Tbf this is how they handled the pandemic too
11.03.2026 00:55
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Tbf this is how they handled the pandemic too
The dominant conversation happens to be online. Which is exactly that thing of “trying to influence”, which feels inherently corrupting and destructive to creative aims…
For some random reason this connected a thought in my head… One of the weird ways that social media (feed based culture? Something…) corrupts us is that it makes people (maybe just me but feels connected to other things I’ve noticed online…) feel like they need to respond to or engage with whatever
Gone to a lot of therapy to process exactly this to be honest… lmao 🤣 🥲😅🫠
So… yeah… feel that deeply
I’m probably getting pretty close to tiptoeing up to it. It seems really unhealthy for any given person or subculture to exist to influence pop culture. But I guess I do think there’s value to imagining what a healthier pop culture might look like, given that we seem to be stuck with one.
Or… maybe that’s just a hope
Subcultures give players and designers space to breathe and to explore the territory beyond local maximization. It’s really hard to do that when everything gets pushed to a single feed, like Steam. But if there’s space to grow there’s a chance they can be successful even in a bigger space, perhaps
Subcultures provide spaces to challenge and reflect. Thinking about the Block Koala subplot in the year of UFO 50 on Eggplant or the number of guests and hosts who had mixed feelings about a game. It’s not just that it’s hard to critique in pop culture it’s that any critique becomes a yes/no
I.e. in the Roguelike space branching decision trees between levels are everywhere regardless of how well they seem to serve the player or the game. It more seems to be an outgrowth of a set of successes that made it visible for copying and therefore “good”.
Yeah and I’m definitely not trying to lessen the exploitation, but I think “popular” cultures tend to be very normative. The capitalism on top of that creates a kind of pure refinement, but for me it seems like it’s less about what broad appeal is and more about whatever happens to be “it” right now
I even think about the way that Marvel was an outgrowth (now toxic etc etc) of superhero subculture and was able to burst onto the scene the way it did because there were interesting ideas to tap into. Algorithms or not it feels way harder when there’s one gigantic amorphous conversation
Not a fully formed thought tbf. I think some of the flimsiness of popular media of late is the way that everything exists in “one feed” means it gets homogenized very quickly without having a chance to develop interesting characteristics that subcultures can develop without constant outward pressure
I also think successfully influencing popular culture requires these sorts of spaces where ideas can grow and thrive before more “popular” arguments get made. Where they can build support and momentum. Popular spaces are enriched by thriving subcultures, I think.
Cut to the Doctor Manhattan meme
The games that stuck with me from Steam Next Fest. A lot of exciting designs that will be coming out soon!
Gotta say after this #SteamNextFest if you’re a Roguelike with a math optimized run where I’m trying to hit an arbitrary target and offered a variety of purchases to make incremental math easier over the course of an hour long experience…
That’s gonna be an uphill battle for me.
I know it's very very very very very difficult for this app to accept this, but I swear to you that the reason why housing is unaffordable in California isn't because of private equity, billionaires, hedge funds, or AirBnB - but because of mom dad grandma and grandpa
Shotgun King is now
♟️ available on mobile!!! 💥
Play Store (Android): play.google.com/store/apps/d...
App Store (iOS): apps.apple.com/fr/app/shotg...
And check out the amazing animated trailer by @joylilworld.bsky.social!!
Man who has only ever played Dicey Dungeons, playing Titanium Court: "So this is a Dicey Dungeons-like"
Ultrapool Steam Next Fest demo is up! Go try the game that has >10k players on mobile before even getting released :)
store.steampowered.com/app/4195110/...
If you finance the coffee…
I’ll show myself out now
Played Trinket Trove on @keithlaw.bsky.social’s recommendation from his AV Club article. This game absolutely slaps. Has old school MtG Rochester drafting vibes, but without the intensity of playing a magic game. 🤣 absolutely loved it www.avclub.com/trinket-trov...
Ditto to this. The mini games are incredible and somehow manage to capture the vibe of both being a teen and also doing those various tasks and how they fit into your life. It hit home so firmly.
Really cannot sing its praises enough.
Trying to imagine the corresponding graphic between a man and a woman and uh... I'm just gonna go ahead and say that would not happen...
so... uh... yeah... wtf wow
New York Zoo's turn taking mechanism feels really interesting compared to a lot of the lighter games I've played. It feels both freeing and also disorienting when I explain it to newer players. It's stuck with me each time I play it.
2 weeks since tomb of the bloodletter's release, I'm pretty happy with its reception! Would love more people to buy it though, so I can work full-time on my next game. If you like creative roguelikes, check it out! store.steampowered.com/app/3531630/...
#gamedev #indiedev #indiegame
(And requires more deft design) to have depth and signal that. Probably a primary value of having a personal brand as a designer I would wonder…
If there’s anything I’ve learned from @secretlivesofgames.bsky.social it’s that this legibility/complexity/depth aesthetic is actually quite a powerful one from a games interest perspective. The path to appearing complex and winning interest/attention is much more direct. It’s much harder
Definitely see similar patterns in software engineering. Engineers mistake legibility and complexity, to challenging results…
This site is incredible (the most derogatory possible).
