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Games

Spotlighting all facets of indie video games, including locally and regionally affiliated developers, composers, and authors.

A photograph at a slightly angled long shot of an all-women panel at the MDEV games conference at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison. The hall is rather dimly lit except for the spotlit stage where five women are sitting on elevated chairs. A large screen to the far right of the stage displays the names and photos of the people involved as well as the title "Game Changers: Women Defining The Industry."

Amid industry tumult, the 2025 MDEV conference captured Madison as an impending game-development hotspot

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Culture
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November 17, 2025

On the ground with indie developers and industry representatives at the annual, bustling, two-day showcase of video games.

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Latest in Games
A close-up photo of a grey Super Nintendo video game cartridge sitting on a shelf in a wooden display case. The label on the game shows the title and graphic of "Zombies Ate My Neighbors." A yellow and white Half Price Books price sticker below the label reads "Our Price 100.00" in black font.
Against collecting
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Microtones
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August 1, 2025

Embracing sentimental value and resisting the urge to splurge in an era of inflation.

A promotional still from the video game "The Vanishing Of Ethan Carter" shows a scenic, autumnal landscape. On the left of the image is the outline of a large tree, with the sun's rays subtly peering out. A body of water is visible, and there appears to be a hilly woodland area shrouded in fog across the water. On the lower right hand corner, there is a winding dirt path that runs along the water. It's leading into a small, stone tunnel. All of it is presented in an art style that strikes a nice balance between digital art and watercolor.
Wisconsin’s one-sided relationship with video games
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Microtones
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October 11, 2024

Wisconsin is a burgeoning hotbed for video games devs, but the state rarely appears as an in-game location.

A screenshot from the video game “Garage Sale” shows the player character, Juniper, interacting with another character at a small outdoor stand with a “news” sign on top of it. A dialogue field in the foreground reads: “i got a new quest called independANT news! I’ll write it down in my notebook. The scene is rendered in 2D pixel art style, shown from an angled overhead perspective. In the background, houses, lawns, and a walking path are visible.
Meet the neighbors, greet the worms, and make friends in “Garage Sale”
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Culture
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September 9, 2024

Developer Amelia Zollner talks with us about her wholesome but unpredictable video game.

A custom illustration made by Luke Smith for the jacket of Peter McDonald's book, "Run And Jump: The Meaning Of The 2D Platformer." In various shades of green, including a dominant light lime green background, tiny anthropomorphic animals stand in front of a chalk board that illustrates a character model jumping.
Functional play in the abstract: an interview with game studies author Peter McDonald
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Culture
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August 5, 2024

The UW–Madison assistant professor discusses the philosophies behind his new book, “Run And Jump: The Meaning Of The 2D Platformer.”

An illustration of a kangaroo with a joey in their pouch. The illustration is notably dark; the kangaroos are drawn in a ghostly blue with a pale tan underhide while the greenery around them is a similarly eerie shade. Blue accents flesh out the image by outlining trees and plants around the kangaroos, which are positioned in the center of the image and presented in a streaky, street art style.
Reflections in an animal well
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Culture
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May 24, 2024

Madison-based video game publisher Bigmode makes a splash with their debut title.

A still from a video game design program shows a head-on view of a digitally animated creature with a long square body, facing the viewer with an angry facial expression. Off to either side of the body sprout dozens of long, black, spider-like legs. The creature is standing on a checkerboard-like patterned floor, against a red background.
All hail Bethemotep!
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Microtones
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October 13, 2023

A Madison game developer keeps adding legs to his nightmarish creation.

The cast of "Not Another D&D Podcast," from Left to Right: Emily Axford, Tanner Caldwell, Jake Hurwitz, and Brian Murphy. Axford is sitting on a wooden bar with a row of lights above her, Hurwitz is sitting, legs open, on a chair. Tanner and Murphy are both standing. All four are smiling.
A fantastical escape
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Microtones
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September 29, 2023

Examining the Wisconsin roots, popularity increase, and emotional utility of "Dungeons & Dragons."

In a screenshot from the game “Headlines And High Water,” reporter El Benjamin arrives on the scene where officials and volunteers are sandbagging the Upper Lake Dam in the rain.
A new video game immerses players in a flood of journalistic decisions
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Culture
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June 21, 2023

"Headlines And High Water," from UW-Madison's Field Day Lab, shows us how all kinds of small decisions shape the news.

A screenshot displays a scene from the final level of the game, as the camera pans past a 3D model of Ava Wanbli's body posed like classic sculpture amidst a hazy sky and waterfall with pink and lavender-colored wings clipped off in the foreground.
Ava Wanbli builds a self-reflexive world of trans ecstatic kink in “Sertraline Dolls”
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Culture
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April 3, 2023

The Chicago-based artist's transgressive new media exhibition opened April 1, and runs through early autumn in MMoCA's second-floor Imprint Gallery.