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Game Design Level Design Narrative Design

Making a Withdrawl

“Some people in this City are too rich for their own good, lucky they have me to give them a hand.” V. First City Bank and Trust As insurance against possible betrayal, the Mechanist leader Karras recorded his secret meetings with Sheriff Truart on a wax cylinder. If Garrett can obtain it, he will finally […]

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Game Design Level Design Narrative Design Personal Favorites

The Dawn of The Metal Age: Part 5

So… The City Watch attempted to kill Garrett on the orders of Sheriff Gorman Truart, orders given at the behest of the Mechanist leader Karras. Garrett escaped this ambush and managed to acquire incriminating evidence against the Sheriff. Before Garrett was able to do anything with that evidence Truart was murdered. Killed by the Pagans […]

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Game Design Groping The Map Level Design

Groping The Map: Nova Prospekt – Cell Blocks A3 to A5

The cell blocks of Nova Prospekt will be the longest Gordon Freeman has spent inside in the whole of Half-Life 2, the ninety degree turns and tiled floors recalling the Black Mesa Research Facility explored in the original Half-Life. These areas also see the return of familiar elements from that game: laser tripmines and automated […]

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Game Design Groping The Map Level Design

Groping The Map: Nova Prospekt – Beach

Having obtained the antlion pheromone pod – know colloquially as Bugbait – you leave the resistance camp with an entourage composed of a pair of docile antlions; an additional pair scurries down the cave to join you as you approach the beach. Able to influence and direct the antlions, and with an endlessly replenishing supply, […]

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Game Design Level Design Narrative Design Personal Favorites

The Dawn of The Metal Age: Part 4

Karras knows it was Garrett who stopped the Trickster. As we learn later Karras was a Hammer and the one who made Garrett’s mechanical replacement eye – Karras probably also helped make the fake copy of The Eye. During their meeting Viktoria says of the Mechanists: “It’s no secret that they wish to destroy you […]

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Game Design Level Design Narrative Design Personal Favorites

The Dawn of The Metal Age: Part 3

The Dawn of The Metal Age: Part 2 Garrett has the recording of Truart’s meeting with Karras. Now he just has to break into the good Sheriff’s home and blackmail him with it. Really living up to that anti-hero label, is our Garrett. From here I don’t know the levels as well (excluding “Life of […]

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Game Design Level Design Narrative Design Personal Favorites

The Dawn of The Metal Age: Part 2

The Dawn of The Metal Age: Part 1 So Garrett has just broken into the City Watch headquarters and framed Sheriff Truart’s second-in-command, I’m sure nothing bad will come of this for anybody involved.   “Ambush!”: The lack of a loot objective in “Framed” makes sense given how “Ambush!” starts. Even using New Dark the […]

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Game Design Level Design Narrative Design Personal Favorites

The Dawn of The Metal Age: Part 1

So, I guess we’re doing this. Join me as I continue where we left off and play through Thief II: The Metal Age. It’s my favourite of the series, but I’m sure I’ll find something to complain about. The first shot of the intro isn’t quite a match for the last shot of The Dark […]

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Game Design Level Design Narrative Design Personal Favorites

Journey through the Dark Project: Part 4

[]   Journey through The Dark Project: Part 3 “Return to the Cathedral”: “Return to the Haunted Cathedral” is up next, I’m deep into the levels I’ve never played before. All I know about this one is: “Fuck. Fuck! Argh…” Objectives for “Return to the Cathedral” (I keep inserting the word Haunted) seem pretty straightforward… […]

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Game Design Level Design Narrative Design Personal Favorites

Journey through The Dark Project: Part 3

Journey through The Dark Project: Part 2 So… Constantine hired Garrett to steal a sword from Constantine’s own mansion to prove that Garrett was the right person to steal The Eye from the abandoned Hammer Cathedral. Unfortunately, the Keepers sealed the Cathedral after an undead uprising. Now in order to gain access to the Cathedral […]