Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 4h

I just drafted a strategy game truly based on roll & move and it's fucking delightful ❤️

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 2d

Haven't played. It looks ... more brain burning.

And one of my favourite things about Qwirkle is that it is not too brain burning.

1 2

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 2d

Susan McKinley Ross is one of the brightest game designers of our generation.

And Qwirkle remains my favourite abstract game. Pure genius.

Nothing happened, btw. Just fanboying over my favourite creative people.

6 2 61

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 2d

Nothing more boring than calculated art

22

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 4d

I wanna play drums in a dad rock band

5 42

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 8d

Totally agree. I think ... I just really hated the title of that talk 😂

2

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 8d

Games absolutely need a hook. "Promised experience" is a hook - and mass market designers have known that for decades.

Hobby game mechanics fetishists are so far behind on that curve :)

1 3

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 8d

Them: oh you're a feminist, are you? Ok name all the women

You: Tina Turner

Them: ...yeah alright

2 49

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 12d

RIP Jane Goodall. One of the good ones.

two monkeys are sitting on a wooden fence and talking to each other .

Alt: two monkeys are sitting on a wooden fence and talking to each other, then hug

media.tenor.com

1 42

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 15d

Brains are silly, part 4980262413

Was supposed to take the day off, and came up with 4 different family and/or party game concepts.

1 1 45

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 19d

I don't love structured ideation either, and prefer to brute force ... but also I tend to design from the hook down off a burst of inspiration (which bypasses ideation entirely) and don't really dedicate real time to something unless I have a clear through line

1 2

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 19d

I get that. I guess burden of expertise serves me in this case - I've gotten pretty good at predicting dynamic outcomes in theorycraft, but when the predictions are way off ... I usually just start over or do something else.

1 1

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 19d

I can count the number of times I've needed to add to a prototype - even my streamlined prototypes - on one hand :)

Usually if I feel the need to add because something is missing, I scrap the design and work on something else.

1

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 19d

More game talk!

I am strongly against the iterative design idea of "just throw in everything and simplify after playing"

That breaks my brain.

I cannot work on a game without a clear execution of vision, and want even the first testable prototype super streamlined

And still need to simplify.

9 1 66

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 20d

Game talk!

Had a couple exciting projects cancelled (which sucks, but it's nature of the biz when you do this a high level)

But out of that came a brand new project which I got so excited about I designed the "easy first 80%" overnight and it feels like it's chasing goals similar to Reterra

1 37

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 22d

America is becoming the third world dictatorship that Americans are taught only happens in brown countries.

2 66

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 23d

Talking to so many game designers lately, we all share this insane low level burnout.

Like, wtf are we doing making toy soldiers and nature simulators when everything is on fire every day?

And how to resist yeeting folks who offer the helpful "hey just try not being burned out"

18 5 150

Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · 25d

I don't give a rat's ass about Kimmel.

But I care a lot about fascism.