Need to Know
02 : 08 : 18

UK – A Profound Waste of Time is a new videogame culture magazine that celebrates the art and design creativity found in gaming.

According to editor and art director Caspian Whistler, the title aims to provide audiences with new gaming content that honours the way print media has evolved. ‘Games are, in a short summary, where art and design cross over. It makes sense to have a publication that is all about design but mixed with a high level of artistry,’ he explains in a Kickstarter campaign. ‘We want to take all the best aspects of what makes games great and [present] it in a way that makes it respectful to the properties we’re talking about, while intelligently done.’

The first issue of the independent title will be created by professionals both inside and outside of the gaming industry. These include the likes of Ojiro Fumoto, a Nintendo employee and creator of indie game Downwell, and Midio Tafuri, writer and creator of Sonic Mania.

As gamers become more invested in the culture of gaming, content creators are exploring additional forms of media that help to contextualise and intellectualise video games.

Global – Scandinavian fashion brand Ganni has launched a new range of clothing and accessories made from biodegradable plastic.

Demonstrating the growing effort among fashion brands to be more sustainable, the womenswear label has chosen to work with biodegradable thermoplastic instead of Polyurethane(PU) for a number of new water-resistant pieces in its pre-fall 2018 collection. Announcing the decision via its social media channels, the styles include a rain jacket, bucket hat and classic tote bag, all of which feature a faded petunia flower design that reflects the degradation process of the thermoplastic.

Ganni has built a large following across Europe since its launch, and in 2018 forecasts that it will receive most of its custom from outside Scandinavia. For more on the alternative materials being used in fashion, explore our Future Textiles listicle.

Japan – In a new imaginary video, the tech giant highlights the power of its A11 bionic chip, a small device built into the iPhone X to improve gaming and performance speeds.

The one-minute spot features a male character playing online battle game Vainglory on his iPhone X, striding the streets as he plays, while fighting off monsters and virtual characters that are infiltrating his surrounds. The character conveniently switches between the game and various other applications such as iMessage and a live stream on YouTube, demonstrating the speed and power of the chip.

With the tagline ‘Unleash a more powerful you’, the video reflects the capabilities of the A11, which is the fastest chip ever built into an Apple mobile device. The chip improves overall gaming performance, enabling the device to smoothly process console-quality games and augmented reality applications.

With mobile devices increasingly able to support console-quality games, a wider consumer demographic, in particular in Asia, is embracing the ability to participate in eSports.

Despite concerns around the security of digital currencies, a recent survey by British software company Sage suggests that workers are keen to accept their salary in the form of cryptocurrency.

A sizeable majority were still cautious, with 37% confirming they would only allow between 1-20% of their income in digital currency. However, more respondents said they would accept most, if not all, of their salary in cryptocurrency (15%) than those who would only take 61-80% as a digital asset (11%).

As old value systems give way to new ones, brands need to consider how to become part of the cryptocurrency conversation. Earlier this year, GMO Internet announced that staff can opt in to a scheme in which they are paid part of their monthly salary in Bitcoin.