People talk about the depth of games a lot, but it’s tricky to figure out exactly what that means. I’ve been thinking about a new way to measure the depth of games. It’s the Skill Ceiling. The skill ceiling is … Continue reading
My hobby now is, apparently, editing Star Trek episodes for humorous effect.
So I decided to practice my video editing a bit. The horrifying result:
The word “game” is starting to get outdated. It doesn’t fit us any more, to the point where it is holding us back. When people started calling them games, that’s what they were. Simple sets of action-reaction rules and mechanics. … Continue reading
The best thing about the old tabletop role-playing games is the Dungeon Master concept. The Dungeon Master is a person who creates and presents challenges to the other players. Since the DM can essentially do anything that a fictional world … Continue reading
Technology doesn’t just mean physical devices. The word also refers to techniques. In game design, we develop technology that has nothing to do with CPUs or game engines. We develop design technologies. This is my list of the most important … Continue reading
Played through Bioshock again recently. This audio log jumped out at me: “On the surface, I once bought a forest. The Parasites claimed that the land belonged to God, and demanded that I establish a public park there. Why? So … Continue reading
Naive design is what a 14 year old video gamer does when you ask him what kind of game he would want to play. He doesn’t know anything about design theory or analysis. He doesn’t understand game balance, player training, … Continue reading
I didn’t get a chance to take in Jon Blow’s MIGS keynote from November until now. Well, I just listened to it. First, you need to listen to this talk. I’ve heard (and said) a lot of ideas that orbit … Continue reading
A new study apparently reveals that popular video games satisfy men’s need to dominate. First, I’m happy to say that I called it first. Second, I’d be interested to see if video games would be less popular in a society … Continue reading