Checkpoint: why you wait for the game to save before moving on
In every game, the checkpoint exists so you can take risks with more courage. In real life, hunting for that safe point …
Games 30 posts
Information security in plain English: scams, hardening and privacy — plus retrogaming, games and geek culture.
The grind: farming XP without knowing what for
Grinding is killing the same monster for hours in an RPG. In real life, we call it routine. What changes is knowing …
Save scumming: the art of never accepting consequences
Save scumming means saving before every risky decision and reloading when it goes wrong. If you do it in games, you …
Half-Life 2: Episode One turns 20 — Alyx and the episodic model
On 1 June 2006, Valve released HL2: Episode One betting on an episodic model. Twenty years on, we look at how that bet …
Magnavox Odyssey: 54 years of the first game console
On 24 May 1972, Ralph Baer proved you could play games on the family TV. The Odyssey had no colour and no sound — and …
Side quest: the detours are worth more than the main mission
Every RPG has a main quest and dozens of unnecessary side quests — until you realise those are what you'll remember. …
Fast travel: why you want to skip life's boring parts
In games, fast travel is comfort — skip the journey, appear at the destination. In life, when you want to skip the …
DOOM 2016: 10 years of the FPS that resurrected the Slayer
On 13 May 2016, id Software released the DOOM that saved the franchise. Ten years on, the Slayer still runs, still …
Loading screen: what to do with the time nobody asked for
Before any big world, there's a loading screen. A barstool reflection on waiting, patience, and what changes while the …
If life had a difficulty setting, would you pick Easy?
Most people pick Hard in Dark Souls but would complain about the same thing in real life. What does that contradiction …