Welcome to another edition of Indie Arcade! On today's episode, we take a look at Chambara! Chambara is stealth death match where players blend into the environment, hiding in their characters corresponding color. If Chambara looks familiar, it is one of the games we checked out at the MIX event at E3!

Chambara was developed by Team OK Games - @teamokgames

Chambara is available on PS4.

​   Don't forget to check out our affiliate IndieBox.com! Indiebox is a subscription service that delivers collector edition indie games straight to your door step every month. Referral code: Divercast.  

   Do you have questions, comments or concerns? Email us at deepdigitaldesign@gmail.com
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- Danny Q
@Dannylv100​
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Originally Published: 6/1/2015  

   Welcome to another edition of Divercast! On this episode we talk about Boss Battles, which boss fight do we consider memorable? What is there purpose in games? Are they a thing of the past, or are they still relevant? 

  We also talk about whether teaser trailers are pointless, the E3 demo vs the final release of a game controversy and what it means to design a "level" versus a "stage". 

So sit back, relax it is time for Divercast! 

  Do you have questions, comments or concerns? Email us at deepdigitaldesign@gmail.com
Follow us on Tumblr, IndieDB, Twitter, Mixcloud,Soundcloud,Twine, instagram and Youtube

- Danny Q
@Dannylv100
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Note: This episode is rated PG-13 for some sexual dialogue and adult situations.
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   Christian (Greenjoker24), our resident fighting game expert is gearing up for EVO once again. After years of attending EVo Christian has a couple of stories to share with us. Winning big at a casino, misdialed phone calls and the consequences of oversleeping. All that and more in this episode!

   So sit back and relax, everybody loves DLC!

   Don't forget to check out our affiliate IndieBox.com! Indiebox is a subscription service that delivers collector edition indie games straight to your door step every month. Referral code: Divercast.       

   Do you have questions, comments or concerns? Email us at deepdigitaldesign@gmail.com
Follow us on Tumblr, IndieDB, Twitter, Mixcloud,Soundcloud,clowdy, instagram and Youtube

- Danny Q
@Dannylv100
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 Halo 5 has released a big update! A new mode called Firefight! Firefight pits a squad of eight players against five waves of enemies of increasing difficulty. Overall, I love this mode. However, I do feel like there are some issues that hold me back from truly loving this game mode. Here are my thoughts and impressions!
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Note: This isn't an "angry rant". I enjoy this game, but I feel like a few improvements would make this game mode excellent. Blindly yelling "This sucks" is never helpful. That is why as a game designer I offer my input on what I would do to improve the overall experience for all players.

   In the past I've said that the fact that Halo 5 doesn't hand out REQ packs freely was something that bothered me. I know they want players to buy them with real money, but nothing makes me want to play more then feeling like I am being rewarded for my time. 

   The Firefight update rewards players a free pack just for logging into the game, one free pack a day. Firefight also showers a victorious team with Gold REQ Packs. That's right, GOLD, the best packs in the game. I was so happy, the first few games I played were just awesome, my team and I rolled through a couple rounds and I was earning gold/silver pack after gold pack.

   A game of Firefight can average around 20-25 mins, earning a gold pack or two feels like the right way to reward a player for dedicating the time. It also encourages them to play another round, it keeps them coming back day after day.
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   Basically, you are always low on ammo. When you start the game you have half of the maximum amount of ammo you are allowed to carry. For example, you will have 12 in the magazine of your Magnum, and 24 in reserve. What is the issue? Well you are constantly dealing with boss enemies that require a lot of ammo, and they always bring hordes of enemies to defend them. 

  So you might say "Well use your REQ cards!", well that can help, but I still feel under equipped. Most boss enemies seem to shrug off rockets. Even an enemy Banshee can withstand multiple rockets before going down. You might use an entire rocket launcher REQ card to take down a single banshee.
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Suggested Fix: I would suggest that we increase the amount of ammo players can carry in reserve. For example, instead of a battle rifle carrying 108 bullets max, we give the player 324, three times the amount the player carries now.
  
I would suggest that we add more ammo terminals, they don't need to be fully fledged REQ stations, but ammo drops and resupply capsules around the map that would provide the player with ammo for their loadout weapons and grenades. I would also slightly increase the amount of ammo the REQ cards come with (just for this mode). 
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  This is a bit of a pet peeve, but I hate when the clock starts counting down and the boss hasn't even arrived yet. I hate that the armory is being overrun by Prometheans, and we're across the map.

 This might sound like a pet peeve, but why in a game where we have limited time would you start the clock when the boss we are supposed to defeat hasn't even arrived yet? This is especially bad in the early rounds when you are expected to defend the objective, but the Armory/Power Core is across the map! By the time you get there, it is full of enemies.

Suggested Fix: ​ I propose that we do not start a defense objective until one of the eight players has arrives to the destination.Don't start counting down the round until the boss is on the map.
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   I understand why it isn't in the game, but it seems a bit strange.  So, when you complete a round quickly, you don't get any bonus time added to the next round. If you defeat one Mythic boss, you don't get any bonus time added to the clock. This is especially frustrating when by round 2 the respawn timer is increased, only punishing the player for a death.

 This is incredibly frustrating. On a few occasion we have to take out three Mythic level bosses only to fail with the last boss having a sliver of health. Thing is, two mythic bosses is bad enough, but three?! And sometimes that is after having to defeat four legendary bosses before that!
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Suggested Fix: Giving the players a few seconds on the clock for successfully defeating a boss is something I would like to see added to the game. Rewarding the player with small time bonuses for performing feats of skill would also be a great idea. For example getting numerous headshots, carrying a combo or killing multiple enemies with a single grenade etc.

   We can work the time bonus into the game in a couple of ways. For example, any bonus time earned will be added to the fifth and final round. If players complete a round quickly, add 20 seconds to the clock at the final round. If no one dies in a round, add 30 seconds. There are a lot of ways to handle this. The final round can start at 5 mins and all the bonus time can get the round to be 6 mins or longer depending on how well the team plays. This would also allow players that aren't as skilled (or lacking REQ packs) to still contribute to the team.

   I've had numerous games where the first or second round was a Defend the Armory or take out Banshee Raiders. Depending on where the defense point is, this can be a huge pain. It is extremely difficult to defend the armory or eliminate targets when you have access to none of your powerful weapons (REQ cards) etc. 

 The overall flow of the objectives feels random. I've had missions with numerous challenging objectives leading to an unwinnable finale. You might think I am just nitpicking, but I am not. There is such as thing as pacing. Mass Effect 3's multiplayer did a good job of breaking up the flow of objectives and combat. They never made the player complete three defense missions in a row. 

 On the flip side, I've also had a few games that were complete cake walks in comparison. Easy objectives in a row with a single final boss that is easily defeated.

Suggested Fix: ​ We establish a pace and flow for each map. We let the player know what objectives to expect each round on certain maps. For example on the map March on Stormbreak the first round will always be an "Eliminate X amount of Y enemy" mission. With round 2 being "Eliminate a boss enemy" and the third round guaranteed to be a defense mission. It is important for the players to know ahead of time so they can prepare themselves and organize before the mission starts.

  This should also allow the game to know what objectives to give the players. If they player has already done one type of mission it should assign another type instead, to keep the flow feeling right

​Suggested Fix:  If the game insists on just dumping prometheans on the players, they can scale their health so they don't feel like bullet sponges. The covenant enemies seem to scale accordingly. They only become really difficult in round 4 and 5. They are manageable in the early rounds. Prometheans always feel like a chore.
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   Some of the maps work better for Firefight then others.Some maps are too big and other maps feel perfect for this mode. A map such as Raid on Apex 7 can be a nightmare, whereas a map such as Urban is just perfect.

  It annoys me that Firefight is tied to my Warzone's win/loss ratio. After playing Firefight, I saw a large decrease in my W/L ratio, and it bugged me. This isn't a huge issue, I just don't understand why it wouldn't have it's own separate category.

   When you're playing with a focused squad or a group of friends. When the game sets challenging but fair objectives, Firefight is amazing.

  Those are my thoughts on what I believe would help improve Halo 5's Firefight mode. Currently one of my favorite modes in Halo. I would love to see some of my suggestions implemented. I also believe Firefight can have a strong thriving community with continual updates. New objectives and enemies, I would love to see Brutes added to Firefight!

If you agree/disagree, feel free to leave a comment or message me on twitter. What changes would you like to see made to Firefight? Thanks for reading!

  Do you have questions, comments or concerns? Email us at deepdigitaldesign@gmail.com
Follow us on Tumblr, IndieDB, Twitter, Mixcloud,Soundcloud,Twine, instagram and Youtube

- Danny Q
@Dannylv100
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  Welcome to Indie Arcade! Today Andrew gets behind the wheel of an out of control bus, which is also the protagonist of this game. Some of the objectives Andrew must take on mundane tasks such as taking a tour group around the city, bring fireworks to the annual fireworks show and demolish a building via airdrop!  

Omnibus ​was developed by Buddy Cop Games - @OmniBusGame

Omnibus is now available on Steam. 

​   Don't forget to check out our affiliate IndieBox.com! Indiebox is a subscription service that delivers collector edition indie games straight to your door step every month. Referral code: Divercast.     

     Do you have questions, comments or concerns? Email us at deepdigitaldesign@gmail.com
Follow us on Tumblr, IndieDB, Twitter, Mixcloud,Soundcloud,Twine, instagram and Youtube

- Danny Q
@Dannylv100​
​

​   Hey! I am going to be streaming a new map in Halo 5's forge editor. You can find all the updates here on this youtube playlist. You can watch live on twitch and if you have any questions about game design or etc, feel free to join my live streams and ask questions! 

   Do you have questions, comments or concerns? Email us at deepdigitaldesign@gmail.com
Follow us on Tumblr, IndieDB, Twitter, Mixcloud,Soundcloud,Twine, instagram and Youtube

- Danny Q
@Dannylv100
​

This content is NSFW due to cursing. 
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  I was a guest on the Weapon Wheel Podcast! The Weapon Wheel Podcast is a weekly round table discussion about everything gaming. From news and current events to discussion on old school games and technology.

​  I was invited on by the host, BrokenGamezHD to talk about Mighty No.9, Xbox Scorpio and a whole bunch of other topics! 

You can listen to the Weapon Wheel podcast on youtube, soundcloud and on itunes. 

   Do you have questions, comments or concerns? Email us at deepdigitaldesign@gmail.com
Follow us on Tumblr, IndieDB, Twitter, Mixcloud,Soundcloud,Twine, instagram and Youtube

- Danny Q
@Dannylv100
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