this post was submitted on 11 Feb 2024
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the_dunk_tank

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It's the dunk tank.

This is where you come to post big-brained hot takes by chuds, libs, or even fellow leftists, and tear them to itty-bitty pieces with precision dunkstrikes.

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[–] Awoo@hexbear.net 49 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

I reckon you could half the teamsize of every game company, split them into other companies, give the workers complete control over whatever they make and every single one of their games would be better for it.

The audiences would be smaller because the games they make would aim to be really really really good at one specific niche thing. But they'd be better games at what they try to be.

The curse of AAA gaming is the goal of trying to appeal to literally everyone simultaneously instead of specialising in a niche and serving that niche audience in highly advanced ways.

You'd get more games and they'd be better.

[–] PKMKII@hexbear.net 26 points 2 years ago

That was Yahtzee’s reasoning for Neon White being his GOTY. The gameplay loop is straightforward but it also knows what it is and what it’s not trying to be. Unlike the AAA industry where every marquee game tries to be an action/adventure/shooter/RPG/dating sim with online multiplayer and a few racing sections.

[–] Infamousblt@hexbear.net 37 points 2 years ago

If we fire everyone who makes games nobody will make bad games power-genius

[–] Acute_Engles@hexbear.net 34 points 2 years ago (1 children)

What does the can of paint mean

[–] abc@hexbear.net 45 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (7 children)

they're mad about how most games will highlight climbable areas with yellow paint or similar visual cues for accessibility so you're not looking around an area for 30 minutes trying to find the ladder. The FF7 Rebirth demo has some climbable cliffs with it and the average pronouns is upset about it despite the fact that the original FF7 had the select button toggle to show you exactly where every room exit/door was for basically the same reason lol.

[–] FourteenEyes@hexbear.net 24 points 2 years ago

I'm sure it's due to worker laziness and not an extremely streamlined production process concerned with pumping out games as quickly as possible following a "safe" structure that takes no design chances to maximize appeal

[–] DragonBallZinn@hexbear.net 21 points 2 years ago

Do these dumbasses not realize that the yellow paint is probably for idiots like them?

I wish normies a very go back to NASCAR.

[–] NephewAlphaBravo@hexbear.net 18 points 2 years ago (1 children)
[–] FourteenEyes@hexbear.net 25 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Give artists time to actually work and they can do cool stuff

[–] NephewAlphaBravo@hexbear.net 10 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

"Laziness" was a... lazy choice of word lol, but yeah that was what I was going for.

[–] JohnBrownNote@hexbear.net 16 points 2 years ago (1 children)

it's a decent feature but it's a bit over-done and you start to wonder who is obsessively climbing all this weird shit to paint it when you're supposed to be the first person who's been somewhere in a 500+ years or you've broken into some facility etc.

wish suits would give level artists the time to make stuff where you don't need the play-design crutch

[–] NephewAlphaBravo@hexbear.net 14 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

The highlights as a navigation aid are good, but ideally you do it in a way that actually fits the environment design. I posted a pic of Returnal showing how they used a fringe of little white plants growing on the edges of platforms.

[–] Acute_Engles@hexbear.net 10 points 2 years ago

What a weird thing to be upset about

Okay but the yellow paint is stupid and it's fine to point that its stupid.

[–] zifnab25@hexbear.net 29 points 2 years ago

talentless devs

decades of ruthless corporate consolidation, monetization, and exploitation of young talent

Definitely one of these two things

[–] Yurt_Owl@hexbear.net 27 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Can we fire the gamers? Into a pit?

[–] Magician@hexbear.net 18 points 2 years ago

The gamer to pit pipeline.

[–] Raebxeh@hexbear.net 24 points 2 years ago

Most armchair designers are interested in design minutia because that’s what they’ve consumed video essays about and that’s what they think real developers spend most of their time doing. Content about bad working conditions is depressing and not nearly as eye catching as some of the other shortcomings of big game dev companies. So yeah, this checks out.

[–] theposterformerlyknownasgood@hexbear.net 22 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Okay but the original post is fucking stupid though. The idea that you can't have problems with the aesthetics of a medium because of tbe exploitation of the workers is nonsense and should be fucking dunked on. Like nobody would call you a bad person for saying Marvel films have bad scores or poorly written dialogue no matter how shitty Disney is to their employees.

[–] autismdragon@hexbear.net 18 points 2 years ago (3 children)

I mean op said in a reply that he straight up doesnt think yellow painted cliffs are bad at all and thats why he made this post and I agree with him. They get put there because people dont find that shit on their own and its also a "respecting the players time" thing not to force them to explore everywhere looking for the climbable portion.

Theres probably better ways to do it but. Im with twitter op.

[–] ashinadash@hexbear.net 11 points 2 years ago (2 children)

They get put there because people dont find that shit on their own and its also a "respecting the players time" thing not to force them to explore everywhere looking for the climbable portion.

Yeah like in the Sands of Time trilogy. Those games had easily readable climbing elements that respected your paths because of yellow paint blob-no-thoughts

[–] GalaxyBrain@hexbear.net 11 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Sands of Time was mostly a series of corridors of self contained puzzle rooms. With games being entirely unfocused experiences bow, you need the yellow paint. I'd prefer games just be shorter, more focused and cheaper, but here we are.

[–] ashinadash@hexbear.net 9 points 2 years ago (5 children)

Yeah like Uncharted, which for the entire PS3 lifecycle was linear games with yellow paint... Or Horizon Zero Dawn, which has exclusively linear paths in story missions coated in yellow paint... or Far Cry 3, which has extremely linear radio towers as climing "challenges" covered in yellow paint....

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[–] KobaCumTribute@hexbear.net 3 points 2 years ago (1 children)

It's basically a shorthand for cinematic interact locations that otherwise get lost in the noise of otherwise-identical clutter surrounding them. Like "is that flattish rock a pretty scenery rock or a mantling-cutscene rock?" sort of stuff that gets solved by just splashing bright paint on the interactable stuff or otherwise making it stand out aesthetically even when that doesn't make sense diegetically.

[–] ashinadash@hexbear.net 4 points 2 years ago

Yes, really simple and shortcutty way to say to the player "OVER HERE DUMBASS, COME PRESS X A FEW TIMES". Thank you AAA games, such depth of gameplay...?

[–] theposterformerlyknownasgood@hexbear.net 11 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

Even if you don't agree with the criticism "You shouldn't make this criticism because the industry is exploitative" is dumb. Like this is absolute onsense to write either way.

[–] autismdragon@hexbear.net 6 points 2 years ago

I mean fair. Just saying Mickey D thinks the criticism is dumb in the first place and shouldnt be made like, at all.

[–] AMDIsOurLord@lemmy.ml 3 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Ok so I'm completely out of the loop wtf is up with yellow paint

[–] barrbaric@hexbear.net 6 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 children)

In many games it is used to direct the player where they can interact with terrain. Which ledges are climbable or not etc. Some people think this makes things too easy.

[–] AMDIsOurLord@lemmy.ml 4 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Really? Twitter users have too much free time

Why's the outrage now? Some new game has too much yellow paint or something?

[–] barrbaric@hexbear.net 3 points 2 years ago

No idea, it's been happening for at least a decade at this point.

[–] autismdragon@hexbear.net 2 points 2 years ago

The latest one is because they put in in FR7 Rebirth

[–] kot@hexbear.net 3 points 2 years ago

I think the point is that blaming the workers for the shitty writing is myopic, because it really comes down to shitty work conditions, ridiculous deadlines and executive meddling. These people think that their art sucks because the people making it are incompetent, and therefore deserve to the punished, and not because of capitalism, which is the real culprit. They can't see systemic problems because their worldview is highly individualistic.

[–] NephewAlphaBravo@hexbear.net 21 points 2 years ago

i agree but only in the sense that the AAA industry should die a quick death and all games should be published by Devolver

[–] PKMKII@hexbear.net 21 points 2 years ago (2 children)

Surprised he didn’t blame it on diversity hires

[–] autismdragon@hexbear.net 17 points 2 years ago

I think its implied lol

[–] WhatDoYouMeanPodcast@hexbear.net 14 points 2 years ago

Im so sure based off of intuition if you asked them why the industry deserves the layoffs then the answer wouldn't be because they exploit the workers too hard. I bet they need to retven to something

[–] Bloobish@hexbear.net 20 points 2 years ago

I'm really sick and tired of people that consume treats think that have any idea the work that goes into making them

[–] AMDIsOurLord@lemmy.ml 14 points 2 years ago

I'm a developer (currently studying for CS Master's SAT) and I have taken an interest in the game industry for long

Lemme tell ya something, IT'S FUCKING HORRIBLE, the working hours, conditions, wage and benefits are outright dog shit compared to other parts of the industry. Video game developers unironically need a union

[–] RyanGosling@hexbear.net 12 points 2 years ago (1 children)

Honestly, I kind of agree, but for different reasons. The industry needs to crash just to deprive them of treats and shut them up. They do not deserve the ability to speak let alone entertainment

[–] Saeculum@hexbear.net 2 points 2 years ago

But my treats...

[–] crispy_lol@hexbear.net 10 points 2 years ago

Bonus points if the guy who replies is a programmer at a corporate job where most people work at a pretty glacial pace.

[–] SkingradGuard@hexbear.net 7 points 2 years ago

The other things G*mers whine about is "woke" pronouns and not the layoffs/abuse of workers by the industry

[–] Teekeeus@hexbear.net 4 points 2 years ago

I had zero idea what the original tweet was even referring too, that means I'm not terminally online after all, thank God

[–] mayo_cider@hexbear.net 3 points 2 years ago

You ruined my treats with representation, so you deserve homelessness