It looks like silly fun, but as they say on their own page, they don’t recommend it as a daily driver, specifically because it was designed with humor in mind, not maintainability.
Could be worth spinning up in a VM or giving away on an old laptop, though…
VeraPDF seems like the best option when it comes to openness, being free, and having Linux support (really it uses Java, so it’s just platform agnostic).
A second option might be this one:
https://pac.pdf-accessibility.org/en
I’ve never used it, and it only has a Windows installer, but you might still be able to make use of it with Wine/Bottles/etc. Also, it’s free, so testing it out shouldn’t cost anything but time.
It’s resistant, though, specifically because you can fork it. Don’t like where things are going? Like the features of a previous version? Fork that version and run with it.
It does mean extra work for somebody to maintain that forked version, but the option is nonetheless there.
Based on my rough guesstimate, you would be able to use about a 1" x 2" (2.54cm x 5.08cm) piece of 20ga silver to make something that’s about 3.8g. You could possibly go thinner up to 24ga, which would give you more to work with, but I wouldn’t go beyond that; you might run the risk of deformation with use, otherwise.
Good luck! Smithing is fun, no?
“Should they?” No. Games are a form of art, and they have no obligation to be anything more than what they are.
That said, if their goal is to reach as many players as possible, they will miss out on a (likely) growing demographic by excluding PvE, especially if the framework is already there. Many people have no interest in duking it out with sweaty tryhards, and even if a game is lucky not to have those types, there’s still people who make it their mission to grief others whenever possible.
So I don’t think they “should,” but it’s shortsighted not to.
Yeah! Don’t skip out. There’s always free stuff that’s often very cool and unique.
ETA: and I do recommend turning on the setting so you can see user bases (which can show up even if you turn off multiplayer). People who start early will often make helpful bases to boost players along.
Awesome. Don’t wait too long or feel intimidated. Despite the name, you can play them entirely solo, and they’re great introductions to the mechanics of the game. You don’t need to “get used to” the game beforehand; just jump right into one!
Also, there’s only two weeks left, and it might take you the full two weeks to get through it, since you’re new. Worth it, though! Also, feel free to contact me if you need help.
Do the Community Expeditions. They only come around once in a while, and there should be one currently active for a little while longer. You get good stuff with them, and this one in particular is especially good, imo.
Just create a new save. They are set up so that you will get upgrades and inventory slots as you go. When you’re done, you can then roll it into a normal save with everything you collected and unlocked. Great way to jumpstart the game and get cool loot!
Xbox: Embrace, Extend, Extinguish!
Also Xbox: …wait, were we supposed to do that to other projects?
Appreciate it! I’ll wait for a sale and convince my friends to pick it up.
That looks cool! I’m always on the lookout for interesting games to play with friends. Have you played it in multiplayer, and if so, how would you rate it?
Right? Great demonstration of what’s to come. A demo done right
The Lift is doing an alpha playtest until Sept 30, and it’s fantastic. Things will likely change when it’s released, but if that’s their alpha, I can’t wait for the final version.
So yeah, I think other companies are able to do it, too.
Except Nintendo is quite literally trying to stifle creativity in gaming with their latest patent nonsense.
You’re better off buying a Steam Deck and not giving your money to a company that is more of a patent troll farm than a games company, these days.
Why pay your developers and ensure people have continued employment, when you could not.
/s
Nothing of what you suggested is particularly difficult with real dev work. You basically just said, “I want to vibe code it all.” It’s trivially easy to set up pseudorandom generators; deciding where enemies and objects go should not be left up to chance through some black-box algorithmic “magic.” Game theory exists for a reason, and AI doesn’t “know” about it, because it’s just a complex pattern generator at the end of the day.
Also, what happens when the model generates an environment that can’t be traversed? What if it places invisible walls in weird places? What about an environment that’s rife with bugs? What if the code is plain wrong? Now you have to go into the code, learn how it works, and debug it manually. Thank god you saved yourself some time by vibe coding. /s
I can see we won’t agree, so you’re welcome to get the last word, but I won’t reply afterwards.
LLMs and other machine learning are just algorithms. That’s all procedural world generation is, and this insistence by the Tech Bros that we need their models to “boost creativity” is a farce.
My opinion? The people that wish they could use AI to “see what they get out of it” are lazy ass fucks who don’t want to put in the extra work to actually get good at game dev.
This survey was conducted online by The Harris Poll on behalf of Google Cloud from June 20, 2025 - July 9, 2025 among 615 adults aged 18+ working in game development in the United States, South Korea, Finland, Norway, and Sweden.
So, it’s a voluntary poll. That’s a great way to get a biased sample.
Also, some of the responses sound like Google is playing fast and loose with the term “AI.” Is procedural world generation AI? Google seems to think so, despite it existing long before LLMs we’re a thing.
This whole thing reads like “research” designed to promote AI. I wonder why Google might want that? /s
Not me. I’m hanging onto mine for the inevitable retro revival!
(h/j)