Matt Giuca

I used to love editing minutiae on Wikipedia but I haven't for literal decades because, most things are either fine or outside of my area of expertise. This was a good little research project.

It's so rare these days to go to Wikipedia and find an article entirely lacking in historical context, so you have to find clippings of 19th century newspapers to track down the source. With that, I present the brand new History section of: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forsyth...

You're welcome, Internet.

Celestial Golf on Steam Hit your ball on orbital trajectories around a realistically sized solar system. Discover the secrets hidden in the planets and moons, learn orbital mechanics, and boldly go where no golf ball has gon...

Just unregistered Celestial Golf from the Feb Steam Next Fest. Feedback suggested it isn't ready for a wider audience and I haven't had time in Dec/Jan to work on it. Doesn't feel great but June is around the corner! #gamedev #indie

You can still test it here:
store.steampowered.com/app/3965730/...

There's a nuance here which is that eSafety is powerless to negotiate with companies and must follow the law, which flat-out prohibits companies from offering child accounts. That isn't a defense. It means the law, which was rushed from first draft to final legislation in 9 days, is harmful rubbish.

Snapchat offered to lock kids out of features. Government said no The number of local teenage accounts closed by Snapchat has been disclosed after it tried to dodge Australia’s social media ban by offering major app changes.

Aus eSafety actively sabotaged the inclusion of child protection features in Snapchat
www.afr.com/technology/s...

Better to disallow kid accounts and force kids to make adult accounts than let the service provide a safe child experience. Great job! 👍 #SocialMediaBan

UK must ‘move now’ to ban social media for under-16s, says Brianna Ghey’s mother Esther Ghey has previously said she believes her daughter’s social media addiction made her more vulnerable

Sorry but just because something terrible happened to your kid does not mean you should rush through legislation that may or may not have helped and might be very harmful. The "evidence" always mentioned is always cherry-picked by people with an agenda.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026...

9 (yes that's the name of the game) is such a wild thing to exist. I feel blessed to have been gifted it at launch in 1996, probably too young, but it's both good-bizarre and a surprisingly well designed puzzle game.

If harms are socially rooted, then technical restrictions alone are unlikely to solve them. A ban treats social media as the problem, rather than asking deeper questions about why certain behaviours – harassment, shaming, misogyny, exploitation – occur in the first place.

It's too late for Australia but please, rest of the world, don't rush into this. Understand that all the "positive" outcomes of our social media ban are pushed by old media institutions that profit from locking kids out of online spaces. #socialmediaban

theconversation.com/i-research-t...

Heavy social media use and avoidance both linked to poorer wellbeing in teens The findings of a newly released study have challenged one-size-fits-all rules and blanket bans, as the Australian government's social media ban for children under 16 has been in effect for over a mon...

Shock finding: things which are harmful when used excessively can be beneficial in moderation, and maybe the government shouldn't implement total bans of things they don't understand. #auspol #socialmediaban

www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...

None of these effects would have been felt yet. They may not be felt for a generation, but they are clear risks of this law. 8/8 #auspol #socialmediaban

... and thus get it banned for U16s and require age verification for adults. This doesn't just allow for political censorship, but more subtle quid-pro-quo (e.g. maybe a certain website should be more favourable towards the government or it might get classified). 7/

6. It entrenches traditional media by knocking out their major competition.
7. It gives the government (and any future government) frightening powers to ban websites they disagree with, with little oversight. A single individual has the power to declare any website a "social media platform" ... 6/

5. It will isolate kids who need a social connection online (e.g. because they are in remote communities or are neurodivergent), creating a new mental health crisis. This is unlikely to have created a visible effect in the health system in the first month. 5/

4. Problem #3 will get worse over time. Right now, over-16s already using social media are unlikely to have to verify their age because they already have a profile. The group that will be most exposed to the coming privacy nightmare are the kids who turn 16 and sign up. That hasn't happened yet. 4/

2. It pushes kids into darker and less regulated places for social interactions.
3. It requires all Australians to give personal data to online platforms to prove their age. We won't see the downside of this until there is a major data breach at one of these providers. 3/

Here are the major long-term (generational) consequences of banning U16s from so-called "social media".

1. It robs youth of their political voice. Political activism happens on social media, which the youth are now banned from. We're teaching this generation to be apolitical. 2/

Australia’s social media age restrictions have been in place for a month — are they working? - ABC Religion & Ethics It is far too early to declare the government’s social media ban for those under 16 a success, but it is long enough to say that the policy has not triggered the rapid, compounding crises its critics ...

This article is based on a huge strawman premise: that the potential downsides of the social media ban would have been immediate and they weren't, so it's fine. But it's the exact opposite: the problems may not be felt for decades, and that's why it's so dangerous. 1/

www.abc.net.au/religion/aft...

It's cool that he just came out and said "we did this to get the oil". Saves us from having to point out the ulterior motive.

Minns government ‘actively’ considering if Jewish security group should be armed after Bondi attack NSW premier also announces police will carry long-arm rifles at major New Year’s Eve event in Sydney

Can we please have fewer guns in the community not more?

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

#auspol #gunviolence

Bonus rec: Endless Dungeon (2023)

Soft remake of Dungeon of the Endless, I'm sad I slept on this because of its poor reviews.

Turn-based base building roguelike with real-time run-and-gun action. All the elements come together so well, it's a pure joy to play from start to finish.

1. The Stone of Madness

The best stealth game since Hitman. Take 3 out of 5 unique characters on short missions in a persistent world, slowly unlocking doors and laying groundwork for future forays. I love how the skills play off each other. Brilliantly designed.

2. The Alters

You're stranded alone on a desolate planet, so you clone yourself a dozen times to get help. Each clone has a different personality, so now you have a colony sim and have to keep everyone happy. Charming characters and tough moral choices. Hmm, I'm seeing a pattern.

3. Yes, Your Grace: Snowfall

The sequel to 2020's Yes, Your Grace, it's a light management sim heavy on story. Charming characters and tough moral choices. I couldn't stop playing.

I played a lot of games this year (Steam says I played 85!) and here are three stand-out games you might not have heard of, roughly in order of preference. (Thread)

#goty #videogames

A ball in orbit around the Earth, planning a trajectory to encounter and impact the Moon, using an orbital trajectory planning tool.

A ball flying through space near Mars's atmosphere, on a course to impact with the moon Phobos.

A ball being hit on the moon, moving towards a golf flagpole.

A ball in orbit around the moon. A series of tutorials is being presented to the player by a friendly alien, explaining how to get into orbit.

Celestial Golf is a unique 2D golf game where you hit your ball on orbital trajectories through the solar system, mastering the real-world rules of orbital mechanics to plan and achieve the required motion through space. It's a tactile and intuitive way to learn how space travel works. Check it out!

YouTube video by Matt Giuca Celestial Golf Playtest Trailer

I just pressed the button to make the Celestial Golf playtest live on Steam!

You can join the playtest and wishlist on the store page:
store.steampowered.com/app/3965730/...

More info about the playtest:
store.steampowered.com/news/app/396...

#indie #gamedev #space

Oh and here's a new trailer:

A despicable act of violence occurred in Sydney last week.

Australia and NSW politicians: "This never would have happened if you guys weren't peacefully protesting against genocide." #auspol

Teens discover books on social media. What will the under-16s ban do to their reading? Social media communities on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube have encouraged teens to read for fun. Now, Australian teens are banned from them until they turn 16.

Another example of how the perpetrators of the Aussie #SocialMediaBan are failing our kids, by telling them to "read that book" (code for "just go back to the old ways"), forgetting that kids find books, and so many other "real world" things, on social media.

theconversation.com/teens-discov...

Parents praise 'hero' son for tackling gunman during Bondi Beach attack The ABC has spoken to the parents of Ahmed Al Ahmed who was shot after he heroically wrestled and disarmed one of the Bondi Beach attackers.

Can't stop thinking in awe of Ahmed Al Ahmed, the guy who tackled the gunman at Bondi yesterday. An absolute legend, and all the more profound that he is a Syrian immigrant who saved Jewish victims. Wishing him a full recovery. ❤️

www.abc.net.au/news/2025-12...

Panel on the Steam website: "Join the Celestial Golf Playtest Request access and you’ll get notified when the developer is ready for more participants." With a green button "Request Access"

A ball being hit on the moon, moving towards a golf flagpole.

A ball in orbit around the moon. A series of tutorials is being presented to the player by a friendly alien, explaining how to get into orbit.

A ball flying through space near Mars's atmosphere, on a course to impact with the moon Phobos.

You can now click this button to be notified when the Celestial Golf Playtest goes live (planning to publish it in about a week)! This will be a short (~30-minute) demo of the game.

store.steampowered.com/app/3965730/...

(Also pls wishlist the game!)

#indie #gamedev #space #orbits