News

Kliuless #22: The Three Horizon Problem
Kliuless #22: The Three Horizon Problem
Each week I compile a gaming industry insights newsletter that I share with other Rioters, including Riot’s senior leadership. This edition is the public version that I publish broadly every week as well. Opinions are mine.
Feb. 7, 2019
Birth of an NPC: Writing non-player characters for Double Cross
Birth of an NPC: Writing non-player characters for Double Cross
The process of making a new character is long and goes through several people. This is how four of Double Cross’s characters were crafted, as told by the writer.
Feb. 5, 2019
An improved way of grabbing objects in VR with Unity3D
An improved way of grabbing objects in VR with Unity3D
There are several ways to solve object grabbing in VR with Unity3D but all have some kind of issue. This blog post summarize different approaches and propose a better one.
Feb. 5, 2019
Video Game Deep Cuts: Get Into The Wargroove, Below Marshmello Zero 2
Video Game Deep Cuts: Get Into The Wargroove, Below Marshmello Zero 2
This week's highlights include impressions of the fetching Advance Wars-like Wargroove, the new Subnautica standalone follow-up, as well as a look at Fortnite's concert rendezvous with Marshmello, among a bumper crop of links.
Feb. 4, 2019
Finding the Hook For a Game Trailer
Finding the Hook For a Game Trailer
The best game trailers cut to the heart of what makes a game unique, yet so many trailers still treat games like a product which is merely the sum of its parts. Thinking of games this way does a disservice to the game, the trailer, and the audience.
Feb. 4, 2019
What Drives Retention
What Drives Retention
Retaining players is critical to games-as-a-service, brand-building, customer loyalty, and reducing the heavy burden of user acquisition costs. Here is a set of strategies.
Feb. 1, 2019
Behind The AI of Horizon Zero Dawn (Part 1)
Behind The AI of Horizon Zero Dawn (Part 1)
In this first of two blogs I explore the AI decision making framework that enables the machine-animals of Horizon Zero Dawn to behave independently and as part of a herd.
Jan. 31, 2019
Kliuless #21: Sandbox VR & AR Cloud
Kliuless #21: Sandbox VR & AR Cloud
Each week I compile a gaming industry insights newsletter that I share with other Rioters, including Riot’s senior leadership. This edition is the public version that I publish broadly every week as well. Opinions are mine.
Jan. 31, 2019
How Player Choice Can Backfire
How Player Choice Can Backfire
The recent gaffe surrounding Assassin's Creed Odyssey frames our talk today about how giving player choices can backfire if you're not careful.
Jan. 31, 2019
AR/VR investment stabilized in Q4 2018
AR/VR investment stabilized in Q4 2018
Digi-Capital tracked AR/VR/computer vision startups raising over $6 billion in 2018. A deal volume decline in the first 3 quarters stabilized in Q4 and deal value returned to a 2-year average. The next 6 months will determine if this is a long term trend.
Jan. 31, 2019
Effective Game Design: Software Challenges
Effective Game Design: Software Challenges
Game design is the most important part of every game, but there are no specific tools for game designers. Dialogues must have a diagram-like layout to keep them organized, a game library database requires more structured storage...So what can we do?
Jan. 31, 2019
Why did we DMCA our own game few weeks after launching?
Why did we DMCA our own game few weeks after launching?
In 2018 , we launch our first indie title in Early Access. Nothing prepared us for what is to come. Within 3 months we were forced to DMCA our own title in Steam Store as we struggle to stay afloat.
Jan. 29, 2019