All the tunes and cars you’ll need to complete this week's festivities, those found in the Forza Horizon 5 Festival Playlist Weekly Challenges for Series 37 Summer and onwards.
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With some seriously cool visuals pushing House of Golf 2 along, things look well set for the launch on Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5 and PC.
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Ace Attorney Investigations Collection is a slightly different take on a series which has won over legions of fans over the years.
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We reached out to the team at Crazy Viking Studios in hope of finding out more about Volgarr the Viking II, ahead of release on Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch and PC.
The post Crafting a Legend: Interview with the Makers of Volgarr the Viking II appeared first on TheXboxHub.
Taking a look at the Festival Playlist Weekly Challenges found in Forza Horizon 5 on Xbox and PC for Series 36 Winter.
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If there is one element Atlus is becoming really good at lately, it is respecting and preserving older titles in its gigantic library. Most of the modern Persona games and mainline Shin Megami Tensei titles exist on current systems. However, there are two noticeable exceptions that could be used as a solution, such as an SMTIV and Apocalypse remaster collection.
If you want to, it is technically possible to play every single mainline Shin Megami Tensei game right now on a modern system. After all, there is a brilliant remaster of Nocturne on all current systems and PCs. Plus, there is the recent release of SMTV: Vengeance, which makes it available to everyone.
In fact, you can even play the older SMT titles, such as the first game, second game, and even if on Nintendo Switch. That is, if you have a Japanese account. However, it is possible, at least, which can’t be said for two particular games that are left out: Shin Megami Tensei IV and Apocalypse. As of right now, there are the only mainline games not available on current hardware.
They were also only ever released on the Nintendo 3DS and nowhere else. So, unless you use unsavory means, it isn’t possible to play them if you don’t have a 3DS handheld. This is why it is so crucial a remaster collection happens. I could see a situation where the two connected games come together into a remastered collection on Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
It wouldn’t be too difficult to modernize them, either. Though these games had a second screen, removing it isn’t too big of an issue. The bottom screen with your demons would just need to move to the top screen in some way. The 3D visuals still look solid on 3DS, so you only need some light brushing up there. Of course, some quality-of-life features might be welcome, but that’s pretty much it.
For me, personally, SMTIV: Apocalypse is my favorite game in the series. It perfectly balances story, characters, and a twisted world to explore so excellently. SMTIV is also fantastic, though the two are quite similar in some regards. With how solid these games are — even better than the recent SMTV, in my opinion — it is a shame they are stuck elsewhere. In fact, Atlus now has a pretty open slate for the Shin Megami Tensei series. With the release of Vengeance, no other games are coming for the franchise.
An SMTIV and Apocalypse remaster collection could be the perfect next title to satiate fans. They would be fairly easy to put out and a simple success for the company. Better yet, an SMTIV and Apocalypse remaster collection could tie fans over until Shin Megami Tensei VI, Persona 6, or whatever is next from Atlus. It is possible those games are a couple of years away still, so this would be a great way to keep players occupied.
I would be happy if they included Strange Journey as well. It also falls into the unfortunate portable-exclusive dilemma. It might be too soon after Vengeance for an SMTIV and Apocalypse remaster collection, but it needs to happen eventually. A release of these two brilliant 3DS JRPGs for modern consoles and PC would be a welcome release in 2025 or 2026. Regardless, I hope Atlus doesn’t let these games remain exclusive to the 3DS.
Shin Megami Tensei IV and Apocalypse are only available right now for Nintendo 3DS.
The post Atlus Needs to Remaster SMT IV and Apocalypse appeared first on Siliconera.
Destiny 2 supers are one of the best parts of the game. We all love that particular power-fantasy sense that comes from blasting foes apart, but which super is the best? Today, we’re ranking every current super in Destiny 2.
When it comes down to it, you will want to know which super is best for your particular class or even subclass. These rankings will take into account both PvE and PvP, as well as how effective a super is at crowd control.
You can’t help but get a bit excited when a new update arrives. There is a small thrill that comes with the prospect of jumping into an old favorite, especially when you haven’t played in a while. The latest Starfield update promises improvements and new features but for me, it has been a real letdown. It’s not because the additions are necessarily bad, it’s all just arriving a little too late.
As I searched for info on the new Starfield update I saw so many articles stating how it is ‘a game changer‘ and ‘the most exciting update yet.’ So imagine my surprise when I see a list of bug fixes and a few features that should have been part of the game when it was first released.
Achievement hunting to earn that satisfying 100% completion can be a mixed bag, but some 2024 release can help. Some games have dozens of difficult, and often, secret achievements, while other games have just a few and can be 100% completed easily. Today, we’re looking at the five best games for achievement hunting in 2024 so far.
Helldivers 2 is one of 2024’s most successful new games. A live-service tour-de-force that does so many things right. The gameplay, the progression, and the way Arrowhead Game Studios is constantly drip-feeding new content, enemy variants, and meta progression have been great. But did you know that Helldivers 2 is actually not too difficult to 100%?
Escape from Tarkov has been upset many of its players with recent developmental decisions as of late, introducing a $250 version of the game. Games like Arena Breakout Infinite—a direct extraction shooter competitor—are looking to provide a haven for Tarkov defectors.
Arena Breakout Infinite is actually a PC port of a pretty popular mobile game called Arena Breakout. Going to its page on the Google Play Store reveals a 4.5 rating from 500k reviews, and over 10 million downloads. It also has the “Editors Choice” highlight. I would argue one of the biggest reasons for its popularity is how it plays a lot like Tarkov. It even has the little details of opening a can of sardines and visually scooping out a spoonful to replenish your food meter.
The idea of voice-based social networks isn’t new. Clubhouse boomed during the Covid era and floundered soon after. However, Clubhouse’s moment of fame led to several copycats and even spurred the addition of voice to existing platforms like Twitter.
On the face of it, Airchat (Play Store) is yet another take on the old formula. So, why has it gotten so much attention recently?
In 2023, Naval Ravikant, the co-founder of AngelList and early-stage investor in companies like Uber and Twitter, introduced the first iteration of Airchat. While I never got around to using it, a quick look around suggests that the original ambition erred towards a hybrid of Clubhouse and Instagram. It bombed. But Airchat is back, and this time, the approach is decidedly different.
Airchat trades text for voice, but its Twitter and Threads inspirations are obvious.
I managed to score an invite to Airchat earlier this week and have spent a fair amount of time on the network. The newly resurrected app still trades text for voice. Yes, you read that right. You cannot input any text, and all user interactions are via voice. Still in beta, the entire vibe is more early days of Twitter than the current hell hole that X has become. Airchat’s fresh inspirations are pretty obvious, too. Launching the app drops you straight into a home page that looks like a cross between Threads and Twitter. From there, things get interesting quickly.
The app will immediately start playing back the first conversation in the feed alongside replies to the chat. It’s almost like overhearing a water cooler chat. The built-in AI is quick to transcribe voice chats and is astonishingly good at it. In fact, you can see it making corrections in real time. Tagging other users works by calling out their handles after you’ve voiced out your message. And no, there is no text input at all. It’s voice or nothing.
I’ve observed that the voice-first approach adds a certain intimacy to the conversations I’m having on Airchat. It’s a stark change from the relative anonymity of platforms like Twitter, where your virtual and actual identity don’t need any correlation. And I say this as someone who has only now switched to a real-world profile pic on Twitter.
The small user base and voice-based interactions give the app a tight-knit community feel.
The incredibly small and community-like user base also fuels the casual intimacy of conversations on Airchat. It’s hard to gauge the exact number, but based on my experience, the active user base appears to be in the low thousands at best. The app is constantly being updated, and a subreddit-style community feature was launched just the other day. The fitness community, likely to be one of the most popular, currently has just over 1800 users, further signaling how small the user base is on the invite-only app.
However, where Airchat differs from other apps is in the level of engagement. I’ve come across deeply insightful conversations, and adding an element of voice to the mix makes it seem like you’re talking to an actual person instead of a talking head or internet guru.
Of course, there are restrictions. Voice posts have now been limited to 5 minutes, ensuring Airchat doesn’t get misused as a podcasting platform. It probably also helps get people off their virtual soapbox. Elsewhere, the latest update has added video support. I haven’t tried that yet, nor have I seen anyone else give it a whirl.
I can safely say that I’ve enjoyed using AirChat quite a bit, but despite that, I have my inhibitions about its future. A voice-based app faces one fundamental issue: privacy. Clubhouse gained steam when everyone was stuck at home and could talk freely. That’s not the case today. Sure, you can turn down the volume on your phone and read up on the latest conversations on the platform. But unlike Twitter, Instagram, or Reddit, you can’t actively participate in discussions without voice. This rules out sneaking in a conversation between meetings or even in a public space where talking aloud might not be acceptable. Late night doomscrolling on Twitter without waking up your partner just isn’t a possibility here.
Much as I'm enjoying my time with Airchat, it's hard to see it scale and compete against the existing juggernauts.
Moreover, I don’t see how this limitation can be addressed without changing the app’s fundamental ethos. And there’s no way the limitation won’t restrict the audience and scale. That said, I see nothing wrong with creating an app positioned towards a more niche and engaged audience. Airchat probably won’t be the Amazon of social media, but Etsy has a thriving user base, too.
My last four days with Airchat have been interesting, to say the least. While it’s too early to tell if it’s going to give serious competition to Big Social Media just yet, the new incarnation of Airchat might have enough staying power to become its own niche player.
No, an existing member needs to invite you to the platform.
Every user can invite five additional members to Airchat.
No, Airchat does not notify users when you take a screenshot.
No, you cannot view who viewed your Airchat profile.
Airchat can only be accessed via the Android and iOS apps.
It’s hard to gauge who has the most followers on the platform, but the founder, Naval, likely has the maximum followers. At the time of publishing, Naval’s profile reported 12,000 followers.
I’ve been using MacBooks for almost 14 years. Call me a creature of habit, but six machines later, when it came time to upgrade my laptop, it was clear that my next machine would be yet another addition from Apple’s stable.
Previously, the decision had been easy. I’m a pro user with pro needs, and only a MacBook Pro would cut it. That’s not entirely the case anymore. Apple’s M-series silicon has flipped the game altogether and leapfrogged the Intel and AMD competition in all but gaming. The M3-powered MacBook Air piqued my curiosity.
A Pro-user needs a Pro-machine. The MacBook Air flips that thought on its head.
However, I’d burnt my fingers on a MacBook Air once. That machine barely lasted me weeks before I turned it in and upgraded to a — you guessed it — MacBook Pro. But despite my apprehensions, I decided to give the all-new MacBook Air M3 a shot over the Pro. I don’t regret it. Here’s why.
My work requires researching, reading, and staying on top of the latest news. Opening several dozens of tabs simultaneously isn’t uncommon. Plus, I’ll usually have an instance of Photoshop or Lightroom open and Spotify and Slack running in the background. Add Notion to the mix for note-taking and a few more utilities, and the workload adds up.
In the past, this workload alone would have my old MacBook Pro huffing and puffing. In fact, I don’t remember a time when the fan wasn’t spinning at full blast. Sure, I could learn to manage my computational load better, but chaotic good tends to be my default work state. I expect my machine to keep up with me, and I don’t mind pushing the laptop to its limits.
My working style is chaotic good, and I expect my machines to keep pace.
Lately, however, I’ve felt the itch for a different machine. With more and more travel and, well, age catching up, I’ve started appreciating the benefits of a lighter laptop. More importantly, with the pandemic long behind us, I like working out of cafes or while traveling. Long battery life is essential to me. It was clear that I needed an upgrade from my hulking Intel MacBook Pro, and the new M3-powered MacBook Air seemed like the obvious choice. I was prepared to compromise on performance if need be.
As it turns out, I needn’t have worried. The MacBook Air runs circles around the my old Pro without even breaking a sweat. This shouldn’t surprise anyone who has used a recent M-series MacBook. But bear with me.
100 chrome tabs? No sweat. The M3-powered MacBook Air runs circles around it.
I’m a heavier-than-average laptop user. When I mention opening Chrome tabs, it’s not a few or even a dozen. I often have 50 or even a hundred tabs split across browsers and macOS desktops. I’m using the 16GB RAM and 512GB storage variant of the MacBook Air, and I’ve faced no slowdowns at all at any point. It keeps chugging along like any other day.
Sure, browser-based workflows might not paint the complete picture of a laptop’s performance, but creative apps can. Between Da Vinci Resolve, Premier Pro, Photoshop, and Lightroom, I run the whole gamut of creative apps. And that’s where the performance improvements really start showing up. Apple knows its audience, and switching to the M-series silicon gave it the freedom to build in media accelerators and NPUs tuned explicitly to the needs of its customers.
Compared to my old Intel Mac’s hour-long thermal throttled meltdown while rendering a 4K video, the MacBook Air pulls it off in seconds. The difference is night and day.
The NPU-enhancements to the M3 silicon do a lot of the heavy lifting in tasks that take advantage of it.
Before looking into the M3-powered MacBook Air, I’d briefly considered settling for an M1 or M2 unit instead. Great as the M3 version is, highlight changes like dual monitor support and a new anodized finish didn’t seem all that critical. However, the thing about building a machine so far ahead of the curve is that generational improvements don’t seem like much. For the sake of fairness, I borrowed a friend’s M1-series MacBook Air. While the M1 silicon was still leagues ahead of my Intel MacBook Pro, placing the two next to each other painted a truer picture of the noticeable speed enhancements with the M3. In fact, the M3 MacBook proved to be almost double as fast as the M1 MacBook Air in many of my daily tasks.
One of the biggest upgrades this year has been to the Neural Engine. Optimized for machine learning and AI-based tasks, it is supposed to be up to 60% faster than the one on M1 Silicon. If there’s something to be said about the Apple ecosystem, it’s the fact that popular developers are quick to build features that push the hardware’s limits. Apps like Luminar Neo take full advantage of the NPU cores to deliver faster edits and Generative AI-style features. If that’s your use case, you’ll absolutely notice the year-on-year improvements.
But three weeks on, what truly boggles the mind is this laptop’s ability to pull off incredible performance without sacrificing battery life. Apple’s 18-hour claims are a bit hard to gauge as I don’t sit at my computer with a stopwatch in hand. However, I’ve been using this laptop for the last three days without recharging. In the meantime, I’ve penned down this entire feature, ideated and scripted two videos, edited them, and watched a movie on Netflix. That’s bonkers!
But despite all those positives, it is pretty clear to me that as far as M-series silicon has come, it isn’t perfect yet. For example, while the MacBook Air gets dual-screen support with the M3 refresh, you must close the lid to enable it.
While not a dealbreaker, that’s absurd to me as I’m used to keeping the laptop screen open as a third monitor. Additionally, it’s not just screen real estate that you’re losing out on. The MacBook Air uses its keyboard to dissipate heat. With the screen shut and the laptop presumably doing computationally intensive work across dual displays, there’s a noticeable dip in performance due to reduced heat dissipation. For example, video rendering time almost doubled for me in a quick test. It was still plenty fast, but the difference is noticeable and negates some of the advantages of the faster chip.
Even Apple must see the ridiculousness of shipping a $1100 laptop with 8GB of RAM.
Elsewhere, Apple’s penny-pinching still bites. Shipping 8GB of RAM as the default in a 2024 laptop is hilarious but not as ironically funny as Apple’s RAM upgrade prices. Here’s the thing: I can see Apple’s reasoning for the default amount of RAM. The tight software and hardware integration and fast RAM mean you probably wouldn’t run out of RAM under common use cases. I borrowed an M2 MacBook Air with 8GB of RAM and was surprised by how well it could manage a higher-than-average workload. The system seamlessly manages memory swaps, making any RAM limitations transparent to users.
In fact, it takes deliberate effort and very heavy use to drop into page swap territory on my 16GB machine. There’s also a point to be made that someone buying a base-level MacBook Air likely isn’t an enthusiast user anyway. But Apple’s choice to stick with 8GB as the default is sheer stubbornness. It would cost the company pennies to upgrade the base amount of RAM and simultaneously eliminate all the bad press stemming from it. At a time when phones ship with more RAM than your laptop, shipping the bare minimum and charging an arm and a leg for an upgrade just reeks of capitalism.
The dire port situation is made worse by the flaky backwards compatibility.
Finally, I’ve had my fair share of issues using legacy hardware with my new MacBook. For example, my mechanical keyboard tends to lag when plugged into the Air. My OWC Thunderbolt dock refuses to work with the MacBook Air. My guitar amp, too, doesn’t work with the laptop. If it were one device that acted flaky, I’d blame it on the peripheral. However, a series of devices not working correctly suggests backward compatibility issues with the Mac.
It’s hard not to be impressed by the MacBook Air. Apple has seemingly performed magic to deliver performance akin to a high-end laptop from a machine with the form factor of a glorified Chromebook. It also represents a whole new era of portable computing. As far as Apple’s laptops go, based on my experience, the distinction between user demographics has never been more apparent.
The MacBook Air has clearly transcended from its ultrabook origins and is the obvious choice for all but professionals and big spenders.
The MacBook Air isn’t just Apple’s entry-level battery-life-focused laptop anymore. It’s got more than enough power to satiate enthusiasts. Meanwhile, the Pro lineup is genuinely for the Pros. If you’re a professional whose living depends on ultra-fast edits, capable music production, or compiling large code bases, by all means, go for the Pro. Or perhaps you want to splurge and get the best there is. There is no harm in that, either. But, by and large, the average hobbyist YouTube creator, Soundcloud music producer, and weekend photographer will find it hard to stress the limits of the current MacBook Air lineup.
Early adopters of the M-series silicon might be chuckling at me going gaga over Apple’s latest laptop. However, I’m just one of thousands, if not millions, of users who will finally be upgrading to the new MacBook about five years into the last Intel MacBook Air’s lifecycle. And with the M3 range, Apple has perfected the formula and released a laptop that caters to the 90%. I’d go as far as saying that for the sheer amount of power on hand, this is the most value-for-money machine Apple has released.
The idea of voice-based social networks isn’t new. Clubhouse boomed during the Covid era and floundered soon after. However, Clubhouse’s moment of fame led to several copycats and even spurred the addition of voice to existing platforms like Twitter.
On the face of it, Airchat (Play Store) is yet another take on the old formula. So, why has it gotten so much attention recently?
I’ve been using MacBooks for almost 14 years. Call me a creature of habit, but six machines later, when it came time to upgrade my laptop, it was clear that my next machine would be yet another addition from Apple’s stable.
Previously, the decision had been easy. I’m a pro user with pro needs, and only a MacBook Pro would cut it. That’s not entirely the case anymore. Apple’s M-series silicon has flipped the game altogether and leapfrogged the Intel and AMD competition in all but gaming. The M3-powered MacBook Air piqued my curiosity.
Over half a decade later from when the servers shut down, moba-hybrid Gigantic is returning to PC and consoles and players couldn’t be more excited. So, here’s what’s changing with Gigantic.
When you look at Gigantic, it’s rather quite unique in its visuals and design. Even as an Unreal Engine 3 game, it still holds up in certain areas today. Unfortunately, its crossplay was segmented, the original developers ran out of funding after a timely delay of the game’s launch, and they had issues monetizing the game properly. By the end, Motiga, the developers at the time, couldn’t keep the lights on as they bounced from publisher to publisher.
Nightingale has been one of the most highly anticipated survival crafting games of this year. Unfortunately, its early access launch has highlighted the game’s shortcomings that need to be highlighted. Here are five things Nightingale needs to improve before its 1.0 launch.
This has been something players immediately clamored for. Because of Nightingale’s always-online framework of dedicated servers hosting realms, it’s clear the developers underestimated players’ desire to play offline and host realms on their own. This is especially true when not long after Nightingale’s launch, Inflexion games clarified that an offline mode was coming very soon.
In 1997, few games were tackling the kind of themes that Final Fantasy VII does. Even by today's standards, not a lot of RPGs address and bring mental health to the forefront like Final Fantasy VII did. Final Fantasy VII stands out as a pioneer in addressing trauma in video games, particularly through the character of Cloud Strife. It also weaves a narrative surrounding grief and the nature of life directly into it's gameplay, forcing you to think about and react to death. The game's portrayal of trauma and healing is significant and set the standard for not just RPGs, but the whole industry moving forward.
Before delving into the topic, I want to make it clear that I'm not a mental health professional, nor do I intend for this to be a comprehensive analysis of mental health. However, I will discuss how Final Fantasy VII addresses weighty themes like grief and post-traumatic stress. With that in mind, let's explore how Final Fantasy VII navigates the complexities of trauma.
Cloud is arguably one of the earliest video game characters to showcase symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). His backstory, including his tenure as a SOLDIER, the traumatic Nibelheim Incident, and his time in captivity, all contribute to his enduring mental health struggles.
During the Nibelheim Incident, Cloud's world is shattered. He witnesses the destruction of his hometown, the loss of his friends, and the apparent death of Sephiroth. After this, he is held captive and experimented on by Hojo for four years. This extended period of captivity and experimentation with Jenova cells further exacerbates Cloud's trauma, leaving him with deep psychological scars that continue to haunt him throughout the game.
These traumatic events lead to Cloud subconsciously developing a false persona, merging pieces of his identity with that of Zack Fair. This complex psychological phenomenon is a testament to the depth of Cloud's trauma and the profound impact it has had on his psyche.
Throughout the game, Cloud grapples with his identity and memories, often experiencing flashbacks and hallucinations. It's as if he's haunted by his own past. These symptoms align with those of PTSD, including intrusive memories, avoidance of triggers, and negative changes in mood and cognition.
Cloud's journey to recovery is a central theme of Final Fantasy VII. With the support of his friends and through confronting his past, he gradually comes to terms with his true identity and the events that shaped him. His story highlights the importance of seeking help and support for mental health issues, even in a fictional setting.
The game's portrayal of Cloud's struggles with PTSD is groundbreaking for its time. It shines a light on the psychological toll of trauma and the journey to healing. The game's themes of life, death, and the interconnectedness of all beings are underscored by its treatment of trauma and healing.
Hironobu Sakaguchi, father of Final Fantasy and producer of Final Fantasy VII, lost his mother during production of Final Fantasy III. This personal loss influenced the development of Final Fantasy VII, leading to the concept of the Lifestream. This thematic foundation laid the groundwork for the game's exploration of life and the connection to the planet.
The game deeply intertwines its narrative with the idea of the Lifestream, which metaphorically represents life itself. This concept is further explored in the game's treatment of death and grief. Final Fantasy VII features several emotional deaths, but none are as shocking and impactful as Aerith's.
Aerith was no side character; she was a mainstay in your party. You invested in her gear, making it seem like she was here to stay. Until she wasn't. Her sudden death was a gut-punch in 1997. The absence of a boss theme in the subsequent fight, replaced instead by Aerith's theme, underscores the emotional weight of her passing. It's as if we, the players, are in shock, unable to fully register the boss fight.
The party mourns, and players felt it too. Over the years, countless players have sought ways to keep Aerith alive through various in-game actions, of course unsuccessfully. It's fascinating to see how people respond to it; it's almost as if this digital death has affected players in a real-life way, leaving a lasting impact.
In the end, Aerith's death strengthens the game's overarching theme of life. Although she has physically departed, her memory and spirit live on, serving as a reminder of both the fragility and resilience of life itself.
In conclusion, Final Fantasy VII's exploration of trauma is a testament to its narrative depth and emotional impact. The game's themes of life, death, and the interconnectedness of all beings are underscored by its treatment of trauma and healing. As a groundbreaking work in the realm of video game storytelling, Final Fantasy VII continues to resonate with players and critics alike, setting a high standard for addressing complex themes in the medium.
Final Fantasy VII is available on the PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC. Final Fantasy VII Remake is available on the PS4, PS5, and PC. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth will launch on the PS5 on February 29, 2024.
The post Final Fantasy VII Deals With Trauma in a Way Many RPGs Don’t appeared first on Siliconera.
10 years ago to the day, Facebook announced that it was purchasing WhatsApp for $19.6 billion — that’s billion, with a B. The news rocked the online world for several reasons, not the least of which being Facebook’s iffy privacy and data handling reputation, plus its propensity to use ads anywhere, which contradicted with WhatsApp’s core principles and what everyone had loved about it so far.
The online media and communities weren’t clement about that purchase either, criticizing the sale, scrutinizing Facebook’s promises, and generally being pessimistic about WhatsApp’s future. As a WhatsApp user myself and a forced Facebook user (my friend created my profile before we graduated college so we could all keep in touch, and I barely used it), I felt conflicted by all of it. I wanted to move away from WhatsApp right then, but I also had all of my friends and family on it. Even some businesses too. I was sure not everyone would be as bothered as I was by the ownership transfer and, even if I could convince my close ones, I couldn’t convince an entire nation and culture.
Using WhatsApp for the first few months after that purchase felt 'dirty.'
Using WhatsApp for the first few months after that purchase felt “dirty,” but the sale slowly faded into the back of my mind. Every few months, something would come up that would remind me of Facebook’s involvement with WhatsApp, I’d feel icky again, and then just learn to ignore it. Even when WhatsApp changed its policies, I clicked on “Agree,” with all the resentment and resignation of the world.
Then WhatsApp’s co-founders left Facebook, and Cambridge Analytica happened, followed by many other Facebook scandals. With a bit of distance, and knowing I objectively didn’t like where things were at but was still sticking around on WhatsApp, I slowly realized that my relationship with the service transcends any other relationship I have with other apps and messaging apps on my phone.
My relationship with WhatsApp transcends any other app on my phone; it is engrained in my real life.
WhatsApp isn’t just WhatsApp to me, it’s the way I communicate with everyone I love. It has photos and voice notes from my dead grandma, my early flirtations with my now-husband, and every high and low I went through during those hellish 2019-2021 years while my country’s economy collapsed, COVID happened, half of Beirut blew up, I shut down my pharmacy, and I moved to France. WhatsApp was, whether I wanted to or not, engrained in every aspect of my real life. You can’t fabricate an emotion like that with an app.
With time, too, I noticed that WhatsApp didn’t get worse — at least not as bad as other social networks and messengers did. Until this very day, the service is still, mostly, ad-free, unlike the scourge of Instagram (Facebook’s other big social purchase). There’s no algorithmic feed either. You control your contacts, who can reach out to you, who sees you and your photos, which WhatsApp communities, channels, and businesses you communicate with, which groups can invite you in, and so on. You get end-to-end encryption across multiple devices too. All in all, 10 years later, it feels like WhatsApp has escaped the worst of Facebook.
10 years later, it feels like WhatsApp has escaped the worst of Facebook.
And in a way, Facebook itself has recently been on a bit of a redemption arc. Oh, I’m not even remotely convinced it’s all in good faith, but it was fun to see people rooting for Threads over X, for example, or falling for the Meta Quest 3 over the Apple Vision Pro. Look how far we’ve fallen that we’re choosing the least bad of two very bad options. But I digress.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that despite everything that felt iffy, 10 years ago, about this deal, it didn’t turn out as bad as we had all collectively imagined back in 2014.
Today, Telegram and Signal are right there, but they play that supporting actor role in my life, and I wouldn’t bat an eyelash if I lost access to them this very instant. WhatsApp on the other hand? It’s how I talk to my parents and aunt back home and that, my friends, says it all.
10 years ago to the day, Facebook announced that it was purchasing WhatsApp for $19.6 billion — that’s billion, with a B. The news rocked the online world for several reasons, not the least of which being Facebook’s iffy privacy and data handling reputation, plus its propensity to use ads anywhere, which contradicted with WhatsApp’s core principles and what everyone had loved about it so far.
The online media and communities weren’t clement about that purchase either, criticizing the sale, scrutinizing Facebook’s promises, and generally being pessimistic about WhatsApp’s future. As a WhatsApp user myself and a forced Facebook user (my friend created my profile before we graduated college so we could all keep in touch, and I barely used it), I felt conflicted by all of it. I wanted to move away from WhatsApp right then, but I also had all of my friends and family on it. Even some businesses too. I was sure not everyone would be as bothered as I was by the ownership transfer and, even if I could convince my close ones, I couldn’t convince an entire nation and culture.
Using WhatsApp for the first few months after that purchase felt 'dirty.'
Using WhatsApp for the first few months after that purchase felt “dirty,” but the sale slowly faded into the back of my mind. Every few months, something would come up that would remind me of Facebook’s involvement with WhatsApp, I’d feel icky again, and then just learn to ignore it. Even when WhatsApp changed its policies, I clicked on “Agree,” with all the resentment and resignation of the world.
Then WhatsApp’s co-founders left Facebook, and Cambridge Analytica happened, followed by many other Facebook scandals. With a bit of distance, and knowing I objectively didn’t like where things were at but was still sticking around on WhatsApp, I slowly realized that my relationship with the service transcends any other relationship I have with other apps and messaging apps on my phone.
My relationship with WhatsApp transcends any other app on my phone; it is engrained in my real life.
WhatsApp isn’t just WhatsApp to me, it’s the way I communicate with everyone I love. It has photos and voice notes from my dead grandma, my early flirtations with my now-husband, and every high and low I went through during those hellish 2019-2021 years while my country’s economy collapsed, COVID happened, half of Beirut blew up, I shut down my pharmacy, and I moved to France. WhatsApp was, whether I wanted to or not, engrained in every aspect of my real life. You can’t fabricate an emotion like that with an app.
With time, too, I noticed that WhatsApp didn’t get worse — at least not as bad as other social networks and messengers did. Until this very day, the service is still, mostly, ad-free, unlike the scourge of Instagram (Facebook’s other big social purchase). There’s no algorithmic feed either. You control your contacts, who can reach out to you, who sees you and your photos, which WhatsApp communities, channels, and businesses you communicate with, which groups can invite you in, and so on. You get end-to-end encryption across multiple devices too. All in all, 10 years later, it feels like WhatsApp has escaped the worst of Facebook.
10 years later, it feels like WhatsApp has escaped the worst of Facebook.
And in a way, Facebook itself has recently been on a bit of a redemption arc. Oh, I’m not even remotely convinced it’s all in good faith, but it was fun to see people rooting for Threads over X, for example, or falling for the Meta Quest 3 over the Apple Vision Pro. Look how far we’ve fallen that we’re choosing the least bad of two very bad options. But I digress.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that despite everything that felt iffy, 10 years ago, about this deal, it didn’t turn out as bad as we had all collectively imagined back in 2014.
Today, Telegram and Signal are right there, but they play that supporting actor role in my life, and I wouldn’t bat an eyelash if I lost access to them this very instant. WhatsApp on the other hand? It’s how I talk to my parents and aunt back home and that, my friends, says it all.
HUAWEI has been subject to a US trade ban for over four years now, resulting in the company losing access to key hardware suppliers, Google services, 5G connectivity (until recently), and more.
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