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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC
@soi.bsky.social
310 followers 470 following 330 posts
Game design consulting, generative AI, educational games, immersive games, ARG, and writing. https://curiouserinstitute.com/
curiouserinstitute.com
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · Nov 16
Hello Bluesky! I'd like to re-introduce myself.

I'm a freelance game designer and director of Curiouser LLC

Specialties:

👾Gen AI game mechanics and emerging tech
👾Immersive entertainment including ARGs and XR
👾Serious gaming

I also write about games, culture, misinformation, etc.

#gamedesign
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 5h
Is it true? Is the internet not fun anymore?
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 1d
😟OMG I hope you are ok!

I wish I had good news, but there isn't a lot. The only thing I can say is that companies that recognize this discrepancy and focus on great design are going to reap dividends.
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Reposted by Curiouser LLC
robsgameshack.bsky.social
Rob's Game Shack @robsgameshack.bsky.social · 1d
Game UI Database — It was built to aid in the discovery of new inspiration, and to provide a fast and efficient way of searching for reference materials.… — https://f.mtr.cool/haruavkwpv — #GamePR #GameUI #GameUX #GameUIUX #IndieGame #GameDev
Game UI Database
It was built to aid in the discovery of new inspiration, and to provide a fast and efficient way of searching for reference materials. All contributions go towards server maintenance, and help ensure…
f.mtr.cool
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 1d
The Tech and Design pendulum always swings one way and then the other because both are required. A product that has great tech and great design is going to beat a company with only one IMHO.

Hang in there! It will self-correct eventually but I never thought it would get this bad. 😵‍💫
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 1d
Curiouser curiouserinstitute.com has been working with the CDC to create simulations and apps to help America prepare for an unsure and challenging future.

I didn't know before I started this work, but there are real heroes out there protecting us from real nightmares 🦟.

Don't fire them. #cdc
"CDC is over": RFK Jr. lays off over 1,000 employees in Friday night massacre
Amid the ongoing shutdown, the HHS secretary wiped out entire offices that investigate disease outbreaks, manage infectious disease responses and collect data.
www.msnbc.com
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 1d
Design, UX, and UI is at rock bottom. It's like companies forgot how humans work. Atrocious.

Examples: 🤮

- Every time I log into YouTube I get this passive aggressive empty-appetizer-plate of a "home" screen.

- The other one is a multi-billion dollar AI startup?

#UX #UI #design
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 2d
As designers across the spectrum continue to be devalued by the technocracy I DREAD any re-design of a program I use.

It's always worse, and there's a ridiculously high chance it removes key features and/or makes it unusable.

#UI #UX #Design #SaveTheDesigners
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 2d
Games are worlds. 852 recorded episodes later The Far Lands have been discovered in Minecraft!

#minecraft #videogames
The Far Lands! Over 14 years later, the edge of a Minecraft world has been reached
It took 14-and-a-half years of walking but finally someone has made it to the edge of the world. Of Minecraft.
www.eurogamer.net
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 3d
In the increasingly politicized world of video games, this is not a surprise, but it is disappointing. It sounded like a cool game. #videogames
Scoop: Ubisoft cancelled a post-Civil War Assassin’s Creed last year
Company leadership deemed the project too controversial for the moment, sources tell Game File
www.gamefile.news
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 3d
Are we really sheltering children from the dangers of Discord by giving their images, IDs, browsing history, and personal details to Discord, the gov, third parties, and hackers?

Obviously, this is only the beginning! #digitalid #discord
Discord says 70,000 users may have had their government IDs leaked in breach
The ID pics had been submitted as part of age-related appeals.
www.theverge.com
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 4d
I’m glad to see the Game Pass library grow but it’s still $300+ and that is too much.

I’m not planning on buying more than 5 X $60 Xbox games this year.

#videogames #xbox
ign.com
IGN @ign.com · 4d
Microsoft has made its first Xbox Game Pass lineup announcement since its controversial decision to raise the price of the Ultimate subscription. Check out what's coming to Game Pass as part of the wave one October 2025 lineup.
Microsoft Makes First Xbox Game Pass Lineup Announcement Since Raising the Price of Ultimate
bit.ly
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 4d
Gamers aren’t buying games.

“30 percent of US-based gamers purchase one or two games per year.

[…] 33 percent of gamers in the US don’t buy any new games at all over a typical 12-month period.”

#videogames
US Gamers Aren't Buying Video Games Anymore, New Study Reveals
A study revealed that a majority of video game sales are fueled by only 4% of players. In 2025, 63% of US consumers are buying fewer games.
www.vice.com
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 5d
Especially interesting is the the statistic that shows a majority of gamers are playing remakes or remasters that they never played before.

That is wild.
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 5d
Amazing numbers.

* 90% of gamers said they had played a remade or remastered game in the last 12 months

* 85% have played a remake or remaster when they didn’t play the original.

* 76% of gamers said they find remakes or remasters appealing.

#videogames #statistics
Remake vs Innovate: Is the past the future of gaming? | MTM
MTM, a specialist strategy and insights consultancy trusted by world-leading brands in gaming, entertainment, media, tech and telco, today announces the findings of its latest games industry report Re...
wearemtm.com
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 5d
A not very hard prediction to make: AI is hitting a wall and requires a transformational technical innovation in order to move forwards again. #AI
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 6d
As many of you know Xbox’s game pass just went up to $30/month.

I’m a huge fan of subscription gaming but give me a break.

It’s just too expensive. #xbox #videogames
gamepass.xbox.com
Game Pass @gamepass.xbox.com · 11d
we've got updates! here's what's changing with Xbox Game Pass: xbx.lv/46GzUed
Black image with green text that reads, "Xbox Game Pass. What's new and what's changing."
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 8d
My boring non-flame take on “Are LLMs sentient?”

Sentience isn’t understood well enough for us to attach a binary attribution to it.

I feel it’s more interesting to just take a look at the types of intelligences and systems we are creating and explore (with) them.

Is a flame war helping?

✌️#ai
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 8d
As a game designer I love to see kids take their first steps into game design on platforms like Roblox.

But I have to admit, Roblox has basically become a master class in the dark patterns of F2P game design. 🦹🏻‍♀️💸

#games #roblox
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 8d
The Roblox thing is different. Roblox is probably the most obvious place for kids to socialize and play together online. It’s not the games. It’s the friends.

BTW the Roblox is basically the Dark Arts instructor of game design.
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 8d
F2P games are dopamine machines designed with dark patterns leading to straight up gambling and addiction. They use any and every kind of manipulation available and have 0 oversight.

And eventually kids and parents figure it out and feel abused. Then games become just another greedy scam.
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 8d
How are your personal top tens going? This is truly the golden age of video games! 🤘
Here’s the highest rated games of 2025 so far by Metascore
This year is flying by and we’ve had some excellent games released so far across a number of genres and platforms. While we have still got a few months left of 2025 Culture Crave has provided a handy…
mynintendonews.com
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 13d
NO!!!! Stop doing this!

What you think you’re doing: Oh, we can make this go away for only 25M? Do it!

What you’re actually doing: Let’s train the Right to attack us to increase their profit and influence! Next time, can you hit us a little harder please? 💥🙏🏽

#YouTube #Google
techmeme.com
Techmeme @techmeme.com · 13d
Filing: YouTube will pay $24.5M to settle a 2021 Trump lawsuit over suspending his account after Jan. 6, the last Big Tech company to settle his lawsuits (Wall Street Journal)

Main Link | Techmeme Permalink
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 13d
It kind of feels like it always sucks when billionaires buy public media companies.

Am I wrong? This looks like it’s also going to suck. #videogames #EA
arstechnica.com
Ars Technica @arstechnica.com · 13d
How private ownership will change Electronic Arts
Analysts see trouble for studios like BioWare, potential for Saudi meddling.
arstechnica.com
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soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 15d
So many hours of my “played” time is just me idling the game looking up things about the game on Reddit. #videogames
soi.bsky.social
Curiouser LLC @soi.bsky.social · 15d
Sorry I worded that clumsily. That’s why I put “Or at least within a language/culture.” I meant that to qualify the previous statement that games are global by default. They are often globally “available” but you are so right! Culture and language can gate games.
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