Using graphics to express character and theme in Owlboy D-Pad Studios claims that their upcoming title Owlboy is "a love letter to pixel art." The team explains how they used art and animation to express character and theme in the game.

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1 You can now study EA's lost sci-fi shooter Battlefield 2142 If you ever wanted to see how DICE would make a science fiction version of its hit Battlefield series, now's your chance.

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2 Ubisoft buys publisher of notorious game clone 2048 Ubisoft now owns the company responsible for 2048, the clone of a clone of a clone of premium iOS game Threes that stirred controversy among developers in 2014.

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2 Blog: Applying 'The Lean Startup' strategies as a game dev Eric Ries' book 'The Lean Startup' offers smart advice, but it doesn't always apply directly to game development. But there are ways you can apply the idea of building a simple product for release.

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  Get a job: Be a Lead Programmer at Ubisoft Toronto Ubisoft Toronto (For Honor, Watch Dogs 2) is looking to bring on an experienced programmer to serve as a team lead on development of a multi-platform "next generation" game.

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  Together Alone: 'Pure untainted survival' in Near Death In Orthogonal Games’ Near Death, a “game about survival” centering on a pilot who crash lands near an abandoned polar research station, the main enemy--indeed, the only enemy--is Antarctica itself.

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  Humble dives deeper into game dev tool offerings with Clickteam bundle Clickteam has partnered with the folks at Humble Bundle to offer a pay-what-you-like bundle of its Clickteam Fusion game dev software and source code for games built using that toolset.

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1 Don't Miss: Koji Igarashi exploring what makes a great Metroidvania game Today is Castlevania's birthday, so why not celebrate by watching veteran Castlevania game designer Koji Igarashi examine the evolution of the 'Metroidvania' genre in this timeless GDC talk.

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5 'You shouldn't underestimate the value of not being technical' "Meaning, that you might be able to solve a problem in a way other people wouldn't consider because it's almost too simple," says veteran game designer Amy Hennig.

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  Investors put $4M into new game streaming startup LiquidSky Samsung and others have poured $4 million in funding into LiquidSky, a startup that aims to stream access to high-powered virtual PCs to mobile devices -- chiefly to play demanding PC games.

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  Blog: Video Game Deep Cuts: Prague, Rogue, & FiveRP The latest Video Game Deep Cuts selection looks at everything from Prague in the latest Deus Ex to Roguelike Celebration videos and GTA V mods.

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2 NBA team execs purchase eSports franchise, Team Liquid Team Liquid, one of the most eSports industry's most high-profile teams, has been acquired by newly formed ownership group, Axiomatic. 

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2 Windows 10 running on 400 million monthly active devices Microsoft's cross-platform Windows 10 operating system has been installed on over 400 million monthly active devices. 

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  Blizzard and NetEase renew East-West partnership "We look forward to continuing to work closely with them on delivering even more great content in the years ahead."

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  Video blog: Historians give their take on L.A. Noire Historian Bob Whitaker talks with professor William Deverell about L.A. Noire. Topics include the postwar boom, the history of the LAPD, and race and ethnic relations in Los Angeles.

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  Blog: A game security crash course An introduction to game security and the mind of hackers to help you reduce the risks of being a target.

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2 The challenge of maintaining class balance in Hearthstone's Arena mode “One of the most important things is finding the core identity for a class and sticking to it,” says Blizzard designer Peter Whalen. "It’s also more fun if all of the classes are very powerful."

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2 Take a close look at the level design of some exceptional Zelda games The two Zelda games released on the Game Boy Color have some seminal lessons for level designers---at least, that's what YouTube critic Mark Brown argues in his latest episode of Boss Keys.

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  Campo Santo goes Hollywood with plans for a Firewatch film adaptation Firewatch is heading for the silver screen thanks to a new deal between Campo Santo and film production company Good Universe.

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2 Ubisoft aims to foster Canadian indie scene via dev contest series Ubisoft intends to make a show of supporting Canadian indies via a series of competitions to which devs can submit games -- and potentially win prizes that include money, support & uPlay distribution.

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  Get a job: Demiurge Studios seeks a UI Artist If you're a passionate, skilled user interface artist, the makers of Marvel Puzzle Quest are looking for someone like you to join the rest of the team at Demiurge's Boston-based studio.

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3 Video: Why devs don't need a f@#$ing publisher At GDC Devolver Digital's Nigel Lowrie argues that you as a game dev don't really need a publisher to ship video games -- until you really do, that is, at which point he has some suggestions for you.

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1 Blog: A dev pipeline for large 2D backgrounds We give some insights into how we get a finished drawing of a scene into our the game engine of Unforeseen Incidents.

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27 Don't Miss: Why are so many devs employing a retro '90s aesthetic? In this timeless feature we talk to developers of Back in 1995, MacBat 64, Racing Apex, morphê, and Else Heart.Break(), games designed to look as if they were made for the PS1 or the Sega Saturn.

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3 Game industry welcomes more women composers, still pays them less than men "The difference in total income is equivalent to approximately 2.1 years of experience," reads an analysis of a recent game audio industry survey. "That is, the ‘cost’ of being female in game audio."

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