News
Lots of Folks Are Watching ‘Until Dawn’ On YouTube
The most popular video game on YouTube last month was developer Supermassive Games’ horror slasher Until Dawn, which managed to beat out Call of Duty, Sports 2016, and even Hideo Kojima.
Scary video games, the folks who play them, and more specifically, the sizable audience that never seems to tire of watching streams and Let’s Plays — those insatiable weirdos — is likely the reason for this. Even still, it’s nice to see such a stellar horror game get some attention when its publisher doesn’t seem terribly keen on spreading the word of its release.
Surprising for a whole other reason is the title that’s claimed the ninth spot on YouTube’s trending charts. I’m not sure how H1Z1 got there, but I suspect it has something to do with zombies.
1. Until Dawn
2. Call of Duty Black Ops III
3. Madden NFL 16
4. Pac-Man 256
5. Superhot
6. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain
7. Super Mario Maker
8. Gears of War
9. H1Z1
10. World of Warcraft
In the grim darkness of the far future there is only war, but it was a cheerful illustrator from England who helped to define the terrifying war-torn imagery that inspired what we now know as Grimdark (a hybrid genre combining horror with sci-fi/fantasy).
Unfortunately for fans of Warhammer 40,000, Trench Crusade and countless other sources of Grimdark thrills, veteran artist John Blanche passed away this week after struggling with health issues for the past few years.
While the artist retired back in 2023, he leaves us with an enormous legacy of iconic artwork that continues to inspire gamers and storytellers around the world to this very day.
The news is especially gloomy as it was only last year that Daniel Lowman and Napoleon Dynamite himself Jon Heder released The Grim & the Dark: The Search for John Blanche, a documentary following Heder’s exploration of the Grimdark genre culminating in a heartwarming encounter with Blanche in his own home.
Below is one of my favorite pieces by Blanche, his highly influential depiction of Warhammer 40k’s God-Emperor of Mankind on his Golden Throne.
We send our deepest condolences to John Blanche’s family, friends, and fans.
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