Few aspects of game design provoke more heated argument than difficulty. Some players prize punishing challenge as the entire point, treating an easier mode as a betrayal of the experience. Others find brutal difficulty an exclusionary wall that keeps them from content they paid for. Both camps are right within their own frame, which is […]

Look at any list of the best-selling games in a given period and a pattern jumps out immediately: the top positions are dominated by sequels, follow-ups, and entries in long-running series. New original properties are comparatively rare at the top of the charts, and they grow rarer as budgets climb. To players hungry for fresh […]