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My first Gen Con was like the opposite of doom scrolling catacombian.com/blog/gen-con...

Egregious wordle today. Unjust. Uncouth. Undignified.

My new game has a deviously difficult design problem. But I think I just had a breakthrough solving it. catacombian.com/blog/canticl...

Relic Density: Solving a Hard Board Game Design Problem - Catacombian Games

I cut 20 locations from Canticle to fix a sorting and player experience problem. Here's how relic density became the answer.

catacombian.com

You can have the same player action in 3 different form factors, and you’ve essentially got 3 different games. catacombian.com/blog/form-fa...

I really enjoy Rules of Play. It is a bit dry and academic. But it’s comprehensive and rigorous. It helped me build a vocabulary for game design, in a way that led to a lot of cool ideas. And you can jump around to the chapters that interest you.

Orca@orcadice.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Guys, guys. I am thinking on reading more about game design. I think it could help me a lot as a graphic designer. The thing is… how so you learn about mechanics and how a game actually works? (Besides playing a lot and that stuff) Do you recommend me a blog, post or book? 🎈✨

I heard someone say, “you don’t want another Star Wars. You want something to make you feel the way Empire Strikes Back made you feel.” And I feel that every time the discourse about remakes and reboots comes up.

If you’re at Gen Con, I’d love to say hi in person and play a game with you. I’ll do some sessions of Colossi too, if you’d like to learn. Shoot me a message!

An incredibly kind write up about Colossi. Thank you for playing Dan!

Dan Thurot@danthurot.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Colossi is a lane-battler with a head full of new ideas about how the format ought to function, and for the most part the execution matches its ambition, calling to mind the early work of John Clowdus. My review: spacebiff.com/2026/06/04/c...

Don’t be chintzy with great ideas catacombian.com/blog/the-tro...

Everything I learned from selling my games a convention. Most importantly: art sells games. catacombian.com/blog/first-b...

Board Game Geek featured a design diary on Colossi today! boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogp...

Designer Diary: Colossi | BoardGameGeek Blog

boardgamegeek.com

I got to play test my game with two great game designers I really respect last night. My brain is absolutely reeling right now. It's such a gift for talented people to give feedback.

I've spent so much time in the software world, it took me a while to wrap my head around how much physics matters in board game distribution. Here's what I learned. catacombian.com/blog/how-boa...

How Board Game Distribution Actually Works - Catacombian Games

I had no idea how board game distribution worked until I started calling retailers and distributors. Here's what I learned about margins, street dates, and consolidators.

catacombian.com

2026 goal: figure out what Catacombian really is. Do I sell directly to retailers? Fight for a distribution deal? Skip retail and go DTC? Should I pitch to publishers? Curious how other indie publishers approach this. Running experiments to answer each: catacombian.com/blog/indie-g...

Indie Game Publishing Strategy: A Product Manager's Approach - Catacombian Games

I'm treating Catacombian Games like a product problem in 2026 — running structured experiments across game design, publishing, distribution, and direct sales to figure out where I actually fit.

catacombian.com

The best narratives in games are the ones that emerge from gameplay. catacombian.com/blog/embedde...