News of the Week; August 12, 2015

GAMES

1. Nintendo chalks up two more patent victories: Company advocates patent reform, says it won’t settle just to avoid court costs

2. Zenimax lawsuit against Oculus will proceed to trial

3. More settlements in Rhode Island’s 38 Studios court case

4. Steam offers full, unconditional refunds for ‘Journey of the Light’

5. Chicago Blackhawks Right Wing Patrick Kane removed from ‘NHL 16’ cover

6. Shots fired: video game argument ends in gunplay for two Columbus gamers

7. Kings of Poverty: Super Arcade and the Fighting Game Community vs. the City of Azusa

8. Cheating at Candy Crush Saga

9. ESL details new drug testing policies

+ No more high scores: ESL bans pot use during e-sports tournaments – Players can still get high before and after the event, though.

10. Donald Trump’s disdain for video games

11. Angry Birds 2 hits 20 million downloads in week one

12. Hearthstone makes $20m a month – SuperData

13. Blizzard registers trademark for Compete eSports service

14. After subscriptions plummet to 2005 levels,WoW announces sixth expansion: Will Legion’s level-cap bump, new Demon Hunter class stop the bleeding?

15. Core console software sales are higher than ever – EEDAR

16. Gamescom sets attendance record

17. Challenge accepted: interviewing an Internet #hashtag

18. Konami sees profit growth of 160%

19. Konami’s draconian workplace raises no eyebrows in Japan

20. USC initiative to turn student devs into pros

21. How the TV show in Xbox One exclusive ‘Quantum Break’ works

22. SURPRISE: Online Gaming Builds Stronger Connections Between Friends

23. Living Room Wars: Remediation,Boardgames,and theEarly History of Video Wargaming (Sebastian Deterding)

24. Game Studies: The International Journal of Computer Game Research; Volume 15, Issue 1, July 2015)

• Meta-Game Studies (Espen Aarseth)
• The Demarcation Problem in Multiplayer Games: Boundary-Work in EVE Online’s eSport (Marcus Carter, Martin Gibbs, Michael Arnold)
• Me and Lee: Identification and the Play of Attraction in The Walking Dead (Nicholas Taylor, Chris Kampe, Kristina Bell)
• No Mastery Without Mystery: Dark Souls and the Ludic Sublime (Daniel Vella)
• Self-Reflexivity and Humor in Adventure Games (Krista Bonello Rutter Giappone)
• A Manifesto, With Footnotes. A Review of Miguel Sicart’s “Play Matters” (Sebastian Deterding)
• Jørgensen’s “Gameworld Interfaces” (Hans-Joachim Backe)

DIGITAL

1. Summer Of The 4th Amendment: Appeals Court Says Mobile Phone Location Is Protected Under 4th Amendment

2. Federal court certifies action for “publicity given to private life”

3. Why Canada’s Net Neutrality Enforcement is Going at Half-Throttle (Michael Geist)

4. Google’s $6 Billion Miscalculation on the EU: Why the search leader’s antitrust deal fell apart

5. Google And EU Wrangle Over ‘Right To Be Forgotten’ Law Global Implementation

+ Europe’s Latest Export: Internet Censorship: If French regulators have their way, the ‘right to be forgotten’ will go global, stifling speech.

6. Even when told not to, Windows 10 just can’t stop talking to Microsoft: It’s no wonder that privacy activists are up in arms.

7. News Corp. Makes Copyright Claim Over News Corp’s Live Video Stream Of The GOP Debate

8. Eat, Pray, Post: How virality is westernizing the entire world

9. The Future of Morality, at Every Internet User’s Fingertips: How much is your attention on the Internet really worth?

10. Once Again The Economist Thinks Patents Are Hindering Innovation And Need Reform

11. It’s Operating Systems Vs. Messaging Apps In The Battle For Tech’s Next Frontier

12. Did Virtual Reality Just Have Its Google Glass “Shower” Moment?

+ Time rolls out all the stereotypical nerd tropes for VR cover

+ Oculus Rift creator: ‘I love the cover’

13. Unreal: Virtual reality is changing how college football teams train, recruit

14. What Happens When Spotify Gets Behind an Artist? A Case Study of Hozier and Major Lazer

15. Pixar will make USD software open source in 2016

16. Tinder and the Dawn of the “Dating Apocalypse”

17. Smartwatches Decimated Traditional Watch Sales Last Month

18. 10 Former Internet Trolls Explain Why They Quit Being Jerks

19. The ethics of modern web ad-blocking

CREATIVITY

1. Goodfellas’ actor’s $250m ‘Simpsons’ image rights claim shot down

2. TPP Leaks Reveal Blows to Creative Freedom: Filmmaker – Brett Gaylor says secret trade deal would make documentaries like his illegal.

3. Is Buck Rogers in the public domain? New movie hangs in the balance: Filmmaker says character fell out of copyright. Rightsholders say “pay up.”

4. Shakira’s hit song ‘Loca’ not plagiarism, U.S. judge rules

5. Michael Eisner: Creativity doesn’t have to be expensive

6. That’s Not Funny!: Today’s college students can’t seem to take a joke.

+ The Coddling of the American Mind: In the name of emotional well-being, college students are increasingly demanding protection from words and ideas they don’t like. Here’s why that’s disastrous for education—and mental health.

7. Madeleine L’Engle on Creativity, Hope, Getting Unstuck, and How Studying Science Enriches Art

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