Gaming, Video Games, Online, Mobile, Multiplayer, Console and More

I love everything about virtual reality, and its potential to change how we connect. I believe money shouldn't be an object - everyone should have access to the tech. Apparently, Google shares my sentiments: they've designed a working VR headset which you can build with twenty bucks and a pizza box.

According to Robert Morris University-Illinois, an athlete is an athlete, whether their playing field is physical or digital. The institution this week announced that it has added the first ever eSports sector to its Athletics program. Four words, folks: League of Legends scholarships.

Psychologists who study the impact of video games on the human brain have an interest in how games can be utilized to reinforce certain everyday thinking skills. Assistant Professor of Psychology at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, Michael D. Patterson, is considered an expert in the psychology of video games.  He has previously identified certain thinking skills enhanced by individual games, but the game 'Cut The Rope' is the first one, according to Patterson, that shows evidence of improving 'executive function' in adult gamers.

Kids have been singing about the Bananaphone since Raffi released a song and album by the same name in 1994. Fast forward 20 years, and Raffi’s silly song doesn’t seem so silly. Eric Rosenbaum and Jay Silver, two very smart and creative guys with MIT degrees, have invented MaKey MaKey, an invention kit that turns everyday objects into computer keyboards or touchpads. Move over Bananaphone, MaKey MaKey can turn bananas into a piano.

League of Legends developer Riot Games is trying something very, very different with its new hires: it's paying them to quit. The developer this week rolled out a new program called Queue Dodge. The premise is simple: it's paying new hires cash to quit. Wait, what?

Although Valve and its correlators are entirely focused on dragging the PC into the living room, one group of designers is attempting to take things a step farther. They want to take PC gaming beyond the living room, and into day-to-day life.

As those of you who've been paying attention to E3 are no doubt already aware, one of the games unveiled by Nintendo was Mario Maker; a title which will allow players to create their own Mario levels. Turns out, it was never intended to be a game - it was originally designed as a development tool.

PC gaming on a couch would be pretty awesome, save for one unpleasant little detail - couches aren't exactly made for a traditional mouse-and-keyboard setup. We've been treated to a rather elegant solution to that problem at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo. I kind of want one.

Today - just a day before the Electronic Entertainment Expo kicks off - Alienware had a pretty exciting revelation for attendees - it's releasing a Steam Machine. Dubbed the Alienware Alpha, this device combines PC-level power with the form factor and utility of a game console, enabling it to fit just about anywhere - like the living room.

I love video games. They've been a part of my life since I was a child, and they always will be. Apparently, though, I'm not IN love with them. Not like Chris Kooluris, a man who sacrificed almost everything to turn his room into an old-school video arcade.