Dev Game Club

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this add a bonus to our series on Resident Evil 4 by taking a look at Resident Evil Village. We talk about the bit of the game we played, some of the things that come with first-person and realistic rendering, and then turn to some feedback. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: The first couple hours Issues covered: the entrancing Lady Dimitrescu, looking forward to playing more over the break, the very different storybook introduction, whether these games are a continuation, building on things others have been doing, the way photorealism falls into an uncanny valley from even props, the way older games signify what is interactable, feeling like you're in a vision mode, knowing the baselines from your initial experience, the acceptability of something rundown, a modern update of RE4, "why does this keep happening to me," wanting to know who you are, being a cipher should maybe go all the

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on Resident Evil 4. We talk about various set pieces at the end, a bit about ammo types and balance, and of course, our takeaways. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Finished the game! Issues covered: having more cutscenes and quotable lines, set piece stuff that reminds you of other series, tying back to the series, parallels with Metal Gear Solid, being campy vs leaning into camp, new enemy types, whether an enemy was skippable, feeling resource poor, weapon choices, conserving resources as much as you can, losing resources to being unable to line up enemies, making ammo more powerful via upgrades, killing parasites with flash grenades, whether resource constraints are balanced for all players dynamically, leaning more heavily on QTEs, replacing mechanics with QTEs, forcing exposition, camera authoring, uninteresting skill challenges, Ashley driving an

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Resident Evil 4. We take a little sidestep into the things that aren't mentioned in the manual, and then work through Chapter 4. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Through the end of Ch 4! Issues covered: things we didn't notice about the game, target practice, going to apparent side tracks first, extending play to try to slow trade-in, collectibles, gacha mechanics, needing to enjoy the core thing, a precursor to lootboxes, expanding to other types of players, ways to expand the mechanics, upgrading treasures, having the nagging idea that you might need to go back, hidden mechanic that extends play, adding discovery, Eastern vs Western design philosophies, misreading the thing they wanted from the El Gigantes, the dragon room, having to come back to a side room, leaving Ashley behind, the layers of history of Europe vs Japan, looking for locations an

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Resident Evil 4. We talk about the ecology of the monsters, defense sequences, and bobbing and weaving. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up to the end of 3-4 Issues covered: sagacity and gardens, finding the PS4 to be a slightly easier platform, the enemy count, the easier tram ride as a setpiece, running out of ammo in the town on replay, being thoughtful of ammo use and switching to the knife, the suplex, the retinal scanner, Mendez taking the stylized symbol shape, the ecology of the parasite, the dev-evolution of the parasites, feeling like a cohesive setting, a place that used to be a place, Saddler's insectoid form under the robes and his cosmic horror staff, the creep Salazar, gunning and running, taking advantage of AI slowness, higher breeds of hybrids, using the sandbox in interesting ways, having to defend Ashley when separated, having th

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Resident Evil 4. We talk about the new horror in the game, our systematic companion and the other NPC, look at the choice of paths, and then take the tram. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: To Chapter 3 Issues covered: remembering the game, recovering the map, El Gigante reveal, stabbing the creature in the back, getting to no health but being allowed to recover, taking big swings early, foreshadowing traps and the dog, the systematic companion, the church and navigating to Ashley, the quality of the puzzles and being more grounded, the emergence of the Las Plages virus, introducing the enemies, reuse of gameplay objects in the siege, ugh-inducing achievement names, losing Ashley to the Gigante, the many ways Ashley interacts with the game, mechanical/narrative consonance, being introduced to interactions before you have Ashley to interact with them,

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Resident Evil 4. We talk a bit about the modern mechanics it introduces to the series and consider how it maintains its balance despite it. And, of course, we take a peaceful boat ride across a lake. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up past the lake Issues covered: quoting the merchant, how the chain saw Ganado appears in the opening section, approaching the town in a particular way, bottlenecking, the dynamism of the enemies, knifing enemies, integrating the merchant into play, art object collection and the economy, trends in 2005, player agency not working against survival horror, the risk of breaking your economy, wondering if they tune for money drops, wanting to find all the things, tuning dynamic difficulty, navigation puzzles, paths to be able to run away, the canyon area, the ups and downs of the series, excellent and non-excellent helicopte

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we start a new series on 2005's Capcom horror classic, Resident Evil 4. We place it in its time and then talk immediately about how it really kicked the third-person action-adventure game into higher gear. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up to the second typewriter Issues covered: the Capcom 5, having some trouble getting the game off the ground, success of the remake, a really different feel, relying on establishing POV shots from slashers, horror movie touchpoints, moving away from straight-up zombie games, differences between Chris and Leon, meeting Hunnigan via the Codec, popularizing the third-person shooter, hold-overs from the older controls, fighting the controls, embodying the character, disempowerment, pick a spot and stand your ground, jerky enemies, shooting a weapon out of the air, opening up the level design to multiple paths, the gun-and-run, Leon's better ta

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we add a little splice to our series on BioShock by revisiting and discussing its sequels, somewhat vaguely. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Issues covered: whether Elizabeth is a grown-up Little Sister, getting a chance to revisit Rapture, breaking cycles and circles, overstuffing the narrative space, the mechanics, Skyline rollercoasters, kitchen sink combat, trapping with vigors, combining vigors, being on the nose, dehumanizing the enemies and putting that next to more serious topics, a creator revisiting previous work, friction between teams, wanting more BioShock, "it is a big ole TWO," being able to use both types of weapons at the same time, simplifying hacking, finding new types of puzzles, fleshing out Rapture, paying off on a wish fulfillment you didn't know you have, "getting the franchise," going deeper, the difficulty of seeing someone else work on your work, the weirdness of

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we complete our series on BioShock. We delve into the end and endings of the game, and of course address our takeaways.Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Finished the game! Issues covered: Brett's terrible fathering, Big Daddy issues, developing Suchong more as a character, Yellow Peril, leaning into pulp, being like a ship, turning the lower classes via demogoguery, leaning on the Irish, tracing the arc of Diane McClintock, using abstraction to hide real harm, character dualities, turning you into a Big Daddy, seeing the evolution and development of the program, putting the big boots on, fully integrating the backstory into the level and narrative design, redesigning to support the movement of the Big Daddy, changing the perspective, moving from alien camera views to first-person perspective, forcing the section where you protect the Little Sister, being paranoid about keepin

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on BioShock. We talk a lot about the surprise of the scene of Ryan, and some mechanical and production aspects we haven't had a chance to talk about yet. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up to Apollo Square! Issues covered: where the game should (?) have ended, playing golf with your dad, finding a way to incorporate a power station, Ryan the abstract monster vs Ryan the concrete monster, changing the lens you view Ryan through, rationalizing one's choices, the red yarn board, forcing the player to see a scene the way they want you to, egocentric Ryan and seeing oneself as a tragic hero, every villain as the hero of his own story, mythological framing, other ways you could tackle player agency here, "The Cake Is A Lie," the Irish charmer becoming the Irish thug, using Atlas to puff out Ryan as a monster, the many many layers of references and archetype

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on BioShock. We talk about Fort Frolic and the arc of what's coming, guns and plasmids and a bit about their crossover, crafting, and gene tonics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up through Fort Frolic Issues covered: hitting the best beats of the game, having the future be a little blurry, Cohen's theatricality, using the camera purely as a framing camera artistically, the multiple payoffs of the camera, critical path integration of the camera, time-delayed gratification, a bottle episode, the statue splicers, using spotlights theatrically, how do you produce oxygen and filter out carbon dioxide, riffing on space games, putting crafting on the critical path, not having inventory as a presented system but having it underneath, not a lot of difficult decisions, always being able to get enough stuff through grinding, minimal benefits to adding crafting

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Bioshock. We talk about the horror elements early on, the use of minibosses, how low-friction the game is, hacking and of course, the Choice. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up to end of Neptune's Bounty Issues covered: reading how Atlas talks about Ryan knowing what we know, introducing Fontaine and audio tapes indicating maybe death at first, temporal setting, the game's argument both against and for the primacy of the individual, horror and the Medical Pavilion, doling out a good step-by-step game, having a solid target in Steinman, framing cinematic events well, theming characters in areas, audio design heightening the horror, seeing ghosts/echoes and the direct lift from System Shock 2, the setup and payoff of the Choice, Tim the Harvester, the difference between harvesting and rescuing, wondering about their goals in making the choice, the se

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on 2007's Bioshock. We set the game in its time and talk about how it expanded the audience for a shooter with sim elements, as well as other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up to Neptune's Bounty Issues covered: the name change, retaining identity after being acquired, what is a brand, the games that year, the Shock-verse, wanting System Shock 3, missing the immersive sim, starting with the wrench and a power, the success of the game, broadening the appeal of immersive sim elements, the difficulty of balancing immersive sims and testing them, improving the shooting, a successful E3, keeping secret the weird beginning, the theme park opening, the bathysphere and the mystery, marine life being used once, delivering a really solid moment, a single location that is a character in and of itself, a sleeper hit, the games blogosphere, the "Bioshock s

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we interview Brian Allgeier, the Lead Designer of the first Ratchet & Clank (as well as many others) in connection with our series. We cover 20 years of career at Insomniac, creative leadership, Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Podcast breakdown: 1:12 Interview 59:45 Break 1:00:13 Feedback, Next Time Issues covered: Girl with a Stick, first jobs, getting in as an animator and artist, getting a good demo reel together, being excited to work on Spyro, having trouble thematically connecting disparate elements, playing in a toy store, an alien traveling from planet to planet collecting weapons and gadgets, evolving the character, building levels diorama-style, getting the attitude of the character across, relatability, kitchen sink design, try it and see what happens, tinkering to find the fun, coming up with jokes except they were weapons, fun in the room translating to fun for the player,

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we finish our series on 2002's Ratchet & Clank, with our takeaways and a bonus look at the 2016 remake. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Actually finished the game Issues covered: the quality of the cinematics in the new game, Quark's criminal status, being underpowered for the final boss, getting money by going back so you can buy additional weapons, fun timing challenges, giving you a greatest hits in the last couple levels, the difficulty being a thing of its era, getting the benefit of dynamic difficulty, promoting grinding with currency systems, wanting additive rewards, the magic of the RYNO, the inaccessibility of the RYNO, keeping players stuck in one game, balancing on average vs minimum, giving you more navigation tools earlier and by default, doing what's coolest for the player, leaning into variety, infusing RPG elements into another genre, having lenses to n

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Ratchet & Clank. We talk about the late game, variety in the game in its many forms, getting things out of order, favorite stuff, and more. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Finishing the game? Issues covered: what the remaster improved or didn't, finding upgrades, having to backtrack, how many weapons we have left, getting to the end of a sequence and not having a payoff, our bonus episode, the entertainment of Mr. Zurkon, comparing the film adaptations, favorite or favored weapons, throwing the wrench, getting the weapon placed in your hands when you pick it up, UI fighting design, chorded weapon wheels later, putting devices on or off the item select, silly trophies, skill points, the space battle with Quark, getting to be Giant Clank, fun being the giant monster, pounding lots of big enemies, the Gadgetron grind rail, tools for making things

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on Ratchet & Clank. We delve primarily into the variant game play we start to see at this point in the game, though admittedly with other topics sprinkled in. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up through Bomb Factory Issues covered: voice cast, Ratchet's longer story arc, dark and snark, opposing ideas of what have to be done, building story around archetypes, attitude mascots, moving from mascots to more realistic rendering and characters, PlayStation moving to more "mature" themes, Microsoft pulling Sony, changing strategy, wanting the variant game play to reinforce the setting, spline enemies, aim down sites, using tools to create problem-solving scenarios with weapons, having lots of rewards for completing variant play, enjoying being able to visit a space a second time, sticking with a single design structure for years, fighting the Snagglebeas

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we continue our series on 2002's Insomniac action shooter platformer Ratchet & Clank. This week we talk about the weapons systems, watching a game evolve over a few years, level design, and other topics. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up to Blarg Station Nebula G64 or thereabouts Issues covered: propulsion, stretch and squish, humor along the lines of Warner Bros, comedy and timing, matching comedy style to the game, weapon upgrade systems and the many levels of weapons, contextualizing upgrades and gadgets, the zaniness of weapons, gold bolts, having help with the collectibles, getting a lot of trophies, the ways gadgets improved, improving usability, third-person shooting on consoles, early 3D still, filling in the gaps for Nintendo, collection-focused mechanics vs generosity of bolts, failing forward, channels of reward, skill-based leveling systems, adding behavior

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we begin a new series on the delightful action platformer shooter thing called Ratchet & Clank. We set it in its time a little bit, and talk a bit about developer Insomniac, and then turn to talk about introductory impressions and continue to catch up on feedback. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Sections played: Up to Novalis Issues covered: destroying your enemies with flame, tone and charm and humor, 2002: a Good Year with a Thick Coat of Peanut Butter, the mascots, playing PlayStation games at the start of the PS2 lifecycle, the Cerny Method, Tim's first time, the war on consoles surrounding mascots and third person action, what Microsoft was up to, Brett projects that Tim will be amazed about with the guns, a little sideline into Resistance, the titles, future streamlining, getting animation to film quality, stretch and squish as a frontier, making a character feel very alive, Brett

Welcome to Dev Game Club, where this week we at last conclude our series on Final Fantasy VI. We give our takeaways and then turn to some of the mountain of feedback that's been piling up. Dev Game Club looks at classic video games and plays through them over several episodes, providing commentary. Issues covered: June says hello, developing deep character backstories, differing combat mechanics for each character, being pushed to mix parties at the end of the game, full world state changes, going against the grain, going dark places, getting a lot out of their engine and their small set of sprites, stretching beyond your audience's expectations, the alienness of opera, merging exploration with linear story, not knowing what order the story might come in, storylets and minimum expectations of how much game you get, Brett's Book Recommendation, dealing with the end of the world, having trouble getting past an early fight, a strange fan theory, having lots of story and wanting to split the characters, cautionin