Video games

The Israeli developers behind indie hit GRIME explain how the country’s thriving casual game scene is set for greatness but Israel's politics are getting in the way.

The name of the simulator, SAGGER, comes from the weapon that was used en masse by the Egyptian and Syrian armies to fight Israel.

"Niantic's games are no longer available for download in Russia and Belarus, and gameplay will also be suspended there shortly," the company said.

The conviction is reflective of a wider pattern in Russia that sees teenagers targeted by security forces to quash dissent.

Dubbed Minecraft Virtual Israel, the initiative was launched by Lost Tribe Esports, a group that uses esports and gaming as a means of engaging with younger members of the Jewish community.

Known to be the first professional esports group in Israel, Team Finest runs five teams in four popular games: Fortnite, FIFA, Counter-Strike and Valorant.

The software giant had launched two models of its Xbox Series X in November 2020, seven years after the debut of the previous version, to capture a pandemic-driven boom in consumer spending on games.

The DICVS recording captured the two for the next twenty minutes discussing Pokemon as they drove to different locations trying to "catch them all" as Pokemon virtually popped up on their phones.

The platform will be used to rehabilitate blind people’s orientation skills and provide them with independence, just like Braille does for reading and writing.

"We plan to use Finest as a platform to educate what are NFTs and what is blockchain, and what can be done utilizing this technology," said chairman Mark Klein.