Game Design
Ongoing coverage on Game Design.
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Marathon’s Fiddly Quests Need To Stop Getting in the Way of the Fun - IGN
This analysis critiques the quest design in Bungie's extraction shooter Marathon, arguing that its "contracts" are overly fiddly and often impede the core looting and shooting gameplay. While the game is still enjoyable, the author suggests improvements are needed to make objectives clearer and less disruptive to the player experience.
Resident Evil Requiem Needs A Non-Scary Mode, Says Resident Evil 2 Director
Resident Evil 2 director Hideki Kamiya expressed a desire for a non-scary mode in Resident Evil Requiem, stating he prefers puzzles and combat over horror elements. Despite Kamiya's reservations, Resident Evil Requiem has achieved record-breaking sales for the franchise and is set to receive new content, including a minigame and photo mode.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2010 Nostalgia Wave Shows What Modern COD Lost
A viral tweet referencing Call of Duty: Black Ops from 2010 sparked a wave of nostalgia, highlighting perceived losses in modern Call of Duty game design. The article argues that the 2010 title excelled due to its focused weapon balance, tactical map design, and rewarding progression systems, contrasting it with current titles criticized for over-design and prioritizing engagement metrics over solid gameplay.
God of War's infamous sex minigames were actually "designed by women", former Sony Santa Monica writer Alanah Pearce reveals
Former Sony Santa Monica writer Alanah Pearce revealed that the controversial sex minigames in the early God of War titles were largely designed by women, with one chamber explicitly designed to resemble a labia. Pearce believes these minigames should be included in upcoming remakes, arguing they are critical of Kratos's character and serve his narrative journey.
New Survival Game 'Pickmon' Is Just Asking To Be Sued Into Oblivion
A new survival game titled Pickmon, developed by PocketGame, has been announced for Steam with potential future releases on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5. The game draws heavy inspiration from both Palworld and Nintendo's Pokémon and The Legend of Zelda series, leading to speculation of potential legal action from Nintendo.
Slay The Spire 2 Devs Won't Add Microtransactions, Even Though Fans Would Pay For Them
Mega Crit co-founder Casey Yano stated that Slay the Spire 2 will not feature microtransactions, despite player interest, as the studio prioritizes a complete content experience for all players. The game is currently in Steam Early Access, with plans for free updates over the next one to two years to add more content and features.
Greedfall: The Dying World Review - Strangers in a strange land
Greedfall: The Dying World, a prequel to the 2019 RPG, shifts to a Real Time with Pause combat system and expands on the original's worldbuilding and themes. While the new combat may be divisive and the prequel narrative has lower stakes, the game offers engaging companion quests and a flexible Talent system. Despite some polish issues and a muted visual palette, it provides a satisfying RPG experience on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake Review – Spirit snap
The Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake offers an engaging story and excellent sound design, but falls short as a survival horror experience. Despite a graphical overhaul and expanded narrative, the game suffers from repetitive gameplay, easy puzzles and combat, and significant performance issues on consoles, including unstable frame rates and frequent crashes.
The 11 Super Mario side characters who deserve their own game
This article discusses which Super Mario side characters deserve their own dedicated video game. It highlights characters like Toad, Goomba, Lakitu, Boo, Kamek, Waluigi, Daisy, Nabbit, Geno, and Mallow, exploring potential game concepts for each. While Princess Peach and Luigi have had their own titles, the article argues they could still benefit from more substantial games.
15 Biggest Secrets And References In Resident Evil Requiem
Resident Evil Requiem is filled with numerous secrets and references to past games in the franchise, particularly Resident Evil 2 and its remake. These callbacks include familiar locations like the Kendo Gun Shop and the Raccoon City Police Department, character-specific abilities, and even subtle nods to CG films like Vendetta. The game also features a complex final puzzle and a return of the iconic Tofu character.
Resident Evil Requiem’s New Stalker Makes Mr. X Look Tame, But Can She Beat Nemesis?
This analysis compares the new 'Girl Stalker' enemy in Resident Evil Requiem to iconic predecessors Mr. X from Resident Evil 2 Remake and Nemesis. The article argues that while Mr. X provides predictable pressure and Nemesis offers relentless aggression, the Girl Stalker's unpredictable tactics, use of the environment, and psychological manipulation make her the most terrifying and effective stalker enemy in the franchise's history.
Marathon’s New Players Can Experience All Questlines Whenever They Join, Says Creative Director
Bungie's creative director Julia Nardin stated that their upcoming extraction shooter, Marathon, will feature an "additive experience" where all questlines and story content are evergreen. This approach aims to avoid the content vaulting issues seen with Destiny 2, allowing players to join at any time and still access all established narrative content, achievements, and collections. The game will incorporate worldbuilding through in-game lore found in item descriptions, text files, and audio logs, alongside faction contracts and new characters.
Resident Evil Requiem Is Hooking Millions of Players – Here’s Why
Resident Evil Requiem has achieved significant success, with over five million copies sold in its first week and a peak Steam concurrent player count of 344,214, surpassing previous series entries. The game's appeal is attributed to its semi-open-world Raccoon City exploration, dual-character gameplay with Leon and Grace, engaging survival horror mechanics, and sublime gameplay that encourages replayability through unlockable content and difficulty options.
Bungie snuck a bunch of Halo guns into Marathon
Bungie's new extraction shooter Marathon features numerous subtle and obvious callbacks to the Halo series, including weapons that mirror iconic Halo firearms. While some similarities stem from Bungie's established 'house style,' specific guns like the Magnum MC and BR33 Volley Rifle, along with attachments for the V22 Volt Thrower, are directly inspired by or transform into their Halo counterparts. The article also notes similarities to Destiny's arsenal.
Roguelike Deckbuilder Pluto Escapes Prison – Paints the World Red on PC Today
The roguelike deckbuilder Pluto has been released on PC via Steam today, developed by Siege Wizard Interactive and published by indi.io. The game features a gesture-driven spellcasting system and follows a wizard trying to escape prison to attend his niece's birthday party. A demo is available for download, and a 20% launch discount is offered until March 23rd.
Steam game listing achieves knockoff singularity by aping Pokémon, Zelda, and even Overwatch designs with a shamelessness Palworld could only dream of
The Steam game listing Pickmon is heavily criticized for its blatant imitation of popular titles like Pokémon, The Legend of Zelda, and Overwatch, going as far as to copy Palworld's designs. Despite its derivative nature, the game's developers have implemented a card-throwing mechanic instead of ball-catching to potentially avoid legal issues with Nintendo. The article questions the ethics of such shameless copying, even if it remains within legal boundaries.
Tactical RPG “Never’s End” Debuts Groundbreaking Environmental Combat in New Demo on PC
The tactical RPG Never's End, developed by Hypersect, has released its first public demo on PC via Steam. The demo showcases the game's environmental combat system, which allows players to manipulate heat to affect the battlefield, and features character designs by Masayoshi Nishimura and music by Doseone. Never's End is slated for a 2026 release on PC and PlayStation 5.
Bungie has learned its lesson about vaulting content in Destiny 2 and won't be so cruel with Marathon: 'It…
Bungie has learned from the controversial Destiny Content Vault and intends to avoid similar practices with its upcoming game, Marathon. Creative director Julia Nardin stated that Marathon's lore and world-building will not be removed, unlike chunks of Destiny 2. The studio is exploring how to manage seasonal content resets and a growing catalogue of contracts without alienating players.
Wisdom of Nym: Exploring Final Fantasy XIV’s latest Variant Dungeon from 7.45
The latest Final Fantasy XIV patch 7.45 introduces the Wisdom of Nym Variant Dungeon, also known as The Merchant's Tale. This guide explores the dungeon's improved routing, boss mechanics, and reward structure, noting that while it may not be the most efficient method for tomestones, its cosmetic rewards and engaging content offer a fun diversion. The article praises the difficulty split and the overall development of this mid-patch content.
Still humming with life 21 years later, Konami's Master of Epic is a wonderful time capsule of the experimental…
Master of Epic, a Japanese-only MMORPG released in 2005 by Hudson Soft and now published by Konami, is examined as a time capsule of experimental MMO design. Despite a slow start and a unique skill system that rewards player experience over traditional leveling, the game has maintained a dedicated niche audience due to its immersive, friction-filled gameplay that encourages player attention and exploration.
