S8 E7 • Designing for Youth

Good games inspire children to learn through play, whether in the classroom or at home. Understanding the educational needs of different age groups, from kindergarten to middle school, allows designers to create games that give children the opportunity to explore and grow.

Première diffusion : 26 mars 2014

S8 E8 • Net Neutrality

The debate about net neutrality rages on, but the meaning of "open internet" vs. "closed internet" is seldom explained. Without an open or neutral internet, corporations like AT&T or Comcast can restrict bandwidth and charge people extra for faster connections or limit access to their competitors' services altogether. In the United States, a January 2014 ruling from the DC Circuit Court determined that the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) had no authority to enforce its previous rules about net neutrality. This opened the decision about how to govern the internet's future up to law makers in the US Congress.

Première diffusion : 2 avril 2014

S8 E9 • Doing Free to Play Wrong

Comedy relies on timing, but video games can go beyond the scripted scenes of films or television to create interactive "comedy by choice" that lets each player discover humor on their own.

Première diffusion : 9 avril 2014

S8 E10 • Comedic Games

Comedy relies on timing, but video games can go beyond the scripted scenes of films or television to create interactive "comedy by choice" that lets each player discover humor on their own.

Première diffusion : 16 avril 2014

S8 E11 • Candy Crush's Success

Match three games like Bejeweled have spawned many clones, but none as successful as Candy Crush. Love it or hate it, it's helpful to understand why so many people play it.

Première diffusion : 23 avril 2014

S8 E12 • Education: An End to Fear

Traditional education focuses on assessment, giving students one chance to get their homework right. Games can provide immediate feedback and teach core problem solving skills.

Première diffusion : 30 avril 2014

S8 E13 • Education: Responsive Learning

Games that can track player behavior down to the last click can also keep teachers informed about their classes' progress and give them time to work one-on-one with struggling students.

Première diffusion : 7 mai 2014

S8 E14 • Education: 21st Century Skills

Games give players agency and teach the core 21st century skills of critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity better than any traditional program of rote learning can.

Première diffusion : 14 mai 2014

S8 E15 • Education: Agency

Games show us the immediate, direct impact of our choices in a way that teaches us to plan for our goals and take control of our future. No lesson could be more valuable for a student.

Première diffusion : 21 mai 2014

S8 E16 • Why Games Do Cthulhu Wrong

H.P. Lovecraft and the Call of Cthulhu have inspired many horror games, but the power fantasy that drives most games conflicts with the unfathomable, unreachable terror of Cthulhu.

Première diffusion : 28 mai 2014

S8 E17 • Minecraft Generation

Games like Spelunky and FTL led a revival of the roguelike genre. Techniques adopted from other genres simplify the learning curve and make these games accessible again for modern players.

Première diffusion : 4 juin 2014

S8 E18 • Roguelike Returns

Games like Spelunky and FTL led a revival of the roguelike genre. Techniques adopted from other genres simplify the learning curve and make these games accessible again for modern players.

Première diffusion : 11 juin 2014

S8 E19 • The Fighting Game Problem

Première diffusion : 18 juin 2014

S8 E20 • Why the Vita Failed

The PlayStation Vita tried to create a high end mobile gaming solution, but failed to achieve even a fraction of the sales of low end systems like the Nintendo 3DS or even the iPhone.

Première diffusion : 25 juin 2014

S8 E21 • Early Access

Many developers have adopted the trend of giving players early access to a game that's still in development, gaining funding through sales at the high potential cost of a good first impression.

Première diffusion : 2 juillet 2014

S8 E22 • The Waiting Game

Games like Candy Box, Frog Fractions, and a Dark Room uproot traditional game design that relies on spectacle and action. Instead they build an interest curve by appealing to our natural curiosity.

Première diffusion : 9 juillet 2014

S8 E23 • Open World Design

Open world games offer players great opportunities to explore, but developers must figure out how to organize their team to create an immersive experience across so many hours of content.

Première diffusion : 16 juillet 2014

S8 E24 • Choices vs Consequences

Games give players the agency to make decisions, but whether they highlight choices in advance or deliver consequences after the fact changes the experience and the game design itself.

Première diffusion : 23 juillet 2014

S8 E25 • How Far Have Games Come Since 2008?

For our 200th episode, we take a look back at all the good things games have accomplished, as an industry and a community, since Extra Credits started in 2008!

Première diffusion : 30 juillet 2014

S8 E1 • Too Many Games

The number of games coming out has hugely increased thanks to distribution platforms like Steam and the App Store, but storefronts have become a cluttered mess with inadequate search options.

Première diffusion : 6 août 2014

S8 E2 • Randomness in Esports

Skill should be the determining factor in Esports, but many competitive games include a random element such as critical strike chance or card draw that can change the outcome of a match.

Première diffusion : 13 août 2014

S8 E3 • Games You Might Not Have Tried: Humble Bundle

Extra Credits reviews and recommends a selection of video games that might have slipped under your radar.

Première diffusion : 21 août 2014

S8 E4 • First Move Advantage

In turn-based competitive games, the player who goes first gets initiative. Designers must find ways to balance this advantage and keep track of win rates for both players as the game changes over time.

Première diffusion : 27 août 2014

S8 E5 • Free to Play Is Currently Broken

Squeezing money from their highest spending players causes most free to play games to push out the majority of their playerbase.

Première diffusion : 3 septembre 2014

S8 E6 • Historical Games

Historical games can be a great way to learn while playing, but giving the player choice means not re-enacting history as it happened. Systems and mechanics can make the player's choices feel like the choices of a historic figure.

Première diffusion : 10 septembre 2014

S8 E7 • MMO Economies

Every quest reward or sellable item in an MMO generates more gold that goes into the economy, causing inflation as the gold becomes more common and less valuable. There are several ways that MMOs can drain that money out of the economy by creating "gold sinks."

Première diffusion : 17 septembre 2014