Hey Horror and Game Design geeks, Dusan here!

As a designer/producer with around half a decade of experience in the industry, I’ve decided to embark on a personal crusade to dissect and analyze the inner workings of horror.

The horror game industry is, and likely will remain, quite conservative. Due to this reason, through this series, my goal is to help both new and experienced indie developers gain a deeper understanding of game design by examining it through the lens of this unique genre.

To avoid pushing walls of text in this post, I believe it would be best to leave my medium article page here: https://medium.com/@pavkovic.dusan99/5-ways-you-probably-play-horror-games-wrong-cc62ce38747d

Please note that everything written in articles to some degree can be considered subjective. If you have differing opinions, please feel free to have a discussion about it below. We are all here to learn!

Hello everyone! Today, we want to share detailed information about the first chapter of Together in Between and discuss this chapter with you. The game is a two-player co-op puzzle adventure inspired by games like It Takes Two and We Were Here Forever. You’ll work together to solve puzzles by communicating only through sound.

Here are some details about Chapter One:

1. Map and Setting: The first chapter takes place in a library with the key theme being “GRANDEUR.” The library has four or five floors, but players can only access the first two. The first floor features a massive chessboard and various puzzle mechanisms. The upper floors are divided; the left side is designed for the white player, and the right side is for the black player.
2. Flow and Experience: Players start with a large chessboard, creating an immediate sense of immersion. Before solving the first puzzle, they can find a chess booklet on a nearby table. Access to the upper floors is color-coded, and each player must solve puzzles in different areas. The chapter’s flow requires players to work together to solve the puzzles.
3. Puzzles and Mechanics:
   • Solving the chess puzzle involves breaking apart the white king to retrieve a key necessary for solving other puzzles.
   • The Library Puzzle consists of four stages: matching symbols, positioning books correctly, and navigating a trap-filled path.
   • The Trap Path is made up of various sections; players need to use symbols correctly to advance.
   • The Clock Puzzle requires setting two clocks to the correct positions (with the black player adjusting the clocks).
   • The Wall Puzzle involves placing six-symbol ingots on the correct boards.
4. Sound and Atmosphere: We will create appropriate sound effects and music for the library atmosphere. Sounds will include door creaks, chess piece clinks, and puzzle-solving effects. Additionally, torches, lighting, and library-themed objects will be considered for the environment.

What do you think about this chapter? Which puzzles did you find the most challenging, or which areas caught your attention? Share your thoughts with us and let’s discuss your experiences!

Removing servers from games sounds like a fool’s errand.

Users don’t want to run their own infrastructure, and there are serious fairness and scalability concerns that come from the removal of trusted central parties. It turns out there are encryption techniques to solve these problems. Here’s an introduction to how peer-to-peer gaming might actually work.

The main approach, which could be called “Generalized Mental Poker”, developed by a project called Saito, aims to create a gaming experience that can handle global traffic without relying on heavy infrastructure or centralized servers.

'Mental Poker' is a protocol for a fair game of cards over the phone, but on Saito it is generalized to enable gameplay for *any* turn-based game. Here's roughly how it works:

1. It uses encryption to shuffle and distribute game elements (like cards or resources) among players.
2. Each player's actions can be verified by each other without revealing hidden information or relying on a central server.
3. The game progresses through a series of steps where players reveal encrypted commitments to use hidden resources like cards, ensuring they can’t cheat and other players can verify moves.

Benefits for Gamers

This approach offers several potential advantages:

• No central server: Games run directly between players, potentially reducing lag and eliminating single points of failure.
• Increased privacy: No personal data is collected or stored on any servers.
• Cheat-proof: The system mathematically ensures fair play without needing a trusted third party.
• Flexible: Any turn-based game can be adapted to use this technology.
• Open Source: Games are easily moddable and auditable.
• No accounts: Players can use the system without logging in or making accounts.

Games in Action

While the technology is still new, there are already some impressive demonstrations:

• Twilight Struggle: A digital adaptation of the popular Cold War strategy board game.
• Settlers of Saitoa: A version of the classic resource management and trading game.

These games show that complex, multiplayer experiences are possible using this peer-to-peer approach.

The big UX benefit of P2P is that you can play these games without an account and without giving your data to servers. I’m usually on the Arcade offering open invites for games if anyone wants to try or chat about it.

https://saito.io/arcade/

Looking Ahead

As this technology matures, we might see more developers experimenting with decentralized game design. This could lead to new types of multiplayer experiences and potentially give players more control over their gaming environments.

While it's still early days, this innovative approach to P2P gaming is worth keeping an eye on for anyone interested in the future of multiplayer games, or for devs who want to avoid greedy publishers.

Apocalypse TM Come join its new and needs people you spawn with a kit for now till the population goes up then kit spawn will be probably just a. Knife or a colt with 1 mag base damage want be on for another 2 to 3 weeks to let everyone build up come join now and have some fun (https://discord.gg/SRbKCtRK)

Completa el prerregistro y participa en el evento para ganar un pase para la beta y muchos premios más https://zenless.hoyoverse.com/es-es/?share_code=ND28X88XZP&hyl_auth_required=true&game_biz=nap_global&utm_source=share&utm_medium=native&utm_campaign=web

Looking for a new strategy gaming experience? 2K released a new game! Civilization: Eras & Allies for mobile phones offers an incredibly cool gameplay. Who's up to join my alliance? This game is easy to play and have different quests that will keep you excited while playing the game.

Hi all, I am currently at a state where I really want to play a good single player story driven game. Just for some reference, my favorite titles of all time that I have played include: Ghost of Tsushima, Persona 5 Royal, Detroit become human and the Yakuza series. As you can tell all of these are very heavy story driven games. Do you guys have any recommendations? THANKS! :)

I’m trying to find this game my husband wants but the only description my husband has given me is this “It’s a guy who has amnesia and confuses his life with his friends life and they were in the military his friend died saving him “ he also said he played it on the ps2,3 and psp

I am looking for penny sleeves for a variety of games that will fit inside the ultra pro acrylic sleeves. Has anyone had any luck with this?

For me personally, a game ending that changed my life was red dead redemption two. I liked the perspective of the game where Arthur (the main protagonist) had a hard choice. Which was A) stay with the gang that he had been with ever since he was a boy or B) leave the gang to help his friends leave and have separate lives without the gang. So then Arthur chooses B. Then he gets a choice to help his friend John escape to his family, or he can go back and get the money the gang recently stole from a train. Finally after fighting off Micah he peacefully dies. That’s the main reason why I rate this game a 10/10.

Hi hello! (: As the title says, I'm looking for a game that will destroy me emotionally or make me think a lot about life, it doesn't have to make me cry or feel depressed, I just need it to make me feel something.

My favourite game is Nier;Automata, I have played Replicant too, and I haven't found anything close to them yet. I don't want games like Before your Eyes or That Dragon Cancer, I find them boring, I don't like when games are so emotional, and I need to have at least a little bit of "gameplay" (I'd like them not to be heavy turn-based). Also, if it has a nice/active fandom, it has some extra points (:

Lastly, I don't want the games to be 60 hours long or so, I prefer shorter ones. For reference, I'll list some games I have played and liked, and some others that didn't fit.

Games I liked:

- Omori.

- To The Moon and its sequels.

- Hello Charlotte.

- Lisa the Painful.

- Portal.

- Outer Wilds.

Games that didn't really fit:

- RDR2.

- God of War.

- Night in the Woods.

- The Walking Dead.

- Gone Home.

- Life is Strange.

- Spiritfarer

Here are some games I also played/know, so they don't get mentioned: Disco Elysium, Detroit Become Human, Bioshock, The Last of Us, Undertale, Return of the Obra Dinn and similar, Spec Ops, Danganronpa, Wolfenstein, Pathologic, Hellblade Senua's Sacrifice, Kentucky Route Zero, Beyond Two Souls, Heavy Rain, Persona Games...

As you can see, I need to get new/less known recommendations, I have read a lot of posts and the same games get repeated all over again.

I know I'm kind of picky, but I'd like to see if you have something you think I could enjoy. Try to justify your comment if you can! Thanks in advance <3

Hi! I'm looking for a game that makes me love its characters. I want it to have a big impact on me, I just finished Omori and totally fell in love with the group. I like stories that have a variety of characters with personality and "charisma", and if it has any kind of choices, even better, but not mandatory.

Games I tried and didn't really have what I needed: RDR2, Mass Effect, Fallout, Dragon Age, Life is Strange, Yakuza...
If you can, try to explain a bit the reason of you recommendation, please (:
*P.D: I already played Danganronpa and Zero Escape.

Thanks in advance! <3
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo DS and 3DS.

As a book and game nerd I always appreciated games with strong narratives, while still enjoying engaging gameplay. I find it strange that many gamers appear to plant their feet on one side of the fence (narrative / gameplay) and this has continued to befuddle me during my time at university.

While researching this I also found that a lot of existing research considers game narrative at large, and doesn't differentiate between main story and secondary narratives in the shape of side quests and lore.

For my thesis I decided to explore this a bit further, so if you have any opinions or insights about secondary narratives and how they contribute to immersion, I have made a short google form of 10 questions about it. It's anonymous, though participants should be 18+

https://forms.gle/ZquDkDH8yT2hSXiXA

With this post I also hope to encourage some discussion on the topic of side quests and how to do them properly, instead of repetitive and boring. Do you guys have any examples of great games for side quests?

Hi! I'm looking for a game that makes me think or gives me some kind of "life-lesson". I want it to have a big impact on me, I know this is something REALLY subjective, but maybe you can provide me some good recommendations (:
A videogame like this may be Nier;Automata or Portal, I'd say those are my best examples. I'd like it not to have a gameplay where you are fighting all the time, I prefer more "story-focused" games, if that makes any sense.
I've played Detroid Become Human, Bioshock, Omori, Outer Wilds, To The Moon and its sequels,... And I could keep saying but it's a long list, I just mention those so you don't comment them.
If you can, try to explain a bit the reason of you recommendation, please (:

Thanks in advance! <3
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo DS and 3DS.

Hi hi. As the title says, it's very difficult for me to enjoy most of the videogames I try, so let's see if any of you can suggest me something I like. Please try to explain your suggestion a bit if you can. I'm looking for a game with a good story, I don't like when the gameplay it's all about fighting. I love when a videogame makes me feel something/think, and I'd like it to have relevant/charismatic characters (in any way). I also like choices or multiple endings (it doesn't have to change much, it can be just one character dying or not), but this is not a must.
For a reference, I'll leave here games I liked and didn't like.

Games I like:
- Nier series (my all-time favorites, best side-quests, emotional, multiple characters and endings...).
- The Witcher series.
- Hollow Knight (example of game with a soft story but very charismatic characters).
- Detroit Become Human.
- Ori and the Blind Forest (not a fan of the secuel tho).
- Eastward.
- Celeste.
- Bastion (not Transistor/Hades, I'm not a fan of roguelikes).
- Undertale and OneShot.
- Zero Escape Series.
- The Forgotten City.

Games I didn't like/meh:
- RDR2 (I tried so hard but the story it's just not for me).
- Mass Effect (heavy gameplay and non-appealing story for me).
- Assassin's Creed Odyssey (too repetitive).
- Disco Elysium (too much, just too much).
- God of War (not for me).
- Skyrim (I don't like the gameplay)
- Yakuza Series.
- Life is Strange.
- Dragon Age Series (I don't like the gameplay).
- Night in the Woods.

I know you'll hate me for this. I know how good those games I mention are, but I can't make myself enjoy it, I'm really sorry ):
I just want to mention I do not like terror or heavy turn-based games, I need them to be entertaining. My platforms are PC, Switch, and Nintendo DS/3DS, thanks in advance <3

Looking for new games to try with decent graphics

Start Date: 2/16/2023

End Date: 3/31/2023

Control is a 2019 action/adventure game by Remedy Entertainment with Metroidvania influences.

• If you wish to stream your gameplay, please add yourself to the Group Play schedule.

• If you wish to join the discussion, join us on our Discord!

I'm looking for genuine console ports that no one knows about and not the typical bs you see on YouTube that everyone knows about not like cod pubg boulders gate Diablo gta max pain ff secret of mana blood stained sponge bob bfbb etc etc. I have some paid ones like chrono trigger castalvania sotn hollow knight valkyrie pl castle of illusions battle chasers nightwar dead cells vlm and Pascale wager. the paid store or Google and youtube doesn't have any list that I could find and every video I watch is a scam thanks in advance.

Hello everyone,

My name is Jeremy Brenner-Levoy and I am a Ph.D. Candidate in Sociology at the University of Cincinnati. I am doing my dissertation on how who we are shapes how we play video games. If you play video games, please consider taking my survey. It should only take about 12-15 minutes to complete.

I have three main goals for this research study:

To understand if and how video games are afforded different levels of prestige.

To understand how who we are shapes the games we play and what we look for in games.

To understand how who we are shapes the roles we play within games or the way we play games.

Confidentiality:

You have the ability to take this survey and remain completely anonymous. But, should you leave your contact info for either eligibility in the gift card raffle or for a follow-up interview, your information will be kept confidential and will be deleted after use.

Compensation:

I do not have funding to pay all participants, but I have secured $6,000 for participants. I will be raffling off 60, $50 gift cards to survey participants who indicate they are interested. Additionally, I will be randomly selecting 60 interviewees from those who indicate their interest, who will also get $50 gift cards for their time.

Survey (mobile friendly):

https://gamerstudyjbl.typeform.com/to/OryO5ScC

My contact info:

Jeremy Brenner-Levoy

Department of Sociology, University of Cincinnati

levoyja@mail.uc.edu

Personal note:

I have been a gamer my whole life, and I am very interested in how social structures seem to impact video game play. While most researchers focus on how harassment shapes our interest in play, I am more interested in how who we are shapes what and how we have fun. I suspect that social issues are present even within this.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out in the comments or directly via message.

Hey everyone!

Our group is looking into the relationship between motivations behind playing video games, self-compassion, and meaning in life. We are doing this research study for our dissertation – a requirement for our MSc in Counselling in Bangor University. If you regularly play video-games and if you are above the age of 18, we would love to have you take part in our study! For the purposes of this study, 'regular' video game play would be at least once per week. This study consists of a survey which contains questions about your video gaming habits, why you play video games, some questions on self-compassion, some questions on meaning in life, as well as some demographic questions. It should take around 30 to 40 minutes to complete the survey.

I am also more than happy to answer any questions you may have about our research.

This is the link to our survey:

Welsh Language: https://bangorhumanscience.fra1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_ba0Ua04CaKP7ARo

English Language: https://bangorhumanscience.fra1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4NNTrP7yhGlZHBs

​

Thank you so much for your time and participation in our study!

My partner and I are hoping to have an expansion pack made for one of our favourite board games, Catacombs of Karak. We’ll need to order custom dice, packaging, and printed board pieces of various sizes. We’re hoping for some recommendations for Canadian companies that could supply us with a small custom order of any of the following:

Dice: 6d4, at least 13d6, 1d8, 1d12.

Packaging: game box and plastic insert for all pieces.

Board pieces: multiple of each for map pieces, enemy/weapon tiles, character pieces (plus plastic stand), character inventory holder, health tokens, character sheet, and curse tokens.

Hello there What are some good games for peeps with ADHD? Like to calm you down or for when you need something to do while you’re waiting, and your patience is going crazy, you know??

When we talk about gaming, a vast majority of the world can say they have at one time or the other played one game or the other. Although, professional gaming is a different ball game entirely. And a lot of people do not consider it a career path. But a deeper look into this would show otherwise. A professional gamer can earn as high as 1million dollars depending on the amount of competition he engages in. The question now arises 'how do I become a pro gamer?'

How to Become a Pro Gamer

Becoming a pro gamer can be easy or difficult for you, depending on how you see it. Below, we will be looking at how any one of us can become a professional gamer.

• Choose your game

Usually, the first step would be to pick your game choice; there are numerous games to pick from. It would be in your best interest to decide which you would want.

This would help you focus and level up faster than people who play numerous games.

• Constant practice

As the famous saying goes, practice makes perfect. It is the same in the gaming community. The more you practice, the more your skillset at the game improves. Practice includes: Researching gaming strategies, trying them on your own, and watching gameplay of other professionals, among others.

• Join a gaming community

One of the perks of doing this is that you get to meet other gamers, and you can easily showcase your skill set. This would help you grow and level up faster.

• Invest in your rig

Investing in your rig is as essential as practicing. A good gaming rig gives you a slight advantage against a player of equal skill set but a weaker rig.

• Networking

Networking includes attending gaming events both physically and online. You can do this either as a player or as an observer. You get to gradually improve your skill set prove yourself in your local community by doing this. That way, you can quickly level up and get access to more significant events.

• Join a Team

One way to know you are moving up the ranks in the pro gaming community is when you are invited to join a team, or you get invited to a sort of qualifier to join a team that you end up winning.

• Engage in leagues and tournaments

A significant step in becoming a pro gamer is when you feel ready to compete against other pro gamers. You might fail at first, but consistency would help you rise through the ranks fast and might even get you a better team.

• Sponsorship

One significant way of earning as a pro gamer is through sponsorship deals. Tournament winnings are usually not enough for gamers, and the real money comes from sponsors who pay you the money to make use of the merchandise. These returns are good returns based on time, money, and effort.

If, after reading this, you still feel becoming a pro gamer is something you would love to do, then all you have to do is take the first step, and you are on your way to becoming a pro gamer.

Take the mechanics, story, setting, etc. of one game and mix them with another to create your dream game, then describe what it would be like. Bonus points if the result doesn't already exist.

Start Date: 1/29/2022

End Date: 2/5/2022

Quake is a 1996 first-person shooter game developed by Id Software. It was most recently remastered in 2021 with an updated port and new mission packs and mapsets.

• If you wish to stream your gameplay, please add yourself to the Group Play schedule.
• If you wish to join the discussion, join us on our Discord!

Start Date: 1/1/2022

End Date: 1/28/2022

Death Stranding 2019 action-adventure game developed by Kojima Productions.

• If you wish to stream your gameplay, please add yourself to the Group Play schedule.
• If you wish to join the discussion, join us on our Discord!

Start Date: 12/18/2021

End Date: 12/31/2021

Binary Domain is a 2012 squad-based science-fiction third-person shooter.

• If you wish to stream your gameplay, please add yourself to the Group Play schedule.
• If you wish to join the discussion, join us on our Discord!

It's that time again! Suggestions are now open for the next play cycle. Please provide yours below or in the #suggestions channel of the Discord. We will hold a final vote in the Discord once there are enough to put to a vote. Everyone is welcome to join using the invite link above or in the subreddit sidebar, and we hope to see the conversation continue there.

Please limit yourself to a maximum of two suggestions per person.