I am still working out how to make this new “dedication platform” work on the table in the play space. It will probably need to be a great deal smaller, but my current coil that activates the LEDs is a table hog that also needs a wall outlet.

Enough suspense: The new “nobody asked for this, I’m just doing this for me” project is an upgrade for the modern classic - Lanterns: The Harvest Festival (2015) from @renegadegamestudios.com. I’ve always liked the game and found the box cover quite inspiring. So naturally…

Another thing I’m doing probably won’t be ready in time: I’m working on another game design appreciation project in the same spirit as my Modern Art and Acquire showstopper pieces.

I’m having to recreate some components since the game is wildly out of print and resale prices are frenzied.

I’m just asking for the workout routine to achieve these results.

I’m just saying.

Me: I think I might like to see Weird Al. Ticketmaster:

You can be awestruck and excited and happy to work in a tiny room (or really do anything in space! In zero g!) at every moment for 10 days. Very few people could keep that kind of energy up for a whole pregnancy cycle’s worth of time.

Still the best idea Taco Bell has ever had.

I don’t know how to live in a world where Jenga needs an expansion.

It is time go

$5 IMAX ticket? Don’t mind if I do… Going again on Saturday

Please be good 🤞

As best I can tell, my favorite was discontinued so I bought as many as I could find at the time. Will probably have to switch to 4 when I run out.

When I had to prototype hexes I used magazine board from the local comic shop. It’s thick enough to work like tiles, but thin enough to cut with scissors. Printed my game elements on label paper and just applied them to the board before cutting.

Got my designer copies in, so now I’ve added Jingle Bell Roll to the published game shadow box collection.

I thought these were from the same Dove, which is almost as confusing as the fact these products coexist and they are not.

🎶 Cannot find what I want. Cannot make by myself. 🎵 Need small Rocky figure suspended in a clear d12. 🎶 Then label sides with Eridian base-6 numbers two times. 🎵 Who can make what I need, question? www.etsy.com/listing/1835... Eridian numbers: projectamaze.com/number-conve...

The nightmare fueled scoretrack I’ve been using for Worker Replacement has been deemed too difficult to read by testers, so I made a new one loosely based on a code contribution tracker.

I’m actively in pursuit of finding a mass market publisher for my robot-posing charades game. Strongly considering a trip to NY toy fair in a couple weeks, but I’m unsure if that will be the best use of my time since I’m planning it so late with no meetings lined up. toyfairny.com/tf/toyfair/h...

And finally, this playtesting event was in Minnesota last weekend. The vibes were tense. No matter where I went the people felt under siege, but the refrain I heard most often was “Stay Warm.” I don’t think it was entirely about the temperature.

Less urgently the game does need a new name that conveys the core concept in a snappier, less ambiguous way. Worker Replacement is clever, but misleading. Best idea I’ve heard so far is “Robot Poseurs” which might be too punny for the general audience, but makes me laugh.

My *best* versions of these robots were *completely trashed* after one weekend of plays. The joints no longer hold position nearly as well as they did. A lot of the game requires frequent removal of limbs and the parts are just not durable enough.

Biggest issue? To go mass I need a custom robot. This model was made available for free on the Internet and the Chinese manufacturers wasted no time making their own versions. I tried several of them: - on sprues - prepackaged in parts - fully assembled In all cases it’s unsuitable for mass market

Gameplay notes: - The satire is fine. I don’t need special rules for it. A grown man posing a robot as its own Dentist is absurd on its face (literally). - limited props are good: players used the storage crates and armatures to stand in for all kinds of things - The 2 jobs at once round is perfect

Protospiel MN report: the game tested amazing. People were requesting to play it unprompted. Others told me they were referred to my table to play “the robot game”. At one point I had to refuse a playtest just to get a break (sorry JT!). I had to leave a copy with a friend who “needed to have it.”

I have these and they get my highest recommendation. Awesome product.

Cripes Minnesota. Do y’all really live like ❄️THIS❄️? I’ve ❄️never❄️ had to spend ❄️more than an hour❄️ at a supercharger before

Y’all.

I’m at the game design conference. I’m at the protest. I’m at the combination game design/protest event.