By: Abdirahman Ege

APEX Legends is a battle royale type game. There is a certain number of people that load into one game, and the map is humongous.

As the game progresses, a gas starts to erupt. There will be a circle which you go to so you can protect yourself from the gas. Last team standing wins.

The game has different characters which are called “legends”; they each have different abilities. Each legend has three abilities, their passive skill, a tactical skill, and their ultimate skill.

My favorite legend is Octane. Octane’s passive is while he isn’t taking damage, he restores health overtime. Octane’s tactical is a “stim” – he moves faster after he uses it on himself but it also takes some health. Octane’s ultimate is he deploys a bounce pad that takes you into the air and you can double jump from it.

Each legend have unique skills that are beneficial for different things; they are all balanced. APEX Legends has about 3 different game modes. It has casual, ranked, and 3v3.

• Casual is more for beginner players or people who want to chill.
• Ranked are for more advanced players who want more of a challenge, there are 7 different ranks. The ranks are Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Master, and lastly, APEX Predator, which are the top 750 players on their platforms.
• 3v3 game mode is very similar to the game Valorant; you spawn into a room and you buy guns with points before the round starts. You can get more points within the map by collecting them. You get better weapons the more points you have. The team who wins 3 rounds in a row are the winners.

It’s an overall fun game that I enjoy greatly. 5/5 stars

The game is available on all platforms.

By: Abdirahman Ege

‘NBA2K’ neighborhood is a game mode where you walk around, in basically a map, which has a bunch of courts on it, and you can wait on the spot, to play with randoms or your friends.

‘NBA2K15’, ‘NBA2K16’, ‘NBA2K17’, and ‘NBA2K19’. These games all had unique playing styles (like you could have different dribbling styles), they had unique neighborhoods (like you could play in different regions of the world), nice cosmetics (like you could get new clothing), etc. The 2K community loved these games.

After ‘NBA2K19’, the game got worse and worse. They brought out the same neighborhood from 2K19 into 2K20, the gameplay in 2K21 is broken (too many glitches in the game), in 2K22 defense is garbage but the offense is way too good, etc.

The 2K community had enough of this, so they tried to talk to the developers of the game but they wouldn’t listen to the community.

A lot of content creators of NBA2K stopped making content on it. They all said that the game is unplayable and that the devs need to make a better game.

The developers of NBA2K are just money hungry. They don’t want to put in the effort into making a good game. For example, in the game there is a shop where you can buy things with real money. The cost of one piece of clothing in ‘NBA2K’ is 10,000 VC (virtual currency) which is equivalent to almost $10. This is outrageous for a virtual piece of clothing.

I myself has stopped playing the game due to it being garbage.

By: Reed Morris

In early January of 2022, Microsoft kicked off the new year by purchasing the video game development company Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion in cash. The acquisition marked a major turning point of the ongoing “Console War” in the gaming industry.

Microsoft, who owns Xbox, now also owns one of the biggest game development companies in the world. Along with purchasing the company, they also acquired all IPs (Intellectual Properties) associated with Activision Blizzard. This includes well known games such as the ‘Call of Duty’ franchise, ‘Overwatch’, ‘Candy Crush’, and a handful of other major titles.

Ever since the acquisition happened the public has been waiting for a response from Microsoft’s main competitor in the “Console War”, Sony. Sony is the company behind the very popular PlayStation gaming console which is the primary rival of Xbox.

As of the end of January 2022, Sony announced their acquisition of game development studio Bungie for $3.6 billion. The acquisition is a big deal, as Bungie is the studio behind legendary titles such as ‘Halo’, and ‘Destiny’.

The purchase of Bungie by Sony helped level the playing field, and also has brought more attention to the future of PlayStation. Both Microsoft and Sony are still in competition, but now they both own a major slice of the market they rely on for content.

This is not only a big step for Sony’s gaming branch, it’s also a major step for the company as a whole. With another company acquisition to add to their list, Sony is going to become that much more of a global tech superpower.

Where will they go from here?

There has been lots of speculation that the previous IP’s and any future game production out of these two studios will be exclusive to their new owner’s respective platforms. These rumblings however, have been shut down by both Sony and Microsoft. Sony said in a statement, “Bungie will remain a multiplatform studio with the option to self-publish its games.” Microsoft also followed up their acquisition with a similar statement regarding any Activision Blizzard properties.

While both Microsoft and Sony are willing to cooperate with one another, there is still competition regarding both platforms’ subscription models. While Xbox does have more subscribers to their service, Sony now has a means of reducing that gap and balancing the fight for gaming and corporate supremacy.

By: Sarah VonBerge

It is highly debatable whether or not children should be allowed to use iPads, or other screens, for extended periods of time. Because the National Institutes of Health (NIH) did a study, people are now able to look further into the effect electronics have on young kids. It has been shown that screens stunt children’s development by narrowing their focus, interest, and limiting their other means of exploration and learning.

Exploring the outdoors, playing with toys, and playing with other children help them form their imagination and important social skills.

Development happens the most in the first 3 years of their lives and many skills are created by watching the adults around them. If they are looking at a screen, they are not able to take in the world around them. It’s been shown that children under 2 learn more watching someone else teach them as compared to watching a video.

Exaggerated tones and faces help them learn how others around them are feeling or talking to them, without these exaggerations, they are not always able to take in the needed information. Screens and video games cause them to miss out on valuable caregiver interactions that regulate emotions.

Excessive screen time doesn’t just affect emotions and communication, it’s been shown to actually completely change how the brain is formed. It’s been shown that kids who spend more than 7 hours a day on a screen experienced thinning of the brain’s cortex, which is the area related to critical thinking and reasoning.

Kids who spend 2 hours a day on a screen have also been shown to score lower on thinking and language tests. Along with this, it was found that kids who spent more than 2 hours watching TV a day were 64% less likely to get the recommended 10 hours of sleep as compared to kids who spend 30 minutes or less.

5 year olds who spent 2+ hours on screens were 5 times more likely to show symptoms of ADHD compared to children who spent 30 min or less. Although it does not cause ADHD, they’ve been known to be more hyperactive, which is a common symptom in ADHD.

Screen time can trigger the release of dopamine, which is ‘the happy’ neurotransmitter. When you are doing or seeing something that is releasing dopamine, you will not want to get off the screen. Because of this, many children have difficulty putting a screen down, which often results in frustration, anger and/or a complete shut down.

Although it is not completely detrimental to give kids screen time, their time needs to be limited.

For more information, please visit:

• https://healthmatters.nyp.org/what-does-too-much-screen-time-do-to-childrens-brains/

By: Annika Getz

‘Sky: Children of the Light’ is an open-world, indie adventure game, available in the App Store, on the Nintendo Switch, and on the PS4. It was developed by thatgamecompany, a company famous for it’s indie explorer games, the most well known of which being ‘Journey’, which was released in 2012. ‘Sky’ was originally released for iOS in 2019. ‘Sky’ has a rating of 4.5/5 on Google Play, and 4.8/5 on the Apple App Store.

The main goal isn’t to “beat” the game, in fact, there’s not really a way to beat it at all. The game is simply about exploring, and communicating with other players. Throughout the game, you search for what the intro calls “fallen stars” which are spirits scattered throughout the map.

The lore of the universe is a bit ambiguous, though enjoyable nonetheless. The spirits are beings trapped in statue-like forms. Your objective is to find them, experience one memory of theirs, and learn from them. From each spirit, you learn a new action, such as hugging, clapping, waving, etc., as the game progresses, the actions get more complicated and fun. You can learn to flip, play hide and seek, blow kisses, and more.

There are also figures made of pure light in many places on the map. When you find these spirits, you receive wings. The more wings you get, the longer you can fly for. There are also options to customize your character’s outfit the more you progress.

There are seven realms in the game, the first being “Isle of Dawn”, the second “Daylight Prairie”, the third “Hidden Forest”, the fourth “Valley of Triumph”, the fifth “Golden Wasteland”, the sixth “Vault of Knowledge”, and the seventh “The Eye of Eden”. Eye of Eden is the final and most difficult part of the game, and the first time you face a real life-or-death situation (there are similar perils in the “Golden Wasteland” area, but it’s less high-stakes).

Overall, I think this game is great, the visuals are beautiful, and the music and sound effects do a great job immersing you in the world. The large scale of the map, and frequent editions of new seasons keep you from getting bored too quickly. The concept, though mysterious, is intriguing and enjoyable.

My main critique is that the controls aren’t the greatest. I’ve only ever played on a touch-screen, so I can’t speak as to what it’s like on the Switch or PlayStation, but as far as mobile devices go, I and others find it to be difficult to control. Moving your character, and moving your perspective, is basically the same movement, just on different sides of the screen which makes it difficult to control your movements at times.

Overall, this is a game I’d highly suggest to anyone looking for a calm, and visually beautiful adventure game: 4.5/5.

For more information, please visit:

• https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.vg247.com/thatgamecompanys-jenova-chen-sky-childr en-light-journey-playing-families__;!!LSatmg!tqL9wRAVMLTwgJOdfX7CUcoUb8_BDt025iRHIUa ip01eV3nKabKUVaonxgrqHDkPpKzny2JmUAk$

By: Liv Miller

In the past decade social media has taken the world by storm. If you ask any teenager today they will tell you that they have at least one social media app downloaded on their mobile device. Social media is a great way to connect with friends, family, and meet new people. We are now able to share videos, photos, and ideas with one another faster than ever through these platforms.

Even though the creators of the most popular social media websites created the platforms to bring people together, there is a very serious issue developing through social media, specifically affecting this generation’s teen population.

With social media comes influencers. Urban dictionary defines influencer as “a prominent figure on a social media platform whom generally exchanges financial instruments or special benefits for enforcements.” While this is correct, there is another aspect of influencers on social media. To typically become an influencer you have to fit today’s societies standard of beauty.

Instagram influencers in particular focus their brand on themselves, or their looks if you will. These influencers gain a following because of how “perfect” they appear online. When people, especially young teen girls, see these influencers they start to compare themselves.

The thought process this encourages is “If she looks like that and has 100,000 followers telling her how perfect she looks, that is what I should look like to be viewed as attractive.”

Nobody is at fault for this outcome but it is what’s formed over the years on social media. A study done by a college student at Duquesne University shows to what extent teens are affected by this. When asked if they have ever been left with low self esteem after viewing someone else’s post on Instagram, 83.3 percent said yes.

This is true for other social media platforms as well. The newest and most popular social media app right now, TikTok, has various trends that people partake in. For the most part TikTok trends are harmless, usually dancing, acting challenges, ect. but these certain trends focus on unrealistic beauty standards. An example of this would be people comparing side profiles, waist size, bust, and butt size, ect. When these trends show up on teen girls pages they start comparing themselves to everyone they see, which is not good for self esteem.

Even though social media was created for good, these new issues need to be taken care of for the sake of the mental health of our youth.