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Reading List (December 2021)
🕑 Added 2021-12-24 11:00:00 +0000 UTCSanta Claus is here, and he’s got a gift for you: articles! And videos! And also a DVD of the Minions movie for some reason.
Now, sometimes I do a end-of-year round-up for the reading list… but that usually just results in a lot of duplicate stories I had already shared early in the year.
So, instead, here’s just a classic, tried-and-tested reading list for your reading and viewing pleasure. Enjoy!
The Design of Games
[Read] Unpacking Vulnerability, Empathy and Player Agency - "Games that take place in intimate spaces like the home don’t leave as much room for the player’s own self."
[Watch | 9 mins] The Open World Design of Halo Infinite - Game Design Foundry explores the pros and cons of Halo ditching its linear roots
[Watch | CC | 14 mins] How Deus Ex Blended Genres To Change Shooters Forever - Warren Spector talks about why he mixed stealth, FPS, and RPG into one game. I'll be quoting this video in an upcoming GMTK episode, for sure...
[Watch | CC | 11 mins] The Secret To Amazing Combat - JoystickDrummer explores the satisfying art of a good parry
The Business of Games
[Watch | CC | 35 mins] Roblox Pressured Us to Delete Our Video. So We Dug Deeper - People Make Games did an excellent Roblox investigation a few months back - this update is even more surprising, and horrifying.
The Development of Games
[Watch | 12 mins] Every Game I Ever Made - I enjoyed this speedrun through Jonas Tyroller's game dev portfolio
[Watch | 10 mins] 5 Things You Can Do To Make Games Like A Pro In Unity - Some good Unity tips, including a bonkers "multi scene workflow" that's just way beyond my skill level.
[Read] Fine-tuning The Last of Us Part II’s interactive guitar - "With The Last of Us: Part II we knew we wanted to take things a step further, and put the music directly into players’ hands."
The Playing of Games
[Read] Why do video games make some people feel sick? - VG247 talks to developers and researchers about how to combat motion sickness in games.
[Watch | CC | 25 mins] Ten Indie Games You Missed in 2021 - These lists are usually filled with games everyone's heard about - but most of these are genuinely under-the-radar picks
[Read] I Can't Enjoy the New 'Grand Theft Auto' Because I'm Old Now - A fun trip down memory lane, from VICE, that explores the disconnect of nostalgia.
[Read] Resident Evil Village Was the Most Completed Game of 2021 - Data from How Long to Beat reveals some interesting info.
[Read] Playing videogames carefully - "What if we thought of playing games as a careful act, rather than a skilful one"
The Art of Games
[Read] The Super Flat Design of Michiko Sakurai - An interesting look at the UI design philosophies seen in Smash, Kirby, and more - which are designed by Masahiro Sakurai's spouse.
[Watch | 9 mins] Why Racing Games Feel Slow - This video explores the tricks and techniques game devs can use to make racing games feel faster.
[Watch | 38 mins] The Animation in Metroid Dread - Dan Root explores the excellent animation of Dread - from Samus to the enemies to the boss fights.
[Watch | CC | 17 mins] The Sound Design of Loneliness - "With so many of my favourite titles exploring themes of solitude, designers have to find ways to make games sound lonely."
The History of Games
[Read] The Bizarre Story Of Rockstar's Cancelled Austin Powers Kart Racer - "It will be the grooviest racing game ever released."
[Read] ‘Help! I’ve been spotted!’ Terry Pratchett on Thief, his favourite video game - "In the early 2000s, the Discworld author frequented a forum dedicated to the Thief series of stealth games. His posts provide a fascinating insight into his fondness for gaming"
[Read | Long Read] How Kindness Saved the Cult Hit 'Anachronox' from the Wreck of Ion Storm - "This is a story about how far you can get, and what you can get, by being kind. "
Beyond Games
[Watch | 18 mins] EXPLODING Glitter Bomb 4.0 vs. Package Thieves - Mark Rober continues his Christmas tradition of glitter-bombing jerks who nick packages off doorstops.
[Read] The Making Of The Fake Game In The Red Hot Chili Peppers' Californication Video - Turns out one of the creators of this infamous music video went on to work at Naughty Dog. Huh!
[Watch | 8 mins] Making MrBeast’s Squid Game in 10 Days - Think what you want about MrBeast's Squid Game homage, but I found it fascinating to see how this YouTube video basically got a Hollywood-level VFX treatment.
[Watch | 9 mins] The Bestselling Novel That Fooled The World - A classic AustinMcConnell episode, loved it.
[Watch | 7 mins] The Horror Short Film In Spider-Man 2 - Sam Raimi snuck a slasher film into this classic super hero flick. Nerdwriter breaks it down.
Comments
Germanos
Appreciate the list Mark. Big thanks!
Mikhail Aristov
This reading list is the best Christmas present I've got so far this year. :3
JoystickDrummer
Thank you so much Mark for putting my parrying video in this reading list!
