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For the record, I have contacted my US Reps regarding these censorship issues of Steam and itch.io, and let VISA, Mastercard, and PayPal be aware of my disapproval of their actions. Try not to be too hard on the itch.io people, as they figuratively had a gun held to their heads.

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Tell MasterCard, Visa & Activist Groups: Stop Controlling What We Can Watch, Read, or Play

I would like to point out that these petitions have exploded with 15,000 additional signers over the past 12 hours. chng.it/9BxkXyp2Dt action.aclu.org/petition/mas... If you haven't already, consider adding your name. It's a small act of resistance, but still one nonetheless.

chng.it

Sign the Petition

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marlo @marlo.ooo · 24/07/2025

Indie games are an easy target for this kind of censorship. Don't assume it'll stop there. Indie artists and self-publishers should be paying attention to this. Letting Visa\Mastercard become the morality police of the Internet is a violation of personal liberty and self expression. Resist.

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Reposted by DZMaven

what really sucks about this @itch.io shit is that it hosted some of the most unique games i’ve ever played. a lot of them dealt with some NSFW subjects. they were almost all games made by marginalised people. itch was the storefront for people who wanted to put their work out there

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Reposted by DZMaven

Dangpa @dangpa.art · 24/07/2025

I'm sure there'll be other things that pop up (such as contacting politicians and payment processors). Still, if you're concerned about the situation with itch.io, Steam, and other sites hosting adult content, I would suggest signing this petition. action.aclu.org/petition/mas...

action.aclu.org

Mastercard: Sex Work is Work. End Your Unjust Policy.

Mastercard's new policy unfairly targets the adult content industry, making sex workers more vulnerable, especially Black trans women. It must be stopped.

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Case in point, the danger of letting a few control nearly all of the digital money processing in the Internet age has reared its head.

Evil John 2: John By Dawn @johnryanwrites.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

Reposted by DZMaven

Itch just zapped a lot of adult-leaning content right now, even stuff people paid for. Unless these games exist elsewhere (like Steam), this is a massive Stop Killing Games problem all of a sudden. The paid work of creators, in the hands of consumers, has been just erased.

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ebi @ebihimes.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

First it was Steam, and now Itch.io. Content creators of all types really need to wake up to this. It won't stop at indie games. Expect artwork and literature to get hit too eventually. For the record I am completely against this kind of censorship. Visa\Mastercard are NOT the morality police.

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Reposted by DZMaven

so itchio has shadowbanned any games tagged with 'nsfw', 'adult', or 'erotic' so they don't show up in searches, and several devs have reported that their r18 games have been removed from the site with no warning

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 23/06/2025

This is what is called soupy levels of heat and humidity. Because it's like you're wading in hot soup. 🥵

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 11/06/2025

This pretty confirms what I've always felt about DAV. It was a well polished rush-job game cobbled together from the remains of the live-service Morrison project. A lot of the blame as to why it turned that way can be laid at EA's mismanagement of Bioware. #DragonAge

Owlcat Games @owlcatgames.bsky.social · 07/06/2025

Reposted by DZMaven

We are excited to announce The Expanse: Osiris Reborn, a new sci-fi action RPG based on The Expanse. Become a captain of the most advanced ship in the universe, gather a crew, and challenge one of the most powerful enemies humankind has ever faced. Watch the trailer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIQi...

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Reposted by DZMaven

Wario64 @wario64.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

Bloodstained sequel out 2026

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Reposted by DZMaven

Shinobi602 @shinobi602.bsky.social · 04/06/2025

Bloodstained: The Scarlet Engagement announced #StateofPlay #PS5

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

To be fair, the premise of Zeon winning, Char getting the Gundam, isn't a new one. It's been done many times before as an alternate UC in several games. It's a neat premise, and I'm curious to see where they go with it.

DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

I also did finally watch the four episodes of Gundam Gquuuux. And it was... fine? I think at this point I'm more interested in the premise than the plot or characters rn. It's like they're trying to make an alternate UC while recycling the MS fight match-ups from WfM. It's just odd. 🤷 #gundam

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 06/05/2025

Mafia Definitive Edition was an experience. It's a good example of how strong narrative and writing can succeed in the videogame format. I enjoyed it far more than I expected. A solid 8/10 Now on to Mafia II

DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 27/04/2025

Next up, I'll be taking a look at the Mafia series. It's one I've heard of, but never played before, and since I got all three of the games from Amazon Gaming, I might as well take a look.

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 27/04/2025

For details on my review, I go over most of it here at the end of the final part of the playthrough. youtu.be/OUrBSTa8Wmo?...

youtu.be

Beyond the Void | Xenoblade Chronicles X DE - Part 22 [Final]

YouTube video by DZMaven

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 27/04/2025

After 259 hours, I have 100% Xenoblade X DE. An amazing game experience, as usual, from Monolithsoft. While it had some issues with how quests were set up and how parts of the Epilogue were handled, it's one of the best "exploration" focused games out there and earns a solid 8/10. 👍

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

As much as I'd like to jump on the Oblivion Remaster bandwagon right now, I just don't know if my system can run it well enough to be worth it. 🤷‍♂️

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 25/04/2025

I'm happy to announce that I have finally completed Xenoblade Chronicles X DE. 240+ hours of playtime. Not quite 100% completion, but real close

media.tenor.com

a cartoon of spongebob and patrick standing next to each other on a wooden floor

ALT: a cartoon of spongebob and patrick standing next to each other on a wooden floor

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Monolithsoft has always been very solid with their plots and writing. This is the first time I've come across such a glaring plot contradiction around something so important.

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Unless there is some last minute explanation for this in chapter 12, the only possible explanation I can come up with is that the writing team for the side quests wasn't aware of the mims and their plot importance. Which would be very weird in of itself.

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Like, it can't be both ways. The story points around mims are contradicting one another. It seems like the main and affinity quests treat the mims as androids but many side quests portray them as not being androids but real humans instead. It's so weird.

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Yet, there are also many side quests where a character's mim "dies" and it's being treated in the writing and reactions as if they are actually dead and never coming back. There's even a few instances of characters mentioning people getting new mims when everything is sorted out.

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 11/04/2025

Xenoblade X spoiler. So I'm increasingly noticing a plot contradiction surrounding the Mims. It's established the humans of NLA are androids, remote controlled by a real human in the lifehold. And it's stated a few times that the actual human is fine if the mim body is destroyed.

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Arguments can certainly be made that DAV is technically better in the polish department but content and writing is still more important to me. Both do a poor job in those areas, but my above reasons still put MEA above DAV.

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 11/04/2025

For all its flaws, Mass Effect Andromeda is still a better game than Dragon Age The Veilguard 1 MEA still feels like ME. A lackluster ME game, but still ME. DAV however doesn't feel like a DA game 2 MEA didn't retroactively damage the mainline games. DAV ruined the worlds of the previous games

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 05/04/2025

I do still have a backlog of some games to play and PC games will still have steam sales, so I guess there's that. But I can I go the year without spending money on anything fun? I may have to. 😮‍💨

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

So... Probably won't be able to afford a Switch 2. Probably won't afford to upgrade my PC. Probably won't afford new Gunpla. ... So what can I enjoy this year?

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

Oh, it'll launch but it'll be more than people expect. Nintendo can't afford to abandon the US market.

DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 04/04/2025

Watching the Dow plummet just like it did during covid. Ah, yes. Good times are coming, right? 😬

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 02/04/2025

Pretty decent Switch 2 direct despite the technical issues. Mario Kart World is a likely buy for me. I'll have to consider the Metroid Prime 4 version though. Yet, it all comes down to when I can get a Switch 2 (timing and affordability)

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

The whole thing is one giant trial and error exercise in figuring out the correct combination of people to trade with. It's garbage quest design and incredibly tedious. God help if you try to do it blind as you'll likely waste hours on it. Look up a guide and save yourself the trouble.

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 31/03/2025

I do believe I have come across the worst quest in Xenoblade X. Trade Agreement It combines two of things I hate in a jrpg quest. - Card games\trading - No quest tracking There are multiple people to talk to, in varying order to trade these stupid cards with. Some even require more than cards.

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

Excellent showcase of how much of this game is a marvel and Monolithsofts best technical achievement yet.

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

I also think Skells become available at just the right time in the Xenoblade X. If you're playing diligently, you've likely reached just about everywhere you can on foot. And Skells open up a whole another layer. It's the "double jump" point of the game and comes at the right moment.

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

Getting Skells is such a game changer in Xenoblade X. It's like the world has shrunk a bit and you can jump up to places you couldn't before. And step on blattas you don't see. And punt kick Prone soldiers around. 😆

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DZMaven @dzmaven.bsky.social · 27/03/2025

On a side note, I'm kind of surprised Digital Foundry still doesn't have their Xenoblade X DE video up. 🤔