The hottest Gaming Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Technology Topics

Crossplay Mailbag: "Is Nintendo's Awful Online Setup Actually Great For Kids?"

Crossplay • 746 implied HN points • 02 Jun 23
🕹 Technology Gaming Online Services Parenting Video Games
  1. Kids may easily switch between different games and videos, affecting their level of commitment to a particular game
  2. Parents appreciate the strict controls of Nintendo's online setup for kids playing multiplayer games
  3. Introducing games to children can be influenced by personal values and the desire to guide the child's exposure in a positive way

Unity changes: why PC & console devs feel like the 'ugly duckling'

The GameDiscoverCo newsletter • 393 implied HN points • 13 Sep 23
🕹 Technology Gaming Software Platforms Market Trends
  1. Unity announced changes to its game engine license pricing model based on 'number of installs of your game'.
  2. Unity's engine business for PC/consoles is less important financially compared to its mobile ads/mediation division.
  3. The new pricing model by Unity has caused dissatisfaction among developers, especially PC and console developers.

Decisions depend on the decision maker

Overthinking Everything • 419 implied HN points • 31 Aug 23
🚌 Education Decision-making Gaming Learning Expertise Teaching
  1. Decisions depend on who is making them, as individual factors influence the best choice.
  2. Even in games with 'objective' optimal strategies, decisions are subjective based on each player's abilities and knowledge.
  3. Beginners should consider their own strengths and weaknesses when making decisions, rather than just emulating experts.
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A Realization as a High-Level DM

Fireside Chat Logs • 39 implied HN points • 03 Mar 24
🎭️ Culture Gaming Entertainment Creativity Education
  1. Balancing high-level D&D combat encounters can be a challenge due to the abundance of abilities and actions, leading to potential slow gameplay.
  2. To streamline high-level combat encounters, reduce battlemap size, limit the number of opponents, and encourage players to prepare, act promptly, and avoid retro actions.
  3. Implementing changes to make combat encounters more efficient and engaging can lead to smoother gameplay and heightened player emotions.

VR Agent

Have You Played? • 98 implied HN points • 09 Jan 24
🕹 Technology VR Gaming Entertainment Virtual reality
  1. VR Agent is an attendant-free arcade VR game where players shoot enemies and dodge using a VR headset attached to a toy gun.
  2. Despite its unique hardware design, VR Agent provides a comfortable and natural VR experience with new control mechanisms.
  3. VR arcade experiences like VR Agent and Ultra Moto VR showcase the potential for immersive, convenient, and attendant-free gaming, paving the way for the future of arcade entertainment.

Months Late Game Review, Part 2. ... Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. Some Bad Things.

The Bottom Feeder • 315 implied HN points • 07 Sep 23
🕹 Technology Gaming Design Criticism Storytelling Inventory Management
  1. Deep criticism of games may not always engage a wide audience.
  2. Critiquing games can help keep design skills fresh and provide valuable design exercises.
  3. Large games like Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom may have flaws, such as excessive encounter reuse and key plot elements revealed too early.

Unity, divided

SuperJoost Playlist • 294 implied HN points • 14 Sep 23
🕹 Technology Gaming Software Mobile Market Trends
  1. Roblox CEO emphasizes platform as a tool for communication and connection, amidst controversy and legal concerns.
  2. Unity's new fee structure based on installs sparks outrage among game developers, especially affecting smaller studios.
  3. Apple enhances high-end gaming on new iPhones, attracting popular franchises to mobile and competing with console versions.

GM Shaders: MRT

GM Shaders Mini Tuts • 98 implied HN points • 06 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Graphics Shaders Gaming Programming
  1. By using gl_FragData[0-3], you can output 4 separate fragment colors to up to 4 surfaces with one draw call
  2. Multiple Render Targets have various applications like deferred rendering, unique object IDs, and depth maps in 2D or 3D contexts
  3. Consider limitations with MRTs, like compatibility with platforms, VRAM usage, and controlling fragment outputs independently

Still loading: Re-Loaded

Rings of Saturn • 43 implied HN points • 23 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Gaming Programming Software
  1. The cancelled Saturn game Re-Loaded from Gremlin Interactive faced performance issues leading to a low frame rate and long loading times.
  2. Despite having only one level, a patch allows players to remove time limits and explore the game more fully by playing as different characters.
  3. The preview image suggests playing as other characters, which can be unlocked by changing values in game files - offering new gameplay experiences.

Best layoffs of the year

SuperJoost Playlist • 157 implied HN points • 22 Nov 23
💼 Business Layoffs Gaming AI E-commerce Blockchain
  1. Widespread job cuts for short-term profits can hurt innovation and diversity in industries.
  2. Reducing costs through layoffs can improve profitability in the short term, but may harm long-term innovation and diversity.
  3. Layoffs in the gaming industry can hinder new talent entry, reduce diversity, and push innovation to smaller, riskier firms.

MarketWire | Let me be clear: Monopoly Go is "successful"

The GameMakers Letter • 78 implied HN points • 17 Jan 24
🕹 Technology Gaming Podcasts Mobile Market Analysis Industry Trends
  1. The discussion revolves around the success and profitability of Monopoly Go in the games industry.
  2. There is an emphasis on understanding the deeper nuances of game industry topics, such as defining profitability.
  3. Despite any controversies or disagreements, the main focus is on promoting open discussion and learning in the industry.

Why do some great PC/console games fail to 'go big'?

The GameDiscoverCo newsletter • 294 implied HN points • 30 Aug 23
🕹 Technology Gaming Data Analysis Tech news Game Development Digital Platforms
  1. Some great PC/console games may struggle to become popular despite positive ratings and marketing efforts.
  2. The genre of a game, such as 'Metroidvania', can impact its success due to market saturation and competition from existing popular titles.
  3. Publishers should focus on understanding player behavior, adapting marketing strategies, and fostering organic excitement to improve game reach and success.

Using LC0's WDL to Analyze Games

Chess Engine Lab • 19 implied HN points • 23 Mar 24
🕹 Technology Chess Analysis Artificial Intelligence Data Visualization Gaming
  1. Analyzing chess games using LC0's WDL can provide a more insightful overview of the game compared to centipawn graphs.
  2. Increasing the number of nodes per move in analysis results in spikier graphs, showing more extreme evaluations; finding a balance between accuracy and relevance to human play is important.
  3. Using WDL contempt values in LC0 analysis can adjust the winning probabilities based on player ratings, offering a new perspective on game outcomes.

Dimension Hopper Part 1

General Robots • 395 HN points • 12 Jun 23
🕹 Technology AI Gaming Art ML Generative
  1. The project involves creating a 2D platformer where players design levels and AI generates visual representations.
  2. The journey to achieve this project involved experimenting with different techniques and models, such as adjusting depth images and adding more detail to improve visual outcomes.
  3. Using the right control images, supporting structures, and techniques like adding adjustable roughness, greatly improved the quality of the generated images.

The Dawn of Ronin

Ronin’s Newsletter • 73 implied HN points • 30 Dec 23
🕹 Technology Blockchain Gaming Infrastructure NFTs Web3
  1. Ronin blockchain has experienced significant growth in daily active users, market capitalization, and total value locked throughout 2023.
  2. The upgrade to Delegated Proof of Stake (DPoS) strengthened Ronin's security and decentralized the network, paving the way for more infrastructure development.
  3. Ronin introduced innovative features like Mavis Market for NFT creators, Ronin Name Service (RNS) for gamertags, and the Ronin Wallet with over 1.2 million new addresses in the past year.

🎙️ Generative AI for 3D Worlds with Atlas CEO Ben James

The GameMakers Letter • 39 implied HN points • 10 Feb 24
🕹 Technology AI Gaming Podcast
  1. Atlas specializes in transforming 2D images into 3D models for gaming worlds, creating diverse models at a massive scale, changing art styles dynamically.
  2. Atlas' technology accelerates the creation process of 3D assets, generating 20,000 unique buildings for a VR game 200 times faster than traditional methods, saving time and costs for developers.
  3. Early applications of Atlas technology focus on game concept testing by providing a quick visualization of 3D worlds in various art styles to iterate on game layouts, though full production usage is still in development.

Pixels Players: the $BERRY Sunset has Begun

Ronin’s Newsletter • 36 implied HN points • 13 Feb 24
🔮 Crypto Tokens Exchange Gaming Launch Community
  1. Convert $BERRY to in-game $PIXEL now through the Pixels dashboard before February 17th.
  2. Follow the step-by-step instructions provided to convert and deposit your $BERRY into $PIXEL within the game.
  3. The $BERRY token will no longer have in-game utility, and the exchange rate between $BERRY and $PIXEL will decrease every 72 hours, so it's recommended to make the conversion soon.

The Evolution of Valve's Source Engine

Deus In Machina • 72 implied HN points • 28 Dec 23
🕹 Technology Gaming Software Development Updates Innovation
  1. Valve's Source Engine evolved from a modified Quake engine to the renowned Source engine, powering successful games like Half-Life and Team Fortress.
  2. Valve introduced the GoldSrc and Source engines to separate stable and developmental codebases, enabling continued development without affecting existing games.
  3. The Source engine underwent major updates over the years, leading to the Orange Box update with significant graphical enhancements, and eventually paving the way for the development of Source 2.

Who's top of Steam Next Fest for June 2023?

The GameDiscoverCo newsletter • 314 implied HN points • 26 Jun 23
🕹 Technology Gaming Platforms Virtual reality Mobile Gaming
  1. Steam's June Next Fest featured around 1,000 PC game demos with various top performers in different categories.
  2. Important points were highlighted in the ongoing FTC vs. Microsoft case, including PlayStation's role in Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda and Activision's revenue split tactics.
  3. Recent game platform and discovery news include Meta's VR subscription service, Nike's collaboration with Fortnite, and insights on Chinese game approvals.