T w e n t y S i d e d
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “#36: The Great Wall of Text”
#36: The Great Wall of Text
#35 It Gets Worse
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “#35 It Gets Worse”
Procgen Spaceship
I mentioned in this week’s diecast (around the 18:30 mark) that I thought Rebel Galaxy would have been improvedother flaws not withstanding if it had some procedurally generated spaceships, instead of just the stock ones. If proc-gen is an unfamiliar term, Shamus has written a few articles on it. Okay, more than a few. Actually, it’s all he talks about when he has time to stop complaining about videogames, but you know how life is, what with work and family and sleep, who has time for obsessions?
So, why am I talking about proc-gen then? Well, it’s an obsession of mine as well, and a large part of what drew me to this site. I could go on about my own projects but I think we’ve done enough introduction, so instead let’s make apractically unlimited set of
procedurally generated spaceship!
The right way to start a project like this is to decide on a programming language, and some code conventions. Then you set up your development environment, and begin writing header files. No, wait, that’s not right. That’s how to… actually that’s not the right way to do anything. To design something you need a goal, not a set of processes. In this case the goal is to program the computer to be able to design and model spaceships, and that’s basically impossible if you can’t even…
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Procgen Spaceship”
The Bungie Split Could Prove Activision’s Incompetence
My column this week is about Bungie leaving Activision and how this is impacting the design of Destiny 2. Will Bungie be able to make it a better game now that they have creative control and are able to adopt a monetizationThe spell checkers in Google Docs and WordPress both recognize “demonetization” but not “monetization”. That’s weird, and probably the fault of YouTube creating a never-ending series of controversies involving the longer word. scheme of their own choosing? Will the game flourish, or will it struggle now that they no longer have access to the wisdom and genius of Activision CEO Bobby Kotick?
The big move happens at the end of summer. Destiny 2 is still running on Activision’s infrastructure on the PC, but in September it will be moving to Steam. I’m very curious to see how that goes. I can’t remember the last time a popular MMO broke away from a financially healthy publisher like this. This can’t be the first time, can it?
2019 is turning out to be an amazing year for the big publishers. Between this, “surprise mechanics“, and unskippable in-game ads in a $60 title, it feels like Wilson and Kotick are a couple of frat boys who have just discovered that nobody’s paying attention and now they’re competing to see who can perpetrate the most egregious breach of social norms. It’s a cross between Jordan Belfort and Jackass.
I can’t believe EA CEO Andrew Wilson still has a job. John Riccitiello – the previous CEO – resigned back in 2013, and his failures were a lot less severe than Wilson’s antics. Sure, the company struggled under Riccitiello, but he didn’t accidentally create a global backlash that threatened to outlaw one of the company’s largest revenue streams. Stockholders supposedly don’t care about bad press or scandal as long as the money is coming in, but this screwup is threatening the money. Sooner or later an adult has to show up and tell Wilson he’s done enough damage. I mean, this can’t go on forever.
Can it?
More Thoughts on Rebel Galaxy
I talked on the Diecast about how I was having fun playing Rebel GalaxyHeads up! Check the byline. This post isn’t by Shamus.. After the show, I played a few more hours and discovered that I was wrong about a few things.
First, most obvious, and as pointed out by multiple people in the comments, I was confusing Rebel Galaxy with Rebel Galaxy Outlaw. Seems impossible! I know! Two such distinct titles conflated like that. But I simply didn’t realize that the capital ship trading game and the fighter ship dogfighting game were entirely different. Or, will be different? And perhaps not entirely? Anyhow, my bad.
Of course, I probably would have been more aware of the differences between these games if I had been forced to pay for it instead of being gifted it by the Epic Games Store. The sense of false injury I was laboring under was my fault, yes, but it is also in part a result of the delivery method. If I’m going to spend money on a game, I’m going to figure out what it is I’m purchasing. But when I get it on the dole, there’s no incentive to clarify the scope. “Oh, this game! I know what it is, and it’s free! Great!” I think this is an unintended drawback of deeply discounted pricing. People might very well enjoy things less when they have unrealistic expectations unmitigated by the disenchanting process of research. They might even like them more when they pay for them. There’s probably a whole series of articles in that, so I should probably get back to talking about things I was wrong about.
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “More Thoughts on Rebel Galaxy”
Diecast #262: Rebel Galaxy, Astroneer, Rime, Sunset Overdrive
For those of you who don’t listen to the show: My daughter Bay is visiting from Texas this week. I’m also behind on my writing for the Escapist. Also, GDQ is this week. I’m going to be distracted. Please try not to burn the place down while I’m out.
Hosts: Paul, Shamus. Episode edited by Issac.
Show notes: Continue reading ⟩⟩ “Diecast #262: Rebel Galaxy, Astroneer, Rime, Sunset Overdrive”
#34 Home Sweet Home
Continue reading ⟩⟩ “#34 Home Sweet Home”
From The Archives:
This is Why We Can’t Have Short Criticism
Here's how this site grew from short essays to novel-length quasi-analytical retrospectives.
Steam Summer Blues
This mess of dross, confusion, and terrible UI design is the storefront the big publishers couldn't beat? Amazing.
Joker's Last Laugh
Did you anticipate the big plot twist of Batman: Arkham City? Here's all the ways the game hid that secret from you while also rubbing your nose in it.
A Star is Born
Remember the superhero MMO from 2009? Neither does anyone else. It was dumb. So dumb I was compelled to write this.
Dead Island
A stream-of-gameplay review of Dead Island. This game is a cavalcade of bugs and bad design choices.
How to Forum
Dear people of the internet: Please stop doing these horrible idiotic things when you talk to each other.
The Witch Watch
My first REAL published book, about a guy who comes back from the dead due to a misunderstanding.
Quakecon 2012 Annotated
An interesting but technically dense talk about gaming technology. I translate it for the non-coders.
The Biggest Game Ever
Just how big IS No Man's Sky? What if you made a map of all of its landmass? How big would it be?
Starcraft 2: Rush Analysis
I write a program to simulate different strategies in Starcraft 2, to see how they compare.