News & Views

6/4/16-6/10/16

We are only days away from E3, one of the biggest video game shows in the world! I’ve got my tweeting fingers ready for two solid days of new game announcements, trailers, gameplay reveals and more. In the meantime, why don’t you take a second a read some great gaming writing?

News & Views collects the best gaming writing from around the web and puts in into one convenient place. Check out the links below for stories about the underground fight clubs of Dark Souls III, the benefits of unsurprising characterization in games, and how minority characters should not be relegated to DLC.

And of course please check out the brand new episode of The Impact Factor podcast that was posted today! You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, or if you prefer other methods, check out our SoundCloud. We’re on YouTube too!

Spotlight

How Blizzard built the Overwatch hype train and rode it to success

Zoran Cunningham, Gamasutra

Worth Reading

Downloadable Diversity: How AAA Games Monetize Minority Representation

Veve Jaffa, Model View Culture

Final Fantasy II Retrospective: The Black Sheep Of The Series

Jason Schreier, Kotaku

Ridealong: The Underground Fight Clubs Of Dark Souls III

Brendan Caldwell, RockPaperShotgun

The incredible journey to build EVE Online's first Death Star

Steven Messner, PC Gamer

Sony's PlayStation 4 Neo: Bad news for Microsoft, great news for you

Ben Kuchera, Polygon

With Comments

The Strange, Wonderful, Non-Commercial Games of alt.ctrl.GDC

Jason Imms, Giantbomb

I was lucky enough to attend GDC 2015. Alongside excellent talks and a developer-rich show floor was the alt.ctrl.GDC display. I didn’t know what I was getting into when I approached. But I am so glad I did. Games like Butt Sniffin’ Pugs redefined the way I interacted with a video game, and I loved seeing the creative energy of game devs manifest through non-traditional controls. Alt.ctrl.GDC is wonderful and I’m glad Jason Imms spotlighted it here.

After 10 years of waiting, Half-Life 2: Episode 3 seems further away than ever

Wesley Yin-Poole, Eurogamer

Even as not the biggest fan of Half Life, something remains off about the franchise seeing no new releases in over a decade. I get that Valve has found plenty of other ways to make money, and I understand the pressure to deliver an unparalled game doesn’t match the fiscal risk vs. reward. But still. It is crazy over a decade later we’re still missing the conclusion of a trilogy.

Overwatch: The benefits of unsurprising characterization

Anthony Burch, Destructoid

It should come as a surprise to no one that I am not a fan of Reaper’s character design. He is so Hot Topic it hurts. Burch, however, praises the unsurprising characterization of heroes like Reaper or Genji in that they act to further draw out just how creative and just how exceptional Overwatch’s other heroes are. Food for thought.

My Mother's Games

Janine Hawkins, Giantbomb

Janine Hawkins takes us down a journey of reminiscence. Instead of reliving memories by looking through old photos, Hawkins reconnects with her deceased mother by booting up her old game saves. A wonderful piece that is well worth reading.

News & Views

3/26/16-4/1/16

It’s no April Fools’ joke: The Impact Factor is here as always to keep you up to date on everything that’s happening in games.

News & Views collects the week’s best writing about video games. Check the links below for stories about manipulation in game design, addressing the walking problem in virtual reality, and a musical analysis of one of 2015’s best soundtracks.

And of course please check out the brand new episode of The Impact Factor podcast that was posted today! You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, or if you prefer other methods, check out our SoundCloud. We’re on YouTube too!

Spotlight

Wrist Grabs and DDoS Attacks

Gino Grieco, Giantbomb

Worth Reading

The quest to solve VR's biggest problem: walking around

Jason Rubin, PC Gamer

Revisiting the enduring horror of Far Cry 2

Lewis Gordon, Kill Screen

The game industry needs to get laid and just chill already

Robert Yang, radiator Design Blog

Designing morally difficult characters

Dan Nagler, GDC, Gamasutra

Emotion, manipulation and the future of game design

Colin Campbell, Polygon

With Comments

An Examination of the Leitmotifs and Their Use to Shape Narrative in UNDERTALE

Jason Yu, Music, Melee, Miscellaneous

Jason Yu provides an in-depth music theory analysis on one of 2015’s best game soundtracks: UNDERTALE. Yu specifically takes a look at the game’s leitmotif, which can be found as early as the introductory sequence. This is a fascinating piece that really dissects how music affects mood and vise versa. Well worth your time.

The Dark Side of Pacifism in 'Undertale'

Nick Dinicola, Pop Matters

UNDERTALE continues to inspire great gaming writing. One of the game’s selling points was that the narrative unfurled over the span of multiple playthroughs and through multiple ways of playing the game. A pacifist approach, many players’ second playthrough, sheds light on many of the mysteries left hanging after completing a ‘neutral’ run. Nick Dinicola uncovers a dark side to this seemingly peaceful approach to playing and writes about it here.

One gamer's quest to achieve the lowest graphics settings

Jody Macgregor, PC Gamer

PC gamers continue to fascinate me. Jody Macgregor spotlights one player who has made it his quest to take the biggest, most beautiful PC games and reduce them to their lowest possible level of graphic fidelity. If nothing else, this article is worth checking out to see just how low polygon count The Wither 3 can get.

Firewatch shows that yes, you can make games for grown-ups

Heather Alexandra, ZAM

My favorite game of the year (so far) continues to fuel amazing discussions about video games. If you check out my review, you’ll find that many of Heather Alexandra’s thoughts echo my own. Firewatch is a game made by adults, featuring adults, for adults. The subtle, human story of two people trying to escape the tumult of real life is phenomenal. I urge other developers to follow Campo Santo’s lead and to be unafraid to make narrative games that are nuanced, difficult or even unresolved. The industry, the art, will be better for it.

News & Views

3/12/16-3/18/16

Happy Friday everyone! This week has been an interesting one. I’m thankful to be heading into the weekend though, especially considering that all of Daredevil S2 just posted this morning. How many will I watch? Only time will tell. The excellent Salt & Sanctuary might dampen my binge watching a bit. The game is so good!

News & Views is your weekly dose of excellent gaming writing. Opinion pieces, editorial, uncovered stories and more! Check out the links below for great articles about the brilliance of Downwell’s gunboots, why an increasing number of women are choosing virtual boyfriends over the real deal, and how Supercell has one of the most ruthless production dogmas in the business.

And of course please check out the brand new episode of The Impact Factor podcast that was posted today! You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes, or if you prefer other methods, check out our SoundCloud. We’re on YouTube too!

Spotlight

Subverting Player Expectation

Pete Ellis, Gamasutra

Worth Reading

Mega Man, In Love and Death

Zack Kotzer, Kill Screen

The Tricky Brilliance of Downwell's Gunboots

Caty McCarthy, Kill Screen

Branching dialogue trees poorly serve narrative games, says GDC panel

Colin Campbell, Polygon

How Fragments of Him tells a tough, tearjerking story -- and why Destiny should, too

Allegra Frank, Polygon

Why Women Are Choosing Virtual Boyfriends Over Real Ones

Pip Usher, Vogue

With Comments

This Is Your Brain on Esports

Patrick Miller, Giantbomb

I’ve held the belief that Street Fighter II did more than eat my quarters. It taught me how to adapt on the fly, to master a strategy, and to better myself. Fighting games have long been part of my gaming wheelhouse and for a good reason—the same reason that Patrick Miller writes about. Fighting games can teach you how to learn. There aren’t many better vehicles for self-improvement than eSports, and for me specifically, fighting games. Give them a shot.

Quality is worth killing for: Supercell's ruthless approach to production

Kris Graft, Gamasutra

Following widespread talk about the game online, I downloaded my first Supercell game ever last week: Clash Royale. I bemoaned the unbelievable success of what felt like the disingenuous and debatably terrible Clash of Clans. I hated what it represented. But Clash Royale is actually quite fun. It got me thinking. How does Supercell make such huge hits? Turns out the answer is quite simple: ruthless production. The company is unafraid to kill projects left and right if they don’t meet the right level of quality. Graft spotlights Supercell’s fascinating approach to game development. Well worth reading.

The game design philosophy that explains why HOTS players are so nice

Sharang Biswas, Zam

I’ve always wondered why Heroes of the Storm has a tolerable online community. I would even go so far to say that it’s an exceptional one, considering that the game is a MOBA. I’ve had my own theories, most of which align with the points raised by Sharan Biswas in this excellent piece. It all comes down to smart game design. Biswas and others suspect that much of the MOBA hostility comes from fighting over shared resources & responsibilities. Heroes alleviates some of this tension (and subsequent toxicity) by offering players fewer choices (less ways to ‘screw up’ on a macro-level), no gold economy (simplicity), team experience points (feeling of unification, focuses fight on enemy and less between members of the same team). All of these design decisions reduce inherent intra-team hostility. No wonder Heroes is by far my favorite MOBA.

Why is Danganronpa so viciously appealing?

Cassandra Khaw, Eurogamer

Danganronpa Trigger Happy Havoc is an awesome game. It really is. But why? Why do we have so much fun playing as a group of teenagers trapped in a school who are forced to kill each other? Cassandra Khaw shares some insight as to why. To summarize her article briefly: children are monsters. They lack the full grasp on what it means to operate in a civil society, and therefore their interactions can be fascinating. Further, Danganronpa plays with our deep-seated mistrust of others, since we can never know someone’s true intentions. And finally, kids are our future. So it is extra unsettling when we see harm coming their way. You should read the article and you should play Danganronpa. Which reminds me, I have the sequel sitting untouched on my Vita. That needs to be fixed.