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US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

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Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#141

Post by MayeulC »

jackklika wrote: post #75
k__ wrote: post #55

Half-OT: Currently I'm playing Stardew Valley on my FireHD10, I never played a mobile port that had THAT good controls. I also got Terraria and Minecraft and they are pretty bad to play with awkward on-screen controls. Does anyone here know of games that have good mobile ports? Or even good mobile games to start with? Most "native" mobile games just were really basic, full of in-app purchases etc. so I was looking mo…

Mindustry[1] is an open source game that works perfect on mobile, especially if you have a big screen. You can find it on app stores or download it manually. It's like factorio but more tower-defense and round-based. Much more approachable while still being really fun. [1] https://github.com/Anuken/Mindustry

Oh, in the open-source department, there's also Unciv which I'm keeping an eye on. It could be improved, but it's quite fun already. It's a civilization clone.

https://github.com/yairm210/Unciv

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#142

Post by gambiting »

kosei wrote: post #118
ArtWomb wrote: post #3

I'd argue it's not just lockdown. This has been an epic release year: Animal Crossing, Half Life Alyx, Doom Eternal, Gears Tactics, Valorent, Sea of Thieves. And on and on. Paper Mario: Origami King trailer looks like so much fun there is no reason to leave the house this summer ;)

As someone who works in the video games industry, I can guarantee it is the lockdown. Stay at home orders align really closely with significant lifts in new players, increased hours played, and many other core metrics across the industry. And many games have seen significant lifts in their existing live service performance (not just new games).

I also work in games and I can confirm this too - even our older games which had dwindling player numbers have gotten a massive increase in player numbers in the last 2 months. In some cases we've had to spool up our network infrastructure to levels higher than at launch, since the numbers are so high.

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#143

Post by Grimm1 »

watwut wrote: post #136
Grimm1 wrote: post #133

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think pursuing leisure for some end goal loses the point of leisure itself and is an unfortunate side effect of the times we live in. That said I'm a workaholic with my job and 2 active projects outside of that who likes to lift and go outside so I can't really take fault with that mode of thinking since I've never quite captured my own idea of how I should be doing leisure.

> That said I'm a workaholic with my job and 2 active projects I kind of dont see how you could play The Witcher while working overtime and having two side projects and going outside.

You've never taken a week off?

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#144

Post by pgoggijr »

zarkov99 wrote: post #138
NDizzle wrote: post #134

I hope there is a resurgence of couch co-op games after the lockdown. I have been playing a LOT of games, most of them of just mediocre quality, with my kids. Co-op makes mediocre games fun most of the time. I wish there were more options available for local co-op games. PS: Don't try to play Outward with your novice gamer kids.

What do you recommend for co-op with kids?

I picked up Unravel 2 and have been playing it with my non-gamer girlfriend - she's had no problem picking it up and it's quite fun and challenging for both of us, both from a technical perspective (Most puzzles only require precise inputs from one player) and a mind-twister perspective. I believe it is only two player co-op, though, so if you've got more than one kid to entertain then this one might not be for you.

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#145

Post by zarkov99 »

mgolawala wrote: post #140
zarkov99 wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What do you recommend for co-op with kids?

Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime. Overcooked. Overcooked 2 Up to 4 player Co-op. Incredibly fun games. Source: I play co-op and versus games with my kids. We've incorporated casual video game play into our family time for the past few years.

Thanks, I have been trying to do that but didn't quite find the right games (it doesn't help I am on Linux). I'll check your recommendations out.

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#146

Post by devchix »

I'm not a gamer, but I want to play something to maintain connection with family and distant friends. What should I play? I was once given a copy of Civilization and after playing it for a day, decided it was too much work and I already lose to many things IRL no need to add the Assyrians to my vanquishers as well. I also played Zelda, by "play" I meant wander around the landscape looking for goodies and trying to chat up the game hint characters, and not really interested in solving the game.

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#147

Post by DanielleMolloy »

vorpalhex wrote: post #84
DanielleMolloy wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually Animal Crossing removes the element of failure deliberately to provide a soothing, un-stressful experience. There isn’t even a counter for how many bugs and fishes you still could catch in the current season. There was a thread recently here about the associated genre Iyashikei. The success of this game should be quite interesting for video game makers who traditionally address and compete for a very narrow…

Games like Stardew hit this note too. What many so-called "casual"[^1] gamers are after isn't less game but a game that is more focused on having an experience and experiencing things. [^1]: The casual/hardcore gamer distinction is a really weird dichotomy that doesn't make any sense because there's probably a set of axis akin to Bartlet types that more accurately describes videogame consumption

Also, both Animal Crossing and Stardew Valley are much deeper and richer games (i.e. not “casual”) than your latest graphics whore zombie shooter. Video game companies should pay attention to the success of these, and also many interactive indie experiences like Firewatch in recent times.

Maybe we should find a different description for them than “game” which tends to indicate competitive elements and does not describe sandboxes or interactive narration / exploration very well. Unsure what to call them but people definitely crave them.

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#148

Post by NDizzle »

zarkov99 wrote: post #138
NDizzle wrote: post #134

I hope there is a resurgence of couch co-op games after the lockdown. I have been playing a LOT of games, most of them of just mediocre quality, with my kids. Co-op makes mediocre games fun most of the time. I wish there were more options available for local co-op games. PS: Don't try to play Outward with your novice gamer kids.

What do you recommend for co-op with kids?

Smash brothers, Luigi's Mansion, Marvel games on ps4, Lego _____ games.

Castle Crashers, Children of Morta. A little more violent, things like risk of rain, chaosbane, diablo 3, inquisitor martyr.

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#149

Post by kipchak »

NDizzle wrote: post #134

I hope there is a resurgence of couch co-op games after the lockdown. I have been playing a LOT of games, most of them of just mediocre quality, with my kids. Co-op makes mediocre games fun most of the time. I wish there were more options available for local co-op games. PS: Don't try to play Outward with your novice gamer kids.

Co-Optimus is a good resource for finding couch co-op games.

https://www.co-optimus.com/games.php?type=couch

Some co-op games ones you might enjoy are Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime, Magicka, overcooked, hammerwatch, Trine, Rayman Legends or human fall flat.

There's also a really big back catalog of arcade or earlier console emulatable local multiplayer co-op games, many of which have gotten ports like Chronicles of Mystara or Gauntlet if you don't want to mess with emulation.

Re: US video game sales have record quarter as consumers stay at home

#150

Post by SamuelAdams »

kosei wrote: post #118
ArtWomb wrote: post #3

I'd argue it's not just lockdown. This has been an epic release year: Animal Crossing, Half Life Alyx, Doom Eternal, Gears Tactics, Valorent, Sea of Thieves. And on and on. Paper Mario: Origami King trailer looks like so much fun there is no reason to leave the house this summer ;)

As someone who works in the video games industry, I can guarantee it is the lockdown. Stay at home orders align really closely with significant lifts in new players, increased hours played, and many other core metrics across the industry. And many games have seen significant lifts in their existing live service performance (not just new games).

Also could be a large uptick in unemployment. Lots more people sitting at home with nothing to do. Games are on sale most the time and can be had for 10-15 dollars on steam. That's the same price as a case of beer in some places and you get far more entertainment hours out of a video game than a six pack.
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