Japanese fire official suspended for forcing colleagues to play board games while working - The Mainichi INAZAWA, Aichi -- The Inazawa municipal fire department headquarters in Aichi Prefecture announced April 10 that a male fire sergeant in his 40s had b

Remember - even playtesting needs consent!

mainichi.jp/english/arti...

I should certainly thank the wonderful @stuffbybez.bsky.social for reminding me years ago how much I enjoy the creative process. I know it's true that for many people her incredible drive, along with the brilliant ELL deck, are a delight and inspiration.

#gamedesign
#boardgamedesign
#creativity

Thank you so much for the shout-out.

That is a lovely thing to read.

<3

Ahhhh thanks for explaining!

What was the original?

• Board Game Arena

boardgamearena.com/tournament?i...

Fancy learning/exploring Capybara'n'Capybara with me and other friendly folk? A cute abstract card game with token Capybara respresentation. :-p

Again, to me, that sounds like a GREAT playtest!

When you say 'not great', it sounds like the conventional so-called 'bad playtest' which is actually a great playtest imo!

Folk not enjoying the game because of some glaring issue isn't a bad playtest imo. It gave you a direction and lots to think about!

That's actually not true. I spent over 2 years in Dundee. (University over 3 years, minus holidays.)

But at the time, I was happy to walk a lot more than I am nowadays tbh.

I think Glasgow is a lot worse than London. But I've literally only spent serious time in 3 cities - Glasgow/London/Bangkok.

I fully support the idea that driving is problematic and negative!

corook - if i were a fish ft. olivia barton (music video) YouTube video by hicorook

What is a song that makes you feel good vibes when you're a bit unsettled?

This is my contribution:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=dx_v...

Does anyone here have the Root app, and fancy some weird 2-player games (async)?

A poem about art as a tool for relaxation and/or therapy.

The colours. The lines.
The bold. The fine.
The choices we make in everything.

The red or the blue,
Dark or light hues.
The saturation, the process unfolding.

Mistakes are okay.
Because this too is play.
And that is the way to relaxing.

My new goal for 2026 is to make lasagne more times than I did in 2025.

It's a very easy goal to achieve. :-p

The better you know what you want, the more likely you are to find it.

Come at me.

What is TMI for you?

Why is it TMI?

Is it about being grossed out by certain bodily functions?

Or is it about not wanting to think of certain people in a certain way?

(This is me genuinely trying to work out what most folk would consider TMI in a typical convo.)

£25 for a table. Sell 20-or-so copies of a game on Saturday evening at UKGE.

This seems like a great deal.

UK folk:

I will be in Hereford in a few weeks for this:
herefor.games/con/

LMK if you're also able to come along and are interested in helping to playtest a serious game about negotiation, discrimination, and subjugation of power.

It's all about how you enforce (or not) the rules you control.

This is a cry for imperfection:
Let go. We can't do it all.

A reminder for any situation:
Whatever you do, it's your call.

Those are the best!

screenshot of a vagabond v vagabond game

Playing some Root online.

I specially enjoy the 'adventurous' matches.

Thanks @direwolfdigital.bsky.social @leder.games @patrickleder.bsky.social @colewehrle.bsky.social and everyone else involved.

I do enjoy the chaos of a favour.

Thank you!

Putting this on just now! <3

"MC Honky: I am the Messiah" is one of my fave albums.

I also loved Souljacker, and the 2nd half of 'Electro-shock Blues'.

Saw them once live. Massive beards and screaming guitars. Loved it!

Some great points.

Be mindful of words' baggage.
Nothing is good or bad without further context.
Designers are not responsible for most of the game stuff.
It is not 'anti-artistic' to want to make money.

100% agree.

Oh wow, I didn't know they did a cover!

Avicii's performance is also pretty powerful.

I'm not much of a fan of Buble tbh.

Good morning, or whatever it is for you!

This morning, I've enjoyed 3 tracks, performed by Lauryn Hill, Nina Simone, and Muse.

Tbh, I'm surprised there aren't more covers of 'Feeling Good'.

What music have you been enjoying recently?

Seize the Power Diverse aliens bid for rules to discriminate against each other.

There is a description, and some old photos, on BGG.

Some details have changed, but the basic theme remains.

boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/31...

I do sometimes feel like proper themes are near-impossible to have in an orthogame, but RPGs and other weird stuff outside BGGs scope tend to be more able to really commit to a theme without the distraction of the mathsy puzzle of optimising a victory.

For a few years, I've been working on a game about privilege, discrimination, negotiation, and subjugation of power with Tiz Creel.

I think the basic rules are done, but now we need to work out all the card effects and numbers.

Hoping to have a tiny number of copies for sale at UKGE 2027.