Category Archives: uncategorized
Modal controls in video games
In UX, modes are when the same input results in a different action depending upon the state of the program. I’ve played games where there’s a “town” mode and a “action” mode, where your “fight” actions are replaced with “talk … Continue reading
Video game architecture and the dimensions of doors in Gone Home
This is a door model from Gone Home. Anything strike you as odd? It’s pretty thick isn’t it? For comparison, I measured a door in my own home and referenced a Home Depot link on standard door sizes. My doors … Continue reading
Virginia, video games and montage
I played Virginia lately, which is unusual among games, I think, because of its use of montage. What I’m talking about isn’t exclusively what people call “a montage” in film, (eg: training montage) though there are some scenes like that … Continue reading
Games as systems of information
So lately I’ve been reading Rules of Play and I have a small discussion about something they get into in the chapter Games as Systems of Information. In it, they summarize a typology of information in games as described by … Continue reading
Super Text Mesh for Fungus
So a game dev from Winnipeg put together a text tool for Unity called Super Text Mesh which lets you do wiggly text and a few other things. Since I’ve been playing with Fungus lately, I decided to see if … Continue reading
Platformers and making orthogonal movement metaphorically orthogonal
Someone made a side-comment about platformers, how it was based entirely around timing and therefor the lowest common denominator in games, and that’s the only reason they are so popular. (Of course, this was in the context of explaining why … Continue reading
You’re A Mimic!
So I did the latest Ludum Dare and made You’re A Mimic! I guess because I’ve been playing with Fungus a lot lately, it’s something where you try to find the holes in a treasure chest’s story, to prove it’s … Continue reading
Hex vs Square
A tweet got me thinking about hex and square tiles in board games. It is several months old at this point, but that means I’ve given the subject a thorough going-over. Board-game fans: Hex tile vs Square tile? — James … Continue reading
Reload sounds
So a difference I noticed recently between Mutant Alien Assault and Super Crate Box. Reload sounds. The two games are kind of similar genre, so I think it makes sense to compare them. Both require the player switch weapons fairly … Continue reading
Yet another thing for Fungus
Okay, now I made something that modifies the Fungus Say Dialog to work more like it’s a text messaging system, where it shows a series of bubbles of what characters have said, instead of just the most recent Say. You … Continue reading