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loadet851 · 3 years

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Pc Games With Character Creation Offline

Games With Character Customization Pc

Steam Games With Character Creation

One of the things I love most in a RPG (Role-Playing Game) is the possibility of creating my own character with tons of different options and add-ons. I made a research yesterday and found some interesting PC Games I already knew about, adding them to the titles I have or plan to get with the best Character Customization. I’m going to list them here for you guys also attaching a few videos so that you can see directly how they work and what kind of possibilities they offer.

It’s the main reason I enjoy games like Skyrim and Fallout. But there seem to be so few good (single player) games with decent character creation - and not just picking from a few presets. The character creation in Dragon Age: inquisition was amazing (although I struggled to enjoy the game) as well as Saints Row (which I really enjoyed). Addicting Offline Co-op Games For PC You’ll Want To Play. Dennis Patrick / Features / Best Co-op PC Games, Co-op, Cooperative. Sonic the Hedgehog is a staple video game character. Best MMORPG with Character Creation. Final Fantasy 14 has one of the most complex and sophisticated character editors. In this game, you can change the smallest details using different sliders, pick a unique voice, or add unique tattoos, accessories and facial paint. What Are Best RPGs With Character Creation? Role-playing games let us live out some of our greatest fantasies like slaying dragons, saving the world and owning a house. Whether your main character is dead, alive, or somewhere in between, these games will let you adjust your appearance and abilities to however you see fit. I've always loved games that give you the option to create your character before you start in the world. I enjoy the game even more when it has role playing or social aspects added to it, allowing you interact with NPCs, or other players if the game has a multiplayer feature. Just character creation would interest me enough to check any game out.

Follow me under the cut if you’re curious!

I’ve been introduced to this type of creation with a game I still keep in my heart and consider one of the best of all times; The Sims 2. Seriously, I’ve created so many 3D characters that if I could win an award I’d have 200 on my shelf by now.

With that said, here you are my personal list of PC games with their awesome customization in no particular order:

I tried this game myself (the free beta that is) a few times in the past and I swear the CC included in it is currently one of my favorite. Without the complete pack I probably didn’t have a lot of additional options available in terms of clothes, makeup and hair, but what truly mesmerized me at the time was the shaping tool, not yet common in games when they released EVE. You can grab and drag different parts of the head and body, modeling unique characters every time.

2. Black Desert Online

This game has been released recently with two different packages and it seems to be quite a popular MMORPG (Massive(ly) Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) in Russia and Korea. I’m not surprised considering the quality this game seems to have and its customization is clearly no less. Just like EVE Online, Black Desert offers a good sculpt instrument to shape faces and bodies as much as you like, plus a beautiful variety of colors and combinations.

UPDATE: The game is also available on Steam!

This patch lets you play Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks with mostly non-touch based controls. The new control bindings are Control Bindings: D-Pad=Run Y+Dpad=Walk B=Wide slash B+Dpad=Long slash Y+B=Spin Attack A=Interact A+Dpad=Roll. Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks D-Pad Patch This patch implements non-touchscreen controls for essential actions in Legend of Zelda Spirit Tracks. Legend of zelda spirit tracks xenophobia patched rom.

3. Blade&Soul

This is another Asian MMORPG with the classical ‘Anime’ style, you cannot freely reshape the character’s structure, only pick one of the available presets and play around with the sliders to modify the whole body. Andy mckinney molly hatchet. Still, I honestly like the bright colors, the races/classes and the fact that you can actually recreate other existing characters using additional content (just like this guy did with Cloud from Final Fantasy VII).

4. BLESS Online

Yes, another Asian online title. Hey, it’s not my fault if they look so pretty! Bless is quite recent and not yet released in its final stage, but judging by how the CC works you have as much freedom as in EVE or Black Desert and the same unmistakable Fantasy touch.

5. The Sims 4

Didn’t I mention The Sims 2? Well, looks like the latest title in the series has improved quite a lot in this area. The shaping/sculpting method is here as well, considering that we finally have more possibilities I certainly won’t complain!

Note: In this video I can see the woman has a few mods installed. If you decide to get this game (or even the previous chapters) I definitely suggest you to do the same if you don’t like the default character design.

6. Fallout 4

Another recent (and quite famous) game. Apparently you can only work on the face here, but once again we see the sculpt tool in action. Even if the hair options are a bit limited you can still customize your character and create unique features playing around with your cursor.

7. Dragon Age: Inquisition

Who knows me is well aware of the fact that I am completely OBSESSED with this game, thus I couldn’t really leave it out. The hair options are definitely questionable and just like in Fallout 4 you do not have any body morph nor slider to alter, but as you can see from this video example you are still able to personalize your Inquisitor in a good way, also using real people or other characters as reference. To be honest I like some of the default presets too, if you don’t like spending two hours working on a face (I do that all the time, but I am a basket case so please ignore my madness :P), you can pick those and get a good result nonetheless.

And don’t forget about mods! 😉

8. Skyrim (The Elder Scrolls V)

This one has been around for a very long time and it remains probably the top 1 Fantasy game out there. If you’re not into mods at all and want to keep your game vanilla be sure that the overall quality is not as improved as the current generation, you can see that from the low-res hair and general textures. The reason why I’m including this CC in the list anyway is because even if old, Skyrim looks quite good compared to other games where you only get 3/4 slider options.

9. APB Reloaded

The last game I’d like to mention (and I literally just discovered it) is this not so new title which has a kick-ass Character Creator. Not only it shows some quality graphics there, but the level of customization is unbelievable! You can make hair shorter, beards longer, create beautiful tattoos (and place or rotate them wherever you want!), add patterns to clothes and even get your personal car! 😀

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There are of course many other games with a Character Creator, but they all seem pretty similar or not good enough to be mentioned in my list.

What do you think about these? Let me know with a comment if you like!

Those late-night multiplayer sessions can be really fun sometimes. Surely, everything is better with friends, they say and you’ll agree with that at some point. However, after a long day of work and studying, I like to relax with offline games. Sometimes, it’s satisfying to let yourself indulge in a great single-player story and forget about any problems bothering you. So, if you are like me, then welcome to the club! Below is my list of 20 best offline games for PC and I hope you’ll enjoy them.

1. The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

W2k16 pc download. Well, you’ve guessed it! The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt takes first place on the list with its epic setting, characters, gameplay, and those breathtaking visuals! It’s a compelling game that will offer you more than a hundred hours of non-filler gameplay, and there’s always something to explore. The game looks amazing, and the combat system is great. This open-world title is everything you need on your free days! Combine that with the great RPG elements and fun dialogues with NPCs, and you got yourself a pretty good offline game! Go and play it now, it’s a must-play.

2. Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus

Wolfenstein series has been once again revived with Wolfenstein 2: The New Colossus. The positive reviews flashed all around the globe, and this game quickly became one of the best shooting games of 2017. B.J Blazkowicz is such a badass protagonist and the characters surrounding the game are interesting. You’ll quickly start to care about each and every one of them, making this game a worthy offline title. Bethesda said that they won’t be focusing on multiplayer, so they can bring an immersive single-player experience. Well, you nailed it, Bethesda; great job!

3. The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim

Bethesda is one of my favorite companies when it comes to gaming, at least they were a few years back. A few years back, this masterpiece called The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was released and it took the Earth by storm! This offline open-world title offers hundreds of hours of exploration and you’ll probably never get bored of it! The combat system might be dated, but it’s damn fun to play and explore every corner of the game. After six years since its release, I’m still eager to give Skyrim another go. It’s that great!

4. Fallout 4

Games With Character Customization Pc

Fallout 4 is one of those top offline games that you either like or dislike. It’s a great single-player experience, as you explore a huge world of fictional city Commonwealth. I mean, the story here is scattered here and there, and our protagonist is in search of his abducted son. However, the game often steers away from that and let you have some freedom and exploration. It’s a fantastic reboot of the series, and it’s surely the best game in the franchise. If you are up for that Stalker-ish feeling, then give this a try!

5. Hitman (2016)

Hitman isn’t a strictly offline game, but I included it because it has a great single-player campaign. While the previous entry in the series Hitman: Absolution relied more on linear, claustrophobic, and confined experience, Hitman (2016) went in a different direction. Here, you’ll experience a vast, open-world with lots of stuff to do. The levels are not that numerous, but they are as big as hell! You can complete your missions in various ways and earn certain rewards and points for doing so. Hitman is a challenging stealth experience, but once Agent 47crawls under your skin, there’s no going back!

Steam Games With Character Creation

6. Nioh

Nioh is a less-known offline game released this year, and I feel like this game is very underrated. It’s a child of Dark Souls and Bloodborne series, which can tell you much about this game. It has a single, crushing, and unforgiving difficulty that will leave you begging for mercy. It’s hard, and you’ll need some blazing fast reflexes and huge gaming skills to finish it. There are more than twenty bosses in the game, and every single boss will kick your ass! Don’t expect to finish this game in a few days; you’ll need weeks to finish it and it will be painfully slow as the bosses shame you every little time… you helpless gamer!

7. Nier: Automata

Another underrated game – Nier: Automata. How could the gaming community overlook this game? Are you blind, or what? This game offers thirty hours of a pure, refined, and amazing experience! It’s a hack-and-slash title that mergers several genres with it. The open world in this game is huge, and the post-apocalyptic environment looks depressing and feels like a void. Nier also introduces RPG elements so you can now level yourself up, upgrade weapons, buy stuff, etc. On top of that, there are some 2D sections that feel like a great platformer, and that’ very unique! Nier: Automata is better than most AAA titles and costs double the less of that price, which is one more reason to get it.

8. Dark Souls 3

Dark Souls series got a fantastic reboot with Dark Souls 3. Just if it wasn’t enough for the previous games in the series, and now we got this punishing game. What can I say? Prepare to die a LOT in this game, as it’s created to kill you. I’m not joking, the whole game is against you, and you can’t do anything about that except fight like a lunatic. Even when you die, the enemies around you respawn and you must fight again and again, which is really frustrating. However, if you have the balls to play it, and manage to finish it, then you deserve a medal, Sir!

9. Bioshock Infinite

Bioshock Infinite is the newest installment in the Bioshock series. This cheap game can give you a huge value for your buck, especially when the Holidays come. I mean, for just a couple of bucks, you can get a fantastic FPS game, which campaign isn’t short and definitely isn’t boring! Bioshock Infinite continues its tradition with great shooting mechanics, various powerups, and that fast-paced shooting in a beautiful environment of the game. Get ready to cause mayhem!

10. Alien: Isolation

Alien: Isolation is that PC offline game that will haunt your dreams every time you try to sleep. It’s a horror game in which you try to stay in one piece and escape that damn space station called Sevastopol. Sounds similar? Well, that’s because the game is based on Alien (1979) movie, which was a very disturbing experience at the time. It’s an intense game that makes your palms sweat and your heart beating so fast that you’ll think it’s gonna come out of your chest! Try this horror if you dare, and watch yourself getting swallowed by the Alien, in a single bite!

11. Far Cry Primal

Elephants are cool, but mammoths are so badass! In Far Cry Primal, you can hunt mammoths and even ride them when you get to higher levels! How cool are you from zero to riding a mammoth? This beautiful-looking game is set 10,000 years BC and no, you aren’t going to shoot guns, but bash the hell out of your enemies. The arsenal of weapons might not be that huge, but the combat is great and requires more thinking, as the enemies are sometimes overwhelming and can easily kill you. If you have the luck to tame a sabertooth tiger, you may survive in this harsh world!

12. Resident Evil 7: Biohazard

There is something special about that claustrophobic feeling, especially when it comes to horror games that you can play without internet. That sense of dread and despair when you don’t have much space to move is priceless. Don’t think of me as a psycho, but I LOVE the horror genre! RE7: Biohazard is a game that caught my attention as soon as it was released. This bad boy will provide you with a horrific experience that will leave you scared to death! As the game plays from the first-person perspective, it’s much easier to get yourself immersed, but also scared.

13. Outlast 2

Outlast 2 is yet another offline horror experience, where the developers decided to leave your powerless. There aren’t weapons for you to use, and surely no means to defend yourself. So, what are you left with? Well, a camera and a journal should do the trick! The game does a damn fine job of melding the horror and the dread with stealth and great storytelling. In the end, you may feel a little let down by the ending, but I know you’ll enjoy it until the very end.

14. Dead Space 3

Cat et 2015a factory password generator. While the past games in the series focused more on that horror experience, Dead Space 3 is more of an action-horror game. Sure, there are Necromorphs and they are vicious and all, but the action part is more prominent. Needless to say that Dead Space 3 is an amazing game and I’m very sad that Visceral Games is closed by EA in October. This survival horror game is hugely underrated, but it’s awesome and I recommend you to play it. It’s just a couple of bucks for this experience, don’t be a niggard!

15. Portal 2

There’s something awesome when it comes to Source Engine. The games made with this engine looks amazing, yet they run smoothly. How did Valve manage to do that? Well, as I am not a game developer, don’t ask me! But ask me about Portal 2, which is Valve’s magnum opus, and a compelling puzzle game. The whole point of the game is to use a Portal gun in order to create portals and pass through them. However, the game isn’t that simple and requires some brain skill to finish it. Grab your Portal Gun, and let’s go on a venture!

16. Limbo

This 2D game is straight-up terrifying, dark, and misanthropic from the start to finish! In Limbo, you are a little boy that needs to survive this colorless world of the game as he overcomes various obstacles and escape scary monsters. I like the game’s artwork and the atmosphere is simply top-notch here if you like the dark ambient in the games. It’s a must-play for every offline Indie games lover!

17. S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat

Speaking of the atmosphere, very few great offline games can replicate the atmosphere as it is in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat. That post-apocalyptic atmosphere of Pripyat looks great, and the game isn’t colorful, which is the whole point. Everything has that grey-ish tint, as this town suffered greatly when the Nuclear Powerplant in that area exploded. It’s based on a real-life event that occurred around 1989, which gives the game a certain weight and meaning.

18. Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

With MGSV: The Phantom Pain, Hideo Kojima proved that he still has what it takes to create such immersive PC games without internet. This stealth game is challenging and full of stuff to do, due to its open-world nature. The characters are badass and the game feels somewhat dark, with a very serious tone. Oh, and not to forget that plot twist at the end that’s worth those thirty hours I’ve spent on this game!

19. SOMA

Horror fans will be pleased that I mentioned another horror title here. SOMA is an absolutely spooky and nerve-wracking experience! It creates that atmosphere that’s very unique, and with the story being told in the shape of various documents scattered through the game, it’s even more badass! You are all alone here and you’ll fight for your life, only to find out that you aren’t actually alive! A truly wonderful offline game for Windows.

20. Superhot

Superhot is a cartoonish-looking offline game that revolves around time. To make it simple, the time in the game moves when you move, so if you are standing still, nothing will happen. Vice Versa, if you are moving and shooting, then the enemies will do the same. It’s a lot of fun, but a lot of challenges too. I played it with some of my favorite death metal albums, just to ensure that I’m hardcore enough to beat it!

As we are approaching near the end of our journey through the offline PC games, I’m here to ask you a question. What is your favorite offline game for PC? I tried my best to count some of my favorite offline games, and although I’m maybe going to start a war for not including some of the games, I stand behind my words. Oh, and why don’t you tell me what game did I miss? Do you have any favorites besides these 20 games? Please, let me know, and don’t forget to do some gaming today!

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kinsie · 7 years

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Where Did All The Modmakers Go?

Image Credit: Walter Marino

On the PC platform, now perhaps more than ever, releasing mod tools for your game is a pretty damn good way to win hearts and minds. Bethesda’s ongoing Elder Scrolls and Fallout franchises make their name and many of their sales on their obscene levels of user-generated content (and, let’s be honest here, the levels of obscene user-generated content…) to the point where many people half-jokingly claim that the fanbase often finishes the games for the colossal publisher through “Unofficial Patch” bugfix mods. 2K’s XCOM 2 responded to the horrifying and hacky methods (likened by the original developers to sadomasochism) used by fanatical fans to modify the first game by releasing full-featured tools and contracting modders to produce high-quality sample content. And of course, the original Doom continues to be an ever-flowing tap of new content decades after its release.

But just as apparent as mod support is a lack of mod support. When EA DICE, who openly took great inspiration from Battlefield 1942’s legendary Desert Combat mod for future games in the franchise, dropped mod support, it raised more than a few eyebrows, and when Doom 2016 elected to include simple, multiplatform in-engine tools instead of the more traditional external level editors that defined the series, it confounded many… especially in the face of its precursor’s legacy.

DICE famously dropped mod support with the transition to Frostbite. Image Credit: Electronic Arts

Now, official tools aren’t exactly necessary in this day and age. There’s an eager army of hackers and reverse-engineering enthusiasts out there eager to document file formats, build powerful tools and generally blur the lines between demonstrations of technological prowess and middle-fingers towards copyright law… but try as they might, they typically won’t be able to match the capabilities possible with an officially-supported solution that doesn’t have to reinvent every wheel just to get Polygon One into the engine.

It’s not uncommon in the circles I tend to frequent for people to curse the lack of modding tools for modern games, and to frequently blame the lack of such tools on the grim spectre of DLC. Why, after all, would somebody buy a Horse Butt Helmet add-on when they could download a Realistic Lore-Friendly Immersive Ultra-Ultra-HD Anatomically Correct-Horse Butt Helmet mod for free? Personally, I don’t buy that as a reason, and it goes back to the examples listed at the top of this article – Elder Scrolls, Fallout and XCOM 2.

CapnBubs Accessory Pack, an example of a high-quality mod for XCOM 2.

These three games have plentiful DLC on top of their mod support, and in many cases mods develop around individual DLCs, augmenting their feature-set and content, creating something of a self-feeding ecosystem where DLC doubles as a pile of new functionality and professionally-made assets for the code-oriented to play with. And they aren’t the only ones that share this weird relationship with their player base. They’re just the most prominent examples.

So, if the obvious strawman answer is wrong, what’s the real reason? Well, there isn’t really one true overriding thing we can all point our fingers and scream angrily at like Donald Pleasance, it’s generally a combination of several smaller factors…

Internal Affairs

The development of a modern videogame is ridiculously complex in this day and age. It’s practically like gluing a Pixar movie to a suite of business software, with small armies of experts in different fields applying their crafts. Often from all over the world, once multiple studios and international outsourcing come into the picture.

Yes, that is half an hour of credits. Well, more like 25 minutes once you cut the ending out. Point being, lots of people work on this stuff.

This necessitates a strong online network for version-control, documentation and communication, and in many cases internal development tools are deeply tied into this system. You can even see this in some mod-friendly engines – try saving a new particle system in the Source Engine, and it’ll scream at you to check your work into Valve’s internal (and obviously inaccessible) subversion repo. In many cases, untangling the tools from their hardwired networks would require a titanic amount of effort, which leads me to the second common reason…

Time is Money

Even in situations where development tools aren’t attached by an array of wires and cables to a sinister-looking wall of internal servers like that one bit in Ghost in the Shell, the tools are rarely ready to just throw into a zip file and kick onto public web hosting. Documentation needs to be either written or revised to work with the assumption that you can’t just walk down to an engineer’s desk and ask them how something should be done. In many cases, the toolset will also have huge bugs or missing pieces that would internally be dealt with by grabbing the responsible programmer or just… not clicking those buttons.

Doctor, it hurts when I do this. Image Credit: Running with Scissors

These holes and cracks need to be patched up before a public release, and it’s not a task that’ll do itself. Resources (which is a gross business-y way of saying “living breathing human beings and their accompanying salaries”) need to be assigned to the task, when there is often more immediately pressing tasks that need doing, like urgent patches for launch-day issues or commencing work on post-release content (whether that be free, DLC, microtransaction or some fucked up Voltron-esque amalgamation of the three), and a limited amount of time in the day to get things done.

Loathsome Licensing

Many games these days typically license out third-party materials – middleware, fonts, etc. etc. – that are typically developed by companies that don’t want the keys to their kingdom handed out to XxGoKuFaRtZ_69xX. You might know them by that legion of context-less logos you futilely try to skip every time you start a modern game, mindlessly tapping away at the A button with one hand while grabbing a drink and making a sandwich with the other.

OH MY GOD I DON’T CARE Image Credit: Bethesda/Id Software/Sabre Interactive/et al.

As a result, the tools and resources provided by these licensors typically need to be stripped out from a public release, and in an increasingly large number of cases this simply isn’t possible – middleware often encompasses such huge chunks of a level creation process as lighting and optimisation, things that can’t be removed without either compromising the results of modding (Nobody likes fullbright lighting. Nobody!) or rewriting that system completely... which misses the point of licensing something out to do it in the first place!

And of course, font licensing is an incredibly serious business where distributing things in even the most slightly incorrect manner will result in you getting fined a small African nation’s GDP and sent off to that endless, sanity-consuming white void that people like to take photos in for some fucked up reason. It’s a really touchy subject and in many cases, discretion is the better part of not getting lawyered to shit for letting a 13-year-old get their hands on Helvetica Neue without paying thousands for the privilege

One such portal, shortly before claiming another victim.

Reality

Looking back at this, it’s a sad state of affairs. Mod support is entering a strange state, where less and less games and engines support it by default, but more and more people are circling their wagons around those games. It’s coming to a point where some franchises, like the aforementioned Elder Scrolls, are defined and differentiated from competitors purely by how much they can be stretched and distorted by random internet people.

It’s a bizarre situation, made stranger by how some game and engine developers, made strong by past modding support, have changed their tune over the last few years… but that’s a spittle-riddled rant for another time.

#gaming #modding #gamedev #long-form

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idlemusingsofalex-blog · 7 years

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Fallout 4, A game critique

An amusing critique of Fallout 4 and Bethesda as a whole, as written for entertainment purposes, a foray into nostalgia and because of a college deadline that almost killed me.

Fallout 4 is a Lie, and this is why you should be mad.

Fallout 4, the acclaimed 2016 release of Bethesda studios, was a popular game upon its release, selling 12 million units on its first launch day. But don’t let the numbers mislead you, Fallout 4 is intrinsically a cheap lie to consumers, players and the franchise itself.

Let’s start at the beginning. Fallout, the core game, classifies itself as an Adventure RPG and harkens back to the days of tabletop RPG’s like Dungeons and Dragons, specifically a variant known as G.U. R.P.S, and is a creative DOS adventure created by Interplay and Black Isle Studios in which you can use many skills to determine your own path through the Wasteland. Fallout 2 follows much the same mechanic, though set about two decades after the first game. Around the time of development for a third game from Interplay, the cancelled Project : Van Buren, Interplay went bankrupt due to bad business practice, and sold all rights of the game franchise to what is now Bethesda Studios. Years passed until, what can only be described as Bethesda’s game devs sitting at a table thinking “we can’t make another goddamn Elder Scrolls game, what do we do?”. They get an intern to dig through what I hope is the proverbial dumpster of rights deals Bethesda had made and found the small gem of Fallout.

From this, we can see Fallout 3, a failure in its own right, much less for the franchise, emerge. Amidst the cries of praise from paid off reviewers (this was when this was legal, and usually not frowned upon), you could hear the dissent of fans watching their loved franchise devolve into a hellspawn of first person shooter and RPG, with callous writing and boring plotlines at best (don’t even begin to talk about the issues with core game mechanics either, because any reviewer worth their salt would probably hit you).

But, somehow, possibly from the hype surrounding the astoundingly good trailers which were accelerated well beyond what normal consoles and machines could handle at the time, they made enough money from that steaming garbage dump to scrape together a “sequel”, and I say sequel because Fallout 3 changes so much of the 20 years of established lore that calling it a sequel to even Fallout in general is a reach. With its overpriced at release DLC, not to mention the base game itself, littered with pre order “exclusives” and being such a buggy mess on certain platforms that it was rendered unplayable, Fallout 3 set the low standards that Bethesda continues to follow, even to this day.

Now of course, the engine itself is more or less sound. It is, of course an updated form of the Skyrim engine, known as the CREATION Engine, and its physics are about what you’d expect from a Bethesda game. Not unplayable but buggy nonetheless, events not triggering, textures incorrectly loading, entire system crash when all you did was move three inches to the left. Truly, a game engine couldn't be that hard for a major company to nail down. But oh, Bethesda is so synonymous with game engine failure that the internet has coined it’s own saying, the Bethesda Bug, in which a bug or glitch in a game is so bad that a player is unable to tell whether the game was bugged, or whether developers simply hadn’t implemented certain parts of the storyline.

Now, this wouldn't be such an issue, you’d think, right? And in truth it wouldn't.

If they bothered to patched the game after releases.

We’ll cover that further on.

It’s particularly telling, of course when both of the most downloaded modifications for your third and fourth installments to a series is an alternative start ability to the game, which allows you to completely bypass the pretty much set in stone character “creation” introduction, which basically sets your entire character's backstory (something that in its own self destroys the player control aspect). When your customers have to resort to MODIFYING THE CORE GAME, and I don't mean implementing a few graphics fixes, which they do anyway because Bethesda has a wonderful knack of never patching bugs in their games ever, and genuinely leaving it up to their fanbases -who already paid up to £60 for a completed game-, but instead scripting and voicing full alternatives to the main storyline and plot hook to turn the game into a semblance of an RPG, you’ve failed to create a game worth playing. This is made much more insulting when your main mantra is “It’s all about player choice”.

In regards to that choice, we are offered very, very little when it comes to the overall storyline and plot. The first major sin of poor writing is almost blase, and that is the game insists on piling exposition on you as soon as you start it up, with a narrated mini movie explaining the events leading up to the game’s events. To be fair, this is a staple in Fallout games, and it’s namely the way every previous fallout game has indeed started. Except, in those games, they changed depending on the title, none went into excruciating detail of the world, namely gave a short introduction to the world as it is, and where you begin, allowing the player to begin building an immersive character will some

The Fallout 4 opening does none of this. It instead asserts that you, the player, has the backstory of being a male veteran of the war that results in the Apocalypse, taking leave incidentally before the bombs fall to spent time with his wife and newborn child.

I’d like to remind you this is supposed to be a Role Playing Game.

In only 5 minutes, the game has locked you out from your own character, telling you that this is not an RPG, this is a shooter with poor story hooks and a half baked plot. The game then moves on to the character creation, arbitrary, allowing you to set how you want your character to look, name them and set traits and-

Oh wait, that's right.

There are no traits. No skills either. Something that has remained at the very forefront of Fallout’s past lauded character creation. No, now everything is determined by basic points in each S.P.E.C.I.A.L Category, that is Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility and Luck. These set points determined how a character interacted with the world around them, but also imparted certain inborn traits such as higher speech skills, barter, gunmanship and so on. With Fallout 4, this is dumbed down to practical stupidity, and unfortunately renders the nuanced creation destroyed, something that has been a mainstay and in fact a reason the franchise became popular in the first place

But, I digress, while the world of Fallout 4 (and it’s interlinking stories tying into Fallout 3) is made well, saying it is a fallout game is practically unsubstantiated. It feels like a sham, a game made without the franchise’s core aspects, a skin thrown onto a generic game to appeal to nostalgic gamers. The storylines lack the genuine emotional value and investment players can input, and tells a story, rather than letting experienced players create their own, something that has been a major point to the success of previous titles. Fallout 1 and 2 had such fantastic writing that it seemed almost natural, plot movement wasn’t nearly as dependent on long exposition or explanation in game, it simply flowed because those working on it did not know whether it would sell well, all they knew was that they wanted to make a finely crafted game, regardless of units sold. Todd Howard, the head of development in those days, had essentially turned to his investors and said “Give me all this money to gamble on a game that we’ve been working on for months” and, to quote himself, “It just worked.” Namely, this is a wonderful example of the Zeitgeist of Bethesda in those times, during which quality games were produced and placed the developer into the forefront of video game development. While people cannot deny they have made some definitive games of a generation, a good example being Morrowind. Bethesda used to set the standard, be the one entrepreneurs would aspire to be, to work for, to succeed.

Nowadays, Bethesda doesn't need investors, it has its own budget, it’s own productions, and as a result have found that if they continue to vaguely lie to their players, take out content and resell it, build up a hype train so wild they crash their own website on launch day, then they can continue to beat that dead horse, so long as it keeps spitting out money.

#fallout 4 #fallout #video games #writers on tumblr

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hoffman23nunez-blog · 5 years

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The Honest to Goodness Truth on Fallout 76

You only construct the remaining part of the armor yourself. Majestic, fantastical visuals of different worlds ought to be offered in the maximum quality possible and on the greatest screen possible. Since you may see, different perks enable your character to develop in various directions. The Benefits of Fallout 76 Frustrated network marketers, either stagnant in their existing company or simply between opportunities are going to be your ideal MLM prospect. Building leaderships skills and learning how to foster positive relationships and environments is important prior to making an announcement that's potentially inflammatory. People took the opportunity to play out each of the different outcomes. New Questions About Fallout 76 There is an important negative effect on the nervous and immune systems that cause a decline in the human body's capacity to resist infections. When you become anxious you're processing your brain to react a specific way. 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Fallout 76 isn't great for much, but it's giving gamers one more opportunity to learn a valuable lesson. Bethesda explained that problem players will be taken out from the game. New players also won't be as pleased with the world-building, largely since they don't understand how to experience it. Now the game is all about to acquire real! You can't even depend on the play station website to secure you the deals that you're looking for. Major box stores have many to select from. You've got to look for the Responders HQ Terminal and use it in order to learn what happened to the airport. Online dating will happen, and it's going to be stupid. When you're much less happy in love or your heart was broken the world can look as a gloom and doom type of place. It is sometimes a risky build since you can't have an opportunity at dying more often but it's definitely powerful. The quick version is that you will need to first preorder the game, and locate the redemption code on your receipt or email confirmation. You go to receive your stuff to leave. The room has a slew of items apparently each and every item in the game including the most effective stuff alongside some goodies that haven't even arrived in Fallout 76 yet. Characteristics of Fallout 76 It's much better to devote a couple of minutes at pre-determined intervals to be certain you're on target than to get into an OMG situation where you are operating around like a crazy person hoping to locate and recreate the information for the report. Turns out that there's a fantastic reason for it. You have to make your time productive so that you don't suffer from a panic attack. The Truth About Fallout 76 At the close of each break there's a tearful reunion. Fans can play the game by means of a beta that has been revealed to begin in October, only one month prior to launch. Before you choose to up and move your Camp, you are going to want to be certain you can rebuild it quickly. The extra security of a stronger loan and collateral makes it simpler for banks and investors to manage the fixed rate loans. Before the Report Before you commence preparing the report there are a few actions that won't only create the report preparation easier, they'll also enhance the caliber of your reports. If you've got the money it's a great investment. Screen size is an important change, also. You are frightened to go home. Details abound and it's wearable, so it's phenomenal for both display and cosplay. There is an entire host of characters in Fallout 3, and we are going to look at a couple of the most memorable. Others argued that people were less inclined to want to utilize Bethesda's network, as it would be an entirely various launcher for individuals to download and continue to update. For a single pro I definitely enjoy the simple fact that it's readily available for the PC, another pro would need to be the wonderful storyline and graphics, also if you're an extreme gamer you will without a doubt enjoy how challenging Dead Money DLC can be. If you've got to much trouble with certain elements of the game it's possible to refer to the game walkthrough for additional ideas and information. Presently, official details on the approaching game continue to be slim. When it might look like it is a neat approach to receive early access to Fallout 76, the beta is sure to have some leftover issues, too. The Pain of Fallout 76 Divorce is a trying time for a whole family. At precisely the same time, my husband had always made it very clear that cheating wasn't something he'd tolerate. First off, it's necessary for you to retain decent karma. There are additional people. Regardless, the simple fact that Bethesda is banning people for actions linked to Fallout 76's developer room usually means that we're not likely to share how to go into the room or encourage everyone to look for that information out unless they are ready to address the consequences. There's never likely to be a great time to lose your work and various folks will handle the news in various ways but that doesn't escape the fact that the majority of individuals are likely to be upset to a greater or lesser extent. Whispered Fallout 76 Secrets

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scentedstudio · 7 years

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Lately we’ve had many clients that are coming from further and further away in search of creating a new and amazing fragrance either for themselves or to sell.

It is so satisfying to know that every single one of these people left extremely happy with their fragrance enough to reach out and let the world know. This is our biggest compliment and we want to say THANK YOU SO MUCH for the awesome feedback!

We work hard to create a comfortable environment where anyone can come in and create a fragrance they absolutely love. This is why we’re so grateful to those who have made their way from much further away to come in or experience the beauty of Scented Studio online.

Here are a few awesome clients we’ve met recently that have responded to their fun and unique visit.

Kris R. from Las Vegas, Nevada is a jazz singer currently building her very own fragrance line that is inspired by her music. She created a fragrance based off of our custom online questionnaire. She Says “It’s so beautiful, I love it so much! My new favorite fragrance”

Claire S. from Bethesda, Maryland sent in reed diffuser sticks of a discontinued fragrance to be recreated into a hand & body lotion she can now use everyday!

“It’s Perfect...Exactly what I was looking for!”

Dmitri S. from Pennsylvania was here for a visit and ended up leaving with a box full of gifts for the family.

“I was trying to find something cool to bring back home, but couldn’t find anything worth buying. So glad I found this place! I even got myself some Body Whip, too!”

We’ve also had 5 groups this month that have come into town for a Bachelorette celebration, and they’ve chosen us to host them and help create fun & new fragrances as part of their bachelorette extravaganza weekend. One client even came out from Arizona for 2 days to explore our selection!!!

“I had a bridal shower for my bestie and it was awesomeness. I loved the intimate setting. We really enjoyed ourselves great staff. Definitely worth it” - From Kristy P.

Our most recent visit was from a gentleman named Dan F. here in Colorado. Over the course of three days, he came to our store excited to explore all of our fragrances, and create a scent that has the right amount of depth and playfulness.

We wanted to take this moment to highlight this review from Dan, one of many reviews we have gotten this last year.

“Hello Fragrance Fanatics!

I wanted to give you all a breakdown of this awesome place I discovered recently in Denver, Colorado.

It is called Scented Studio

I know that Scented Studio offers a bunch of fun services related to scent. I am not writing this as an advertisement, nor can I really speak intelligently about all of their services, so I will just add the URL here if anyone is interested.

http://www.scentedstudio.com/

Personally, I took part in their One-On-One Signature Perfume or Cologne Experience and I have to say, it was a real VIP experience!

Here are some details from the site related to my experience, and then I will give you my perspective, as well as a review of the fragrance, I created working alongside fragrance specialist Sasha Spitaleri.

• You’ll get one-on-one attention from your very own fragrance specialist

• You’ll customize your very own signature scent at our Oil Table

• You’ll be able to choose from more than 500 fragrant oils and essential oils

• We only use high quality fragrant oils and essential oils

• Our products are free of parabens, sulfates, and and are never tested on animals

• All of our ingredients are made in the USA, with the exception of our beautiful Italian glass bottles

----------------

Now that I have given a bit of an introduction, I want to paint the picture of my experience, as well as the fragrance that was the end result.

I actually arrived without expectation from a google map search in which I was trying to expand my awareness of any boutiques or shops that might sell niche and/or indie perfumes in my city. (Maybe some of you are like me, it’s all about the adventure and the hunt!)

Upon arrival to Scented Studio, I was welcomed by a few SAs to a cozy shop lined with soaps and fragrances on shelves. I was asked how I heard about it, and since I hadn't really, I told them how I came to find them. Through a series of questions, it quick to realize that I was in the company of genuine fragrance enthusiasts like myself. I'm a bit of a collector, and so when they realized that I was not on the hunt for a certain type of fragrance that I like the most, they introduced me to the "Scent Table."

This where the fun really begins. I know there are places like this online, and I know that some of the larger market cities have this experience, but to find it here in Denver, and at this quality, and selection of oils is a real treat!

To say that my introduction to the scent table was overwhelming is a bit of an understatement. There are hundreds of all of our favorite notes organized by category and type, as well as by essential oil and premixed accords. I started by picking out notes I love and was amazed to find how many were represented in multiple with slight variation. There were fruits and flowers, woods and spice, musk's, vanillas, and tonkas, and really anything you could think to want.

My fragrance specialist, Sasha, who has given me permission to list her by name, was an absolute treasure! A side from being a true professional and steward of the shop she is working for, she also has her own "lab" at home where she is constantly perfecting her own obsessions. She helped me to stay organized in thought and to not feel buried in the possibilities, but to start with 2 things that I was feeling that day and work on connecting them to each other to find their preferred proportions.

I was probably slower than some, but I had wanted to step away from the creation. She wrote down some formula outlines, so we could pick up where we left off the following week. I returned with a plan of approach for a few notes I thought necessary, and she even had been really hoping I would change my mind about a specific fruit I kept trying to force into the mix. She was definitely right, and we eventually came up with something I find truly beautiful.

I love that the formula stays in their database (under a name I picked) in case I'd like to reorder, or even change it a little, they will accommodate.

My custom one-of-a-kind fragrance was composed using:

Bergamot

Cedarwood

Sandalwood

Black Pepper

Jasmine

Nutmeg

Cantaloupe

Oakmoss

Lavender

Apricot

Formula strengths are of course my little secret, ha!

Once again a shout out to Sasha for her education and consult through every step in the process, you really helped me make an item that I love! I have already received multiple unsolicited compliments.

Just a side note, I can even return and have this scent added to bar soaps, body wash, lotions, and so many other luxurious applications!

I hope you enjoyed reading of my experience, and if you're in the area or traveling to Denver, I highly recommend you check them out!

Thanks for reading.

PianoDan”

- Dan, basenotes

You can find this review with this link: http://www.basenotes.net/entries/12619-Scented-Studio-Denver?referrerid=26217650

Thank you so much for all of these amazing reviews! We hope you will take these into consideration when coming to our store, or on your search for your next favorite fragrance!

Please Share, Like, Comment, and Follow us on Social Media

@scentedstudio

#blog #review #testimonial #custom #scentedstudio #customerservice #happy

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symbianosgames · 7 years

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In recent years, the annual E3 trade show, has increasingly been overshadowed by the press conferences that precede it. Sony, Nintendo, and Microsoft have traditionally used the venue to crow about their sales and business successes, and unveil their latest offerings via live [or seemingly live] demos with game designers.

But that's all changing now. Boring corporate biz speak is now reserved for quarterly reports, and live demos are increasingly being supplanted by prerecorded material. Celebrities guests and superstar presenters are on the wane, and influencers from the esports and livestream scene are on the rise.

As we watched the press conferences this year, Gamasutra staff exchanged emails about what these changes might mean for developers. (You should also tune in for Gamasutra's Twitch livestream on Thursday at 3pm EDT, in which we'll discuss our reactions to the conference.)

Chris Baker (@chrisbaker1337), assignment editor: Hi everybody! I've put in my time at E3 over the years. I was there for Sony's stunningly successful PS4 unveiling in 2014, and the stunning debacle of the PS3 unveiling in 2006. I've seen surprise game reveals and surprise guest appearances. (Muhammad Ali! Paul and RIngo! Gaben!)

But this year, I watched the precedings from my couch, for the most part. (I saw the Microsoft press conference on my phone while I did laundry.) It seems clear that the nature and purpose of these events are shifting. The Microsoft press conference was chockablock with interesting games, but it was essentially a series of trailers and Let's Play videos.

I think there are a couple of things going on here. One, of course, is that there's less of an emphasis every year on the people in the room, and more of an emphasis on the global streaming audience. Two, I think there's an effort to limit banter and live demos, since every flub and glitch has the potential to be endlessly memed and GIFed.

I'm writing this on Monday, morning, catching up on clips from the Bethesda conference that I missed. So far, I thought the Sea of Thieves demo at the Microsoft press conference was particularly interesting, firstly because there was a lot more graphics and a lot more game there than the last time we saw it, but also because it was presented as a sort of hybrid trailer and Let's Play, with a voiceover narration accompanying lengthy chunks of what looked like actual gameplay footage. Last year, they did a formal trailer and then a more Twitch-like gameplay reveal. I thought this year's fusion of the two was far more successful.

[embedded content] Sea of Thieves gameplay walkthrough

Bryant Francis (@RBryant2012), contributing editor: Sending this on Monday afternoon, caught up on all conferences except obviously Sony.

"I hope this means that developers get to spend less time on E3 vertical slices.

I agree with Chris that everyone seems to be following Sony’s lead from last year of trying to keep these things as trailer-focused as possible. Ubisoft’s the only developer to not greatly change their flow (dropping Aisha Tyler is notable I guess), but everyone seems to have caught the message that for marketing purposes, pre-recorded gameplay footage, or a chance to play the game on the floor, matters more than spokespeople or live gameplay, whether it’s a trailer or just a demo vehicle.

That sort of has to do with now, more than ever, these E3 conferences being “for the folks at home?” Now that they start a full four days before the expo itself (good lord) the purpose of these things isn’t to sell your game to intermediaries, it’s to sell them to the people who may go and pre-order them on the spot. I hope this means developers get to spend less time on “E3 vertical slices,” and I wonder if this makes journalists feel like they’re being edged out of the room. (Maybe that’s why they keep complaining about all the YouTubers?)

The PC game show, awkward as it can be sometimes, is turning into a surprising highlight for indie developers looking to make an impact on Steam. Finji’s managed to take the stage 2 years in a row now with interesting-looking games, and since there is a sit-down-and-talk factor, I wonder if it’s a way for game devs to start making a personal introduction to an interested audience. (Admittedly while someone is pitching Intel hardware 2 minutes later)

[embedded content] The charming Tunic, from Andrew Shouldice and Finji

Demo-wise, my two biggest hits came from the Ubisoft conference. First, the Mario/Rabbids game turning out to be an unexpected game genre was a great surprise, and as I think Alissa said on Twitter, it’s a shame that the game’s existence was leaked a while ago, otherwise seeing Shigeru Miyamoto come out on stage with Yves Guillemot would have made a bigger impact. And ironically, while everyone’s talking about ‘more gameplay, less cinematics’ at E3 this year, the Beyond Good & Evil 2 trailer absolutely rekindled my interest in that game. If you’re going to introduce your game with a CG trailer, it’s worth loading every inch of it with style and verve that’s going to make the gameplay worth waiting for.

Also while I’m at it I should say I’m super impressed with Microsoft’s announcement to take backwards compatibility all the way to the original Xbox. I’ll probably blather about this more on our livestream later this week, but I think the fact that the Xbox One X (oy) can now be sold as “it plays ALL Xbox games at their best quality” is a huge selling point for the device.

[embedded content] Beyond Good & Evil 2 announcement trailer

Alex Wawro (@awawro), news editor: My Dearest Friends,

It has been quiet here, of late. The shoutcasting has stopped. I write to you on Monday evening, not long after the latest dispatch from Sony, and I must say: E3 has changed. The lion's share of the excitement will be over soon, and after witnessing much of it from the comfort of my couch I have to say -- I like the change.

This year more than ever, it's clear that the big publishers are catching on to what many game devs already know so well: enthusiastic people (whether they be devs or YouTubers or Twitch streamers) are great vectors for advertising your game. So is PAX. And since nobody but Microsoft seems to have much of anything to talk about this year except games, it's not hugely surprising that Electronic Arts, Bethesda, Ubisoft, and Sony all stacked their E3 presentations with lots of trailers (Sony was basically back-to-back trailers, for the second year in a row) and gameplay videos.

"It's interesting that this year, indie devs had a presence at Microsoft's E3 event, but were basically absent from Sony's showcase. "

Sometimes those gameplay videos were live, sometimes they were pre-recorded, but most were introduced with minimal drama (no overwrought whinging about surveillance states, for example) and maximum enthusiasm. It was pure salesmanship, to be sure, but refreshingly open and earnest -- I noticed Ubisoft even took the time to flash a link to its online merch store multiple times throughout its show.

Microsoft stood apart a bit though, huh? I think that Xbox showcase reminds us what E3 has typically been: a place where publishers sell a vision of what they want to be in the year to come, replete with new hardware, new services, and new games from devs across the industry.

Kris also mentioned something in chat that I didn't notice right away: It's sort of interesting that this year indie devs had a presence at Microsoft's E3 event (Tacoma, The Artful Escape, Ashen, etc) but were basically absent from Sony's showcase.

That's a sharp turnabout from a few years back, when Sony made a show of embracing indie devs and promoting them as a core pillar of the PlayStation 4. Now that Sony has plenty of its own games to talk about, it looks like the company is a lot less interested in promoting indie devs on its stage. And if you're an indie dev, that doesn't seem like a great look.

Bryant Francis: Jumping in on Tuesday after the Nintendo and Sony streams.

What the heck happened to the indies at the Sony press conference last night? Has it been 48 hours yet? Do we need to file a missing persons report?

"A return to Metroid does give creedence to the theory that Nintendo isn’t as focused on the casual market anymore."

I don’t know if it’s just a case of the development cycles of Sony’s current games, but last night’s trailer reel + twitching bodyfest didn’t reveal a lot of new info about the direction of games on PlayStation. It’s possible this is one of those case where “E3 doesn’t matter the same way anymore so we’re saving these for PSX or something,” but this is the first year Sony didn’t seem to be banking on revealing a new game with an unknown release date.

I also heard from the floor that there was some confusion over why Knack 2 has been playable at the press events but didn’t show up in the press conference last night. Given our love for Sony hardware enthusiast Mark Cerny, I’m worried that game is getting hidden due to the intense online anger over the first game.

Nintendo continued the (4-days old) tradition of a short conference with a big focus today, and I admit to being extremely surprised by the revelation of Metroid Prime 4, which is being developed by a new team that’s not Retro Studios. But then a 2D Metroid Game was announced in the Treehouse session afterward?? Will 2018 (maybe 2019) be the year of Samus Aran? A return to Metroid does actually seem to be a nod to Kris’s ongoing theory that Nintendo isn’t going to deal much with the casual market anymore, since that was a series it seemed to push aside for a little while for its seeming lack of broad appeal.

(I will note another recurring trend at these conferences, which is re-announcements with more info of stuff that was very much public knowledge beforehand. Bethesda’s VR games, many of Sony’s games, Nintendo’s announcement about a ‘core’ Pokemon game for the Switch... all of this was previously announced. This conference just was where they got the marketing push.)

Kris Graft (@krisgraft), editor-in-chief: *APPEARS FROM THE BUSHES, GASPING FOR AIR. CLOTHES IN TATTERS*

Ok hey guys I’m here, I’m here. So while you all were doing laundry and watching people talk about teraflops from the comfort of your own homes, I was at E3 2017 living it. While I was there for the press conferences and pre-E3 meetings and events, I actually only stayed for the first full day of the proper expo, just so I could get a good handle on the sights – and smells – of an E3 that included 15,000 non-industry public guests. I’ll try to keep this reasonably succinct! (As a side note, this was my 11th E3.)

"Developers I spoke with noted how networking is especially difficult this year."

So, as far as the show itself, the biggest difference this year are the extra public fans wandering about. They’re easily spotted because their tags were bright yellow, and typically were the most loaded-down with free merch, sometimes wearing shirts that say “Awesome Gamer” or “Yeah, I was at E3 2017.” It’s super easy for me to get annoyed with E3 adding so many more people to an already crowded event with virtually no extra accommodations for that traffic, but…wait there is no “but.”

Really I’m not down on the fans. I am confused with what the ESA is doing here with this event. Developers I spoke with noted how networking is especially difficult this year, because you simply can’t assume that everybody is a “somebody,” and those “somebodies�� are more difficult to connect with. E3’s been going this direction for years by lowering the barrier for press accreditation, though adding so many straight-up fans into the mix only exacerbates the issue.

E3 is trying to serve two masters here: Industry and fans. It wants to be “old” industry-centric E3, and it wants to be Comic-Con. I really wonder how many more game companies, especially after this year, might pull out of the show floor because they’re (further) questioning the value proposition of E3. It’s a tricky scenario. ESA needs to maintain and grow its event business, but it seems the growth it needs can only come from increasingly angling the event toward fans, and going head-to-head with large consumer-focused events like PAX. E3 2017 is a weird an awkward transition towards that.

E3 is very crowded [Image: GameRevolution]

Ok so I spent a lot of time talking about the event itself, so I’ll just give a quick rundown of some notable E3 things:

Sony: They’re pretty much done with highlighting indies, E3 2017 confirms. That said, PolyArc, a small studio made up of ex-triple-A devs, was included in Sony’s press conference. They’re making a really nice-looking VR game called Moss, starring a mouse.

[embedded content]PolyArc's Moss

Microsoft: Obviously their big thing is Xbox One X. Price is a bit high, value proposition is shaky, but I’m not sure where else console-makers (that aren’t Nintendo) can go. We’ll see how it goes this November.

Nintendo: Metroid Metroid Metroid. I’m just glad they didn’t forget about Metroid. Also wow at some of these Super Mario Odyssey hat-possession gifs.

Bethesda: Yeah, I’m playing through Wolfenstein: The New Order again.

#IFTTT #Blogger

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symbianosgames · 7 years

Link

[embedded content] Sea of Thieves gameplay walkthrough

Bryant Francis (@RBryant2012), contributing editor: Sending this on Monday afternoon, caught up on all conferences except obviously Sony.

"I hope this means that developers get to spend less time on E3 vertical slices.

[embedded content] The charming Tunic, from Andrew Shouldice and Finji

[embedded content] Beyond Good & Evil 2 announcement trailer

Alex Wawro (@awawro), news editor: My Dearest Friends,

"It's interesting that this year, indie devs had a presence at Microsoft's E3 event, but were basically absent from Sony's showcase. "

Bryant Francis: Jumping in on Tuesday after the Nintendo and Sony streams.

What the heck happened to the indies at the Sony press conference last night? Has it been 48 hours yet? Do we need to file a missing persons report?

"A return to Metroid does give creedence to the theory that Nintendo isn’t as focused on the casual market anymore."

Kris Graft (@krisgraft), editor-in-chief: *APPEARS FROM THE BUSHES, GASPING FOR AIR. CLOTHES IN TATTERS*

"Developers I spoke with noted how networking is especially difficult this year."

Really I’m not down on the fans. I am confused with what the ESA is doing here with this event. Developers I spoke with noted how networking is especially difficult this year, because you simply can’t assume that everybody is a “somebody,” and those “somebodies” are more difficult to connect with. E3’s been going this direction for years by lowering the barrier for press accreditation, though adding so many straight-up fans into the mix only exacerbates the issue.

E3 is very crowded [Image: GameRevolution]

Ok so I spent a lot of time talking about the event itself, so I’ll just give a quick rundown of some notable E3 things:

[embedded content]PolyArc's Moss

Nintendo: Metroid Metroid Metroid. I’m just glad they didn’t forget about Metroid. Also wow at some of these Super Mario Odyssey hat-possession gifs.

Bethesda: Yeah, I’m playing through Wolfenstein: The New Order again.

#IFTTT #Blogger

0 notes

symbianosgames · 7 years

Link

The following blog post, unless otherwise noted, was written by a member of Gamasutra’s community. The thoughts and opinions expressed are those of the writer and not Gamasutra or its parent company.

[Video Game Deep Cuts is a weekly newsletter from curator/video game industry veteran Simon Carless, rounding up the best longread & standout articles & videos about games, every weekend. This week's highlights include the art behind Thimbleweed Park, the rise of RimWorld, and much, much more.

For anyone counting, this is week 31 of picks, and I'm still managing to keep up the weekly pace - primarily because my regular social media trawls during the week allow me to stack up links to post at the weekend! And this is still without regular RSS feed checking - so there's got to be a bunch more stories I'm missing. Ah well.

So much good stuff out there - and I really enjoyed some of the more esoteric stories in this week's set, including the piece on Tamagotchi collectors and the visually impaired Roguelike players. There are all kinds of unique, wonderful video game nerds under the sun, aren't there? Until next time...

- Simon, curator.]

-------------------

The Stress of Game Development - Tips for Survival (Extra Credits / YouTube) "Making games is hard. You need all kinds of technical and creative skills, but most importantly, you need to know how to manage the many kinds of stress that come with it."

Game Design Deep Dive: Watch Dogs 2's Invasion of Privacy missions (Christopher Dragert / Gamasutra) "In this article, I will describe some of the technical challenges and design decisions that drove development of the Invasion of Privacy feature in Watch Dogs 2. Areas of focus will include managing branching scenarios, motion capture challenges, controlling NPC state, maintaining dialog flow, and NPC coordination."

Video Games Aren’t Addictive (Christopher J Ferguson & Patrick Markey / New York Times) "Is video game addiction a real thing? It’s certainly common to hear parents complain that their children are “addicted” to video games. Some researchers even claim that these games are comparable to illegal drugs in terms of their influence on the brain — that they are “digital heroin” (the neuroscientist Peter C. Whybrow) or “digital pharmakeia” (the neuroscientist Andrew Doan)."

The Job Simulator Postmortem (Alex Schwartz & Devin Reimer / GDC / YouTube) "In this 2017 postmortem, Owlchemy Labs' Alexander Schwartz and Devin Reimer analyze the challenges of building, sharing, shipping, and sustaining Job Simulator on multiple platforms with examples showing both successful and less-than-successful design prototypes and how iteration led to the final product."

The Underground World of Tamagotchi Collectors (Alyssa Bereznak / The Ringer) "On October 26 of last year, a user named “psychotama” made his first entry in what would become a detailed online diary, otherwise known as a “Tama log.” “I’m not quite sure how to begin,” he wrote in purple Comic Sans. “My journey with Tamagotchi began about 13 years ago.”"

'Make me think, make me move': New Doom's deceptively simple design (Kris Graft / Gamasutra) "Doom is known for its speed and straightforwardness – move fast, shoot demons. It's a seemingly simple combination that, at the franchise’s best, evokes an ultraviolent cognitive flow. But Doom’s apparent simplicity belies a core design that is difficult to achieve."

From 'Zelda' to 'Witcher 3': Why We're Still Talking About 'Skyrim' (Alex Kane / Glixel) "How Bethesda's 2011 masterpiece – and the colossal online culture of fan art, memes, and music surrounding it – forever changed the game for fantasy RPGs."

Precious Moments, Hype and High School: A Conversation with 'Persona 5' Director Katsura Hashino (Sayem Ahmed / Waypoint) "Hashino tells me that seeing the anticipation for the game build, as previously announced street dates passed and more information on the game crept out via the press, was both "encouraging and scary.""

How Uber Uses Psychological Tricks to Push Its Drivers’ Buttons (Noam Scheiber / New York Times) "The company has undertaken an extraordinary experiment in behavioral science to subtly entice an independent work force to maximize its growth. [SIMON'S NOTE: you may have seen this, but thought it particularly interesting that GDC board member Chelsea Howe was also quoted in here re: F2P-style coercive psychology evils.]"

Why games like 'Super Mario 64' had terrible cameras (Mike Rougeau / Mashable) "The camera is the interactive window through which we experience video games; the term describes not just our perspective and view of a digital space, but the freedom of or restrictions on how we as players control that viewpoint."

A Year after Firewatch (Colin Campbell / Polygon) "With sales of more than a million copies, developer Campo Santo is now working on its next project: unannounced as yet. I sat down with writer Sean Vanaman to talk about the direction he wants to go in next, and how he feels about Firewatch one year after its launch."

Kevin Horton Is a Cryogenics Engineer Turned Retro Gaming Savior (Nicholas DeLeon / Motherboard) "By day Horton, 43, is an engineer at a cryogenics company (he's worked at the same company since high school). But online, he's better known online as Kevtris (in reference to a Tetris clone he developed in the mid-1990s), where he is the brains behind a series of critical technological breakthroughs that allow gamers to play classic video games like The Legend of Zelda and Metroid on modern televisions."

Interactive Fiction Appears at the Whitney Biennial (Chris Klimas / Interactive Fiction Technology Foundation) "The 2017 Whitney Biennial has something curious to offer fans of interactive fiction. Among the works shown this year are With Those We Love Alive and howling dogs, Twine works written by Charity Heartscape Porpentine. [SIMON'S NOTE: short article, but great news, & the linked interview is also notable.]"

From Rational to Emotional: Designs that Increase Player Retention (Jim Brown / GDC / YouTube) "In this 2017 session, Epic's Jim Brown provides specific examples of design techniques that encourage the formation of enduring emotional ties that could enhance both retention and enjoyment for players in game design."

A Brief History Of Speedrunning (Kat Brewster / ReadOnlyMemory) "A good speedrun is hypnotising to watch – this goes for ones showcased at GDQ, or the ones which get circulated around the internet for their insane jumps or cutscene skips or lightning fast movement. They’re a dizzying show of hard won skill and palpable effort. The video of a world record time which knocks an hours-long campaign into minutes can be jaw-dropping."

In Their War With The Wall Street Journal, Top YouTubers Just Played Themselves (Patricia Hernandez / Kotaku) "Over the last couple of weeks, anger has been bubbling on YouTube over the news that major brands pulled advertisements on the platform in an effort to avoid being matched with objectionable content. The reports, which were published by the Wall Street Journal, were met with such skepticism that they sparked scandalous conspiracy theories among YouTube’s top creators."

After tragedy strikes, a dev's friends strive to complete his game (Chris Priestman / Gamasutra) "Former Harmonix programmer Roger Morash had been working on his passion project, a co-op platformer called Shard, for years before he died in January of this year. "

Inside the Shady World of PlayStation Network Account Resellers (Patrick Klepek / Waypoint) "A few weeks ago, Mic Fok got a weird email. The person writing it claimed they'd been playing Overwatch on a PlayStation Network account for more than six months, but the password had changed recently. But why would Fok know anything about this random dude's account?"

(Not) a Thimbleweed Park review (Matej Jan / Retronator) "Thimbleweed Park started as a spiritual successor to Maniac Mansion and Monkey Island. “It’s like opening a dusty old desk drawer and finding an undiscovered LucasArts adventure game you’ve never played before.” [SIMON'S NOTE: mainly linking this for the amaaazing vintage Mark Ferrari art linked within, tho the whole thing is cute!]"

Playing roguelikes when you can’t see (Kent Sutherland / RockPaperShotgun) "For most of us, traditional roguelikes are intrinsically inaccessible. They’re notoriously difficult, their design is complicated and often opaque, they can have more hotkeys than there are keys on the keyboard, and their ASCII-based visuals mean that it’s often unclear what’s happening on the screen. It’s these exact qualities, however, that ironically make roguelikes accessible and even appealing to blind or low-sight players."

The Game Beat Weekly: Digital Foundry and Microsoft make it "exclusive" (Kyle Orland / Tinyletter) "That kind of server-melting traffic shows why it would have been somewhat crazy for Eurogamer to turn down Microsoft's invitation to see Scorpio up close at their Redmond headquarters last week. But agreeing to an exclusive of this magnitude also risks coming across as a mere mouthpiece for a company you're supposed to be covering with a kind of detached objectivity."

The Witness - Noclip Documentary (NoClip / YouTube) "What lies at the heart of Jonathan Blow's island of mystery? We talk to the famed indie designer about how one of his earliest design ideas blossomed into The Witness."

A Pioneer Story: How MECC Blazed New Trails (Joe Juba / Game Informer) "Decades ago, as computing migrated from research labs and universities and into the mainstream, one company in Minnesota was instrumental in bringing technology into classrooms. Thanks to its focused mission and talented staff, the Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium (MECC) used exceptional software like The Oregon Trail to engage and educate a generation of students – and establish an unforgettable legacy."

Inside 'RimWorld', the Cult Sci-Fi Hit That Just Keeps Growing (Chris Priestman / Glixel) "Since its earliest public release on Steam Early Access in July, RimWorld – a sci-fi space colony sim – has amassed more than 600,000 players, and it's not even a finished project."

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symbianosgames · 7 years

Link

- Simon, curator.]

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#IFTTT #Blogger

0 notes

symbianosgames · 7 years

Link

- Simon, curator.]

-------------------

#IFTTT #Blogger

0 notes

symbianosgames · 7 years

Link

- Simon, curator.]

-------------------

#IFTTT #Blogger

0 notes

symbianosgames · 7 years

Link

- Simon, curator.]

-------------------

#IFTTT #Blogger

0 notes