by Lucy Ungaro

Hi again, Circle members and followers. This past week, I promised myself I wouldn’t go crazy on the Steam summer sale, which is hilarious. One of my best purchases was a game that’s meant to teach Japanese–want to bet on whether I’ll learn anything? I’ll get back to you. 

Street Fighter fans, Chelsea Stark has news on the upcoming character for the next Street Fighter V update. Balrog is back! Find details and a video here.

According to Eb Samuel, Civilization VI brings a lot of changes that make it distinct from the previous iterations of the series. Eb talks a lot about the visual changes, from the style, to the detail, to the different modes of viewing the game, as well as new gameplay mechanics.  Read more here.

Now for some post-E3 news: Jeff Bakalar addresses the age old question of whether Microsoft or Sony had a better show at E3. Check out the pros and cons of each company’s plans for the future.

Jeremy Voss isn’t a huge fan of exaggeration. Read his grounded yet opinionated article on this year’s E3 and whether it was the best one yet.

Matt Gerardi writes about another game that has fallen prey to a tacked-on storyline, Rhythm Heart. The game’s story is interspersed through the gameplay; instead of being part of it, it is removed from the game. Read about the experience here.

Have you ever wanted an adorable pet robot? Yes. Cozmo is a “sentient” robot that adapts its personality based on how you interact with it. Read more about this synthetic puppy in an in-depth article by Samit Sarkar. 

And now for news outside of the Circle…

Because I complained earlier about game writing and narrative, here’s an article about game writers, what they do, how they do it, the skills they have, and what their intentions are. I find it interesting because it simply states the is of game writing, without claiming what it should be.

If you still think (though I’m doubting anyone reading this article would) that there is a performance gap between male and female online gamers, here’s a study that aims to disprove that stereotype. Though I think I’ve single-handedly done that with my d.Va prowess in Overwatch.

Not all videogames come from California. Here’s an article on videogames being made in Chicago, as well as their studios.

That’s it for now, see you soon!