Amanda 🏳️‍⚧️💜

Public transit doesn't exist to make a profit, it is a public service. If you make it crappier so it doesn't meet people's needs, then charge more for it so fewer people can pay for it, *then* complain when fewer people use it, that shows a pretty fundamental lack of comprehension.

An ankle neotrad tattoo of a woman in a red bathing suit hugging a shark jumping out of the water.

My latest tattoo!

There's a point where a board game prototype becomes "fun enough" that play testing it is not a burden or a favor; it's just playing a fun but incomplete game.

I think getting to that point should probably be the initial goal of #BoardGameDesign, well before content, balance, or aesthetics.

🎲✂️

I've been listening to "Think Like A Game Designer", insightful game designer interviews by @justingary.bsky.social .
Every so often I find myself writing down quotes, which I'll be sharing in this thread:
🎲✂️

If you ever run into a game that very clearly uses LLMs on @boardgamegeek.com, the best way to combat it is to tag it under “Family” as “AI Generated Illustration”

It would be great if we had a category for generalized LLM usage—but at the least we can kick all of the garbage to the same space. 🎲✂️

this is about how some ttrpg designers see board game designers but is also, depressingly, about how many board game designers see board game designers

it's changing, albeit slowly, and gosh I'm glad for that

I think at some point board gamers are gonna have to reckon with the fact that the Dice Tower is a menace. Legitimately a homogenizing force being imposed on board game design.

@amalelmohtar.com yo did you see this cool tattoo??

www.instagram.com/p/DOa6j9UElM...

A shitty thing made 100% of the way is infinitely superior to the perfect thing abandoned partway.

Hey Robin! Are you thinking of making a PnP version available at some point? Cross-ocean shipping is so expensiiiiiive

🎲✂️

High Society is a great example - explain the theme and all the rules just make sense (especially that end-game twist which excludes the poorest player). Change the theme and it would lose its magic.

Invaluable is a trading game I've had in my pocket for YEARS. Players are museum curators, buying and selling artifacts. It has this fun closed economy that tightens like a noose as the game goes on.

I'm doing a limited print run of this, probably available from the end of August. Stay tuned! 🎲✂️

CLARIFICATION :

The Trevor Project's hotline will still be live. But basically this means LGBTQ people can no longer be connected to it through the US national 988 suicide prevention hotline.

They will need to be contacted DIRECTLY

So spread this around

They can be texted. They can be called.

« J’ose espérer que la considération des droits humains va avoir préséance sur toute forme de politisation et d’attaque sur la communauté ».

Citation d’une entrevue que j’ai donnée pour @pivot.quebec :

pivot.quebec/2025/06/12/q...

The vast majority of people I remember ringing the alarms about Project 2025 a year ago were transgender people. It didn't get any kind of coverage until well into the campaign.

We used to be oracles and seers for a reason.

And now so many centrists and moderates act like there was no warning. 🙄

Healthcare for seniors is *not* waste, fraud, or abuse.

Food for hungry kids is *not* waste, fraud, or abuse.

A $45 military parade for a draft dodging felon *is* waste, fraud, and abuse.

Paying the National Guard to attack US citizens *is* waste, fraud, and abuse.

And we thank you for your service!

Marceline Leiman Marceline Leiman is a freelance game designer, developer, and adjunct game design professor at NYU Tisch based in Brooklyn, New York. She has worked on games with North Star Games, Underdog Games, Office Dog, Clarkson Potter, Maestro Media, and Elephant Laboratories. She has acted as mentee in NYU Game Center's Incubator as well as mentor for the Unpub Mentorship Program. I want to help foster an inclusive environment across the industry and represent the interests of my community as a queer and trans game designer. I've learned that the roadblocks l've faced are not always obvious to others who don't share my experiences or background. I find it fulfilling and important to advocate for those who are earlier in their careers or underrepresented in the game industry. Being a part of this community has offered me so much joy and confidence in my journey, and through this position I hope to return the empathy, kindness, and mentorship shown to me.

I’m throwing in my hat as a member of the @ttgda.bsky.social advisory board! 🎲✂️

Best of luck to everyone who is running!!

If you’re a voting member of the association, come out for the vote! 🗳️

Woah! It's been a while since the last time I got tagged! Thanks Tom for bringing a little bit of sunshine in my day! :)

‘With a Smile & a Gun’ board game in play

‘With a Smile & a Gun’ board game in play. The Shadow implacably watches the turf war

An area majority for two players? With a solo mode? There’s no way that can work well!

Turns out you can achieve a lot if you’re equipped with a smile & a gun

Screenshot of a post: I find it deeply baffling how so many authors don’t seem to even want a broad reader base with different perspectives. Don’t you want a bunch of people debating your work? Haven’t you been in class arguing over a book with someone? Like, different POVs is what you should want!

.....No? Look, I write all of my books for literally three people and if anyone else likes or even reads them, that's pretty neat, but I want people "debating" my stories about as much as I want to eat a lightbulb.

To all the trans moms, I wish a Happy Mother's Day! 💐💝

Your motherhood is valid. Let's celebrate!

To all the trans moms, I wish a Happy Mother's Day! 💐💝

Your motherhood is valid. Let's celebrate!

If you call him Pope Leo XIV then you can stop dead naming the trans people in your life.

A Chicago Pope implies the existence of an MLA Pope and APA Pope

Anyone who insists trans women are only transitioning for a kink or to harass women or cheat at sports should be required to undergo 50 hours of facial and genital electrolysis for context.

As an indie publisher who is trying to spin into the handmade, artisan-style game experiences, I am intrigued by GMT's P-500 system.

Do others use similar pre-order systems? Did others also consider this?