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Adi Robertson

Adi Robertson

Senior Reporter

Adi Robertson has been covering the intersection of technology, culture, and policy at The Verge since 2011. Her work includes writing about DIY biohacking, survival horror games, virtual and augmented reality, online free expression, and the history of computing. She also makes very short video games. You have probably seen her in a VR headset.

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The Verge
Why are video games always rising?

I hadn’t realized just how many game titles were falling until Kevin wrote about it this morning. But there’s actually a very good reason! It’s because they have to maintain equilibrium with all the titles that are rising. Consider: Dead Rising. Rise of the Triad. Monster Hunter Rise. Metal Gear Rising. Ryse: Son of Rome. (Actually, maybe don’t consider that one.) I’m sure I’m forgetting some others. Variations in vertical distance fans rise up!


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I am going to win content moderation, something that is both normal to want and possible to achieve.

Techdirt’s Mike Masnick and Leigh Beadon teamed up with game designer Randy Lubin for Moderator Mayhem, a swipe-based game about the challenges of moderating a social network. It’s sort of like Reigns, except instead of ruling a kingdom, you’re deciding whether to take down reviews of Cocaine Bear.


Something Awful is racing to save the best and worst of web history

A long-running web community enlisted its goons to stop an Imgur extinction event.

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Twitter
Ed Sheeran doesn’t have to quit music now.

The singer-songwriter defeated a lawsuit alleging “striking similarities” between his song “Thinking Out Loud” and Marvin Gaye’s “Let’s Get It On.” It’s certainly a better outcome than the disastrous “Blurred Lines” verdict, and we wish Sheeran all the best with his continued creative career.


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There’s one month left to order this very cool history of interactive fiction.

50 Years of Text Games is a newsletter by Aaron Reed (author of the fantastic horror novel Subcutanean) about the history of interactive fiction — from stuff even non-IF fans probably know about, like Oregon Trail, to deep cuts like a version of Doom for blind players and a parser game in a nonsense language. Reed collected the essays into a great-looking 600-page limited edition print run, and there’s still some copies left before it’s set to ship in June.


A picture of the book 50 Years of Text Games with a map of branching paths in interactive fiction.
Yes, I’m posting this after I locked down my copy.
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External Link
The Kids Online Safety Act is back in Congress.

KOSA is perhaps the biggest of the myriad child safety bills from state and federal lawmakers, and it’s back in Congress after its initial introduction last year. The bill mandates a variety of parental controls and other requirements for online services. Lizzo likes it; about 100 civil liberties and LGBT advocacy organizations don’t.


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External Link
Florida will file a countersuit in its ongoing war on Disney.

Why? We don’t know.

The lawsuit will be filed in central Florida, Martin Garcia, chairman of the board for the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, said. It was not immediately clear from Monday’s meeting what the basis of the lawsuit would be. 

Law professor Ann Lipton suggests it’s an attempt to get ahead of Disney’s own lawsuit from last week in a more sympathetic state court. We eagerly await the board figuring out some allegations!