Cover, with an ASCII illustration of a hand with long pink nails holding a blue 3.5" floppy disc. The label on the disc is the trans flag. Title: "Shareware Made Me Trans."

Grid showing the layout of the 24-page zine, plus front and back cover.

"Gallery of shareware amazons" featuring images of four women warriors from various games.

As a pre-teen author undergoing the incorrect puberty, my own ZZT games circled the same themes again and again, at first with a layer of distancing irony that slowly eroded like the mountain being pecked away by that bird in Hell: they were fetish games. They revolved around captured princesses, with bare feet and torn dresses, chained in ASCII dungeons, punished and degraded, threatened with torture and hardship and peril. These were, in essence, all manifestations of the submissive woman, the painslut and pillow princess I would eventually become, but could not yet admit to wanting to be, could not yet admit that such a thing could be wanted.

everyone is currently obsessed with *checks notes* a 1997 game called Moon Child. but did you know other weird games came out in the 90s? you can read about some of them in my new 24-page zine, Shareware Made Me Trans, coming to itch next week!

My (probably misguided) brain says there was a Sony Vaio in this exact colour many decades ago. I see other people also brought up Vaio, and so I'm sure I must be on to something. I wish I could find an example.

Saw a post that said Hugh has “lore” in Pragmata. And characters having background is not lore dude. I don’t think a lot of people understand what lore actually means.

What Are We Doing? My friend sent me the following:

The way that some people are using Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream has me concerned. Some thoughts about the viral incentives that are motivating certain players of this game and the broad criticisms of it, would love if you checked this out!

medium.com/@abrambuehne...

Increasingly convinced iOS 26 has poorer Bluetooth device management than any previous iOS iteration as a means to force me to buy AirPods.

I’ve come to the conclusion that $85 is too much to pay for an infinite meme generator, especially when the entire internet is giving it away for free.

I’m pretty sure my generation’s Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream was feeding Bablefish’s own translations back into it ad infinitum.

Adam (@adamgryu.bsky.social) 🎮 i make video games and stuff 🐦 created http://ashorthike.com (he / him)

You can also give a shout out to adamgryu.bsky.social, who is super nice!

"I didn't see it! And anybody who does should have their hard drives checked!"
My guys
My dudes
My brothers in christ
I'm only trying to have a conversation.
ESPECIALLY because it's getting so missed right down the gender lines.

Why is the mere discussion of the topic so upsetting? Is it because folks see something they didn't and are feeling guilt by association?

Its very funny to your girl that the people most upset about even discussing how Pragmata could be a little weird are all men. And they're very aggressive about it.

anyway the thing about giving awards based entirely on popular examples of "representation" is that you will inevitably miss out on the entire world of queer people making art that they are passionate about that isn't solely focused, 'can you pet the dog' style, on "lgbt" marketing beats

No no no, see, a 6 year old having hair extensions, highlights, a blowout, eye makeup, no shoes, no pants, and suggestive camera angles are simply crucial design details because… of the uh…STORY!…or uh plot…or…uh something about androids

its canon that sheldon cooper and steven hawking are friends, which begs the question... did sheldon ever go to the island

A screenshot of notifications page on Bluesky. A large pink banner that features an exclamation mark in a red circle with the word "Forbidden" to the right of it is featured at the top of the thread under the header "All". Below the header is an icon of a bell above the words "No notifications yet!", both centred.

A screenshot of main thread page on Bluesky. A large pink banner that features an exclamation mark in a red circle with the words "Not Enough Resources" to the right of it is featured at the top of the thread under the header "Following".

Vibe coding at its finest?

TAPPING THE SIGN ONCE MORE

Bunnies in a raft pull up next to a spaceship capsule, which has just splashed down and is floating in the open sea. Visible in the capsule, two bunnies wave at the ones in the boat.

Daily bunny no.3285 made it home safely

It’s really great. Started and finished it yesterday and if it weren’t for this brain fog inducing cold I’d have already posted my review on Grouvee. Hoping to get to that soon because it’s a wonderful game.

How can we be certain they aren’t moon people wearing disguises who hijacked the crew and replaced them?

Noah Wyle as Dr. Robby, peaking his head into an examination room, on "The Pitt."

"The Pitt" vs. its fandom: Why is the show's vocal fandom putting "The Pitt's" characters on trial to be deemed “good” or “bad"?

This week's newsletter

buttondown.com/NinaWatchesE...

Work in Progress: How we're tackling Sidewalk Sheds (with John Wilson) YouTube video by NYC Mayor's Office

No one likes unnecessary scaffolding. Thankfully, we have a plan — and John Wilson is here to help break it down.

Genius move!

I’m so glad I’m not alone 😂

not to hijack's yelix's great post and correct opinion, but the entire point of the pilot is to treat dolores's optimism as helplessly naive through repeated imagery of her being sexually assaulted or in the threat of sexual peril. watching people call this smart made me feel crazy,

Most Arcades Feel Like Total Scams These Days When did we turn arcades into mini versions of Las Vegas?

When did arcades turn into mini versions of Las Vegas? They're the closest young children can engage in our society’s ever-expanding gambling complex. Games your children are certain to lose. They are scams. My latest at @crossplayblog.bsky.social www.crossplay.news/p/most-arcad...

This reminds me of a story: in the late 90s or early 2000s there was a machine like these at the arcade in my university campus. It required you to stop the digital roulette on a specific #. My brother was so good at it, he cleared the machine of its entire contents 🤣

Regardless, they are scams

You don’t need to be doing studio product shots to create something more appealing than these AI shots.

Small restaurants are crafty, doing their own photography or hiring someone to shoot at the restaurant. The photographer sets up, usually with LED lights or strobes, and the restaurant plates and presents so the photographer can shoot it immediately.

Yes, in a studio setting where you’re taking a lot of product shots it’s a problem. And in shoots like that substitutes are often used. Real ice cream under guide lights is going to melt. But if you’re a small business, you’re much more likely to scoop and shoot, and the strobes are not a problem.

The Democrats are wondering where the campus protests are? The Democrats who abetted and armed and funded Israel's genocide, who first demonized and then criminalized student protests? The Democrats who were in power as the institutional leaders protecting the students were ousted? Those Democrats?

Doki Doki Literature Club is a widely celebrated piece of videogame art, discusses deeply difficult topics in sincere and meaningful ways, and Google Play needs to revert the removal of the game immediately.