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“The gameplay designers usually have more power than the writers do unless the writer is also the game director or the creative director[…]They generally have more power to say what goes than someone like me who works off-site.”

– Rhianna Pratchett shares her experiences working as a writer with different game dev teams

USGamer has published an interesting piece, the first in a series of three, about the evolving role of writers in video game development. 

The full story talks to the likes of Tomb Raider writer Rhianna Pratchett, Riot Games’ Ariel Lawrence and Laurie Goulding, indie designer Arielle Grimes, and Dragon Quest creator Koichi Nakamura to look at the place narrative has in games and how the writers themselves have functioned as members of the larger team. 

Early on in the story, Pratchett explores how she’s always enjoyed the collaboration that comes with working as a member of a game development team, but due to the very nature of that collaborative process itself it isn’t often that the writers themselves get to fully stretch their legs creatively.

Another section explores how Dragon Quest pioneered character-driven storytelling and how League of Legends then brought a similar but opposite spin on narrative to the world of online games. Nakamura explains that one thing that set Dragon Quest apart at the time was the fact that “there’s no direct narration at all and the whole story is told through the dialog of the characters.”

On the flip side, the League of Legends team opted to build the game’s narrative in a way that was connected to the game without fully permeating every in-game match or multiplayer showdown.

“The idea we’re moving toward is that champions, as they are experienced in League of Legends, are abstracted versions of themselves from a specific moment in time in the lore,” explains Goulding, lead narrative editor at Riot. “As they move around Summoner’s Rift, they express the nature of their relationships to other champions and their philosophies, but we try to shy away from relating long backstories or exposition within the dialogue of the game.”

Starting at 6:00 p.m. PDT today, members of the Xbox One Preview Alpha – Skip Ahead and Preview Alpha rings will begin receiving the latest Xbox One system update (1810.180713-2338). Learn more about the new features in development for 1810 here, and read on for a list of fixes and known issues in this 1810 system update.

Games

• Fixed an issue where users are reporting that certain multiplayer titles cannot be played due to frequent disconnects.

Groups

• Fixed an issue where Groups on the Home screen were not showing any content.

Headsets

• We have fixed the issue with various headsets and mic not working with the latest update.

Virtual Keyboard

• We have fixed an issue where users were unable to input text via Media Remotes using the on screen keyboard.
• Various performance fixes.

Avatars

• Gamerpics may appear on certain places throughout the dashboard instead of Avatars.

Backgrounds

• We are tracking an issue where custom background images or achievement art are not being displayed on the dashboard when starting the console. The background image is not loading for the user when signing into their profile.
  
  • Workaround: Refresh the dashboard.

Virtual Keyboard

• We are tracking an issue where users are reporting that various keys & controller shortcuts for the virtual keyboard are not being recognized. Certain keys (spacebar, @ symbol, – symbol) are not registering when being pressed on the keyboard (both the virtual keyboard and via a USB keyboard)

Settings

• We are tracking an issue with users not being able to select/change options under Device power options in Device Control.

Game Pass Tab

• Preview Alpha – Skip Ahead users will notice that the Entertainment tab has been replaced on the dashboard with Game Pass content. This new tab allows for easy access to the Game Pass catalog and is only available in the US region at this time, so Preview Alpha Skip Ahead Insiders in regions outside of the US will continue to see the Entertainment tab.

Groups

• You may see issues with Groups if you frequently switch between your non-Preview console and your Preview console.
  
  • Workaround: Reset your Groups locally on the Preview console through “My games & apps” > Groups, then using the “Delete all groups” button at the bottom of the page to resync from the service.

Microsoft Edge

• The cursor may disappear when exiting and re-entering the app
  
  • Workaround: Press Y when re-entering the app to make the cursor re-appea

Profile Color

• Sometimes users may encounter an incorrect Profile color when powering on the console.

Networking

• When the console wakes from Instant on/connected standby with a wired connection, the console may not recognize that the Ethernet cable is plugged in.
  
  • Workaround: Please reboot the console via Guide > reboot

Taiko: Drum Master (known as Taiko no Tatsujin: Nintendo Switch Version! in Japan) has drum-rolled its way right to number one in the Japanese charts.

It’s been yet another strong week for Nintendo on the whole in the region, with the top 12 chart entries all being either Switch or 3DS games. Octopath Traveler, which was sitting on top spot last week after some wonderfully high sales figures, has slipped down to number two this time around. Here’s a look at the top 20 (first numbers are this week’s sales, followed by total sales in brackets):

1) [NSW] Taiko no Tatsujin: Nintendo Switch Version! (Bandai Namco, 07/19/18) – 69,984 (New)
2) [NSW] Octopath Traveler (Square Enix, 07/13/18) – 22,438 (132,550)
3) [NSW] Splatoon 2 (Bundle Version Included) (Nintendo, 07/21/17) – 21,913 (2,469,695)
4) [NSW] Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Nintendo, 07/13/18) – 20,547 (62,399)
5) [NSW] Mario Tennis Aces (Nintendo, 06/22/18) – 19,709 (247,161)
6) [NSW] Minecraft: Nintendo Switch Edition (Microsoft, 06/21/18) – 16,265 (138,051)
7) [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Nintendo, 04/28/17) – 13,435 (1,641,109)
8) [3DS] Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon (The Pokemon Company, 11/17/17) – 7,554 (1,676,067)
9) [3DS] Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Nintendo, 07/13/18) – 7,188 (21,746)
10) [NSW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Limited Edition Included) (Nintendo, 03/03/17) – 7,1173 (1,050,891)
11) [NSW] Kirby Star Allies (Nintendo, 03/16/18) – 6,407 (566,171)
12) [NSW] Super Mario Odyssey (Bundle Version Included) (Nintendo, 10/27/17) – 5,695 (1,772,133)
13) [PS4] Detroit: Become Human (SIE, 05/25/18) – 4,613 (94,973)
14) [3DS] Animal Crossing: New Leaf Amiibo+ (Bundle Version Included) (Nintendo, 11/23/16) – 4,354 (425,839)
15) [NSW] Nintendo Labo Toy-Con 01: Variety Kit (Nintendo, 04/20/18) – 3,842 (205,809)
16) [NSW] Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (Nintendo, 05/04/18) – 3,378 (193,708)
17) [PS4] Mary Skelter 2 (Compile Heart, 07/12/18) – 2,986 (13,356)
18) [PS4] The Crew 2 (Ubisoft, 06/29/18) – 2,728 (35,004)
19) [PS4] New Gundam Breaker (Limited Edition Included) (Bandai Namco, 06/21/18) – 2,639 (84,716)
20) [3DS] Mario Kart 7 (Bundle Version Included) (Nintendo, 12/01/11) – 2,614 (2,903,441)

As is usually the case at the moment, the Switch has also found itself sitting securely at the top of the hardware pile, too. Here’s this week’s figures, followed by last week’s.

1) Switch – 53,745 (50,239)
2) PlayStation 4 – 14,035 (12,431)
3) New 2DS LL – 8,296 (4,176)
4) PlayStation 4 Pro – 6,274 (5,165)
5) PlayStation Vita – 4,277 (4,112)
6) New 3DS LL – 2,844 (2,507)
7) Xbox One – 709 (47)
8) 2DS – 437 (448)
9) Xbox One X – 56 (32)

Are you happy to see Taiko: Drum Master perching on the top spot? Join us in praying for a full western release in the comments below.

The hugely popular, first-person hero shooter Paladins is now available to download for free on Nintendo Switch.

Until now, Paladins has only been available on the console through purchasing the Founder’s Pack, a digital bundle which gives players early access to the game, immediately unlocking all Champions and their voice packs, and even rewards you with some exclusive cosmetics. The game already has a free-to-play system in place, with purchases only being available for cosmetic additions, but this new release gets rid of the need to buy your way in to start playing.

Alongside today’s free-to-play transition, Paladins has released its newest Champion: The deadly ninja Koga. Koga wields both dual SMGs and claws, climbing behind enemy lines before reigning destruction. Koga is the first champion with no cooldowns on his abilities; instead, he spends energy to use abilities whenever he sees an opportunity to strike.

We’ll soon be hosting a livestream to celebrate the occasion, too, giving you the chance to take on our lovely video master Alex Olney – you might even be able to get your hands on some fantastic prizes in the process. More details can be found in the video below.

If you haven’t yet jumped into the fun, this would be an ideal time to see what Paladins is all about for yourself. We really enjoyed the game in our review, noting the £25 Founder’s Pack charge as one of the relatively few drawbacks surrounding the game’s Switch release.

Let us know if you’ll be giving this free-to-play hit a spin with a comment below.

Semblance is Now Available on Steam and is 10% off!*

Semblance is an innovative platformer with deformable terrain, set in a beautiful minimalist world. It’s a game that asks, what if you could deform and reshape the world itself? Semblance takes the idea of a ‘platform’ in a platformer and turns it on its head.

*Offer ends July 31 at 10AM Pacific Time