On my way to Gencon. I have already been informed of a delay of my connecting flight in Baltimore. I was worried weather was going to get me.
Just spent 20 minutes reading about circadian rhythms. I wake up every day at 3:30. Turns out it’s probably not my bladder, my back, time to bed or random chance.My circadian clock has learned that 3:30 is when the day starts and begins waking my body before I’m even conscious. Brains are amazing.
Designers coming to Gen Con? Drop by Big Game Night for 15 minutes, see what the event is all about! Introduce yourself to John Z and let him put you on the clock (1 Minute elevator game pitch) Friday, 8-12PM Lucas Oil Stadium, East Club Lounge Post your name in this thread to get on the list. 🎲✂️
JumbleJack, Word Wipe and Assemble. A year of building, testing, and learning. These three projects taught me more about improving AEG than I imagined possible. #playtestingAEG
Alderac Entertainment Group@alderaceg.bsky.social · 3w agoThe AEG website has been updated with pages for all of our new releases! Head over to alderac.com to explore the games, learn more about what is coming, and see everything we have been working on. www.alderac.com
It isn’t an accident that Jaedon Johnson, the designer of one of our Big Game Night 2027 games, is helping make Learn to Play videos for our 2026 releases. One of the biggest lessons from #PlaytestingAEG is that players want access, not just announcements. Expect more of this as we move forward.
Alderac Entertainment Group@alderaceg.bsky.social · 4w agoThere are four great games launching at GenCon Big Game Night this year. Assemble! Is a fast fun filler that will get back to the table often. Here is designer Jaedon Johnson with instructions on how to play. youtu.be/shwzd0hq0H0?...
Neil deGrasse Tyson is one of the best podcast guests out there. I chase down and listen to his interviews wherever he shows up. This week he is on DOAC. He just said he got internet hate from saying that cows are machines created by humans to turn grass into steak. 👨🍳🌱 🐄 = 🥩
Naming games is hard. Sometimes the name just lands. Smash Up. Love Letter. Other times you go through 500 ideas and still don’t feel like you have found the one that is worthy of the game you created. The game is great. The team believes in it. But until the name clicks, it's not finished.
Watching CSI reruns reminded me that every great TV team has roles. Nobody expects the forensic scientist to interrogate suspects or the detective to run the lab. Clear roles make extraordinary teams look ordinary. We’re still learning that at AEG. #PlaytestingAEG
A lot of my relearning how AEG works is happening inside of the work I am doing on BGN and the games we are launching at this event. I look forward to seeing the next big hit. #PlaytestingAEG
Alderac Entertainment Group@alderaceg.bsky.social · last mo.🎲✂️ Calling all board game designers! We're now reviewing game pitches for future AEG Big Game Night events. If you've got a game that creates memorable table moments, we'd love to hear from you. Read about what we're looking for and how to submit your pitch: www.alderac.com/2026/05/18/d... #BGN
I spent the sunrise working on plans for Big Game Nights that won't happen until 2028. One of the odd things about publishing games is that you're usually working on the future while everyone else is looking at the present. #playtestingAEG
We've been thinking about Big Game Night as an annual event. Turns out it's three annual events running at the same time. One BGN in discovery. (2028) One BGN in development. (2027) One launching. (2026) Once we built it that way in Asana, everything started making more sense. #PlaytestingAEG
@alderac The best feeling ever right? Congrats I chase that all the time.
Ian Zang@ianzang.bsky.social · 2mo agoI WIN. FINALLY.
Going to start watching Spider Man - Noir on Netflix. Hoping the coin lands on great Nic Cage for this one.
Getting a few peices of art reframed. Wife asked who this was. I got maybe 1/4 way through Togashi Mitsu’s story before she said “I am sorry I asked”😜. 🐉🐉🐉
Multiple years of hard work and lots of teamwork and planning went into creating this great game. Very proud of my team.
Alderac Entertainment Group@alderaceg.bsky.social · 3mo agoThe Let's Go! To France Kickstarter is finally live! Make sure to head on over to Kickstarter to join the next vacation destination to beautiful France! ✨
I worked on 3-4 games featured at this years BGN. First true dev work I have done at AEG in many years. Very satisfying to see these games come to life. See you at GenCon. #DingDing #Alderac #Biggamenight
Alderac Entertainment Group@alderaceg.bsky.social · 3mo agoBGN 2026 tickets are LIVE. 700 gamers. 4 unreleased games. One giant ballroom of laughs, cheering, and first plays. And yes, you keep the games. www.gencon.com/events/311409 #boardgames #GenCon #DingDing
To bed early and awake at 3AM. Some days I roll over and go back to sleep. Other days, like today, my brain has other plans. Hi ho. #PlaytestingAEG
Some games have longer lives than you expect. Had a call today with a new partner bringing one of our older titles from the 2010's back, and the early work looks incredible. Excited to share more soon. #PlaytestingAEG
Frogs in the morning. Frogs in the afternoon. Frogs at suppertime. No more frogs. #PlaytestingAEG
2 weeks until the Let’s Go to France Kickstarter launches. The team are doing great. Feels strange to be this disconnected from something so important. Not being involved creates more anxiety than being involved. It’s like letting someone else plan a vacation for you. #PlaytestingAEG
There are only so many hours in a day, and lately I feel like I am squeezing every ounce of juice out of them. Some days that feels productive. Some days it just feels sticky. #PlaytestingAEG
Word Wipe. One of AEG’s Big Game Night games for this year. I love playing it but boy am I not any good at coming up with or guessing the secret connecting words.
Day 4 of the summit. Would you like to play a game? A lot of rounds of Assemble today. Fast, fun, and built to hit the table over and over. At the end of it all, this is still the most important part. #PlaytestingAEG
Day 3 of the AEG summit. Less about having the right answer. More about making sure we’re all asking the same question. #PlaytestingAEG
Day 1 of the summit is behind us. Spent most of the day working through the new operating system. Good day. Also completely exhausted. #PlaytestingAEG
New passport. No stamps. No visas. No travel memories… yet. Hadn’t even signed it until today. Feels like the right way to head into the summit. #PlaytestingAEG
Had 3 weeks to build next week's summit agenda. Putting the finishing touches on it the day before I leave. Parkinson’s Law is undefeated. Shorter deadlines might be part of the fix. #PlaytestingAEG
I can already feel the pull to optimize this. Better posts. Better timing. More reach. More Posts. Not the goal. One post a day. Build the habit. #PlaytestingAEG
Gamers! My sons @martyforbeck.bsky.social and Pat and I have been working on a tactical tabletop game with @rayboxgames.bsky.social called THE CATS OF NEW ORLEANS, and it's coming to Kickstarter! Get on the pre-launch list for an alert the moment it launches on April 21.
Wrote a procedure for writing procedures. That’s when I knew I was in the deep end. Also not the part of the business I ever expected to enjoy… but here we are. If the system can’t explain itself, it doesn’t scale. #PlaytestingAEG