Characters
Niko Bellic
Rockstar's bleakest GTA lead, written like a man who knows the joke stopped being funny years ago.
Genres
Soulslike
The punishment-heavy action RPG formula that turned patient suffering into prestige.
Narrative
Bark Systems
The short, contextual lines NPCs blurt out during gameplay that make the world feel aware and alive.
Game Design
Rubber Banding in Design
Invisible hands that keep competition close, even when skill says it shouldn't be.
Technology
GOAP (Goal-Oriented Action Planning)
Give the AI a goal and a toolbox of actions, and let it figure out the steps to get there on its own.
Based on infomaxxxing codebase