who's played recent SoulCalibur titles, and it leads to some tense combat moments as you attack and defend. Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection4.0 Excellent Film aficionados rely on The Criterion Collection to take vital classic and contemporary movies and present them in thoughtful, information-filled packages for modern audiences. Until very recently, the 40-year old video game industry lacked its own Criterion Collection, letting important pop culture contributions slip into oblivion due to incompatible hardware and software formats, expired licenses, and plain neglect. Thankfully, the games preservation experts at Digital Eclipse have taken up the task, blessing gamers with titles that celebrate classic titles via accurate emulation and a bounty of production-related extras and modern touches. The company's first foray into the fighting game genre is Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection.This collection doesn't include Street Fighter: The Movie, the Street Fighter EX titles, or X-Men vs. Street Fighter, but you will find all the core arcade releases. The lineup includes Street Fighter, Street Fighter II, Street Fighter II: Champion Edition, Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting, Super Street Fighter II: The New ChallengersSuper Street Fighter II Turbo, Street Fighter Alpha, Street Fighter Alpha 2, Street Fighter III: New Generation, Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact Giant Attack, Street Fighter Alpha 3, and Street Fighter III 3rd Strike: Fight For The Future.Even better, you don't just get the games. This collection includes a sprite/animation view, design documents, a historical timeline, and a jukebox. In short, Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection is a love letter to one of the most important video game franchises of all time. Street Fighter V: Champion Edition Street Fighter V: Champion Edition3.5 Good In February 2016, Street Fighter V arrived on PC with many flaws that detracted from the stellar gameplay, including awful server instability, no true single-player mode, and a surprisingly limited multiplayer Battle Lounge. However, over the course of the last few years, developer Capcom released several updates that addressedthose issues while also adding new stages and playable characters.Street Fighter V: Champion Edition, with its fresh and returning characters, new fight systems, interactive stages, Cinematic Story Mode, and cross-platform play with PlayStation 4 owners, finally makes the one-on-one fighting game a title to pick up even for gamers who don't have Evo dreams. Street Fighter V: Champion Editionreview Street Fighter 6 Street Fighter 65.0 Outstanding Following Street Fighter V's lukewarm reception, Capcom had much to prove with Street Fighter 6. Thankfully, the developer not only righted the previous title's wrongs, but exceeded expectations by including nearly everything that fans would want in a contemporary fighting game.The title's powered by the new Drive Gauge, a meter that's full and ready for action at the beginning of each round. With the Drive Gauge, you can unleash the Drive Impact, Drive Parry, Drive Reversal, Drive Rush, and Overdrive moves. It, along with the Dynamic and Modern control schemes, gives you more combat flexibility than any previous Street Fighter game. The result is one of the best fighters ever crafted, one that enables hype-fueled moments in casual and competitive play. Street Fighter 6review Tekken 7 Tekken 74.5 Excellent Tekken 7, like the main-line Tekken games that came before it, is a tale of fathers and sons attempting to murder each other to purge the Mishima clan of the Devil Gene, a magical bit of DNA that transforms certain people into hell spawn.The excellent combat accentuates the narrative ridiculousness. Like its predecessors, Tekken 7 is a fighting game that features simple, limb-mapped controls, massive character move sets, and numerous juggles that let you keep a combo flowing, if you're skilled enough to input the correct move at the right moment. With Tekken 7, the series receives super movesand enhanced, special attacks that can blow through an opponent's attack.Tekken 7 is an incredibly tense game of jabs, feints, and sidesteps, because any hit may lead to a long combo sting. Factor in characters with move sets that emulate real martial arts, interactive stages that let you knock people through floors and walls, and terrific slowdown effects that happen when both fighters' health bars are in the red and they perform close-quarter melee attacks, and you have a fighting game that's essentially an interactive martial arts flick. Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 33.5 Good Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 pits Marvel's superheroes against Capcom's video game characters in a frantic 3-vs.-3, tag team brawl. The 48-character headcount is impressive, but it's the individual characters and visual aesthetic that truly make the game shine.Marvel's side has several popular and obscure characters, including Captain America, Iron Man, Iron Fist, and She-Hulk, and Spider-Man. Capcom's side mainly comprises characters from the company's fighting and action games, including Final Fight's Mike Haggar and Street Fighter's Ryu. The comic book-style graphics, with their bright colors and heavy black lines, gives Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 an eye-popping look.In terms of gameplay, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 builds upon its Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds predecessor by including a three-button control scheme, the momentum-changing X-Factor mechanic, and retooled aerial combat. Ultra Street Fighter IV Ultra Street Fighter IV4.5 Excellent Ultra Street Fighter IV marks Capcom's fourth version of Street Fighter IV and the third version available on the Steam platform. Like vanilla Street Fighter IV and Super Street Fighter IV, Ultra's combat is centered on Focus Attacks, a move that lets your character tank a blow and unleash a counterattack.This final iteration adds five new characters, six new stages, a YouTube upload option, Edition Select, and Double Ultra.It's Street Fighter IV's best and meatiest update, though some balance issues prove a bit irritating in play. Still, Ultra Street Fighter IV is an excellent, competitive one-on-one fighting game. #best #fighting #games

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The Best Fighting Games for 2025

Don't Feel Like Fighting? Check Out These Other Terrific PC Games Brawlhalla Brawlhalla (for PC) 3.5 Good The Blue Mammoth Games-developed Brawlhalla is a free-to-play fighting game—available on PC, console, and mobile—that builds upon Smash's wild, character-focused gameplay by introducing unlimited wall-jumps and various other movement options that facilitate fun combat.The expanding character roster also features the likes of G.I. Joe's Snake Eyes, WWE's Randy "Macho Man" Savage, Tomb Raider's Lara Croft, and Street Fighter’s Chun-Li. Many of these licensed fighters require spending cash, but that's fine; it's worth spending $20 for all current and future characters, because this platform-fighter is just that exciting. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 Capcom Fighting Collection 2 (for PC) 4.0 Excellent Capcom continues resurrecting its classic titles for modern audiences with Capcom Fighting Collection 2. This compilation features cool deep cuts not found in previous entries, including Power Stone and Project Justice. Along with the nostalgia, you'll enjoy new upgrades like online multiplayer (but no crossplay) and revamped display options. If you've had your fill of Street Fighter, this is a great way to broaden your fighting game horizons. Capcom Fighting Collection 2 (for PC) review Dead or Alive 6 Dead or Alive 6 (for PC) 3.5 Good Dead or Alive 6, much like its immediate predecessor, is one part fighting game, one part fashion show, and one part schlocky action movie. Individually, each of the game's widely differing elements might not stand up to scrutiny. After all, DOA 6 isn't the best fighter, doesn't offer the deepest character customization, and doesn't quite reach the Tekken series' level of story insanity.Still, Dead or Alive 6 is a fun and surprisingly strategic PC game that offers enough freshness to warrant playing with its new Break Blow and Break Hold tools. Plus, the game's familiar Triangle System and Danger Zones are highly entertaining, too. Divekick Divekick (for PC) 3.5 Good Iron Galaxy Studios' Divekick is the most hipster fighting game ever created. It's the product of the indie scene that mercilessly parodies fighting games and their die-hard community, yet demands that you be part of the underground circle to fully get all of the references and in-jokes.It's an odd game, but an interesting one if you open your mind to the insane concept of a two-button fighter based entirely on the idea of jumping and kicking. And 20-second rounds. And one-hit kills. And a line of scrimmage. Yes, Divekick is a fighting game freak show, but one worth checking out. Dragon Ball FighterZ Dragon Ball FighterZ (for PC) 4.0 Excellent Beside Fist of the Northstar and Jo Jo's Bizarre Adventure, there are few anime properties that are as intrinsically suited to the fighting-game treatment as the Dragon Ball series. Spanning multiple series, movies, and generations of characters, Akira Toriyama's manga-turned-anime-turned-game series is all about buff monkey men, humans, aliens, and androids trading blows in actual earth-shattering battles.The series' latest video game adaptation, Dragon Ball FighterZ, ditches the Xenoverse games' arena-brawling model in favor of 3-vs.-3, tag-team fighting on a 2D plane. The gameplay shift is just one of the many reasons Dragon Ball FighterZ is being held aloft as one of 2018's notable titles. Its beautiful design, intense combat, and accessible control scheme add up to a game that anyone can jump into for Super Saiyan thrills.Plus, you can kick Cell through a mountain. Dragon Ball FighterZ (for PC) review Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves (for PC) 4.0 Excellent The King of Fighters series is great, but Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves resurrects the SNK fighter that started it all. Familiar faces like Terry Bogard and Mai Shiranui battle real-life guest characters like DJ Salavatore Gannaci and soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo gather for this excellent take on fundamental, 2D fisticuffs. Rich mechanics add depth to both offensive and defensive play, while comic book-inspired graphics give brawls a distinct visual identity. Crossplay multiplayer shines with rollback netcode. Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves (for PC) review Garou: Mark of the Wolves Garou: Mark of the Wolves (for PC) 4.5 Excellent Upon its 1999 release, Garou: Mark of the Wolves—a surprisingly deep and visually stunning entry in the long-running Fatal Fury series—was hailed as SNK's wondrous response to Capcom's Street Fighter III. Nearly 20 years later, SNK has finally given the fighting game the proper PC treatment by releasing it with numerous additional graphics options, leaderboards, and rollback, online versus play.Despite removing and downplaying some series-specific elements, Garou doesn't feel any less of a Fatal Fury game, however. It's set in the Southtown, and it features multiple fighters with classic Fatal Fury lineages, whether it's blood relationships to, or martial-arts tutelage from, older characters. Kim Kaphwan isn't in the game, for example, but his sons continue his legacy of swift, combo-heavy tae kwon do kicks.The result is an excellent game that boasts beautiful animation, Just Defend parries, and the strategic T.O.P. system that delivers increased attack damage, limited health regeneration, faster super-meter build up, and an exclusive special attack when your activate the mode. Guilty Gear Strive Guilty Gear Strive (for PC) 4.0 Excellent The Guilty Gear series reigns as the king of anime-style fighting games due to its gorgeous art style, and a rich, demanding, and lighting-quick combat system. Unfortunately, its oceanic depth and mountainous skill ceiling proved inaccessible to the causal player—until now. With Strive, developer Arc System Works streamlines the series’ unique combat mechanics to make them more newcomer-friendly, while retaining the older games' creative richness. Strive comes with fewer extra modes than its predecessors, but there is a lot to love in this PC game, including astounding visuals, impressive character play styles, and snappy, lag-free online play courtesy of top-tier, rollback netcode. Strive is an approachable series entry that shakes up the Guilty Gear formula in the best ways possible. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- (for PC) 3.5 Good Guilty Gear is a niche series within a niche genre, one that's enjoyed a cult following since its first appearance in 1998. With Xrd -SIGN-, developer Arc System Works ditches the series' 2D sprites in favor of 3D cel-shaded graphics in an attempt to expand its audience. Likewise, series creator Daisuke Ishiwatari sought a more approachable play style that maintains the depth and high skill ceiling that long-time Guilty Gear fans love.Still, Guilty Gear Xrd -SIGN- keeps the series familiar fighting action (Roman Cancels, Bursts, and Dusts) that enables creative offensive and defensive play. Guilty Gear Xrd -Sign- (for PC) review Killer Instinct Killer Instinct (for PC) 4.0 Excellent When Killer Instinct debuted for Windows 10 in March 2016, it represented the latest chapter in the continued PC fighting game renaissance. With its arrival, Microsoft's one-on-one game of fisticuffs joined the likes of Guilty Gear, The King of Fighters, Street Fighter, and other high-profile series that now grace the personal computer.Killer Instinct has a combo-heavy engine that caters to both novices and pros, incredibly detailed graphics that boast ridiculous particle effects (everything explodes!), and an over-the-top, NBA Jam-like announcer who screams your accomplishments ("C-c-c-combo Breaker!") at the top of his lungs.Killer Instinct is part of Microsoft's Play Anywhere initiative. So, if you buy Killer Instinct from the Microsoft Store, you'll also be able to play it on Xbox One at no additional cost. It has cross-platform play with Xbox One, too, thus expanding the online player base. There's a Steam version, too. Even better, the game's ridiculously good netcode ensures smooth play across the globe. Killer Instinct (for PC) review The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match Final Edition The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition (for PC) 5.0 Outstanding The King of Fighters '98—with its hops, rolls, blowback attacks, and meter-filling Advance and Extra modes—is one of the best fighting games ever made, so it's no surprise that developer SNK has returned to the title many times since the game's original release.In 2008, SNK celebrated the game's tenth anniversary by porting the team-based fighter to the PlayStation 2 as The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match, a game loaded with extra characters (including the almighty '96 Boss Team!), stages, moves, and gameplay modes. Now, a tweaked Ultimate Match is available for purchase under the title The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition.This version adds numerous graphics options and good, but not great, online connectivity that lets you battle other KOF fans around the globe in 3-vs.-3 action. The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition (for PC) review The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match (for PC) 4.0 Excellent Like The King of Fighters '98 Ultimate Match Final Edition, The King of Fighters 2002 Unlimited Match is a dream match that eschews a storyline so that developer SNK could include as many characters as possible—even some that are canonically dead, like crime boss Geese Howard. As a result, Unlimited Match boasts one of the largest fighting game rosters of all time, with a 66-character strong lineup.King of Fighters 2002 Ultimate Match continues the series tradition of excellent combat. Although it lacks KOF '98 UMFE's three radically different fight mechanics (Advanced, Extra, and Ultimate), Unlimited Match has a lone system that resembles Advanced Mode. This fighting style gives you plenty of offensive (Dash, Run, Hops, Super Jumps) and defensive (Guard Cancel Strike, Guard Cancel Roll Throw) options for setting up or evading traps. Excellent rollback netcode lets you play people around the world without hiccup. The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition (for PC) 4.0 Excellent The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition brings SNK's incredibly dense, 3-vs.-3, team-based fighter to the PC via Valve's video game marketplace. It's an all-around excellent fighting game, and one of the best in SNK's rich catalog.If you've rumbled with friends and foes in the version that appeared on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, you'll feel right at home here: The intricate combat mechanics, meter management, and the best sprite-based graphics ever seen in a fighting game are brought over successfully in this Steam port.Even better, The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition contains all the console DLC and the King of Fighters XIII: Climax arcade features. Similar to The King of Fighters '98: Ultimate Match Final Edition, The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition has decent online play, but you can expect some hiccups. The King of Fighters XIII: Steam Edition (for PC) review The Last Blade The Last Blade (for PC) 4.0 Excellent SNK put weapons-based, 2D fighting on the map with 1993's delightful Samurai Shodown, but the developer went on to refine the idea of sword-based combat four years later in a somewhat lesser-known Neo Geo title: The Last Blade.Released to the Steam platform with several contemporary bells and whistles, The Last Blade boasts excellent swordplay, a dozen exquisitely designed characters, and a gorgeous anime- and manga-style presentation that make its 19th-century Japanese setting one of the most beautiful in fighting-game history. Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite (for PC) 3.5 Good Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite has taken its fair share of flack since its reveal, and the venom is not at all unwarranted. The initial trailer for the tag-team fighting game featured dull, washed-out graphics, and Capcom highlighted the new novice-friendly, auto-combo options that are designed to help casuals bust out cool-looking moves in an otherwise hardcore genre. As a result, fight fans were highly skeptical of the game, as was I.Fortunately, my Infinite sentiments changed upon logging several hours with the game. The Infinity Stone hook and the move to 2-vs.-2, tag team action make Marvel vs. Capcom Infinite an incredibly fun PC game to play in both casual and hardcore sessions.Still, Infinite has presentation and MCU-focused roster issues that prevent it from rising to the very top of the fighting game elite. Mortal Kombat XL Mortal Kombat XL (for PC) 4.0 Excellent When NetherRealm Studios released the blood-drenched Mortal Kombat X to consoles in 2015, the one-on-one fighting game continued to evolve via free and paid updates that added characters, balanced the roster, and improved online play. However, the High Voltage Studios-ported PC version of the game received zero post-launch support, much to the dismay of hardcore Mortal Kombat fans.Thankfully, that changed with the Mortal Kombat XL update, a version of MKX that finally gives PC gamers all the extras that console-based fight fans have enjoyed for some time now. I dislike the idea of paying more money for PC content released long after the console version, but it's hard not to love the additions, which include even more fighters, stages, costumes, and gore.Paid DLC added plenty of guest fighters, which has becoming commonplace in the fighting game circle. They include the Predator and Friday the 13th's Jason Vorhees. The King of Fighters XV The King of Fighters XV (for PC) 4.0 Excellent Developer SNK took KOF XIV's core, revamped the MAX meter, added the Shatterstrike counter system, and gave the character models an eye-catching redesign to create one of the best fighting games in recent history. KOF XV features an updated fighting engine that facilitates fast-paced, creative combat, and near-flawless rollback netcode that will keep you knuckling up with online rivals for hours on end.The game's dense with options. You can play the narrative-driven Story mode, use DJ Station to listen to more that 300 music tracks culled from SNK's rich, decades-long game library (many compositions unlock as you play Arcade mode), engage in casual and ranked online battles, view leaderboards, and check out match replays. In a community-fostering move, SNK included an esports-friendly tournament mode tailor-made for locals and majors like Evo. You can save 15 custom teams, set up brackets and rulesets, and register up to 32 entrants. It's a great touch. In addition, KOF XV lets you join online lobbies to play against others or simply spectate. Mortal Kombat 11 Mortal Kombat 11 (for PC) 4.5 Excellent Mortal Kombat 11 is far more than the guts and gore titles on which the series built its fame. The narrative sequel to Mortal Kombat X, Mortal Kombat 11 uses time travel to pit characters against their rivals in the past in order to alter the present. Whatever.Mortal Kombat 11 continues the series tradition of chop-socky action and otherworldly mysticism to lay the foundation for military operatives, ninjas, gods, and monsters to punch each other squarely in the face. With its character customization, HDR10 support, smooth animations, and new offensive and defensive meters, MK11 is the best Mortal Kombat game to date. Mortal Kombat 11 (for PC) review Samurai Shodown Samurai Shodown (for PC) 3.5 Good Clashing swords, blood spurts, and tense, measured play define Samurai Shodown, SNK's beloved weapons-based fighting game series. This series refresh, the simply named Samurai Shodown, carries those elements to PC after the game first appeared on console. If you've waited this long in hopes that Samurai Shodown would add many PC-exclusive extras, you may be disappointed; this is largely the same game that appeared elsewhere. Still, Samurai Shodown's unique, defense-orientated gameplay makes it a fighting game to check out for sword-swinging, blood-letting action. Prep for lengthy load times, though. Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection (for PC) 4.0 Excellent Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection, SNK and Digital Eclipse's follow up to the delightful SNK 40th Anniversary Collection, contains all the SamSho games that appeared on the original Neo Geo, plus production art, SNK staff interviews, and a true surprise—an unreleased title that only briefly saw a location test. Overall, Samurai Shodown Neo Geo Collection is a wonderful piece of playable history, with the only blight against the PC game being its mediocre online components. Skullgirls 2nd Encore Skullgirls 2nd Encore (for PC) 4.5 Excellent Skullgirls 2nd Encore, the update to Reverge Labs's critically acclaimed original game, takes cues from many highly regarded fighting titles and blends it with the series' unique, cartoony, art deco-influenced visual style.However, Skullgirls 2nd Encore's graphics aren't all that separate it from the competition. The indie fighter boasts a Capcom vs. SNK-style ratio system that lets you select up to three characters to battle up to three rival characters, as well as a Marvel vs. Capcom-style assist system. The fighter also has a built-in system that automatically stops infinites, those annoying and abusive combos that never end. SNK vs. Capcom: The Match of the Millennium SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium (for PC) 4.5 Excellent With Match of the Millennium's rerelease, the secret best fighting game in the SNK vs. Capcom crossover series finds a new audience. Featuring an 18-character default roster (Athena, Chun-Li, Dan, Felicia, Guile, Haohmaru, Iori, Ken, Kyo, Leona, Mai, Morrigan, Nakoruru, Ryo, Ryu, Sakura, Terry, and Zangief), and three deep groove systems that replicate beloved the companies' beloved fighting game engines, SNK vs. Capcom: Match of the Millennium sees two fighting game universes collide in marvelous fashion.That would be more than enough variety, but Match of the Millennium offers additional goodies. It features standard Sparring, Survival, and Time Attack fighting modes. Olympics, however, is the most intriguing mode, as it lets you indulge in several non-fighting game minigames. For example, you can blast Metal Slug's Mars People in a first-person shooting mode or guide Ghost 'N Goblins' Arthur across pits to snatch up treasure. The Versus points that you earn here unlock extra super moves for the default and secret characters. These contests have the depth of early mobile phone games, but they're a nice diversion from the standard fighting game action.Match of the Millennium is a genuinely entertaining and rich fighting game that combines challenge and strategy with a hefty helping of lighthearted humor. SoulCalibur VI SoulCalibur VI (for PC) 4.0 Excellent The weapons-based combat series has seen its ups and downs over the years, but with SoulCalibur VI, developer Bandai Namco has taken what's worked in the past—swift, strategic combat and robust character customization—and paired it with the new Reversal Edge and Soul Charge battle mechanics to create an engaging PC fighting game that'll shine in all sorts of battles, whether they're between buddies or on big esports stages like Evo.Combat is crisp and rewarding, with a universal control scheme that makes it a breeze to pick up a new character. Each fighter has a horizontal attack, vertical attack, kick, block, parry, sidestep, guard-crushing Break Attack, and Critical Edge super attack. This control scheme will feel familiar to anyone who's played recent SoulCalibur titles, and it leads to some tense combat moments as you attack and defend. Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection (for PC) 4.0 Excellent Film aficionados rely on The Criterion Collection to take vital classic and contemporary movies and present them in thoughtful, information-filled packages for modern audiences. Until very recently, the 40-year old video game industry lacked its own Criterion Collection, letting important pop culture contributions slip into oblivion due to incompatible hardware and software formats, expired licenses, and plain neglect. Thankfully, the games preservation experts at Digital Eclipse have taken up the task, blessing gamers with titles that celebrate classic titles via accurate emulation and a bounty of production-related extras and modern touches. The company's first foray into the fighting game genre is Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection.This collection doesn't include Street Fighter: The Movie, the Street Fighter EX titles, or X-Men vs. Street Fighter, but you will find all the core arcade releases. The lineup includes Street Fighter (1987), Street Fighter II (1991), Street Fighter II: Champion Edition (1992), Street Fighter II: Hyper Fighting (1992), Super Street Fighter II: The New Challengers (1993) Super Street Fighter II Turbo (1994), Street Fighter Alpha (1995), Street Fighter Alpha 2 (1996), Street Fighter III: New Generation (1997), Street Fighter III: 2nd Impact Giant Attack (1997), Street Fighter Alpha 3 (1998), and Street Fighter III 3rd Strike: Fight For The Future (1999).Even better, you don't just get the games. This collection includes a sprite/animation view, design documents, a historical timeline, and a jukebox. In short, Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection is a love letter to one of the most important video game franchises of all time. Street Fighter V: Champion Edition Street Fighter V: Champion Edition (for PC) 3.5 Good In February 2016, Street Fighter V arrived on PC with many flaws that detracted from the stellar gameplay, including awful server instability, no true single-player mode, and a surprisingly limited multiplayer Battle Lounge. However, over the course of the last few years, developer Capcom released several updates that addressed (most of) those issues while also adding new stages and playable characters.Street Fighter V: Champion Edition, with its fresh and returning characters, new fight systems (like the cool V-Skills and V-Triggers mechanics), interactive stages, Cinematic Story Mode, and cross-platform play with PlayStation 4 owners, finally makes the one-on-one fighting game a title to pick up even for gamers who don't have Evo dreams. Street Fighter V: Champion Edition (for PC) review Street Fighter 6 Street Fighter 6 (for PC) 5.0 Outstanding Following Street Fighter V's lukewarm reception, Capcom had much to prove with Street Fighter 6. Thankfully, the developer not only righted the previous title's wrongs, but exceeded expectations by including nearly everything that fans would want in a contemporary fighting game.The title's powered by the new Drive Gauge, a meter that's full and ready for action at the beginning of each round. With the Drive Gauge, you can unleash the Drive Impact, Drive Parry, Drive Reversal, Drive Rush, and Overdrive moves (read our review for a breakdown of each one). It, along with the Dynamic and Modern control schemes, gives you more combat flexibility than any previous Street Fighter game. The result is one of the best fighters ever crafted, one that enables hype-fueled moments in casual and competitive play. Street Fighter 6 (for PC) review Tekken 7 Tekken 7 (for PC) 4.5 Excellent Tekken 7, like the main-line Tekken games that came before it, is a tale of fathers and sons attempting to murder each other to purge the Mishima clan of the Devil Gene, a magical bit of DNA that transforms certain people into hell spawn.The excellent combat accentuates the narrative ridiculousness. Like its predecessors, Tekken 7 is a fighting game that features simple, limb-mapped controls, massive character move sets, and numerous juggles that let you keep a combo flowing, if you're skilled enough to input the correct move at the right moment. With Tekken 7, the series receives super moves (Rage Arts) and enhanced, special attacks that can blow through an opponent's attack (Power Crush).Tekken 7 is an incredibly tense game of jabs, feints, and sidesteps, because any hit may lead to a long combo sting. Factor in characters with move sets that emulate real martial arts, interactive stages that let you knock people through floors and walls, and terrific slowdown effects that happen when both fighters' health bars are in the red and they perform close-quarter melee attacks, and you have a fighting game that's essentially an interactive martial arts flick. Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 (for PC) 3.5 Good Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 pits Marvel's superheroes against Capcom's video game characters in a frantic 3-vs.-3, tag team brawl. The 48-character headcount is impressive, but it's the individual characters and visual aesthetic that truly make the game shine (unlike its Infinite sequel).Marvel's side has several popular and obscure characters, including Captain America, Iron Man, Iron Fist, and She-Hulk, and Spider-Man. Capcom's side mainly comprises characters from the company's fighting and action games, including Final Fight's Mike Haggar and Street Fighter's Ryu. The comic book-style graphics, with their bright colors and heavy black lines, gives Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 an eye-popping look.In terms of gameplay, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 builds upon its Marvel vs. Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds predecessor by including a three-button control scheme, the momentum-changing X-Factor mechanic, and retooled aerial combat. Ultra Street Fighter IV Ultra Street Fighter IV (for PC) 4.5 Excellent Ultra Street Fighter IV marks Capcom's fourth version of Street Fighter IV and the third version available on the Steam platform. Like vanilla Street Fighter IV and Super Street Fighter IV, Ultra's combat is centered on Focus Attacks, a move that lets your character tank a blow and unleash a counterattack.This final iteration adds five new characters (Decapre, Elena, Hugo, Poison, and Rolento), six new stages, a YouTube upload option, Edition Select (which lets you pick different versions of characters, based on their past Street Fighter IV iterations), and Double Ultra (which makes a character's Ultra Combos available simultaneously, in exchange for reduced damage).It's Street Fighter IV's best and meatiest update, though some balance issues prove a bit irritating in play. Still, Ultra Street Fighter IV is an excellent, competitive one-on-one fighting game.

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2025-05-23 16:55:43 ·

3 Ways ‘Game Theory’ Could Benefit You At Work, By A Psychologist

From office politics to salary negotiations, treating work like a strategy game can give you a ... More real-world edge. But should you?getty
I recently had a revealing conversation with a friend — a game developer — who admitted, almost sheepishly, that while he was fluent in the mechanics of game theory, he rarely applied it outside of code. That got me thinking.

For most people, game theory lives in two corners of life: economics classrooms and video games. It’s a phrase that evokes images of Cold War negotiations or player-versus-player showdowns. And to their credit, that’s grounded.

At its core, game theory studies how people make decisions when outcomes hinge not just on their choices, but on others’ choices too. Originally a mathematical model developed to analyze strategic interactions, it’s now applied to everything from dating apps to corporate strategy.

But in real life, nobody is perfectly rational. We don’t just calculate; we feel, too. That’s where the brain kicks in.

According to the “Expected Value of Control” framework from cognitive neuroscience, we calibrate our effort by asking two questions:

How big is the reward?
How much control do I have in getting it?

When both answers are high, motivation spikes. When either drops, we disengage. Research shows this pattern in real time — the brain works harder when success feels attainable.
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This mirrors game theory’s central question: not just what the outcomes are, but whether it’s worth trying at all. Using a game theory lens in a professional setting, then, can be messy and sometimes bring unwanted emotional repercussions. The saving grace, however, is that it’s somewhat intuitively patterned and, arguably, predictable.
So should you actually apply game theory to your professional life? Yes, but not as gospel, and not all the time. Being too focused on identifying, labeling and trying to “win” every interaction can backfire.

It can make you seem cold and calculating, even when you’re not, and it can open the door to misunderstandings or quiet resentment. Put simply, it’s important to be aware of how your choices affect others and how theirs affect yours, but it’s also dangerously easy for that awareness to tip over into an unproductive state of hyperawareness.
Game theory is a legitimately powerful lens — but like any lens, it should be used sparingly and with the right intentions. Pick your battles, and if you’re curious how to apply it in your own career, start with clarity, empathy and a telescope and compass. Use these not to dominate the game, but to understand it and play it to the best of your abilities, so everyone wins.
1. Establish Competence For Yourself And Assume It From Others
There’s a popular saying in hustle culture: work smarter, not harder. At first glance, it makes sense — but in elite professional environments, it’s a rather reductive and presumptuous approach.
The phrase can carry the implication that others aren’t working smart or that they aren’t capable of working smart. But in high-performing teams, where stakes are real and decisions have impact, most people are smart. Most are optimizers. And that means “working smart” will only take you so far before everyone’s doing the same. After that, the only edge left is consistent, high-quality production — what we generalize as hard work.
From a game theory lens, this type of hard work essentially increases your odds. Overdelivering, consistently and visibly, skews the probability curve in your favor. You either become impossible to ignore, or highly valuable. Ideally, aim for both.
And here’s where the real move comes in: assume the same of others. In most multiplayer games, especially online ones, expecting competence from your opponents forces you to play better. It raises the floor of your expectations, improves collaboration and protects you from the trap of underestimating the consequences of your actions.
Take chess, for example. In a large study of tournament players, researchers found that serious solo study was the strongest predictor of performance, even more than formal coaching or tournament experience.
Grandmasters, on average, had put in nearly 5,000 hours of deliberate study in their first decade of serious play. This is about five times more than intermediate players. This is why in a game of chess between one grandmaster and another, neither player underestimates the other.
2. Exploit The Parts Of Work That Don’t Feel Like Work To You
My friend told me he rarely applies game theory outside of code. But the more he talked about his work, the more obvious it became that the man lives it. He’s been into video games since he was a child, and now, as an adult, he gets paid to build what he used to dream about.
Sure, he has deadlines, targets and a minimum number of hours to log every week — but to him, those are just constraints on paper. What actually drives him is the intuitive thrill of creation. Everything else is background noise that requires calibration, not deference.
This is where game theory can intersect with psychology in an actionable way. If you can identify aspects of your work that you uniquely enjoy — and that others may see as tedious, difficult or draining — you may have found an edge. Because in competitive environments, advantage is often about doing the same amount with less psychological cost.
In game theory terms, you’re exploiting an asymmetric payoff structure, where your internal reward is higher than that of your peers for the same action. When others see effort, you feel flow. That makes you highly resilient and harder to outlast.
It’s also how you avoid falling into the trap of accepting a Nash equilibrium. This is a state where each person settles on a strategy that feels rational given everyone else’s, even if the group as a whole is stuck in mediocrity. No one deviates, because no one has an incentive to, unless someone changes the underlying payoff structure.
For example, imagine a team project where everyone quietly agrees to put in just enough effort to get by, no more, no less. It feels fair, and no one wants to overextend. But if even one person realizes they could stand to gain by going above that baseline, they have an incentive to break the agreement. The moment they do, the equilibrium collapses, because now others are pressured to step up or risk falling behind.
In a true equilibrium, each person’s strategy is the best possible response to what everyone else is doing. No one gains by changing course. However, when your internal motivation shifts the reward equation, you may begin to question the basis of the equilibrium itself.
Be aware, in any case, that this is a tricky situation to navigate, especially if we contextualize this from the point of view of the stereotypical kid in class who reminds their teacher about homework. Even if the child acts in earnest, they may unintentionally invite isolation both from their peers and, sometimes, from the teachers themselves.
This is why the advice to “follow your passion” often misfires. Unless there’s a clear definition of what constitutes passion, the advice lands as too vague. A more precise version is this: find and hone a valuable skill that energizes you, but might drain most others.
3. Follow The Money Only Far Enough To Find The Game
There’s a certain kind of professional who doesn’t chase money for money’s sake. Maybe he writes code for a game studio as a day job, writes blogs on the side and even mentors high school kids on their computer science projects. But this isn’t so much about padding his lifestyle or building a mountain of cash.
What he’s really doing is looking for games: intellectually engaging challenges, satisfying loops and rewarding feedback. In a sense, he’s always gaming, not because he’s avoiding work, but because he’s designed his life around what feels like play. This mindset flips the usual money narrative on its head.
And ironically, that’s often what leads to sustainable financial success: finding personal fulfillment that makes consistent effort easier for you and everyone around you.
In game theory, this is a self-reinforcing loop: the more the game rewards you internally, the less you need external motivation to keep showing up.
So instead of asking, “What’s the highest-paying path?” — ask, “Which games would I play even if I didn’t have to?” Then, work backward to find ways to monetize them. This does two incredibly valuable things in tandem: It respects the system you’re in, and it respects the goals you personally hold dear.
While game theory maps workplace social behavior reasonably well, constantly remaining in a heightened state of awareness can backfire. Take the Self-Awareness Outcomes Questionnaire to better understand if yours is a blessing or a curse.
#ways #game #theory #could #benefit

3 Ways ‘Game Theory’ Could Benefit You At Work, By A Psychologist
From office politics to salary negotiations, treating work like a strategy game can give you a ... More real-world edge. But should you?getty I recently had a revealing conversation with a friend — a game developer — who admitted, almost sheepishly, that while he was fluent in the mechanics of game theory, he rarely applied it outside of code. That got me thinking. For most people, game theory lives in two corners of life: economics classrooms and video games. It’s a phrase that evokes images of Cold War negotiations or player-versus-player showdowns. And to their credit, that’s grounded. At its core, game theory studies how people make decisions when outcomes hinge not just on their choices, but on others’ choices too. Originally a mathematical model developed to analyze strategic interactions, it’s now applied to everything from dating apps to corporate strategy. But in real life, nobody is perfectly rational. We don’t just calculate; we feel, too. That’s where the brain kicks in. According to the “Expected Value of Control” framework from cognitive neuroscience, we calibrate our effort by asking two questions: How big is the reward? How much control do I have in getting it? When both answers are high, motivation spikes. When either drops, we disengage. Research shows this pattern in real time — the brain works harder when success feels attainable. Play Puzzles & Games on Forbes This mirrors game theory’s central question: not just what the outcomes are, but whether it’s worth trying at all. Using a game theory lens in a professional setting, then, can be messy and sometimes bring unwanted emotional repercussions. The saving grace, however, is that it’s somewhat intuitively patterned and, arguably, predictable. So should you actually apply game theory to your professional life? Yes, but not as gospel, and not all the time. Being too focused on identifying, labeling and trying to “win” every interaction can backfire. It can make you seem cold and calculating, even when you’re not, and it can open the door to misunderstandings or quiet resentment. Put simply, it’s important to be aware of how your choices affect others and how theirs affect yours, but it’s also dangerously easy for that awareness to tip over into an unproductive state of hyperawareness. Game theory is a legitimately powerful lens — but like any lens, it should be used sparingly and with the right intentions. Pick your battles, and if you’re curious how to apply it in your own career, start with clarity, empathy and a telescope and compass. Use these not to dominate the game, but to understand it and play it to the best of your abilities, so everyone wins. 1. Establish Competence For Yourself And Assume It From Others There’s a popular saying in hustle culture: work smarter, not harder. At first glance, it makes sense — but in elite professional environments, it’s a rather reductive and presumptuous approach. The phrase can carry the implication that others aren’t working smart or that they aren’t capable of working smart. But in high-performing teams, where stakes are real and decisions have impact, most people are smart. Most are optimizers. And that means “working smart” will only take you so far before everyone’s doing the same. After that, the only edge left is consistent, high-quality production — what we generalize as hard work. From a game theory lens, this type of hard work essentially increases your odds. Overdelivering, consistently and visibly, skews the probability curve in your favor. You either become impossible to ignore, or highly valuable. Ideally, aim for both. And here’s where the real move comes in: assume the same of others. In most multiplayer games, especially online ones, expecting competence from your opponents forces you to play better. It raises the floor of your expectations, improves collaboration and protects you from the trap of underestimating the consequences of your actions. Take chess, for example. In a large study of tournament players, researchers found that serious solo study was the strongest predictor of performance, even more than formal coaching or tournament experience. Grandmasters, on average, had put in nearly 5,000 hours of deliberate study in their first decade of serious play. This is about five times more than intermediate players. This is why in a game of chess between one grandmaster and another, neither player underestimates the other. 2. Exploit The Parts Of Work That Don’t Feel Like Work To You My friend told me he rarely applies game theory outside of code. But the more he talked about his work, the more obvious it became that the man lives it. He’s been into video games since he was a child, and now, as an adult, he gets paid to build what he used to dream about. Sure, he has deadlines, targets and a minimum number of hours to log every week — but to him, those are just constraints on paper. What actually drives him is the intuitive thrill of creation. Everything else is background noise that requires calibration, not deference. This is where game theory can intersect with psychology in an actionable way. If you can identify aspects of your work that you uniquely enjoy — and that others may see as tedious, difficult or draining — you may have found an edge. Because in competitive environments, advantage is often about doing the same amount with less psychological cost. In game theory terms, you’re exploiting an asymmetric payoff structure, where your internal reward is higher than that of your peers for the same action. When others see effort, you feel flow. That makes you highly resilient and harder to outlast. It’s also how you avoid falling into the trap of accepting a Nash equilibrium. This is a state where each person settles on a strategy that feels rational given everyone else’s, even if the group as a whole is stuck in mediocrity. No one deviates, because no one has an incentive to, unless someone changes the underlying payoff structure. For example, imagine a team project where everyone quietly agrees to put in just enough effort to get by, no more, no less. It feels fair, and no one wants to overextend. But if even one person realizes they could stand to gain by going above that baseline, they have an incentive to break the agreement. The moment they do, the equilibrium collapses, because now others are pressured to step up or risk falling behind. In a true equilibrium, each person’s strategy is the best possible response to what everyone else is doing. No one gains by changing course. However, when your internal motivation shifts the reward equation, you may begin to question the basis of the equilibrium itself. Be aware, in any case, that this is a tricky situation to navigate, especially if we contextualize this from the point of view of the stereotypical kid in class who reminds their teacher about homework. Even if the child acts in earnest, they may unintentionally invite isolation both from their peers and, sometimes, from the teachers themselves. This is why the advice to “follow your passion” often misfires. Unless there’s a clear definition of what constitutes passion, the advice lands as too vague. A more precise version is this: find and hone a valuable skill that energizes you, but might drain most others. 3. Follow The Money Only Far Enough To Find The Game There’s a certain kind of professional who doesn’t chase money for money’s sake. Maybe he writes code for a game studio as a day job, writes blogs on the side and even mentors high school kids on their computer science projects. But this isn’t so much about padding his lifestyle or building a mountain of cash. What he’s really doing is looking for games: intellectually engaging challenges, satisfying loops and rewarding feedback. In a sense, he’s always gaming, not because he’s avoiding work, but because he’s designed his life around what feels like play. This mindset flips the usual money narrative on its head. And ironically, that’s often what leads to sustainable financial success: finding personal fulfillment that makes consistent effort easier for you and everyone around you. In game theory, this is a self-reinforcing loop: the more the game rewards you internally, the less you need external motivation to keep showing up. So instead of asking, “What’s the highest-paying path?” — ask, “Which games would I play even if I didn’t have to?” Then, work backward to find ways to monetize them. This does two incredibly valuable things in tandem: It respects the system you’re in, and it respects the goals you personally hold dear. While game theory maps workplace social behavior reasonably well, constantly remaining in a heightened state of awareness can backfire. Take the Self-Awareness Outcomes Questionnaire to better understand if yours is a blessing or a curse. #ways #game #theory #could #benefit

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3 Ways ‘Game Theory’ Could Benefit You At Work, By A Psychologist

From office politics to salary negotiations, treating work like a strategy game can give you a ... More real-world edge. But should you?getty I recently had a revealing conversation with a friend — a game developer — who admitted, almost sheepishly, that while he was fluent in the mechanics of game theory, he rarely applied it outside of code. That got me thinking. For most people, game theory lives in two corners of life: economics classrooms and video games. It’s a phrase that evokes images of Cold War negotiations or player-versus-player showdowns. And to their credit, that’s grounded. At its core, game theory studies how people make decisions when outcomes hinge not just on their choices, but on others’ choices too. Originally a mathematical model developed to analyze strategic interactions, it’s now applied to everything from dating apps to corporate strategy. But in real life, nobody is perfectly rational. We don’t just calculate; we feel, too. That’s where the brain kicks in. According to the “Expected Value of Control” framework from cognitive neuroscience, we calibrate our effort by asking two questions: How big is the reward? How much control do I have in getting it? When both answers are high, motivation spikes. When either drops, we disengage. Research shows this pattern in real time — the brain works harder when success feels attainable. Play Puzzles & Games on Forbes This mirrors game theory’s central question: not just what the outcomes are, but whether it’s worth trying at all. Using a game theory lens in a professional setting, then, can be messy and sometimes bring unwanted emotional repercussions. The saving grace, however, is that it’s somewhat intuitively patterned and, arguably, predictable. So should you actually apply game theory to your professional life? Yes, but not as gospel, and not all the time. Being too focused on identifying, labeling and trying to “win” every interaction can backfire. It can make you seem cold and calculating, even when you’re not, and it can open the door to misunderstandings or quiet resentment. Put simply, it’s important to be aware of how your choices affect others and how theirs affect yours, but it’s also dangerously easy for that awareness to tip over into an unproductive state of hyperawareness. Game theory is a legitimately powerful lens — but like any lens, it should be used sparingly and with the right intentions. Pick your battles, and if you’re curious how to apply it in your own career, start with clarity, empathy and a telescope and compass. Use these not to dominate the game, but to understand it and play it to the best of your abilities, so everyone wins. 1. Establish Competence For Yourself And Assume It From Others There’s a popular saying in hustle culture: work smarter, not harder. At first glance, it makes sense — but in elite professional environments, it’s a rather reductive and presumptuous approach. The phrase can carry the implication that others aren’t working smart or that they aren’t capable of working smart. But in high-performing teams, where stakes are real and decisions have impact, most people are smart. Most are optimizers. And that means “working smart” will only take you so far before everyone’s doing the same. After that, the only edge left is consistent, high-quality production — what we generalize as hard work. From a game theory lens, this type of hard work essentially increases your odds. Overdelivering, consistently and visibly, skews the probability curve in your favor. You either become impossible to ignore, or highly valuable. Ideally, aim for both. And here’s where the real move comes in: assume the same of others. In most multiplayer games, especially online ones, expecting competence from your opponents forces you to play better. It raises the floor of your expectations, improves collaboration and protects you from the trap of underestimating the consequences of your actions. Take chess, for example. In a large study of tournament players, researchers found that serious solo study was the strongest predictor of performance, even more than formal coaching or tournament experience. Grandmasters, on average, had put in nearly 5,000 hours of deliberate study in their first decade of serious play. This is about five times more than intermediate players. This is why in a game of chess between one grandmaster and another, neither player underestimates the other. 2. Exploit The Parts Of Work That Don’t Feel Like Work To You My friend told me he rarely applies game theory outside of code. But the more he talked about his work, the more obvious it became that the man lives it. He’s been into video games since he was a child, and now, as an adult, he gets paid to build what he used to dream about. Sure, he has deadlines, targets and a minimum number of hours to log every week — but to him, those are just constraints on paper. What actually drives him is the intuitive thrill of creation. Everything else is background noise that requires calibration, not deference. This is where game theory can intersect with psychology in an actionable way. If you can identify aspects of your work that you uniquely enjoy — and that others may see as tedious, difficult or draining — you may have found an edge. Because in competitive environments, advantage is often about doing the same amount with less psychological cost. In game theory terms, you’re exploiting an asymmetric payoff structure, where your internal reward is higher than that of your peers for the same action. When others see effort, you feel flow. That makes you highly resilient and harder to outlast. It’s also how you avoid falling into the trap of accepting a Nash equilibrium. This is a state where each person settles on a strategy that feels rational given everyone else’s, even if the group as a whole is stuck in mediocrity. No one deviates, because no one has an incentive to, unless someone changes the underlying payoff structure. For example, imagine a team project where everyone quietly agrees to put in just enough effort to get by, no more, no less. It feels fair, and no one wants to overextend. But if even one person realizes they could stand to gain by going above that baseline, they have an incentive to break the agreement. The moment they do, the equilibrium collapses, because now others are pressured to step up or risk falling behind. In a true equilibrium, each person’s strategy is the best possible response to what everyone else is doing. No one gains by changing course. However, when your internal motivation shifts the reward equation, you may begin to question the basis of the equilibrium itself. Be aware, in any case, that this is a tricky situation to navigate, especially if we contextualize this from the point of view of the stereotypical kid in class who reminds their teacher about homework. Even if the child acts in earnest, they may unintentionally invite isolation both from their peers and, sometimes, from the teachers themselves. This is why the advice to “follow your passion” often misfires. Unless there’s a clear definition of what constitutes passion, the advice lands as too vague. A more precise version is this: find and hone a valuable skill that energizes you, but might drain most others. 3. Follow The Money Only Far Enough To Find The Game There’s a certain kind of professional who doesn’t chase money for money’s sake. Maybe he writes code for a game studio as a day job, writes blogs on the side and even mentors high school kids on their computer science projects. But this isn’t so much about padding his lifestyle or building a mountain of cash. What he’s really doing is looking for games: intellectually engaging challenges, satisfying loops and rewarding feedback. In a sense, he’s always gaming, not because he’s avoiding work, but because he’s designed his life around what feels like play. This mindset flips the usual money narrative on its head. And ironically, that’s often what leads to sustainable financial success: finding personal fulfillment that makes consistent effort easier for you and everyone around you. In game theory, this is a self-reinforcing loop: the more the game rewards you internally, the less you need external motivation to keep showing up. So instead of asking, “What’s the highest-paying path?” — ask, “Which games would I play even if I didn’t have to?” Then, work backward to find ways to monetize them. This does two incredibly valuable things in tandem: It respects the system you’re in, and it respects the goals you personally hold dear. While game theory maps workplace social behavior reasonably well, constantly remaining in a heightened state of awareness can backfire. Take the Self-Awareness Outcomes Questionnaire to better understand if yours is a blessing or a curse.

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3 Ways ‘Game Theory’ Could Benefit You At Work, By A Psychologist