Welcome to The One Thing, a video game review series that does something a bit different. Rather than try to touch on all the features that make a game great, I attempt to distill a game down to a single element that I believe is integral to the experience of the game. This may not be the only thing that makes a game great, but if someone asked me to tell them why Limbo works, I’d start with The One Thing. The one thing is The grayscale color palette. At it’s heart, Limbo is a simple, relatively short, puzzle platformer. And all the elements that make a great puzzle platformer are here. Puzzles and platforming, of course, but also excellent control, a fair difficulty curve, perfect level design, and a protagonist that the player can connect with in some way. In this case, a human child, and I’m assuming most…
Posts By Caleb J. Ross
Caleb began writing his sophomore year of undergrad study when, tired of the formal art education then being taught, he abandoned the pursuit in the middle of a compositional drawing class. Major-less and fearful of losing his financial aid, he signed up to seek a degree in English Literature for no other reason than his lengthy history with the language. Coincidentally, this decision not only introduced him to writing but to reading as well. Prior this transition he had read three books. One of which he understood.
Welcome to The One Thing, a video game review series that does something a bit different. Rather than try to touch on all the features that make a game great, I attempt to distill a game down to a single element that I believe is integral to the experience of the game. This may not be the only thing that makes a game great, but if someone asked me to tell them why a game works, I’d start with The One Thing.
My latest obsession is DOOM, the 2016 release.
DOOM is a lot of things to a lot of people. To fans of the original PC game, DOOM is a beautiful rendition of a game that likely defined them as gamers (it seems to have impacted most everyone who played it). To fans of first person shooters, DOOM is a fast-paced entry into a genre that’s lately been dominated by duck-and-cover shooters. To casual fans of pretty much any video game, DOOM is a refreshing change of pace, one that doesn’t require extensive knowledge of a specific genre and its conventions to enjoy. With such wide-ranging appeal, DOOM obviously has a lot going for it. But what is The One Thing?
Today I’ll be connecting the Lovecraftian, adventure game Bloodborne to Rainbow Brite. Yes, that Rainbow Brite. This is another view request episode, proof that I do listen to my viewers. If you have an idea for a connection, leave it in a comment below.
You know that social theory that everyone on earth can be connected to anyone else by no more than 5 intermediaries? They call that 6 Degrees of Separation. I do the same thing here, except I connect video game topics in strange ways using 6 Degrees of Pixelation.
I offer a few thoughts on why people may stop caring about the stuff you create. Specially, the article that inspired this Thoughts On video (Why No One Wants To Hear About The Game You Just Finished Making) references video games, but my thoughts can apply to any creative endeavor where the end goal is more audience members (viewers, players, readers, etc). Further Reading Why No One Wants To Hear About The Game You Just Finished Making Download Social Sessions game
I give a few thoughts spurred by an article in Game Informer, issue 281. The article is titled "Full Disclosure: Controversy Erupts Over the Ethics of Sponsored YouTube Influencer Videos." It touches on some concerns with some YouTube gamers not disclosing their relationships to publishers who pay them to review games. Further Reading The FTC Says Warner Bros. Hid Its Sponsorship of YouTube 'Shadow of Mordor' Videos Warner Bros. Settles FTC Charges It Failed to Adequately Disclose It Paid Online Influencers to Post Gameplay Videos The Problem With Underage Gambling in CSGO on the Rise Valve's Counter-Strike illegal gambling controversy continues
Today I’ll be connecting Agent 47 from the Hitman series to Kramer from the Seinfeld series. I’m going to avoid the question of Michael Richards’ racism, and I’m also going to be a better person than to go the obvious route of somehow using The Frogger episode as a connection. Come on, I’m better than that (it is a great episode, however).
You know that social theory that everyone on earth can be connected to anyone else by no more than 5 intermediaries? They call that 6 Degrees of Separation. I do the same thing here, except I connect video game topics in strange ways using 6 Degrees of Pixelation.
Today I’ll be connecting Sonic The Hedgehog (yes “The” is capitalized; it’s Sonic’s actual middle name) to Donald Trump. But don’t worry, this isn’t a politically proselytizing episode. I’m simply taking advantage of the politically charged atmosphere here in the US. I'm selfish. Last week I connected Mario to Hillary Clinton. Watch that episode here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cfs2q25WVrg.
You know that social theory that everyone on earth can be connected to anyone else by no more than 5 intermediaries? They call that 6 Degrees of Separation. I do the same thing here, except I connect video game topics in strange ways using 6 Degrees of Pixelation.