Brendan Sinclair
@brendansinclair.bsky.social
Recovering game journalist, now simply a journalist.
Context-Free Patent Art: https://www.tumblr.com/contextfreepatentart
Context-Free Patent Art: https://www.tumblr.com/contextfreepatentart
Heads up that The Logic has dropped its paywall on some of its biggest stories of 2025, for a limited time. Check them out:
thelogic.co/news/special...
thelogic.co/news/special...
The Logic’s biggest and best stories of 2025 - The Logic
From the trade war to the productivity crisis, AI chatbots, the war on wine and Canada’s stuttering EV dreams, here are some of our favourite stories from the past year
thelogic.co
December 29, 2025 at 11:21 PM
Heads up that The Logic has dropped its paywall on some of its biggest stories of 2025, for a limited time. Check them out:
thelogic.co/news/special...
thelogic.co/news/special...
Saw Zootopia 2. It gets a few bonus points for having the narrative revolve around a subject kids absolutely know, love, and care deeply about: patents.
December 28, 2025 at 7:46 PM
Saw Zootopia 2. It gets a few bonus points for having the narrative revolve around a subject kids absolutely know, love, and care deeply about: patents.
Yesterday I went looking for some Christmas-themed game-related patent art. The patent database fates decided that no, I would only find this instead.
www.tumblr.com/contextfreep...
www.tumblr.com/contextfreep...
December 25, 2025 at 4:12 PM
Yesterday I went looking for some Christmas-themed game-related patent art. The patent database fates decided that no, I would only find this instead.
www.tumblr.com/contextfreep...
www.tumblr.com/contextfreep...
Today's Context-free patent art is a whole thing.
December 22, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Today's Context-free patent art is a whole thing.
Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown.
December 20, 2025 at 12:08 PM
Bon Voyage, Charlie Brown.
When I wrote up the endearingly goofy Study Group for the annual staff picks article at The Logic, I didn't think they'd actually run it. They wound up making it the headline image on the round-up. Read up on it and a bunch of other great stuff. No paywall on this one!
thelogic.co/commentary/b...
thelogic.co/commentary/b...
Here’s what you should watch, read and listen to this holiday season - The Logic
Our picks for the best books, TV shows, films and music of 2025
thelogic.co
December 19, 2025 at 6:19 PM
When I wrote up the endearingly goofy Study Group for the annual staff picks article at The Logic, I didn't think they'd actually run it. They wound up making it the headline image on the round-up. Read up on it and a bunch of other great stuff. No paywall on this one!
thelogic.co/commentary/b...
thelogic.co/commentary/b...
Really great thread which heightened my appreciation of a really great movie.
Alice has now seen “Wake Up Dead Man” which means now I can talk about “Wake Up Dead Man” as approximately one million of you have asked me to do. intermittent live-blog in the quoted thread. gay Catholic musings below:
Alice is finally watching “Wake Up Dead Man” and we are having a great time
December 17, 2025 at 1:10 PM
Really great thread which heightened my appreciation of a really great movie.
Big fan of this album. Highly recommend anyone not allergic to the phrase "indie rock" give it a listen.
i've also still got some tapes of Forever Only Idaho, a scrappy indie rock album about angry people stuck in dead ends looking for reasons to live harrisonlemke.bandcamp.com/album/foreve...
Forever Only Idaho, by Harrison Lemke
14 track album
harrisonlemke.bandcamp.com
December 5, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Big fan of this album. Highly recommend anyone not allergic to the phrase "indie rock" give it a listen.
This is a really good list of amazing games that came out this year. Reminded me of a few I had been meaning to play, and introduced me to a couple more. Definitely worth a look.
Another December marks another @npr.org best games of the year list. Indies ruled 2025. Our list is the most eclectic you will find on the internet. 🧵
www.npr.org/2025/12/03/n...
www.npr.org/2025/12/03/n...
The best games of 2025, picked by NPR's staff
From indies like Blue Prince to big console exclusives like Donkey Kong Bananza, NPR staff members and contributors round up their favorite games of 2025.
www.npr.org
December 4, 2025 at 1:32 PM
This is a really good list of amazing games that came out this year. Reminded me of a few I had been meaning to play, and introduced me to a couple more. Definitely worth a look.
The writing in Hades is remarkable from either a quality perspective or a quantity perspective. That it excels at both while also being a phenomenally deep-yet-approachable action game is something close to a miracle.
I mean the fact that narrative is still so often painted on afterwards when hades is sitting right there as a production/quality counterpoint baffles me, but that's bro production for you
the way the writing reinforces and discusses every part of the game loop as it happens is just incredible stuff
November 30, 2025 at 1:42 AM
The writing in Hades is remarkable from either a quality perspective or a quantity perspective. That it excels at both while also being a phenomenally deep-yet-approachable action game is something close to a miracle.
Sony envisions a future where "my controller's running out of juice" has nothing to do with battery power.
November 24, 2025 at 1:57 PM
Sony envisions a future where "my controller's running out of juice" has nothing to do with battery power.
Reposted by Brendan Sinclair
Faked sales claims. AI-driven hunts for malefactors jn a “high-trust company.” Executives heading for the exits. @aleksagan.bsky.social has an exclusive report on bad doings at #Shopify.
Shopify rocked by sales fraud scandal that led to ultimatums and firings - The Logic
Shopify salespeople were inflating the value of the deals they were closing. When management found out, they told staff to own up or face the consequences.
thelogic.co
November 24, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Faked sales claims. AI-driven hunts for malefactors jn a “high-trust company.” Executives heading for the exits. @aleksagan.bsky.social has an exclusive report on bad doings at #Shopify.
If my dog ever gets lost, please don't bother sending me condolences if you're just going to outsource it to an AI that won't even get the dog's name right.
www.tumblr.com/contextfreep...
www.tumblr.com/contextfreep...
November 20, 2025 at 3:18 AM
If my dog ever gets lost, please don't bother sending me condolences if you're just going to outsource it to an AI that won't even get the dog's name right.
www.tumblr.com/contextfreep...
www.tumblr.com/contextfreep...
We need more fact-checkers for a post-truth era.
A few months ago @thelocal.to got a promising pitch from a writer with bylines in whole bunch of reputable publications—The Cut, The Guardian, Dwell, Architectural Digest, etc. Then I started investigating. Here's a story about fabulists in journalism's AI slop era. thelocal.to/investigatin...
Investigating a Possible Scammer in Journalism’s AI Era | The Local
A suspicious pitch from a freelancer led editor Nicholas Hune-Brown to dig into their past work. By the end, four publications, including The Guardian and Dwell, had removed articles from their sites.
thelocal.to
November 19, 2025 at 5:40 PM
We need more fact-checkers for a post-truth era.
Come work with me at an outlet that is actually growing and investing in journalism!
The Logic is hiring for an assistant editor! Work from anywhere in Canada, full details and salary range here:
thelogic.applytojobs.ca/editorial/42...
thelogic.applytojobs.ca/editorial/42...
The Logic Job Board - Assistant editor
Job vacancy for the role of Assistant editor
thelogic.applytojobs.ca
November 18, 2025 at 4:00 PM
Come work with me at an outlet that is actually growing and investing in journalism!
Guitar Hero was released 20 years ago this week, so it's now about as old as Super Mario Bros. was when Guitar Hero came out.
a close up of a man in a military uniform looking at the camera with a serious look on his face .
Alt: Saving Private Ryan .gif of young Matt Damon in a military uniform dissolving into decades-older Matt Damon in seconds.
media.tenor.com
November 3, 2025 at 1:05 PM
Guitar Hero was released 20 years ago this week, so it's now about as old as Super Mario Bros. was when Guitar Hero came out.
Everybody in games was laying off people over the past few years, but Microsoft's cuts still stood out for how seemingly arbitrary and optional they were at a time when the company was consistently posting record profits.
SCOOP: For the last two years, Microsoft has pushed Xbox to hit profit margins of 30%, an ambitious target that's far higher than the industry average.
This chase for profit has led Xbox to raise prices, cut thousands of jobs, and rethink everything.
Story: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
This chase for profit has led Xbox to raise prices, cut thousands of jobs, and rethink everything.
Story: www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
Microsoft Pushes Xbox Division to Hit Higher Profit Margins
Management’s goal of 30% profit margins for gaming has led to job losses, canceled projects
www.bloomberg.com
October 23, 2025 at 11:33 AM
Everybody in games was laying off people over the past few years, but Microsoft's cuts still stood out for how seemingly arbitrary and optional they were at a time when the company was consistently posting record profits.
I'll just note that the first Assassin's Creed game was set during the Crusades and made in the years after 9/11 during a couple U.S.-led wars in the Middle East.
SCOOP: Last year, Ubisoft cancelled an Assassin's Creed game set during Reconstruction. Was to feature a Black Assassin who, among other things, fought the rise of the Klan
Sources: Leadership nixed it over concerns re: U.S. political climate, backlash to Yasuke
www.gamefile.news/p/scoop-ubis...
Sources: Leadership nixed it over concerns re: U.S. political climate, backlash to Yasuke
www.gamefile.news/p/scoop-ubis...
Scoop: Ubisoft cancelled a post-Civil War Assassin’s Creed last year
Company leadership deemed the project too controversial for the moment, sources tell Game File
www.gamefile.news
October 8, 2025 at 8:35 PM
I'll just note that the first Assassin's Creed game was set during the Crusades and made in the years after 9/11 during a couple U.S.-led wars in the Middle East.
Sony already applied for a patent on a literal banana controller, and now it's looking for one on a motion-sensing orb. I love this kind of stuff.
September 26, 2025 at 12:53 PM
Sony already applied for a patent on a literal banana controller, and now it's looking for one on a motion-sensing orb. I love this kind of stuff.
Kind of stunning how a foundational part of the modern video game industry is being banned for kids in major markets and it's getting minimal attention internationally.
Brazilian President signed the under-18 loot box ban into law (Lei 15.211/25; effective March 2026). 🇧🇷 www.planalto.gov.br/ccivil_03/_a...
September 26, 2025 at 11:51 AM
Kind of stunning how a foundational part of the modern video game industry is being banned for kids in major markets and it's getting minimal attention internationally.
Am I the only one who initially read this as referring to an artificial intelligence bot trained on Michaels' work?
Al Michaels Recaps History Of Football For Viewers Just Tuning In https://theonion.com/al-michaels-recaps-history-of-football-for-viewers-just-tuning-in/
September 19, 2025 at 1:29 AM
Am I the only one who initially read this as referring to an artificial intelligence bot trained on Michaels' work?
Nintendo seems to have a renewed interest in light guns as well, although this one seems to be for location-based entertainment like the Nintendo areas at Universal theme parks.
September 18, 2025 at 12:51 PM
Nintendo seems to have a renewed interest in light guns as well, although this one seems to be for location-based entertainment like the Nintendo areas at Universal theme parks.
Here's a patent applicant who imagines using the M-rated game where you torture a guy with a nail gun and blowtorch as a way to teach basic colours to children in the age group of 0-4.
September 12, 2025 at 1:00 PM
Here's a patent applicant who imagines using the M-rated game where you torture a guy with a nail gun and blowtorch as a way to teach basic colours to children in the age group of 0-4.
Interesting, Sony just applied for a patent on a haptic feedback system for a gun accessory. Sounds a bit like the old Time Crisis arcade guns that would give a kick of recoil when you pulled the trigger.
September 11, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Interesting, Sony just applied for a patent on a haptic feedback system for a gun accessory. Sounds a bit like the old Time Crisis arcade guns that would give a kick of recoil when you pulled the trigger.
Grateful to my follows that nobody has posted gruesome video footage into my feed today. Basically a 0% chance that happens with an algorithmic feed.
September 10, 2025 at 11:21 PM
Grateful to my follows that nobody has posted gruesome video footage into my feed today. Basically a 0% chance that happens with an algorithmic feed.