Tony Tran 🔜 Home
@tonytran.bsky.social
I play and design tabletop games, perform improv comedy, and watch Starcraft. He/Him. TN, USA You can find my self published games at chitragames.com and at https://chitragames.itch.io/
I just backed Color Jam: A Print-and-Puzzle Coloring Game on @kickstarter.com www.kickstarter.com/projects/lun... @lunarpunk.games @stickydoodler.bsky.social
Color Jam: A Print-and-Puzzle Coloring Game
Enjoy cozy and clever coloring at your next game night. Craft the story of each hand-illustrated picture with creative color choices!
kickstarter.com
I'm heading to PAXU for the first time and will be their Keynote / Storytime Speaker! I hear many good things about the show. Looking forward to seeing folks there and spending some time in Philly.
PAX@officialpax.bsky.social · last wk.Ready to meet the mastermind of modern cooperative board gaming? 🧠✨ Kick off the show with our 2026 #PAXUnplugged Storytime Speaker: Matt Leacock. Hear firsthand stories from the creative mind behind Pandemic, Forbidden Island, and more! Learn more ➡️ PAXun26.com/Storytime @mattleacock.bsky.social
My heart is so full. The improv Fiasco show went superbly last night! I fumbled over the opening a little but everyone had a great time. Funny thing, the power actually went out during the final scene right at the ending so we did the outro in the dark with just an emergency light. Video soon...
This short essay on legacy and loss speaks deeply to me as I think about my own place in the world and the art I want to make. As always, Gene manages to deftly capture exactly what it means to be human, with all the joy and pain that accompanies it.
Sticky Doodler 🖍️ Color Jam@stickydoodler.bsky.social · 2w agoMy father died in Taiwan on August 30, just days after we last said goodbye in Shanghai. When I dedicated The Bonsai Diary to "all the 爺爺," I had him in mind ("grandfather" to my children). I wrote a short essay on legacy, The Bonsai Diary's core theme: stickydoodler.beehiiv.com/p/the-bonsai...
And we've funded!!! Thank you so much to everyone who's backed and supported me along the way! Now I think I'll take a little rest
Always Awake Games (Connor) 🔜 PaxU@connor.alwaysawake.games · 3w agoOut of Sorts is live on Kickstarter! www.kickstarter.com/projects/alw...
I've been reading about "nim games" and well... of course ended up writing 2,200+ words on the subject at Skeleton Code Machine!😅 Can we learn a design lesson from this mathematically solved game? (Spoiler: Yes!) #nim #math #impartialgames #perfectinformation #grundy
What can Nim teach us about game design?
Follow me down the rabbit hole from trick-taking games to the Sprague–Grundy theorem. Nim, impartial games, perfect information, and Grundy values! Oh my!
skeletoncodemachine.com
Unpub at PAX Unplugged reserved tables are now available for purchase! These tables are for designers to save a spot; playtesters never need a reservation 💙 https://f.mtr.cool/v19f27pvc5
Yes please!
Joseph Arthur Ellis@jarthurellis.bsky.social · 4w agoHi 🎲✂️ friends, for over a year I've been developing a new, highly asymmetric 2-player game for Plaid Hat with a fantasy theme and a lot of Netrunner inspiration. Please send me a chat here if you are interested in playtesting it on screentop.gg or via print and play.
Hi everyone - big news, please help me spread the word, and come by if you are in or near Connecticut! @jmstar.bsky.social will be at Wesleyan to give a talk on Wednesday, Sept. 23, at 12 pm in RLL Common Room (300 High Street, Middletown, CT) about designing games for empathy and resistance.
As a game designer, the best feeling has got to be players lining up to play your game.
All of the "helpful advice" to designers about how to make games to get published is the original motivation for @tonytran.bsky.social and I to create These Games Are Not For Sale ( @notforsalegames.bsky.social ). We want to showcase game design as something worth doing even if you never publish
Eric Lang@ericlang.bsky.social · 4w agoI see too much media educating game designers on how to make games publishers want Publishers make games that buyers want We need to make games for players, not gatekeepers
I'm so excited to bring this uniquely ephemeral event this December together with Gene. If you are at PaxU, you should come by. It will be right next to unpub!
These Games Are Not For Sale@notforsalegames.bsky.social · last mo.Games are art Make games for the sake of art Celebrate artful games this December at PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia Follow for more details coming soon
Games are art Make games for the sake of art Celebrate artful games this December at PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia Follow for more details coming soon
There’s still some tickets available for CuseCon, September 16-20. Super chill and friendly, plus it’s a hidden industry event. Many designers & publishers for a small con. (I hear some of you enjoy @dvcgames.bsky.social…!) Would love to see you there. www.cusecon.com
CuseCon | CuseCon
cusecon.com
Protospiel online is literally happening now. If you never gone before and want to dip your toes into an online playtesting convention, I have a spare ticket! Otherwise, come join for a great weekend with great designers all across the world!
Protospiel Online 🚧 Next Dates TBD@protospielo.bsky.social · last mo.Our Prototype Showcase livestream for August 2026 starts at 8:30pm US Eastern tonight! 🎲✂️ Come say hello and look through the prototypes designers are bringing to playtest this weekend! twitch.tv/protospielo Playtesting channels in Discord open tomorrow at noon EDT Signup - protospiel.online/bages
Sometimes readers will ask if it's really worth covering a game that isn't available to buy. I think so. I believe so. I'm interested in games as forms of human expression, which makes it all the more worthwhile to cover the things that might otherwise go overlooked. What do you think?
Thank you for sharing! This brings me so much joy. Yesterday at practice we had someone play a mom character whose estranged children ran 3 different stores in the mall with the equally estranged fathers. So many plot twists.
Bully Pulpit Games@bullypulpithq.bsky.social · last mo.We are excited for @tonytran.bsky.social, directing A Jackson Fiasco on September 10th. Get your tickets today and don't miss out. #FiascoRPG #TTRPGs #RPGs #improv www.purplepass.com/events/33792...
We are excited for @tonytran.bsky.social, directing A Jackson Fiasco on September 10th. Get your tickets today and don't miss out. #FiascoRPG #TTRPGs #RPGs #improv www.purplepass.com/events/33792...
A Jackson Fiasco!
A comedy show where the audience decides how the story begins and how each scene ends.
purplepass.com
Tony Tran 🔜 Home@tonytran.bsky.social · last mo.It's happening!!! My two creative worlds are coming together on stage. Thanks @bullypulpithq.bsky.social for allowing us to put on this show 👏👏👏☺️☺️☺️.
Badge sales for Protospiel Online August 21-23 2026 are open! 3 days of digital playtesting with 24 hour moderator support. Early bird pricing is available through Thur Aug 20, 2026 at 11:59pm EDT. 🎲✂️ protospiel.online/badges/
Badges - Protospiel Online
3 days of playtesting on Discord + virtual tabletop. 10% of total badge sales go to charities supporting human rights.
protospiel.online
It's happening!!! My two creative worlds are coming together on stage. Thanks @bullypulpithq.bsky.social for allowing us to put on this show 👏👏👏☺️☺️☺️.
After the last Button Shy design challenge, I offered feedback to willing entrants in exchange for a small charitable donation. That meant watching and rewatching a lot of pitch videos, and there’s one big piece of feedback that I found myself repeating: SHOW US WHAT MAKES YOUR GAME EXCITING. 1/8
@protospielo.bsky.social Protospiel Online is back this upcoming weekend! If you ever wanted to attend the best designer focused online convention, this is it. I will be there this weekend with my game Juxtafruit, getting it ready for the IGNM 🎲✂️
GMG has been trying out different nights at Tavern of Tales the past few months to find out what works best for our playtesters and the venue. Catch us Tue August 18th, for a Playtest Night! 🎲✂️ Come join us for an evening of #playtesting, #gamedesign, and helping bring new ideas to the table.
Board Game Publishers Just Got Their Contracts Scored #BoardGames #GameDesign #TTGDA #BoardGameNews #TabletopGaming #BackseatGamer
Board Game Publishers Just Got Their Contracts Scored
The Tabletop Game Designers Association scored 50+ publishers' standard contracts out of 110 points. A fifth pay no advance, and 75% keep your game's name.
backseatgamer.com
🎲✂️ How do you store your prototyped games? I used to use the 6x4 picture boxes but the closure has gotten weak over time and I need replacements.
