Librarians are awesome.

jessamyn@librarian.bsky.social · 5d ago

I work at a public library. People who want to use AI seem to have no trouble doing so. People who don't want to use AI have a harder time. I crowdsourced and then finalized this document "How to disable or avoid intrusive AI" and then gave it a short URL: notoai.org Please pass along if it's useful

🎉 IT'S LIVE 🎉 The game industry hardship fund itch bundle made in partnership with @necrosoftgames.com is HERE. Over 100 games for $10+ bucks: all funds (save for itch fees) go directly to the UVW-CWA Game Worker Hardship Fund. GOOD GAMES FOR A GOOD CAUSE👇 itch.io/b/3802/game-...

Jimothy in Seattle

Some good news! Authors won their lawsuit against Anthropic and Google for using pirated books without permission in Claude's training. This doesn't cover the authors and publishers that opted out for separate lawsuits so this may just be the start.

US judge approves Anthropic's $1.5 billion settlement of copyright lawsuit

A federal judge in San Francisco on Monday signed off on ‌artificial intelligence company Anthropic's landmark $1.5 billion settlement of a class action lawsuit brought by a group of authors who accus...

reuters.com

What if I told you that all of the Publishing Agreements I have reviewed in the last 6 months (several dozen) included a no gen AI provision, wherein the use of gen AI in development is a material breach, but companies like Epic and EA are still trying to convince us the industry is cool with it

Austin Wood@woodwould.bsky.social · 2w ago

He's only gone and written 2,500 more words about how game devs feel about generative AI. Latest piece quotes around two dozen different people with an indie background. When asked how they feel about gen AI, not one, but two devs responded, "Fuck that shit." www.gamesradar.com/games/it-cre...

My first game industry contract job "interview" had me come in and work a full day while a senior sat and watched me to see if I knew what I was doing. It wasn't until talking to others and getting more experience that I realized that was a very strange way to hire someone 😅 .

Dr Holly Nielsen@hollynielsen.bsky.social · 2w ago

Some of the hiring processes for contract work are also completely ridiculous. For one particular fixed term contract position I went through 2 tests (one unpaid, the other one was very poorly paid freelance treated as a test), and almost 8 hours worth of interviews and meetings.

I don't use genAI. Plenty of devs don't. I think people say everyone uses genAI because that'll make it inevitable. And if inevitable, why fight back? Why not force it in our tools and engines? Why label games that use it? Why not build that giant data center? If true they can use AI guilt free.

Jake Birkett - Veteran Indie@greyalien.bsky.social · 3w ago

American guy at Develop: "Everyone is using AI! Everyone" Er, not me. Anyone else?

Just discovered Jimothy and I am in love with the little Seattle cryptid. Just look at this little guy!

If studios full of hard working talented devs could stop cutting half of their workforce that would be great thanks

Steam Next Fest is HUGE for game devs so remember: -Wishlist the homies -Leave a review on the demo (where possible) -Hit IGNORE on any AI Slop -Shout about the bangers you find And thats it. With everything right now this is something you can actively do to help and have fun in the process

I haven't done an introduction message yet but I'm an ex-AAA dev turned #indiedev to work on a weird horror game I'm passionate about. Our game is in Next Fest! If it seems interesting consider wishlisting or checking out our demo! It really helps us out. store.steampowered.com/app/4040700/...

Turning Manor Demo on Steam

All you have to do is count the differences and choose an exit. Easy right? Yet strange things start happening as soon as you sign the job contract… It's up to you to uncover what is happening at Turn...

store.steampowered.com

Sabbatical Games@sabbaticalgames.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Excited to announce we're in #SteamNextFest! 🏚️ Turning Manor is a first person count the difference #horror anomaly game that expands on the genre with no resets and leaderboards. If you like impossible liminal spaces, feelings of unease and uncovering lore you'll enjoy this game. #indiegame

I ate so many fruit rollups and gushers growing up! 😭 ...but I guess I'm lucky I didn't eat many hostess donuts...

paris martineau@paris.nyc · 2mo ago

1 little debbie oatmeal creme pie had ~9x the amount of a carcinogenic contaminant health officials say is safe to have daily flamin' hot cheetos, gushers, fruit rollups, takis fuego, and grape kool aid all also had elevated amounts of substances associated with DNA damage or neurobehavioral issues

This is so wholesome! 😭 Its always so nice seeing parents supporting their kid's dreams.

eric stirpē@stirpicus.bsky.social · 2mo ago

4 years ago in the Telltale Games Alumni FB group, Michael Parsons was asking if anyone had advice for helping his 15 year old son Kane achieve his dreams of being a filmmaker. Turned out alright.

Backrooms was so good! It was cool seeing what Kane can do with a budget and professional actors. Between this and Exit 8 its been a great year for liminal horror 😄 .

Artists, it looks like Adobe might be doing very questionable things at the moment by auto-enrolling you into a more expensive AI-heavy "pro" plan (potentially even charging you for opting out after the fact, which I should hope is illegal). Be vigilant 🧵 see further posts below

CA’s transparency bill AB-412 (which forces GenAi companies to disclose if their datasets are using YOUR copyrighted works) is in a slow march to become a bill. Also due to massive tech opposition, they make us all work for it every step of the way. Don’t let em win, sign the petition below asap!👇

NAVA@navavoices.org · 2mo ago

Every single day without transparency, the value of copyright loses ground and the harms inflicted to creative industries grow. Please add your signature to this petition TODAY. actionnetwork.org/petitions/le...

New devlog is out for our game! Find out where we are in production, see the very first prototype of our game and get waved at by the best Work/Life Balance Officer in the business.

Sabbatical Games@sabbaticalgames.bsky.social · 3mo ago

New #devlog out! We go over where we are in production and show a behind the scenes peek at what the original Turning Manor prototype looked like 👀 . Check it out here 🔽 store.steampowered.com/news/app/385... #gamedev #indiedev #devdiary (repost to fix image issue)

Support a local Seattle indie team and check out Desert Angels in the AAPI sale!

AAPI in Gaming@aapiingaming.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Grab Desert Angels, a story-driven exploration game set in a desert scrapyard, for 50% off in our AAPI Heritage Month Steam sale: tinyurl.com/AAPISteamSale #aapi #aapiheritagemonth #indiegame

Character artist here 🙋. Thoughts: 1. We’re not extruding all day (much quicker ways to low poly) 2. Edge flow matters for deformation not fantasy 3. Artists are not against GenAI to keep tedious workflows 4. Given a mesh they wouldn't have learned enough to fix any deformation or perf issues

Strawbærry Narwhal ‽↙↙↙@strawberrynarwhal.bsky.social · 3mo ago

AI bro crashes out after having to do 1 thing that took effort peak comedy

Just remembered today is free comic book day! Basically a bunch of local comic book shops are giving out free comics and some offer raffles, etc: freecomicbookday.com

Found the trailer that was too "violent" and pulled because they didn't have time to warn the audience... doesn't seem like a great way for BAFTA to "support games that tackle difficult subjects". Support the dev by wishlisting here:  store.steampowered.com/app/2288520/...

The Quiet Things Announcement Trailer | PULLED from the BAFTA Game Awards 2026

YouTube video by Silver Script Games

youtu.be

lex luddy@lexluddy.xyz · 4mo ago

BAFTA pulling a trailer for an autobiographical game about surviving sexual assault only hours before it was said to be a part of a showcase is an exceptionally bad look.

Allbirds going from an environmental shoe company to an AI company is bad enough, but their stocks raising 800% when they have no related experience or actual product? Then losing half of its peak value the next day? Yeah, totally not bubble like activity... 🌷

As bad as it is using faulty AI for theft detection, another issue is the scanners can fail to register items they scan. Ruined one ex-olympian's life. www.the-independent.com/life-style/w...

Olympian lost her job after being arrested over Walmart self-checkout debacle

‘You really do learn who the people are that really believe in you,’ Olympic athlete says

the-independent.com

Shane M. Bailey@shanembailey.com · 4mo ago

We found out several things during the wait. 1) target uses AI for theft prevention which often falsely targets people. 2) they purposly don't notify you if you don't scan all items in a self checkout lane. 3) if u hit the ok button on the self checkout and you miss an item they say thats stealing

Submissions for Tiny Teams 2026 are now OPEN! 🎉 If you’re a solo or small team dev and want to get your game seen by millions, then you’ve got from now til April 30th to show it to us. For all the details and to apply: www.yogscast.games/tiny-teams-d... #gamedev #tinyteams #gaming #indiegame

Saw Exit 8 yesterday and this does not surprise me, it was really good! Movie understood the genre, made great creative choices and added interesting world building to the game. I may be biased as I'm making an anomaly game but our friends liked the movie too!

DiscussingFilm@discussingfilm.net · 4mo ago

‘EXIT 8’ is one of the highest rated video game adaptations ever with 94% on Rotten Tomatoes.

It's indeed possible to beat bad things backed by big money

Almost Half of US Data Centers That Were Supposed to Open This Year Slated to Be Canceled or Delayed

The vast majority of data centers scheduled for completion over the next few years have yet to even break ground.

futurism.com

Kieran was a great hire for my Glassbreakers art team. Quick learner, excellent collaborator and strong self starter (as well as a good artist), he'd make a great addition to any team!

Kieran Lampert@kieranlampert.com · 4mo ago

Tomorrow is my last day at Polyarc. Our next project lost funding and we were unable to find a new publisher within a safe timeframe. I know jobs are slim right now, but if any mutuals know of any Character Artist or 3D Generalist roles, at either Senior or Lead level, please let me know. Thanks!!

Good opportunity to point out there are a ton of great indie games that don't use GenAI and cost a fraction of AAA games. Here's the no GenAI game I'm working on. I'd love to hear any of your #indiegame recommendations as well! store.steampowered.com/app/4040700/... #indiedev #stoptheslop

Turning Manor Demo on Steam

All you have to do is count the differences and choose an exit. Easy right? Yet strange things start happening as soon as you sign the job contract… It's up to you to unravel the mysteries of Turning ...

store.steampowered.com

Gwen C. Katz@gwenckatz.bsky.social · 5mo ago

It's so funny to me when an entertainment company says "Man up." "Man up and accept shitty art!" "Man up and pay $100 for a game!" I...don't have to? www.pcgamer.com/games/action...

applying for jobs again