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Ben Slinger

@ben.slinger.com.au

He/him. Web programmer, game dev, working on The Grant Grover Anthology (http://s.team/a/4144960). Podcast at Bit Storm (http://bitstormcast.com). Dad of 4, leftist. Melbourne, AU

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24.08.2023
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Latest posts by Ben Slinger @ben.slinger.com.au

Drop a crush from your youth

22.02.2026 01:14 ๐Ÿ‘ 1 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

I start a new day job tomorrow which, counterintuitively, means I'll be able to get more work done on The Grant Grover Anthology - having less possible time to work on it means I'm more likely to use that time on productive things!

08.02.2026 09:24 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

Proud of my 12 year old son: one week into high school and he's already running for Student Council on a "no generative AI" platform โœŠ

04.02.2026 04:50 ๐Ÿ‘ 4 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
A screenshot of an email from a kids monitoring app reporting a Google search alert for "I'm being bullied (but actually Dad can you please unblock Krita and Spotify pls)"

A screenshot of an email from a kids monitoring app reporting a Google search alert for "I'm being bullied (but actually Dad can you please unblock Krita and Spotify pls)"

I'm impressed with the way my 12yo figured out how to send me a message from school on his new laptop ๐Ÿ˜‚

02.02.2026 02:31 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Preview
My Afternoon Snack Kleptomaniac by Ben Slinger, Luis Van Slageren The IT guy on an interstellar spacecraft is upset that somebody took his last Tim Tam.

Had a lot of fun at the Global Game Jam, and learned a lot as usual. We succeeded in our goal of gathering a larger team, ending up with 12 people - somehow we all managed to work together and get a fun little branching narrative game together!

bslinger.itch.io/tim-tam

#gamedev #gamejam

02.02.2026 00:09 ๐Ÿ‘ 10 ๐Ÿ” 2 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

There is no option here that will stop

- jailing Indigenous children
- abusing human rights of refugees
- accelerating climate change for fossil fuel donor profits
- 2 way arms trade with apartheid genocidal regime Israel

#auspol

27.01.2026 08:28 ๐Ÿ‘ 13 ๐Ÿ” 5 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 2

Nearly time for @globalgamejam.bsky.social! This will be our ninth consecutive one (with @trevhscott.bsky.social), but our first one since doing "real" game dev.

The theme is a fun one, looking forward to finding a team and building something cool!

#gamedev #gamejam

26.01.2026 01:48 ๐Ÿ‘ 4 ๐Ÿ” 1 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

I think I would try to click into it, so if it didn't give me a cursor it would break immersion a little.

Was it there in the demo? I don't remember trying to click on it. I just accepted the unidirectional messages as a storytelling device rather than feeling "I want to respond"

24.01.2026 11:57 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

I've come across three references to Great Wolf Lodge in the past month after managing to go nearly 45 years never hearing that combination of words in that order

23.01.2026 10:07 ๐Ÿ‘ 0 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Whether it's illegal to say it or not (?), Israel is quite clearly committing genocide in Palestine. The Australian government (but not the Australian people) is quite clearly supporting it. And our farce of a democracy is being further eroded so people don't speak this truth.

21.01.2026 08:13 ๐Ÿ‘ 812 ๐Ÿ” 248 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 42 ๐Ÿ“Œ 6

CONTINUE TELLING EVERYONE YOU KNOW THAT AI IS THE STUPIDEST SHIT EVER

IT IS WORKING

CONTINUE TO MAKE ART YOURSELF

CONTINUE TO WRITE THINGS THAT INSPIRE YOU

THE WHOLE POINT OF BEING ALIVE IS TO CREATE COOL SHIT

AI STRIPS US OF THE POINT OF BEING HUMAN

20.01.2026 22:17 ๐Ÿ‘ 4130 ๐Ÿ” 1857 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 39 ๐Ÿ“Œ 19
Preview
a cartoon character wearing a hat and holding a cane Alt: a cartoon character wearing a hat and holding a cane

Hey folks, time for another indie #ShowCasey, January edition! Are you an indie developer? Do you have an upcoming game you would like to show off to people? Reply below with a pitch for your game, screenshots/video, and link to the store page! Use the hashtag if you want, only one rule:

No genAI!

17.01.2026 13:00 ๐Ÿ‘ 368 ๐Ÿ” 147 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 99 ๐Ÿ“Œ 16
Preview
The Grant Grover Anthology on Steam In Neo Naarm in the 22nd century, augmentation technology has run amok. Combining deduction, visual novel and point and click gameplay, play as Grant Grover, private detective, one of the only remaini...

Hey cool, I have one!

The Grant Grover Anthology is a cyberpunk noir detective story told as a cinematic kinetic visual novel.

Grant is one of the last unaugmented citizens in the city, taking jobs on the gig app Gumshoe.

First case in the demo, out now!

store.steampowered.com/app/4144960/...

17.01.2026 21:24 ๐Ÿ‘ 13 ๐Ÿ” 3 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Daaang, love that art! And point and click/deduction as well! Wishlisted immediately, looking forward to it :)

16.01.2026 09:30 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Australia needs to seriously come to terms with how much the Labor Party fucking sucks

15.01.2026 23:49 ๐Ÿ‘ 532 ๐Ÿ” 117 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 60 ๐Ÿ“Œ 13

Hello, it is time for the Annual Tweet! Are you working on a COOL, NEAT, and perhaps even EXTREMELY WEIRD video game that'll be launching in 2026?

If the answer is YES then let me know in the replies below!

I want to get eyes on some coverage candidates before the year begins to consume us all.

13.01.2026 11:30 ๐Ÿ‘ 44 ๐Ÿ” 20 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 28 ๐Ÿ“Œ 2
Preview
The Grant Grover Anthology on Steam In Neo Naarm in the 22nd century, augmentation technology has run amok. Combining deduction, visual novel and point and click gameplay, play as Grant Grover, private detective, one of the only remaini...

Sure am! Working on a cyberpunk noir anthology, with a mix of visual novel and point 'n' click mechanics. Our first game!

store.steampowered.com/app/4144960/...

14.01.2026 11:08 ๐Ÿ‘ 1 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Preview
Detective Steam Detective Fest 2026

The Grant Grover Anthology is part of the Detective Fest, and we're currently showing up on the second page of the Popular Upcoming section which is super cool!

Hoping this sends a few wishlists our way ๐Ÿคž

store.steampowered.com/category/det...

12.01.2026 19:12 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 3 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

(Noticing now that the Popular Upcoming seems to be sorted mostly by release date, which explains our position... still, makes us more visible!)

12.01.2026 19:51 ๐Ÿ‘ 0 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Preview
Detective Steam Detective Fest 2026

The Grant Grover Anthology is part of the Detective Fest, and we're currently showing up on the second page of the Popular Upcoming section which is super cool!

Hoping this sends a few wishlists our way ๐Ÿคž

store.steampowered.com/category/det...

12.01.2026 19:12 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 3 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Preview
The Grant Grover Anthology - Demo Update 1 - Steam News Just in time for Detective Fest!

We've updated our demo with some additions to one of the endings and some fixes

Thanks to @ceebee514.bsky.social for streaming the demo and finding some of these issues!

store.steampowered.com/news/app/414...

12.01.2026 02:38 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Yeah, the original one probably has too many disparate elements which I was trying to improve upon, so glad to hear that worked, thanks!

I tried a version with just the hat in a bit of a spotlight but it looked too plain then.

11.01.2026 03:22 ๐Ÿ‘ 0 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Our current Steam capsule: a desk showing a bottle of whiskey, a cigarette in an ashtray, a VR headset and a classic noir detective's Trilby hat. It is entirely black and white except a small coloured glow from the headset and the cigarette. "The Grant Grover Anthology" is written above everything.

Our current Steam capsule: a desk showing a bottle of whiskey, a cigarette in an ashtray, a VR headset and a classic noir detective's Trilby hat. It is entirely black and white except a small coloured glow from the headset and the cigarette. "The Grant Grover Anthology" is written above everything.

Our potential new Steam capsule. A detective Trilby had and VR headset floating as if on an unseen person, looking at a computer screen that we see from behind. A keyboard and whiskey bottle are visible. Behind is a slightly foggy view of venetian blinds in a classic noir style. Everything is black and white except for some orange glow coming from the computer monitor. "The Grant Grover Anthology" is written to the left in the negative space left by the dark corner and monitor.

Our potential new Steam capsule. A detective Trilby had and VR headset floating as if on an unseen person, looking at a computer screen that we see from behind. A keyboard and whiskey bottle are visible. Behind is a slightly foggy view of venetian blinds in a classic noir style. Everything is black and white except for some orange glow coming from the computer monitor. "The Grant Grover Anthology" is written to the left in the negative space left by the dark corner and monitor.

I'm trying to decide if I should re-do our key art on Steam before the Detective Fest that starts in a couple of days. The original seemed a bit unfocused so trying for something more eye-catching.

I'd love some feedback!

Worth changing to the new one, or just keep the current?

#solodev #gamedev

11.01.2026 03:09 ๐Ÿ‘ 5 ๐Ÿ” 1 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Preview
Demo Dive: THE GRANT GROVER ANTHOLOGY CeeBee published a post on Ko-fi

I've been a little remiss in posting, but I have been doing the demo dives! VOD for it all is on Twitch and YouTube, and the write-ups on Ko-Fi, including tonight's stream of The Grant Grover Anthology by Bitstorm Games! @trevhscott.bsky.social and @ben.slinger.com.au ko-fi.com/post/Demo-Di...

08.01.2026 01:23 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 1 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

I'm so glad you enjoyed it, thanks for checking it out!

I'll have to look into the issue with the antivirus, I think that might be a Godot issue ๐Ÿ˜ฌ

08.01.2026 02:13 ๐Ÿ‘ 2 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

hello, please tell me which australian and new zealand-made games you are excited to see this year. i'm in listicle mode & would love to feature as many as possible. ๐Ÿซถ

07.01.2026 22:45 ๐Ÿ‘ 47 ๐Ÿ” 17 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 29 ๐Ÿ“Œ 1
Preview
The Grant Grover Anthology on Steam In Neo Naarm in the 22nd century, augmentation technology has run amok. Combining deduction, visual novel and point and click gameplay, play as Grant Grover, private detective, one of the only remaini...

But also the demo for our game is out now please play and wishlist ๐Ÿ˜

store.steampowered.com/app/4144960/...

07.01.2026 23:11 ๐Ÿ‘ 9 ๐Ÿ” 1 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 1
Preview
The Dungeon Experience on Steam The Dungeon Experience is a comedy first-person adventure about a low-level mudcrab chasing his dream of helping YOU experience the true bliss of Financial Freedom*

My own game of course, but to avoid just self promoting, I'm really looking forward to The Dungeon Experience ๐Ÿฆ€

store.steampowered.com/app/994680/T...

07.01.2026 23:10 ๐Ÿ‘ 8 ๐Ÿ” 0 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1 ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Post image

PM Albanese is a stooge to the violent pedophilic fascists in the US and Israel.

Saying things like "we've always been concerned about human rights and democracy" as the Empire flattens both is gaslighting and propaganda.

Australia needs a strong, moral leader. We have a toad.

03.01.2026 23:25 ๐Ÿ‘ 292 ๐Ÿ” 85 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 28 ๐Ÿ“Œ 13
Preview
The Grant Grover Anthology on Steam In Neo Naarm in the 22nd century, augmentation technology has run amok. Combining deduction, visual novel and point and click gameplay, play as Grant Grover, private detective, one of the only remaini...

We hit the button and released our demo!

The demo contains the whole of The Echo Runs Deep, the first case of the anthology. We've polished it up from the game jam version, adding content and improving the visuals.

Try it out and wishlist now!

store.steampowered.com/app/4144960/...

01.01.2026 13:39 ๐Ÿ‘ 3 ๐Ÿ” 2 ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0 ๐Ÿ“Œ 1