The Future Died in 1999
Reclaiming the radical possibilities of Cyberpunk. by Colin Broadmoor The future died in 1999. Ever since, we’ve been trapped in the eternal present—waiting for the other shoe to drop. For two decades, we’ve fought the same wars, watched the police murder the same
The Last Communist in Cybertopia
Dystopian sci-fi often worries about technology. It should really be focused on capital. by Stephen Friedrich In the opening credits of Quantic Dream's 2018 game Detroit: Become Human, a homeless man slouches, half-asleep, against a shopfront, at his feet a sign that
The Future Echoes of Disco Elysium
ZA/UM's detective RPG recalls the ruins of our own contested futures. by Bart Howe Martinese is a city in steady decline. A colonial outpost of a coalition of foreign states that take no responsibility for its development, beyond the protection of the
Apokolips DC: Darkseid in an Era of Political Crassness
Jack Kirby's iconic villain struggles for relevance in a time bereft of scheming and subtlety. by Will Riley Darkseid, despotic ruler of the planet Apokalips and one-time “big bad” of the DC Universe, has a problem. And not just any problem, but
Stormtroopers and the Work of Empire
The tools of empire aren't always so obvious. by Matt Houle One of the first introductions we get to the Imperial Stormtrooper in Star Wars is the observation that “only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise.” The moment comes early in the film, as