s&box
News, coverage and analysis tracking s&box across the outlets.
Latest coverage
ISK: Månadens Tshirt bär snyggt Toem 2-tryck!
This news roundup covers a variety of gaming topics, including reviews for Castlevania: Belmont's Revenge, Valor Mortis, and Gears of War: E-Day. It also features news on Grand Theft Auto VI's trailer release, S&box going free-to-play, and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time Remake.
Garry's Mod-uppföljaren S&box ska bli free-to-play
Facepunch Studios' S&box, a spiritual successor to Garry's Mod, will transition to a free-to-play model by the end of the year due to a lukewarm reception and issues with AI-generated content. Creator Garry Newman also announced a shift towards a curated platform model, requiring creators to apply for content submission, and a potential move to utilize Steam Workshop.
'My idea of a Netflix for games doesn’t work': Garry's Mod successor is getting 'sweeping…
Facepunch Studios is implementing significant changes to its game creation platform s&box following a rocky launch. Creator Garry Newman announced a pivot away from a 'Netflix for games' model, a move towards a 'greenlight' system for user-generated games, and that the platform will become free-to-play earlier than planned. These changes aim to improve the player experience and curation of content.
S&box plans to go free-to-play and embrace human curation saying "Netflix for games doesn't work"
Facepunch Studios is shifting its s&box platform to a free-to-play model and will focus on human curation rather than an AI-driven approach to game discovery. Founder Garry Newman acknowledged the platform's struggles with retention and user reception, stating that a 'Netflix for games' model is not effective. The company is also moving towards the Steam Workshop for content distribution and implementing a stricter approval system for games.
Garry's Mod successor S&box "got it wrong," will become free to play soon
Facepunch Studios' spiritual successor to Garry's Mod, S&box, is undergoing significant changes due to poor player reception and low retention. Creator Garry Newman admitted the team "got it wrong" and announced plans to make S&box free-to-play by the end of the year, shifting focus from engine development to player-first features and improving performance.
"My idea of a Netflix for games doesn’t work": Garry's Mod creator says struggling spiritual successor S&box will go free to play as part of major rethink
Facepunch Studios founder Garry Newman announced that the struggling game development platform S&box will go free-to-play later this year as part of a major rethink. Newman expressed embarrassment over the game's poor reviews and acknowledged that its "Netflix for games" approach to discovery was not working, shifting focus to player experience and improving the core sandbox game.
Garry's Mod creator admits the launch of S&box "was s**t" and so was its free weekend: "There being too much content is a problem"
Garry Newman, the creator of Garry's Mod, has openly admitted that the launch of its successor, S&box, was a failure, citing issues with content flooding and a poorly executed free weekend. He acknowledges the negative impact on the community and plans to shift to a Steam Workshop model to improve the user experience.
Garry Newman responds to s&box criticism in lengthy YouTube comment: 'I don't like giving up on things, I…
Facepunch founder Garry Newman addressed criticism of the user-generated content platform s&box in a lengthy YouTube comment, acknowledging the game's poor launch and community reception. Newman stated that the company will remove the unpopular 'citizen' character models and improve content discoverability, admitting they "fucked it" and weren't ready for launch.
That's some fiiiiine lookin' milk, but Rust devs warn that 'cream is a more powerful consumable'
Facepunch Studios has added livestock, including cows and sheep, to Rust as part of its October update. Players can now farm animals for resources like meat, bones, leather, milk, and wool, with an economy built around selling them to a new Stable vendor. The update also introduces new fencing for pens and highlights that cream is a more powerful consumable than milk.
Garry Newman adds necks to his neckless characters because the lack of necks 'comes up consistently in our many…
The default characters in the game creation platform s&box now have necks, a change implemented by creator Garry Newman and Facepunch Studios in response to consistent player feedback. While Newman personally liked the neckless design, the developers are addressing player criticism regarding character appearance, including neck size, as part of ongoing updates.
Garry Newman acknowledges Gmod successor S&box had a bumpy launch, but is baffled by the number of people complaining about NFTs, which aren't in the game: 'I have no idea what this s**t is about'
Garry Newman, co-founder of Facepunch Studios and creator of Garry's Mod, has addressed the mixed reception of the newly launched content creation platform S&box. Newman acknowledged performance issues and user complaints about the game not being a direct successor to Garry's Mod, while expressing confusion over negative reviews mentioning NFTs, which are not present in the game. He also discussed concerns regarding AI-generated content and the platform's comparison to Garry's Mod's extensive user-generated content library.
"It's a UGC platform, there is always going to be dog s***" Garry's Mod creator says as S&box's latest update aims to punish AI-generated thumbnails
Facepunch Studios' S&box platform is implementing measures to discourage AI-generated content, particularly thumbnails, following player feedback. Founder Garry Newman stated that while AI generation is easy, it leads to a homogenous look, and the platform will now allow moderators to mark packages with AI thumbnails, reducing their visibility. The update also addresses complaints about NFTs and introduces performance enhancements.
Steam week in review: Another online shooter winds down weeks after launch, as robot cowboys take over
The cooperative shooter Far Far West, inspired by Left 4 Dead and Vermintide, is shifting focus to replayability and community support after a successful early access launch. Despite a challenging year for new multiplayer titles, developer Night Street Games aims to keep the game playable for its community. The article also reviews Steam's top sellers list for April 21-28, noting the performance of various games including Counter-Strike 2 and the new s&box platform.
Game Reviews
Reviews for Bus Bound on PC, Invincible VS, and s&box, a successor to Garry's Mod, are discussed. s&box is noted to be more akin to Roblox than its predecessor.
Facepunch Studios issues response to AI slop in its new game S&box
Facepunch Studios has responded to user criticism regarding the use of generative AI in its new game, S&box. The game, developed by the creators of Garry's Mod, has faced mixed reviews on Steam, with players expressing concerns about the AI implementation.
NVIDIA GeForce NOW gets even more games and RTX 5080 power expands
NVIDIA GeForce NOW is expanding its game library with numerous titles arriving over the next month, including Forza Horizon 6 and Deep Rock Galactic: Rogue Core. The service is also increasing its RTX 5080-powered systems for Ultimate tier subscribers, offering support for up to 5K resolution at 120 FPS and advanced features like DLSS 4 and ray tracing. Additionally, classic Firaxis strategy games will be added as Install-to-Play titles.
Engagement Ring
The game S&box generated nearly $1 million on its launch day, despite experiencing issues that developers are actively addressing. Separately, Starbreeze Studios has not yet declared its financial results for Payday 3.
S&box makes nearly $1 million on launch day, and yes there are problems but that's okay: 'We love it when things break because then we get to fix them'
S&box, the successor to Garry's Mod developed by Facepunch Studios, generated nearly $1 million on its launch day despite mixed reviews and technical issues. Studio head Garry Newman stated that the problems encountered were expected and are being addressed. The company is doubling its Play Fund for community developers to $1 million due to the strong launch revenue.
The Garry's Mod 'successor' is, tragically, more Roblox than anything else
S&box, developed by Facepunch Studios as a spiritual successor to Garry's Mod, is criticized for prioritizing a Roblox-like platform model over the creative freedom of its predecessor. While showcasing potential with various game genres built on a modified Source 2 engine, its current state suffers from jankiness and a business model involving paid cosmetics, leading to disappointment for those expecting a true Garry's Mod 2 experience.
Garry's Mod Creator Wants to Push 'AI Slop' Off the S&box Main Page Amid 'Mixed' Steam User Review Rating
The creator of Garry's Mod is expressing frustration over the prevalence of AI-generated content within S&box, the game's successor. This influx of AI content has contributed to a 'mixed' user review rating on Steam, prompting the creator to seek its removal from the main page.