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Tom

@wilson999.bsky.social

Reading, writing, HL1 mapping, video games, board games, messing around with GameMaker.

274 Posts79 Follower 191 Folgt

BoardGameWire @boardgamewire.bsky.social · 2d ago

Rascal is a luminous beacon of insightful, empathetic, creative and professional tabletop reporting and analysis that deserves to continue shining - if you have the means to support them with even a tiny amount each month, to keep institutional knowledge and independent journalism alive, please do:

Rascal News@rascal.news · 3d ago

State of the Rascal: August 2026 www.rascal.news/state-of-the...

Dave Gilbert @wadjeteyegames.com · 4w ago

WADJET EYE IS 20 YEARS OLD!! Which means it’s time to celebrate with another group photo. It’s frankly ridiculous that the universe has allowed me to continue doing this for so long. I’m grateful for it every day. Thank you all.

20 games and 20 years worth of Wadjet Eye characters, all bunched up for a group photo.

DEATH PLASTIC @deathplastic.bsky.social · 4w ago

Hi there - I'm gathering people's thoughts on John Blanche. I'd love to hear from you.

I AM WORKING ON A FEATURE ABOUT HIS WORK AND CAREER FOR VOL 2. OF DEATH PLASTIC. I WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO PUT OTHER PEOPLE’S THOUGHTS ON JOHN NEXT TO MY OWN.

SUBMIT 2-3 SENTENCES (VIA DM) ABOUT JOHN’S IMPACT ON YOU PERSONALLY, WHETHER YOU’RE AN ARTIST, DESIGNER, WRITER, OR JUST A FAN.

PLEASE ALSO GIVE ME A NAME (ANON IS ALSO FINE) ALONG WITH YOUR PREFERRED PRONOUNS, AND A DESCRIPTION OF THE LENS HIS WORK IMPACTED YOU THROUGH - FAN, ARTIST, ETC.

I CANNOT GUARANTEE I CAN FIT EVERYONE IN, BUT JOHN’S LEGACY IS IN ALL OF US.

Tom @wilson999.bsky.social · 4w ago

This is my favourite quote from a very interesting article!

Pink Freud@phroodloops.bsky.social · 4w ago

"You, as the game designer, should be able to use the power of your imagination to play your game before it is built."

Tom @wilson999.bsky.social · 4w ago

Super interesting mini-thread on a topic I suddenly want to read much more about.

sam “genial conversationalist” sorensen@samsorensen.bsky.social · 4w ago

one thing I have noticed in my experience running long RPG campaigns is that most players are pretty uneasy being Extremely Powerful. like "D&D as power fantasy" is a common through-line, but I've found that once they hit a certain threshold things change very sharply and you enter new territory

Tom McH @tommchenry.bsky.social · last mo.

action therapist trailer 1-4

PANEL 1: Title screen for Action Therapist, "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy...By NIGHT"

PANEL 2: an ESRB rating of MATURE for Blood and Gore, Sexual Content, Attachment Issues

PANEL 3: A cab has pulled up to an airport arrivals terminal and Dr. Mariposa is getting in.

CABBIE: "All the way out to the university, eh? Well, it's your dollar, Mac..."

PANEL 4: The cabbie is driving Dr. Mariposa through the downpour.

CABBIE: "Did they ever find that famous professor lady who went missing up there?"

PANEL 5: Dr. Mariposa is still in his dripping trenchcoat and being talked to by Dean Hondo, a heavyset duck with a beard and a coffee mug.

DEAN HONDO: "We're confident your...memory issues...won't keep you from a full load of case work."

PANEL 6:

DEAN HONDO: "Keep an eye on your Psy points. They can unleash special attacks and combos, but run out and you go nuts."

PANEL 1: a mockup of a video game screen. Dr. Mariposa stands in the foreground and Diane in the background in a building.

DIANE: "The police told me to take an ibuprofen and get over it..."

PANEL 2: the player, as Dr. Mariposa, is prompted to TALK

TALK: "Say more on that" 3 PSY
"That sounds like judgment." 5 PSY

PANEL 3: Diane is crying into her hands.

DIANE: "...Maybe you are the therapist who will break the terrible curse."

PANEL 4: Different view of a break room with stats for Dr. Mariposa. This area is called ADMIN BLDG BREAK ROOM and there are menu options to
MAKE COFFEE
MICROWAVE
BULLETN BOARD
DISH WASHER

PANEL 5: Dr. Mariposa is in an aquarium talking to a different patient. Again the player is prompted to TALK: "Let's go deeper on that." 3 PSY
"You're being pretty hard on yourself." 10 PSY

PANEL 6: screenshot of a cinema scene where Dr. Mariposa is looking angrily at a pouncing astronaut

MYSTERIOUS ASTRONAUT: "You won't traverse the catacombs of my mind so easily, Doc!"

PANEL 1: Dr. Mariposa is standing in ruins under a purple sky and a wrong-looking moon. Its strange light shines on a pinkish lake. Crystal, a duck in a uniform from a restaurant is there.

CRYSTAL: "I'll tell you everything, but we can't tarry here..."

PANEL 2: The game interface shows a 24-hour pharmacy. Dr. Mariposa is a slightly higher level now but he has a CURSE status effect.

24 HOUR PHARMCY (NORTH)
* Fill scrip
* Develop photos
* Browse magazines
* Energy drinks

PANEL 3: Dr. Mariposa is talking to a shopkeeper in the faculty store. A flyer for a Walpurgis Night Sale 20% Off hangs behind him.

SHOPKEEPER: "I can only sell items to tenured faculty. You should publish a peer reviewed article!"

PANEL 4: Dr. Mariposa is in his underwear and his hair is messy. He's in his office. Diane is there and the sky is strange.

DIANE: "Maybe this CORN KEY x1 will be useful on your journey. It's been in my family for generations."

GOT CORN KEY x1

PANEL 5: Dr. Mariposa is now talking to an astronaut in his office. The astronaut lays back on the couch in full spacesuit.

CMDR WALLACE: "We are building American pyramids on the moon, configured to strange geometries."

PANEL 6: Close up of a hand holding a book.

Text: "It's a paperback copy of Peter David's 1991 Star Trek: The Next Generation tie-in novel 'Vendetta'"

PANEL 1: A spooky clocktower under a strange sky with an unsettling full moon. Bats are swooping around.

TEXT: "Maybe there's someone in the old clocktower who could benefit from talk therapy."

PANEL 2 : Game interface showing a treasure chest shaped like a corn on the cob.

TITLE: Hidden Corn Treasure Chest
Description: The small chest is shaped like a corn on the cob. It hums with a strange energy.

USE KEY:
* Office Key
* Corn Key
* Citadel Key
* Empty

PANEL 3: Panel from a cinema scene where Crystal the waitress is leaning in to confide to Dr. Mariposa.

CRYSTAL (here credited as only WAITRESS): "My mom tried to get me to go to therapy, but the therapist refused to talk about all the disappearances in town."

PANEL 4: Dr. Mariposa is in the clocktower at night. His flashlight is pointing at a nude woman, the Clocktower Hermit.

TALK:
* "That's black and white thinking." 3 PSY
* "Would you say that to a friend?" 18 PSY

PANEL 5: Dr. Mariposa is digging through a filing cabinet in a dark basement.

DR. MARIPOSA: "These are all my old patient notes from before the accident! But ... what are they doing here?"

PANEL 6: White text on black.

PHYSICIAN

HEAL THYSELF

FAST.

Wes Fenlon @wes.readonlymemo.com · last mo.

Remember the internet before Google, before algorithmic feeds, before monolithic social media corralled us onto the same handful of apps? When small, *personal websites* and webrings linking them together reigned supreme? Time to bring it back.

Introducing Warp Point, a Web 1.0 gaming blog directory built for 2026

It's a webring! And a website!

readonlymemo.com

Tom @wilson999.bsky.social · last mo.

Great article, and there's lots more good stuff on the site!

Marc Normandin@marcnormandin.bsky.social · last mo.

Today at @retroxp.bsky.social, guest author @exalclaw.com is here to tell you all about I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream, the differences in the game adaptation from the original short story, and what Harlan Ellison thought of games and his purpose in making one in the first place.

Wyrd Science Magazine @wyrdscience.bsky.social · last mo.

really nice piece in @huckmag.com by Ryan Loftus about Dulwich wargaming club South London Warlords, great to see a magazine like Huck not go the easy route and take the piss and actually treat it as something culturally interesting and worth looking at 🫡

An evening with the South London Warlords

The art of war — From Warhammer to Burrows and Badgers, the small Dulwich community has been fortifying defences and launching invasions since 1971. Ryan…

huckmag.com

Tom @wilson999.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Highly recommend checking this out if you have any interest in miniatures or wargaming! Very nicely done with great articles.

DEATH PLASTIC@deathplastic.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Hello!! Are you into the miniatures and wargaming hobby? Do you want a new magazine to read this weekend from the comfort of whatever device you want? DEATH PLASTIC VOL 1 is out now for $5 or free (same PDF)! Get you some accessible weird mini journalism: deathplastic.itch.io Reposts appreciated!

Adam Riches @supernorn.bsky.social · 2mo ago

A while back we had the wonderful opportunity to pitch a Red Dwarf adventure game directly to Doug Naylor himself. While the project didn't end up going ahead, we're now free to share some of the work we produced for the pitch!

A Red Dwarf Adventure game - pixel art showcasing the crew in the cockpit of the iconic Starbug

รค๓คภՇђค ђ๏гเչ0ภ 🏳️‍⚧️@samanthahoriz0n.bsky.social · 2mo ago

26 years ago today, the best game studio I ever worked at closed forever. #LookingGlass left behind a huge legacy as we spread out across the industry. My time on #ThiefGold and #ThiefII are some of my best memories. Very happy this video exists so you can be there with us. youtu.be/VPFbA8Qmths?...

Looking Glass Studios - The Last Day

YouTube video by TaffersInn

youtu.be

Amabel Holland @amabel.bsky.social · 3mo ago

"Swords Against - Beginner's Box" is in some ways in conversation with some recent video games that take the form of documents, databases, or other bits of archival objects - a narrative mystery. But its analogue format and commitment to verisimilitude posed a couple unique interlocking problems. 🧵

Tim Clare @timclare.bsky.social · 3mo ago

106 years ago today, on May 7th, an undergraduate at Christchurch College, Oxford, drank a glass of port then left through the main gates for a walk. I've been thinking about him, & his walk, for years now. It's taken a long time for me to figure out why - why I've kept returning, near obsessed.

Chaoclypse (Brandon Yu)@chaoclypse.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Terrain piece that I scratch-built, inspired by Zdzisław Beksiński's work.

Tom @wilson999.bsky.social · 4mo ago

This is very sad. I had a lot of fun with the few LDs I did.

Game Developer@gamedeveloper.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Ludum Dare will officially end in October 2028

Deep Cuts in a Lovecraftian Vein @deepcuts.blog · 4mo ago

This is actually an interesting point because Robert E. Howard DID NOT invent the brainless barbarian stereotype. Quite the opposite: Conan the Cimmerian is hella smart. But let me break this down a bit.

The hero being illiterate (and maybe not that smart) while the villain is literate is an interesting trope in the classic Sword and Sorcery fantasy. Why did writers like Robert E. Howard and others like this? Presuming it is Howard that got this started.

Meredith Gran @meredithgran.com · 5mo ago

For the Steam Spring Sale you can get Perfect Tides: Station to Station for 20% off. Recent recipient of the 2026 IGF Excellence in Narrative award, and waiting to feed your soul! store.steampowered.com/app/2088810/...

Save 20% on Perfect Tides: Station to Station on Steam

A point n' click sequel to Perfect Tides about the momentum and whiplash of young adulthood. Explore the big city through 18-year-old Mara's eyes. Collect items, nurture ideas, and experience complex ...

store.steampowered.com

BART @bart.gov · 5mo ago

We got a DM the other day with a fun request from a local family: Could we find this nice BART train operator who always waved and beeped at this special little rider? And if we found him, could we deliver him a thank you card!? So we got to work …

Fort Circle @fortcircle.bsky.social · 5mo ago

I have posted a detailed breakdown of the designer royalty payments that I have received for all four games I have played a part in and the royalty payments that @downtowntbrown.bsky.social has received from Votes for Women (with her permission). ludorum.substack.com/p/designer-r...

Designer Royalties with Real Numbers

Don't quit your day job, unless...

ludorum.substack.com

Meredith Gran @meredithgran.com · 5mo ago

I'm home and I've written a bit on my blog about post-GDC feelings: meredithgran.com/gdc-thoughts...

GDC Thoughts and Prayers - Meredith Gran

I’m home! Let’s see if I can zero in on the stuff I really wanna say. I was up for an award I was sure I wouldn’t win. I did not write an acceptance

meredithgran.com

Chris Plante @plante.bsky.social · 5mo ago

a single paragraph guide to taking pleasure in both the games you play and the material you put into the world. via @meredithgran.com meredithgran.com/perfect-tide...

Mollie Russell @spookysyntax.bsky.social · 5mo ago

A long read from me today, about the delicate task of designing respectful historical board games. Massive thanks to @amabel.bsky.social and @colewehrle.bsky.social for talking to me about their design approaches. www.wargamer.com/board-games/...

We ask top designers how to make board games about the worst parts of human history

Board game designers Cole Wehrle and Amabel Holland talk about designing distressing historical games - and whether to make them at all.

wargamer.com

Amabel Holland @amabel.bsky.social · 5mo ago

My first board game wasn't released until I was 30, and the stuff I'm really known for didn't start until I was nearly 40. I know how desperate and hopeless your twenties can feel, especially when you see your contemporaries having an easier time of it. As the OP says, that's the capitalism talking.

Alex Bertram-Powell@alexbpart.bsky.social · 5mo ago

"Artists peak at 30", "30 under 30", "by 30 you should" ridiculous. Arts industries capital craves young people to exploit and burn out. It doesn't want older artists thriving and guiding the young. It also doesn't want artists to exist. Stop letting cannibals tell you you only matter on a plate.

re4mat @re4mat.bsky.social · 6mo ago

I've bought NORCO three times, most recently the PS5 edition from @lostincult.co.uk, because it's such a great example of a game firing on all cylinders. I look at these and find myself nostalgic for a five year old game. "Oh, I remember where I was in that scene, and that scene, and that scene."

geographyofrobots@geographyofrobots.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Pixel art depictions of Interstate 10 in NORCO.

sam “genial conversationalist” sorensen @samsorensen.bsky.social · 6mo ago

banger banger banger

screenshot of a substack with text reading "In the past, I never wanted to engage with the academic or theoretical aspects of tabletop gaming. I would rather spend my time creating and playing them arguing over semantics and theoretical online (which is how I was often exposed to this side of the hobby)—but now I am seeing the other side of that double-edged sword. We do not, widely, understand how to speak with one another. We do not, largely, understand how to speak to (and value) our own experiences, the impacts we have upon the games we play. We do not, often, understand how to speak to ourselves."

MeatCastle GameWare@meatcastlegameware.com · 6mo ago

The latest Missive is HERE! I discuss my unhappiness with the state of #TTRPG reviews/critique, drop a relic-laden Cairn freebie, dive into some ZiMo campaigns and recent blog posts, and more cool stuff. Give it a read and grab the freebie NOW: meatcastle.substack.com/p/talking-ab...

David Amador @djlink.bsky.social · 6mo ago

In case you missed yesterday, Notepad++ auto-update mechanism was hacked and was delivering backdoored versions for a couple months. Tons of devs use this, uninstall completely what you have, search for the sus files mentioned in article and only download from official site

Notepad++ users take note: It's time to check if you're hacked

Suspected China-state hackers used update infrastructure to deliver backdoored version.

arstechnica.com

Tom @wilson999.bsky.social · 6mo ago

A joy to read: someone enthusiastic and knowledgeable about games writing short reviews of the games they played last year. Doc puts out some of the best games writing there is.

doc@docseuss.bsky.social · 6mo ago

HOORAY!!! IT'S THAT TIME AGAIN! Every year, I look forward to looking back on the games I played and looking forward to the games I will play. That's right, 81 reviews of 69+3 games!!! Come check it out! docseuss.medium.com/i-completed-...

Hypoautonomic, BS @hypoautonomic.bsky.social · last yr.

The Alt National Park Service account calls itself the official "resistance" team of the US National Park Service. With 887k followers, is one of the biggest accounts on Bluesky. It is the 11 most followed account according to some trackers. This thread will dive into its activity. 🧵 1/x.

The Alt National Park Service account. 887 thousand followers.
"The officla 'Resistance' team of the U.S. National Park Service. Our Website: www.ourparks.org

Tom @wilson999.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Dan Marshall makes great adventure games, and this one looks set to continue the trend!

Dan Marshall@danthat.bsky.social · 6mo ago

TODAY'S THE DAY It's Earth Must Die Day. Unlocking at 6pm GMT, your purchase on the dot will HUGELY help us out with Steam ranking etc, so if you're around to grab it as soon as we press the button, please do Until then, pls contribute to wishlist and share store.steampowered.com/app/3639780/...