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What’s better: air control, or an AI-controlled friend just running about helping me fight?A question of control as we continue the hunt for the best thing

A question of control as we continue the hunt for the best thing

A young girl sat on a cushion paints a painting using a chair as an easel in an illustration from ‘Lotus Bay. A summer on Cape Cod’.

Last time, you decided thatundo is better than invert mouse. For many people, this result will turn the world on its head. And if those otherworldly beings with horrifying ideas about piloting meat puppets take this personally, maybe we can hit undo to save ourselves. This week, it’s a question of control. What’s better: air control, or an AI-controlled friend just running about helping me fight?

Our Eight Favourite Games From Not E3 2022Watch on YouTube

Our Eight Favourite Games From Not E3 2022

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Air control

Zooom!

Sprinting through vaporwave Heaven in a Neon White screenshot.

I have been playingNeon Whitelately—so very much Neon White—and I am enjoying the near-terrifying degree of control I have over my movement and momentum while in the air. Our boy can move forwards, back, side-to-side, and stop at will, dodging around obstacles and towards faster routes in the speedrunning FPS. ThenQuake, and Destiny, and… I’ve adored strong air control in many first-person shooters, another avenue to learn and demonstrate skill, another challenge to overcome from players who know the same. And of course air control is vital to many platformers from any camera perspective.

An AI-controlled friend just running about helping me fight

In some games, the vast allied force on a battlefield is fully under my control. In some games, the warriors are all in my party, following my commands. And in some games, some AI-controlled guys are just running about mindlessly helping me fight. Thanks, AI-controlled guys! You are near-useless but I’m very glad to see you!

Ha ha you idiot, you don’t know how to use a gun, who gave you a gun? Come on, I’ll follow you and try to keep you safe.

But which is better?