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- The 52 Fragments
Fragment 028 - Deposit
One of the defining characteristics of games is that they allow us to make mistakes safely. Unlike many decisions in life, poor decisions in games are often reversible, or at least recoverable. But good game design occa…
Event2 changesBalance - The 52 Fragments
Fragment 026: Interval
At the midpoint of The 52 Fragments, Interval presents almost nothing. It is a fragment that replaces action with anticipation, asking the player not to do something, but to remain ready for an unknown event to unveil i…
Event2 changesGameplay - The 52 Fragments
Fragment 025: Vacancy
There are moments when the world does not end. Nothing disappears outright: the shapes remain, the routines persist, the familiar objects still occupy their places. And yet something essential has been removed, leaving…
Announcement3 changesGameplay - The 52 Fragments
Limiting Narration
A common piece of feedback over the years has been that the narration of each Fragment is, to some, distracting or otherwise burdensome. While the design of these fragments includes the narration as part of the design,…
Announcement2 changesGameplay - The 52 Fragments
Fragment 24 - Unprepared
There is a quiet assumption embedded in most games: that the player is ready. The rules are explained, the controls remain consistent, and the world—however hostile—behaves in predictable ways. Progress is measured not…
Announcement3 changesPerformanceMaps - The 52 Fragments
Silence Broken: Fragments 22 and 23
After a long silence, The 52 Fragments continues. When development first began, the project set an intentionally unreasonable goal: one fragment every week. It was meant to be a creative exercise: pressure as fuel, cons…
Announcement1 changeGameplay - The 52 Fragments
The machine stirs to life again.
As the project moves forward, the cadence will shift from one fragment every week to one fragment every month. This slower rhythm will allow each piece the time it deserves: time to shape, to breathe, and to find its pl…
Security2 changesGameplay - The 52 Fragments
020 and 021: Obstacle & Quiet
In the early days of video gaming, when titles like Doom captivated players with their groundbreaking 3D environments and fast-paced action, key-door puzzles were a fundamental method of structuring gameplay. These puzz…
Event5 changesGameplayServer - The 52 Fragments
019: MyGame.exe
This fragment is dedicated to Justin, Larry, Matt, Paul, Glenn, and Donnie.
Announcement - The 52 Fragments
Patch Notes: 13.03 to 18.02
It's been a little while since my last proper patch notes update. Each update to The 52 Fragments often includes unseen bug fixes, however update 18.2 has quite a few. I am consolidating all of the patch notes from 13.0…
Patch notes12 changesFixPerformance - The 52 Fragments
018: Parser
In the evolving tapestry of video games, the intersection of gaming and coding has unveiled a unique niche where creativity meets logic. The 18th fragment, "Parser," serves as a tribute to this fascinating confluence, o…
Event4 changesUI/audioGameplay - The 52 Fragments
017: Grey Box
Stripping away the layers of graphic detail that define modern gaming, this fragment challenges players to navigate a space devoid of visual cues, armed only with indicators of their position, rotation, and the identity…
Announcement1 changeUI/audio - The 52 Fragments
016: Museum of Faces
This digital museum, with its ever-changing portraits, offers a unique canvas for exploring the multifaceted nature of human existence, the burdens we carry, and the value we assign to our memories and experiences. The…
Announcement3 changesUI/audioBalance - The 52 Fragments
A note about file access in The 52 Fragments
Throughout the course of the 52 Fragments, various parts of the game emulate actions which may appear malicious. These actions are for dramatic purposes only. The only access this game makes outside of the kind normally…
Announcement - The 52 Fragments
015 - Speak
In a world saturated with ceaseless chatter and digital noise, the act of truly listening has become a rare gift. "Speak," a unique fragment in the gaming universe, challenges players to engage in active listening, a sk…
Announcement - The 52 Fragments
An Update to Fragments 13 and 14.
Please refer to this video update. Thank you for playing the 52 Fragments. The Guide
Announcement
