Games
Discover facts about games. Small discoveries that change the way you see familiar things.
Games
Why voice chat sounds like a wind tunnel
Someone using a premium headset will inexplicably broadcast the sound of a roaring jet engine into your ears. The sensitivity threshold is always set so…
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Why headphones leave a dent in your hair
Wearing premium audio gear for a few hours physically rearranges your skull fluff. Taking off a massive headset reveals a perfect canyon carved through your…
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Autosave icons demand you never cut power
A spinning circle quietly threatens to destroy your last six hours of progress if you dare touch the power cable. This tiny blinking symbol holds absolute…
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Achievements exist for opening basic menus
Because our attention spans are so entirely fried, we now require a shiny digital medal just for adjusting the volume. These participation trophies are baked…
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Why gamers turn off film grain in seconds
Nothing elevates a cutting-edge digital experience quite like covering it in artificial dirt to mimic vintage cameras. It takes immense processing power to…
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Why game lights glow like they’re blinding you
Sometime in the late two-thousands, rendering engineers decided that looking at a moderately bright window should blind the viewer like a supernova. This…
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Subtitle backgrounds default to solid black
To ensure text is readable, developers slap massive opaque rectangles behind the letters. This effectively censors the bottom quarter of the beautiful…
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Multiple disc prompts plagued long titles
Before digital downloads, reaching the halfway point of an epic journey required standing up and swapping a piece of plastic. The terrifying prompt to insert…
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Default subtitles remain entirely tiny
Despite televisions growing to the size of theater screens, default text remains scaled for ants. You are virtually guaranteed to spend your first ten minutes…
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Colorblind filters just wash out all colors
Instead of actually redesigning UI elements to be distinct, some creators just slap a horrific magenta tint over the entire screen. It solves the visual…
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The inventor of Twister also created Nerf
If there's an award for creating the maximum amount of chaotic indoor energy, Reyn Guyer absolutely owns it. Not only did this man invent Twister to ensure…
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Yahtzee began as a yacht game
If you've ever felt like Yahtzee lacked a certain 'blue-collar' appeal, that's entirely by design. In 1954, a wealthy Canadian couple was searching for a fun…
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The boring train ride that inspired the Game Boy
Inspiration strikes in the most mundane places. Nintendo engineer Gunpei Yokoi was riding the bullet train when he spotted an adult businessman furiously…
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The Sega game with a talking fish that could bleed
Welcome to 1999, where Sega looked at the gaming market and thought, 'You know what kids want? A fish with a human face that insults them.' The game was…
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How a quick tap can swing open a heavy door
Solid oak doors apparently possess zero weight. Sprinting at top speed while lightly tapping an entryway causes the massive barrier to violently swing open…
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Why a puddle can kill an armored warrior
Being a highly trained operative means absolutely nothing if your ankles get wet. Touching a mild stream immediately depletes all health, proving that highly…
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Rubberbanding ensures opponents never fall far behind
Skill is effectively meaningless when the system decides a losing opponent suddenly gains the thrust of a jet engine. No matter how perfectly you drive, a…
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Weapon durability shatters heavy swords after three swings
Blacksmiths in fictional universes are apparently complete frauds. A massive broadsword forged from pure steel will spontaneously explode into dust after…
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In this game, a glowing fedora beats a steel helmet
Throwing out a heavy steel helmet in favor of a slightly glowing fedora is a highly tactical decision. Looking incredibly stylish somehow grants you immunity…
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Sleeping in a standard bed cures all physical ailments
Intensive care units are totally obsolete. Closing your eyes for exactly eight hours on a filthy mattress cures severe burns, shattered bones, and heavy…
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Kiting targets in large circles maximizes damage output
Running backwards while continuously firing is the pinnacle of tactical warfare. Most heavily armored foes will happily jog in a perfect circle behind you…
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Opponents get drastically stronger when almost defeated
Severe blood loss apparently acts as an adrenaline shot. Just when you think a massive foe is beaten, they abruptly glow bright red, heal themselves, and…
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Infinite death loops occur at poorly placed checkpoints
Saving your progress with one point of health while a grenade is actively exploding at your feet is a permanent trap. You are forced to witness your own…
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Magical barriers block paths until arbitrary tasks finish
A minor shimmering wall absolutely refuses to budge until you locate three glowing artifacts scattered across a continent. The structural integrity of magic…
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