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About G.URL

G.URL Magazine is dedicated to reshaping perceptions of female gamers within the gaming community. We achieve this by exploring the intersection of gaming culture with fashion, music, and lifestyle, all of which contribute to the evolving concept of the 'gamer girl'.

Girls in Gaming

We celebrate women in gaming and online culture including TikTok content creators, musicians and game developers. We've previously featured Pizza4Alice and TheBabeGabe from Blackstarkids.

What kind of content is featured in G.URL?

Gaming

Social Media

...and more!

Infinity Nikki is Inspiring Gamers to Bond Over High Heels and Earrings 

By Hannah Holowaychuk | December 16, 2024

Seeing a feminine dress-up game acknowledged as a “real” game is groundbreaking. Twelve years ago, Papergames was told that the Nikki franchise was too niche to succeed in the competitive gaming market. The monumental success of Infinity Nikki proves otherwise, showing there’s a community of gamers eager to save the world in an iridescent ballgown and heels.

Short Trip: The Hand-Drawn Cat Carrying Experience

By Annika McCabe | December 15, 2024

As the chaos of finals, demanding work weeks, and holiday preparations looms, the need for a moment of respite becomes undeniable. Thankfully, we’ve found the perfect game to help you pause, breathe, and recharge amid the holiday frenzy.

How Arcane Subverts Stereotypes Around Black Women

By Ore Adeyoola | December 14, 2024

After three long years, Arcane has come to an emotional and dramatic conclusion. The animated series has not only been celebrated as a masterclass in storytelling and artistry but has also made history as a cultural phenomenon. Garnering four Primetime Emmy Awards and earning universal acclaim, Arcane stands as the most successful silver screen adaptation of a video game to date. Its richly layered characters, subversion of tired tropes, and dedication to nuanced representation have solidified its place as a groundbreaking achievement in modern animation.

5 Hidden Gems for Cosy Winter Gaming

By Team G.URL | December 3, 2024

If you’re craving cosy winter vibes, this list of five lesser-known games is your perfect escape. From heartwarming puzzle adventures to whimsical snow-filled escapades, these titles embrace the season’s magic without leaning on tired survival tropes.

Beauty in Blocks: How Roblox’s Dress to Impress Inspires Real-Life Makeup Trends

By Jenny O'Connor | November 30, 2024

From the virtual runways of Dress to Impress to the Instagram feeds of beauty influencers, Roblox-inspired makeup is rewriting the rules of beauty. Bold, playful, and unapologetically experimental, these trends are proof that digital creativity is shaping the face of fashion in more ways than one.

Our Forgotten Digital Dolls: A Note on Personalisation and Feminine Identity Crises

By Team G.URL | November 29, 2024

Once upon a time, the Internet was a playground for little girls. On BarbieGirls.com and Be-Bratz.com, we weren’t just dressing up avatars—we were learning how to present ourselves to the world. These virtual spaces taught us that to be seen was to be valued, planting seeds of self-scrutiny that bloomed into a full-blown obsession with image. Years later, the MP3 players and pink VIP badges are gone, but the mirror they handed us hasn’t cracked. We scroll, we compare, and we perform, still chasing that fleeting feeling of being enough in a world built to tell us otherwise.

Anora: Exoticism as Empty Currency

By Jenny O'Connor | November 27, 2024

Sean Baker’s Anora drapes itself in the glittering veneer of social commentary, but at its core, it struggles to engage meaningfully with the very systems it critiques. Anora “Ani” Mikheeva, played with quiet resilience by Mikey Madison, navigates the hostile labyrinth of Brighton Beach’s underbelly, where survival is a dance of compromise. Brighton Beach itself hums with authenticity, a backdrop pulsating with the chaotic beauty of immigrant life. Yet, the film’s gaze—intent on humanising its protagonist—falls into familiar traps, reducing Ani to a cipher, a lens for exploitation rather than an agent in her own story.

Ones to Watch: Top Women-Led London Brands

By Belle Law | November 22, 2024

London’s independent scene is buzzing with women-led brands that are setting the tone for a more ethical and stylish future. From sustainable craftsmanship to boundary-pushing design, these creators are reshaping what it means to shop consciously while keeping us effortlessly ‘G.URL’ this autumn.

Swallowscope: Defining the Gap Between Tradition and Modernism

By Hannah Holowaychuk | November 21, 2024

Traditional Chinese handcrafts have been skillfully produced for thousands of years. Cherida Zhang, the creator of swallowscope, uses her platform to preserve and share the artistry of Chinese knotting. By combining freshwater pearls and crystals with Chinese imagery, she creates intricate pastel jewellery that is both elegant and evokes feelings of nostalgia…

Aika Village: The Haunting Legacy of Animal Crossing’s Darkest Creation

By Jenny O'Connor | November 15, 2024

Animal Crossing fans have crafted a paradise of horrors in Aika Village, transforming a beloved game into an unforgettable experiment in eerie storytelling.The Animal Crossing series is known for its charming worlds and slice-of-life gameplay, where daily routines and cheerful villages offer an escape from reality. Yet amid this serene experience, an unexpected current of…

Professor Layton is Back Again

By Jenny O'Connor | October 4, 2024

The world of puzzles and mysteries is set to expand once more with the upcoming release of Professor Layton and the New World of Steam, a thrilling new chapter in the beloved Layton series. This installment, set for release in 2025 on the Nintendo Switch, promises to deliver the intricate puzzles and captivating storytelling that fans have come to love, all while embracing new characters and a fresh setting​.

Breromi: Inside the World of Whimsical, Tech-Savvy Accessories

By Jenny O'Connor | September 20, 2024

In a sea of fast fashion and trend-driven aesthetics, Breromi stands out as a brand that merges nostalgia, technology, and playfulness into strikingly unique accessories. From magnetic hair clips to plush bows, Bremoni’s creations feel like treasures from a dreamlike, futuristic realm. Each piece is a perfect blend of functionality and whimsy, reflecting the brand’s…

The Bell Tree Forums and Forum Culture

By Jenny O'Connor | September 19, 2024

In the fast-paced world of social media, The Bell Tree Forums offer a slice of internet nostalgia where Animal Crossing fans still find their digital home. Long before Twitter wars and TikTok trends, there were forums—a simpler, slower-paced corner of the internet where people gathered to discuss their passions in depth. Among these early digital…

Sukinapan: Inside the Artist’s Surreal Digital Universe

By Jenny O'Connor | September 11, 2024

In the vast ocean of Instagram, certain accounts stand out for their ability to transport viewers into another dimension. Sukinapan’s digital art feels like a vivid dream mixed with nostalgia. Her pixelated landscapes and surreal characters strike a perfect balance between whimsy and melancholy, offering followers an escape from reality into a universe that seems…

I think about it all the time: Charli xcx’s BRAT and Motherhood

By Belle Law | September 7, 2024

As BRAT Summer comes to an end, it’s time to look at some of Charli xcx’s most underrated tracks on her BRAT album This BRAT summer we’ve had the Apple dance, Charli XCX’s Boiler Room set in Ibiza, and finally, an iconic collaboration with Billie Eilish on a remix of Guess. But beyond the many…

BLACKSTARKIDS’ “SOULMATEZ!”: A Sonic Rebellion Wrapped in Nostalgia

By Jenny O'Connor | September 2, 2024

BLACKSTARKIDS’ “SOULMATEZ!” is a neon-hued love letter to a chaotic world where nostalgia and modern angst collide. In the ever-evolving tapestry of youth culture, BLACKSTARKIDS stand out as both provocateurs and curators. Their latest single, “SOULMATEZ!,” is more than just a catchy track; it’s a manifesto, a collision of sound and vision that captures the…

The Resurrection of MySims: Cosy Nostalgia or Corporate Ploy?

By Jenny O'Connor | August 30, 2024

EA bets on cosy vibes and nostalgia, but will the return of MySims warm our hearts or just our wallets? In a gaming landscape where nostalgia sells, EA is dusting off the cobwebs of its once-beloved MySims franchise and reintroducing it to a new generation on the Nintendo Switch. Slated for a 19 November 2024…

A Short Goodbye to Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp

By Belle Law | August 29, 2024

As Nintendo announces the end of service for Pocket Camp, it’s time to say a temporary farewell to the Animal Crossing worlds within our phones In an email to Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp players, Nintendo has announced that the service for the game will sadly be coming to an end on November 28th 2024 at…

Style Savvy: The Nostalgic Dress-Up Game for the Nintendo DS

By Team G.URL | August 28, 2024

With the resurgence of digital dress-up games online, one game had surprisingly been ahead of its time… Written by Hafsa Ahmed Dress-up games became a hit in the online digital space during the 2000s. Many of these were the classic, click-and-select gameplays that provided clothes to dress up avatars. However, they didn’t just exist online.…

Fantage: A Glittering Digital Ghost Town

By Jenny O'Connor | August 27, 2024

Ah, Fantage—a flashback to the days when the internet felt like a freshly discovered galaxy. Imagine it: 2008, an era where the internet was less algorithmic and more anarchic, where the hottest trend wasn’t about who had the most followers, but who had the most neon-clad avatar in an online game designed for kids. Fantage was the digital utopia for the tweenage crowd, a place where your biggest dilemma was whether to splurge your hard-earned Stars on a new virtual outfit or save up for a more exclusive hairdo. It was a pixelated paradise, until it wasn’t.