Daniel Cook

A comment from someone looking over my shoulder, "People really want to relive their childhood."

First new thing in a while for a project with the fabulous MariNaomi 😌

I've reused your boxer analogy many times over the years to distinguish between the way that brain processes 1. a story about being punched in the face, and 2. actually being punched in the face.

Shadow Emotions and Primary Emotions Not all emotions are created equal. Consider: It is a distinctly different thing to feel sad while reading about a dying mother than to actually feel sad because your mother is dying. The former is…

Still good stuff! I suspect this is an essay that started me thinking down this path. I reference it in my old article about different types of emotions. (Shadow Emotions and Primary Emotions – Lostgarden share.google/M1YCwyEP4HcV...)

I've got a copy somewhere!

I often think about the times when we organised hundreds of people at once on Teamspeak to attack star systems in Eve Online. Absolutely baffling activity, but i got great at it. Computer game fleet commander is one of my real life qualifications.

Amazing games. They are doing some very clever social mechanics.

This is very different than the single player games that I've made in the past. Games like Triple Town and Cozy Grove help you relax and give you space to process. Good stuff!

But can I make a new game that goes beyond comfort? One that enables (even just a little) real human thriving?

Spirit Crossing is an attempt at amplifying the positive real social elements of games. Can a game bring real connection and kindness to more people?

Not the fantasy. Not the single player fiction. But actual real people makes friends with real people. Supporting one another. Caring, belonging.

My obsession for a decade: Parts of games are real, not fiction.

Like, you are not really becoming a powerful knight when you gain a virtual level. That's fiction, fantasy.

But you DO gain real skills. In manipulating buttons, game tactics etc.

In multiplayer games, the friendships are real.

EXCLUSIVE: Befriend small bears, mingle with spirits, ride fluffalo, and join a bustling community in Spirit Crossing, a cooperative life-sim from the makers of Cozy Grove. Currently in open Alpha and coming soon to Steam. s.team/a/2321960 #WholesomeSnack2025

You will not need a NF sub to play on Steam

A bunch of the same writing and approach to characters!

Spirit Crossing on Steam Befriend bears, aid lost spirits, ride fluffalo, and build a thriving village with other players in this multiplayer life-sim from the creators of "Cozy Grove." Find endless opportunities to...

BTW, Spirit Crossing is coming to Steam. The goal is to create a major Cozy MMO with a huge population of folks making friends in a safe and welcoming space.

I deeply believe we can make the world a better place.

If this interests you, please wishlist!
store.steampowered.com/app/2321960/...

Had it three times. Nerve damage at 15, fire down my back. Got the vaccine.

Which apparently reduces the chance of dementia by 10%?

Spirit Crossing | Patch Notes for Version 14.5.2 Happy December, wanderers!I hope you’re all staying warm and finding plenty of cheer. Perhaps we could help with that too..We’ve snuck in a little surprise for you with the 14.5.2 updat…

A little gift for you..

Spirit Crossing 14.5.2 is now live! 🎁

We're excited to share..
📷 Camera Mode
❄️ Winter festivities
🗺️ 9 new languages (!!) including French, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese
+ requested Quality of Life updates!

More details here. ↓
spryfox.com/spirit-cross...

it's been a delight to see all the ways you're embracing Camera Mode. 🧡 here's just a couple examples captured by our Discord members!

some of you are spending time capturing the winter scenery..

others of you are documenting mismatched NPC socks..

(yes, we see you)

He wanders the bar and restaurant. And hands out coupons to taxis and rideshares if you ask. His wife was killed in a DUI accident.

Accidentally ate dinner at a cougar bar in Palm Springs. The gluten free guide said it had good food!

Finished eating and as we left, we noticed a line up at the door of thirty or so schlumpy 40-60 year olds, all men. They called "Where are you going!"

Oh, there was a sad clown.

In case anyone is curious what is up in my world.

A banner image showcases a colorful, pastel carnival environment with a big blue sky above and fireworks pouring downward from the center. "WHOLESOME SNACK 2025" is written in bubbly font. In the center stands a happy little square-shaped blue bear with big golden glasses and a professional outfit with a nametag. She's smiling with her eyes closed. A speech bubble to the left of her says "ahem... we have a BIG announcement!" The banner is referencing a showcase hosted by Wholesome Games.

🎉 Catch us next week in Wholesome Snack !! 🧁

Thanks to @wholesomegames.com for hosting. 🩷

Nibbit has been working tirelessly on all the details so that we can share some VERY exciting Spirit Crossing news!

Get notified when the event goes live. ↓
www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYwG...

Video Game Blurs (and how the best one works) How to build realtime blurs on the GPU and how the best blur algorithm works - "Dual Kawase"

Great read: "Video Game Blurs (and how the best one works)" blog.frost.kiwi/dual-kawase/

Fail them. Return college to the elitism of yesteryear when there were only five wizards in all of Middle Earth.

Alex, what is the difference between game design and application design?

In order to sneak past the Steam audience requirement that everything be mind numbingly obvious, we will retitle it "Be a Wolf"

Oh, I love that you stand the pins back up where they land! That's great. The 'exactly 50' scoring rules are wild.

❤️Frisbee golf is neat in that it can take over parks. A reimagining of an existing space. And all you need is a frisbee!

I'm intrigued by how Pickleball is essentially the cuckoo of court sports in that it can lay two of its court eggs in a single tennis court. And be played by a wider age range. And thus crowd out a legacy sport.

What is the brood parasite for baseball fields? Or soccer fields? Or basketball courts?

Both boules and golf have my favorite game property: Each move radically changes the topology of the next move. You play the landscape in a manner that feels path dependent.

Boules - Wikipedia

I was looking for a new sport that fit my predilections: Pacing / PvE nature of golf. But can be played in existing field / court infrastructure. Socially, it needs to works for groups of 2 to 4, ideally up to 6.

Various boules-style games are probably the closest.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boules