In the unlikely crossroads of Japanese courtroom dramas and video games, the Ace Attorney series has carved out a niche for itself that no others have even approached. Over the last 20 years, the series’ combination of unique gameplay (players go out on “investigations” in search of clues before returning to the courtroom to “battle” the other lawyer), witty charm, and memorable characters have turned it from one of Capcom’s lesser-known series into a fan-favorite complete with spinoff novels and a TV series. Series protagonist Phoenix Wright was even introduced to a whole new audience in 2011 when he joined the roster for one of the biggest fighting games in history, Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3. But for those who only know the Ace Attorney games from Wright’s battles against the likes of...
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: Smith Collection/Gado / Getty The studio behind the uber-popular franchise Call of Duty is in some serious hot water. Spotted on IGN and first reported by Bloomberg, Activision and Blizzard are being sued by California following a two-year investigation by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. According to the lawsuit, the American-based video game publishers being accused of fostering a “frat boy” culture in which female employees are allegedly subjected to unequal pay and sexual harassment.” According to Bloomberg’s reporting, Activision is being accused of discrimination against its female employees at almost all employment levels regarding compensation, promotion, assignments, and termination. The state claims in its lawsuit ...
HipHopWired Featured Video Source: EA Sports / Madden NFL 22 EA Sports and ESPN are teaming up once again to announce player ratings in Madden NFL 22. Player ratings in sports games have become a pretty huge deal. EA Sports and Madden saw that in 2020 when it first teamed up with ESPN to announce the ratings for NFL superstars. So, of course, it makes perfect sense they are doing it again leading up to the August 20 launch of Madden NFL 22. ESPN announced that it would be hosting a Madden Ratings Week from July 25 to 30. The player ratings for the latest edition of the iconic football video game franchise, plus players in the illustrious 99 overall ratings (the highest rating possible in the game) club, will be revealed. The week will kick off with a SportsCenter speci...
When Def Jam Vendetta dropped in 2003, Raphael Saadiq was only kind of joking when he expressed disappointment in not being included in the hip-hop fighting game. He’d landed hits throughout the late ‘80s and ‘90s as a third of Tony! Toni! Toné!, produced for a who’s who of R&B, and was just beginning to show the music industry what he could do as a solo artist. Over the next few years, EA put out a couple more Def Jam titles, and Saadiq decided it was time to take matters into his own hands. In 2007, he and one of his favorite collaborators, fellow Grammy-winning producer Charles “Chuck” Brungardt, launched IllFonic, an independent video game developer with a name inspired by the classic Nas album. A decade later, the indie team got their first big break with Friday the 13th: The Game...