George Yang

George is a freelance writer specializing in video games and other entertainment.

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My longform interviews and reporting can be found here:

NME •

Riot Games on Heartsteel: “The Baekhyun and Ezreal collaboration was a dream”

There were very few, if any, empty seats at the glorious Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul, South Korea. The throngs of fans, eagerly awaiting to see the showdown between China’s Weibo Gaming and South Korea’s T1 at the League of Legends Worlds 2023 Finals, filled the stadium with an energy that was immensely palpable. We were ready for the esports event of the year, but Riot Games knew how to turn up the hype even more.
Inverse •

'Alan Wake 2' Director Sam Lake on the Game Awards, Baldur’s Gate 3, and DLC

It was the zaniest moment at the Game Awards. In between the 2023 award show’s endless stream of video game commercials and the occasional actual award, TGA host Geoff Keighley ceded the stage to a gang of leather-clad musicians. Cosplaying as The Old Gods of Asgard, a fictional rock band that exists within the Remedy video game universe, real-life Finnish metal group Poets of the Fall performed a ballad from Alan Wake 2 two while the game’s starring cast sang and strutted alongside a troupe of backup dancers.
NPR •

Retro role-playing video games are all the rage — here's why

Developer Thierry Boulanger still lights up when you ask him about his favorite game from his childhood. "Chrono Trigger. This game is why I chose this career," says Boulanger, the creative director of the 2023 indie Sea of Stars. "I remember being 10 and entering Guardia Forest. The music hit me so hard, and it connected me with the notion that there was a guiding hand behind any game you play. From that point on, I started daydreaming about games I would want to make."
IGN •

Tales of Arise Producer Is Open to Bringing Older Tales Games to the West

In 2021, Bandai Namco’s Tales of Arise took home the award for Best Role Playing Game at The Game Awards. Since its release, it has gone on to sell over 2 million copies across PC, PlayStation, and Xbox.

Two years later, it’s getting a new story expansion called Beyond the Dawn , which takes place one year after the events of the main game. The party of six meets a young girl named Nazamil, who is half Renan and half Dahnan, fated to fall under the curse of a mask.
Crunchyroll •

Amazon Games’ Mike Zadorojny on What Makes Blue Protocol a Stand Out MMORPG

Blue Protocol is a new anime-style MMORPG developed by Bandai Namco and published by Amazon Games. It takes place on the planet of Regnas, where the overuse of technology has created space-time distortions. As the player character, you’re tasked with saving a world that’s on the brink of destruction.

Crunchyroll sat down with Amazon Games franchise leader Mike Zadorojny to talk about Blue Protocol and what players should expect from the game.
Fangoria •

Remedy Entertainment's Alan Wake 2 Goes Full Survival Horror Mode

As Remedy Entertainment walked me through a demo of Alan Wake 2, I was immediately taken aback by its breathtaking visuals and environments. The setting was a mix of modern Resident Evil and the supernatural elements of Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice. Alan Wake 2 follows two separate protagonists in FBI agent Saga Anderson and the author Alan Wake. Saga investigates a murder mystery in the small town of Bright Falls while Alan is trapped in a nightmare world, trying to get out.
Game Developer •

Why Microsoft thinks 2024 will be the year of Xbox

The 2023 Xbox Games Showcase had a strong showing as Xbox Game Studios revealed its lineup of new titles coming later this year and beyond. During a roundtable after the showcase, titled “What’s Next for Xbox,” four Microsoft executives discussed the future of the Xbox platform: Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer, corporate vice president Sarah Bond, head of Xbox Studios Matt Booty, and Bethesda executive producer Todd Howard.
Digital Trends •

The Mega Man Battle Network esports scene is thriving in 2023

Imagine that your Nintendo Switch didn’t have the ability to connect online and that the competitive game you’re currently playing only supported local multiplayer. It’s a little hard to picture in 2023, right? That’s what Mega Man Battle Network fans had to deal with during the early 2000s. If you wanted to have a battle with your friend during Nintendo’s Game Boy Advance days, they’d have to be within your immediate vicinity and have a Link Cable available to connect two GBAs.
Rolling Stone •

Inside the Art of 'Breaking' Video Games

How fast can a game be beaten — and how many tricks can a player use as they do it? With “game breaking,” users look for loopholes in a game’s design and use them to get past difficult enemies. Different players have different approaches: Speedrunners, for example, find the fastest way to finish, while “map clippers” twist “mechanics” — the rules by which the digital universe is bound — to see what they can get away with before it becomes a problem for developers, or crashes the game completely.
Variety •

‘The Boys’ Star Karen Fukuhara Makes Her Video-Game Debut With ‘The Callisto Protocol’

Developed by Striking Distance Studios, “The Callisto Protocol” is a survival horror game set in the Black Iron Prison on one of Jupiter’s moons, Callisto. Players assume the role of an inmate named Jacob Lee, played by “Transformers” and “Shotgun Wedding” star Josh Duhamel. He meets Dani Nakamura, the leader of a resistance group called Outer Way, and together they must uncover the Black Iron Prison’s dark secrets and escape with their lives. Dani is portrayed by “The Boys” star Karen Fukuhara.
Variety •

How ‘God of War Ragnarök’s’ Thor Was Inspired by The Hulk

“God of War Ragnarök” is one of 2022’s most explosive video games. Focusing on Norse mythology, the game features the folklore’s most iconic figures such as Heimdall, Freya, Odin, and Thor.

Thor, in particular, has received tons of attention due to his prominent role in the game and overall popularity in pop culture. Thor has many layers to him, both physically and emotionally. Variety sat down with narrative director Matt Sophos, art director Raf Grassetti, and voice actor Ryan Hurst to talk about how Sony Santa Monica approached the god of thunder.
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