I believe similarities such as these are more than just coincidence. I think it has something to do with the fact that picture books and video games excel at telling stories from a particular vantage point. It's all a matter of zoom. Their often limited storytelling space privileges 'Big Ideas' over, say, the intricate portraits of life that novels make possible. Perhaps my favourite example of this is Journey - the title alone invokes an aggregate perspective on life. It presents a tale shorn of life's details, a wordless experience where bodies are concealed beneath robes. In Aaron Becker's book of the same name, a girl uses a crayon to draw a door into another world. Becker's Journey is also wordless, and even features a silent encounter with a secondary character who becomes an unexpected source of companionship. It seems that when we tell stories at this altitude, certain ideas crop up time and time again. … [Read more...] about Picture books and video games: a backdoor into childhood
Halo community update tracks the obscure cause of Halo 2’s worst launch bug
But onto the new stuff: Halo 3 testing should start "within the first few weeks of June," and will include Forge and Theater, as well five campaign missions and plenty of multiplayer maps and playlists. There's also some movement on other games in the MCC, including the addition of its Challenges system, audio fixes for Halo Reach, bug fixes around screen tearing, and secondary key bindings. All those things are getting closer to release and should be in an upcoming flight or release. … [Read more...] about Halo community update tracks the obscure cause of Halo 2’s worst launch bug
Halo 3 makes its PC debut with limited testing next month
343 have kept a staggering pace in porting the old Halos, with a brief snapshot at Halo 3 and ODST running on PC coming before even Halo 2 Anniversary’s release earlier this month. So, while there’s no mention of the jazzy, Nathan Fillon-fronted spin-off in this week’s post, it’s not too shocking that there are already plans to roll out the trilogy’s closing act. Posting in a development update this week, 343 laid out their plans for Halo 3 flighting (testing) within the “first half” of June. … [Read more...] about Halo 3 makes its PC debut with limited testing next month
Play Half-Life: Alyx as a more traditional shooter in this VR-free mod
In case there was any doubt, Baldur's Gate 3's new sizzle reel confirms rooms full of fire … [Read more...] about Play Half-Life: Alyx as a more traditional shooter in this VR-free mod
Call of Duty: Warzone finally gets duos mode
The playlist update comes alongside a double XP, double weapon XP and 2X tier progression weekend. This double XP triple feed runs until 7am UK time on 3rd June, which should help those who haven't quite wrapped up the current battle pass to do so. … [Read more...] about Call of Duty: Warzone finally gets duos mode
