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A magazine that admires game design

A Profound Waste of Time by Caspian Whistler, UK

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.

Ganni launches biodegradable plastic accessories

Ganni Pre-Fall 2018 Collection

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.

Diamene is a super-strength material made from graphene

US – Researchers at City University of New York have developed a graphene-based material that becomes harder than a diamond upon impact.

The team’s findings, published in the scientific journal Nature Nanotechnology, demonstrate how a material as flexible and lightweight as foil could be transformed to withstand a bullet upon impact. Diamene’s combination of two layers of graphene – each built with different atom structures – gives the material distinct properties such as hardness, flexibility and electrical conduction.

‘Previously, when we tested graphite or a single atomic layer of graphene, we would apply pressure and feel a very soft film. But when the graphite film was exactly two-layers thick, all of a sudden we realised that the material under pressure was becoming extremely hard and as stiff, or stiffer,’ explains Elisa Riedo, professor at the ASRC and project researcher.

For more on the future of materials, look out for our dedicated series Launching in August.

Diamene, photography by Ella Maru Studio

Apple flaunts the gaming power of the iPhone X

Unleash, Apple iPhone X

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.

Stat: Employees are open to crypto-salaries

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.

Thought-starter: What does Facebook’s music licensing mean for brands?

While Facebook’s new music licences mean more creativity for users of its platforms, Alex Brammer, a lawyer at a UK record label, says brands must treat them with respect.

Since late 2017, Facebook has been signing licensing deals with record labels and key rights holders in the music industry. For brands that are unaware, this allows the social media giant and its subsidiaries, including Instagram, to host licensed music on their platforms.

The most recent evidence of this deal was Instagram’s announcement that users can now add music to soundtrack their Stories. This revelation came just a week after Instagram declared the app now has 1 billion users, with 400m of them using the Stories function.

However, for brands, the new licences create a conundrum for synchronisation and licensing teams, namely: at what point does user-uploaded content stray into branded content? What does it mean if a famous athlete, such as the boxer Anthony Joshua, who is sponsored by Lucozade, uploads an Instagram Story at the gym drinking Lucozade while listening to Drake?

Read the full opinion here.