The Glory Society, the new worker cooperative founded by some of the creators of Night In The Woods, have started summoning their next project. Glory Society have awoken on Twitter to post this spooky gif of a crow on a gravestone. No, it’s not Night In The Woods 2, they say. Just getting that out of the way.

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This weekend, indie-centric storefront Itch.io kicked off their massive Bundle For Racial Justice And Equality. Pulling together a collection of 749 (and counting) indie darlings, hobby projects and unsung curiosities for a meagre $5, Itch’s massive bundle has currently raised well over $400,000 for legal defence funds across the United States – and there’s no sign of slowing down anytime soon.

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Last week, the haunting and hilarious Disco Elysium added an extra difficulty setting called Hardcore True Detective Mode . On the surface, it seems like a fairly standard set of tweaked parameters. More demanding dice roles to shaft dear old Harry Du Bois at every opportunity.

If you take time to read the update notes though, it becomes clear that these new changes are storytelling devices as much as adjusted sliders. Since there are no monsters to make tougher, it s your wallet and psyche that take the hits. It s had me thinking about how ZA/UM s surrealist cop odyssey, and other games, express poverty through their systems. Games that invert the traditional power curve of farmhand to godhood, or make us try twice as hard to get half as far. Far from being a detached add-on, the update is a deft application of mechanics-as-metaphor that wouldn t work if desperation, isolation, poverty, and addiction weren t already stitched deep into the fabric of Disco Elysium s fiction.

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Alec Holowoka, the co-creator of Night In The Woods, died on Saturday morning, his sister Eileen Mary Holowka has reported. Alec Holowka was co-designer, coder and composer on Night In the Woods, and previously filled the same roles on Aquaria. Last Monday, he was accused of sexual assault and abusive behaviour several years ago by developer and writer Zo Quinn. Alec’s sister didn’t state a cause of death, though the implication is clear.

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Two of Night In The Woods‘s creators have announced they are “cutting ties with” Alec Holowka, the third co-creator, following allegations of abusive behaviour and sexual assault made against him this week. “We take such allegations seriously as a team,” Scott Benson and Bethany Hockenberry said in Wednesday’s statement. They have now cancelled one unknown “current project” and are postponing NITW’s planned physical release.

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Allegations of abuse have been made against multiple games industry figures in the past 24 hours. On Monday afternoon Nathalie Lawhead, developer of the IGF-winning Tetrageddon Games, wrote a post on her website alleging that Jeremy Soule, the composer of Skyrim, raped her while she was working for an unnamed Vancouver-based games studio. Seven hours later, comics writer and indie developer Zo Quinn posted tweets alleging that Alec Holowka, co-creator of Aquaria and Night In The Woods, sexually assaulted them. Later that same night, Adelaide Gardner posted a series of tweets alleging that Splash Damage tools programmer Luc Shelton sexually assaulted and gaslit her.

(CW: rape, sexual assault, gaslighting, emotional abuse)>

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You re a good person, reader, and I will always believe in you, no matter what. No, not you. The person behind you. No, to the left of… No, the other person. The one in the green– No, you, with the… NO. The person BEHIND you, I said. The person with– Oh great they ve walked off now. This whole thing has been a waste of time. My only friend among you is gone because we re several sentences into this intro and none of you can understand how pointing works. I hope you re all happy. Here s your god damned podcast, the Electronic Wireless Show.

Honestly.>

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Since moving to California, I find myself missing the seasons. I grew up in Virginia, where the leaves change colour every September. When living in England, there was a yearly rotation of scarves and heavy coats to mark the coming of autumn. It seems silly to complain about the year-round temperate climate that blesses the beachy shores of SoCal, but it gets pretty boring here in paradise. Plus, I look better in layers.

This week s selection of games brings a little dose of autumn, for those who are similarly denied its pleasures or simply can t wait for the leaves to turn. (more…)

When you go to San Fraaaanciscooo, be sure to wear a lanyard with Media inscribed on it round youuur nnnneck That s what Adam, John and Brendan sang to each other as they gleefully skipped through the streets of California s tram-infested hill city. The crew were in town for the yearly Game Developer’s Conference where they spoke to developers, played games, and gambled on the results of the annual awards show. Now they re back and ready to tell you all about their Stateside adventures on the latest RPS podcast, the Electronic Wireless Show. (more…)

Rad trash mammal simulator Night In The Woods scooped this year’s Grand Prize during the 2018 Independent Games Festival Awards at the Game Developers Conference last night, also lifting the award for Excellence In Narrative. Baba Is You, an upcoming puzzle game about shifting words to change how parts of the levels and game work, also picked up two awards. Looking across all the winners, ah yes, there certainly are good video games going around. (more…)