Half-Life 2 testers horsing around with physics props ‘to make the 47th playthrough of the game more interesting’ probably had no idea it would result in Gabe Newell launching a garden gnome into space 16 years later

“Little Rocket Man” is truly one of the greatest bits in videogame history⁠—a challenging achievement in Half-Life 2: Episode 2 that requires you to carry a cherubic little garden gnome named “Gnome Chompski” through the entirety of the campaign and deposit the wee fellow on a rocket ship to another dimension in the final level….

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‘We don’t have to worry about trillions of damage’: Path of Exile 2 is trying to avoid Diablo 4’s game-breaking damage numbers, director says

Action RPGs are complex and players are simple: They want power any way they can get it, even if it completely trivializes the entire game. Just about every Diablo 4 season has had something that does way more damage than it should, forcing Blizzard to play whack-a-mole to keep it balanced without pissing everyone off….

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Former BioWare boss Casey Hudson is closing the studio he launched in 2021 without releasing a single game

Humanoid Origins, the studio launched in 2021 by former BioWare general manager Casey Hudson, is closing. Hudson announced the closure in a message posted to LinkedIn, saying that “despite efforts to shield the studio from broader challenges in the industry, an unexpected shortfall of funding left us unable to sustain operations.” Hudson announced Humanoid Studios,…

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