More Pokemon! …or not. The fan-made game Pokemon Uranium, which was released on August 6th, is no longer available for download from its creators. Polygon reported first on the game’s release and then on its shutdown. The first article pointed out that “several other fan games live on without issue” despite potential copyright infringement, but with more than 1.5 million downloads, Pokemon Uranium was too big to go unnoticed. Nintendo did not contact the game’s creators directly, but they were “notified of multiple takedown notices from lawyers representing Nintendo of America,” and therefore “chose to remove the download links [themselves] out of respect for [Nintendo’s] copyright.”
Though the download links on the game’s official website are no longer functional, the creators “will continue to release updates for it via the Patcher included with the Download,” according to another post on the game’s Tumblr.
Elsewhere, Rolling Stone wrote an article on how fans of Suicide Squad are showing the “nasty side of fandom.” The article, which focuses on male fans, talks about the “unsavory tenor of petulance and entitlement” of fans who have been displeased by the movie getting negative reviews from critics. While the overall theme of the article is a reminder of Wheaton’s Law and a call for civility, an interesting thing to note is the source of fans’ “entitlement” in this instance. These male fans are upset because people don’t like the things they like. Compare that to a recent Vox article on Sherlock fandom. That article discusses recent discourse surrounding problematic and “broken” fandoms inhabited mainly by women. In this discourse, the “entitlement” is rooted in fans’ desires for media to include things they want, such as romantic pairings of specific characters. These articles are hardly a complete picture of the state of fandom, but contrast is worth noting.
Lastly, The Economist published an introduction to slash article focused on Kirk/Spock. The article is surprisingly well researched and non-judgmental. It focuses on the history of slash more than its current state, saying “As slash has expanded and evolved, more and more of it is about pairings for which the theories developed to explain the specific appeal of K/S seem inadequate.” Very true, but Kirk/Spock will continue to endure as a favourite.
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