I'm Barbra and I live in Grand Rapids.
I'm interested in Gender and Women's Studies, Handball and ... View More
About Me
March 11, 2026
43 views
Coverage is bad because esports are hard to watch, not the other way around. It all stems from an inability to produce universal coverage. Too much diversity or segmented viewership may not seem like an issue on the surface, but it is. Maybe you’re simply saying "well, no one is asking you to watch every esport," and that’s fair. Maybe communities are fine existing in their own worlds—far out of the reach of other gaming communities. But it does create a barrier for the industry to break into mainstream entertainm Leonardo has his own set of impressive armor that mirrors Garen’s skin in League of Legends. This cosplayer’s attention to detail in his armor making is simply mesmerizing and his Sunsteel Broadsword is something to be desired. Leonardo’s other cosplays include Jayce and "Mister Fortu As a Marksman who wants to use his abilities often and has empowered basic attacks, Essence Reaver and Runaan's Hurricane are core items on Aphelios. Infinity Edge is usually the strongest third item, but the rest of the build depends on the enemy team and how the game is going. Phantom Dancer and Guardian Angel provide defensive capabilities from Assassins and burst damage, Bloodthirster provides sustainability and damage in long teamfights, and Mortal Reminder counters an enemy team with a lot of healing. As for his unique stat leveling, maxing his Attack Speed or Armor Penetration is generally the best bet. Max Attack Speed first against a squishier team, and max Armor Penetration first against an armor stacking team. The Attack Damage Aphelios gains from leveling that stat does not scale well into the late g It'll be difficult to get accustomed to Aphelios' laning phase. He starts with Calibrum and Severum and doesn't learn his Q until level 2, so depending on the lane players will need to adapt to two different playstyles. Summoners can either play aggressively to hit level 2 first, or be overly defensive and let the enemy laners push until Aphelios can get level 2 safely. What makes Aphelios strong is his versatility. Players will need to adjust their main and off-hand weapons of choice based on lane matchups. Use Calibrum (Sniper Rifle) when the lane favors poke and harass. Severum (Pistol) and Infernum (Flamethrower) are strong against defensive lanes giving Aphelios sustain and pushing power. Crescendum can be used to provide huge damage during a gank while the crowd control that Gravitum (Graviton Cannon) provides can be used both offensively and defensiv The biggest change is the addition of a win condition. Either team could destroy the opposing base to claim victory, but they can also just get 60 kills. The idea, I imagine, is to stop that endgame drag that always happens in close matches. Both sides hunker down in their bases, carefully turning back creep tides and maybe jungling. But mostly they play it safe, retreating the moment a team fight seems to be going bad. It's tedious, boring, and only amplifies post-match toxicity because the stalemate usually ends when someone gets antsy and gives up a team fight. In Genesis, you can play it safe all you want but one side will eventually get 60 kills. In theory. In my 6-7 hours of play this only happened once. That match still went on a little too long. So while the ultimatum does pressure teams to actually push lanes, it isn't a complete cure for turtl With its campaign, the one thing that could really set it apart, inactive, Genesis has your typical MOBA modes. There's training, a humans vs. AI mode, and 5v5 competitive. There's only one map in the rotation right now, the usual three lane battlefield where you aim to destroy the enemy towers and reach their core. That's not to fault Genesis for having this familiar element. The setup is just typical to MOBAs. In fact, there are some smart things going on in Genesis that address common MOBA strategies probl Genesis opens by explaining that humans and aliens teamed up to go through a portal in space. There are unknown dangers on the other side, which warranted the formation of a group of specialized individuals. Right after, you're dropped onto a single-lane bridge and put in control of the beginner-friendly archer hero. Sound familiar? I immediately had flashbacks to the League of Legends tutorial. Genesis does try to set itself apart by focusing more on story. The tutorial introduces mysterious aliens that attack our alliance of heroes. What they are, and why they're hostile, is a matter for the campaign. Oh yeah, there's a full-on campaign mode. Too bad it doesn't work at the moment, an issue the devs are actively fixi But it’s mostly a farce. Those who play the most popular games at the highest level get all the limelight and all the cash. For everyone else, streaming—where personality trumps skill—is the only way to make money from gaming. If the community stays as segmented and hastily constructed as it is, it’s tough to imagine esports becoming anything better than what it already is. If you’re happy with the current state of esports, good for you. But for someone who wants a more entertaining and structured esports community, something has to cha
Be the first person to like this.
December 16, 2025
59 views
Learning the fundamentals is simple, especially if one has already played other multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) games. Beyond the fundamentals, however, the skill ceiling is high and experienced opponents will severely punish small mistakes at high ranks of play. Here is with our guide on everything you need to know to start playing Dota 2 as a complete new Season 2 of Apex Legends is here and with it comes a brand new ranked mode called Ranked Leagues. In Ranked Leagues, you gain points for your success, earn new and better titles as you progress, and once and for all show your squad mates who is the real al There is one more element that further complicates climbing through the ranks, and that is ranked match cost. Once you've climbed out of Bronze, each ranked match you play will cost RP to enter. While in Silver, every game you play will cost 1 RP. Gold matches cost 2 RP, Platinum matches cost 3 RP, Diamond Matches cost 4 RP, and Apex Predator matches cost 5 Learning to play a new game is always exciting, but not all learning curves are created equal. Dota 2 is currently the largest esports game in the world with the most tournament prize money, and for good rea Each lane also has both a melee and a ranged barracks. Their function is somewhat counterintuitive, because by destroying the opposing barracks in a lane, your own creeps become stronger. Do they loot the barracks? Are they motivated by your heroes? Who knows, but this is a cornerstone of play in order to continually push down an enemy lane effectively. Not only do your creeps become stronger, they also award less experience and gold to the opposing team, and if they cannot counter by destroying your barracks, the opposing team become continually disadvantaged as a match progres You will be rewarded 1 RP for each kill you get up to a maximum of 5 RP per match. Remember: these need to be confirmed kills, so make sure you are finishing off your opponents once they are knocked down. This is somewhat controversial as the system incentives you to thirst your opponents when it otherwise may benefit your team to focus fire and eliminate the entire enemy squad together. Wins will get you simply click the up coming site most bang for your buck, so don't risk a potential win just to get one more RP for a k 2019 is shaping up to be the biggest year yet for DC Entertainment, _**** _ with 25 confirmed feature-length films, TV series, and animated movies based on DC Comics properties planned for release. Many of these are established series such as the various live-action shows making up The CW's Arrowverse ; others are new series being produced exclusively for the new DC Universe streaming service, which was released to wide acclaim last f Shazam! stars Zachary Levi as the grown-up superhero Shazam and Mark Strong as Dr. Thaddeus Sivana - Shazam's arch-enemy in the comics. The villain's origin is reportedly being changed for the movie, however, with Dr. Sivana now being one who was denied the power of Shazam because of his dark heart rather than a mad scientist determined to prove the superiority of his science over Shazam's ma Thankfully, it is not possible to be demoted to a lower tier. Respawn has assured us that dipping below 480 RP, for example, will not drop you out of Diamond; once you have reached a new tier you are effectively at a new rank floor and are guaranteed to receive the season rewards for that tier. This may change in the future, but is a nice assurance for MOBAs arrived as a popular genre back in 2011, but their origins can be traced back to the late ‘90s. A popular StarCraft map called Aeon of Strife is often quoted as the original MOBA. Instead of players controlling multiple units and the structures with which to build more, players controlled just a single hero unit and fought alongside a number of lesser AI-controlled units. The map is just three lanes, with the AI-controlled units battling in each one to a standstill (usually). It's up to the player-controlled heroes to turn the tide and ultimately destroy the enemy's b Still, I miss the accuracy of a mouse for skill shots. The characters don't quite have the charm of Ahri, Rumble, or any of my other LoL mains. I find their voice acting annoying, and their 3D models don't quite live up to their art. I don't see myself dropping cash for skins. In the end, I think I just want to scratch the MOBA itch I've been ignoring for years. Genesis definitely does that, and will do so for any curious PS4 owners. It also doesn't require PS Plus, which is a... plus. Give it a shot as your first MOBA, or first MOBA in years. If you have a PC, however, stick to the class MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) was once that genre in gaming. League of Legends was bringing in big money, Dota 2 was a force in esports, and copycats were springing up all over the place. In truth, that hasn't really changed. Sure, everyone is streaming battle royale and auto chess now, but MOBA is still alive and well. League of Legends keeps paying Riot's bills, and Dota 2 still brings in those __ huge prize pools . The copycats have slowed somewhat as developers flock to make auto chess games. The goal for MOBA developers now seems to be to tap into empty markets. That's probably the inspiration behind Genesis , a new MOBA exclusive to P
Be the first person to like this.
December 10, 2025
53 views
Genesis opens by explaining that humans and aliens teamed up to go through a portal in space. There are unknown dangers on the other side, which warranted the formation of a group of specialized individuals. Right after, you're dropped onto a single-lane bridge and put in control of the beginner-friendly archer hero. Sound familiar? I immediately had flashbacks to the League of Legends tutorial. Genesis does try to set itself apart by focusing more on story. The tutorial introduces mysterious aliens that attack our alliance of heroes. What they are, and why they're hostile, is a matter for the campaign. Oh yeah, there's a full-on campaign mode. Too bad it doesn't work at the moment, an issue the devs are actively fixi This is advice that can be applied to practically every gunfight. Whether they're being met head-on or they've managed to get the drop on the player's squad, smart and precise repositioning by a single squadmate can immediately flip the table on any situat Though OG didn’t find consistent Dota 2 success throughout 2019, one player among their ranks powered them to victory at the biggest tournament of the year. Then-19-year-old Anathan "ana" Pham returned to OG in March after an extended hiatus. With ana back on the roster, OG began their climb back to peak form. They qualified for the MDL Disneyland Paris Major, and placed 5-6th at the main event. They then competed in ESL One Birmingham and the EPICENTER Major, placing 7-8th at both tournaments. The International 2019 arrived, and OG immediately exerted their dominance over their group stage opponents. To much surprise, ana played Io, traditionally a support hero, in the carry position. With that out-of-the-box pick, OG were able to top the group stage and secure a play-offs upper bracket berth. OG then took down Evil Geniuses, PSG.LGD, and Team Liquid to become the first team to ever win The International tw Arteezy staggeringly took down Vici Gaming with Lifestealer, despite being at low health and gained a two-thousand gold advantage to help secure game two of the match. Along with the shocking triumph, Arteezy cemented his performance in Dota 2 hist The last year of the decade has undeniably been one of the best years since the game's birth. Records have been broken, and some made new, history has been forged, and the flourishing passion that makes up the community has never been more uncountable. But the story doesn't end here, with Dota 2 at unprecedented heights of success, it continues to climb alongside its professional counterpart, which speaks nothing but prosperity for its future in 2 Their first orders of business, typically, will be looting their kills and reviving their fallen squadmates. Both of these actions leave them exposed, stationary, and inattentive, making them ripe for headshots or close range ambushes that will drop them before they even know they're being The Jungle is all the space between the three lanes, and inside there are neutral creeps that spawn at Camps, remaining stationary until attacked and killed by either team, and knowing when and how to deal with them is important. Players should be careful when traversing through the Jungle, because the opposing team may be waiting to ambush you, known as Ganking. Falling prey to a ganks is a sure way to let your team down by providing a lead to the opposing t The Philippine squad first turned heads at ESL One Hamburg with their barely scathed record of only one lost match. Subsequently, TNC won the tournament in October and took home $125 thousand because of their dominant Earthshaker and Morphling hero combination. Highlighting the superiority of meta cycling, TNC proved to be more than just a regular south-east Asian t Beyond ensuring that everyone is, you know, actually having fun playing a video game, being a positive influence on the squad is more important than most give it credit for. Beyond practically guaranteeing that no-one will want to join up with you, unloading verbal diatribes on your squadmates isn't going to make reviving you seem like an enticing prosp Heroes of the Storm is not only a recent example of Blizzard failing to make a go of their MOBA laning guide - they also did so in what's considered the most disrespectful of ways to its community, its competitive player base, and everyone else invol Making headlines and defining this year is OG’s record-making win at the International 9 last August. The team became the first back-to-back winner, first team to win two Ti’s, became the highest-paid professional esport players in the world and achieved that with a clean slate of zero matches lost during the International 9. And of course won $15.6 million in the proc Put simply, avoiding unnecessary gunfights will likely score you more ranked points than the potential kills are even capable of being worth. RP scored from kills is capped off at five points per game, while just surviving into the top three will net you seven. Managing to actually win the game is worth a staggering twelve ranked poi
Be the first person to like this.