Mobile games have a tendency to aim for the flashiest possible branding in a seemingly desperate attempt to attract players in an over-saturated market, to the degree that the gaming sections of app stores tend to be an almost intimidating array of bright colors and rip-off characters, and names that look like they were chosen from a random mix of a few words. Terms like "Space," "Strategy," "Fight," "RPG," "King," and/or their synonyms are interspersed with colons, leading many of these games to be indistinguishable from one another for someone who hasn’t played them.

What are the branding styles these different developers seem to prefer, and are they effective? More specifically, what are the patterns within mobile game naming conventions, and is originality a worthwhile sacrifice for search engine optimization?

Though not limited to the discussion of naming conventions, this article would mainly discuss other forms of branding and marketing in relation to naming.

Through the ever growing search for new source material in television and film, many have turned to mining from the stories lying dormant in video games. With a previously established plot, characters and fanbase, video-games have come to provide a steady map for writers and directors to follow in trying to make a show or film with increased odds of success. In a way, such adaptations are almost adjacent to bringing one’s favorite book series to life on the screen, just from a different angle. In recent years, however, this trend seems to have gained steam. Afterall, it seems as though each day a new streaming service pops up out of nowhere–along with a new and sudden need for stories to fill them. Netflix’s "Arcane: League of Legends" based on League of Legends by Riot Games. Three separate movies (2001, 2003, and 2018) inspired by Core Design’s Tomb Raider. HBO’s acclaimed hit "The Last of Us," sprouted from Sony Interactive Entertainment’s game by the same name. These are just a few examples from the past couple years, and it is unlikely they will be the last.

As with any adaptation, though, one has to ask whether the original source material is being accurately represented. How true can one stay to the story of a video game when the story is determined with each person playing it? Do video games lend themselves better or movies or tv series? Are certain gaming formats easier to adapt than others? What makes a game especially well suited for translation to the screen? This article could be taken in a number of different directions, such as focussing on the validity of one adaptation, or trends that seem to exist across many. Overall, though, I just felt there have been many comparisons between book and film adaptations, and that video games might be the next contender to enter this ring of debate and analysis.

Within the last two years we have received two horror video game inspired TV adaptations, one that was a smash hit, and one that flew under the radar. Neither of these shows stuck 100% to the source material so what made The Last of Us succeed and Resident Evil fail?

Analog Horror refers to the genre of horror created with the aesthetic of Analog technology, that is to say shot on video, "found footage".

Within the subgenre there exists quite a number of breakthrough hits such as "Backrooms" "Local 58" and "The Mandela Catalogue"

What draws people to this genre and what can be said about the genre tropes and themes? What is the appeal and is there a lesson that can be garnered from the creation of these works?

Movies of all genres and decades have had probably the biggest impact on the video game industry. Developers have always cited their favourite films and inspiration (Escape From New York inspired the Metal Gear Series, for example, or the works of John Woo inspiring the Max Payne series). Perhaps the biggest influences are the Action movies of the 1980s. Rambo, Commando, Predator, Running Man, Total Recall, and countless others. This genre has helped lead to some of the most visually and interactively appealing games in the industry. But what is the full extent of the connection? And how many games trace their roots to the big screen?

Occasionally, a music artist will release a song that is deemed unsuitable for radio play in its current form. It might contain profanity or profane subject material, have undesired instrumentation, or simply be too long for the radio to play. A new version of the song will be created as a "radio edit" that alters the original to meet governmental standards. These changes can range from inconsequential, like replacing one profane word with a sound effect, to substantial, such as replacement lyrics that completely change the original meaning of the song. Famous radio edits include Cee Lo Green’s "Forget You," d-12’s "Purple Hills," and Everlast’s "What’s It Like."

Usually these edits are not made by the artists themselves but by their record labels, broadcasters at the corporate level, or even individual radio stations. Whether minor or major, these changes produce a product that is not what the artist envisioned without the artists’ input. Without these changes, these songs would not play on the radio or in spaces that must abide by government guidelines relating to content standards. Is the radio edit process a necessary evil to becoming a successful artist? Or is the act of altering art in order to conform to public sensibilities harmful to the role of art in our contemporary culture that constantly encourages us to "express yourself?" Especially in the era of the internet and the seemingly endless ways to create and distribute art outside traditional distribution institutions, should corporations compromising an artist’s intended vision to please the masses be considered a malicious act? Or should this new-found freedom provided by the internet encourage society to support art as the artist creates it, even if it offends?

Bloodborne, the 2014 game from FromSoftware is a game ripe for exploration. One element worth delving into is the nature of femininity within the world.

The ways in which the player is force to confront the cruelty in which women and female coded NPCs are treated with regards to the game’s world. Elements such as the "blessings" of the old ones force the player to view the horror of a world where women are specifically targeted for cruelty.

The nature of the blood within the universe is also worth exploring with regards to origins of the blood and the people born of it.

In 2005, actor Christian Bale starred in two interesting, if very different films: David Ayer’s "Harsh Times" and Christopher Nolan’s "Batman Begins." Though both films are practically diametrically opposed, they do share some interesting similarities in regards to the characters Bale plays.

Both characters are specially-trained warriors who return to a less-than-familiar home to then try and use the skills they honed in foreign lands fighting foreign enemies to find a new purpose. The similarities don’t end there, though, as both characters are plagued by past traumas that manifest themselves in disturbing visions and hallucinations.

This article would be a study of those characters (Bruce Wayne/Batman in "Batman Begins" and Jim Davis in "Harsh Times" and just how their skills, experiences, and relationships shape them into the people they are.