Essay

What are the roots of free-to-play capitalism? Michael Thomsen argues that in-game commodities and microtransactions are not new ideas so much as the latest ways that videogame companies instrumentalize us.

The raw materials of New Marais, the setting of Infamous 2 based on New Orleans, tell a story both longer and more pressing than their digital textures suggest. Nora Khan climbs through its multilayered history.

Rockstar Games’ Red Dead Redemption is the latest videogame to host an urban legend. A house on a hill is said to be haunted—in reality—so we went ghost hunting.

Our favorite Trials Evolution user-created levels have some unexpected themes in common.

Why are playgrounds still so important in the digital age? We talk with some of New York’s leading playground architects and designers about their work and the past and future impact of public play on urban space.