I’m a huge fan of The Bonsai Diary already, but as a non-visual/non-graphical person it is so helpful to see these tips and pointers on how to play, all delivered with Gene’s signature thoughtfulness. It’s amazing to see a beautiful tree emerge through simple line work and Gene makes it look easy!
What is The Frog Squad? a quick thread!
First, it's a gm-less game that is for exactly 3 players. Each player takes on the role of one of the 3 frog characters. The roleplay is somewhat freeform and is informed by the card game that is played during sessions (more on the card game later)
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Today is a big day for Button Shy. We just launched our Spring Collection on Kickstarter. It's our first boxed campaign with 4 great games. Astro ROVE, The Rise Of A Jarl, Everything Machine, and Shaper. Join us at: www.kickstarter.com/projects/239...
If you’re looking for a copy of One Breath Left, the ENNIE-winning solo sci-fi/horror survival RPG from myself and Stout Stoat, I’ve got a handful of copies on my website for US sales only!
leafydragongames.wpcomstaging.com/product/one-...
Cover for the solo, duet or more TTRPG: The Hourglass Sings. 16-bit image of someone with long blonde hair, wearing a flower crown and with a lute over their back, is seated in the foreground looking at the vista before them, which includes trees, fields, the hint of a city and two mountains in the distance, with dark purple wisps approaching from the left
New to the #SoloRPG List: The Hourglass Sings by @kurtrefling.bsky.social
A Majora's Mask-inspired storytelling game for one or more players. Fantasy #TTRPG
LINKY: solorpglist.com/search.php?i...
Photo of the cover for the game The Frog Squad. There are red and green illustrations of Frogs in a data center on a blue background. The text says, "junk Food Games presents The Frog Squad in Hearts Against the Machine. A ttrpg and card game for 3 Frogs."
The Frog Squad is out now!
This is a tiny 3-player ttrpg and card game about Frogs destroying a data center and uses mechanics inspired by the trick-taking game Hearts. I made it for the #LeanGreenZineJam
Check it out! Sharing is greatly appreciated!
junkfoodgames.itch.io/the-frog-squ...
Last week, @the-soloist.itch.io published my essay "Playing Alone Together" about my experience running solo rpgs for groups at Breakout Con. With permission, I'm reposting it in my own newsletter plus a little nugget of my own, where I give my "nutshell" take on how solo RPGs are never truly solo.
What are your absolute favorite solo RPGs? I'm talking about the solo TTRPGs that you wish you could experience again for the first time or the ones you return to over and over.
The art of game design: the spark of creation, to find play between the confines of rules and the expression of agency, to marry the beauty of systems and aesthetic expression,
The discipline of game design: fucking finish the thing
You should never be afraid to ask tabletop RPG authors dumb questions about their games because that's literally how we tell whether or not what we wrote is working.
My #ttrpg The Psychic Danger Society came out in 2025 and is nominated in a few categories for the brand-spanking-new Canada Roles awards. I welcome participation in these new awards celebrating Canadian ttrpg publishers. And if you vote for me, I wouldn't complain. canadaroles.ca/doku.php?id=...
The Beths in 10!
[Note that this playlist predates their most recent album, Straight Line Was a Lie, so it's a little incomplete. But I wouldn't know what to drop and what to add anyway, because getting it down to these 10 was hard enough!]
open.spotify.com/playlist/0dM...
Nice to get a little shoutout from @backwardsttrpg.bsky.social in this week's Soloist! Breakout Con was my first time playing in that "collaborative solo" style, but seeing my solo games come to life around a table full of enthusiastic players was incredibly exciting and satisfying!
Demonic image with an Asian woman sitting in front of it with paint brushes. Text says: “A horror immersive reading of Forgery. April 10, 6-9pm. Hugo House, Lapis theater. 1634 11th Ave, Seattle, 98122. Free event! Join tabletop game designer Banana Chan as she leads you through her solo journaling game, Forgery!”
In the Seattle area this Friday and wanna do a free horror event? Come join me at 6-9pm as I do an immersive reading of Forgery! There will be coloring pencils and paint-by-numbers demons supplied. I’ll also be selling games after the reading.
Getting the design itch again and this No Shuffle Design Challenge from Button Shy is really interesting! Can you design an 18-card game with no system randomness?
Every game I've had published came from a design contest, so let's see how this one goes!
buttonshygames.com/blogs/news-1...
Normally I’d say Fiasco, because it became THE central touchpoint for my RPG experience, but I think Lacuna Part 1 was arguably the first game that really totally opened me up to indie RPGs as a whole.
It's been a fun restriction to work with, because 10 songs isn't a lot to cover a career! Some people focus on big hits while others agonize over their favorite tunes. To me, the art of curation is just as interesting as the results, and I love seeing people's picks.
So without further ado...
For a few years now I've been making and sharing 10-Track Playlists through the Button Shy community, and I'm going to slowly start sharing my lists here as well if anyone wants to listen.
The rules are simple: exactly 10 tracks from one artist/group. That's it.
Playtesting. I have trouble getting other people to do it, and I can only play my own game so many times before it stops being helpful.
Prompts can be a real slog though. Do you have anyone you can bounce ideas off of? For me, getting an outside perspective helps me see where my prompts can evolve.
EXTREMELY KEEN for this project to come to print
It was my first time making a game in a team - 2 writers, 1 artist, 1 layout designer. All incredibly, incredibly skilled. All incredibly, incredibly trans 🏳️⚧️
Please follow to support trans artists making trans art!
www.backerkit.com/call_to_acti...
Role Play Game, a one-page game for a number of players.
I made a "maximum non-viable" TTRPG. You can download it from this post, or here:
heliospectral.itch.io/roleplaygame
Shadow in the Stars is my next game that's a solo ttrpg featuring starship combat and a weird discoveries. Can you destroy the enemy home world and get the high score or will you die trying?
Only 10 away from 50 pre launch followers!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/tab...
That long-awaited moment is finally here: judge self-nominations for The Awards 2026 are open!
Find more information here: theawards.games?page_id=1143
Self-nominate directly here: forms.gle/JrU37fNREYfG...
“This mixtape sucks,” he said, right before it turned into a robot eagle and stole his coffee mug. Come play <<<Metal Position: Robot Fighting Cassettes>>>, out now on @itchio.bsky.social. #indiettrpg
panjumanju.itch.io/metal-position
The Bonsai Diary digital downloads are 50% off to celebrate its Origins Award nomination. Get if for just $2.50, or less than a gallon of gas! Sale ends today.
(Breathlessly promoting a game about serenity and contemplation always feels so weird)
stickydoodler.itch.io/the-bonsai-d...
This sounds rad! If you’re still looking for playtesters I might be able to at least read through it.
