Marc Melancon
@mjmelancon.bsky.social
Previous kings of hill: Bethesda, Irrational, Bioware, Infinity Ward, Blizzard (like 3 separate times), CDPR
But outside of CDPR I don't think anyone talked as much industry shit as Larian. And maybe they're right! Some people sit on the hill for a few games and make small island GDP money.
But outside of CDPR I don't think anyone talked as much industry shit as Larian. And maybe they're right! Some people sit on the hill for a few games and make small island GDP money.
December 16, 2025 at 6:10 PM
Previous kings of hill: Bethesda, Irrational, Bioware, Infinity Ward, Blizzard (like 3 separate times), CDPR
But outside of CDPR I don't think anyone talked as much industry shit as Larian. And maybe they're right! Some people sit on the hill for a few games and make small island GDP money.
But outside of CDPR I don't think anyone talked as much industry shit as Larian. And maybe they're right! Some people sit on the hill for a few games and make small island GDP money.
There's a persistent and constant parade of studios who make a crazy large AAA game, and then pronounce they have solved AAA game development because players simply want <X> and they've mastered <X> and then they...botch it in an obvious way and a new studio steps up.
December 16, 2025 at 6:02 PM
There's a persistent and constant parade of studios who make a crazy large AAA game, and then pronounce they have solved AAA game development because players simply want <X> and they've mastered <X> and then they...botch it in an obvious way and a new studio steps up.
He'll sell it fine. Then people will have to discuss if Larian fell off or is cooking and if they "fell off" they'll move promptly to the place every studio who made the best games ever go when people feel they fell off: making profitable hits for two decades and selling to a big publisher.
December 16, 2025 at 5:59 PM
He'll sell it fine. Then people will have to discuss if Larian fell off or is cooking and if they "fell off" they'll move promptly to the place every studio who made the best games ever go when people feel they fell off: making profitable hits for two decades and selling to a big publisher.
The level design and overworld design are both a bit lacking. The performance as a game is poor (but as a smaller budget indie game is impressive), the UI elements in menus are frustrating to manage, and the combat design is enticing but not well balanced. And it's still my top game of the year.
December 15, 2025 at 7:28 PM
The level design and overworld design are both a bit lacking. The performance as a game is poor (but as a smaller budget indie game is impressive), the UI elements in menus are frustrating to manage, and the combat design is enticing but not well balanced. And it's still my top game of the year.
New game from a solo dev and his N friends?!?!
December 10, 2025 at 8:52 PM
New game from a solo dev and his N friends?!?!
Taking my briefcase to the Eagles game
November 26, 2025 at 4:08 PM
Taking my briefcase to the Eagles game
Ah I need to refine my CY/FY/TGAY calendars better
November 20, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Ah I need to refine my CY/FY/TGAY calendars better
Gasp it overtook Indy for you?
November 20, 2025 at 2:42 PM
Gasp it overtook Indy for you?
That car looks like Ned Flanders
November 18, 2025 at 1:51 PM
That car looks like Ned Flanders
Except for the outside funding they got mid-development from Tencent! Which doesn't grant voting rights, but because it took place mid-cycle could come with contingencies.
November 14, 2025 at 3:55 PM
Except for the outside funding they got mid-development from Tencent! Which doesn't grant voting rights, but because it took place mid-cycle could come with contingencies.
This has nothing to do with gaming, so please extend your own advice to not extend such a broad statement. No one who would be in charge of such a product would care an iota about a gaming boycott.
November 11, 2025 at 5:32 PM
This has nothing to do with gaming, so please extend your own advice to not extend such a broad statement. No one who would be in charge of such a product would care an iota about a gaming boycott.
Now his hat is on backwards
He can show your his runes
He's on an adventure
He is calling you druid
He can show your his runes
He's on an adventure
He is calling you druid
November 7, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Now his hat is on backwards
He can show your his runes
He's on an adventure
He is calling you druid
He can show your his runes
He's on an adventure
He is calling you druid
You can't even play Fortnite or Roblox on Steam. What kind of monopoly are people arguing when two of the largest games aren't even represented. Hell, Call of Duty just outright ditched Steam for half a decade.
November 4, 2025 at 6:47 PM
You can't even play Fortnite or Roblox on Steam. What kind of monopoly are people arguing when two of the largest games aren't even represented. Hell, Call of Duty just outright ditched Steam for half a decade.
Monopoly power is not defined by market share. It's defined by higher prices and reduced quantities sold.
November 4, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Monopoly power is not defined by market share. It's defined by higher prices and reduced quantities sold.
The used games hurt sales argument was always the most flawed. A secondary market increases the value of the primary market. You will pay more for a car with higher resale values, textbooks sold in secondary markets can charge more, etc.
October 23, 2025 at 8:27 PM
The used games hurt sales argument was always the most flawed. A secondary market increases the value of the primary market. You will pay more for a car with higher resale values, textbooks sold in secondary markets can charge more, etc.
Football was circa 2010. Seahawks started and spread to other Dome teams especially as a disruption tactic. Baseball I think was a handful of years ago around new rules.
October 3, 2025 at 7:26 PM
Football was circa 2010. Seahawks started and spread to other Dome teams especially as a disruption tactic. Baseball I think was a handful of years ago around new rules.
In one 30 second clip I've seen he paused for applause 3 times and his eyes searched hungrily for it and then kept going. Immediate thought was "these people don't applaud, so why is this here?"
September 30, 2025 at 6:18 PM
In one 30 second clip I've seen he paused for applause 3 times and his eyes searched hungrily for it and then kept going. Immediate thought was "these people don't applaud, so why is this here?"
Q2 only, so all of the pre-orders and launch sales are in Q1 for Shadows.
July 30, 2025 at 2:11 PM
Q2 only, so all of the pre-orders and launch sales are in Q1 for Shadows.
But Mat a lot of bonuses are riding on those numbers and Bob from sales already leased a new Rivian
July 17, 2025 at 6:28 PM
But Mat a lot of bonuses are riding on those numbers and Bob from sales already leased a new Rivian
Bah I'll keep going. NORCO is a game of wonderfully written characters, where you can identify from the specific patois of a person in if they're from there originally, from further west into Cajun country, or from the metro area (and which part, Wards vs Kenner).
July 10, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Bah I'll keep going. NORCO is a game of wonderfully written characters, where you can identify from the specific patois of a person in if they're from there originally, from further west into Cajun country, or from the metro area (and which part, Wards vs Kenner).
The article discusses how the game's setting is the actual NORCO (or this world's version of it), but you spend quite a bit of time at the derelict mall in Kenner that I visited as a kid.
And you never visit the West Bank, so no accidentally running into Steven Seagal racially profiling kids.
And you never visit the West Bank, so no accidentally running into Steven Seagal racially profiling kids.
July 10, 2025 at 4:58 PM
The article discusses how the game's setting is the actual NORCO (or this world's version of it), but you spend quite a bit of time at the derelict mall in Kenner that I visited as a kid.
And you never visit the West Bank, so no accidentally running into Steven Seagal racially profiling kids.
And you never visit the West Bank, so no accidentally running into Steven Seagal racially profiling kids.
NORCO is the type of game that starts laying weird lore that I cannot tell what is its own myth and what is its own fact until I realize that in the game world, the lineage of MY family is a plot device. Not the player character, but me personally.
It's that tied to the local people of SE LA.
It's that tied to the local people of SE LA.
July 10, 2025 at 4:54 PM
NORCO is the type of game that starts laying weird lore that I cannot tell what is its own myth and what is its own fact until I realize that in the game world, the lineage of MY family is a plot device. Not the player character, but me personally.
It's that tied to the local people of SE LA.
It's that tied to the local people of SE LA.
None of this is global. I've worked with people who figured it out, but a lot (LOT) of money in the world exists outside of the game industry, and we all short term benefit when that money shows up and tries to figure it out.
Stadia was a flop but lucrative as all hell for a lot of people.
Stadia was a flop but lucrative as all hell for a lot of people.
July 5, 2025 at 2:26 AM
None of this is global. I've worked with people who figured it out, but a lot (LOT) of money in the world exists outside of the game industry, and we all short term benefit when that money shows up and tries to figure it out.
Stadia was a flop but lucrative as all hell for a lot of people.
Stadia was a flop but lucrative as all hell for a lot of people.