We all know some players will inevitably cheat, but why? This blog delves into the psychology of cheating and the effect it has — and some solutions to it. …
Why people cheat, and what to do about it
June 18, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Discussing Data Dealer, a game about online privacy
June 17, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Games For Change award nominee Data Dealer is designed to help players understand the risks to their privacy online — and this Q& A from the conference reveals more about its development. …
Nintendo Not Worried About Used Game Sales
June 14, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Used game sales for next gen systems has been a controversial topic these last couple months, with both Microsoft and Sony landing on different sides of the fence. Now Nintendo is weighing in on the subject.
In an interview with Polygon, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime said "We understand that used games are a way for some consumers to monetize their games. They will buy a game, play it, bring it back to their retailer to get credit for their next purchase."
However later on, Fils-Aime explain why Nintendo also isn't worried about used game sales effecting its bottom line. "The replayability of our content is super strong. The consumer wants to keep playing Mario Kart. The consumer want to keep playing New Super Mario Bros. They want to keep playing Pikmin. So we see that the trade-in frequency on Nintendo content is much less than the industry average – much, much less. So for us, we have been able to step back and say that we are not taking any technological means to impact trade-in and we are confident that if we build great content, then the consumer will not want to trade in our games."
Sounds like Nintendo's approach to stemming the tide of used games is to just make better games, which sounds like a pretty reasonable policy to us. What do you think?
[Source: Polygon]
[Full disclosure, GameStop is the parent company of Game Informer.]
Activision bullish about Skylanders in face of Disney Infinity
June 14, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Eric Hirshberg, CEO of Activision Publishing, says the company isn’t changing its sales projections on the Skylanders franchise, or this fall’s Skylanders: Swap Force, in the face of Disney Infinity.
“We’re still bullish on our projections. We feel like it was only a matter of time, given the scale of the success of Skylanders, that other competitors entered the genre. That’s to be expected,” said Hirshberg.
“I get this question a lot on Call of Duty. We have tough competition every year. We have tough competition in every category we play in, it’s a part of the business. We try not to focus on it. We try to focus on making the best games we can and exceeding the expectations of our fans and bottling magic.”
Skylanders has surpassed $ 1 billion in lifetime sales since launching in 2011. Disney Infinity will launch this August.
Activision bullish about Skylanders in face of Disney Infinity originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 13 Jun 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
World of Tanks teaches Xbox 360 a thing or two about online biz models
June 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment
World of Tanks: Xbox 360 Editition was quite a surprise at Microsoft’s E3 press briefing, mainly because World of Tanks is the antithesis of traditional console video games. …
‘E3 to remember’ leaves analysts optimistic about next-gen
June 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Analysts have expressed “a renewed confidence in the upcoming [console] cycle” following the various E3 reveals this week, with optimism well and truly on the table. …
9 Questions With Ready At Dawn about The Order: 1886
June 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment
One of the biggest game announcements of Sony's E3 press conference was The Order: 1886, a new IP for PlayStation 4 from Ready at Dawn. The studio has a sterling reputation when it comes to dealing with other properties (like God of War and Daxter on PSP), but The Order is a chance for Ready at Dawn to break out of the handheld mold. We spoke with creative director Ru Weerasuriya about scope, premise, and even the future of The Order.
Beyond what we've seen in the trailer, what can you tell us about the premise?
The premise itself, beyond just the setting and the world, is that it is an alternate history…The game is going to have a lot of things in there that exist in our real world. What we wanted to do was give people something they could connect to. When you invent everything, people have a hard time connecting. They say, "I have questions about this," and "I have questions about that." What we wanted was for them to have questions about the things that are different. The things that are twisted.
Is this an occupied version of London?
You could call it that. Imagine our history going on a certain way for centuries, but at one point, an event happens that splits off our history from the history we're presenting. We don't want to take it off into a sci-fi, steampunk, crazy kind of thing; it really is about the small changes that have happened to build this world.
There's a character named Galahad in the trailer, and it begins with a Malory quote from Le Morte d'Arthur. Is "The Order" the Knights of the Round Table?
That's a good question, actually. I don't think that was part of our talking points, but yes, you can make your own conclusions about that. There is definitely connections there. There is some of the lore that has existed — the original lore is Welsh lore, before it was a Christian thing. We harken back to the very early legend of Arthur and took some cues from that to add to our IP as well.
What kind of game is it?
It's a third-person action/adventure. That's one of those things that we pride ourselves on having done in the past and wanting to do in the future. Our expertise is there, and we definitely wanted it to be more of a storytelling medium for us in this game.
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What does the titular Order do?
It has kept watch, the balance in this war between man and these ancient foes. The Order has kept man safe.
So this isn't a human-versus-human kind of conflict? It's human versus…some other?
Yes, "the other." That will be be revealed sometime soon, but I can't tell you right now. We purposely wanted to hint at it, because we wanted gamers to ask questions about who they are and why they're there.
You said that the trailer is in-engine. Just to clarify: those visuals aren't the target for actual gameplay, right?
No, this is not gameplay, but it is the way you're going to see, for example, cinematics happen. Everything you see in the game and the way the game is going to flow will look the way the game looks right now.
Is there one pivotal historical moment that results in the real and alternate histories diverging?
Beyond the very genesis of the IP, which actually happens very long ago — probably more than a millenium before this game — this is a window into the IP. The big moment is really the industrial revolution. We've twisted that industrial revolution in a different way than what it did for us in real history. Human society was an agricultural society that turned into an industrial society. What we did with our industrial revolution is that it's man's way of fighting this war. It comes about because they realize they're going to lose. It's their survival. It's where the tides turn and humans take their destiny into their own hands.
You refer to The Order as an IP. Assuming the game is a success, do you have more plans for the world?
The goal was that I wanted to build an IP that transcends just this media. The point would be that there are other stories to be told — past stories, future stories. Hopefully, in the future, we'll be to tackle a lot of these.
What Playing Thief Taught Me About Stealing
June 13, 2013 by Leave a Comment
A thief's hands need to be nimble and delicate in order to pull off a robbery, but a gamer's just need to have a firm grip on the controller. That's just the first of several educational points I took away from my hands-on time with Thief. Not every lesson was useful, but they all shape the stealth-focused adventure.
Silence is encouraged, but not necessary
You don't get to be a master thief by getting caught. You should avoid detection by sticking to the shadows and not making too much noise. However, if you happen to alert a guard or walk by a guard dog, the mission isn't completely blown. You can flee and ditch your pursuers, or you can stand and fight. Unlike games like Dishonored, doesn't present stealth and action as two equally viable approaches. Action is fine if you really screw up, but Thief gives extra bonuses to those who can stay under the radar.
To the daring go the spoils
In the mission I played (where Garrett is hoping to steal a jewel called The Heart of the Lion), almost every guard carried a conspicuous sack of coins on their belts. Relieving them of their wealth is easy when they are off patrolling alone, but you won't always be so lucky. Sometimes the guards are groups together and walking through each others sightlines. Other times, there may be traps laid all over the area. At one point, Garrett came across a lockbox that I didn't enough have time to open because a roaring fire was consuming the room. In these cases, players who want the extra rewards need to carefully consider the risks involved.
Be invisible, if possible
Thief is not a game about supernatural power or otherworldly benefactors. With that being said, one of Garrett's abilities is on the border: the swoop. Swooping, accomplished by a simple double button-tap, lets players quickly move undetected for short distances. For instance, is a guard staring right at the well-lit doorway you were hoping to pass by? Just swoop past. As long as you begin and end in concealment, you should be fine. The darting movement might make the guard come investigate, but at least it doesn't automatically raise an alarm.
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Pack a giant quiver
Arrows aren't just offensive weapons; their long range and multiple varieties make them versatile tools. While crouching safely out of sight, you can fire off water arrows to extinguish light sources. Blunt arrows can break glass objects (like bottles) to create a loud noise and entice surrounding guards to abandon their posts to investigate. Fire arrows don't deal much damage on their own, but become far more lethal if shot in the direction of a pool of flammable liquid — especially if a couple patrolling guards are standing in said pool. Rope arrows provided an instant vertical climbing aid, perfect for escaping ugly situations or getting a better view of the situation.
Good thieves love minigames
Just when you think you've found a container holding a valuable heirloom, you try opening it only to find it locked. That's when the lockpicking tools come out…along with the accompanying by-the-numbers lockpicking minigame. This was the most disappointing part of my Thief experience; I can't think of any title in which a lockpicking minigame has been anything more than a frustrating hassle separating gamers from their well-deserved loot. I played two versions of the minigame (one with visible tumblers and one without), but neither of them added any enjoyment.
That concludes my basic instruction. These tips are all good to know for beginner-level thieves, but the in-depth lessons will have to wait until Thief releases in 2014.
Microsoft: We haven’t forgotten about indies, honest
June 10, 2013 by Leave a Comment
As promised, Microsoft spent the bulk of its E3 presser this morning in Los Angeles to detail games which could be expected on the Xbox One. We saw a few overtures toward indies… but not much. …
What is your game actually about?
June 7, 2013 by Leave a Comment
In this reprint from the February 2010 issue of GD Mag, Civilization IV lead Soren Johnson talks about the difference between a game’s “theme” and its “meaning.” …