Man, whatever happened to "Club Penguin?" I remember in fifth grade, circa 2005, most of my classmates and I would crowd into our computer class to open up this MMO and walk around as little, cuddly penguin avatars across some glaciers and icy terrain. We would throw snowballs at each other, burst into dance and follow other penguins into their igloos. The game had a group chat, where people would regularly type "lol" and "stop following me." Most users had a string of numbers in their names, but that didn't take away from the cozy feeling of playing this game, which really was a virtual world, and a place between home and work.

The highly-anticipated next installment of the Grand Theft Auto video game franchise will feature a playable female protagonist for the first time, according to a report. Developer Rockstar Games first announced it was working on GTA VI earlier this year, writing in a February statement that'active development of the next entry in the Grand Theft Auto series is well under way'. Now a report in Bloomberg reveals that GTA VI will be the first to let players take on the role of a female lead character in its story mode. The woman, who is said to be'Latina', reportedly will be one of a pair of leading characters in a story influenced by the bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde. People familiar with the game told Bloomberg that developers are being cautious not to'punch down' by making jokes about marginalised groups, in contrast to previous games.

Netflix is taking a swan dive into the Assassin's Creed video game franchise. The streaming TV giant will create a live-action TV series based on the Assassin's Creed series of video games, published by Ubisoft, the two companies announced Tuesday. Netflix may also eventually develop animated and anime series based on the hugely popular franchise, which chronicles a group of assassins' fight throughout history. "We're excited to partner with Ubisoft and bring to life the rich, multilayered storytelling that Assassin's Creed is beloved for," said Peter Friedlander, vice president of original series for Netflix, said in a statement. "From its breathtaking historical worlds and massive global appeal as one of the best selling video game franchises of all time, we are committed to carefully crafting epic and thrilling entertainment based on this distinct IP and provide a deeper dive for fans and our members around the world to enjoy."

HBO has Game of Thrones and Westworld. Amazon Studios has Lord of the Rings. And, now Showtime has HALO, its new TV series based on the wildly popular video game franchise of the same name. With its built-in audience of avid gamers, this could potentially be Showtime's biggest hit yet. Just weeks after Microsoft's announcement at E3 of the latest installment of its popular HALO video game series, HALO: Infinite, Showtime announced it has ordered a 10-episode series of the award-winning and record-shattering video game.

The popular'Halo' video-game franchise will get a 10-episode, live-action series on Showtime. The "Halo" video-game franchise is coming to TV in a new form: a live-action, scripted drama series. Showtime Thursday announced it is picking up a 10-episode season of the tentatively titled "Halo," based on the iconic Xbox franchise. Production will begin in 2019. Premiere date and casting details were unavailable.

With athletes and viewers exhausted, the closing ceremony for Rio2016 was passing off as expected... Until Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe popped out of a giant green pipe dressed up as video game character Super Mario, one of Japan's best-known exports. It was then the world got a clue that, for Tokyo2020, the next Olympic hosts would take full and shameless advantage of Japan's pop culture icons. The Tokyo2020 video beamed to audiences in Rio showed Mario running excitedly around Tokyo then jumping into his famous green pipe. Cue the slow rise of the green pipe in Rio with a hunched Mario-like figure perched on top. Japan's Prime Minister, not famous for his extrovert displays and pop culture references, emerges dressed as Super Mario and doffs his hat to enthusiastic crowds, then setting social media alight.

Disney lost a little magic in the most recent earnings report. The company missed expectations for earnings and revenue. It also announced it will exit the'Infinity' video game business. It appears the toys-to-life video game series Disney Infinity will not earn a happy ending. Disney Interactive confirmed it is cancelling Infinity, the franchise launched in 2013 combining physical figurines players could transport into a video game through a special portal.