Posts tagged as “video games”

(Archive May 2019) Connecting Through Social Gaming

By editorialteam on April 15, 2025

Students Get Together to Play Video Games in the Student Center

By Daniela Perez | Observer Contributor

Students making use of the “game center” in the Student Center
Photo by Daniela Perez

Playing video games at the student center is one of the ways students from different departments can come together to pass time.

Dominic Cannavino, Business major, plays Dark Souls 3 with his friend Bryce Harper, Law major, while they wait to attend their next class. “Life is too serious and video games help me relax,” said Cannavino.

Jacob Hull, Biotech major, also spends time at the student center playing video games. His favorite games to play are Mortal Kombat X and Jump Force. Despite his enjoyment of video games, Hull doesn’t hesitate to put down his controller and enjoy some time away from the screen when his friends want to hang out. read more

(Archive November 2018) Review – Call of Duty: Black Ops 4

By editorialteam on April 1, 2025

By Corey Sanderson | Observer Contributor

Promotional cover art for Call of Duty: Black Ops 4
Image from PlayStation.com

After playing through roughly 35 hours of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, I can say that it is one of the best games I’ve seen from the franchise in years.

Black Ops 4 was developed by Treyarch Studios with the help of Raven Software. The Battle Royale mode, Blackout, was developed by Beenox Studios.

This is the first Call of Duty game to not feature a single player campaign. While I have enjoyed playing through Call of Duty’s campaigns in the past, I believe that choosing to not spend resources on a campaign has benefited the game as a whole. read more

(Archive May 2018) Get Inked: A Splatoon 2 Review

By editorialteam on February 20, 2025

By Alexa Nogueira | Observer Correspondent

Nintendo’s paintball-style squid sport is back. First released in 2015, the original installment redefined online multiplayer shooters with its child-friendly game play, lore, and colorful world and character designs. The ink had nearly dried on Splatoon when the company revived the well-loved shooter game with the release of Splatoon 2 for the Nintendo Switch.

In Splatoon 2 you play as an Inkling, which is a child that can change from kid to squid as fast as you can say the catchphrase, “Stay fresh!” read more

(Archive May 2018) Worst Company in America Finds A Way Out

By editorialteam on February 20, 2025

By Zach Pavlosky | Observer Correspondent

*A Way Out*, developed by Hazelight Studios and published by Electronic Arts.
Image from trueachievements.com

“Couch co-op gaming is dead!”

“Gamers are only interested in vast, open world experiences!”

“Character-driven narrative has no place in the gaming industry!”

Developer Hazelight Studios’ newest title, A Way Out, succeeds not just with eye-catching visuals, smooth controls, and a solid framerate, but by shouting “NO!” to all the false and hyperbolic statements above.

A Way Out is a third-person, multiplayer co-op, action-adventure title that features many of the expected accoutrements of a modern video game: white, male protagonists, revenge plot, quick-time events, and more. It is what is noticeably absent from the game that not only makes it stand out from others of its ilk, but also serves as a guiding light for an industry that is unfortunately mired in controversy, politics and doubt. read more

(Archive March 2018) Alumni Combats Video Game Stigmas

By editorialteam on February 5, 2025

By Shayna Rolon | Observer Contributor

Video games, such as the *Call of Duty* games in the stack above, are often used as examples of violent games without substance
Photo by Benjamin Richard

For the longest time, video games have been perceived on the surface as unbeneficial indulgences that promote violence and demote teaching anything moral/valuable. Most people look at popular franchises such as Call of Duty and Super Smash Bros., that center around shooting and fighting and lack story, and assume that all video games are designed the same way.

Nora Gavin, an MWCC alumni who is a video game design major, wants to refute the stigma against video games and prove that they have potential to hold just as much substance as a novel and aren’t always about fighting or battling. read more

(Archive March 2017) MWCC YouTube Gaming: Joshua Needham and yeahdudegamers

By editorialteam on September 10, 2024

By Nicholas Velillari | Observer Contributor

Mount student, Joshua Needham, runs a youtube channel and gaming website, yeahdudegamers, that focuses on video game commentaries, “let’s play’s”, and video game reviews.

Yeahdudegamers, primarily focuses on story driven and survival horror games like Tales of Graces, and Fatal Frame, but Needham states they cover “pretty much all games.”

Needham and a few of his friends started the YouTube channel around Halloween of 2014. He states how he and his friends had a passion for playing all sorts of games. “We were just having fun” stated Needham, so they decided, “we should make a YouTube channel and put random stuff on it,” and that’s how it all began. read more

(Archive February 2017) Retro Nintendo System Gets a Reboot

By editorialteam on September 5, 2024

By Tyler Morgan | Observer Contributor

When the Nintendo came out in 1985 it was the best thing ever for a kid, there was no other thing you would rather do then get home from school and play it. Now 36 years later, we have consoles like Xbox and PlayStation that are very high tech, especially with graphics.

About two weeks ago, adults could finally enjoy a childhood console that I’m sure they didn’t have any more or forgot about. The Nintendo classic was released and there was a very high demand for it. I was able to get out and see if there were any lines at the local GameStop and Walmart, what I discovered was a long line of people waiting to bring it home. read more

(Archive February 2017) Overwatch: Review Edition

By editorialteam on September 5, 2024

By Joshua Needham | Observer Contributor

On May 24^th 2016, game giant Activision Blizzard dropped on the world its newest massive success: Overwatch.

Blizzard has built itself up as the parent of some incredibly successful game franchises, including StarCraft, WarCraft (subsequently World of Warcraft), and Diablo. However, Overwatch was their first venture into the world of first-person-shooters (FPS).

Seven years prior, Riot Games launched the highly successful game League of Legends (LoL). LoL was a multiplayer-online-battle-arena (MOBA) style game, where players would choose from various hero characters, each with different attributes, strengths, and weaknesses, to fight for control of their enemy’s territory. Players could identify with various heroes in the game, gaining skills in playing one hero in particular, while forging new friendships and rivalries within the community the game created. read more

(Archive December 2016) Gamers Raise Money for Kids in Need

By editorialteam on September 4, 2024

By Joshua Needham | Observer Contributor

During a 25-hour video game marathon on the weekend of November 5th, team YeahDude Gamers (lead by yours truly) raised $730 to support Boston Children’s Hospital. The game day event is held every year by the Extra Life charity organization through extra-life.org. Gamers from around the country dedicate themselves to playing video games to help raise money for Children’s Miracle Network hospitals.

Many people in the Gardner and surrounding areas are familiar with the annual Relay for Life, a multi-day walk to raise money for cancer research, and Extra Life runs in a similar manner. Instead of walking to show their support, people from all over play video games for a full day. Some people will live-stream their gameplay to services such as Twitch.tv – a partner of the Extra Life charity and the top-dog when it comes to video game streaming services – while others will just play in the comfort of their own home and spread the word through social media. read more

(Archive April 2016) The Gaming Industry: An Editorial

By editorialteam on August 28, 2024

By Mark Ramos | Observer Contributor

Video games.
flickr.com/video_game_community

When you purchase a product you would expect that product to be a completed one right? So why is it that, that level of expectation applies to every product on the market except for video games? From releasing unfinished games to locking content behind pay walls, the gaming industry has turned its back on those who made it the biggest entertainment medium in the world.

Street Fighter V is the most recent culprit of the beloved industries new business model of undercooked, microwave gaming. Its longtime publisher Capcom promised consumers the next level of fighting games, but delivered and substandard game due minimal content and dysfunctional online connectivity. read more