Every game, even the most linear of them, has some degree of exploration. This is a fundamental part of the interactive experience whereas something such as a book or movie is all about explanation and telling (or showing) the user what is going on. But in the world of...
Chrono Trigger: Still mostly a dream
Chrono Trigger is a game that frequently rates towards if not at the top of the best rpgs of all time if not best games of all time. This fact isn’t surprising when one realizes that Chrono Trigger was actually made to be an amazing game. This might seem...
MOGA Pro Power: Your phone is a real game console
I’m a latecomer to the idea that mobile gaming on phones (and conceptually tablets) is actually a way to play and enjoy good and interesting games. As a lover of interesting narratives and unique indie ideas, this market should be right up my alley (assuming I stay away from...
Nit: Cheat codes and F2P – Part 2: Pay to Cheat
In this continuation from part 1, we’re going to dive into how cheating relates to Free 2 Play (F2P) games. To set expectations, I do not wish to imply that purchasing things in F2P games is inherently cheating. There are even some ways that people may, generally rightly, call...
Nit: Cheat codes and F2P – Part 1: Cheating in my world
iddqd. dnkroz. it is a good day to die. And of course any of the many other ways to say /god. For some small number of people, these little phrases will map to enabling God mode in different old games (for reference, Doom/Doom 2, Duke Nukem 3d, Warcraft 2,...
Transistor – Real Time Tactical Awesome
I don’t hide the fact that I really respect and enjoy Supergiant Games. Bastion was a game with fairly standard gameplay that I felt was well balanced and cleaned up to feel very tight and responsive. Then they mixed in beautiful art, wonderful narration, and a superb soundtrack around...
Magrunner – Dark Pulse: Portal through a Dirty Looking Glass
I managed to pick up Magrunner – Dark Pulse for free from Good Old Games. For free, it’s a great value, but even otherwise it has some good moments. It’s not Portal, but it had moments where it gave a similar feeling of satisfaction. Then there are other moments....
Nit: Motivation and Progress – Why are we all here?
We play games for a number of reasons. For some, there’s the allure of a good story. For others, its for power and glory and the virtual battle field. But for plenty, it’s an idea that they have when they start a game which quickly fades and results in...
Wildstar: Idiot Savant
I am not as experienced with MMOs as many others are nor am I the type that needs all the best components. But I do enjoy the MMO experience quite a bit. To me, a MMO is the best type of sandbox game. There is tons to do and...
Nit: Dialog – An Important Second-Class Citizen – Part 2: Social Order
In our conclusion to discussing dialog in video games, we dive deeper into actual game examples of dialog. In particular, I want to look at what makes good use of dialog in games much more than what doesn’t, though I have devised a little test to figure out how...