The first 1,000 people to use this link will get a 1 month free trial of Skillshare: https://skl.sh/superbunnyhop01228 00:00 70s02:17 80s05:18 90s08:28 2000'...
Super Bunnyhop contextualizes the recent large-scale game company buyouts by summarizing their history over the several decades the industry has existed and discussing the difference in how they are seen by insiders versus consumers.
I swear this post is about video games.
So, the above video by one of my favorite ASMRtists is intended to reduce anxiety. It does so by presenting a series of cognitive tasks - none of them are especially difficult, but they all require constant attention. The idea is to distract the mind so that it doesn’t have enough bandwidth left over to worry or catastrophize. Do this for several minutes and runaway anxiety loops should collapse and the mind should return to something like a base state where recent memories are instead about succeeding at several basic tasks. (In theory. This video is not made by a licensed mental health professional.)
I don’t know for sure that things actually work this way, or for what segment of the population it might be effective. But I do know that this formula sounds really familiar to me, and in fact is one of the main ways I’ve used video games over the years.
Iâve been replaying a lot of Stardew Valley lately. Iâm not replaying Stardew Valley for the new content patched in long after I beat the game on release. Iâ...
I’ve written a few times about mods and cheats claiming that in a single-player game, there is no cheating, only house rules and that mods/cheats and other subversions of developer intent improve the game landscape and that some devs/publishers restrict them not for artistic reasons but as a money grab. Here, GC Vazquez makes a similar argument, but also highlights the ways that mods extend the lifespan of a game, meaning that publishers who clamp down on them in an attempt to sell microtransactions lose out in the long run.
an analysis of the apparent controversy surrounding the enumeration and classification of the mainline series of games within the Mario franchise00:00 - intr...
We all know that there are a lot of Mario games. But how many games are there in the mainline Super Mario series? As jan Misali shows us, this turns out to be a difficult question to answer because of all the questions you have to answer along the way.
Some of the more-divisive ones include - is it still Super Mario if the gameplay changes significantly? Arguably, the New Super Mario Bros. games, which can be seen as their own side series, are more like the original Super Mario gameplay than, say, Super Mario 64 or Super Mario Odyssey. What about initial entries in sub-series spinoffs that are titled like sequels to mainline games, like Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 and Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island? And given the existence of enhanced ports and remakes, what even counts as a game? Is there a game called Bowser’s Fury, and if so is it an entry in the Super Mario series? It’s difficult to come up with a consistent set of definitions and answers to these questions that results in a list of games that feels correct.
To me, the main value of an analysis like this is as a reminder that categories are inherently slippery since they are more about grouping similar characteristics than hard and fast binary definitions, and furthermore that they can never really be true or correct - only useful. It’s something I try to keep in mind whenever people start arguing about genre definitions. Surely membership in a well-established game series is much simpler and more clear than membership in a broadly defined genre. If we can’t even agree how many Super Mario games there are, how can we hope to agree which games count as roguelikes? And if we can’t reach consensus on that question, then maybe it’s actually not that important.
or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the etc. etc.
The therapeutic potential of video games deserves more exploration. In addition to games specifically designed to help deal with mental illness, games can provide safe ways for us to experiment with and overcome challenges that are harder to tackle directly in real life (as I’ve touched on before).
In this insightful and deeply personal video, ShayMay discusses The Binding of Isaac within the context of his own difficulties with anxiety and how it served as a safe way to practice - and even learn to enjoy - not being in full control.
Video credits (25¢) : Directed and animated by @ericpowerup http://ericpowerup.net Piano, synths, production by @John Mark Nelson // Lyrics and vocals by…
If Danny Wiessner’s The World Is Saved is gaming’s anthem, then Mixtape for the Milky Way’s Video Games is its dark reprise.
We are back with a new episode of Gaming For A Non-Gamer. This time I had my wife jump into the immersive world of Virtual Reality.
In the latest episode of YouTuber Razbuten’s series in which he watches his non-gamer wife play video games, the focus is on VR.
For me, the major takeaway is that because VR games don’t have decades of convention to lean on, they need to be much more intuitive and approachable than other games. As a result, while they’re roughly as approachable as other games for experienced players, for new players they are far more approachable… once you get over the hurdle of the expensive equipment required and the somewhat stigmatized and antisocial nature of the headset.
After playing Beat Saber in VR, I wondered if I could create a similar rhythm game in Minecraft by hitting flowers with corresponding color swords. Now I've ...
Not only is this an entertaining video of Beat Saber-inspired gameplay in Minecraft, you can actually download the custom world and play it yourself (full instructions in video description on YouTube).
I just love when games enable this kind of shareable creative expression and interactive intertextuality.
Go to https://BuyRaycon.com/razbuten for 15% off your order! Brought to you by Raycon. In this episode of Gaming For A Non-Gamer, I finally had my wife try o...
In the latest episode of YouTuber Razbuten’s series in which he watches his non-gamer wife play various games, the focus is on so-called “casual” life sim games.
Many of the lessons and takeaways echo those that have come before (intuitive theming, low pressure, good tutorials, recoverable failure states, and optional co-op features all help new players learn, cheats/modes that let players focus on what they enjoy are good, etc.) but a couple new ones stood out to me. First, that sandbox games can be downright unapproachable if you don’t already have basic familiarity with what you can do and what kind of goals make sense, so early-game directed progression can be vital for new players. Second, that being part of a shared culture moment can be a powerful draw even if it’s not the kind of culture you normally take part in.
Before Minecraft, there was another game: Infiniminer. The first 500 people to use this link will get a 2 month free trial of Skillshare Premium Membership: ...
Did you know that Minecraft started as a self-described clone of a game called Infiniminer made by Zach Barth of Zachtronics? I sure didn’t.
This video presents an interesting angle on the history of Minecraft and also a case study in the value that can be unlocked by allowing player freedom away from the game designer’s authorial intent - and how strange it is to have a game you created get changed into the most successful game of all time.