Eric Lang

Totally agree. I think ... I just really hated the title of that talk 😂

Games absolutely need a hook. "Promised experience" is a hook - and mass market designers have known that for decades.

Hobby game mechanics fetishists are so far behind on that curve :)

Them: oh you're a feminist, are you? Ok name all the women

You: Tina Turner

Them: ...yeah alright

two monkeys are sitting on a wooden fence and talking to each other . Alt: two monkeys are sitting on a wooden fence and talking to each other, then hug

RIP Jane Goodall. One of the good ones.

Brains are silly, part 4980262413

Was supposed to take the day off, and came up with 4 different family and/or party game concepts.

I don't love structured ideation either, and prefer to brute force ... but also I tend to design from the hook down off a burst of inspiration (which bypasses ideation entirely) and don't really dedicate real time to something unless I have a clear through line

I get that. I guess burden of expertise serves me in this case - I've gotten pretty good at predicting dynamic outcomes in theorycraft, but when the predictions are way off ... I usually just start over or do something else.

I can count the number of times I've needed to add to a prototype - even my streamlined prototypes - on one hand :)

Usually if I feel the need to add because something is missing, I scrap the design and work on something else.

More game talk!

I am strongly against the iterative design idea of "just throw in everything and simplify after playing"

That breaks my brain.

I cannot work on a game without a clear execution of vision, and want even the first testable prototype super streamlined

And still need to simplify.

Game talk!

Had a couple exciting projects cancelled (which sucks, but it's nature of the biz when you do this a high level)

But out of that came a brand new project which I got so excited about I designed the "easy first 80%" overnight and it feels like it's chasing goals similar to Reterra

America is becoming the third world dictatorship that Americans are taught only happens in brown countries.

Talking to so many game designers lately, we all share this insane low level burnout.

Like, wtf are we doing making toy soldiers and nature simulators when everything is on fire every day?

And how to resist yeeting folks who offer the helpful "hey just try not being burned out"

Disney+ subscription cancellation page

I don't give a rat's ass about Kimmel.

But I care a lot about fascism.

*Caveat: of course there will be folks who have heard all of Kirk's horrible views and continue to deny the hurt he caused.

Those likely beyond reconcilliation - at least in high numbers - and that's okay.

It’s not our job to “save everyone”.

Because in the darkest of times when mass resistance is critical, we need each other.

Radicalising is necessarity to fight fascsim, but it's more important to raise pitchforks at the right enemy.

Healing and reconciliation with moveable fellow powerless humans fights against the worst people in the world, and I strongly recommend it when possible.

However, it’s worth noting that the parallel media worlds we live in on social media is BY INTENTIONAL DESIGN and will continue getting worse.

Billionaires consolidate power when we dehumanise each other and reduce our fellow humans to nothing but our worst verbal exchanges.

Healing begins with extending some grace as their media bubble pops and they realise with horror (if they have a conscience) just what monstrous views they tacitly endorsed.

You don’t owe them forgiveness. You don’t owe them reconciliation. Your hurt is valid and further action is not on you.

🧵 We have a rare healing opportunity 🧵

Many who defended Charlie Kirk as “nothing more than a good Christian” are being forcibly exposed to his hateful bigotry - a side of him algorithmically omitted from their social media diet.

People with a conscience are likely expressing shame and regret.

Bolsonaro was jailed post-presidency.

We have not

AlJazeera headline: Brazil Supreme Court sentences Bolsonaro to 27 years over coup plot

A better world is possible.

I don’t, actually! And that may be part of it

Haha, like half my tabletop career is ripping off El Grande 😂

Wolfgang Kramer is probably my most influential designer overall.

So many of today’s board game building blocks were invented by this man—and in many cases, still unsurpassed.

… nothing happened, btw! I just felt like fanboying

Political violence has no place in civilized society

Abolish ICE

To be fair, many experts in the field are themselves prisoners of kinda BS "best practices" ... but your point stands.

TCG design is fun cos everyone thinks they can do it, very few can, and nobody who needs to read this will believe it 😂

When was the last time you encouraged a woman you know to design a board game?

"This feels balanced" is like the most backhanded feedback I can imagine for an exceptions based game.

If it's the only feedback, and the game was mine, I'd probably throw it away.