Something that the last few posts have reminded me of is that what I see as one of the biggest problems in current game design thought is the tendency towards absolute theories. Good games are like this. All games function like that. But theories are abstract, and games are specific. …
Sometimes I’m bitter, but usually not. I wasn’t bitter when I wrote the previous post. Not at all. Amused perhaps, but not bitter. If you think it’s an angry developer ranting, you’re wrong. It’s a relaxed developer who is finally in a place where it’s not raining, making some observations. …
We’re in Greece. Today is the first cloudy day in months. I’d be depressed about this if I hadn’t predicted it, which somehow makes it hilarious. Don’t worry, I’m sure it will clear up tomorrow. My submission of The Infinite Ocean to IndieCade has been rejected. I’m not surprised or …
Are you in the mood for something awesome? And perhaps also a little hungry? Well, here you: our new cooking show. How did we come up with our latest crazy project? It’s quite simple, really. As our friends will attest to, Verena is an amazing cook, and one thing she’s …
I’d like to set down some thoughts about narrative and gameplay, two concepts that to many people seem diametrically opposed. If you’ve read reviews of my games, you’ll probably have noticed that a common complaint (except when it comes to Phenomenon 32) is a lack of gameplay, even when the …
OK, OK, I have to postpone stuff again. By a little while. The article I’d been planning to publish today, as well as something much cooler (a cooking show!) will be posted tomorrow. YouTube predicts a five-hour upload time, and I’m simply too tired to keep writing about narrative as …
The third and final part of the Matt Chat interview with me. Many thanks to Matt for giving me this opportunity to speak about my work, and even more thanks for managing not to make me look like the complete doofus that I am. In repayment I hope to someday …
These bullet points were found inside a hollowed-out duck in orbit around Ganymede: The Book of Living Magic is featured in PC Gamer’s This week’s best free PC games. I suspect the word “prosaic” is unintentionally misused here (niggle niggle pedant bunny), but otherwise the review makes me very happy. …
Testing a swamp-type area.
Yesterday was a… slightly unpleasant day. First there was the Rock, Paper, Shotgun review which, like the Auntie Pixelante review before it, really depressed the hell out of me. With both reviews I actually feel that the problem is more one of a mismatch of expectations and tone than anything …
