We should normalize the expression "I have sorrow".
Sometimes I say "I'm sorry [bad thing] happened" and then some perky smartass corrects me "You don't need to be sorry! It isn't your fault!"
No, "I have sorrow". Sorrow seeps out of blackened dreams and shutters the very light of my soul.
Wanna think more deeply about game design? Here's some reports on the latest systems analyses from Polaris Design Retreat, from social psychological-safety design to mechanical comedy to loss, and beyond! polarisgamedesign.com/reports/
Accurate
Do you know what is also good? A hot sandwich.
Ferries are the best form of public transport
Honestly I don't think procgen is dead with AI, I think it's going to be more alive than ever. People creating for joy and partaking the flow of an artists .
Instead of the randomized slop generated by AI, it's joining a bespoke creative pathway by another human.
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing by the studio Spry Fox. shown is a player-character with a glowing star-shaped backpack staring up at the sky while giant floating whales soar by
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing by the studio Spry Fox. shown is a player-character with a glowing star-shaped backpack staring up at the sky while giant floating whales soar by
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing by the studio Spry Fox. shown is a player-character with a glowing star-shaped backpack staring up at the sky while giant floating whales soar by
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing by the studio Spry Fox. shown is a player-character with a glowing star-shaped backpack staring up at the sky while giant floating whales soar by
sometimes the sky whales grace us with their presence, sending well wishes from the clouds.. 🐳
(screenshots courtesy of Oof42 in Discord - thank you!)
+ wishlist Spirit Crossing on Steam:
store.steampowered.com/app/2321960/...
Ooh! ordered!
This one is wild. It’s an anti-capitalist merge game based on Greek mythology.
- Merge mechanics used for town-building
- Artemis vs. her "billionaire" Olympian family
- Mini-games that are basically match-3 auto-battlers
Mythmatch. It’s like a cozy life-sim but with a lot more "eat the rich" vibe
Nothing we do is better than the work of handmind. When mind uses itself without the hands it runs the circle and may go too fast; even speech using the voice only may go too fast. The hand that shapes the mind into clay or written word slows thought to the gait of things and lets it be subject to accident and time. Purity is on the edge of evil, they say.
A touch of Merleau-Ponty's phenomenology here, along with Dewey's idea of art needing to balance "doing" and "undergoing"
Going 'hur hur, stick it the Man' is at best a starting point. Mostly empty calorie schadenfreude.
**Build something better in the world.** And we have to talk about it. And share what we do. And spread the toolkit so that more people can also build something better in the world.
Yet, inevitably the top quote was something about David and I reducing our salary.
WTF? That's a minor tactical detail? Gossip.
Not insight. Not the beating heart of what we are doing. Not the *values* that others can learn from.
Funny story: When we spun out Spry Fox from Netflix to be a new independent studio we talked to a bunch of folks about:
* How we gave ownership of the company to the employees.
* On top of remote work. And a 40 hour work week with no crunch.
The big beat: What is a better model for a game studio?
Therapy. I guess some people process by talking out aloud?
When I see people using AI to automate their internal slide deck creation, they are getting *so close* to having a genuine insight about the true nature of their job.
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing from the studio Spry Fox. shown are three players wearing different themed outfits inspired by pokemon, including a yellow, orange, and green outfit with bunny ears, a hat, and moth antennae respectively. they're emoting happily with stars and hearts surrounding them.
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing from the studio Spry Fox. shown is a group of 5 players dressed up in fancy clothes posing together for a picture. they're all emoting together happily.
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing from the studio Spry Fox. three players are dressed up in fancy mythic clothes that glow, and they're pointing at one another to recreate the meme where Spiderman points at himself.
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing from the studio Spry Fox. a group of 5 players is dressed up to cosplay as the entire cast of Scooby Doo.
some recent fashion-spotting in Spirit Crossing. 🥰
photos lovingly pulled from our Discord members (thanks all 🧡)
Ever feel that you keep growing more radical as you get older; all while society expects you to be more conservative and buttoned-down?
Admittedly, at a certain point this results in going off the deep end. Exactly when? Opinions vary.
Give them a follow! @spryfox.bsky.social
And some rad 🦊 developers -> @justinoaksford.bsky.social
@christapaolucci.com
@danctheduck.bsky.social
@batteringham.bsky.social
@pentapod.bsky.social
@89ravenwolf.bsky.social
@chiisao.bsky.social
@yuemi22.bsky.social
@augustbelhaha.bsky.social
AI, please generate me a cube 1x1x1 world units that is colored red (1,0,0). Flat shaded.
I spent some of this week making an I/O system for level scripting in Unreal for @sleightofhand.game! I have long had thoughts on why these kick ass. Here's an unusually long blog post on:
-why these kick ass
-why they are necessary
-how mine works
-etc etc
www.joewintergreen.com/i-o-systems-...
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing by the studio Spry Fox. shown are two characters posing and wearing animal ears on their head
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing by the studio Spry Fox. shown are two characters posing together in front of a trolley, one wearing bunny ears on their head
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing by the studio Spry Fox. shown are two characters posing together in front of a house, both wearing tiny wolf ears on their heads
a screenshot from the game Spirit Crossing by the studio Spry Fox. shown are six characters sitting around a tea party table, all dressed up like they're theming as black cats together
delighted to see everyone embracing the Animal Ears Life ✨ in our game
screenshots provided by our Discord members 🧡
playspiritcrossing.com
So:
Text in a game exists within an info/attention economy. And it takes careful design to manage these economies, which MOST complex games struggle to get right. And even if you try to train players, they're bringing training from outside.
None of this is "making stupid games" for "stupid players"
Third wolf: My favorite film is Fargo.
Whenever I think of modern game feel, I think of Obliterator by Psygnosis youtu.be/nG80rfxGTuo?...
This was a game with buttons.
Or maybe heatstroke
Hot, Red and Patchy: It's Sexy Clown Time (tm)
Things are changing.
* Hotel lobbies that were normally bustling were empty.
* Walking through Yerba Buena Gardens made me a little sad. Some crap music festival thing taking up space. Fewer crowds of cool people talking. Remainder forced into the outskirts.
I really enjoyed GDC. Saw some good friends. Had amazing conversations.
I know there's also a conference; but that's an excuse. It is really 100% about the people and community.
