features: The big ones
The bread and butter
Working together to combat loneliness
The world of video games is one of extremes. The public may hear glamorous stories of indie studios making it big with nothing but heart and hard work or depressing ones full of layoffs and crunch.
The truth, for most developers, is somewhere in the middle.
The truth, for most developers, is somewhere in the middle.
The Legacy of SomaSim
When it comes to independently developed simulation games, a name that comes up often is SomaSim. The Chicago-based studio has been at it for over 10 years, and in the wake of a less-than-satisfying launch, they’re looking for a new direction.
Retrospective: Princess with a Cursed Sword
I designed the original Princess with a Cursed Sword in 2020 to solve a critical problem: I have too many tarot decks. Over the next five years, Princess with a Cursed Sword expanded to encompass four self-contained games using the same system and a System Resource Document that walks creators through making their own games.
Deconstructing the Deindexing
Gamers, we have a sitchuation on our hands.
On July 24, Itch.io unlisted all NSFW and adult content on their site in response to “scrutiny from [their] payment processors.” To say the response was overwhelming would be an understatement.
Fear and Lust
Horror and eroticism often share a fairly blurry line. Body horror, cannibalism, rape revenge, and the incest themes common in Gothic horror are only a few of the many examples of how sex, sensuality, and the disturbing intersect in horror media.
The recent payment processor bullshit that has been circling the internet for years has now…
Now Playing: Reviews from the back alley
games we love, games we hate, everything in-between
Sip Fisher
Sip Fisher is weird.
Beginning behind a literal locked door in the middle of the woods, players are instructed to grab a straw and get fishing.
Eventually, they’ll drain the whole lake.
Beginning behind a literal locked door in the middle of the woods, players are instructed to grab a straw and get fishing.
Eventually, they’ll drain the whole lake.
Aether & Iron
Few genres may be considered quintessentially American in their construction – the superhero movie, the spaghetti Western – but none more than film noir, according to both me and Roger Ebert, per a 2012 piece.
The world of Aether & Iron is an alt-1930s New…
The world of Aether & Iron is an alt-1930s New…
Pepsiman
In the late ‘90s and early ‘00s, many brands were shifting marketing strategies, and tragically, due to either that shift or his Japanese origin, we in the West weren’t able to experience Pepsiman.
Scale the Depths
Scale the Depths is not an average fishing sim. Instead of centering the rhythmic push and pull of reeling in fish and the minutiae of rod and reel combinations, it offers a linear progression model and underwater landscapes to explore.
Detective Instinct: Farewell, My Beloved
The Nintendo DS’ influence is felt on all levels in Detective Instinct: Farewell, My Beloved, from the carefully pre-rendered and blurred 3D backgrounds to the larger than average text size.
Editorials: Columns and critiques
From our intrepid editors and erstwhile friends
Rockstar Studios and their impact on American culture
When I think of Rockstar Games, I think of movies.
Rockstar’s greatest trait as a studio has always been their ability to create worlds that felt organic and lived in, and in the case of their GTA series, that means hyper-real American cities chock full of the same kinds of people that inhabit those spaces…
Rockstar’s greatest trait as a studio has always been their ability to create worlds that felt organic and lived in, and in the case of their GTA series, that means hyper-real American cities chock full of the same kinds of people that inhabit those spaces…
Sufjan Stevens’ 50 state project
I’m glad Sufjan Stevens’ 50 State project failed.
The allure of having an album about your home state is obvious, and I understand why fans are eager to beg Stevens to step beyond the Midwest. But really, it would be too easy to make albums called California or New York.
The allure of having an album about your home state is obvious, and I understand why fans are eager to beg Stevens to step beyond the Midwest. But really, it would be too easy to make albums called California or New York.
What’s in a tag?: redefining what’s American
Steam recently removed a large number of tags from their store and added a new bunch in their place.
Of these recently removed tags, one that got my attention was “America.”
Of these recently removed tags, one that got my attention was “America.”
Meow Wolf, Tavers, and immersive Game design
Meow Wolf experiences are difficult to describe because they do so many things at once. They are part art installation, part escape room, and part immersive theater.
But is their game design art?
But is their game design art?
Get busy “gud”ing or get busy dying over and over
For as long as the series has been a thing, Dark Souls and its spiritual successors have led the conversation around difficulty. Whether the conversation is held in bad faith or not, any Soulsborne fanatic will tell you the highest barrier of entry for the series is difficulty, after which you’ll likely hear any number…
Dev Logs: Interviews and Developer notes
From developers of in-progress or completed indie projects
Bloodlusters
In Bloodlusters, the most recent effort by a loose collective Pham calls “Crowseeds and friends,” players control ghosts that have kidnapped a vampire princess. In order to repel the sparkly bloodsuckers that come to find her, they must haunt various household items to act as their towers.
Requiem
From Castlevania to Resident Evil, the horror genre is full of gothic castles, incomprehensible living horrors, and cryptic notes. So many notes.
Requiem, the latest effort from solo developer Justin Herrick, is no exception.
Sudden Soul
In upcoming card-collector RPG Sudden Soul, players take control of a party of civilians that have woken up with powers after a blackout in the city of Oasys. None of them are supposed to be heroes, but they just might become them in order to save themselves and their city.
Linguini’s Mansione
One of horror’s greatest strengths is its ability to mirror societal anxieties and force its audience to come to terms with the real horrors that surround them. Many scholars and critics have written pages upon pages about the links between society and the horror it creates, forcing readers to consider that they themselves could be…
Intrigue on Vesta Station
Vesta Mandate is the sci-fi political thriller tabletop roleplaying game for one shots or long-term play with a group of 2-4 players. On Vesta Station, you play the conniving mastermind with a secret agenda that will either bring the station to its knees or uplift it to a new era.
Archive: Icg Zine (2024)
Writing and event coverage from the ICG Zine
The Neutral Triangle in Action Games: Why Hotline Miami Hits Different
12 years after the release of Hotline Miami, there isn’t anything else like it in spite of its popularity and influence.
Community feature: Lunar Psychosis
In this interview, Dani Orizaba describes the process and inspiration behind their newest single, “Lunar Psychosis.”
CIGS Delivers Jam-Packed Celebration of Chicago Gaming
Jonah White covers all the games and talks that attendees of CIGS 2024 may have missed.
Interview: Party on Hallow Grove
Solo dev vaaasm (or Nattie) created a charming Halloween RPG where players throw a party for Death. Seb Galvez talks to them about it.
Interview With the Creator: Bit Bash
Bit Bash Chicago co-founder Brice Puls sits down with Seb Galvez to talk the past, plans for the future, and what they love about the community.
Interview: The Old Gentleman
Seb Galvez interviews one of the creators of The Old Gentleman, a Morse Code-based horror experience set in a submarine.
What You Missed at Bit Bash
Man About Town Jonah White details the most Xtreme Games from Bit Bash 2024.