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Video Games

'I know sometimes I'm hard to love': Justin Timberlake addresses DWI charge for first time

After being arrested in the Hamptons last week, the pop singer has resumed his world tour.
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A man stands smiling on stage, strumming a guitar around his neck. He wears a grey button up shirt.

The Summer Game Fest reveals new Harry Potter, Lego and Civilization games — as it happened

Summer Game Fest reveals what's next in gaming, including new Batman and Harry Potter games. See how the show unfolded in our blog.
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A screenshot from the upcoming game Harry Potter Quidditch Champions, showing a wizard with their broom

Cecile Richard said people are often surprised about what a video game could be.

The Freeplay Festival showcases the best most interesting video games, and celebrates its 20th anniversary this year.
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'I didn't know video games could be like this': How Freeplay champions gaming like a writers' festival

The Freeplay Independent Games Festival is celebrating its 20th year of hosting the who's who of gaming in Melbourne. Organisers say keeping independence and creativity in games is more important than ever. 
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Four people stand around a video game installation looking down at the screen

'You really don't need your phone as much as you think': Two Gen Zers 'unplug' to connect with nature

Jessie Manuelyan and Kai Humphrey swap their phones for GoPros and kayaks for five days to show Gen Z can disconnect from their devices and enjoy the great outdoors. 
Two young people sit together smiling with life jackets on. There is long grass, a fence and a stump in the background.

Alex was doxxed while playing Call of Duty. What happened next was a living nightmare for him and his family

For up to four weeks, Alex and his family received up to 50 food deliveries a day after his address was shared by someone he had an argument with while playing Call of Duty online. Here's what to do if, like Alex, you've been doxxed.
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A photo graphic of a blurred-out young male on a mobile phone sitting in front of a laptop.

Meme stocks are roaring again. This time it may be different

GameStop and AMC Entertainment are again capturing retail investors' attention, reminiscent of the meme stock frenzy that gripped Wall Street three years ago. Here's why. 
A man wearing a mask walks out of a GameStop store.

The biggest tech court case in Australian history you've never heard of

Google and Apple are being dragged through the courts around the world and the case has finally hit Australia. Courtrooms have heard how the tech giants are quietly earning billions in commissions from smartphone users. Here’s what could happen if they lose the fight here.
ABC News Current

This man set up his dream career playing video games, sparked by NDIS failures

He struggled through school, couldn't cope at university, and lives with a rare genetic condition, but somehow Will Golding used his disability to create his dream career — and a place to support others like him. 
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A man with short brown hair smiles softly with his arms crossed.

analysis:Was it the husband? Porn? A sobering story of mysterious credit card charges and a dreaded question

Let me tell you a sobering and instructive story of how youthful curiosity and low-level larceny can be terribly bad for your financial health. This could be life or death info.
A shocked-looking woman with dark curly hair holds a laptop in one hand, a phone to her ear in the other

Problems with eye contact, attention and emotional regulation linked to high screen time, researcher says

A developmental psychologist says children who spend too much time in front of a screen can develop social and emotional problems well into adolescence.
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A man holds a model of a brain

Video game 'Wayward Strand' teaches intergenerational relationships to teenagers

‘Wayward Strand’ is an immersive role playing story, designed to develop empathy, social skills and intergenerational relationships in young teenage players, who are tasked with entertaining, making conversations and forming relationships with the residents of an aged care facility.
ABC News Current
Duration: 2 minutes 1 second

Generations take to the air in new Australian-made digital adventure game

With Victoria's Bass Coast as a stunning backdrop, the award-winning airship adventure Wayward Strand encourages young players' empathy, social skills and relationship building in an aged care facility in the sky.
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Marigold Bartlett at her computer

Digital natives resurgence in the popular arcade game has seen world rankings taken over by under 21-year-olds

At 10, Emily Cosson was the only female at pinball competitions. Then she started beating the grown men. Now, she's part of a trend turning old-school cool again.
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A young girl playing pinball next to a man

He's sold tens of millions of games and Guillermo Del Toro says he's a 'master'. But who is Hideo Kojima?

Hideo Kojima has dominated the games world for over three decades, and now Hollywood is noticing.
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Hideo Kojima with director Gullerimo Del Toro at the 2017 game awards. 

In Darwin, esports and tech take over the city's oldest pub

Modern gaming finds an unlikely home in the Top End, with Darwin's most storied pub in the heart of the city becoming a new esports and technology centre.
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A man looking at the camera with two people playing video games behind him.

Emma never planned on becoming a 'gaming mum'. It turns out that joining her son's games could have benefits beyond fun

New research shows more than half of young children who play online games wish their parents would game with them — and that joining in can help keep kids safe online.
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Mum Emma and son Julian gaming together on the couch.

Adelaide man takes exploring the world to the next level using Google Street View clues

For the next seven months, Oscar Pearce is hoping to spend about eight hours per day guessing where he is in the world, but from his computer.
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A man smiles with short brown hair wears a green and gold jersey, he sits in front of computer with map open

ICYMI: Jacob Elordi is very tall on SNL, the most hyped films from Sundance, and Pitchfork gutted

From the Minecraft movie to a juicy Brent Street reality show, here's all the latest entertainment news.
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A collage of brown staffy wearing a 'love is love' hankerchief; Jacob Elordi, plus Katy O'Brien and Kristen Stewart.

'Something only AI can do': 13-year-old 'beats' Tetris

Video shows the teen playing the video game on a Nintendo Entertainment System console until it froze — not because it was broken — but because he'd reached such a high level the game just couldn't keep going.
Blue Scuti reacting after making the game Tetris freeze

Meet the Australians having an outsized impact on the competitive world of Pokémon

Since 1996, the Japanese video game franchise has taken the world by storm, with Australia now playing host to many of the very best players in the world.
A boy in front of trees

Hacker who blackmailed Grand Theft Auto developers sentenced to indefinite hospital detention

The 18-year-old went on a solo cybercrime spree  in 2022 where he targeted Uber, Revolut and threatened to release code from an upcoming Grand Theft Auto sequel. 
Illustration of woman and man sitting on a car bonnet

'I would recommend this to everyone I know': ABC Gamer's Top 5 releases of 2023

It's Game of the Year time! Here's what made our favourites list.
A collage of images featuring characters from video games.

'Survive until 25': Australian video game studios brace for grim year ahead

Video games had a bumper 2023, but the Australian games industry is suffering through one of its worst contractions since the global financial crisis, with lay-offs and studio closures predicted to continue across 2024. What's going on?
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Flooded world showing a Ferris Wheel and a woman in a small boat.

'No one's ever done it before': Aus-made musical video game Stray Gods nominated for a Grammy Award

Composer Austin Wintory and Australian game developer Liam Esler started their ambitious project almost immediately upon meeting.
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Art from Stray Gods, depicting a young woman singing into a mic while her eyes glow, against a backdrop of flames