Shadowstep

Thing is, Bulletstorm was made to play on the 360, which can only run DX9. The 360 and Windows run very similarly (gee, I wonder why!), so it wouldn't be surprising if the PC version is just a port of the 360 version. That is to say, have it run off DX9 instead of DX10. (Meanwhile, the PS3 uses OpenGL.) If I recall, the 360 uses an ATi card. That problems came up on an ATi card instead of a Nvidia card is kind of odd. Of course, I haven't a clue what the details are surrounding this issue, so take that with however much salt you want. And don't bother trying to link me to some articles on Kotaku about it, because I stopped giving Gawker any of my traffic weeks ago.

You want to go by beta instead of release date? Okay. How many total hours have you put into the game? I've been playing for two months myself, but I've put in over 20 hours. I know I had a decent enough understanding the game and my preferred class after 5-6 hours. I would estimate that's about 30-40 games.

Wow, please tell me you did not just go there. "You think it's bad, therefore you must suck". Yes, I did just go there. The game (PC version) hasn't even been out for 2.5 weeks yet. There is a learning period associated with this game, and the ONLY way to get over the initial hump is to just keep playing, learning to play the game. Screaming* out for nerfs or buffs (or for one class to be removed altogether) because you're unfamiliar with a game only serves to hurt it in the long run. My tip for getting over that hump? Play with people you know and communicate with them over voice chat. *It's called hyperbole.

Assassins are fine. Even though they go off and do their own thing, they're still helping your team. Killing bots? Your moneyball will NEVER go down until overtime. Killing players? Makes it easier to push bots. The best defenses against assassins are: watch the bot lanes; work as a team. Working as a team means communication, by the way. If you're not going to communicate with your team then your only option is to rely on your audio cues. And yes, there will be a lot of audio cues that demand your attention. The problem there is that you have to make a decision about which one to pay attention to. Having to think is such hard work. Assassins can work as a distraction, because an assassin left unattended is just going to cause havoc. And she's a free kill, so there is no reason not to go after her, right? While she is distracting other players (if not outright killing them) then you and the rest of your team should be pushing in to the enemy base. Assassins also work better when the rest of your team is distracting the enemy. With that player's attention turned towards you, the assassin is free to swoop in and finish the job, or they can slip right by and work on an opening. In my opinion, Rocky, you don't like the game because you're just bad at the game, and everyone you've had on your team was also bad. Which is understandable considering how the PC version is still new. Can't expect everyone to just pick up a game and instantly be good at it. And it still needs further tuning to better fit the PC environment. Patches don't just grow on trees. Besides, just because you don't like something (assassin) doesn't mean it should be removed from the game.

It's odd to be building a third-person game without having played some notable ones. Wouldn't it be wiser to start looking at examples and the positive side of things and what you want to achieve, rather than a million possible problems? New problems will always present themselves. Since he's worked on God of War, he has written a fair bit about related stuff and, considering you want to do hack 'n' slash, I feel it would be useful. I have played a few third-person games, but they were either over-the-shoulder or a shooter. The last comparable action game I recently played was Assassin's Creed 2; Even though AC2 is closer to what I want to do, it still has too much fluff like freerunning and social hiding.

I have not played nor seen Uncharted. Can you go into more detail? A good read, but deals with game design in general. I'm more concerned with problems specific to third-person games, as I don't play them often.

Ah, damn. It's a little bit hack-and-slash and a little bit platformer. Definitely not going over-the-shoulder, either.

What are some common problems that plague third-person games? See, I'm going to be working on a small third-person game. Knowing what some of the common pitfalls are ahead of time means I'll be able to come up with ways to fix them. Help an indie dev out, eh?

I have nothing to do with these vids, but I wanted to share them anyways: One is a 15-minute movie, and the other is a making-of documentary for that movie. Anyone interested in doing animated CGI might be interested in the making of video. It's an hour long, but it shows the trials and tribulations (especially the tribulations) that team faced during their project.

What do you think of regenerating health? You get shot, hide behind a wall, and then you're good as new. Whether you like it or dislike it, sound off!

Hazards are pretty common in games. In Super Mario Bros., there are spinning fire beams. In RPGs, there are grues hiding behind every wrong door. In platforming games, there will probably be some force of wind to try and push you into an abyss. Then there's everyone's favorite, pools of lava. Whether it's a trap, an obstacle, or just a harmful pool of Don't Swim In This, games are out to kill our characters. (Enemies don't count!) What are your favorite ways a game has tried to kill you? What have been your least favorite?

Wow, there are a lot of people who enjoy exploring, huh?

Nuclear energy all the way. Coal and oil don't burn clean and there are still huge risks involved with getting them, as we saw with BP in the Gulf of Mexico and the mine in Chile (I don't think it was a coal mine, but the point is that mining is still dangerous). Wind turbines are giant fucking blades that spin, and when those break you'll see a giant fucking blade go flying off into the distance. Nuclear? There haven't been any deaths in the U.S. or Germany as a result of accidents. It's much safer (as far as mortality rates are concerned), and any new plants would benefit from three decades worth of research and investigation.

Your game is saved, and your console was just turned off. Before you know it, your console is on again and you're playing the same game for a few more hours. Let's talk about that desire to keep playing a game after you've stopped playing "for now." What draws you back time and time again? For me, I can't get enough of games where the challenge comes from my mastery of the game. Games like Super Mario 64, Assassin's Creed, and Crackdown are the best examples for me. Virtually every challenge in those games can be completed from the start of the game.

In multiplayer games, healer. I'm always the healer. For me, triage comes as naturally as breathing. I'm also personally insulted whenever someone under my watch heals themself instead of having faith in the healer. In single player games, I prefer the sneaky types. Get in and get out, as quickly as possible. Kill only what is necessary, and do it from range. If I need something from someone, I'll get up close and take it from them. Also, I leave no witnesses.