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Pixel Cafe Review

Reviews
Screenshot 2023 12 28 230055

Pixel Cafe has a smooth lo-fi vibe with some of the best music I’ve heard this year. Released early October, we finally got a chance to sit down with what can be considered revolutionary in its own genre. You’ve got gorgeous pixel-art style beats, a soundtrack that kicks off from the start and doesn’t stop and a hypnotic gameplay loop that’s as mediative or brow-sweating as you want it to be. Quick note: The developers have been active in updating the game. A mid-December 2023 update introduced difficulty modes, giving the game more depth from the challenging kitchen manager that it was to a zen like rhythm game to the challenging kitchen manager that many loved as is. Let’s dig into what separates this game from others. Running the Pixel Cafe The game starts off with a cup and a coffee machine and simple instructions. The game’s complexities slowly unveil…

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Backpack Hero Review: Polyomino Building Bliss

Reviews
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Backpack Hero is a rougelike that features a polyomino (think Tetris) style inventory management system that you use to develop builds which can be used in turn-based battles. After each battle loop, you return to a city to use your loot to research new items, which unlock new builds, which can in turn make you more powerful as you venture deeper into the dungeon. There’s a lot going on in the game and for the entry price alone you’re getting almost too much content. You have a city builder, inventory management, economy both in and outside of the dungeon, item builds and synergies (based on placement) and turn-based battles with NPCs that can change their next action based on what you do. You can also play several different modes, some which include a way to not even worry about the city and offer an endless crawl through the dungeon, unlocking…

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Tim Cain’s Video on WildStar is True but Misleading

Editorials
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Tim Cain is known as part of the legendary trio behind Fallout 1 & 2. He also worked at Troika and programmed Vampire: The Masquerade and one of my favorite games Arcanum. He recently released a video lambasting Carbine and NCSoft while disclosing some deep interpersonal issues at Carbine. Tim’s video is authentic and his recount is accurate by all means. I covered WildStar heavily from 2011 onward and the stories back then were well known. Carbine was a toxic and unhealthy workplace which had the potential to release the best MMO of the golden age but instead failed with 9 years of development time and a further four post-launch to win back everyone ala Final Fantasy XIV. The video is very misleading in some ways. It argues that there was a lack of unified vision. That’s true, but it was also completely the fact that everyone at Carbine was…

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Kotaku’s Staff Uproar: Why Generative Text Can’t Replace Editorial Staff

News
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It seems that G/O Media, owner of Kotaku, has made the transition to AI content. This in turn has alienated the editorial staff who have taken to social media along with their union. The use of AI generative text is currently extremely controversial, with Gaming Tier List parent owner Yurika Corporation banning its use on all properties. There’s a lot of reasons for that, which we’ll get into, but first let’s get the information from the source. Relevant Tweet What Is G/O Media Doing and What Does AI Mean? We need to be really fair here for a moment and explain what the business, G/O Media, is saying instead of focusing on the hype. What they’re arguing is that they’ve begun using generative text to create articles that are reviewed and fact checked by an editor. The editor then approves the post to go live, assuming that it has been…

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Twitter’s Temporary Rate Limiting’s Wide Impact on Gamers

News
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Gaming is the most social activity online. The only other more social activity is FaceTime, due to its liminal space intrusion into your life when someone calls. Social activity requires platforms that allow users to connect. The entire basis of the Internet is to send and receive from other users in other locations. Twitter has recently rate limited users on a temporary basis, which has greatly slowed the flow of information between communities. There’s a crisis unfolding on the Internet’s most social town square. Twitter’s pathway to monetization continues to be rocky. Decision after decision has left users a gasp at what to do when their normal that had been consistent for so long rapidly changes day after day. The long and short of the current crisis is that new users, regular users and paid users all have different amounts of posts they can view per day. The limit seems…

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The Ugly Truth Behind Video Game Industry’s Beautiful Art

Editorials
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The following is an editorial submitted by a vetted source posted anonymously. You know what’s a shame? Every ounce of praise that I can give to a game and it’s beautiful creative work as an art-form is corrupted by the foul practices of the exploitative and outright evil video gaming industry. Almost every single studio exploits their employees because “games.” See, video games are a seen by some as a hedonistic form of entertainment and so working on them is seen as “fun” and a “privilege.” There is very few video game jobs out there, you see, so if you get one then you’re “cool” and “hip” and this allows the employer and management to leverage that against you as if you owe them something for the benefit. I know this first hand, I know this from seeing it with my eyes, I know this from countless nights spent with…

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Limited Inventory in SIGNALIS is Paradoxical Yet Intentional

Editorials
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SIGNALIS only allows for six inventory spaces and many players do not like the concept at all. So much so the developers have responded noting that they’re working on iterating on some kind of change that doesn’t remove the spirit of the gameplay but alleviates some of the player concerns. For me, I find the entire debate fascinating. The issue stems from the way that the game presents the inventory as sort of a puzzle challenge, akin to games likes Resident Evil. It forces the player into a set playstyle, something modern gamers aren’t very appreciative of, where you will always optimize your run by not bringing ammo and only carrying one weapon. That gives you five inventory slots for all other items. Yet, players who play the game on Easy or Normal will likely want to play aggressively and in doing so will want different weapon options, lots of…

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The Meeting-Driven World of Video Game Development

Editorials
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For those of you who have ever worked a job that had any kind of meeting this may actually resonate differently than those who haven’t. When video games are developed there are, surprisingly, a lot of meetings that occur. When we’re talking meetings we’re talking a lot of meetings. So many meetings that it’s actually kind of fascinating to think about. None of the below is really applicable to single developer games that don’t utilize outside contractors. Single developers naturally work entirely alone on their own game and purchase / generate all the assets and resources themselves. Single developers who contract out work still have meetings, interestingly enough. Meetings and Video Games So there’s a lot of cooks in the kitchen. You have the product team, that’s the developer and the game designer along with their associated analysts and support staff. You have a technical team that’s got a considerable…

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Raw Metals (Iron, Copper & Gold) in Minecraft 1.17 (21w14a)

Guides

Java Edition 1.17 added in raw metals into Minecraft. This is a major change to various versions, metal blocks would drop metal blocks, not raw ore. The Fortune and Silk Touch enchantments now work on the Iron, Copper and Gold blocks which drop ore now instead of the blocks themselves. This ore can be smelted with one fuel and one ore to make one ingot, just as you can with the blocks. That means with Fortune III you can get up to 4 (the average being 2.2) ores per metal block. Which is a nice change as it makes farming these materials a lot easier compared to before. So when you destroy an Iron, Copper or Gold block (or their deepslate variants) without Silk Touch, you’ll get something called “Raw Iron” or “Raw Copper” or “Raw Gold.” It works the same way as the blocks in crafting, but of course…

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Parents & Young Adults Guide to Gaming Careers – eSports Professionals (Pros)

Guides
people sitting on red chair watching tv

When we consider the power of gaming one of the things we don’t consider often is its ability to be extremely inclusive and allow for a wide swath of people from the full spectrum of socioeconomic statuses to enter into a video gaming career. Due to the nonstandard approach and ease of entry into the streaming space and just playing, becoming a professional eSports player is “easier” than ever. “Easier” of course being in quotations because it’s not “easy” as in you can just start day one and begin as a professional eSports player. No, the “easy” part is the materials for getting started. The rest of it is up to the skills of a player. You, your child or your young adult may be interested in being an eSports professional. Wearing a jersey, being on stage in front of a large crowd (or viewers at home) and basking in…

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