Business

Indie horror hit Crow Country sells over 100,000 copies

PlayStation 1 inspired horror title Crow Country has sold 100,000 copies since May. A week after Crow Country’s release on Nintendo Switch, London-based developer SFB Games announced that it had reached the impressive milestone. Two third of copies sold were via Steam, with the rest split between PS5, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch. “100k …

Programming

Real-time game telemetry at 2K Games using AWS and Rockset

February 13, 2024 1 Hr View Date: Feb 28, 2024 Duration: 1 Hr WATCH ON DEMAND Sponsored by Rockset To create and iterate on the most compelling in-game features, gaming companies use real-time game telemetry. They collect real-time gamer behavior data including game interactions, purchasing behavior, movement, interactions with other users and more to inform …

Case Studies

Deep Dive: Behind the starkly stylish art direction of Bloodless

Game Developer Deep Dives are an ongoing series with the goal of shedding light on specific design, art, or technical features within a video game in order to show how seemingly simple, fundamental design decisions aren’t really that simple at all. Earlier installments cover topics such as how GOG perfected the imperfect with the re-release …

Case Studies

Book Excerpt: Ultima and Worldbuilding in the Computer Role-Playing Game

The following is an excerpt from Ultima and Worldbuilding in the Computer Role-Playing Game, a historical study of Ultima (Origin Systems, 1981). The book was published in April 2024 by Amherst College Press and is available for open-access download or paperback purchase. In her classic work on human-computer interaction, Computers as Theatre, game designer Brenda Laurel …

Mobile

The Epic Games Store debuts on AltStore, Android, and iOS devices

Fortnite, Fall Guys, and Rocket League Sideswipe have dropped back onto iOS and Android handsets via The Epic Games Store. As promised earlier this year, Epic will use its marketplace to relaunch key titles on mobile platforms following a protracted legal battle with Apple and Google. The Epic Game Store is currently available for download …