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Player 1 · Featured stage

Do games get easier when you keep dying?

Sometimes: a few games quietly help after you struggle, like Crash Bandicoot's free mask or Resident Evil 4's hidden grade. Most games don't adapt at all. This explainer shows the four shapes of dynamic difficulty: help…

Press start ▸ Under the Hood · 7 min · Artifact

Latest stages

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LoadoutGuide · 6m Modern or Classic controls in Street Fighter 6? New to fighting games? Start Street Fighter 6 on Modern controls: one-button specials cost 20% damage, but win whenever… 6 min · 30 Oct Game NightGuide · 7m Co-op with a beginner: pick games you can carry Pick a co-op game where the stronger player can carry the newer one, not one where you both must land every jump, so… 7 min · 29 Oct Play SmarterGuide · 7m Should you remove cards in a deckbuilder? Usually yes: removing weak starting cards makes your best cards show up more often, because a smaller deck cycles… 7 min · 28 Oct Level UpGuide · 7m How to read guard patrols in stealth games To read a guard patrol, watch one full loop, find when his eyes are off your path, and cross in that window at a speed… 7 min · 27 Oct Start HereGuide · 5m Should you play Hollow Knight before Silksong? No, you don't need Hollow Knight to understand Silksong. But if you're new to metroidvanias, Hollow Knight is the… 5 min · 26 Oct

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012 guides Game Night Playing with others: co-op, party, board and card games. Enter ▸ 021 guides Handheld & Mobile Touch controls, Steam Deck and Switch. Enter ▸ 032 guides Level Up Skills that carry over: aim, timing, reading tells. Enter ▸ 042 guides Loadout Controllers, mice, wheels and settings that help. Enter ▸ 052 guides Play Smarter Strategy and decisions: openings, builds, odds. Enter ▸ 061 guides Retro & Indie Old games, hidden gems and learning without save states. Enter ▸ 072 guides Start Here Getting into a genre or game with no experience. Enter ▸ 082 guides Under the Hood Why games feel the way they do: difficulty, RNG, matchmaking. Enter ▸

How picks work

Each guide explains the skill first. The loadout at the end lists gear that matches it, at three price points.

  1. 01We don't claim hands-on testing. Picks are examples, not reviews.
  2. 02Links are affiliate links and marked as sponsored. We may earn a commission, but your price doesn't change.
  3. 03Each product page lists every shop we track, with live prices.