Apple Arcade looks great on the surface, but what does it mean for the kinds of developers who don’t make games based on playtime? When Apple announced Apple Arcade last month, it was met mostly with praise. For a relatively low monthly fee, you’ll get access to a rotating selection of over 100 games, all … Read more
Popular crowdfunding platform Kickstarter has been a boon for video game developers for a few years now. Sam Brooks investigates the less glamourous side of the platform. Pillars of Eternity, $3,986,929.Torment: Tides of Numenara, $4,188,927. Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, $5,545,991. Shenmue 3, $6,333,295. All video games funded through Kickstarter – and yes, all those commas are in exactly … Read more
The Binding of Isaac was the indie cult hit of 2014. Josh Davies examines what makes this game so compelling four years on. I am addicted to this game called The Binding of Isaac. I love it. I have been playing it since it was released and don’t plan on stopping. Instead I am going to convince … Read more
Commute Week: If you’re tired of scrolling through your bleak Facebook feed or your even bleaker Twitter roll, Adam Goodall has a few ideas to distract you from the mindless grind that is your commute. Look, I know. It’s hard to play Pokémon Go on public transport. You’re sitting on your Link bus going 50 … Read more
Tim Nixon, the founder and creative director of Runaway Play – creators of successful mobile games Flutter and Splash – is heading to LA to join ThatGameCompany, one of the most critically lauded game developers in the world. He talks to Baz Macdonald about his career in games, and the upcoming NZ launch of ThatGameCompany’s … Read more
Business is Boring is a weekly podcast series presented by The Spinoff in association with Vodafone Xone. Host Simon Pound speaks with innovators and commentators focused on the future of New Zealand, with the interview available as both audio and a transcribed excerpt. This week he talks to Maru Nihoniho, founder of game studio Metia Interactive. … Read more
The games industry here in NZ is taking off and there’s now all manner of small indie teams putting out fun wee titles for your pleasure. Liam Maugren was recently in a room with a whole bunch of them and here’s what he reckons your next purchase should be. Last weekend, Auckland played host to … Read more
In Undertale, monsters aren’t bad, they’re just misunderstood – but that doesn’t mean you can’t slay them anyway. Liam Maguren holds the power of life and death in a game that straddles the line between hilarious and ridiculous. Standing alongside the beautiful brutality of Bloodborne, the social life-crumbling world of The Witcher 3, and the skin-itching addiction … Read more
That Dragon, Cancer is less of a game and more a series of interactive abstractions, writes Joseph Harper, but that only makes it all the more effective. I don’t know if morons who hold the view that video games aren’t art still exist. But if so they should play That Dragon, Cancer. An autobiographical game, created … Read more
From How Bizarre to The Lord of the Rings, the New Zealand entertainment industry has performed well internationally across a variety of mediums. But, Path of Exile aside, these small islands are yet to birth any significant gaming classics. Don Rowe speaks with John O’Reilly about the challenges and triumphs of designing games in New Zealand … Read more
The galaxy is awash with shitty indie games, but in Flightless’ Element Don Rowe discovers a New Zealand made, space-themed strategy game that’s thoroughly worth your time. In a market saturated with derivative big-box franchises and cookie-cutter annual releases, experimental game design has been left in most part to dorito-crusted indie designers and smelly bedroom coders. The results … Read more