By: M. Ahmadad

‘Splatoon 3’, released last year on September 9th, is the third installment of the Splatoon franchise developed by Nintendo. It’s an online player-versus-player multiplayer game, with a single player story mode.

The fan base has been active for 8 years now, and the newest seasonal update known as “Chill Season” was announced just a few days ago.

The multiplayer gameplay is about humanoid cephalopod characters participating in popular sport competitions surrounded around shooting ink and cartoon violence. The story mode uses the same mechanics but it’s player-versus-enemy and levels that are race courses/challenges. The story mode is mainly about explaining the background history of the players, the current in-game power source of the multiplayer city, and the conflicts that arise from it.

I like the general style of ‘Splatoon”’ the bright characters, art style and music genre are easily recognizable, and they’re fun. The world setting is full of life, but the gameplay does get really boring after a short while; you can only shoot paint/ink for 3 minutes at a time so many times. They don’t add much to play for after you start getting most of the objectives finished, like story mode and unlocking all weapons. That doesn’t take long to finish either, so being a “fan” of the game really just means waiting for more.

The only real reason I can imagine playing it consistently for more than a month is if you’re hyper-competitive or if you just really, really, really like funny sounding squids. While the game is made and enjoyed by people of all ages, I think it’s fair to say that based off the dialogue and 3-minute matches, it’s best fit for people who enjoy short and colorful gameplay that doesn’t require too much attention or focus (I don’t know how people take the competition seriously).

‘Splatoon 3’ is not much different from the previous installments. It’s more enjoyable to use because of improved features and better quality animation, and the only person who could really tell the difference would be a fan of ‘Splatoon’ or ‘Splatoon 2’. I love the art style and music from the game, but there’s really not much to love when I’m actually playing the game.

By: Persephone Pond

The ‘Persona’ series is a series of games comprising 23 total official and spin off games that started releasing in 1996. In this article, I’ll be going over how the ‘Persona’ games came to exist and more historical facts about this franchise.

The ‘Persona’ games are spin offs of a series called ‘Shin Megami Tensei’. These games started as a part of the ‘Shin Megami Tensei’ series, but used a different name as they were being released in the West.

The first ‘Shin Megami Tensei’ game was released in 1987 on a console called Famicom, and a total of 14 more official games have been released since, the latest being in 2021.

Altus, the production company, started releasing ‘Persona’ games in English, and due to their growing popularity, has continued their production. These spin offs grew to hold even more popularity worldwide than the original games, and as the production of ‘Shin Megami Tensei’ didn’t cease, the ‘Persona’ franchise grew to be what Atlus’ more known for.

‘Revelations: Persona’ was the first of its series to be released outside of Japan in 1996 for the original Playstation. Following its release came ‘Persona 2: Innocent Sin’ and ‘Persona 2: Eternal Punishment’ in 1999 and 2000, then came ‘Persona 3’ in 2006, ‘Persona 4’ in 2008, and ‘Persona 5’ in 2016. These games all have very similar premises and basic world building, but are all self contained and separate from one another. Many spin offs and mini games were also produced in the years surrounding these core games.

Over the years, Atlus has worked on reproducing many of the core ‘Persona’ games, giving them extended content, bug fixes, and graphic upgrades. ‘Persona 3 Portable’ was released in 2009, ‘Persona 4 Golden’ was released in 2012, and ‘Persona 5 Royal’ was released in 2019. These are significant upgrades from their original games and are often recommended over their counterparts.

Atlus hasn’t stopped releasing more games in this series. No ‘Persona’ games were released in 2021 or 2022, but Atlus soon recovered from that few year gap and just a few days ago on November 16th, released ‘Persona 5 Tactica’, a spin off mini game of ‘Persona 5 Royal’. In addition to this new release, Atlus is releasing another rendition of ‘Persona 3’ titled ‘Persona 3 Reload’ in February 2024 and it’s rumored that Atlus is also currently planning and starting the production process of ‘Persona 6’, which wouldn’t be released until 2025 or 2026.

All of these games are wonderful and engaging and are all worth the play. The extensive history of the ‘Persona’ games is only one aspect of what makes them fun and interesting, and I would highly recommend the download if you’re looking for something fun to get into.

You can find the Persona games across all major platforms.

By: Persephone Pond

‘Danganronpa’ is a Japanese visual novel video game franchise that is available on consoles such as Playstation, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and Linux. Total, there are five official games, a few anime series, manga adaptations, and more.

The first game in the series is ‘Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc’, released in 2010, and is the basis of all the world building and lore. This first game is followed by ‘Danganronpa: Goodbye Despair’, released in 2012, which is then followed by ‘Danganronpa: Killing Harmony’, released in 2017. ‘Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls’ was released in 2014 and takes place in between the first and second games, and finally there is ‘Danganronpa S: Ultimate Summer Camp’, a mini game series containing all the characters from throughout the series. In this article, I’ll be covering a small fraction of the basic lore and timeline, in addition to what makes these games so good.

In addition to all these games, there were many anime adaptations of this game, the most important ones being ‘Danganronpa: Despair Arc’, ‘Danganronpa 3: The End of Hope’s Peak High School’, and ‘Danganronpa: Hope Arc’(chronological order). There are more anime adaptations of different aspects of the characters and lore, but these specific three cover a huge part of the lore that is only spoken of in the games, and add on to the end of the second game. If you like knowing the canon events more than interpreting your own ending like me, then you’ll love watching these three arcs after finishing the second game.

‘Danganronpa: Killing Harmony’ is separate from the lore of the first few games, and was added on to the franchise years after the previous games and anime were released. This game holds the same basic plot, but it’s more self-contained and not involved in the overall storyline of ‘Danganronpa’. I do think this game has an amazing atmosphere and some of the best and worst characters throughout the franchise and is worth playing, but it’s more of just an add on to the series instead of an important part.

The whole concept of ‘Danganronpa’ is that there is a class of students at/or from Hope’s Peak Academy, the most prestigious high school in Japan who are forced to fight to the death. In order to be scouted to attend Hope’s Peak, you must be the best in your field of talent, such as baseball or writing. Sixteen students are brainwashed and trapped together, the only way to escape being to get away with murdering a fellow classmate. Once a dead body is found, a trial will begin after a brief investigation time, and if the culprit is discovered, they get executed on the spot. If the culprit is not uncovered, the culprit alone escapes, and the rest of the class is sent to execution. The overall goal is to find out who’s behind these murder games, and how to escape together.

This complex mystery game creates elaborate murders to investigate, and really challenges the player during the trials to piece it all together. Along with the thrilling plot and gameplay, the extensive lore and world building of these games creates an amazing mystery, and every time a new piece is uncovered, more to the overall story is revealed.

One of my favorite parts of the franchise is how it takes many games and anime series to piece it all together. The first ‘Danganronpa’ game can be played as a self-contained game which is better for some people, but if you want to get deep into the lore, playing the second game is essential. In addition to the anime, the game ‘Ultra Despair Girls’ is a great game to play if you want to get into more details of world building and smaller parts of the lore. There’s so much media out there around ‘Danganronpa’, so getting into it really isn’t too hard.

In addition to the wonderful storytelling and lore, the characters in these games are easy to get attached to. Usually, my favorite parts of video games and shows are the characters and their relationships, and there is definitely no exception for this game.

Each character has been scouted to attend Hope’s Peak Academy for their own talent, and that aspect of these characters is very well developed. Of course there are many exceptions as there usually are with anime characters and their strange stereotypes, but overall the good balances out the bad. The protagonists are always underdeveloped at the start to give you that sense of control over your actions and development, yet they’re still their own character with their own story for the player to learn more about.

The hangout scenes and events for all the other students are also interesting, as there’s no character that can be analyzed at surface level. These optional hangouts are a great way to get immersed in the characters, and this creates a more sinister atmosphere as the characters you’re getting attached to could be killed or executed at any turn.

Everything from the elaborate mysteries to the beautiful artwork and backdrops of these games is absolutely wonderful, and I would recommend the ‘Danganronpa’ games to anyone interested in dark story driven games. I’d rate this series overall a 10/10.

By: Manuel Avalos Mateos

A small device in your pocket that can do almost anything and everything you want it to. A smartphone.

A quick Google search will let you know that the first smartphone was released in 1992 by a company that goes by the name of IBM. It was called the Simon Personal Communicator and was the first to feature a touch screen.

The modern smartphone as we know it today can come in many different sizes and phones are one of the most powerful portable devices today. There are nearly 7 billion smartphone users in the world, a major change from just over 1 billion (estimated) in 2010.

According to FourWeekMBA, Apple and Samsung are amongst the top smartphone brands and are the most popular picks in the United States. In 2021 Samsung generated $244 billion in revenue and Apple at $365 billion.

Over the years, smartphones have become cheaper and therefore more available to those of lower income. Around 95% of adults 18-49 own a smartphone and 61% for those over 65.

Smartphones have become an essential part of our daily lives. Smartphones have changed the way we live and the way we connect with the world around us. Phones have evolved quickly and have made big advancements over the years.

The 2 main mobile operating systems are iOS and Android. As prices for phones became much more accessible, phones became more obtainable and reached more new users. The ability to reach into your pocket and easily send an email, a text, play games, watch movies, read books, listen to music, interact with other via social media, and make online purchases on websites like Amazon is simply a masterpiece.

Looking into the future of phones seems assured for continued innovation. New technologies like augmented reality, and AI are expected to change the next phase of development of the smartphone.

For more information, please visit:

• https://fourweekmba.com/apple-vs-samsung/#:~:text=In%202021%2C%20Samsung%20generated%20over,Apple’s%20over%20%24274%20billion.&text=Both%20target%20consumer%20electronics%20users.

By: Persephone Pond

‘Hades’ is a Greek mythology based roguelike indie game that has won nine awards since its initial release. Early access was available in 2018, and the game first officially released on Steam in 2020, followed by a multitude of consoles including PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch. In this article, I’ll be highlighting the best parts of the game and explaining why ‘Hades’ is worth the money.

In this game, you follow the story of the protagonist, Zagreus, the god of blood and the son of the King of the Underworld (the Land of the Dead), Hades. Zagreus has been kept in the House of Hades all his life, and at the beginning of the game, you learn there are more secrets about your family than you thought. You’ve never been exposed to the surface or any of your extended family, and as your suspicions grow, you finally rebel.

Your goal is to fight your way up each tier of the Underworld, finally allowing you to reach the surface and find your mother. There are four total tiers, or levels, to clear before you get to the surface. To give a quick overview, each tier consists of many small chambers with enemies, so to progress through chambers, you must fight and kill all enemies in any given chamber. At the end of each tier is a different boss, each a different figure in Greek mythology.

First is Tartarus. Tartarus is the deepest part of the Underworld, where beings of pure evil are sent after death. The boss fight in this area is Megaera the Fury, who is one of the three fury sisters in Greek mythology. The Furies each are in charge of punishing a different group of morally gray people, and Megaera, being the first of the Furies, is in charge of punishing adulterers, oathbreakers, and thieves. As Tartarus is the first of the tiers, Megarea is the easiest boss to defeat.

The second tier of the Underworld is Asphodel. This is the area where common folk get sent after death. It’s a lava flooded wasteland where the boss is a bone hydra, a dragon-like creature with hundreds of heads.

The third tier is Elysium, a utopia compared to the other parts of the Underworld, as this tier is where the heroes and champions go after they die. The enemies get significantly more difficult at this tier, and the boss fight in this level consists of two bosses: Theseus and Asterius. Asterius the Minotaur was brought to fight alongside Theseus, his successor, for the sake of not letting Zagreus escape the Underworld.

The final tier before the surface is the Temple of Styx, an area acting as a checkpoint between the Underworld and the surface. This level doesn’t have a traditional boss, instead you must go through small chambers until you find a treat for your dog Cerberus who’s blocking the exit.

Making it through every level will lead you to find yourself at the surface, facing your father, Hades. This final boss consists of two waves of battle, and is a significant challenge compared to other levels.

‘Hades’ is a game designed for failure. Collectible items that can be used to buy upgrades, weapons and more are spread throughout each tier, and when you die, these are the only items you retain as you respawn in the House of Hades. The whole purpose of this is that every time you die, you get stronger and can get further each time. Getting to the surface is a long process as it’s impossible to do at your beginning level, but the satisfaction when you finally do is worth all the deaths you’ve been through.

There are so many other aspects of the game that really pushes it above and beyond. The representation in this game is some of the best I’ve seen in popular video games, and it’s most likely due to the fact that Supergiant games, the developers of ‘Hades’, is a smaller company and has more freedom than bigger developers do.

Despite the game being made up of Greek characters, there is good racial representation, as they don’t keep to the trend of entirely white characters. Along with that, there are many LGBTQ+ inclusive themes that I was pleasantly surprised to see.

The main character, Zagreus, is canonically bisexual, and there are two love interests you can pursue in the game, one male and one female. And not only can you date both separately, but the game includes a cutscene where all three of you get together, giving the game polyamorus representation, which is very overlooked in the media.

Along with the main character being queer, a few side quests include helping reunite characters, and many of these quests also include much queer representation. In addition to sexuality, there is also a character who is purely referred to with gender neutral terms, and is canonically non-binary, adding another perspective of queer identity to the game.

Along with the characters holding wonderful representation, the designs and artwork in the game are beyond. The characters are interpreted in such a creative way, and the art itself for any given character is beautiful. The backgrounds and landscape are also beautiful, and the creators clearly put a lot of thought and effort into making the world immersive through their artwork.

This game is incredibly complex, and nothing from the core plot to the gameplay is simple. This really allows you to choose your own path, build relationships with characters, and figure out the mysteries independently. I cannot recommend ‘Hades’ enough, overall I’d rate it easily a 10/10 game.

By: Samson Belihu

The new iPhone 15, which everyone’s been wanting to get their hands on, is now available. If you’re considering whether it’s a good idea to get the new iPhone 15, let me tell you more about it.

The features

• VoiceOver
• Zoom
• Magnifier
• Voice Control
• Switch Control
• Assistive Touch
• RTT and TTY support
• Closed Captions
• Live Captions
• Personal Voice
• Live Speech
• Type to Siri
• Spoken Content

More information about the iPhone 15 is that it is water, and dust resistant, and also has a bionic chip.

It zooms in 3x to 5x, and now you’re able to take a picture at a rapid speed without lag or glitches.

A has a Face ID so you can keep your phone protected and safe. It has an advanced dual-camera system, with True Camera Depth meaning it has more accurate face data analysis. It’s able to recognize people’s faces from dogs and cats automatically.

It comes with Apple Pay, and Apple Card which if you’re older than 18, and have a credit card, you’re able to use Apple Pay right through your phone.

And one of the most important things they claim on the new iPhone 15 is the titanium protection. This should make the phone less breakable, and it works like a cover.

The iPhone 15 comes in 5 colors black, blue, green, yellow, and pink and there are 4 models of the iPhone 15 such as: Base, Plus, Pro, and Pro Max.

Each comes in a different size and costs accordingly:

• The iPhone Base is about $799
• the iPhone Plus is $899
• the Pro one is $999
• and the Pro Max is $1,199

A lot of opinions people have on this new iPhone 15 is that there are not a lot of new features that make it different from the iPhone 14.

Some people even compare it to a Porsche saying they’re just making small changes, and making the car too expensive for every little change that won’t make a difference. But after a certain amount, they started to give the Porsche more respect, and have seen how far they’ve gotten.

At the end, what they’re trying to say is even the little progress can lead up to big things.

By: Natalia Gercheva & Persephone Pond

‘Overcooked’ is a cooperative multiplayer game (up to four players, split screen or online) in which you work together to cook delicious recipes for hungry customers. ‘Overcooked 1’ was released in August in 2016, and just 2 years later in 2018, the sequel came out. Over the course of these two years, and a few years after, Ghost Town Games, the developers of the ‘Overcooked’ games, steadily released extra levels to extend and provide more ‘Overcooked’ content. In this article, we will be analyzing and informing you about the levels, strategies, and overall story of these fun games.

The plotline In ‘Overcooked 1’ includes a giant spaghetti monster, an Onion King, and a dog named Kevin. In the prologue/tutorial level, you face the Flying Spaghetti Monster, but to your dismay, you and your fellow chefs are unable to feed him enough to extinguish his appetite. The Onion King and his loyal dog Kevin are present at this initial event, and when they see you’re losing, they teleport you back in time to improve your culinary skills in hopes you’ll be capable of conquering this ancient evil.

‘Overcooked 2’ starts off with the same Onion King and his dog Kevin, who discovered the Necronomnom-icon, an ancient cookbook full of evil curses and recipes. By reading from this book, the Onion King accidentally summons an army of undead bread: the Unbread. You and your fellow chefs must cook your way through the dystopian land in order to defeat the Unbread Army.

The games consist of a multitude of levels that change based on the theme of each recipe included. As you travel the lands, there are different biomes, and in each biome, the recipe you’re cooking changes. The game uses a 3 star point system and each level is timed, and your score coincides with how many stars you get on any given level. All your stars from prior levels add up, and some levels further on have specific star requirements for you to play, thus the importance of doing well. Each biome also includes a specialized type of obstacle, such as sliding counters or rotating platforms. There are also a few different game modes you can choose from, such as campaign, verses, and arcade.

There are 6 biomes in ‘Overcooked 1’, and for the most part, each biome consists of 6 levels, with a few exceptions. The first biome is a basic desert/restaurant, mostly for tutorial reasons. This biome consists of many rising and falling floors, which prove to be difficult. The recipes you make in this biome consists of soup and burgers, which are the more basic and simple recipes.

The second biome is a pirate ship, in which the recipes don’t change from the first biome. The pirate ships cause counters to slide back and forth, making it difficult to access cutting boards and ingredients.

The third biome is an ice-y sea, where the kitchen is on an iceberg. The icebergs are incredibly slippery, and it’s very difficult to move without falling into the water, in which case you die and take five seconds to respawn. The recipe for this biome is fish and chips.

The fourth biome is a dark forest, where the kitchen is located in a haunted mansion. You learn to cook pizzas, and continue practicing making burgers and soup. The counters love to fly around and block your path, making navigation frustrating.

The fifth set of levels is a trade off between a space station, and a lava filled volcano. The space station introduces a new obstacle, which is the passing of ingredients through a small room controlled by a button, and the lava level has you running across small bridges to get to parts of the kitchen, and you have to be careful to not fall into the lava. You learn how to make burritos.

The sixth and final set of levels is a bit different – you travel to the hardest kitchen from each biome stated, and the sixth level in the set is the boss fight, in which you cook everything you’ve learned, and (hopefully) defeat the Flying Spaghetti Monster.

In ‘Overcooked 2’ there are quite a few similarities and differences with the first game. There is less organization in terms of biome matching to the set of levels, as there are more biomes and variation in the second game. The new biomes consist of: a sushi restaurant with converter belts where you learn to make sushi, a hot air balloon where you learn the ways of pasta, rapids in which the kitchen is located on a raft where you make chicken and fries, the mines where you make burritos, a magical wizard world with portals where you make delicious pancakes and cakes, and an alien planet where you practice former recipes. There are also two swamp biome levels where you continue practicing the same recipes, while being faced with new obstacles such as wind pushing you.

Each set of levels consist of a variety of these biomes and recipes. In addition to these normal levels, ‘Overcooked 2’ provides an extra six levels which are secret and have to be unlocked. These levels are Kevin levels. Kevin, the dog, wants you to suffer greatly, as he introduces dumplings in very well designed kitchens that make these levels very difficult. These secret levels aren’t required for the completion of the game, but they’re a fun add on that makes the game fun.

Both ‘Overcooked 1’ and ‘Overcooked 2’ are available for purchase on Steam, PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo Switch. You can buy these games separately, but there’s also a package deal, ‘Overcooked: All You Can Eat’, which includes both games and all sixteen DLCs.

The major difference between buying the two games separately and the package is that in ‘Overcooked: All You Can Eat’, you get twenty-two DLC packages, each containing six to ten new levels to play. With the extended package, you also get more and new chefs to play as, new game modes, and more versus levels. ‘Overcooked: All You Can Eat’ contains so much more material than the two games separately, the only downside is that ‘Overcooked 1’ tends to run easier. In the extended version, ‘Overcooked 1’ adapts some of the graphics and aspects of gameplay that makes it feel a bit easy compared to buying the game separately, which is much more challenging to play through. This is a minor difference, and it doesn’t affect the game other than a slight change in difficulty level.

Overall, the ‘Overcooked’ games are both great unique video game options to play. Working collaboratively with your friends to advance through levels in a non-violent, yet competitive atmosphere is a really fun experience. ‘Overcooked’ might just even teach you how to better communicate with your teammates, or teach you something about cooking too!

In the end, both ‘Overcooked’ games get a 10/10.

By: Manuel Avalos Mateos

On September 9, 2014, Apple revealed their eighth generation iPhone: the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. They were released on September 19. The iPhones received both positive and negative reviews from critics and customers. Within the first 24 hours of preorders becoming available, over 4 million preorders for the iPhones were made, which far exceeded the supply that was available. In the very first three days, ten million iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus units were sold.

The new iPhones introduced a new larger screen which users had previously hoped for in the iPhone 4 and 5. It had a new design and featured Touch ID on both devices. It had antenna strips on the back and  a brand new display branded as “Retina HD Display”.

The iPhone 6 had a 4.7 inch display and the iPhone 6 Plus had a 5.5 inch display, making it the largest at the time. Both phones had the ability to shoot 1080p video at 30 and 60 fps and slow motion video at 720p at either 120 or 240fps.

The iPhone models are one of the thinnest iPhones to date. This of course, came with it’s own issues.

The iPhone 6’s are famous for their hardware issues. Users were quick to notice how easily the iPhone 6 Plus was able to bend. In a video which can be found on the YouTube channel “Unbox Therapy” they put the iPhone 6 Plus to the test to see how easy it was to bend the phone with bare hands. The video currently has nearly 75 million views. Users also reported the phone bending in their pockets when they went to sit down. The frame was designed to be light and thin and this caused the phone to bend nearly 3 ½ times easier than the iPhone 5. Famously known as Bendgate, some suggest Apple had already been aware of this issue before launch, but never decided to address it.

Regardless of the many issues it had, they are currently the best selling iPhones Apple has ever made to date. Total sales of around 223 million units globally.