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30 Articles· 8 Types· 21 Games Covered

Showing 12 of 30 articles

Aether Foundry: early access that tells you what is missing
Review
GzoneSphere Editorial6 Sept

Aether Foundry: early access that tells you what is missing

Thirty of a planned eighty levels of content, a roadmap that has slipped twice and said so, and the best opening two hours in the automation genre.

1 min17.7K544
Grimwater Deep is the quietest horror game in years, and that is the point
Review
GzoneSphere Editorial4 Sept

Grimwater Deep is the quietest horror game in years, and that is th...

No combat, no ammunition counter, and more tension than any horror game with both. A review of the year’s most disciplined piece of sound design.

2 min12.6K447
Nine thousand triangles and a Switch: how Loam & Lantern was budgeted
Analysis
GzoneSphere Editorial2 Sept

Nine thousand triangles and a Switch: how Loam & Lantern was budgeted

The performance budget was written in week two and treated as a design document. That single decision is why the game runs.

2 min5.7K416
Frame data belongs in the game, not in a spreadsheet
Opinion
GzoneSphere Editorial30 Aug

Frame data belongs in the game, not in a spreadsheet

Chakra Divide puts startup, active and recovery frames in the training mode by default. Every fighting game should have done this a decade ago.

1 min14.2K265
Building a matchmaker that does not lie about queue times
Guide
GzoneSphere Editorial27 Aug

Building a matchmaker that does not lie about queue times

We cut median queue from 41 seconds to 12 without widening the skill band. Most of the win came from noticing we were sorting the same pool twice.

2 min12.1K601
A working guide to Unreal build times for small teams
Guide
GzoneSphere Editorial25 Aug

A working guide to Unreal build times for small teams

From 51 minutes to 9, mostly by deleting things. Including the two weeks I spent optimising the wrong stage.

2 min25.4K680
How to read a scrim loss properly
Guide
GzoneSphere Editorial22 Aug

How to read a scrim loss properly

Most players review the round they lost. The round that explains it happened four rounds earlier. A working method for VOD review that takes ninety minutes, not four hours.

2 min4.9K165
Sundari Sector after four years: the patch notes are the product
Analysis
GzoneSphere Editorial20 Aug

Sundari Sector after four years: the patch notes are the product

Every balance change ships with the data behind it. Four years on, this is what publishing your reasoning does to a competitive community.

2 min12.1K362
What an esports sponsor is actually buying
Analysis
GzoneSphere Editorial17 Aug

What an esports sponsor is actually buying

A line-by-line breakdown of every piece of inventory in a regional tournament, and what each one is genuinely worth.

2 min1.3K433
What our first launch got wrong, in public
Analysis
GzoneSphere Editorial14 Aug

What our first launch got wrong, in public

We pulled a title after six weeks. Here is the pricing decision, the store page and the UA plan that caused it, with the numbers.

2 min4.8K95
Writing 4,200 barks that do not repeat in six hours
Guide
GzoneSphere Editorial11 Aug

Writing 4,200 barks that do not repeat in six hours

Systemic dialogue is a systems discipline wearing a writing hat. The repetition audit is the part nobody talks about and the part that matters.

2 min22.5K159
Best Stretches for Gamers: A 5-Minute Routine for Wrists, Neck and Back
Review
GzoneSphere Editorial8 Aug

Best Stretches for Gamers: A 5-Minute Routine for Wrists, Neck and ...

You spend hours leveling up in-game, but your body might be paying the price. Stiff wrists, sore neck, and an aching back don't just hurt — they hurt your gameplay. This simple 5-minute stretch routine targets the areas gamers strain the most, helping you stay comfortable, flexible, and pain-free through every session.

4 min00

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