The insightful game industry critic Tom Chick once started a forum discussion about which board games he most liked. He framed the conversation a great way – which games in your collection would you take to a desert island to entertain yourself for the long haul? I love that way of thinking about games and […]
2025 Begins: Board Games for the Coming Apocalypse Read More »
Author’s Note: This was written the day of the election. Obviously, by Wednesday morning, the sentiments and predictions that it was based on are out of date, and we’re waking up to a whole new world. I’m still doing my usual repost to Medium and leaving the content of the original post as-is. Once again,
The Day After: Election 2024, Gaming, and Beyond Read More »
My 15-year-old, born in the summer of 2009, barely makes the GenZ cutoff. It’s a source of pride for him. He describes the up-and-coming Gen Alpha kids in the grades behind him as “scary” and “nearly feral.” For my part, I like to constantly remind him how lucky he is to have a couple of
Gamer Kid: Revisiting the Classics with GenZ Read More »
95% of the time, this blog is about games, game development, and game design. I had the usual sort of article half-written yesterday – a design dissection of why CD Projekt RED’s masterful games, The Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk, are so great on a second and third playthrough despite replayability not being a primary game
The Calm Before the Storm: Hurricanes and Elections Collide Read More »
Like many gamers, I’ve always got a “game of the moment” going – something I’m playing in my off-time, sometimes a board game, and sometimes a video game. Games have been the passion of my professional life and my hobby for as long as I can remember, back to when my mom let me drop
Decision Tree: Picking a New Game to Play Read More »
It’s Photo Album Week here on the blog. I mentioned in passing a few weeks ago that one of the small but nice things about working in games was all the free swag that flows your way. Developer t-shirts are a mainstay, but over the years I’ve collected a veritable mountain of cups, clothing, and
Swag Collection: Physical Memories from a Game Career Read More »
Ages ago, when I was a kid growing up in New Hampshire and Maryland, summer stretched out to Labor Day. It wasn’t until September that I’d wearily trudge back to the bus stop with a backpack full of fresh notebooks and pencils. Not so for my son in Texas, who starts his school year in
Dog Days: Hobbies from a Game Developer’s Summer Read More »
It’s no secret that the last couple of years in the game industry have been rough. Tragic layoffs continue, though the pace has slowed compared to last year’s bloodbath. Though the indie scene is still vibrant, triple-A studios are struggling creatively. As I wrote about last week, developers have responded to the tough times with
Magic Moments: Great Things About Making Games Read More »
Unlike my typical lengthy discourses on the joys of niche games, this week’s blog is a brief one. I couldn’t let a week go by without commenting on a couple of recent industry headlines. The first stunner was word that Microsoft recognized a union formed by the staff at several Bethesda studios. The second, following
Slice of the Pie: The Game Industry Gets Organized Read More »
I regularly take a break at the end of June, escaping the Texas heat for the glories of summer in rural New Hampshire where much of my family still lives. This trip was bittersweet this year. At the last minute, I had to make the journey alone while my wife and son stayed behind, and
Musings on Malazan: The Best Fantasy Series You Haven’t Read Read More »