Branden Zavaleta
Verified
(He/Him)
As seen in:
Phrasemaker,
Medium,
TheGamer,
AU review,
Impulse Gamer,
Comics and Gaming Magazine (CGMagazine),
The Courier (Ballarat, VIC),
Linux Magazine,
FarmOnline,
Inkl,
The Senior
and
Covers:
The reporting and discussion of the arts including, but not limited to, the visual arts, film, literature, music, theater, and game design.
Doesn't Cover:
Event or media releases.
Managing Director at @thephrasemaker & Photographer
You may have read me in The AU Review, The Curb, X-Press Magazine, or Linux Magazine.
Articles by Branden Zavaleta
Poker Night at the Inventory Review
Poker Night at the Inventory Review Branden Zavaleta Score Summary: On Playstation for the first time, the game is debuting at its best, but that's nothing revolutionary. It's a solid poker simulator, but the big draw are the characters. The more you love them, the more you'll love Poker Night at the Inventory. The perfect barbeque and the perfect poker game includes two things: stakes and mates. Different types of stakes, sure, but if there are no stakes then why come to the table?
Dolly Parton’s Cause of Death Confirmed: Singer Died After Cancer Battle
Dolly Parton’s cause of death has been confirmed following the country music icon’s death at the age of 80 on August 25, 2026. A statement from her team said that Parton died after a “brief battle with cancer” at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville, Tennessee. “Our beloved Dolly Parton spent her life and career bringing joy, laughter, hope and integrity into everything she touched,” It added that the singer “departed her Earthly life” surrounded by loved ones.
Who Goes First In Marvel Snap? How Priority Works
Short Answer: It doesn’t switch every turn, the winning player goes first. If it’s exactly even, then a random player goes first. More Specifically: Marvel Snap decides who plays first by who’s winning the most lanes. If that’s equal, then it decides by who is winning with the biggest Power difference. Lastly, if you’re equal on lanes and Power, the game picks randomly (this also means that the first turn is always random!). Have you ever seen this full Bar With No Name art by Alessio Zonno?
Quarantine Zone Review - A Bloated Version Of Papers, Please
If you’re like me, you’ve seen a clip of this game on reels. Looks fun, right? But a one minute clip isn’t always the best judge of a game, so I gave it a handful of hours to give you the full picture. My main takeaway was: It’s like Papers, Please only bigger, and to me, that’s for the worse. Now, I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t like simulation games– or maybe it’s just that I only like them; As the complexity and management work piles up, I tune out.
How Bergman & Bad Ads Built Thomas MacGregor’s Debut Solo Album
Australian musician Thomas MacGregor says that happiness isn’t a can of Coke; The sugary narratives that commercial content feed us is rotten. That idea is the heart of his new single Tow Truck Crucifix (out Aug 5) which we chatted about ahead of his upcoming debut solo album release (Nov 18). Turning is set to be the former Turtle Bay songwriter’s transition into alt-country, so we talked with MacGregor about Bergman’s Persona, the limitations of live music, and a Caroline Polachek collab.
The Adventures of Cliff Booth Was Paused By Fincher For Personal Reasons
The anticipated Fincher/Tarantino crossover The Adventures of Cliff Booth will miss this year’s Venice International Film Festival due to “personal reasons” for Fincher says Venice Chief Alberto Barbera. Barbera told The Hollywood Reporter that the despite this, Barbera expects the film will still be ready in October and ahead of its November Imax run: David Fincher’s film, which is highly anticipated, for us too, isn’t ready because Fincher had to pause for personal reasons.
Kratos To Be Recast, Ryan Hurst Injured On Prime Video’s ‘God of War’ Set
According to Deadline, Hurst tore a bicep performing a stunt on set in late June and has since undergone surgery. While the actor is now recovering, the production reportedly decided his rehabilitation timeline was too long to accommodate the series’ filming schedule, so Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studios will recast Kratos. Reportedly, four episodes had be completed before the injury.
Sam Neill dies aged 79, family announces
The family of actor Sam Neill has announced that he died on Monday, July 13, in Sydney, Australia. In a statement, his whānau said Neill passed away unexpectedly while surrounded by family, adding that he died “with the dignity that has characterised his whole life.” The family also shared that Neill had remained cancer-free, expressing gratitude to the staff at St Vincent’s Private Hospital for their care during his final days. Further details are expected to be released at a later time.
Is Korean Overwatch Getting Region-Locked? Nexon’s Takeover Explained
In South Korea, Nexon bought Overwatch. Well, they bought it for PC. It’s complicated. On August 12,that handover goes into effect, and Korean players are divided and confused about it. The basics are that SK console players will be unaffected, but PC players will trade the Blizzard ecosystem for the Nexon one (servers included).
$60 Ocarina of Time Remake Listing Removed, Likely Placeholder
Yesterday, ScreenRant reported on PlayAsia listing The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time‘s Switch 2 remake at $60.It was a surprising number in the face of Donkey Kong Bananza‘s $70 and Mario Kart World‘s $80 pricetags. The newspiece hit socials and quickly stirred up speculation on whether this had implications for the remake’s quality, or Nintendo’s pricing scheme going forward.
7 Best Milly Alcock Roles, Ranked
At 26, Milly Alcock has already reached superstardom as Supergirl, but few viewers know that she’s already been on-screen for over a decade. Starting as Teen Girl 1 in a 2014 episode of Sydney-drama Wonderland, Alcock has become a household name in under 20 roles. What exactly gave her that fantastic trajectory? A rare combination of skill and canny choice of roles. If you know Game of Thrones, you’ll have already known her from House of the Dragon’s first season as young Rhaenyra Targaryen.
Chinese Palworld Competitor “Aniimo” Opens Closed Beta Applications
If Palworld 1.0’s dramatic reveal trailer wasn’t enough, there’s plenty more monster-catching, sandbox mayhem to enjoy with Aniimo. It’s funny to think that Palworld (which was famously sued for ripping-off Pokemon) could be inspiring its own knockoffs, and Aniimo does look suspect. Just like Palworld, Aniimo is also an open-world creature-collecting action RPG. Like Palworld, it’s also a world where you can farm, build, and battle. That said, Aniimo does have its differences.
Why Does the Green Sun Hurt Supergirl? DC Comics Lore Explained
Contains Minor Spoilers For Supergirl (2026) Supergirl (2026) has the girl of steel star trekking across all sorts of solar systems; Red, yellow… green? You probably know that Kryptonians get their powers from the yellow sun (and lose them in the red sun), but green suns aren’t so consistent in DC lore. Here’s the full rundown: In “Superman Under the Green Sun!” (Superman #155 (1962), Superman visits an alien world with a blue sun.
All Upcoming Borderlands 4 Updates & New 2026 Roadmap
Borderlands 4‘s release was dramatically disappointing (300k players on Steam has become 3k), so we won’t see another year of content for the looter shooter sequel. That said, Gearbox has its contractual obligations and the planned DLC is looking gooood. Due in early September. Half netrunner, half snakecharmer, Loveless looks like a companion class with a cyberpunk theme. Armed with a Chakram and what could be an Urumi (an Indian bladed whip).
Yusuke Nagata’s Rocket-Fueled Darkroom Dreams
Candid, curious, and more than a little salacious, Yusuke Nagata always gives a good interview. Best known for capturing the reality of Shinjuku’s homeless youth, but Nagata is also the creator of Tokyo SPC, Japan’s massive street photography community, and Far East Darkroom (FED) his photobook publishing company. True to form, our interview with Nagata gave us a close-up look at Japan’s nightlife, the inspiration for Tokyo SPC, and some interstellar photography wisdom.
Apple May Bring Film Colour Grading & Halation to iPhone After Color.io Acquisition
Last year, the startup color-grading app “Color.io” shutdown when creator Jonathan Ochmann announced he was joining an undisclosed company. At the time, Color.io was considered among the most powerful yet easy to use colour-grading tools by casual and professional users alike. Now, new EU acquisition disclosures reveal that Ochmann’s company Patchflyer was aquired by Apple in January for the purpose of obtaining Color.io. Example of Color.io colour grading (before/after). Photo Credit @brandenzp.
What’s New in Overwatch Season 2: Summit?
Last season, Overwatch 2 made a dramatic return as just “Overwatch” and dropped a generous heaping of lore, quests, and five new heroes. The difference was night and day. Famine to feast. Now, Season 2 of “Overwatch” has dropped, but with a smaller offering (which makes sense). Instead of five new heroes, it’s one. Instead of a massive questline, it’s back to smaller quests, but all in all, it’s still far more than they were offering before the rebrand. So is it enough to compete with Marvel Rivals?
Epomaker Click Mouse Review: Specs Over Comfort
Epomaker’s Click is a budget mouse designed to do it all: heavy on stats and features, but low on price. It succeeds on all fronts except aesthetic. 8k polling, a flagship PAW395 sensor and plenty of buttons all for $70 is a steal. The downside is that it feels hollow and a little too light. They’ve saved too much on materials for it to be a true pleasure to use. Stuck between too cheap for pros, and too pro for casuals, the Click’s use case is truly niche.
Saving Lost Kodachrome Photos With Oliver Dahl
A three-time Amazon bestselling author, a missionary in Little Rock, a marketing major, and a photographer, Oliver Dahl is a bit of a renaissance man. But lately, he’s become known for something more specific: saving lost Kodachrome film photos. Kodachrome, arguably the most iconic film stock ever made, defined colour photography for decades. It’s the medium behind the work of Saul Leiter, William Eggleston, and Steve McCurry, and shaped how the 20th century looks today.
Kanye West’s ‘Bully’ Misses Release, Spotify Page Deleted
Despite multiple confirmations and an official countdown, Kanye West‘s forthcoming album ‘Bully’ has not been released and the page for it on Spotify has been deleted. The link now leads to “Couldn’t find that album”. Delays aren’t new to Kanye West fans. For reference, his longest delay was roughly 531 days for ‘The Life of Pablo’. ‘Bully’ itself was teased in late 2024, partially released in 2025, deleted then rescheduled for January 2026.
Cyclops Confirmed for Marvel Rivals Season 8, Captain Marvel Teased?
As is now tradition, the final gallery card of Marvel Rivals Season 7 has leaked and teased the next two heroes. Last season it was a black cat and a white fox, but this month it’s a little more cryptic. Season 6’s final gallery card. From the card, there’s no doubt that “Scott” is Scott Summers, Cyclops. He’s a hero that people have been waiting for, and it lines up perfectly with the teases of him in Doomsday too, but who is the “mysterious figure“?
Michael Piazza on Street Photography in Fukuoka
Shooting between Japan and New York, Michael Piazza moves fast. Where other street photographers lean into either chaos or control, Piazza captures the bustle of megacity life as layered scenes where colour and movement create a cinematic experience. Originally from the US, Piazza has a background in art and film that feeds into the way he sees the street, and gives his work a delicate balance between high-energy and carefully composed.
Inside Perth’s Streets with Photographer Kyle Attwood
A diehard Perthling, Kyle Attwood is out capturing the city on any given Saturday. He’s a documentarian as much as a stylist, and his commitment to his art puts him among Perth’s best street photographers, if not most prolific. I got the chance to ask Kyle a few questions about his style, shooting, and favourite shots. The most popular would probably be The Lady With The Icecream.
Alulumu M10 Review: The Best Cyberpunk Powerbank?
What makes the Alulumu M10 stand out is plain to see: it looks cool. It’s industrial with a little retro futurism thrown in. It’s all in one, with a strap that doubles as a USB cable, magsafe charging and a pad for charging an apple watch too. That said, how’s the performance? Is it all style, no substance? Here’s the numbers: Compatible Devices – Magsafe iPhones, Apple Watches, Airpods, USB C devices. Connector Type – USB Type C/Magsafe. Battery Capacity – 10000 Milliamp Hours. USB-C Output – 35W PD.
Tripwire Cuts Nearly 20% of Staff as Deleted Killing Floor Movie Tease Surfaces
Tripwire Interactive has cut 23 positions, a major blow to a company of 120 employees (as of 2024). The move has eliminated nearly one in five roles Though the studio did not connect the layoffs to Killing Floor 3’s reception, its struggle no doubt contributed. At launch, the much anticipated sequel saw a most negative response from players and a rapid decline in engagement. Today, only half of the game’s Steam english steam reviews are positive, with recent reviews being 60% negative.
Widelux•X To Enter Production, Jeff Bridges Unboxes First Cameras
SilverBridges GmbH has confirmed that the Wideluxx works and are on their way to full production with a video of Jeff Bridges and his wife, Susan Geston, unboxxing the first two production models and testing them. It’s exciting news for a production that has seen slow updates until now, and we’ll likely see production ramp up in the new few months. Kubrick shot with the Widelux during 2001’s production.
Smiling Friends to End After Season 3; Two Extra Episodes Set to Air April 12
Smiling Friends will with Season 3, creators Michael Cusack and Zach Hadel confirmed in a video posted to the Adult Swim socials. In the clip, the duo said they feel both burnt out and creatively accomplished after completing the third season. With their trademark cheek, they added that they do not believe they could continue the series without compromising its quality, and chose to end it while it is still operating at a high standard.
Annahstasia Launches Australian Tour With New Songs at Perth Fest
Last Tuesday, Nigerian-American singer-songwriter Annahstasia was in Tokyo playing at the WWW in Shibuya. This Saturday she started her Australia & New Zealand tour, and after having toured to promote her debut album “Tether” last year, she spent much of her Perth Fest show playing unreleased songs.
Zero Parades Demo Now Live: ZA/UM’s Post-Disco Elysium RPG Debuts at Steam Next Fest
ZA/UM Studio has released the public demo for ZERO PARADES: For Dead Spies as part of Steam Next Fest, making the opening hours of its new espionage RPG free to play through March 16. The demo follows a weekend in which more than 4,000 keys were distributed privately. Now, anyone can step into Portofiro and decide whether ZA/UM can recapture the lightning of Disco Elysium. Hershel Wilk wakes in a grimy Portofiro apartment with no clear mission and one immediate problem.
Eric Dane, ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ and ‘Euphoria’ Star, Dies at 53
Eric Dane, the actor who parlayed a late-season guest role on Grey’s Anatomy into one of the defining heartthrob turns of the 2000s and later delivered a dark, layered performance on HBO’s Euphoria, died Feb. 19 following a battle with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He was 53. His family confirmed the news to People Magazine, saying Dane passed away surrounded by loved ones after what they described as a courageous fight with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
logitech-g325-review-budget-gaming-headset
What’s funny about gaming headsets is that they are usually so “gamer” that you can’t really wear them for anything else. Try using one at the gym and you’ll not only look out of place, but the little microphone stick would be flopping about and getting in your face.
Tom Noonan Dies: ‘Manhunter’ Villain and Sundance-Winning Indie Director Was 74
Tom Noonan, the distinctive character actor, playwright and filmmaker best known for his haunting turn in “Manhunter” and his Sundance-winning indie “What Happened Was…,” has died. He passed away peacefully on Valentine’s Day 2026, according to his former co-star Karen Sillas. Sillas shared the news on Instagram, writing, “My dear friend and costar, Tom Noonan passed peacefully on Valentine’s Day 2026.
Rebel Rebel at Perth Fest 2026 Review: A Lush, Fun Bowie Celebration
As is the new tradition, the end of summer sees the East Perth Substation fill out with music goers and some of the year’s most exciting acts at Perth Festival. On the surface, Rebel Rebel might not look like it should count among them— after all, we have plenty of orchestral events each year— but it’s the execution that makes it stand above the rest.
John Wick PS5 Game Revealed, Director Chad Stahelski Involved
A new AAA action game set in the world of John Wick is officially in development, and this time it is the real deal. Announced during Sony’s State of Play, Lionsgate and Saber Interactive have revealed the currently titled “Untitled John Wick Game,” a single-player third-person action title built for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. It is being designed specifically for mature audiences and is aiming squarely at fans who want to fully step into the polished chaos of the Baba Yaga.
Wuthering Heights Review: A Lush, Designer-Brand Daydream
Made endlessly stylish by its Oscar-winning crew, Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi lend their pretty faces to Emerald Fennell’s indulgent reimagining of the 1700s psychodrama. ★★★★☆ Emerald Fennell’s last film, Saltburn, is a vividly opulent, old-money, ivy league thriller. Shot almost entirely at golden hour, the film is one of the few where the story and acting are practically set dressing for the rest of the crew’s artistic flair.
Mewgenics Review: Dark, Deep Cat Roguelike RPG Worth the Wait?
Reviewed for PC If you like roguelikes, you know The Binding of Isaac. It’s in the pantheon of the genre’s best games. Edmund McMillen is the designer behind Isaac, Super Meat Boy, and a handful of other cult classic indie games (he’s even in Indie Game: The Movie). But since Nicalis took over The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth back in 2018, McMillen has been working on one game, Mewgenics. In fact, McMillen said that Isaac was originally just an experiment to ‘dip his toe in the water’ for Mewgenics.
Stardew Valley 1.7 Expands Romance Pool With Two Mystery Spouses
Stardew Valley’s upcoming 1.7 update will introduce two marriage candidates, according to comments from creator Eric “ConcernedApe” Barone. Barone hasn’t said more than that, so they could even be two completely new characters, but fans are betting on Sandy and the Wizard (Rasmodius). Barone has also said that he’s saving their identities for the game’s 10th anniversary celebrations, which is only a few weeks away on February 26.
Fallout Countdown Leads to 3D Site Promo, Not Fallout 3 or New Vegas Remake
Ahead of the last episode’s release, the strange little clock on the Fallout show’s site has hit zero. The reveal? A room with a view. It’s the Lucky 38’s penthouse in 3D, and that’s all it is. No surprise remaster drops, no surprises at all, just marketing material. It doesn’t mean that remasters are off the table, after all Bethesda has had a Fallout 3 remaster on the books for years, but for now, the hype train has stalled.
Grammy Awards 2026 Winners: Full List of Every Winner Tonight
Bad Bunny has swept this year’s Grammies with a three wins, beating out Gaga and Thomas’s two wins each, but the real winner? Kendrick. Four wins for Record of the Year, Rap Album, Rap Song, and Melodic Rap. Everyone else is playing catch up with one win or less.
Marvel Rivals Skin Leak Shows Moonknight’s Face, Duck Jeff & More
The Marvel Rivals leaks community have not been eating well these last few months. Just the crumbs of each week’s new skins. This is different, however. Almost all the skins for this season have leaked, and with a helpful list from X0Xleak, we known what’s missing too.
Release Date, New Gameplay, Everything We Know
After years of teasers that felt more like tone poems than proof of life, Fable finally has a real release window. The Fable game is scheduled to launch in Autumn 2026. That’s not a rumor, not a placeholder, not a “maybe if the stars align” estimate. Finally, it’s the closest thing the project has had to a concrete date since it was announced six years ago.
Xteink X4 Review: A Cheap, Tiny, and Charming Start to E-Reading’s Revolution
The average Kindle reader will laugh at the sight and features of the Xteink X4. 4.3-inchs of E ink with no touchscreen, no store, no frontlight, and barely any software features. It looks like a toy. It’s even priced like one. But look closer and you’ll see it’s something magical. Somehow, through capitalist magic and Chinese engineering, Xteink have combined a pocket bible, a Labubu, and a Magsafe Wallet. And somehow it works.
snail-mail-new-album-ricochet-dead-end-2026-tour
Lindsey Jordan has announced her third studio album, Ricochet, the first in five years. Due out March 27, the release comes after 2021’s Valentine, which was well recieved as a maturation of her indie-rock sound. Her 2021 Valentine tour was interupted by vocal cord surgery and months of intensive speech therapy.
The Eleventh Hour by Salman Rushdie: When Mastery Becomes Muscle Memory
Salman Rushdie’s The Eleventh Hour is elegantly written and movingly elegant, and the difference between those two qualities is the quiet tension at the heart of the book. This is elegance as technique rather than revelation. A book composed by a master, admired for his intelligence, poise, and singular perspective on history, exile, and selfhood. Rushdie is, quite simply, too good at writing.
Oooi Interview: Intuition, Abstract Photography, and feeling like “It’s Okay to Be Here”
Oooi is a Japanese abstract photographer who captures reflections and daily subtleties with vibrant Y2K digican aesthetic. She transforms ordinary details into a quiet kaleidoscope. In her words, her work is about indescribable sensations and a sense of security- that “it’s okay to be here.“ Ahead of her march exhibition “Jakubi” (Fragile Beauty) to be held in Gifu, I talked to her about her aspirations and inspirations.
Phrasemaker’s Best of 2025: Movies, TV Shows, Music, Games, and Books
Beautifully, Phrasemaker has blossomed into a bustling online publication with thirty team members. It only started this year, and now we have members in New Zealand, India, Australia, the U.S., and those are just the most common ones (we even have someone writing in Nairobi!). Me, personally, I’m very happy about it. If we can get a hundred people together next year, even better (write with us…). But enough advertising. Here we’ve put together the highlights of the year. It’s an impressive list.
Alien: The Roleplaying Game Evolved Edition Review
Alien: The Roleplaying Game Evolved Edition Review Branden Zavaleta Score Summary: Enjoyable for both fans of the films and of tabletop RPGs, the gameplay is both accessible and deep. Richly described and deftly researched, the evolved edition forms the perfect collection for sci-fi tabletop fans. As a diehard Alien fan and a diehard CRPG fan, I figured that the Alien tabletop game would be the best place to dip my toes into proper dicerolling dungeons & dragons style gameplay.
Gothic Americana And An Epitaph with Brendon Burton
Gothic, rural, and poetic, Brendon Burton’s work creates a very cinematic beauty out of the vast, messy expanses of the North American countryside. Burton has spent the past decade building a distinct photographic voice shaped by rural spaces, quiet structures and the overlooked corners of North America. His debut photobook, Epitaph, gathers that work into a single collection for the first time.
South Scrimshaw: Nathan O. Marsh on Nature Docs, Solo Dev, and The Grand Budapest Hotel
Indie dev and artist Nathan O. Marsh has built one of the most distinctive new worlds in indie gaming almost entirely alone. South Scrimshaw, a hand-painted, free-to-play visual novel about alien whales and speculative ecology has quietly earned a following for its meticulous art and unconventional storytelling.
Chris Yan on his Beijing Stories
Before turning to photography, Chris Yan built a career inside the world’s top ad agencies. His commercial work for BMW, Rolls-Royce, M&M’s, and Dove earned more than 60 creative awards, but most know him as one of China’s leading street photographers. Known for clear, composed images that capture daily life with elegance, Yan’s projects include less captured themes such as The Fate of Shanghai Alleys, Waiting for Business, and The Declining Opera.
Show More
loading
Actions
Get in touch with Branden
Contact Branden, search articles and posts on X, monitor coverage, and track replies from one place.
Learn more about Muck Rack