Dispatches from Gen Con 2023

We are still recovering from Gen Con, so let’s break into this week’s headlines.

The top stories from Gen Con

Gen Con, the biggest tabletop gaming convention, took place this past weekend in Indianapolis, IN. We were there to cover it. Here are some of the top stories.

Lorcana is a hit. People camped in line for over 16 hours to get a demo of Disney’s new collectable card game, Lorcana. Participants also received a special Mickey Mouse promo card and were able to buy a prerelease version of the game. Some were speculating this might be the only release of the game, unless a lawsuit against publisher Ravensburger is thrown out before the mid-August release date.

Thieves stole over $300,000 worth of gaming cards. The thieves reportedly took a pallet of undisclosed games when the convention was setting up.

Fabula Ultima won the Gold award for Best Game at the Ennie Awards. The awards focus on role playing games. You can view all the winners here. Meanwhile, Indigenous RPG Coyote & Crow wins 2023 Diana Jones Award.

We will have more from Gen Con later this week. Until then, check out our most anticipated games of Gen Con 2023. These games will be in your local gaming store soon.

Feminist Frequency is shutting down

After 15 years, Anita Sarkeesian says her website and video series Feminist Frequency is shutting down. “I’m exhausted,” says Sarkeesian in her blog post on the site. From the post:

After I made the conclusive decision that the time had come to close Feminist Frequency, my first fully-formed thought was: “Holy f**k!” We—that’s all of us who have been on this journey together—have done so much. We made changes to an industry that were desperately needed, shaking up the status quo and distributing content in the early days of video punditry. While we weren’t the first voices in the conversation about inclusion in gaming, we were part of building a community that meant more to its members than we could ever have anticipated. Seeing even more people take up this mantle and continue the work has been heartening; many people working within the industry, even people I have been critical of in the past, have supported and worked to create real change.

Sarkeesian's Tropes vs. Women in Video Game series first appeared on YouTube over a decade ago, breaking down the damsel in distress trope, and talking about how female characters were portrayed in video games. You can watch her videos on YouTube.

It’s Magic

The One RIng Magic card was recently found. The one-of-a-kind card was expected to be valued at between $1-2 million. However, the owner was not able to wield the ring, especially in the presence of a new seeker, Post Malone.

The finder of the card, Brook Trafton sold the rare card to Magic fanatic Malone for an undisclosed sum. Malone, who last year spent $800,000 on another rare Magic card - the Black Lotus - shelled out an undisclosed amount for the crossover card based on the Lord of the Rings. The Verge has a fun write up on the transaction.

After the success of this crossover, Magic publisher Wizards of the Coast announced a new series of crossover cards for 2024. They include Fallout, Assassin’s Creed and Final Fantasy.

Side quests (more stories worth reading)

👍 We reviewed Super Intern Story. Check out our thoughts on the game.

🤓 Since releasing on Quest VR a little over a week ago, Roblox has been downloaded over 1 million times.

🎮 Have a broken controller? Microsoft is now selling replacement parts for Xbox controllers.

🧝‍♀️ Baldur’s Gate 3 released last week. Their IT department expected about 100,000 concurrent players. They reached over 700,000 this past weekend.

🏎️ Guild Esports is creating a women-only Rocket League championship  for aspiring newcomers.

🐧 Linux surpassed Mac as the second most used operating system for Steam, thanks in part to the Steam Deck.

❎ Microsoft Game Pass has seen a six-fold increase in two years.

🕹 Nintendo’s Switch has sold over 129 million units worldwide. Could we see their next console in 2024?

📈 U.S. game revenue jumped 9% in June, thanks to Diablo 4, Final Fantasy 16, and Street Fighter 6.

🌌 Star Wars: Jedi Survivor is coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.

🎮 A new mod for Fallout: New Vegas lets you make Elon Musk one of the villains in the game.

New Releases this week:

Check out our story on 12 New Games to Play in August.

8/8: Gord (PlayStation, Xbox and PC)
8/8: WrestleQuest (PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and PC)
8/10: Atlas Fallen (PlayStation, Xbox and PC)
8/10: Stray Gods: The Role-Playing Musical (PlayStation, Xbox, Switch and PC)
8/11: Space Mechanic Simulator (PC)

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