Everyone’s feeling the frustration with the return of lockdown restrictions and now more than ever it’s important to get some time away from the doom and gloom of the pandemic age. There’s plenty of AAA games to fill the market so instead The Standard presents a list of games with innovative strides and varying length that you just can’t get from the mainstream output. Whether you’re looking to get lost in a new world or simply want to while away some time before your next re

The Video Music Awards red carpet is historically known for presenting some wild creations, and 2021 was no exception. Not to be outdone, the Met Gala raised the fashion stakes with this year’s theme, In America: A Lexicon of Fashion, producing many iconic looks. Here are some of the best dressed from both events. Megan Fox Fox put it all on display for the VMAs in a bold, sheer Thierry Mugler gown. Fox was accompanied by partner and VMA nominee Machine Gun Kelly. Embed f

Australian MMA fighter Jack Della Maddalena has scored a UFC contract on Dana White’s Contender Series with an impressive performance against Swiss fighter Loosa Ange. Della Maddelena won a unanimous decision, all judges scoring the bout 30-27. This is the first decision victory in Della Maddelena’s professional career, and the first time one of his fights went past the second round. This victory extends his win streak to an impressive 10 in a row, his previous nine fights

Puffy sleeves, bell bottoms, hair flicks, off-the-shoulder sweatshirts and even corsets. They’ve all had their moments in the fashion sun, thanks to our desire to emulate the style of great film and TV shows. In the 1930s it was all about bright-eyed Shirley Temple, with mothers dressing their daughters in smocked shift dresses, puffed sleeves and cutesy collars to imitate her style. In the ’70s it was recreating Farrah Fawcett’s voluminous hair flicks and stepping out in Joh

Tickets were at the ready, the popcorn freshly popped, when a sudden lockdown left Melbourne’s cinemas dark and empty. But that doesn’t mean the party stopped. Melbourne’s independent film community is refusing to give up, and is turning to streaming platforms instead. It’s a spreading trend with the potential to change the future of how we go to the movies. The 2021 Melbourne International Film Festival (MIFF), which ran a few weeks ago, was delivered exclusively via thei

Riley Barker, an upcoming Twitch streamer, Picture by Trent Kniese Imagine playing a video game as a full-time job. Creating funny, insightful or just awesome gameplay and broadcasting it to all corners of the world. Twitch regular Riley Barker, who goes by BarksAU and live-streams role-playing games, says the platform brought people together in dark times. “During a time like this, where a lot of us have felt so disconnected, Twitch allows people to feel like they belon

Imagine being able to talk about your passions, concepts, beliefs, and values, all while developing an audience and creating a unique brand for yourself. Swinburne University student Loren Botica, who started the news podcast The Wind Down for the uni publication The Standard , says podcasting taught her skills that have helped with her everyday life. “The more you do it [podcasting], the more confident you get and the easier it is to talk to anyone,” she says. “It’s a good

A photo of a tiny grey-headed flying fox resting at a wildlife centre in Melbourne is among the pictures to be highly commended in the 57th annual Wildlife Photographer of the year awards. The Natural History Museum in London has released 11 highly commended images on their website in the lead-up to announcing the winners. The photos span all corners of the globe and are of creatures great and small, with all images united by the theme of resilience. Museum director Dr Doug

When Campbell Gray began Well Fed Records in 2019, he saw it as a way to get his music out there without it getting lost online. Gray’s band prerock. exports a ruthless brand of droning metal, fitting snugly within a flourishing Melbourne experimental rock pantheon. Well Fed Records distributed Prerock’s music on cassette, selling a limited run of purple tapes at gigs around the city for $10 each. “The tapes we did for [prerock.] were really cheap,” said Gray. “They sound g

Nearly 20 years on, the weird world of Psychonauts still possesses the power to assault the mind and bewilder the senses. Levels transform and bend into themselves like a drug-induced hallucination; a banal and clinical medical scene becomes transfigured with beaming neon lights, upbeat jazz and gambling motifs; an office complex becomes twisted into a dental nightmare of teeth and braces. Released on August 25 by developer Double Fine, Psychonauts 2 is the long-awaited direc

The much-anticipated 10th studio album of acclaimed rapper/producer Kanye West has finally dropped after over a year of pushed back release dates and a string of in person listening events. Almost all of it is well worth the hype. Donda is West’s newest one hour 48-minute behemoth – his longest project to date. With a 27-song track list, it’s a massive album and at times can seem like a slog to sit through. However, each time it drags, the next song kicks in and cements itse

Archie Calder arrived at St Kilda skate park on a cold Saturday morning to warm up before heading into the city to try film some new tricks. The prolific Melbourne street skater is training for a video he’s been working on with a group of friends. A skateboarder for most of his teenage years, he’s had multiple injuries that have resulted in weeks of rehabilitation. Most of those injuries could have been avoided, had he worn some form of protective equipment, Archie says. “I d