"Information is a high-value commodity in the digital age. Retailers like Target and companies like Google are regularly on the lookout for information they can mine and analyze to produce effective, highly personalized products. The gaming industry is no different: games like Mass Effect and Halo monitor a player’s progress and send a bevy of information back to developers. In an effort to better understand how developers use this information, I spoke with Ben Medler, a visualization designer at EA who has worked on data analyzing tools for titles like Dead Space 2 and Star Wars: The Old Republic.
Analytics manifests itself in a variety of forms: before monitored playtime via customer-facing systems, companies also use playtests and market research. Much data is tracked, from how long it takes someone to finish a game, to what players prefer and how they falter – a far cry from the more dubious types of data tracking, like looking at a user’s credit cards or medical records. This tracking is done in an effort to better learn a player’s tastes and habits, ideally resulting products that can better serve players."
Original Destiny artist Darren Bacon recalls how Bungie reacted to the art style change of Halo 4 by 343 Industries.
Bungie at that time became the most wonderful bunch of hypocrites in the gaming industry. Knowing this now, gosh the entitlement they felt was out of this world.
Nothing like buying yourself from Microsoft because you don't want to be the Halo Studio anymore, and the FIRST THING you do is sign your next IP over to Activision, for a DECADE, while they are in the middle of ousting the heads of Infinity Ward so they can exert even more control over COD while screwing out the devs at IW...
Should've come as no surprise then that Activision gutted the content of Destiny 1 before launch and was a horrible partner through Destiny 2, until history repeated itself and Bungie had to split from Activision only to wind up in the arms of another major conglomerate that also doesn't know how to handle these unmanageable devs.
Tti their credit they praised the technical abilities of 343 and I remember at the time thinking halo 4 was a huge graphical leap above reach everything else was rubbish when I actually got to play it but there was no doubt it looked good for the 360 and is probably the best looking game on the system.
But ultimately I think bungie has always had a leadership problem and going independent ultimately proved this it's only getting worse with studio heads being outed by Sony for abuse allegations seems like all bungies past success has been in spite of management not because of it.
But really I think the bungie we have today is not the same one we had in that Xbox era of Bungie
I liked the artstyle change. For the most part. Something looked worse but most of everything else looked better. Weapons and vehicles for sure. The wraith come to my mind instantly.
And how can they get mad when the bungie changed it with Halo Reach?
I know a lot of people dislike Halo 4’s arts style, but there’s thing about it I like and dislike. Personally, the Halo 4 design of Master Chief’s armour is my favourite depiction of the character’s armour.
One of the best things about the Mas Effect series is the companions you meet along the way. So here is a tier list of all the companions from Mass Effect!
To think that Bioware at some point was capable of doing games like this, you see those characters and remember them like good old friends, and now check ME Andromeda, Anthem, Veilguard etc and wonder what the hell happened.
some in andromeda are decent, I agree with peebee and Vetra being good companions. Except Liam he's trash tier
it's like bitch but your shirt back on, your not blue or spikey get away from me
Based on one narratively fitting ending in Mass Effect 3, Prothean squadmate Javik is highly unlikely to return in the next Mass Effect game.
He was one of my least favorite characters. I wish they would have done the Proths different.
Good article , I never realised analytics were used to such an extent.
Ubisoft is fixated on gathering statistics. You have no idea how much stuff they collect through Assassin's Creed.