Phantom Rowboat
@phantomrowboat.bsky.social
We're a little game studio located in Halifax, Nova Scotia
aftermath.site/most-video-g... Phantom Rowboat policy is that all devs, be it art, design, programming, whatever, are allowed to use their work in portfolios for job-seeking purposes. All we ask is that they do their best to secure the material and not share it with the public in general. #gamedev
Most Video Game Artwork Will Never Be Seen - Aftermath
NDAs and contracts keep most artist's work uncredited and locked away, forever
aftermath.site
Shout-out to the devs who put out demos to their games. You're the real heroes of gaming.
I have a special place in my heart for Double Fine. The first (and only) company to publish one of our games and opened so many doors for us. I know all the people there are doing their best and I love em to bits. My heart goes out to the folks laid off.
Videos from yesterday's Halifax Indie Devs Play & Tell event are now online! Projects from @direbee.bsky.social , @phantomrowboat.bsky.social , @yarncatgames.com and Trent Baker were presented. www.youtube.com/playlist?lis... #novascotia #halifax #gamedev
At Phantom Rowboat we're building a studio with lasting institutional knowledge. We're Senior Devs that have made it (well) past that 6 year cliff and we aim to keep at it. The goal is stable, sustainable, development. If you ever need experienced Game Dev support, let us know! #GameDev
Jon Huffman@straighthogglin.bsky.social · 3w agoMost GameDevs leave the industry after 5-6 years. AAA games take 5+ years to make. This means most Devs in AAA games have never been there for a game's full dev cycle. Meaning most JRs are learning from mentors that haven't experienced it all. That's an institutional problem. #GameDev
Excited to see this indie title out of Halifax hit the stores! #newgame #indiedev
Talberon Games@talberon.com · 9mo ago📢RELEASE DATE ANNOUNCEMENT! Draft your units and prepare for war as 🌟Superstar Strategy launches on Steam NOVEMBER 28! ❤️Wishlist the game so you get notified on launch day! store.steampowered.com/app/1756730?... #steam #srpg #rpg #indiegame
New blog post! This time is an analysis of Marvel's Midnight Suns by Firaxis, a well-reviewed game that failed to resonate with players. phantomrowboat.com/log/2026-07-... #GameDesign #BlogPost
Midnight Suns: An Analysis — The Log — Phantom Rowboat
Firaxis built a mechanically brilliant game and surrounded it with enough friction to kill the fun. These are the lessons we gleaned and what we'd do different.
phantomrowboat.com
I thoroughly enjoyed my chat with @peternowak.bsky.social. It was great to dig into the larger trend of closures and layoffs in the video games industry. It's a challenging time but video games aren't going anywhere. However it's looking like it may be time to re-evaluate how they're made.
Adam Hartling@xenosns.bsky.social · 4w agoJon Huffman of @phantomrowboat.bsky.social talks on the Do Not Pass Go podcast about what occurred during the unionization and closure of Ubisoft Halifax, and the broader video game industry challenges today. www.donotpassgo.ca/p/inside-the...
Jon Huffman of @phantomrowboat.bsky.social talks on the Do Not Pass Go podcast about what occurred during the unionization and closure of Ubisoft Halifax, and the broader video game industry challenges today. www.donotpassgo.ca/p/inside-the...
Video Game Layoffs Fuelling Historic Union Movement
As Microsoft cuts thousands more jobs, Ubisoft Halifax lead organizer Jon Huffman takes us inside his studio’s shutdown and the industry’s growing labour strife
donotpassgo.ca
Co-ops and Cassettes. Back from Toronto Games Week and getting into the swing of things. Check out the notes! phantomrowboat.com/log/2026-06-...
Structure, Solidarity, and Cassette Tapes: A Toronto Games Week Dispatch — The Log — Phantom Rowboat
Two panels in two days: Notes from a weekend at Toronto Games Week.
phantomrowboat.com
@straighthogglin.bsky.social is repping the PRB crew in Toronto this weekend! If you'd like to have a chat about the Nova Scotia dev scene, what's growing out of the Ubisoft closure, or about what Phantom Rowboat can do for your team, let us know! #GameDev #TorontoGamesWeek
Jon Huffman@straighthogglin.bsky.social · 2mo agoI'm off to Toronto to join #TorontoGamesWeek! If you see me around say hi!
We're fresh out of our first convention and now that we've had some time to decompress here are our thoughts! phantomrowboat.com/log/2026-06-... #XPATL26 #GameDev #indie
XP Atlantic: First Conference, First Lessons — The Log — Phantom Rowboat
XP Atlantic was one intense day of B2B networking and game dev wisdom sharing. Here's what we took from it.
phantomrowboat.com
Question for game devs out there. I am severely overloaded on consultancy work - like, I can't keep up and I feel bad about it. I also notice that a lot of the time, I'm answering the same questions over and over - and I can spend my time, and the developer can spend their cash better. (1/5)
So when you throw out reason and jump gung-ho into a new prototype you sometimes make mistakes. This is the story about how we hit the #github LFS limits in a week and how we solved it, rapidly bringing our repository in-house. phantomrowboat.com/log/2026-06-... #devops #gamedev
We Outgrew GitHub. Here's What We Did About It. — The Log — Phantom Rowboat
GitHub hit us with an LFS bandwidth limit mid-sprint. This is the story of how we moved to a self-hosted GitLab instance on existing home lab hardware, and what it took to do it right.
phantomrowboat.com
We've posted before but now it's official: say hello to Phantom Rowboat! 🛶 The newest indie studio in Nova Scotia comes out of the aftermath of the #Ubisoft #Halifax closure. Time to start building something of our own. phantomrowboat.com #indiedev #gamedev
Phantom Rowboat — Studio
Five game developers, one small boat, one friendly ghost — and a journal kept by lantern light.
phantomrowboat.com
Love the hand-drawn aesthetic!
Heroes of the Seven Islands - OUT NOW@heroes7islands.bsky.social · 2mo agoA solo-dev spent two years making this rpg where you play as a party of four anthropomorphic heroes who fight silly enemies - Turn-based yet fast combat system - Point-and-click exploration and gameplay - A tribute to Might&Magic series and 90s RPGs Would you play the demo? #indiegames #gamedev
We're going to be at XP Game Connect Atlantic. Swing by and see us amongst the indie pods or feel free to schedule a meeting if you want to chat! app.meettomatch.com/xpatlantic20...
XP Game Connect Atlantic 2026 | Login
app.meettomatch.com
There are a lot of roads that lead into Game Development but an important one is Post-Secondary Education. We'd like to share our support in asking the NSCC to reconsider their decision to terminate their Game Development Program. #NSCC #NovaScotia #GameDev
Mina looks great! If you enjoyed the classic Zelda games (or the recent Link's Awakening remake) you'll probably love Mina the Hollower. I know we're looking forward to it!
Yacht Club Games@yachtclubgames.bsky.social · 3mo agoTRUE FINAL RELEASE DATE!! 🐭🙌 Mina the Hollower launches May 29 for only $19.99! Prepare yourself for one of the greatest top-down adventures ever to be delivered directly to your soul for less than 20 bucks. Mark your calendars. Tell your friends. Wishlist now - links below! 🧵
To celebrate Deckbuilders Fest, we're teaming up with the awesome koeda and Shueisha Games' ANTHEM#9, a strategic gem match, rogue-lite , combo battler! 🃏 Big combos and big discounts. 💪 Check 'em out! bit.ly/ANTHEM9_x_Wi...
I had a chance to meet one of the Professors behind this survey. They are looking to find out how AI is affecting the Games industry. If you have 15 minutes, please let your experience! #GameDevelopment #AI #VibeCode #indie
Ubisoft Workers of Canada: Halifax@uwch.bsky.social · 3mo agoAre you a game developer? Cornell and Western Universities are looking to hear about how AI has been impacting you! If you have 15 minutes, help the profs learn about AI in our industry. cornell.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_... #GameDev #AI #ClaudeCode #ChatGPT #Copilot
