Rob Simpson
@lumenboi.bsky.social
Senior Lighting Artist in the video game industry based in Seattle, WA https://www.artstation.com/robsimpson
this is the last place to put affordable housing from a public health standpoint from a quality of life standpoint from a safe streets standpoint
James everything is analog@analogist.net · yesterdayJulie Kang: "public shovel turn ready lot" (where new housing should be built) The lot:
There was something about this window that made me want to draw it. ✨ #fineart #illustration #fantasty #gothicwindow #pendrawing #sketchbookdrawing
blizzard workers had to fight tooth and nail for years, but they finally did it: they secured a union contract not just for one team, but for all unionized units--warcraft, overwatch, diablo, and more
![“We really started mobilizing as one Blizzard unit in [the] last couple of months, and I think that really helped put the pressure on,” Paul Cox, senior game designer on World of Warcraft, told Aftermath.
"I feel like the company dragged its feet and did a lot of posturing and wasting time until the very, very last moment."
Prior to spring of this year, the WoW team, which unionized in 2024, had gotten the lion's share of bargaining time. Other units found themselves stuck in the mud. Higher-ups were effectively stalling the whole process—unfortunately nothing new for unionized workers under Microsoft’s umbrella.
"For this whole year of bargaining on the Diablo side—and I imagine on the rest of the units as well—we received so few [bargaining] dates, but we kind of had the understanding that whatever WoW was able to win would at least influence and set the floor for the rest of our units,” Diablo senior environment artist Mahreen Fatima told Aftermath. “We adopted this messaging about how WoW's wins are our wins, so we should be out there mobilizing with them. But truly, I feel like the company dragged its feet and did a lot of posturing and wasting time until the very, very last moment this last month to finally be able to say, 'OK, yes, we are willing to extend this contract to everyone.' We really did not have any indication that we could get this done until last month."](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:5gdejlhcswjbzraadoltdpps/bafkreih6u6gzajbd63dovnmlnc43z5g6i35d3n735rrdkopipyjopkl72e)
Aftermath@aftermath.site · 4d agoAfter years of company stalling, Blizzard workers win mega-contract that applies to all unionized teams aftermath.site/blizzard-union...
The childlike joy of a mountain of wood shavings from a planer is pretty freaking great
LFG general strike to stop the Epstein class from baking our planet for profit
“We need to see an urgent and unprecedented increase in political will and investment in a climate safe future. Nobody can read this report and conclude otherwise.”
Global heating will hit at least 1.8 C, UN warns, with "no good outcomes"
A return to 1.5 C is possible, scientists say, if we implement deep, rapid emissions cuts and carbon removal.
motherjones.com
hello I am modern aaa game designer. the shareholders told me to make the game longer. I do not wish to make the game longer. they told me to make the game longer or I lose job. I make the player collect 6 potatoes for 5% damage resistance. The shareholders are happy. I've been laid off.
Crushed@silenttakedown.bsky.social · 2w agoyeah sure whatever, let lara croft cook potato stew on her phone for 2m0s of damage resistance who gives a shit anymore
It's so hard for me to articulate in conversation with sheltered tech bros I cross paths with in games, just how much AI generated Slop is the aesthetic of modern day American fascism and why we must reject it. I guess this fever dream of a video sums it up pretty good
Adam Kinzinger@adamkinzinger.substack.com · 2w agoThis dude is losing his mind. Can’t win a war but obsesses in AI like the unhinged boomer he is
Just a little summer landscape now added to my site :) this aerial embroidery has dried wheat and cows grazing in meadows, as well as a group of sheep (a few of which have stuck into the cows meadow...) Now available here: victoriaroserichards.co.uk/work/late-su...
I think we should also build the Shoreline Sounder station at Richmond Beach envisioned in Sound Move.
The Urbanist@theurbanist.org · 4w agoNEW OP-ED// Op-Ed: Give Ballard a Sounder Stop While It Waits for Light Rail By Matthew Trecha via @theurbanist.org
The first new tuberculosis vaccine in a century is heading for mass production. TB still kills 1.23 million people a year. WHO estimates a vaccine with this efficacy profile could prevent 76 million cases and save 8.5 million lives over 25 years. Reuters buff.ly/fI5mDxR #ShareGoodNewsToo
https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/indias-serum-institute-partners-with-gates-mri-make-expiremental-tb-vaccine-2026-07-16/
reuters.com
weird the tree people are silent on this stuff
Gordon Padelford@gordonofseattle.bsky.social · 7mo agoWSDOT: Hi SEPA we want to build a massive "diverging diamond" interchange on I-90 at SR-18 to facilitate additional sprawl is that cool? SEPA: Sounds fine to me City of Seattle: Hey SEPA, we'd like to allow people to build more homes in the heart of our city SEPA: Slow down just a minute fella
final batch of they glow in the dark studies! i think that'll be all for a bit because i'm getting bored haha
This is so horrifying. I visited Spokane for the first time this spring & was so moved by the kindness & hospitality I was shown. Wishing everyone safety & care.
'Never seen it this bad': Thousands evacuated in north Spokane as wildfire crosses river into city
A wildfire driven by high winds jumped the Spokane River Saturday afternoon, burning homes and quickly moving into the Indian Trail Neighborhood.
spokesman.com
That was the plan when this spot was supposed to get a light rail station.
Qagggy!@qagggy.bsky.social · last mo.This exceptionally cute spot really wants to be a plaza. Less road, pls.
The fossil fuel industry, still the most powerful entity on Earth, sees its extinction on the horizon, and will end democracy, burn the entire world, if it means a few more years on top, market by market.
Kevin J. Kircher@kevinjkircher.com · 2mo agoColorado policy requires a 41% reduction by 2035 (relative to a 2015 baseline) in pollution from heating buildings, almost all of which comes from burning natural gas. Now the natural gas lobby is spending millions on a ballot measure that would add a "right to sell gas" to the state constitution.
This is fucking terrifying
Aurelien Mondon@aurelmondon.com · 2mo ago"Cognitive surrender" is a fascinating concept to think about the impact of AI as it exists under reactionary tech Preventing people from thinking for themselves and imagining different worlds is a godsend for authoritarians thenextweb.com/news/wharton...
"Microsoft talks proudly about reaching 100% matched renewable energy, but fails to mention that it just signed a 20-year fossil fuel deal with Chevron that blows its targets out of the water" www.fastcompany.com/91573381/mic...
NEW: Did a Meta data center project taint key water supplies in the capital city of Wyoming? City officials say yes, Meta isn’t exactly denying it, and some residents are concerned a cover-up is afoot. One of the wildest stories I’ve reported for @heatmap.news hands down.
Meta’s Bacterial Mystery Could Poison the Data Center Well
Water pollution in Wyoming has big implications for the future of data center development.
heatmap.news
Yes, there are about 250 million cars and SUVs in the U.S. that nearly all run on gasoline and they make about 1,000 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year and they stay on the road for 12-20+ years.
Hypervisible @hypervisible.blacksky.app · 2mo ago“Cornell researchers found that at the current rate of AI growth, the burgeoning industry could represent 24 to 44 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions by 2030, the equivalent of adding five to ten million cars to US roadways.”
Pictures from a friend of mine who works on a crab-fishing boat off the coast of Newfoundland. I love the nightmare crab door.
I had a hard time grasping the numbers. for context The high end of the Average American home uses about 11,000 KWH (kilowatt-hours) So in a single year Google used the energy to power approx. 3.91 Million Homes. The waste on features we don't want or need is nuts!
Ketan Joshi@ketanjoshi.co · 2mo agoNEW BLOG FOR YOU Google's energy consumption numbers in their new climate report are mind-blowing. 2 years ago they flipped from linear to exponential growth, and their climate impact is blowing out, too. A WILD testament to the obscene bloat and waste of GenAI: ketanjoshi.co/2026/07/01/g...
The Fix Our Forest Act aims to totally f**k our forests. Take action: oregonwild.org/safeguard-ou...
Problems with the Fix Our Forests Act
It's actually planning on totally f**king our forests 😳
open.substack.com
Games aren't made by studios, they're made by people. The studio is just the logo on the side of the building. The way this industry is undervaluing, abusing, and discarding people is shameful, and it's doing damage to this medium we will never fully know. All while execs line their pockets.
