Will Borger
@edgarallanbro.bsky.social
Pushcart Prize-nominated fiction writer/essayist.
Co-founder/Editor-in-Chief @skyboxcritics.com.
Words: MLR, Purple Wall, ASP, The Rupture, YourTango, Vet. Life.
Games: Rolling Stone, IGN, PC Gamer, Digital Trends, Shacknews, Unwinnable, Restart +
Co-founder/Editor-in-Chief @skyboxcritics.com.
Words: MLR, Purple Wall, ASP, The Rupture, YourTango, Vet. Life.
Games: Rolling Stone, IGN, PC Gamer, Digital Trends, Shacknews, Unwinnable, Restart +
Pinned
Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. isn't just a PC port of a 19-year-old game: it's the reason a diehard fighting game community can 'finally reach out and play with each other across the world'
Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O's arrival on PC marks the start a new era for the series that pioneered 3D fighting games.
www.pcgamer.com
I interviewed several members of the VF community about why VF5: R.E.V.O. matters for @pcgamer.com. VF is so important, and it's so good to see that community get their moment and help them tell that story.
Big thanks to @wes.readonlymemo.com for the opportunity.
www.pcgamer.com/games/fighti...
Big thanks to @wes.readonlymemo.com for the opportunity.
www.pcgamer.com/games/fighti...
Reposted by Will Borger
The Skybox Podcast 16 is out on demand! We talk about Ball x Pit, Sonic the Hedgehog X DC Comics, Lumines Arise, Descent of Lunaris, and the weird, changing landscape of console exclusives. And other stuff, too.
Patreon: www.patreon.com/posts/ep-16-...
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/1tLV...
Patreon: www.patreon.com/posts/ep-16-...
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/1tLV...
Ep. 16 - Ball X Pit, Lumines Arise, Descent Of Lunaris OR "Kratos' Sekiro-Like Boss Fight Against The Hindu Stack Of Turtles" | Skybox
Get more from Skybox on Patreon
www.patreon.com
November 18, 2025 at 9:01 PM
The Skybox Podcast 16 is out on demand! We talk about Ball x Pit, Sonic the Hedgehog X DC Comics, Lumines Arise, Descent of Lunaris, and the weird, changing landscape of console exclusives. And other stuff, too.
Patreon: www.patreon.com/posts/ep-16-...
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/1tLV...
Patreon: www.patreon.com/posts/ep-16-...
Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/1tLV...
Reposted by Will Borger
BTW if this sounds like I'm complaining about something, I'm not! This is the system working as intended. We're getting some great reviews and some not great ones. If Silent Hill f can do it so can we, we're right in that "I HAVE A REACTION" zone~
On this particular day I want to say that a critic's job is to criticize art, and an artist's job is to make something that resonates with specific people, which necessarily means it won't resonate with others. If every critic liked a piece of art, one or the other of us would not be doing our jobs.
November 18, 2025 at 7:58 PM
BTW if this sounds like I'm complaining about something, I'm not! This is the system working as intended. We're getting some great reviews and some not great ones. If Silent Hill f can do it so can we, we're right in that "I HAVE A REACTION" zone~
Reposted by Will Borger
America's first ever esports champion was Rebecca Heineman, a trans woman. She went on to found some of your favorite video game studios and worked on your favorite video games. Next time you see somebody rail about 'woke' and 'DEI'
Remember that.
Remember her.
Remember that.
Remember her.
"I code so others can dream."
Gayming Icon and LGBTQ+ video game pioneer, Rebecca Heineman, has sadly passed away after a short, tough fight with aggressive cancer.
Read our obituary to this true industry trailblazer: gaymingmag.com/2025/11/gaym...
Gayming Icon and LGBTQ+ video game pioneer, Rebecca Heineman, has sadly passed away after a short, tough fight with aggressive cancer.
Read our obituary to this true industry trailblazer: gaymingmag.com/2025/11/gaym...
Gayming Icon and LGBTQ+ games pioneer, Rebecca Heineman, has died - Gayming Magazine
Rebecca Heineman, a trailblazing figure in the video game industry and a celebrated icon within the LGBTQ+ gaming community, has died.
gaymingmag.com
November 18, 2025 at 4:11 PM
America's first ever esports champion was Rebecca Heineman, a trans woman. She went on to found some of your favorite video game studios and worked on your favorite video games. Next time you see somebody rail about 'woke' and 'DEI'
Remember that.
Remember her.
Remember that.
Remember her.
I reviewed @necrosoftgames.com 's Demonschool for @shacknews.com, and I really dug it. It's gorgeous, charming, genuinely funny, and the combat system has the juice to keep you searching for the perfect turn.
Also, there's a Gunsmith Cats reference. You love to see it. Wholly recommended.
Also, there's a Gunsmith Cats reference. You love to see it. Wholly recommended.
Demonschool review: Top of the class
Classrooms, companions, and combos.
www.shacknews.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:08 PM
I reviewed @necrosoftgames.com 's Demonschool for @shacknews.com, and I really dug it. It's gorgeous, charming, genuinely funny, and the combat system has the juice to keep you searching for the perfect turn.
Also, there's a Gunsmith Cats reference. You love to see it. Wholly recommended.
Also, there's a Gunsmith Cats reference. You love to see it. Wholly recommended.
I do think it's very funny that you can accurately nail down someone's age by whether or not they're excited for Half-Life 3.
If you are excited for Half-Life 3, please remember to moisturize, stretch, and drink lots of water. You're old now, and the kids don't know or care about Half-Life.
If you are excited for Half-Life 3, please remember to moisturize, stretch, and drink lots of water. You're old now, and the kids don't know or care about Half-Life.
A Half-Life 3 announcement would break the internet if the internet were full of only 35+ year olds.
(I kid, I kid... I'll just wait for the TikTok videos with Alphas explaining why their parents liked Half-Life so much back in the day)
(I kid, I kid... I'll just wait for the TikTok videos with Alphas explaining why their parents liked Half-Life so much back in the day)
November 18, 2025 at 3:34 PM
I do think it's very funny that you can accurately nail down someone's age by whether or not they're excited for Half-Life 3.
If you are excited for Half-Life 3, please remember to moisturize, stretch, and drink lots of water. You're old now, and the kids don't know or care about Half-Life.
If you are excited for Half-Life 3, please remember to moisturize, stretch, and drink lots of water. You're old now, and the kids don't know or care about Half-Life.
Once again banging the "Lost Odyssey was the last great Final Fantasy" drum. If you haven't played it, you're missing out.
Crazy how the Clair Obscur cats seem to know ball but a lot of the people gassing up their game just... don't because they've never played the games it draws from.
Crazy how the Clair Obscur cats seem to know ball but a lot of the people gassing up their game just... don't because they've never played the games it draws from.
"It's the last game that made me cry": Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 director on the iconic Xbox 360 RPG, Lost Odyssey, and its unexpected legacy
www.eurogamer.net/its-the-last...
www.eurogamer.net/its-the-last...
November 18, 2025 at 2:12 PM
Once again banging the "Lost Odyssey was the last great Final Fantasy" drum. If you haven't played it, you're missing out.
Crazy how the Clair Obscur cats seem to know ball but a lot of the people gassing up their game just... don't because they've never played the games it draws from.
Crazy how the Clair Obscur cats seem to know ball but a lot of the people gassing up their game just... don't because they've never played the games it draws from.
Reposted by Will Borger
Ooooh is your internet broken. Did someone's immaterial web of financial speculation and surveillance turn out to have a failure point in material infrastructure
October 20, 2025 at 2:10 PM
Ooooh is your internet broken. Did someone's immaterial web of financial speculation and surveillance turn out to have a failure point in material infrastructure
Remember when we played games because we enjoyed the act of playing them, not because there was a constant stream of rewards designed to stimulate the same parts of your brain that gambling does?
Battlefield 6 has standard XP levelling, like every big shooter post Modern Warfare. It also has a season pass, that can only be progressed by completing weekly season pass challenges for season pass tokens. There's now an event pass within the season, with its own set of event token challenges.
November 18, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Remember when we played games because we enjoyed the act of playing them, not because there was a constant stream of rewards designed to stimulate the same parts of your brain that gambling does?
Lex's Call of Duty review treats Call of Duty like it's art that says something, not a product. It is an essential review of Call of Duty that has the gall to examine it as more than a yearly excuse to play army man and kill other people online with your buddies. You should read it.
November 18, 2025 at 12:36 AM
Lex's Call of Duty review treats Call of Duty like it's art that says something, not a product. It is an essential review of Call of Duty that has the gall to examine it as more than a yearly excuse to play army man and kill other people online with your buddies. You should read it.
Reposted by Will Borger
GEN Z HARRY OSBORN: Pete what's up with all those books about Spiders you can just look them up on Tiktok
GEN Z PETER PARKER: C'mon Harry you know it's my, uh, Hyperfixation
MILLENNIAL J. JONAH JAMESON: PARKER! YOU SENT ME .webp FILES! HOW DOES A GEEK LIKE YOU NOT KNOW WHAT A FILE EXTENSION IS
GEN Z PETER PARKER: C'mon Harry you know it's my, uh, Hyperfixation
MILLENNIAL J. JONAH JAMESON: PARKER! YOU SENT ME .webp FILES! HOW DOES A GEEK LIKE YOU NOT KNOW WHAT A FILE EXTENSION IS
November 17, 2025 at 8:56 PM
GEN Z HARRY OSBORN: Pete what's up with all those books about Spiders you can just look them up on Tiktok
GEN Z PETER PARKER: C'mon Harry you know it's my, uh, Hyperfixation
MILLENNIAL J. JONAH JAMESON: PARKER! YOU SENT ME .webp FILES! HOW DOES A GEEK LIKE YOU NOT KNOW WHAT A FILE EXTENSION IS
GEN Z PETER PARKER: C'mon Harry you know it's my, uh, Hyperfixation
MILLENNIAL J. JONAH JAMESON: PARKER! YOU SENT ME .webp FILES! HOW DOES A GEEK LIKE YOU NOT KNOW WHAT A FILE EXTENSION IS
Reposted by Will Borger
Call of Duty making a zillion dollars all the time -- and being supported by a literal trillion-dollar company -- and still using AI for art assets is so incredibly pathetic and infuriating.
November 17, 2025 at 8:12 PM
Call of Duty making a zillion dollars all the time -- and being supported by a literal trillion-dollar company -- and still using AI for art assets is so incredibly pathetic and infuriating.
Reposted by Will Borger
Freed from the shackles of the content calendar, I can say that, yeah, might be a good idea to move TGAs to January or February to get the full slate of releases in consideration for nominations.
November 17, 2025 at 8:06 PM
Freed from the shackles of the content calendar, I can say that, yeah, might be a good idea to move TGAs to January or February to get the full slate of releases in consideration for nominations.
Reposted by Will Borger
Two things can be true: 1.) The Game Awards are meaningless and we shouldn't take them all that seriously. 2.) Award shows of its scale DO rewrite the mainstream history of the art form, whether they deserve to or not, and its okay to care that it's so thoughtless despite having that responsibility.
November 17, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Two things can be true: 1.) The Game Awards are meaningless and we shouldn't take them all that seriously. 2.) Award shows of its scale DO rewrite the mainstream history of the art form, whether they deserve to or not, and its okay to care that it's so thoughtless despite having that responsibility.
Reposted by Will Borger
expedition 33 is going to win every single category at the geoff keighley game awards, but dont let that fool you, its not actually that bad
November 17, 2025 at 7:10 PM
expedition 33 is going to win every single category at the geoff keighley game awards, but dont let that fool you, its not actually that bad
Reposted by Will Borger
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is a soulless and soul-destroying game that thinks exceptionally little of its players and developers.
My one-star review for @restart.run:
www.restart.run/articles/cal...
My one-star review for @restart.run:
www.restart.run/articles/cal...
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Review | Restart
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is an underwhelming, frustrating experience, even at its best.
www.restart.run
November 17, 2025 at 6:38 PM
Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is a soulless and soul-destroying game that thinks exceptionally little of its players and developers.
My one-star review for @restart.run:
www.restart.run/articles/cal...
My one-star review for @restart.run:
www.restart.run/articles/cal...
Reposted by Will Borger
I think the TGAs having such glaring blindspots is and issue because we can say ignore them all we want, it is how the public views this industry and the games coming out of it.
My nail tech isnt watching DICE but she does know what TGAs are.
My nail tech isnt watching DICE but she does know what TGAs are.
November 17, 2025 at 6:17 PM
I think the TGAs having such glaring blindspots is and issue because we can say ignore them all we want, it is how the public views this industry and the games coming out of it.
My nail tech isnt watching DICE but she does know what TGAs are.
My nail tech isnt watching DICE but she does know what TGAs are.
The lack of respect for fighting games is insane. The best esports player is probably a fighting game pro. The best ongoing game? Probably a fighting game. The best event? It's a fighting game tournament that has an open bracket. And not only do these never win, they're never *nominated.*
FF14 being nominated for best ongoing in a year when I have seen its players do very little but constantly complain about a quality dip, with devs even copping to it, while Street Fighter 6 on a total tear not even getting a nod is making my head spin
November 17, 2025 at 5:29 PM
The lack of respect for fighting games is insane. The best esports player is probably a fighting game pro. The best ongoing game? Probably a fighting game. The best event? It's a fighting game tournament that has an open bracket. And not only do these never win, they're never *nominated.*
I will not engage in TGAs discourse. That way lies madness. Instead, I am writing a review for a cool indie game.
November 17, 2025 at 5:18 PM
I will not engage in TGAs discourse. That way lies madness. Instead, I am writing a review for a cool indie game.
Reposted by Will Borger
one day we will reach a point where people understand that showing something bad happening in a piece of fiction is not endorsing it. but today is not that day, i guess.
One Scene In Dispatch Has Ruined The Game For Some Players https://kotaku.com/dispatch-episode-7-invisigal-locker-scene-sexual-assault-2000644844
Dispatch Fans Say One Scene Goes Too Far
The superhero workplace comedy’s penultimate episode is not sitting well with its fans
kotaku.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:56 PM
one day we will reach a point where people understand that showing something bad happening in a piece of fiction is not endorsing it. but today is not that day, i guess.
Reposted by Will Borger
Krafton's CEO allegedly used ChatGPT to tell him out to get out of paying Unknown World's cofounders
November 17, 2025 at 1:49 PM
Krafton's CEO allegedly used ChatGPT to tell him out to get out of paying Unknown World's cofounders
Reposted by Will Borger
It really needs to be pointed out how every one of these embarrassing statements is made by a c-suite executive and not an artist or even art department lead
"Surely there's a middle ground here?" The CEO of Helldivers 2 studio Arrowhead says people "jump to extreme takes" when debating generative AI, and that there needs to be more nuance in the discussion.
www.videogameschronicle.com/news/surely-...
www.videogameschronicle.com/news/surely-...
‘Surely there’s a middle ground here?’ Helldivers studio CEO says people ‘jump to extreme takes’ when debating GenAI | VGC
“This is such a trigger point for big parts of the games industry today”…
www.videogameschronicle.com
November 17, 2025 at 3:05 PM
It really needs to be pointed out how every one of these embarrassing statements is made by a c-suite executive and not an artist or even art department lead
Open mouth, insert foot. Add Helldivers 2 to the list.
"Surely there's a middle ground here?" The CEO of Helldivers 2 studio Arrowhead says people "jump to extreme takes" when debating generative AI, and that there needs to be more nuance in the discussion.
www.videogameschronicle.com/news/surely-...
www.videogameschronicle.com/news/surely-...
‘Surely there’s a middle ground here?’ Helldivers studio CEO says people ‘jump to extreme takes’ when debating GenAI | VGC
“This is such a trigger point for big parts of the games industry today”…
www.videogameschronicle.com
November 17, 2025 at 3:34 PM
Open mouth, insert foot. Add Helldivers 2 to the list.
Reposted by Will Borger
epstein emails released and everyone coming out as a pedophile to defend donald trump
November 16, 2025 at 11:22 PM
epstein emails released and everyone coming out as a pedophile to defend donald trump
Reposted by Will Borger
Reposted by Will Borger
A convicted child rape trafficker - and almost certainly child rapist herself - lives a better life than you or I on US citizens' dime. What a great world we live in.
Unique among inmates, Ghislaine Maxwell gets room service in her cell, after-hours access to recreation, a private visitor suite with refreshments and even a service-dog puppy to play with.
Is this a federal prison sentence or a comped stay at a Trump Hotel?
Is this a federal prison sentence or a comped stay at a Trump Hotel?
Ghislaine Maxwell Has Custom Meals and Pet A Puppy Behind Bars: Lawmakers
Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee say a whistleblower revealed that Maxwell has received special treatment in prison.
people.com
November 16, 2025 at 10:32 PM
A convicted child rape trafficker - and almost certainly child rapist herself - lives a better life than you or I on US citizens' dime. What a great world we live in.