Call of Duty: Developer defends gaming's impact on young men
"You can look at anything and say it's a problem," adds Pete, whose work as designer includes CoD titles such as last year's Black Ops 6."It's just really about how you use the medium."
Sir Gareth referenced "gaming, gambling and pornography" when discussing young men in the UK during a speech at the BBC's annual Richard Dimbleby Lecture in March.And the subject has since been brought into even sharper focus by hit Netflix drama Adolescence.Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the series, which tells the story of a 13-year-old boy charged with a violent murder, as "really hard to watch".CoD designer Pete feels gaming isn't any more responsible for negatively influencing young players than any of their other interests."Gaming has its place with everything else," he says."It depends what you're looking for and how you handle the moderation of that, how you handle what it means to your life."It's kind of a personal journey from there."He also denied the CoD series has a responsibility to educate younger gamers about violence.Its latest title was rated as suitable for players aged 18 and above by PEGI, which sets age recommendations for games in Europe.
'Double-edged sword'
CoD player Rhys tells Newsbeat that while he accepts abusive behaviour can take place, he believes playing games doesn't necessarily have a negative influence on male players."People look at someone playing games for eight hours and think 'he's not really doing much'."But he might be preparing for a tournament."That could be worth a month's salary, sometimes a yearly salary for some people."It's a double-edged sword," he says.
Gamer Abi, who plays and streams as AbiCoops, has mixed feelings about her gaming experiences."I had a stalker," she says."I'd block his account, he'd make new accounts and actually re-bought the game [CoD] to constantly try and find me in it."
Abi adds she's had "derogatory things" said to her by other male players."About sexual assault, about rape, the stereotypical 'go back to the kitchen'."It really messes with your mental health."We'll be fat-shamed, bullied about our appearance, bullied about whether you're in a relationship."They will nit-pick everything about you just to get to you but women do it to women as well," she says.Despite the abuse and harassment, Abi says she won't "back down to it" because of the positive impact gaming has had on her life."I met all of my friends online."I've made friendships, it's brought my family closer together, I met my partner through gaming."
And CoD developer Pete Actipis claims its positive impact on players hit new heights during Covid lockdowns."People were stuck in their house," he says."[The game] was actually a very social experience. A lot of memories were formed, a lot of friendships were formed, online."That period in the series' history is virtually bringing players together again in 2025.An update to Call of Duty: Warzone has revived a fan favourite - a map called Verdansk, based in Ukraine, where people around the world can play each other online.For Rhys, it brings back memories of bonding with other players during the UK's tightest Covid restrictions."It gave [players] the opportunity to just get to know each other," Rhys says."I built bonds with people I now class as really good friends."It's a really bizarre and amazing experience."
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James Cook Scotland editor • @BBCJamesCook BBC Nicola Sturgeon's memoir Frankly is now on sale, slightly earlier than expected after newspaper serialisations and interviews teased some tantalising extracts. True to its title, the book has Scotland's former first minister writing candidly about the highs and lows of her time in office including challenges she says had a serious impact on her mental health. So with the full text now available, what are the key things we have learned? Transgender controversy After more than eight years in power, and eight election victories, Sturgeon saw final months in office marred by rows about trans issues. It was, she writes in her memoir, a time of "rancour and division". Sturgeon now admits to having regrets about the process of trying to legislate to make it easier to legally change gender, saying she has asked herself whether she should have "hit the pause button" to try to reach consensus. "With hindsight, I wish I had," she writes, although she continues to argue in favour of the general principle of gender self-identification. Spindrift Isla Bryson was jailed in 2023 after being convicted of rape Sturgeon also addresses the case of double rapist Adam Graham who was initially sent to a female prison after self-identifying as a woman called Isla Bryson. It was, writes Sturgeon, a development "that gave a human face to fears that until then had been abstract for most people". As first minister she sometimes struggled to articulate her position on the case and to decide which, if any, pronoun to use to describe Bryson. "When confronted with the question 'Is Isla Bryson a woman?' I was like a rabbit caught in the headlights," she writes. "Because I failed to answer 'yes', plain and simple... I seemed weak and evasive. Worst of all, I sounded like I didn't have the courage to stand behind the logical conclusion of the self-identification system we had just legislated for. "In football parlance, I lost the dressing room." Speaking to ITV News on Monday Sturgeon said she now believed a rapist "probably forfeits the right" to identify as a woman. JK Rowling JK Rowling posted a selfie of herself wearing a T-shirt describing Sturgeon as a "destroyer of women's rights" The former first minister also criticises her highest profile opponent on the gender issue, Harry Potter author JK Rowling, for posting a selfie in a T-shirt bearing the slogan "Nicola Sturgeon, destroyer of women's rights". "It resulted in more abuse, of a much more vile nature, than I had ever encountered before. It made me feel less safe and more at risk of possible physical harm," she writes. Sturgeon adds that "it was deeply ironic that those who subjected me to this level of hatred and misogynistic abuse often claimed to be doing so in the interests of women's safety". Rowling has been approached for comment. Her relationship with Alex Salmond Sturgeon's mentor and predecessor as first minster, Alex Salmond, is mentioned dozens of times in the book, often in unflattering terms which reflect their estrangement after he was accused of sexual offences. Salmond won a judicial review of the Scottish government's handling of complaints against him and in 2020 was cleared of all 13 charges but his reputation was sullied by revelations in court about inappropriate behaviour with female staff. Sturgeon lambasts Salmond's claim that he was the victim of a conspiracy, saying there was no obvious motive for women to have concocted false allegations which would then have required "criminal collusion" with politicians, civil servants, police and prosecutors. "He impugned the integrity of the institutions at the heart of Scottish democracy," she writes, adding: "He was prepared to traumatise, time and again, the women at the centre of it all". The claims have been angrily rejected by Salmond's allies. The former SNP leader died of a heart attack in North Macedonia last year, aged 69. The independence referendum Nicola Sturgeon recalls a "totally uncharacteristic sense of optimism" as Scotland prepared to vote on whether to become an independent nation on 18 September 2014. It was arguably the defining event of her professional life and, in her view, a chance to "create a brighter future for generations to come". The campaign was tough, she says, partly because of what she calls unbalanced coverage by the British media including the BBC and partly because Salmond left her to do much of the heavy lifting. "It felt like we were trying to push a boulder up hill," she writes. PA Media Sturgeon claims Alex Salmond showed little interest in the "detail" of the independence white paper A key period in the lead-up to the poll was her preparation, as deputy first minister, of a white paper setting out the case for independence. At one point, she says, the magnitude of the task left her in "utter despair" and "overcome by a feeling of sheer impossibility". "I ended up on the floor of my home office, crying and struggling to breathe. It was definitely some kind of panic attack," she writes. Sturgeon says Salmond "showed little interest in the detail" of the document and she was "incandescent" when he flew to China shortly before publication without having read it. "He promised he would read it on the plane. I knew his good intention would not survive contact with the first glass of in-flight champagne," she writes. Operation Branchform Sturgeon describes her "utter disbelief" and despair when police raided her home in Glasgow and arrested her husband, Peter Murrell, on 5 April 2023. "With police tents all around it, it looked more like a murder scene than the place of safety it had always been for me. I was devastated, mortified, confused and terrified." In the weeks that followed she says she felt like she "had fallen into the plot of a dystopian novel". Sturgeon calls her own arrest two months later as part of the inquiry into SNP finances known as Operation Branchform "the worst day" of her life. She was exonerated. Murrell, the former SNP chief executive, has been charged with embezzlement. The couple announced they were separating earlier this year. Getty Images Sturgeon described her house as looking like a murder scene Leading Scotland during the pandemic ForSturgeon, the coronavirus pandemic which struck the world five years ago still provokes "a torrent of emotion". Leading Scotland through Covid was "almost indescribably" hard and "took a heavy toll, physically and mentally", writes the former first minister. She says she will be haunted forever by the thought that going into lockdown earlier could have saved more lives and, in January 2024, after she wept while giving evidence to the UK Covid inquiry, she "came perilously close to a breakdown". "For the first time in my life, I sought professional help. It took several counselling sessions before I was able to pull myself back from the brink," she writes. PA Media Nicola Sturgeon appeared visibly upset when giving evidence to the Covid Inquiry Misogyny and sexism Scathing comments about the inappropriate behaviour of men are scattered throughout the book. "Like all women, since the dawn of time, I have faced misogyny and sexism so endemic that I didn't always recognize it as such," Sturgeon writes on the very first page. One grim story, from the first term of the Scottish Parliament which ran from 1999 to 2003, stands out. Sturgeon says a male MSP from a rival party taunted her with the nickname "gnasher" as he spread a false rumour that she had injured a boyfriend during oral sex. "On the day I found out about the story, I cried in one of the toilets in the Parliament office complex," she writes. She said it was only years later, after #MeToo, that she realised this had been "bullying of an overtly sexual nature, designed to humiliate and intimidate, to cut a young woman down to size and put her in her place". Her personal life PA Media Parts of the memoir are deeply personal. Nicola Sturgeon says she may have appeared to be a confident and combative leader but underneath she is a "painfully shy" introvert who has "always struggled to believe in herself." She writes in detail about the "excruciating pain" and heartbreak of suffering a miscarriage after becoming pregnant at the age of 40. "Later, what I would feel most guilty about were the days I had wished I wasn't pregnant," she says. Sturgeon touches on the end of her marriage, saying "I love him" but the strain of the past couple of years" was "impossible to bear." She also writes about her experience of the menopause, explaining that "one of my deepest anxieties was that I would suddenly forget my words midway through an answer" at First Minister's Question Time. "My heart would race whenever I was on my feet in the Chamber which was debilitating and stressful," she says. And she addresses "wild stories" about her having a torrid lesbian affair with a French diplomat by saying the rumours were rooted in homophobia. "The nature of the insult was water off a duck's back," she writes. "Long-term relationships with men have accounted for more than thirty years of my life, but I have never considered sexuality, my own included, to be binary. Moreover, sexual relationships should be private matters." What the future holds PA Media Sturgeon loves books and has often appeared at literary events such as Aye Write in Glasgow Nicola Sturgeon has a few regrets. These include pushing hard for a second independence referendum immediately after the UK voted — against Scotland's wishes — to leave the EUn, and branding the 2024 general election as a "de facto referendum" on independence. But now, she says, she is "excited about the next phase" of her life which she jokingly refers to as her "delayed adolescence". "I might live outside of Scotland for a period," Sturgeon writes. "Suffocating is maybe putting it too strongly, but I feel sometimes I can't breathe freely in Scotland," she tells the BBC's Newscast podcast. "This may shock many people to hear," she continues, "but I love London." She is also considering writing a novel. Nicola Sturgeon concludes her memoir by saying she believes Scotland will be independent within 20 years, insisting she will never stop fighting for that outcome and adding: "That, after all, is what my life has been about."
Metro
2 hours ago
- Metro
Games Inbox: Does it matter that physical video games are dying?
The Tuesday letters page asks how quickly Call Of Duty can change, as one reader asks for help speccing out his custom gaming PC. To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@ Old argument Reading about the super rare Xbox game going for £1,000 the only thing I can think of is… it's not even a very good game. I doubt anyone that's thinking of paying that much for it is doing it because they love the game but just because they enjoy collecting rare things. Which is fine, it's not hurting anyone, but I don't think that's a very normal motivation for most people. I get that people don't want physical copies to go away, and everyone likes collecting something, but the relevance of physical copies went away the second that patches came to consoles. So… somewhere around 2000? After that, what's on the disc became irrelevant, because it's never the final game. In some cases there never is a final game. So really all you're collecting is a keepsake. Personally, I'd just collect posters or action figures or something of the games, at least they're more fun to have in your room. But all this complaining about Switch Game-Key Cards… the argument was lost two decades ago, for better or worse. Cranston Time delay As much as I'd like to see Call Of Duty get some serious competition, I really can't see Battlefield 6 outselling Black Ops 7 straight off the bat. We'll see I guess, but I think the problem is that by the time Activision get round to acknowledging the coemption, which will probably take a while because they're so comfortable, how quickly can changes be made? Call Of Duty games used to take three years to make but I don't think there is any set limit now and that's why everything's got out of order – it's just a rush to get whatever they can out of the door. That's the sort of attitude that Battlefield 6's success might help to prevent but that still means we're talking 2028 at the most before there's any shift in attitude. Sign up to the GameCentral newsletter for a unique take on the week in gaming, alongside the latest reviews and more. Delivered to your inbox every Saturday morning. Will there ever be a year where there isn't a new Call Of Duty, because Activision thought it needed more time in the oven? I doubt it, they'll just puff up some DLC instead, like they did with Modern Warfare 3. Focus The flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long RE: Big Boy Bent. I didn't realise the Dreamcast had such a short lifespan either. I remember selling my console to a friend, then a fortnight later he said to me that Sega had stopped making games for it, which I was genuinely unaware of but at least I'd only charged him £50 for it. It's a shame, as it was a great console with some terrific games. I remember being blown away by the fabulous graphics of the arcade port of the boat racing game Hydro Thunder, but if I had one niggle with the Dreamcast it was the control pads, they were especially poor for beat 'em-ups. Adams6Legend Email your comments to: gamecentral@ Accurately named Will you get the chance to review Earthion? It looks amazing, Ancient made some of the best Mega Drive games and this looks like it's following that tradition. Considering how much you liked Gradius Origins I hope this is right up your street. Thanks again for everything, you're always a great read. Beastiebat (PSN ID) Currently playing: Nothing, haven't really got the time, just working through Parks and Rec for the first time with the 20 minutes I can find at the very end if the day… bloomin' school holidays. Tell a lie, I played Game Boy Tetris on my Switch for eight minutes yesterday. GC: Good heavens, how have Ancient been going so long? We may have missed our chance with this but at the very least we'll include it in our end of year catch-up. La Leyenda de Zelda Speaking from the gorgeous island of Tenerife. It's been a few days of sunshine, water park mayhem, and unfortunate sunburn. But when in Spain the sun always shines. Speaking of shining, I mentioned beforehand I'd be buying Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom for Switch 2, as soon as I could. GAME just so happened to spawn at the nearest shopping mall. It's truly unique to have brought a Spanish copy of the game that will actually work in the UK, due to Nintendo being region free. £60 for the title, but you get what you pay for. The privilege of paying top dollar to Nintendo. But at the end of the day, how many consumers can say they own a Spanish region copy, especially in the UK? That's something quite rare actually. Shahzaib Sadiq GC: We hope you don't already own the Switch 1 version, because the Switch 2 upgrade is only £7.99. Simple desires I'm going to be so upset when EA finally shut down BioWare. Let's face it, we all know it's coming and I'm amazed they've lasted this long to be honest. For EA they've been very patient with them and I'm already surprised they didn't get shut down after Anthem. Maybe EA felt guilty for pushing them into making a live service game. What I'm hoping is that Mass Effect is easier to make into game that non-fans will make, since the originals were pretty good third person shooters, amongst other things. I'm still not really clear why Dragon Age: The Veilguard was such a flop. The trailers were bad but I can't imagine they were the only reason people stayed away, because the combat was the best thing about the game. Which I guess undermines my point about Mass Effect. Maybe people are just getting tired of action role-players that aren't Soulslikes. I don't really understand that either, as you'd think people would appreciate the alternative an a game that wasn't ultra hard, but here we are. I wouldn't mind if Mass Effect had a bit of a Soulslike about it, but I don't think anyone has really made that concept work with a sci-fi game based on ranged combat before. Perhaps this could be the first but for me, personally I just want it to be like the old Mass Effects but with better graphics. Does that make me shallow? Gifford Semi-portable Regarding the Nintendo Switch 2. Despite being a long on the making, Nintendo did not even consider at all the ergonomics of the device. This is baffling. It is so uncomfortable to hold. I would have preferred a much smaller handheld to be fair, as well. Sheel Don't ask us I am planning to get a custom gaming PC from PC Specialist and I was wondering if other GameCentral readers could advise me on what parts to buy? As this is a lot of info to take in and I need advice for someone new (me) to buying my custom build. I would like a PC tower with 2TB SSD hard drive (a fast one, within my price range), at least 32GB RAM (fast as I can afford), i7 CPU, graphics card obviously. My budget is £2,000. I will pay for the delivery and warranty separately to that. I have a £15 off voucher from Edge magazine for PC Specialist. I want to target 1080p at 60fps, as that is what Simundo in the Inbox said he would do with his gaming PC when he buys it. I have a 1080p Phillips PC monitor and a 4K LG 60 inch TV. I will run the computer on one screen at a time. My friend is going to put my mechanical 8TB hard drive bought in July 2023 in the new PC and the Blu-ray writer both from my old PC. I don't want a fancy case, just one that does the job and does not fall apart, like the one I bought in 2004 from a different PC vendor. Do I need to buy bays for the 8TB hard drive and Blu-ray writer when I buy a tower from PC Specialist? I have to get a new PC by October 2025, as my current PC will not upgrade to Windows 11. I do use the PC for gaming but I also use it for using office programs, printing, email, web surfing, any other task I need it for. Could a GameCentral reader or unboxer advise me please? Thank you in advance. Andrew J. Inbox also-ransI fully endorse the idea of a Lego Batman v Superman, they'll have great fun mocking how terrible it is, I think. Xris Another great Switch 2 game deal from Very. Mark Matthews Email your comments to: gamecentral@ More Trending The small print New Inbox updates appear every weekday morning, with special Hot Topic Inboxes at the weekend. Readers' letters are used on merit and may be edited for length and content. You can also submit your own 500 to 600-word Reader's Feature at any time via email or our Submit Stuff page, which if used will be shown in the next available weekend slot. You can also leave your comments below and don't forget to follow us on Twitter. MORE: Games Inbox: What's the best way to play Nintendo Switch 2? MORE: Games Inbox: When will Switch 2 get a new 3D Mario game? MORE: Games Inbox: Do adults still play Fortnite?
South Wales Guardian
2 hours ago
- South Wales Guardian
Harry and Meghan renew Netflix deal with first look partnership
Five years ago, Harry and Meghan secured a lucrative contract, thought to be worth more than 100 million dollars (£74 million) with the streaming giant after quitting as senior working royals in 2020. The first-look deal, which means Netflix will have the first option on Harry and Meghan's projects, was described by the Sussexes as 'extending their creative partnership'. But PR and crisis expert Mark Borkowski described it as a 'downgrade', and suggested Netflix was 'pivoting away' from Harry and Meghan. Mr Borkowski told the PA news agency the deal was a long way from the jackpot figure of their original contract. 'I think Netflix has done a very neat job of pivoting away from two very expensive people who didn't deliver, and they've taken that deal off the table, and they've given them a modest one,' he said. 'It's not like they're gradually uncoupling. It's a downgrade. Netflix are not going to expose themselves to those budgets again and it's Netflix saying 'Well, look, let's have a look at your content, but we'll pick and choose, mate'.' Mr Borkowski suggested the Sussexes would now be on a pay as you go deal, where they are paid for productions as and when they are selected by Netflix, rather than receiving an overall amount. 'I would be surprised if it's not pay as you go and it's well, well below that first mark (of an estimated 100 million dollars),' Mr Borkoski said. A representative for the Sussexes declined to comment on the financial arrangements of the deal. Meghan said: 'We're proud to extend our partnership with Netflix and expand our work together to include the As Ever brand. 'My husband and I feel inspired by our partners who work closely with us and our Archewell Productions team to create thoughtful content across genres that resonates globally and celebrates our shared vision.' Their new output will include a 'fun and heartwarming' second season of the duchess's With Love Meghan lifestyle show later this month, as well as a 'magical holiday celebration' Christmas special in December. Archewell Productions is also working on Masaka Kids, A Rhythm Within – a documentary about orphaned children in Uganda's Masaka region, where the 'shadows of the HIV/Aids crisis linger'. This comes after Harry stepped down from Sentebale, the charity he founded to help children orphaned by Aids in Lesotho, following a boardroom battle with the chairwoman. The duke, who is considering starting a new humanitarian charity, has vowed to continue his commitment to supporting youngsters in the region. The documentary will focus on 'the heart of Uganda's Masaka region, where the shadows of the HIV/Aids crisis linger, a small orphanage becomes a beacon of hope'. Netflix said: 'Masaka Kids, A Rhythm Within goes beyond the viral videos to reveal a vibrant, one-of-a-kind community where orphaned children transform hardship into joy, dancing their way toward healing, belonging and the promise of a brighter future.' There is also 'active development' on other projects with Netflix, which 'span a variety of content genres', including a feature adaptation of the bestselling romantic novel by Carley Fortune, Meet Me At The Lake. The Sussexes' most successful series has been Harry & Meghan – their controversial tell-all 2022 documentary about stepping back from royal duties and their struggles with the royal family. It totalled 23.4 million views and is Netflix's fifth most popular documentary series of all time. Harry & Meghan. Volume II: 15 December. Only on Netflix. — Netflix UK & Ireland (@NetflixUK) December 14, 2022 Bela Bajaria, Netflix's chief content officer, said: 'Harry and Meghan are influential voices whose stories resonate with audiences everywhere. 'The response to their work speaks for itself — Harry & Meghan gave viewers an intimate look into their lives and quickly became one of our most-watched documentary series. 'More recently, fans have been inspired by With Love, Meghan, with products from the new As Ever line consistently selling out in record time. 'We're excited to continue our partnership with Archewell Productions and to entertain our members together.' Love is in the details. ✨ With Love, Meghan, a new series, premieres January 15. — Netflix (@netflix) January 2, 2025 Harry's other ventures included a documentary about polo, Live to Lead about inspiring leaders and Heart of the Invictus, following competitors in the 2022 Invictus Games. Season one of Meghan's With Love Meghan lifestyle series, which saw the former Suits star offer hosting and cooking tips as she entertained friends, was savaged by critics. One review in The Guardian described it as a 'gormless lifestyle filler' and 'so pointless it might be the Sussexes' last TV show', while The Telegraph gave it two stars and branded it 'insane' and an 'exercise in narcissism'. Its release coincided with the launch of Meghan's As Ever brand, which sells flower sprinkles, pre-prepared baking kits and jam, and in which Netflix is also a partner. The couple's other major media deal with Spotify ended in 2023 after one season of Meghan's podcast Archetypes, with one of the streaming giant's executives later branding them 'grifters'.
