Reading List End-Of-Year Special (Patreon)
Content
So, for your final reading list of 2018 I decided to do something a tad different. I wanted to gather together the best writing and videos on the game’s stand out releases. I’ve got pieces about the music of Celeste, the last hit animation of Smash Bros Ultimate and the depiction of slavery in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.
Some of these pieces were on previous reading lists this year so apologies if you’ve already seen them. I just wanted to make this as complete as possible.
If you’ve got more pieces that you think I’ve missed, please do chuck them in the comments below!
Red Dead Redemption 2
[Read] Red Dead Redemption 2' fails to justify its own excessive existence
[Read] The irony of Red Dead Redemption 2’s themes
[Watch] Is Red Dead Redemption 2's Animation Too Slow?
[Read] Red Dead Redemption 2's Redface Proves How Far Games Haven't Come
[Read] I've Watched a Lot of Films: The Cinematic Failures of Red Dead Redemption 2
Red Dead refuses, outside of actual cutscenes, to break its illusion of ultimate player freedom and intentionally take control of the camera and frame a shot. You know, like cinema does.
[Watch] Following NPC's in Red Dead Redemption 2 for a Whole Day
[Read] Inside Rockstar Games' Culture Of Crunch
[Read] Red Dead Redemption 2: Should Crunch Impact Reviews?
[Watch] Rockstar's Game Design is Outdated
GRIS
[Read] Gris mirrors the stages of grief through art, sound and design
Tetris Effect
[Watch] The Emotional Journey of Tetris Effect
Battlefield V
[Watch] Thanksgiving Leftovers: Battlefield V
[Read] 'Battlefield V' Shows the Series Needs to Give Up on Single Player
God of War
[Read] "Cory Barlog Kept Punching Guys Forever:" The Making of God of War's Leviathan Axe
[Read] Recalling the Leviathan Axe
[Watch] God of War Case Study
[Read] God Of War Gets The Stress Of Parenthood Right
[Read] 'God of War's Kratos was an angry lump of muscle. I made him a struggling father'
I liked the idea that there was a lot more to Kratos than any of us knew. In order to get that change to ring true, especially with a character as quiet as Kratos, you need an external force. That’s where Atreus came in.
[Listen] God of War's Cory Barlog - The AIAS Game Maker's Notebook
[Watch] Making God Of War's Axe Recall sound with just an iPhone mic
Prey: Mooncrash
[Watch] Prey: Mooncrash
Florence
[Read] Designing Florence to convey the ineffable feeling of being in love
Iconoclasts
[Read] The 10-year making of Iconoclasts
Celeste
[Read] Why The Very Hard 'Celeste' is Perfectly Fine With You Breaking Its Rules
[Watch] How Celeste Teaches You Its Mechanics
[Watch] Breaking Down Level Design in Celeste
[Read] Celeste: Level Design and Difficulty as Storytelling Beats
[Read] Why Celeste's dash feels great
Across 5472 lines and in variables like JumpGraceTime, DashHJumpThruNudge and DuckFriction, the code precisely defines her ability to run, climb, jump and dash, bringing her to life in your hands.
[Watch] Fluid Motion
[Watch] The Anxiety of Celeste and its Music
Return of the Obra Dinn
[Read] How a book binds the Return of the Obra Dinn
[Watch] Return of the Obra Dinn Thinks Differently About Narrative
[Read] Lucas Pope and the rise of the 1-bit 'dither-punk' aesthetic
Monster Hunter World
[Read] Being adopted by a Monster Hunter veteran is brilliant
Spider-Man
[Read] 13 years later, Spider-Man 2's swinging has never been bettered - here's its story
[Read] It’s Easy To Miss One Of Spider-Man’s Coolest Audio Details
[Read] They made that one videogame again but this time it’s called Spider-Man
[Watch] Spider-Man PS4: Combat, Context, Legacy
[Read] Deconstructing Game Narrative – Part 1: Spider-Man
[Watch] Spider-Man's Animation: The Zip To Point
[Watch] Spider-Man and the Effective Use of Musical Clichés
[Read] Spider-Man's Quiet Moments Are Its Most Important
Spider-Man is a masterclass in how to create a fantastic story filled with people we can’t help but care about, and I hope developers look to its example in the future when it comes to telling stories, particularly those about servicing others and finding hope in unexpected places.
[Read] Spider-Man's Take on Police Feels Out of Touch
Dead Cells
[Read] Building the Level Design of a procedurally generated Metroidvania
[Read] The long, hard, journey behind the design of Dead Cells' player builds
[Read] Tuning Dead Cells to appeal to players both fast and slow
[Watch] Dead Cells & Stream Integration
Into the Breach
[Watch] Does Into The Breach Really Have Perfect Information? Why RNG Matters
[Read] Into the Breach's interface was a nightmare to make and the key to its greatness
[Read] Reimagining failure in strategy game design in Into the Breach
[Read] Chris Avellone on Into The Breach
Assassin’s Creed Odyssey
[Watch] Other Places Walks: Athens
[Read] Assassin's Creed Odyssey presents a ‘softer’ version of slavery
[Read] Why Homer would approve of Assassin's Creed Odyssey
A vast sweeping tale of bold heroes, touched by the gods and accomplishing great feats. Assassin's Creed is the perfect game to do Homer justice.
[Read] Sexing My Way Through Ancient Greece In Assassin's Creed Odyssey
[Read] History in Color
The Messenger
[Watch] Analyzing the Messenger's Simple Twist
[Watch] The Messenger: Defying Expectations
Minit
[Read] How Minit's team found creativity through limitations
[Read] High Scores: Jukio Kallio’s “Minit” Soundtrack Embraces Lo-Fi Sounds
[Read] Minimalism and Collage in Minit
Far Cry 5
[Watch] Far Cry 5 and the Art of Saying Nothing
[Read] Far Cry 5 Critique - A Game of Missed Opportunities
[Read] Finally, a Video Game for Cowards
[Read] Far Cry 5 Offers No Insight into Christian Fundamentalism
Octopath Traveller
[Watch] The Design of Octopath Traveler
[Watch] How Octopath Traveler Hypes its Boss Battles
[Watch] Octopath Traveler: Reimagining Game Music
[Watch] How Octopath Traveler Changes Key
Shadow of the Tomb Raider
[Read] For one great level, Shadow Of The Tomb Raider makes Lara Croft feel like a real person
It’s a cute way to foreshadow the stunts that adult Lara regularly has to perform, and it’s a little hint that she might enjoy being a reckless daredevil more than she lets on.
[Read] Ascendant: The Fall of Tomb Raider and the Rise of Lara Croft
Detroit: Become Human
[Watch] Detroit Become Human is Amazing, for the Wrong Reasons
Fallout 76
[Watch] How Does Fallout 76 Compare to Previous Fallouts?
[Read] The Nukes of 'Fallout 76' Are Where Power Fantasies Hit a Breaking Point
Wandersong
[Read] Behind the colorful music wheel of Wandersong
Super Smash Bros Ultimate
[Watch] How Super Smash Bros. Music Sets a Tone for the Series
[Watch] Smash Bros. and the evolution of the last hit