Topic

Sports & Games

A collection of 49 issues

Spells & Subpoenas: How Wizards of the Coast's Pinkerton 'Raid' on a YouTuber Shook the Magic Community

Wizards of the Coast hired Pinkerton agents to confront a YouTuber at his home and retrieve unreleased Magic: The Gathering cards. The agents allegedly threatened the content creator and his wife, causing a significant community backlash over the company's aggressive tactics.

The Immortal Record: How Michael Phelps Finally Surpassed an Ancient Greek God of the Stadium

For 2,168 years, Leonidas of Rhodes held the record for most individual Olympic titles with 12 victories. Hailed as a god, his versatile dominance in ancient running events seemed untouchable until 2016, when swimmer Michael Phelps finally surpassed the legendary feat.

Time's Glitch: The Bizarre Reason Your SNES Is Faster Today Than in the 90s

Your old SNES is running faster than it did at release! A tiny, aging component in its sound chip is slightly overclocking the console, a change so subtle only speedrunning robots can detect it, leading to a fascinating detective story in the retro gaming community.

No Feathers, All Fury: The Pillow Fighting Championship's Serious Bid for the Olympic Stage

The Pillow Fighting Championship isn't a joke. It's a professional combat sport featuring trained athletes, specialized pillows, and brutal knockouts. With serious ambitions to become an Olympic event, the PFC is working hard to shatter the slumber party stereotype and be taken seriously.

Copy, Paste, Ride: The Surprising and Common Reality of Horse Cloning

Horse cloning, once science fiction, is now a common practice in elite equestrian sports. Used to replicate champion geldings and preserve valuable bloodlines, the industry leverages technology to create genetic twins of top performers, especially in the world of polo.

More Brawling Than Balling: The Wild Story of the First Basketball Game's 1-0 Final Score

Forget the NBA's high-flying dunks. The first basketball game, played in 1891, was a chaotic, 9-on-9 affair that ended in a shocking 1-0 victory. The only point came from a 25-foot shot in a game filled with tackling, punching, and peach baskets for hoops. It was pure mayhem.

ThrustSSC: The Jet-Powered Car That Made the Desert Roar and Broke the Sound Barrier

The ThrustSSC is the only land vehicle to officially break the sound barrier. Piloted by Andy Green in 1997, it used two jet engines to achieve a still-unbeaten record of 1,227.986 km/h (763.035 mph) in the Black Rock Desert, a monumental feat of engineering.

Damn Good Coffee: How Twin Peaks Ignited a Cultural Firestorm in 1990s Japan

In the early 1990s, David Lynch's Twin Peaks wasn't just a hit in Japan—it was a cultural phenomenon. The mystery of Laura Palmer inspired TV specials, mock funerals, unique merchandise, and even influenced the creation of iconic video games like Silent Hill and Link's Awakening.

Tiger Stripes and Huge Breasts: The Bizarre Pikachu Redesign Satoru Iwata Saved Us From

Before Pokémon's US launch, Nintendo of America suggested a radical Pikachu redesign: a tiger with large breasts. The idea, meant to appeal to Americans, was personally rejected by Satoru Iwata, who protected the original design and ensured its global success.