digital culture gaming


ANIMAL CROSSING In other gaming news, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is


LOST IN RANDOM Fans of Tim Burton and fairytales will love Lost In Random, a


bringing out a free update and paid expansion this month, and there’s a lot coming to the game. Several longtime favourite characters will make their New Horizons debut, including Brewster and the Roost. There’s been criticism that players of AC have been forgotten about and many people have become bored with the game, so hopefully this update will encourage them to start playing again. There’s too much to cover but it also includes gyroids, cooking, pro cameras, and new islands. With the Happy Home Paradise paid downloadable content, players can also get more customization and decoration items and go to work planning new vacationers’ dream homes. Animal Crossing: New Horizons – Happy Home Paradise launches on Fri 5 Nov, at £24.99.


new indie game from Zoink. It combines a unique, dark world with great writing, wonderfully quirky visuals, and a combat system that’s unlike anything I’ve played before.


It’s a story-based action-adventure game where you play as Even, who has to rescue her sister Odd from the Queen of Random. In Random, on your 12th birthday, citizens roll a dice that determines which of the six worlds of Random they’ll spend the rest of their lives in. The game follows a sequence of combat encounters and quirky characters with interesting stories as you ascend through the six districts. There are areas where you can explore freely, with collectibles and side quests; there’s fantastic world-building within Random with lots of twisty buildings and paths, oddly shaped townsfolk, and a general sense of eerie stuffed into every inch of its geography.


The combat is fantastic, and unlike any other game, as time literally stops during fights by using Dicey, your dice companion. Dicey is adorable, only speaking in cute babbles and providing some light relief in such a gloomy game. You start each battle with only a slingshot, which allows you to shoot crystals off of the faces and bodies of your foes. Once you have both cards and energy, a simple toss of Dicey freezes time, letting you move around freely while planning out your strategy. It’s exciting how fights in Lost In Random never play out the same way.


In short, this is a dark and fast-paced action adventure with excellent combat mechanics, witty writing, and a memorable cast of characters – such as Seemore, who’s missing his eyes. The world of Random is so vivid, with surprises around every corner: at times genuinely scary, but consistently beautiful. I took so many screenshots whilst playing, because the artwork is that stunning. A game I’d recommend to anyone; I hope that there will be more games like Lost In Random to come.


Out now on PS5, PS4, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Switch and PC.


SARAH BOWDIDGE


YouTube channel: DRAWFEE


3 OF THE BEST podcasts


To go with our sustainability theme, this month we’re spotlighting two podcasts that are, well, all about sustainability, and one that’s got nothing to do with it… but nonetheless worth giving a try! Available wherever you listen to podcasts.


CONSCIOUS CHATTER With Kestral Jenkins


EASTWARD John and his adopted daughter Sam find their way through a


whimsical, post-apocalyptic landscape armed with a simple frying pan and some psychic abilities. John and Sam’s journey takes place in a charming landscape that’s rich with lovely characters and intimately designed places including mines, train stations and quirky shops. There's a sense of nostalgia with this game, even though it’s brand new; Eastward looks like an evolution of the old-school 2D Japanese RPGs, and is exactly how 2D games should look in 2021. I especially loved the music and the little motifs that the characters had. You alternate playing as Sam and John during fights using their different fight tactics – although a co-op feature would’ve worked even better – there’s plenty of minigames and puzzles, and you have to be tactical throughout. Eastward is a delightful game with a real sense of heart and beauty.


The fashion industry is a huge but under-discussed polluter - as you’ll (sadly) learn from our Lifestyle section. But there is hope: Hosted by self- titled “conscious style maven” Kestrel Jenkins, Conscious Chatter is an eye- opening examination of the intersections of clothing, politics and identity in the hope that the stories behind the things we wear make us more ethical shoppers.


SUSTAINABLY INFLUENCED With Bianca Foley + Charlotte Williams


The growing ‘conscious’ movement is all about creating consumers who are informed about what they’re buying - and what they’re throwing away. Hosts Bianca Foley and Charlotte Williams are aware of what a minefield it is and guide you through it like two new besties. Educational but highly engrossing.


Spotify playlist:


FUTURE FUNK From the same school as the YouTube-driven vaporwave genre, Future Funk is for anyone with misplaced 80s nostalgia, a love of vintage anime and in need of some crowd-pleasing party ambience. Featuring some of the best artists working in this unique subculture (Macross 82- 99, Tanuki, Night Tempo, and more), the playlist is a melting pot of retro pop, hypnotic beats and jazzy riffs with distinctive Japanese sampling. The perfect soundtrack to amp up your daily commute or a gathering of hard-to-please music nerds who think they’ve heard it all already.


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Combining our collective love of good friends who podcast and watching people draw, The Drawfee Show has something of a cult following online. Each week, artists Nathan Yaffe, Julia Lepetit, Jacob Andres and Karina Farek bring absurd prompts to life while making each other laugh with silly impressions and surreal ‘What If?’ questions. It’s like Pictionary but done by pros. Highlights include “A Room Full of Vampires” and “Knock-off Scooby-Doo Gang” (aka ‘Scooby-Dip’). Formerly part of the College Humor network, the show has since gone independent. Give them some Patreon love! Available on YouTube.


DARK HISTORY With Bailey Sarian


Bailey Sarian loves both make-up and true crime. So much so that when she became a content creator, she couldn’t pick between the two. And so, her oddly transfixing make-up tutorials with a side of cold case history were born, and now exists in podcast form. Sickening looks and sickening crime stories, together at last.


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