Looking forward to this! Also part of Being Human, I'm going to be part of a panel discussing The Last of Us and whether it can be considered a work of literature on 2-3pm Friday the 13th. Registration for that event is here: events.unimelb.edu.au/arts/event/p...

Page, screen, controller: is ‘The Last of Us’ a great book?

What makes a work of literature great? Does it have to be a classic, part of the canon or does it even have to be a book, in the traditional sense?...

events.unimelb.edu.au

MAGPIE Research Initiative@magpiegameresearch.bsky.social · 2d ago

This year for the 2026 Being Human Festival (which last year brought us Playful Paths), MAGPIE has parterned with Melbourne Megagames to run a megagame called 'Publish or Perish' that gamifies the cutthroat world of academic publishing and grant writing.

I dedicate this review to my queer table tennis rival Alfonso. We had such good rallies together. checkpointgaming.net/reviews/2026...

Nintendo Switch Sports Resort Review - Waggle the time away

Nintendo Switch Sports Resort is a return to form for the series that revisits the island setting for a range of fantastic to functional sports.

checkpointgaming.net

At PAX Aus 2026, Cass had the opportunity to have an in-depth and spoiler-filled discussion about the themes of Penguin Colony with director Naphtali Faulkner. @origamedigital.bsky.social checkpointgaming.net/features/202...

Penguin Colony’s Naphtali Faulkner on taking on colonialism through videogames

A spoiler-filled talk with Penguin Colony director Naphtali Faulkner about camouflage, Nazis, Lovecraft, colonialism and the games industry.

checkpointgaming.net

Reviewed Penguin Colony. Its great. Go play Penguin Colony please.

Checkpoint Gaming@checkpointau.bsky.social · 2w ago

Review: Penguin Colony "Penguin Colony is a raw, assured rhetorical march through a wintry landscape toward a mountain dripping with horrors both unknown and painfully known." @veselekov.bsky.social @fellowtraveller.games Read Here: checkpointgaming.net/reviews/2026...

Penguin Colony is now available store.steampowered.com/app/3695930/...

Penguin Colony on Steam

Cosmic horror, through the eyes of a penguin. Rival human factions have come to your home in the Antarctic, seeking an ancient and inconceivable being. Observe their descent into insanity in this fait...

store.steampowered.com

An explanation on why Big Walk isn't available on Xbox. bigwalk.game/xbox

Reupping before Parallels tonight! Has been genuinely humbling to hear about all the conversations it has elicited across MIGW, even if many people I have spoken to about it opened with "congrats on the Freeplay feature! I haven't finished it" (which, valid).

Cassandra (Cass) Barkman@cassiebara29.bsky.social · 3w ago

Earlier this year Freeplay announced that 2026 might be their last year of operation. I've spent the last few weeks talking to people in and around Freeplay about this point in its history regarding how its changed, its relationship to funding and what it might look like in the future.

Earlier this year Freeplay announced that 2026 might be their last year of operation. I've spent the last few weeks talking to people in and around Freeplay about this point in its history regarding how its changed, its relationship to funding and what it might look like in the future.

Checkpoint Gaming@checkpointau.bsky.social · 3w ago

Examining the identity, evolution, funding, legacy and potential future of the longest-running independent games festival in the world. @free-play.bsky.social Read Here: checkpointgaming.net/features/202...

MASSIVE strike at QUT today. About 200 of us on the picket line demanding better working and learning conditions from our overpaid corporate managers. Such incredible solidarity.

Reviewed Digger. Hard review to write - always expected it be polarising and my feelings on it are still settling but I think I dug it ever so slightly. checkpointgaming.net/features/202...

Cinematic Mode - Digger sees Tom Cruise digging for farce

Digger is an uneven film of crass black comedy, great performances, easy satire and compelling reflections on art and crisis.

checkpointgaming.net

Game dev mates!! My pals at USyd have been cooking up something special: @ludolio.com, a platform that brings games into classrooms while making sure devs get paid 🙏 the catalogue currently slays but if you’re like, it could slay more, you should register your game 👀 www.ludolio.com/for-developers

Come chat with me about feminine computer creativity :) Did you make experimental hobbyist games? Did you mod the sims? Did you make Neopets fan sites? Are you Australian and over 18yo?

So how much does it really cost for an indie developer to showcase their game at @paxaus.bsky.social ? ...and is it worth it? We found out. checkpointgaming.net/features/202...

Pay to play: The cost of exhibiting at PAX Aus

PAX Aus gives indie developers a chance to showcase their games, but doing so at the event comes with a few challenges.

checkpointgaming.net

Reupping my Aether and Iron review given its AGDA GOTY nom - cool game that has an awful lot of fun playing around in it's genre sandboxes. checkpointgaming.net/reviews/2026...

Aether & Iron Review - Stratosphere Boulevard

Aether & Iron takes immense joy messing around in the noir decopunk playground it has constructed, and that joy is often infectious.

checkpointgaming.net

The Australian Game Developer Awards (The AGDAs) @agdas.bsky.social · 2mo ago

2026 Finalists Announced! The calibre of games continues to be high, and several games are under contention in multiple areas, with Bits & Bops (Tempo Lab Games) and Mixtape (Beethoven & Dinosaur) both finalists in 5 categories. Congratulations to all finalists! agdas.com.au/2026-finalis...

Open Call for Papers 2026🥰📢 Press Start is currently seeking full-length game studies papers from current grad students/recent grads. Submit by Dec 4, 2026, for a potential spot in our 2027 issue! More details below in this thread👇 #CallForPapers #GameStudies

‘We have had enough’: thousands of University of Sydney staff walk off the job over AI and job security

‘We have had enough’: thousands of University of Sydney staff walk off the job over AI and job security

Hundreds of university staff were stationed at picket lines, calling for stronger protections around the use of AI * Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates * Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The same week union members at the University of Sydney agreed to a 24-hour strike, staff received the results of an internal survey. In the faculty of arts and social sciences, 0% agreed with the statement: “I trust the University of Sydney to act in the best interests of staff, students and the broader community.” Continue reading...

theguardian.com

Reviewed Zero Company. I'm a tactics sicko with too many hours in XCOM 2 and this game scratched an itch that no other has since that released. Writing and the cast of characters are also far better than they have any right to be.

Checkpoint Gaming@checkpointau.bsky.social · 2mo ago

REVIEW: Star Wars Zero Company "A memorable, diverse cast of dysfunctional characters at the margins of the galaxy carries you through a sandbox of compelling decisions that scratched my tactical itch with the strength of a superlaser." @eastarwars.bsky.social checkpointgaming.net/reviews/2026...

📣 Hey Australian gamemakers! Screen Australia's round of games grants close in 3 days! A reminder to get your applications in! 🫶 🛠 Games Production Fund - up to $100,000 🎨 Emerging Gamemakers Fund - up to $30,000 📆 Applications close Thu 27 Aug, 5pm (AEST) 👉 screenaustralia.gov.au/fund/?catego...

Waiting for the next Big Walk session like

Call for Papers to share your work at DiGRAA 2027, hosted at RMIT, Melbourne in Feb! digraa.org/post/cfp-dig...

PRO JANK FOOTY is OUT NOW 🏆 Aussie Rules meets Aussie humor in this chaotic, unpredictable, and proudly Australian arcade game featuring commentary from Broden Kelly! Play it now on Steam, PS5, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch.

The joy this elicited in me while playing Big Walk (as someone who hiked in Wilson's Prom a bunch as a kid) has genuinely led to me pitching the game to other locals with 'its got squeaky beach sounds!'

Em@emaudible.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Lots of excitement about the squeaky beach sounds in Big Walk! You'll all be happy to know it's the real thing! Was absolutely giddy to get to record them on an actual Australian squeaky beach in Wilson's Promontory. Yes, if you didn't know some beaches there really do squeak. It is pure joy.

New career milestone: Yesterday @antipollution.bsky.social informed me that our paper is now cited in Wikipedia. I think I can happily retire now.

Cassandra (Cass) Barkman@cassiebara29.bsky.social · 6mo ago

How prophetic given the article @antipollution.bsky.social and I wrote earlier this year exactly on the microgenre of interface games! You can read it here: journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....

🔴🟡🔵 BIG WALK 🔴🟡🔵 Out now on Steam, Nintendo Switch 2, and PlayStation 5. Hooray!

I was part of the Big Walk review crew at Checkpoint and heartily endorse everything Elliot says in his review - this is a genuinely special game in how ingeniously it facilitates interesting forms of social play. Everyone owes it to themselves to go and do the biggest walk.

Checkpoint Gaming@checkpointau.bsky.social · 3mo ago

REVIEW: Big Walk “Evolving the social game format in a way that feels almost unrecognisable, House House has produced something that is as compelling as it is confident in achieving what it set out to achieve.” @househouse.com checkpointgaming.net/reviews/2026...

Checked out a cool new games event over the weekend and wrote about it! @asymptotes.au

Checkpoint Gaming@checkpointau.bsky.social · 3mo ago

A gaming event of a different kind: Asymptotes puts the spotlight on abandoned games. checkpointgaming.net/features/202...

Reviewed Denshattack, an energetic and tightly made weirdo of a game that I briefly describe as 'Subway Surfer on crack' and acts as an interesting lens for me to chatter about contemporary spectacle.

Checkpoint Gaming@checkpointau.bsky.social · 3mo ago

REVIEW: Denshattack! "Denshattack! is absurd, campy, excessive and makes its tricks and speed look and feel effortless through the real craft that has gone into the tightness of its controls, cinematic eye and visual language." @denshattack.bsky.social checkpointgaming.net/reviews/2026...

Asymptotes is running in 2 weeks, on July 18th at Balam Balam Place, Brunswick. Showcasing: 🟢 7 abandoned games 🟠 A talk diving deep into an abandoned game 🟣 3 panels discussing noncommercial game-making More details to come. 👉 asymptotes.au

Hi all, we are looking for three peer reviewers for an article on Chinese indie games. Please see the attached image for the abstract. Please note that all reviewers for Press Start must be current students or within one year of graduation. Contact info in the replies👇

Announcing... Asymptotes. Asymptotes is a games event in Naarm, Australia, celebrating imperfection. On Saturday July 18th, we're running a showcase of abandoned games, with talks and panels on non-commercial and difficult to commercialise game-making. 👉 asymptotes.au