Game Design
Ongoing coverage on Game Design.
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Dominus Automa is a new MMORPG "for busy adults who don't have endless hours to play"
Metashift Labs has launched a multiplayer playtest for Dominus Automa, an MMORPG designed for players with limited time. The game allows characters to continue progressing offline, focusing on strategic decision-making rather than constant grinding. The playtest, running until August 23, includes a new Paladin class and various new content for players to experience.
League of Legends needs "the right amount of frustration" to survive
Riot Games' Lead Gameplay Designer, Phroxzon, discussed the importance of maintaining a 'right amount of frustration' in League of Legends for its long-term health. He explained that while addressing player concerns is important, removing all frustrating elements could lead to a less engaging experience and a dominant, unvaried meta. The team believes the current level of frustration, including strategies like mages in the bot lane, contributes to the game's longevity and variety.
Why everyone thinks Nintendo has forgotten about Toadsworth
Nintendo fans have noted the absence of the character Toadsworth from all new Mario games since 2013, despite his significant role in earlier titles like Super Mario Sunshine. While his appearance in the Paper Mario series was altered to make Toads more uniform, his exclusion from The Super Mario Bros. Movie and recent promotional art suggests a deliberate decision, the reasons for which remain unclear.
Aion 2 details changes for party sizes, activities, and founder’s pack benefits for its global release
NCsoft provided new details for the global release of its MMORPG Aion 2 during its first livestream. Changes include increased party sizes for dungeons and raids, stat normalization for the 10v10 PvP mode, and a PvP toggle flag available at launch. Founder's packs will include 30 days of subscription time, and cosmetics from these packs will not be sold separately.
Pokemon Pokopia director explains why Ditto was chosen as the game’s protagonist
Pokemon Pokopia director Shigeru Ohmori explained the decision to feature Ditto as the game's protagonist, citing its transformation ability and the desire for the player character to have the same scale as other Pokemon. Ohmori also mentioned that Ditto's stylized, big-headed proportions fit well within the game's block-based terrain design. Pokemon Pokopia is available on Nintendo Switch.
Yoshi and the Mysterious Book devs comment on the game’s difficulty
The development team behind Yoshi and the Mysterious Book discussed the game's difficulty, revealing that Yoshi originally could take damage. They decided to remove this mechanic to preserve the player's sense of agency and encourage exploration rather than penalize risk-taking. The team focused on maintaining player interest in investigating the game's creatures and world.
id co-founder John Carmack revisits Doom at QuakeCon: 'Still a great game after all these years!'
Legendary programmer John Carmack shared his thoughts on the enduring quality of Doom during a retrospective talk at QuakeCon. He admitted to getting lost in a port of the classic game, highlighting its lasting appeal decades after its release.
Palworld 1.0 Made a Survival Game Skeptic Out of Me
The author, initially skeptical of survival games, found themselves engrossed by Palworld 1.0's effective onboarding system. The game guides players through its crafting and creature-collecting mechanics, making the genre accessible and enjoyable. Palworld 1.0 is available on PC, Xbox, and PlayStation 5 for $29.99.
Big Walk's voice chat volume issue has been resolved with its latest patch, but House House are sticking to their guns on its overall design
House House has released a patch for Big Walk to address issues with its proximity voice chat, which previously made it difficult to hear friends with quieter microphones. While the update makes quiet voices louder at close and medium distances, the developers are maintaining the core design element that limits voice chat range to players who are physically close. The studio is considering future updates for features like individual volume sliders but is proceeding cautiously due to their small team size.
WoW developers reflect on Midnight's first season—a world without AddOns, task overload, and Prey
Developers from Blizzard Entertainment reflect on the first season of World of Warcraft: Midnight, acknowledging both successes like player housing and the Prey feature, and challenges such as task overload and the impact of heavily restricted AddOns. The team discusses how the removal of combat AddOns has influenced encounter design, leading to mechanics that rely more on player memorization and communication.
Titan Quest 2's new class is a dream for lovers of the Diablo Necromancer
Grimlore Games has released update 0.7.0 for Titan Quest 2, introducing the new Spirit Mastery, which allows players to summon minions and manipulate souls, similar to a Necromancer class. The update also implements a new crafting system with various options for item enhancement and rebalancing across existing masteries. Base movement speed has been increased to address player feedback.
Dela dina intryk av SULFUR
This article invites players to share their experiences and impressions of the roguelike shooter SULFUR, developed by Stockholm-based studio Perfect Random. It prompts discussions on player motivations, preferred weapon and ammunition combinations, and the game's unique humor and exploration elements, drawing a parallel to cooking mechanics in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
LOTRO Legendarium: Wolves of Mordor is the most exciting LOTRO announcement in years
The author expresses excitement for the upcoming Lord of the Rings Online expansion, The Wolves of Mordor, calling it the most interesting announcement in years. The expansion will feature three new zones in Mordor, a new neighbor system tied to player housing, and a region-based progression system called Survival Instincts. While acknowledging potential challenges in execution, the author is optimistic about the expansion's potential to revitalize the game.
Dead by Daylight is getting a Survivor chat wheel soon, as Behaviour reveals plans to debloat a decade of systems
Behaviour Interactive has revealed upcoming updates for Dead by Daylight, including a Survivor chat wheel planned for fall, and efforts to streamline add-ons and progression systems. The developers also discussed plans for Killer bots in custom games, improvements to the offering system, and reflected on past event failures. Future updates aim to reduce inventory bloat and enhance the overall player experience.
Soulslike prince Lies of P added difficulty settings after its own developers struggled to beat it: "Most…
Nough Studio, the developers behind the soulslike game Lies of P, have discussed the addition of difficulty settings to the game. Initially, the developers themselves struggled to beat the game on its standard difficulty, leading them to implement easier options. This decision, though controversial in the soulslike community, was made after internal playtests revealed that many developers were unable to complete the game, and positive feedback from those who used the easier settings convinced the team of its benefit to players.
Club Soko is cartoonishly dark and splattered with beer - and it's a wonderful puzzler, too
Club Soko is a puzzle game that reimagines the Sokoban genre within a cartoonishly dark nightclub setting. The game's unique presentation, combined with its challenging block-pushing mechanics and hidden secrets, makes for a compelling and oppressive experience. Its personified obstacles and compact levels contribute to a memorable and engaging puzzle-solving adventure.
BioWare veteran says Baldur's Gate 3 was such a great sequel because it didn't try to be too much like…
BioWare veteran Mark Darrah believes Baldur's Gate 3 succeeded because Larian Studios embraced its own identity while drawing inspiration from the original games and the evolution of CRPGs. He suggests that instead of trying to replicate the past, Larian's unique approach, blending elements of Divinity: Original Sin, made Baldur's Gate 3 a standout sequel that overshadowed its predecessors.
3 years after the best Soulslike not by FromSoftware, Lies of P leads feel "pressure" to make the sequel even…
Nough Studio developers discuss the pressure and excitement surrounding the sequel to their acclaimed Soulslike, Lies of P. They aim to surpass the original's success by building upon its foundation while pushing creative boundaries, acknowledging the high bar set by FromSoftware and other titles in the genre.
Rare Demon's Souls prototype shows off first-person perspective, unused enemies that could have rewritten Dark Souls history: "Like watching the mona lisa being painted"
A rare 2007 prototype presentation for Demon's Souls, developed by Japan Studio and FromSoftware, has revealed early concepts including a first-person perspective and unused enemies. The prototype showcased the game's potential for photorealistic graphics and highlighted the importance of online connectivity, drawing parallels to FromSoftware's later titles like Dark Souls and Elden Ring.
Wild Blue Skies: How We Brought the Feel of a 90s Arcade Cockpit to XBOX
Chuhai Labs discusses the development of Wild Blue Skies, a modern take on the 90s on-rails shooter genre, for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox on PC. The team focused on embracing limitations, refining controls, and creating a vibrant, anime-inspired world. The game features a voice cast including Jonah Scott, Suzie Yeung, Edward Bosco, and Daman Mills, and is set to launch on August 13.
