What do games do for us—and what do we owe them for that? It's an odd question, but it seems to come up, in one form or another, whenever a gaming controversy hits the news. Gaming is no longer a young medium, but it's still somewhat opaque from the outside, which makes games an easy target for crusades from those wont to crusade: most recently, with local-news insistences that Fortnite is rotting your children's brains. It's not. (Probably.

The latest in-depth coverage covering the intersection of technology and culture. WIRED’s award-winning journalism will help you make sense of a world in constant transformation. Join us as we explore the ways technology is changing our lives.