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The Top 5 Games For Language Learning

Learning a new language doesn’t need to come down to stacks of books. Various tricks can help you with language learning—and playing games is one of them.

Games have a vast potential for assisting students during the language acquisition process. It’s not the only tool you should use, but when combined with traditional learning, it can do wonders.

Let’s find out why games can be an immersive digital learning tool and which ones are the best for this purpose.

How Video Games Help With Language Learning

The idea that games can help with second language acquisition is not new. There are many scientific studies — some dating back to 1990 — that explored and proved how games act as a learning tool. You can diversify your textbook learning, listening to audiobooks, and reading TranslateHub to help you with translations with game playing. What makes video games an effective solution for enhancing your learning ability? Here are a few explanations:

  • Games provide context—Rather than the monotonous repetition of random words in the textbook, games give you context. Through dialogues and instructions, you’ll learn the terms for objects, animals, weapons, and more. You can also get a better sense of when you need to use which rules of grammar.
  • Games help with listening and reading skills—As you listen to the pronunciation of words in the game, you can adopt proper ways of speaking in that language. In addition to listening, you’ll also be honing your reading skills. Written instructions will help you improve your spelling
  • Games boost your motivation for learning—Motivation is one of the most common obstacles in language learning. While you can turn to legal translations to help you with translation assignments, for other tasks you simply must learn. However, games are an immersive tool that can boost your motivation. Since your language capabilities will improve, it will be easier for you to learn in a traditional sense as well.
  • Games make learning through repetition fun—Repetition is a useful learning method, but it’s often applied in non-engaging tasks. Video games give repetition a different twist. While playing, you’ll repeatedly hear the same words which will help you remember them.

Top 5 Games for Learning a Second Language

Not all games are ideal for learning languages. If you are willing to embrace gaming as a learning tool, you need to opt for the right ones.

Here is a list of games that can help you with language learning:

  1. Red Dead Redemption

One of the most popular games in the world, Red Dead Redemption, is an ideal action-adventure game for intermediate learners. It has a complex story and lots of dialogue that can help you perfect your skills.

  1. Minecraft

Minecraft may not have voice acting, but it is available in 96 languages. You can use the online feature to connect with native speakers from the target country and practice your speaking skills with them.

  1. Scrabble

The popular crossword puzzle can help you master your spelling and expand your vocabulary. If you keep coming across unknown words, there’s a fun trick that can help you memorize them. Write down all the words and hire a professional translation company by TranslationReport to compose a story in the target language and translate it. In this way, you’ll internalize the words and get ready to win your next scrabble game.

  1. The Sims

The real-life simulation game known as The Sims is useful for learning vocabulary and grammar rules related to day-to-day routines. However, to add value to the game playing, you need to use it thoughtfully.

  1. RAID: Shadow Legends

If you like role-playing games, RAID: Shadow Legends is a good choice. You get to play with various fantasy characters and form a group of hundreds of heroes to face game modes. The game can be played in many languages.

Final Thoughts

Playing video games can be a rewarding and engaging learning experience. Choosing the right games and adding some effort can be the perfect formula for second language learning. Don’t forget that just playing the game won’t suffice. Take an effort to pay attention to sentence structures and look up the unknown words. It will help you improve your vocabulary and level up.

​​Carl Hill is a professional translator, gaming enthusiast, and aspiring writer. He worked on several game localization projects. As a former educator, he had tested the power of games in the education industry. When he’s not writing or translating, Carl likes to spend time in nature.

What is the Importance of Fast Withdrawal for Online Casinos?

There is an unspoken battle on which online casino offers the best payout services. You’ll find different comparisons between the top names. On each of these websites, there are various methods used by online casino players to fund their betting accounts. Most of them pay attention to accepting deposits and ignore the well-being of players. While depositing on these casinos is fairly simple and straightforward, withdrawals are the exact opposite.

Most times, players may have to wait for 7 – 10 days to receive their payments. Many gamblers are bothered about why they have to wait so long to receive their winnings. If you take a close look at the situation of things, these players are right. Deposits are almost instantaneous, and withdrawals should follow the same vein. As a result of the high demand for fast payout, most online casinos are striving to create a platform that processes payments without any hitches and charges minimal fees.

What are Fast Withdrawal Casinos?

The processing of winning payouts is handled differently from one casino to another. However, their underlying principle behind the process remains the same on different websites. Here’s how things work on most casinos:

If you won some money wagering on games in an online casino, you can withdraw your winnings on the website. It’s possible to send the money to your bank account by navigating to the withdraw tab in the bank section. In this withdrawal section, you will be presented with various options. The next thing to do is to enter the amount you wish to withdraw and complete the process.

Fast payout casinos are those that make it a priority to handle their player’s withdrawals with speed and efficiency. Identifying the fastest withdrawal online casino Australia will let you enjoy all your winning in a relatively short period. After enjoying thrilling games, you get access to your wins without having to wait too long. You may visit a 5-star casino for the best experience today.

According to WannaPlay news, there are various 5-star casinos in Australia, but only a few of them offer fast withdrawals. You may even come across some websites that refer to themselves as “fast payout casinos”, but they still take a few days to process your request. Don’t just take an online casino’s word for it. Instead, go through their reviews and check the accepted means of withdrawal offered. You’ll learn a lot more about how they operate by reading the experiences of previous users.

The Importance of Fast Payout Casinos

When designing the payout process on an online casino, speed matters too. Online gamblers are concerned about the safety of their money, but they also want to make sure that they can get access to their money without facing obstacles. When a player has to deal with bottlenecks in the withdrawal process, it can be frustrating. That’s why players will slowly migrate to fast withdrawals in online casinos.

Oftentimes, the withdrawals process is affected by the withdrawal method that is chosen. Some channels will take longer to transfer money from the online casino to your account. However, technological advancements have produced better payment processing platforms. Now, money can be sent faster than ever. Fast payout casinos leverage these advanced payment solutions to process client requests within 24 – 48 hours.

What Are The Factors That Affect Payout Speed?

Different scenarios apply to different online casinos. Did you know various factors could be slowing the payout speed of your preferred online casinos? Keep reading to find out

To start with, fast payouts are determined by the website’s commitment to them. Does your favorite gambling site have a special team to handle withdrawals? Is this team available to process requests 24/7? Does your preferred website process payments during the weekend? Most trustworthy online casinos hire a dedicated team to support payout transactions at different times of the day. However, small-scale transactions will be unable to support this team or handle their payment.

The second factor that supports the speed of payout payments is the preferred method that you use to handle your payments. As we mentioned, payment solutions are numerous and are handled at different speeds. For instance, when you choose the bank transfer option for your payment, it may take 7-10 days after you begin to process. This statement means that if you want a faster payout, you would need to select an e-wallet channel.

Conclusion

Online gambling is intriguing and will earn you a lot of money if you go about it the right way. There are numerous online gambling websites on the market, but the quality of their service is different. To get the best results, you need a reliable casino that will safely handle all your payments. Also, you need to make sure that you pick a website with an e-wallet that supports near-instant payouts.

Maxwell Announces New Album, Drops New Song ‘Off’

Maxwell has returned with a new single called ‘Off’. The release coincides with news of a forthcoming album, blacksummers’NIGHT, which is due out next spring. It will be the final in a trilogy of albums that began with 2009’s BLACKsummers’night and continued with 2016’s blackSUMMERS’night. Check out ‘Off!’, produced by Maxwell and longtime collaborator Hod David, below.

In addition to the new single, Maxwell has announced a 2022 US tour with Anthony Hamilton and Joe. Find the list of dates below, too.

Maxwell 2022 US Tour Dates:

Mar 2 – Dallas, TX – Texas Trust CU Theater
Mar 4 – Houston, TX – Toyota Center
Mar 5 – New Orleans, LA – Smoothie King Center
Mar 9 – Columbia, SC – Colonial Life Arena
Mar 11 – Newark, NJ – Prudential Center
Mar 12 – Hampton, VA – Hampton Coliseum
Mar 16 – Columbus, GA – Columbus Civic Center
Mar 17 – Charlotte, NC – Spectrum Center
Mar 19 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena
Mar 20 – Greensboro, NC – Greensboro Coliseum Complex
Mar 23 – St. Louis, MO – Chaifetz Center
Mar 25 – Memphis, TN – FedExForum
Mar 26 – Birmingham, AL – Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex
Mar 27 – Louisville, KY – KFC Yum! Center
Mar 30 – Brooklyn, NY – Barclays Center
Apr 1 – Atlantic City, NJ – Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall
Apr 2 – Washington, DC – Capital One Arena
Apr 6 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena
Apr 7 – Indianapolis, IN – Gainbridge Fieldhouse
Apr 9 – Chicago , IL – United Center
Apr 10 – Detroit, MI – Little Caesars Arena
Apr 15 – Los Angeles, CA – The Forum
Apr 16 – Oakland, CA – Oakland Arena
May 7 – Tampa, FL – Amelie Arena
May 8 – Miami, FL – FTX Arena

Horsegirl Release Video for New Single ‘Billy’

Horsegirl – the Chicago trio of Penelope Lowenstein, Nora Cheng, and Gigi Reece – have shared a new single, ‘Billy’. Their debut release for Matador, the track was recorded at Chicago’s Electrical Audio and co-produced with John Agnello (Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth, Kurt Vile). Check out its accompanying video below, and scroll down for the band’s newly announced 2022 US tour dates.

Horsegirl said in a statement about the new track:

There was a period of last year where the three of us spent everyday together writing and recording. It was during this time, when we practically lived in Penelope’s basement, that ‘Billy’ was written. Penelope had recently read about Nick Drake’s alternate tunings prompting her to detune her guitar, while Nora overlaid a rhythmic vocal line detailing the life of a fictional character, Billy. At the time, we had been listening to a lot of New Zealand underground bands (80’s/90’s Flying Nun). With that scrappiness in mind, we worked the rest of the song out through improvising together, and ‘Billy’ quickly fell into place.

‘Billy’ is our first release with a label, and it feels particularly special that it is with Matador, whom we have admired since we were young. After a year of hard work, we are very happy to finally share music, especially with those who have uplifted Horsegirl in the last year. We feel so thankful to have been able to record this song with John Agnello, who’s work we adore, at Electrical Audio, a Chicago institution. Recording this song was a dream experience for us, and John has become a very trusted mentor.

Commenting on the video, they added: “We shot the ‘Billy’ music video with our friends on a rainy Chicago day and feel particularly thankful for everyone who danced the twist with us, and those who gave us their apartment, camera equipment, film expertise, and feedback. This video is a love letter to our city and friends. The song is a love letter to past music scenes we wish we could have witnessed. Please listen to ‘Billy’ in your kitchen with a group of good friends and dance along– we can’t wait to share it with you.”

The ‘Billy’ 7” will be available on March 11, featuring a cover of the Minutemen’s ‘History Lesson Part 2’ on the B-side. Horsegirl previously released the singles ‘Forecast’, ‘Sea Life Sandwhich Boy’, and ‘Ballroom Dance Scene’.

Horsegirl 2022 US Tour Dates:

Wed Mar 16 – Austin, TX – SXSW
Thu Mar 17 – Austin, TX – SXSW
Sat Mar 19 – Philadelphia, PA – PhilaMOCA
Sun Mar 20 – Washington, DC – DC9
Tue Mar 22 – New York, NY – Market Hotel

Girl Band Change Name to Gilla Band, Apologize for “Misgendered Name”

Irish four-piece Girl Band have officially changed their name to Gilla Band. “We apologise for choosing a misgendered name in the first place and to anyone who has been hurt or affected by it,” the band, made up of four men, wrote on social media. “When we were starting off it was chosen without much thought, from a place of naivety and ignorance. We had no grasp of the weight of it at the time and in the past few years have found it impossible to justify or explain this choice.”

The statement continues: “Regardless of our intention the effect of the name has been damaging to individuals. To try and negate any unfortunate role we’ve played in propagating a culture of non inclusivity in music or otherwise, we have decided to change it.” The group also clarified that “Gilla” is “a given name taken from old Irish.”

Gilla Band’s last album was 2019’s The Talkies. The band is set to play three shows in Dublin in January 2022.

Mattiel Announce New Album ‘Georgia Gothic’, Unveil New Single

Mattiel, the Atlanta-based group comprised up of Mattiel Brown and Jonah Swilley, have announced their third album, Georgia Gothic. It’s out March 18, 2022 via Heavenly Recordings. Check out a video for the new single ‘Jeff Goldblum’ below, and scroll down for the record’s cover art and tracklist.

“Well, my crush on Jeff Goldblum is very real,” Mattiel remarked in a press release. “He inspired the words – but this is more of a dream where a Jeff look-a-like meets me in a bathroom. Nothing beats an 80’s Jeff Goldblum. Incredible looks and charm. If anything, I hope if he somehow hears the song, he loves it as much as we do.”

George Gothic will follow the band’s 2019 album Satis Factory.

Georgia Gothic Cover Artwork: 

Georgia Gothic Tracklist: 

1. Jeff Goldblum
2. On the Run
3. Lighthouse
4. Wheels Fall Off
5. Subterranean Shut In Blues
6. Blood In The Yolk
7. Cultural Criminal
8. You Can Have It All
9. Other Plans
10. Boomerang
11. How It Ends

A Place to Bury Strangers Announce New Album ‘See Through You’, Share Video for New Single

A Place to Bury Strangers have announced their sixth album. See Through You arrives on February 4, 2022, via founding member Oliver Ackermann’s label, Dedstrange. The first single from the LP, ‘Let’s See Each Other’, is out today alongside an accompanying video directed by David Pelletier. Check it out and find the album’s cover artwork and tracklist below.

Earlier this year, A Place to Bury Strangers released the Hologram EP, their first release with the new line-up featuring Ceremony East Coast’s John Fedowitz on bass and Sandra Fedowitz on drums. The band’s last studio LP, Pinned, arrived in 2018.

See Through You Cover Artwork:

See Through You Tracklist:

1. Nice Of You To Be There For Me
2. I’m Hurt
3. Let’s See Each Other
4. So Low
5. Dragged In A Hole
6. Ringing Bells
7. I Disappear (When You’re Near)
8. Anyone But You
9. My Head Is Bleeding
10. Broken
11. Hold On Tight
12. I Don’t Know How You Do It
13. Love Reaches Out

Monopoly Live – Board Game Gets a Virtual Makeover

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You have likely spent many rainy afternoons playing Monopoly. Everything changes, though, as the years go by, and this classic board game is no exception to the rule. Now it’s been given a virtual makeover, and it’s even more fun to play.

It was in the 1930s that the game we know as Monopoly was born. Cue years of families and friends playing the game. It usually begins with a heated discussion on who gets to play with the Top Hat or Iron (and often ends in a heated discussion as someone cleans up the money).

One of the most popular games ever; it has been a massive hit with many different versions around the world. That includes video versions that have taken the game to the next level and a new audience. Now comes Monopoly Live – a variant with a modern hi-tech twist. Even better, you might win some cash.

What is Monopoly Live?

Monopoly Live is one of the new brands of game show-style games from Evolution Gaming to enjoy online. It’s a massive step forward for the Monopoly brand as it is set in a live studio, giving it the feel of one of the game shows you typically watch on television.

Rather than several players, who are bound at one point to have a bit of a row, here you are the guest that plays the game and (hopefully) snags a good win. If all of this has got you excited already, then you can play Monopoly Live at one of the many online casino platforms hosting the game.

How does this new version of the game work? It’s ideal to play in this kind of version as it’s a game full of excitement and suspense, but with a few major differences. Those differences don’t ruin the legendary game in any way. Instead, they will enhance your enjoyment of playing a game you’ve probably known since you were a child.

Dream Catcher is another popular game show that Evolution Gaming has created. In fact, it was their first game show with a live host and a live money wheel. Since then, the game shows that they have created regularly feature a wheel of some kind and Monopoly Live is one.

In this game, there’s someone sitting beside the wheel, and that is, of course, Mr Monopoly himself. He’s got his top hat on, a big white moustache, and he’s enjoying himself drinking a cup of tea.

The player aims to predict on which segment the stunning looking wheel will end up on. That’s the new equivalent of the dice that we have been throwing for years and years. The segments contain numbers but also the familiar Chance cards option. Mr Monopoly will be delighted to give you this, and it’s going to be good news for the player. This is because you will receive instant cash wins and multipliers. If you bet on number 2, and that comes up, then you get a 2-1 win.

Other segments on the wheel, which is operated by a friendly studio host, are 2 ROLLS and 4 ROLLS, and these are so important in this game. You need to bet on these segments if you want to play the Bonus Game, and, let’s face it, everyone loves a bonus. If the wheel ends up on these segments, you will find out just how this game has advanced the traditional one. They bring to life a 3D Bonus game.

This is where the excitement goes into overdrive. After all those years playing on a board that has probably seen better days, a whole new world awaits you. We join the augmented reality version of Mr Monopoly in his 3D Monopoly world, complete with skyscrapers and even trains.

Mr Monopoly travels around this board, which you will know from the Hasbro board game. On his way, he collects prizes and multipliers. It may be a new version of the game, but the bonus game still uses dice. The board has familiar elements such as Chance, GO, Community Chest, houses, hotels and the dreaded Jail and Super Tax.

You can see all the multipliers that are available to win. The tension will rise as you hope the dice creates a number that will land on you on the best multipliers – or a double that gives you an extra go.

Sure, you won’t be sitting around the dining room table playing with the family – it’s a form of solo entertainment. But it’s absolutely fun to play and potentially profitable, too.

Silverbacks Release New Single ‘Rolodex City’

Silverbacks have released ‘Rolodex City’, the latest offering from their forthcoming album Archive Material. Check it out below.

The group’s vocalist and guitarist Daniel O’Kelly said in a statement about the song:

Rolodex City is about a property mogul who has fallen on very hard times during a period where technology has changed the way his business and people work. Similar to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid getting caught out by the trains, bicycles and an increasingly small world, Mr Rolodex is running out of options. He visits a town in a barren landscape with the hope of flipping a bit of land, posing as whatever character the people there will trust – Rolodex City.

Ultimately, our anti-hero has no luck and reluctantly ends his trip at a line dance led by Emma – feel free to join in!

Silverback’s new LP, the follow-up to their 2020 debut Fad, is out January 21 and via Full Time Hobby.

Watch Post Malone and the Weeknd’s New Video for ‘One Right Now’

Post Malone and the Weeknd have shared a new music video for their recent single ‘One Right Now’. The Tanu Muino-directed clip sees the two artists getting involved in a violent shootout. Check it out below.

Released earlier this month, ‘One Right Now’ is the first single from Post Malone’s upcoming album, which has yet to be formally announced. Last week, the Weeknd shared a collaboration with Rosalía, ‘LA FAMA’, which also got the video treatment.