In a city that quickly moves on to the next big thing, continuously and often irreverently erasing its history, block by block, Mr. Scofidios contribution to the reimagining of the High Line now feels obvious, something we can all take for granted. Over a hundred projects inspired by the High Line have surfaced all over the world. Many have succeeded on their own terms, but the ones that try to just imitate the High Line dont work.InfluentialHigh Linedeveloper and Friends of the High Line co-founder Robert Hammond penned an op-ed in remembrance of his friend and collaborator Ricardo Scofidio after the well-admired architects passing earlier this month at the age of 89. In describing a vision that might have included a transparent concrete swimming pool cantilevered above 14th Street, he says Scofidio and his team "gave us something entirely new that was inspired by the abandoned landscape that wed started with, while not showing off." The High Line celebrated the tenth anniversary of its final phase completion last year.

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Codemasters and Electronic Arts Arts have officially announced F1 25, the next title in the formers flagship Formula One racing series. Lewis Hamilton is the cover star, and a full reveal is slated for March 26th at 8 AM PST.Nothing is known about its gameplay features, improvements or new modes. However, leaker billbil-kun reported that the Standard Edition retails for $59.99 while the Iconic Edition allegedly costs $79.99 and provides three days of early access. Your guess is about as good as ours regarding the price drop over last year, so stay tuned for more details.F1 25s platforms havent been confirmed, but its likely bound for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC and allegedly out on May 30th. In the meantime, check out our review of last years title, F1 24. We gave it an eight out of ten, praising the Career Mode and presentation while remaining iffy on the handling changes.

With how successful and well-regarded the first game is, it makes sense for developer Bug Bear to repeat the early access process with Wreckfest 2. Out now on PC via Steam, the sequel promises more realistic crashes with enhanced physics and higher fidelity. The problem? It has quite a ways to go, even by early access standards.Not Much ContentWhen playing through the beta preview version of Wreckfest 2 before its early access launch, I was concerned about the content available. Bug Bear already confirmed that a revamped Career Mode will arrive later at some point in early access. So whats there instead? Quick Race on a single track, the ability to set up a Custom Race, Multiplayer matchmaking and a Server Browser. You can also customize the colors of the four available cars. Thats pretty much it.TracksSurely, the number of tracks makes up for the low number of modes and cars, right? Well, Wreckfest 2 does feature four locations Savolax Sandpit, Speedway, Scrapyard and Testing Grounds. Some have different layouts Savolax has a reverse track variant, while Speedway has Race, Derby and Figure 8 layouts. Similarly, the Scrapyard has the Main Route and Bonebreaker.Overall, there are eight in total, but the problem is that some carry over from the first game, so long-time fans will feel a sense of deja vu. Im not going to tell you how much content it should have by early access standards. Just know that this is the amount available from the outset if youre getting in on the ground level.Custom RaceSince Single Race only offers a single track, Scrapyard, with one configuration, youll want to go to Custom Race for some actual variety. This is where you can choose a different track and adjust several aspects, like the class of your opponents, the number of laps, how long it takes for your car to reset, car damage, the time of day, and the number of racers.The traditional racing mode is called Banger Racing, which essentially involves racing around the track and crashing into your opponents with impunity. Youre still trying to place higher than them but theres a neat little score that keeps track of all the ramming, T-Bones, and crashes.Demolition DeathmatchAlternatively, you could go into Demolition Deathmatch. Available only on the arena-style maps, the objective is to mercilessly crash into other racers. Each vehicle has a health bar of sorts, though that can get depleted quickly depending on how many different parts get damaged (and how extensively).The player with the highest crash score by the end of the match or when theyre effectively destroyed is the winner. Among the many maps available, Testing Grounds is perhaps the best place to let loose with those demolition derby urges, as it offers ramps, springs, and a clean aesthetic for admiring the sheer destruction.Car HandlingOne of the biggest selling points of Wreckfest and its sequel is how its cars arent the sleekest machines out there. Youre controlling some absolute junkers they feel muscular and strong enough when you get out on the track, their weight reflected in the handling. Upon taking damage, however, they feel like shambling messes pulling along as if by sheer force of will, yet hanging on by a thread.It adds an interesting dynamism to races as you struggle, seemingly against all odds, to get this hunk of junk across the finish line, regardless of the position. I also liked how the track surfaces would affect handling, alternating between tight and responsive on asphalt to less traction and more sliding on sand.Realistic Destruction and CrashesSuffice it to say that those enhanced physics are working overtime (without going over the top). Cars can go from relatively solid, if beat up, to absolutely smashes. Tires fly off. The hood pops up, blocking your perspective while driving in first-person, or folds inward, turning that Camaro-like knock-off into something Mr Bean would be proud of.Its amusing to see just how deformed your car (and others) can become before it gives out, and the pile-ups involving multiple vehicles can be hilarious. Of course, the physics extends to the environment, with tyres on the outside going flying. Some structures can even hang off your vehicle if you run into them.PC PerformanceWhile playing the preview version ahead of early access, I was downright mortified at the performance of Wreckfest 2. Fortunately, thats not the case with the current build. With AMD FSR 3.0 enabled (no DLSS, though you can opt for FXAA, MSAA or some combination of the two), I set almost everything to High at 1440p and saw some pretty good performance to match the fidelity. The performance took a hit during online matches, but nothing too serious that made the racing unbearable. Bug Bear has confirmed that the requirements will lower as early access progresses, so things can only improve from here.Changing ResolutionOddly enough, however, you cant set the resolution or enable V-Sync in-game. Instead, you must launch the game and select Change Settings. This opens up a different window which lets you choose the graphics preset (which can also be adjusted in-game) alongside the screen resolution, aspect ratio, V-Sync, and Windowed Mode before playing. Why cant you have these options in-game? Im not sure, but if you were confused as to why these options were seemingly missing, thats where to find them.MultiplayerI cant say I expected much from multiplayer, especially with an all-time peak concurrent player count of less than 3,200 at launch. Matchmaking takes a bit of time, but once youre in a lobby, theres a high chance of waiting until the current race is complete before you can get in. If there arent enough players, bots will fill in the slots.The overall server stability isnt the best right now I found myself disconnected both before the race began and near the end. The development team has addressed other issues with online play, but if youre counting on it to fill the void left by the lackluster single-player content, it also feels extremely barebones. At least the Server Browser is working well enough.Future Updates and ConclusionWith such a sparse foundation, when can you expect more content for Wreckfest 2? The first update arrives in two months for free, adding two new cars and tracks. As for the future, theres little else to do but wait and see.At $29.99, Wreckfest 2 is a hard sell in its current state, and thats even with gameplay elements like the handling and crash physics feeling pretty good. Its probably the best possible advertisement for the original if youre new, revisiting the past is ideal, especially with how much more content is offered. As it stands, the sequel is neither good, bad, or average it simply isnt much of anything right now beyond a foundation for whats to come. If you enjoyed the first one enough to support the sequels development, then by all means, but it will be a while before it reaches the same lofty heights.This game was reviewed on PC.

Game developers are among the most creative people on the planet, but they have had a tough 2.5 years with more than 35,000 layoffs across gaming. Some of those cutbacks were expected to ease by 2025, but weve seen 1,200-plus layoffs in the first quarter. The troubles are so acute that, for the second year in a row, the Independent Games FesRead More

Microsoft and Bethesda's big Xbox hit, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, debuts on Sony's PlayStation 5 on April 17.Read More

The IGF (Independent Games Festival) aims to encourage innovation in game development and to recognize independent game developers advancing the medium. This year, Game Developer sat down with the finalists for the IGFs Nuovo and Grand Prize nominees ahead of GDC to explore the themes, design decisions, and tools behind each entry. Game Developer and GDC are sibling organizations under Informa.despelote lets you explore the streets of Quito, Ecuador as an eight year old child caught up in soccer fever, kicking your ball all over town and using it to interact with the places and people you meet.Game Developer sat down with Julin Cordero, lead developer of the multi-IGF Award nominated title, to talk about creating a game that focuses on things that happen around a sport as opposed to focusing on just the sport, the intriguing ways they captured the feel of Ecuador in 2001 when they were nearing qualification for the World Cup, and the thoughts that went into how the soccer ball would operate as players experience the world through kicking it all over town.Who are you, and what was your role in developing despelote?I am Julin Cordero, lead developer and designer of despelote. The rest of the team is Sebastin Valbuena who does the art and music, Gabe Cuzzillo who helps with production, and Ian Berman who does the sound design.Related:What's your background in making games?I studied game design at the NYU Gamecenter, made a bunch of games back as a student, and despelote was actually my capstone project 6 years ago. Weve been lucky enough to have received support from various sources to develop it all these years.How did you come up with the concept for despelote?The soccer culture in Ecuador is huge and I used to play so much of it growing up, but when I moved to NYC I stopped playing and engaging with it as much. When I realized this, I started to think about the role soccer had played in my life and I decided to make a game to explore this idea. I had always played big triple A sports games like FIFA, but the soccer you play there didn't represent the kind of soccer I actually grew up playing which took place in neighborhoods and parksnot in big stadiums in front of millions of people. I found that everything that happens around the sport is just as interesting as the sport itself, so we set out to make a game that focused on that.What development tools were used to build your game?Unity, Fmod, Scaniverse and Polycam for 3D scanning, Blender, Ableton, and Photoshop.Related:What thoughts went into creating a world that would offer so much fun, secret stories, and mischief for an eight-year-old to get into?The game is set at a very particular time in the recent history of Ecuador. In 2001, the country had just gone through a big economic crisis and it was very easy for everyone to latch on to the national soccer team for hope since they were on the brink of qualifying to the world cup for the first time ever. This is one of my earliest memories, but it is very hazy and a lot of it is reconstructed from stories I've heard. So when designing the world, we decided to integrate many perspectives into this depiction by having friends and family improvise all the dialogue in the game. We came up with some basic scenarios and told people to pretend like they are 2001 so that they could bring whatever memories they had about it into the recording sessions. The results were always surprising and integrating them into the game became an interesting design challenge.Not writing any of the dialogue allowed me to be a spectator of these moments, so it was very fun to pretend to be eight years old and come up with ways of being mischievous around them. For example, a couple having an anniversary picnic in the park was a lovely conversation from a real-life couple who brought stuff in from their actual relationship into the recording. Wouldn't it be great to be eight years old and use their orange juice as target practice? Maybe the fight that ensues after it splashes has a hint of their real relationship too.Related:Kicking the soccer ball is pretty satisfying (and not just because you've booted it at someone). What thoughts went into making the soccer ball kicking/dribbling mechanics fun and appealing on their own? Into making them fun in a first-person perspective?I remember some of the balls I played with as a kid and how deeply I got to know them. A beaten-up soccer ball has so many stories to tell; it is such a simple object, but it is so versatile. When thinking about how to depict this, our instinct was to try to make it feel very physical. We tried to avoid using magic forces to keep the ball in front of you and instead embrace the unexpected nature of it. The ball bounces around your feet; you never have full control of it, but you can sort of guide it to where you want. The first-person perspective allows the player to have a direct connection and ensure that the ball is always in the foreground. And when the ball is in the foreground, the background conversations and ambiences can slowly seep in.despelote uses a striking mixture of stylized realistic visuals (drawn from photographs) and animated characters. What appealed to you about this visual mixture? How do these visuals work with your vision for this exploration of Ecuador in 2001?Sebastin had been playing with this kind of aesthetic for a few years before I approached him to be part of the game. I was very inspired by some of his 2D animations, but he had never worked in 3D, so it was a challenge to bring his style into a first-person exploration game. However, when we started experimenting with the art, we quickly realized that the mix of black and white hand-drawn elements with a noisy background established a clear visual language that was intuitive for the player. We committed to this contrast and it gave us much liberty to play around with each style.What drew you to work with photographs while creating the world? What effect did you feel this had on the game and how the player will experience its vision of Ecuador in this time period?Similarly to how we wanted to "source" the dialogue from the real world by having friends and family improvise, we wanted to "source" the environment from the real world. The design of the map is not exactly an actual place in Quito, but we bring in assets from the real world to try to ground the game in a specific setting. It made a lot of sense to use photographs and 3D scans because the textures have so much personality built into them already, which gives the environment a very raw feeling.Games have a tendency of trying to avoid depicting the real world, probably because it is technically just as difficult to create a fantasy world as it is a real-life city block. But we have so many ways of capturing the world nowadays, and I think games are the perfect vessel to combine them together.You also work with audio to give the player a real sense of place while exploring despelote. Why was it important to capture the sounds of the world alongside the photographic visuals?I think that the more specific a depiction of a place is, the more relatable it can be even for people who have never been to that place. This is especially true for audio, because certain sounds can trigger nostalgic feelings without us fully understanding it. I live in NYC now, but hearing specific birds chirping that Ian recorded brings me back to being a kid in Quito. This is why we really wanted the game to sound like Quito, and Ian did an incredible job recording and mixing it all together.

We've all heard the saying "everything has already been done once" when it comes to art and creativity. Fawzi Mesmar challenged this concept at GDC 2025, explaining that ideas can be repeated, but it's our own experiences that take a common concept and make it creatively unique.One of the biggest hurdles in game development is coming up with a story. Whether you are trying to figure out the motivation driving your farmer in a cozy sim or flesh out the creepy world of a horror game, we are all aiming to be unique, original, and engaging.An original and creative idea could be the key to a successful game. But what makes an idea original? Mesmar has some specific advice for those looking to harness creativity and get away from accidentally building a hollow repeat.We are what we watchRight from the start, Mesmar pressed listeners with the question "What is creativity?" He explained that the concept of creativity is often misunderstood as just "creating something." He instead broke it down as "an idea that is unprecedented." He stated that "what we do inspires us," and it is that inspiration that creates unique ideas.In game development we see trends as certain concepts with outsize influence on writers and designers. It is especially noticeable in newer devs, who may have set out to make a game solely because they were inspired by a specific title when they were younger.Related:Via ConcernedApeVia ConcernedApeIn the cozy genre, for example, it is a joke that almost every farming sim that has come out in recent years has a protagonist who is "trying to escape the big city" for a more provincial, relaxing life. This is due to how many cozy players were inspired by and grew up with games like Harvest Moon and Stardew Valley.However, just including the ingredients isn't enough. As we saw in the recent release of Sugardew Island, copying what works with other games isn't necessarily creative. However, titles like Fields of Mistria have exploded in popularity, and have been celebrated for their creative and fresh elements. The difference between the two is how the developers injected their own personal experiences into the title.Sugardew Island has all the right ingredients for a farming sim. Players can craft, farm, raise animals, and sell their crops and products. However, it lacks any depth beyond these core mechanics, leaving players bored and unsatisfied with the gameplay loop.Fields of Mistria utilizes unique, 90s-inspired illustrations and anime-like plot points for its story while injecting adorable narrative elements like a "D&D" tabletop game played at the pub on Fridays. It's original, unique, and charming, even if it has similarities to other farming sims.Related:The takeaway here is that a creative idea has to be more than just building a game around a selection of popular mechanics from other games. It needs depth, originality, and intention. Mesmar says that "originality is making something novel," and he has a key bit of advice for those trying to achieve this.Game designers need to create with intentionMesmar explained that "to achieve creative sobriety, you need to look into yourself and understand your own experiences and constraints."To do this, creatives need to look at a concept and think about how their own experiences in life could be applied to it. Instead of making a farming game where you plant crops and sell them, maybe you make a farming game where you have to teach NPCs how to help in the gardens, as you may have with a family member as a child. The game could be centered around building a thriving community garden and selling crops at a co-op or outdoor market. By diving into personal experiences, creativity blooms into original and unique concepts, even if they are based on something common and relatable.Related:Additionally, Mesmar says that "original ideas need to have value." You could have a core memory of petting your childhood cat, but does this experience have value? If you made a cat petting game, how would it connect or provide something to a player? If you have a core memory of petting your cat and you turn it into a hyper-realistic pet-groomer simulator or a platformer where the goal is to reach cats and pet them for points, now we are talking about originality. Who wouldn't want to fight baddies to collect cat pets like reward tokens?Creative Sobriety is about being intentional and thoughtful about the ideas we develop. Mesmar encourages those trying to harness their creativity to pause, think, and meditate on the why behind their ideas. By taking the time to consider how a concept connects with you and how it could be used to reach others, you will have the ability to craft truly unique and interesting stories.

Im still getting accustomed to seeing 27-inch 1440p QD-OLED gaming monitors for less than $700 after all, it wasnt long ago that they were retailing for around $1,000. So imagine the feeling of sticker shock (complimentary) to spot one of Alienwares models with a fast 360Hz refresh rate for hundreds of dollars off, which is the case right now at Dells website.Originally $899.99, this monitors final price plunges to $599.99 when you use promo code AW27300 at checkout. With tax, my checkout total rang up to a cool $653.24. An OLED gaming monitor that costs less than a mid-range GPU? Hell yeah. At this price, theres no need to wait for Alienwares forthcoming AW2725D, which the company hopes (but isnt promising) to launch for $549. Itll have 1440p resolution with a 280Hz refresh rate, so its actually slower than Alienwares discounted AW2725DF.Alienware AW2725D gaming monitor$600$90033% off$600The AW2725DF has a 360Hz refresh rate, 1440p resolution, and a decent PPI to ensure that text looks clear.$600 at Dell (with code AW27300)In terms of the specs, Alienwares 27-inch AW2725DF sports AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, plus support for VRR via either its HDMI 2.1 port or through either of its DisplayPort 1.4 ports. Thatll ensure that the screen looks smooth and tear-free, even during moments when the frame rate fluctuates wildly. While the panel can achieve up to a 360Hz refresh rate equating to 360 visible frames per second, if your GPU can keep up its only supported via the DisplayPort. Through HDMI 2.1, the monitors refresh rate tops out at a respectable 144Hz.The AW2725DF has an anti-reflective coating, but since I havent used this exact display, I cant vouch as to whether its fully matte or slightly on the glossy side (the newer AW2725Q is more glossy than matte, in turn letting more contrast through). It has 111 pixels per inch (PPI), which should be enough clarity to avoid seeing pixelated text. A low PPI dampened my enthusiasm for other OLED monitors, including the Corsair Xeneon Flex that I reviewed in late 2022.See More:

23andMe has filed for bankruptcy, raising concerns about what will happen to the DNA-testing company and all the data its collected from customers over the years. In the event that 23andMe is sold, its massive genetic database may end up in the hands of a different company entirely one that users never consented to handing their personal information over to.If youve submitted your DNA to the company via its saliva-testing kits, 23andMe will typically have your genetic, ancestry, and family connections data on file, alongside any personal information that was used to create your account, including your name, address, email address, and payment information. Thankfully, the company will continue its regular operations while going through the Chapter 11 process, allowing users to access and at least partially delete their information for now. 23andMe says that genetic data is anonymized and stored separately from personally identifiable information such as names, addresses, and payment information. Anonymization has been known to fail in other situations, however, so heres how you can proactively remove as much of your data as possible if youd rather not take any chances. The process is the same across both mobile and desktop platforms.How to remove your data from 23andMeLog into 23andMe and select the Settings option under your account profile. Scroll down to the section titled 23andMe Data and click View.Youll find this section at the bottom of the settings page. Image: 23andMe / The VergeYou will now be asked to verify your age for security purposes. Once thats been submitted, the next screen will provide options that will allow you to download your data, alongside a button to request the deletion of your 23andMe account.The age verification request should appear on both mobile and desktop versions of the platform. Image: 23andMe / The VergeYou will then receive an email from 23andMe asking you to confirm the account deletion request.Deleting your 23andMe account is irreversible, and youll permanently lose access to it once completed. If there are multiple profiles created by other users on your account then those will also be wiped unless you transfer them to an account that isnt being deleted.One of the notable issues is that this process also wont delete all of your data according to 23andMes privacy disclosure, your genetic information, date of birth, and sex will be retained for an undisclosed amount of time to comply with the companys legal obligations, alongside limited information related to your account, such as your email address and communications around your data deletion request.23andMe did not answer our questions regarding what specific data actually is retained or deleted when a user removes their account. Some posts have appeared online that encourage 23andMe users to scramble their data before deletion by replacing things like name, date of birth, ethnicity, sex marker, and height with false equivalents. This will supposedly render any information that is retained useless, but will likely be ineffective if 23andMe only stores the data that was used to create your account something that the company also did not clarify to The Verge.As part of the account deletion process, 23andMe will destroy the genetic sample you submitted if you previously opted for it to remain in storage. Your 23andMe data will still exist in any scientific studies you consented to, but wont be used in any future research projects. 23andMe directs customers who run into issues with the account deletion process to contact customercare@23andme.com for further assistance.See More: Uncategorized