West Virginia
Video game executives open studio in West Virginia
![Video game executives open studio in West Virginia](https://www.wowktv.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/52/2024/06/GettyImages-1586995573.jpg?w=1280)
LOGAN, WV (WOWK) — If you play “Fortnite,” chances are you’ve played on a map made in Logan County and one that has the same mountainous terrain.
PlayKigai is a fully remote global video game studio founded in Logan in January 2024.
Last month, the studio released a Fortnite map called “Dizzy Realistics,” where players can compete in a one-versus-one high-level training arena.
PlayKigai’s founders are industry veterans, including Aaron Chambers, a former employee at PlayStation and Twitch, and Simone Di Gravio, formerly of Epic Games.
Chambers is from Logan and graduated from West Virginia University. He says he moved back to Logan from California to be able to work on game development from the comfort of his home.
“A lot of people who want to be where they are, but don’t want to move to make something cool. That was the seed for something like PlayKigai. And we just ran with it,” Chambers said.
His co-founder and business partner, Simone Di Gravio, works out of Italy. He says it is his and Chambers’ dream that PlayKigai make their own video games from scratch.
“I really missed making a product that we can ship, and say I made this. I made it from start to end and I shipped it out,” said Di Gravio.
“I hope in a year or two, it won’t be just Fortnite maps,” Chambers said. “We’re starting with our strengths. In a year or two, we’ll be able to say we played lots of games made in Logan County, West Virginia.”
The studio’s next projects are also Fortnite maps, including “Backrooms Mansion” and “Ace Sniper.” The first is a horror/survival game where up to four players try to survive against waves of dark energy, and the second is a training map where players can test long-distance weapons.
By mid-to-late 2025, Chambers says they hope to be developing their own video games, in addition to their contract work.
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West Virginia
Babydog is a minor celebrity in West Virginia. Now she's enshrined in the state Capitol
![Babydog is a minor celebrity in West Virginia. Now she's enshrined in the state Capitol](https://dims.apnews.com/dims4/default/9be7bdc/2147483647/strip/true/crop/1620x911+0+84/resize/1440x810!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fassets.apnews.com%2Fce%2Ff9%2F08eae1708cdbd84e6102c028f86d%2Fus-wv-babydog-mural-20240630cr-1920x1080.jpg)
Gov. Jim Justice has made his English bulldog, Babydog, a minor celebrity in West Virginia where she often joins him on gubernatorial trips. Now she’s enshrined in a new mural under the golden dome of the state Capitol.
Gov. Jim Justice has made his English bulldog, Babydog, a minor celebrity in West Virginia where she often joins him on gubernatorial trips. Now she’s enshrined in a new mural under the golden dome of the state Capitol.
West Virginia
Bonner-Prendie wide receiver Jalil Hall commits to West Virginia
![Bonner-Prendie wide receiver Jalil Hall commits to West Virginia](https://www.inquirer.com/resizer/-fFGGwTFqV0WSqkSa_TP7sTW_ac=/760x507/smart/filters:format(webp)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/pmn/PN4UYOD7WFANRFLJFAUUTWLDRY.jpg)
Bonner-Prendergast’s Jalil Hall, a three-star wide receiver, Saturday announced his commitment to West Virginia University, becoming the program’s 21st pledge in the class of 2025.
The 6-foot-4, 185-pound Hall is ranked No. 19 in the state by 247Sports. He also held scholarship offers from Syracuse, Maryland, Duke, Virginia Tech, Rutgers, and Pittsburgh.
Hall will join Chris Fileppo, a linebacker at La Salle College Preparatory High School, next fall in Morgantown. St. Joseph’s Prep graduates Brandon Rehmann (receiver) and linebacker Josiah Trotter, younger brother of Eagles rookie Jeremiah Jr. and son of Eagles great Jeremiah Sr., are currently in the Mountaineers’ program.
Hall helped the Friars (9-3) advance to the quarterfinals in the Class 4A state playoffs last season. They fell to Dallas High School of Luzerne County, 28-27.
West Virginia
WVSports – 2027 WR Lora excited about West Virginia
Warwick (R.I.) Bishop Hendricken School 2027 wide receiver Sebastian Lora was excited to add West Virginia to his list of scholarship options.
Lora, 5-foot-11, 150-pounds, found out about the news after speaking with defensive line coach AJ Jackson.
It’s something that excited Lora because of what he knows about the school, his relationship with Jackson and the fact that he grew up following former wide receiver Tavon Austin.
The underclassman is just getting to know more about the school but likes what he’s heard.
“He basically told me he loved my film and to keep my body healthy this summer and hopefully I can go down there for a game and visit the school,” he said. “He is truly an amazing coach. He keeps it 100-percent real and tells you what you need to work on to be better.”
West Virginia, along with other schools, are targeting Lora wa a wide receiver and have been impressed with what he is able to do with the ball in his hands.
“What coaches and schools like about me is that I’m hard working, break out fast from my routes and the ability to go jump high for the ball,” he said.
College coaches also like the fact that he is a leader on the field.
Lora plans to visit West Virginia in the future and is excited about getting there in order to see what the school is all about.
“One of my biggest plans is to visit West Virginia,” he said.
Lora is looking for a school that is going to help him feel at home and where he has a great relationship with the coaches and the staff.
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