#game-design — Public Fediverse posts

Although the visualizer is still a bit rough, I've put together an index page where you can now download maps/stats, but also go straight to visualizations of exploration traces for the games I've been mapping (mostly Metroidvanias). The visualizer doesn't show multiple links or complex requirements well yet, and layouts are a challenge. But you can click around and see stuff, and the CSV files have interesting stats now (just submitted a paper for EXAG 2026 talking about metrics for discrete exploration games).

https://cs.wellesley.edu/~pmwh/mvmap/maps/

#Games #GameDesign #Metroidvania #Maps

Interesting video: "GTA: San Andreas Really Takes You Places" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRj9HGZp6UY

#gaming #gamedev #gamedesign

You know what, I was thinking. In MMOs with PVP focus, inducing players to tend to go certain places is a core facet of making the PVP happen at all.

I was thinking - what if we had a better cooperative framework and did cooperative multiplayer PVE the same way?

Instead of always relying on a party system and centralized mission setups, what if we allowed for organic cooperative player content in the same way as some games allow for organic PVP?

#GameDesign 🧵

My #DnD #Pokemon #MagicItem of the Day, with a fusion of #Aron, #Rolycoly, #Eevee, #Ditto for a core that can shift into anything!
Come vote for future items on my Patreon

#DnD5E #MagicItems #DnDHomebrew #Art #RPG #RPGArt #TabletopGaming #FantasyArt #HomebrewMagic #PokemonArt #DnDArt #DungeonsAndDragons #TTRPG #MagicItemDesign #Illustration #GameDesign #RolePlayingGames #FantasyGaming #GameMaster #HomebrewContent #FantasyWorld #FantasyIllustration #PokemonFanArt #Homebrew #TabletopRPG

I was thinking a bit more about "mechanics" that are outside of what we normally consider "game mechanics", like what areas tend to attract players due to shopping opportunities or social space design.

These... processes? Arrangements? Chemistries? Well, they're critical to how players experience the game, and critical to where players want to go and how well they like traversal and delay.

As an example -

#GameDesign 🧵

... For archival purposes, a tag: #GameDesign

For archive- #gameDesign

If GTA 6 is Vice City, then why does it look different from GTA Vice City? They're completely different using the same name Vice City. Isn't that concerning?

#gta6 #gtavicecity #rockstargames #gaming #gamehistory #gamedesign #lore #videogames #worldbuilding #tech #popculture #reflections #gamers

"Descent Level Viewer" is an interesting web application where you can view in 3D custom levels made by the Descent 1 (PC Game) community, so you can have a preview of the map in 3D:

https://www.kixor.net/games/descent_levels/

#VideoGames #GameDesign #Descent #GameAssets

My #DnD #Pokemon #MagicItem of the Day, with a fusion of #Horsea, #Ralts, #Frillis, #Kricketot for a #violin like a cold shower!
Come vote for future items on my Patreon

#DnD5E #MagicItems #DnDHomebrew #Art #RPG #RPGArt #TabletopGaming #FantasyArt #HomebrewMagic #PokemonArt #DnDArt #DungeonsAndDragons #TTRPG #MagicItemDesign #Illustration #GameDesign #RolePlayingGames #FantasyGaming #GameMaster #HomebrewContent #FantasyWorld #FantasyIllustration #PokemonFanArt #Homebrew #TabletopRPG

Some drawings that will be used in my game project: Emmy walking frames, Blaster reload animation, booty kick frames, Blaster power pack texture map.

#drawing #doodles #art #penandink #2danimation #frames #gameart #gameassets #traditionaldrawing #gamedev #gamedesign #characterdesign #propdesign

[P] For neurodivergents, everything is moral context. For hiverarchians, everything is in-group and out-group. I keep making this point because, hey, this is how you target your games. There're many genuinely underserved neurodivergents out there who want better games. Games of communication, avoidance, research, and/or stealth. Where the interactions can be non-violent. Such games are hungrily leapt upon.

#psychology #actuallyautistic #science #videogames #gamedev #gamedesign

-6

[P] I really think that Monster Hunter could be a valid test of neurodivergence.

Test: "Look upon these hauntingly beautiful creatures, some of whom are sapient. You can't communicate with them, nor find ways to coexist. All you can do with them is slowly torture them to death as they limp around, cry, and whine in pain. Does this bother you?"

Neurodivergent: "Arrrgh! Yes! Stop!!"

Hiverarchian: "Nah. I wanna play!"

#psychology #actuallyautistic #science #videogames #gamedev #gamedesign

-1

My #DnD #YuGiOh #MagicItem of the Day, with a Number 73: #AbyssSplash #staff to turn blood into water!
Come vote for future items on my Patreon

#DnD5E #MagicItems #DnDHomebrew #Art #RPG #RPGArt #TabletopGaming #FantasyArt #HomebrewMagic #PokemonArt #DnDArt #DungeonsAndDragons #TTRPG #MagicItemDesign #Illustration #GameDesign #RolePlayingGames #FantasyGaming #GameMaster #HomebrewContent #FantasyWorld #FantasyIllustration #PokemonFanArt #Homebrew #TabletopRPG #DnDCommunity

Until recently, the GitLab CI configuration of the Dry game engine ran with the deployment target setting at its default 'native' value. Now that this has been changed to 'generic' - and all itch releases have been updated accordingly - our games and tools should run on a wider range of CPU architectures. If you were previously disappointed running into an "exec format error" and didn't want to be bothered with going through the compilation process locally, it's worth giving them another try.

This includes the 3D platformers Tux! and Blip 'n Blup, a rhythmic maze game called A-Mazing Urho, the twin-stick shooter heXon, a board game called Quatter and the vehicular soccer game by the name of Open Saucer - all of which have local multiplayer features - as well as LucKey Park, a theme park construction game and two editors called Edddy and ManaWarg. All are fully free and open source software.

https://itch.io/blog/1644873/architectonics
https://luckeyproductions.itch.io

#foss #floss #libre #games #gaming #gamedev #gamedesign #libregaming #3D #Linux #3dplatformer #platformer #rhythm #maze #boardgame #soccer #multiplayer #themepark #rollercoasters #mapping #fail

[P] I have to call out Soulslike games for what they are: They're all about a fear of men being emasculated. It's a dick-measuring contest for nerdy, generally straight neurotypicals. Cue Dead Ale Wives Guild's Dungeons & Dragons sketch. "But if there're any girls there I wanna DO them!" I'm very frustrated that these guys believe that actually having fun is emasculating. But for those who don't have these male insecurities...

#psychology #actuallyautistic #gamedev #gamedesign #videogames

-13

[P] I've been thinking a lot about why I dislike modern games so much. It comes down to a number of bad habits that I see as the curses of modern game design. In some ways they're evolutions of bad old habits that were set aside for good reasons, others are just entirely new bad habits. It's why I tend to look at modern games with suspicion, because these curses affect so many. As a lighter topic, I wanted to talk about them.

#psychology #actuallyautistic #gamedev #gamedesign #videogames

-1

This was an interesting week. On Thursday I noticed that a few game mechanics would not work unless I changed the genre, on Friday I accepted this fact, but on Saturday I reversed course by introducing a third mechanic and suddenly everything seems to work. Still need to double check how much fun it is but the design on paper works.

#gamedesign #gamedev

working on something helpful for your game: I call it Janus Faces. Would be nice to hear from you what you think and if I should post more examples for different genres.

#ttrg #games #gamedesign #rpg

https://productivemonkey.wordpress.com/2026/08/29/janus-faces-playing-tropes-and-breaking-them/

The connection between 4x games and basebuilders for me is the way I can choose a starting concept and see how things go.

This is worth developing further, because I don't think most games really help you do this.

See, the game doesn't "know" what concept you're going with. So you need to be able to hook into mechanics that will cooperatively tell the story you're trying to tell.

For example, you can't be Jedi if there's no space magic and no slippery-slope morality.

#GameDesign 🧵

#Today we met up with Zine Club for a folding party! Everyone read out their contributions (stories, describing their artworks, etc.) and then we played a bit of Adventures of Squid Pope in Spaaaaace (my addition to the zine).

It was great fun!

Still vibrating a bit for submitting final printing approvals on my second book.

Although there may be some scheduling hiccups with one of the release events I was planning for. We’ll make do. Wish me luck!

#zine #gamedesign #writingcommunity #yxe

For archiving purposes: #GameDesign

I only have like a million deadlines this week so of course I'm procrastinating by doing some card design work for a project that has zero deadlines.

#BoardGames #GameDesign #procrastination