JB Oger
@jboger.bsky.social
Founder & Game Director Sleepy Mill Studio
Made Drop Duchy (2025) and more!
Made Drop Duchy (2025) and more!
Sandfall & Clair Obscur did irreversible damage to the industry by restarting once more the whole « why don’t AAA studios make games faster with smaller teams that they can sell cheaper ».
I’m not kidding, Jason Schreier litterally wrote an article about this being a talking point at DICE
I’m not kidding, Jason Schreier litterally wrote an article about this being a talking point at DICE
I know it's meant in good faith but "if we just made smaller scope games and charged 20-40 dollars for them it would fix the industry" is very funny to me. indies release like 20 of those a week on steam. are you buying them? is the industry fixed? no? hm. sounds like you need a different solution
February 15, 2026 at 3:35 PM
Sandfall & Clair Obscur did irreversible damage to the industry by restarting once more the whole « why don’t AAA studios make games faster with smaller teams that they can sell cheaper ».
I’m not kidding, Jason Schreier litterally wrote an article about this being a talking point at DICE
I’m not kidding, Jason Schreier litterally wrote an article about this being a talking point at DICE
If we win this, I don’t know what I’m gonna do yet but it’s going to be crazy.
Starvaders already won over Drop Duchy at the Thinky Game awards though, so the odds aren’t looking likely …
Starvaders already won over Drop Duchy at the Thinky Game awards though, so the odds aren’t looking likely …
Our #DICEAwards Strategy/Simulation Game of the Year nominees are:
The Alters, @11bitstudios.bsky.social
Drop Duchy, Sleepy Mill Studio
Europa Universalis V, Paradox Tinto
The King is Watching, Hypnohead
StarVaders, Pengonauts
The Alters, @11bitstudios.bsky.social
Drop Duchy, Sleepy Mill Studio
Europa Universalis V, Paradox Tinto
The King is Watching, Hypnohead
StarVaders, Pengonauts
February 12, 2026 at 8:50 PM
If we win this, I don’t know what I’m gonna do yet but it’s going to be crazy.
Starvaders already won over Drop Duchy at the Thinky Game awards though, so the odds aren’t looking likely …
Starvaders already won over Drop Duchy at the Thinky Game awards though, so the odds aren’t looking likely …
I'm seeing this reaction to Highguard's studio downscaling everywhere, and it makes me realize how most players don't have any idea how much games cost and how much they make.
"Just keep it running, it could be profitable eventually!"
or it could burn more cash and doom the other employees.
"Just keep it running, it could be profitable eventually!"
or it could burn more cash and doom the other employees.
February 12, 2026 at 8:08 AM
I'm seeing this reaction to Highguard's studio downscaling everywhere, and it makes me realize how most players don't have any idea how much games cost and how much they make.
"Just keep it running, it could be profitable eventually!"
or it could burn more cash and doom the other employees.
"Just keep it running, it could be profitable eventually!"
or it could burn more cash and doom the other employees.
So, they really did want to shadow drop that game, the Game Awards was a bonus.
It did create mystery and attracted crowds on launch, but the lack of pre-release feedback will definitely hurt them more unless they release quick updates (a mode above 3v3 for instance)
kotaku.com/highguard-ga...
It did create mystery and attracted crowds on launch, but the lack of pre-release feedback will definitely hurt them more unless they release quick updates (a mode above 3v3 for instance)
kotaku.com/highguard-ga...
January 26, 2026 at 8:44 PM
So, they really did want to shadow drop that game, the Game Awards was a bonus.
It did create mystery and attracted crowds on launch, but the lack of pre-release feedback will definitely hurt them more unless they release quick updates (a mode above 3v3 for instance)
kotaku.com/highguard-ga...
It did create mystery and attracted crowds on launch, but the lack of pre-release feedback will definitely hurt them more unless they release quick updates (a mode above 3v3 for instance)
kotaku.com/highguard-ga...
Ubisoft number 1 problem is that it has lost its capacity to ship game efficiently, and it seems like the top management isn’t even trying to course correct. Will there be deep dive audits to understand how all these projects can be behind schedule all at once? How is this even possible
January 21, 2026 at 10:22 PM
Ubisoft number 1 problem is that it has lost its capacity to ship game efficiently, and it seems like the top management isn’t even trying to course correct. Will there be deep dive audits to understand how all these projects can be behind schedule all at once? How is this even possible
2026 is still the year of Drop Duchy !
Drop Duchy is coming to new platforms 🏰
Featuring ALL additional content, the Complete Edition launches digitally on Xbox & Xbox Game Pass on January 28, and on PlayStation 5 & Nintendo Switch in Spring 2026!
Featuring ALL additional content, the Complete Edition launches digitally on Xbox & Xbox Game Pass on January 28, and on PlayStation 5 & Nintendo Switch in Spring 2026!
January 20, 2026 at 5:03 PM
2026 is still the year of Drop Duchy !
Drop Duchy is finalists for Strategy game of the year at the DICE awards, wtf
www.interactive.org/awards/29th_...
www.interactive.org/awards/29th_...
29th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards Finalists Revealed
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) is pleased to announce the nominees for its 29th Annual D.I.C.E. Awards (#DICEAwards), the video game industry’s premier awards show, with winners sel...
www.interactive.org
January 8, 2026 at 8:28 PM
Drop Duchy is finalists for Strategy game of the year at the DICE awards, wtf
www.interactive.org/awards/29th_...
www.interactive.org/awards/29th_...
The story behind this must be crazy.
Announcing a game with a single cinematic trailer, no info anywhere (not even the Steam page has details), no gameplay, no screenshots
Are they rushing the release because they’re going bankrupt but the game awards thing was planned long time ago?
Announcing a game with a single cinematic trailer, no info anywhere (not even the Steam page has details), no gameplay, no screenshots
Are they rushing the release because they’re going bankrupt but the game awards thing was planned long time ago?
‘Highguard’ Is MIA Since The Game Awards, Despite Its Imminent Release
www.forbes.com/sites/paulta...
www.forbes.com/sites/paulta...
January 6, 2026 at 7:01 PM
The story behind this must be crazy.
Announcing a game with a single cinematic trailer, no info anywhere (not even the Steam page has details), no gameplay, no screenshots
Are they rushing the release because they’re going bankrupt but the game awards thing was planned long time ago?
Announcing a game with a single cinematic trailer, no info anywhere (not even the Steam page has details), no gameplay, no screenshots
Are they rushing the release because they’re going bankrupt but the game awards thing was planned long time ago?
The Steam replay is the depressing annual reminder that players do not purchase new games and stick to the very few they already know
December 16, 2025 at 8:50 PM
The Steam replay is the depressing annual reminder that players do not purchase new games and stick to the very few they already know
To add insult to injury, the default Steam Deck settings (which you can’t change) look truly awful when you can find on the web some console config that makes it look much better (at the cost of dropping to 28 FPS occasionally).
But hey, the game’s great right ?
But hey, the game’s great right ?
Valve when indies try to make their game Steam Deck verified: « this text is font size 10, we require making them to be 11 minimum »
Valve after E33 makes an update to « improve some texts legibility » (taking them from 5 to 6): « here’s your well-deserved green badge »
(Yes I’m salty)
Valve after E33 makes an update to « improve some texts legibility » (taking them from 5 to 6): « here’s your well-deserved green badge »
(Yes I’m salty)
December 15, 2025 at 7:29 AM
To add insult to injury, the default Steam Deck settings (which you can’t change) look truly awful when you can find on the web some console config that makes it look much better (at the cost of dropping to 28 FPS occasionally).
But hey, the game’s great right ?
But hey, the game’s great right ?
Valve when indies try to make their game Steam Deck verified: « this text is font size 10, we require making them to be 11 minimum »
Valve after E33 makes an update to « improve some texts legibility » (taking them from 5 to 6): « here’s your well-deserved green badge »
(Yes I’m salty)
Valve after E33 makes an update to « improve some texts legibility » (taking them from 5 to 6): « here’s your well-deserved green badge »
(Yes I’m salty)
December 13, 2025 at 9:06 AM
Valve when indies try to make their game Steam Deck verified: « this text is font size 10, we require making them to be 11 minimum »
Valve after E33 makes an update to « improve some texts legibility » (taking them from 5 to 6): « here’s your well-deserved green badge »
(Yes I’m salty)
Valve after E33 makes an update to « improve some texts legibility » (taking them from 5 to 6): « here’s your well-deserved green badge »
(Yes I’m salty)
Merci pour l'invitation sur Point'n Think pour parler de Drop Duchy, toujous un plaisir de parler de la production du jeu (spoiler: ça s'est bien passé, faut le dire aussi quand c'est cool)
podcast.ausha.co/point-n-thin...
podcast.ausha.co/point-n-thin...
RIP #5 | Drop Duchy | Ausha
Dans ce nouvel épisode de RIP, Inksushi revient sur la production et la sortie de Drop Duchy avec le créateur du studio Sleepy Mill Studio. Jeu hybride mélangeant stratégie, deck building et roguelite...
podcast.ausha.co
December 5, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Merci pour l'invitation sur Point'n Think pour parler de Drop Duchy, toujous un plaisir de parler de la production du jeu (spoiler: ça s'est bien passé, faut le dire aussi quand c'est cool)
podcast.ausha.co/point-n-thin...
podcast.ausha.co/point-n-thin...
People over here and on Reddit unanimously react by saying « no it’s you, your games are bad, always the same formula!! » but it’s the truth.
Ubisoft used to thrive on games that weren’t super great or original but had enough quantity to be attractive 10-15 years ago. This is their tragedy.
Ubisoft used to thrive on games that weren’t super great or original but had enough quantity to be attractive 10-15 years ago. This is their tragedy.
Ubisoft has warned of falling company revenues and said it's seen that "many new games are struggling to stand out" as players turn away from traditional full-price releases. bit.ly/4r1gMQd
November 20, 2025 at 8:25 AM
People over here and on Reddit unanimously react by saying « no it’s you, your games are bad, always the same formula!! » but it’s the truth.
Ubisoft used to thrive on games that weren’t super great or original but had enough quantity to be attractive 10-15 years ago. This is their tragedy.
Ubisoft used to thrive on games that weren’t super great or original but had enough quantity to be attractive 10-15 years ago. This is their tragedy.
Life has been so surreal since this game comes out, it’s not a big hit but getting such recognition is truly awesome!
Drop Duchy by Sleepy Mill Studio wins Excellence in Game Design! 🎮
November 8, 2025 at 10:55 AM
Life has been so surreal since this game comes out, it’s not a big hit but getting such recognition is truly awesome!
Maybe I'm just old but I find it annoying when roguelites conceal their ending condition for ... mystery? I'm ok with mysteries & secret endings but playing CloverPit right now and having to look on reddit for "the dev said on stream that it triggers when.." doesn't sit right to me.
November 2, 2025 at 1:34 PM
Maybe I'm just old but I find it annoying when roguelites conceal their ending condition for ... mystery? I'm ok with mysteries & secret endings but playing CloverPit right now and having to look on reddit for "the dev said on stream that it triggers when.." doesn't sit right to me.
My gaming pet peeve is journalists/Linkedin influencers who use the annual number of Steam releases to make dramatic articles about the state of gaming, without doing any research to back their claims with actual data.
Sorry, I love the guy and his books/articles, but not this one...
Sorry, I love the guy and his books/articles, but not this one...
September 27, 2025 at 12:16 PM
My gaming pet peeve is journalists/Linkedin influencers who use the annual number of Steam releases to make dramatic articles about the state of gaming, without doing any research to back their claims with actual data.
Sorry, I love the guy and his books/articles, but not this one...
Sorry, I love the guy and his books/articles, but not this one...
Publisher ghosting is a real annoyance in the gaming industry but after releasing Drop Duchy, I discovered something even worse: people who reach out to you for interviews/partnerships/events/etc and then stop responding after you said you’re interested. Why contact me in the first place then?
September 17, 2025 at 6:47 AM
Publisher ghosting is a real annoyance in the gaming industry but after releasing Drop Duchy, I discovered something even worse: people who reach out to you for interviews/partnerships/events/etc and then stop responding after you said you’re interested. Why contact me in the first place then?
Ok, the game is extremely anticipated, people would have paid any amount for it and that’s awesome for Team Cherry.
But worshipping them like they’re some sort of industry saviors for not selling it for a higher price??? Yeah, that’s going to far imo
But worshipping them like they’re some sort of industry saviors for not selling it for a higher price??? Yeah, that’s going to far imo
August 30, 2025 at 1:42 PM
Ok, the game is extremely anticipated, people would have paid any amount for it and that’s awesome for Team Cherry.
But worshipping them like they’re some sort of industry saviors for not selling it for a higher price??? Yeah, that’s going to far imo
But worshipping them like they’re some sort of industry saviors for not selling it for a higher price??? Yeah, that’s going to far imo
This.
I’d go even further and say that when you’re the most anticipated game of the year, you shouldn’t go with a « let’s get all the Gamescom attention on us » strategy.
You can do it at anytime and get the same results, while others have this one silver bullet to thrive.
I’d go even further and say that when you’re the most anticipated game of the year, you shouldn’t go with a « let’s get all the Gamescom attention on us » strategy.
You can do it at anytime and get the same results, while others have this one silver bullet to thrive.
Great policy from Ysbryd there! However, perhaps at some point the club of the very cool, very expected indie games could start having a bit of solidarity with their fellow devs and stop surprise releasing their games.
Surprise launches aren’t fun for indie devs. They’re destructive and useless!
Surprise launches aren’t fun for indie devs. They’re destructive and useless!
This was not our choice but we understand why the choice was made. We aren't mad at Ysbryd but at the situation. Dropping the GTA of indie games with 2 weeks notice makes everyone freak out. Ysbryd is being a good partner and paying for the delay. We're sorry this is happening.
August 26, 2025 at 6:46 AM
This.
I’d go even further and say that when you’re the most anticipated game of the year, you shouldn’t go with a « let’s get all the Gamescom attention on us » strategy.
You can do it at anytime and get the same results, while others have this one silver bullet to thrive.
I’d go even further and say that when you’re the most anticipated game of the year, you shouldn’t go with a « let’s get all the Gamescom attention on us » strategy.
You can do it at anytime and get the same results, while others have this one silver bullet to thrive.
I've been playing Skull & Bones a lot lately for... huh... research... and I've never seen anything like it.
There are so many mechanics, so much content, but the game doesn't seem at all interested in onboarding the player. Everything is just ... overwhelming?
There are so many mechanics, so much content, but the game doesn't seem at all interested in onboarding the player. Everything is just ... overwhelming?
July 14, 2025 at 10:02 AM
I've been playing Skull & Bones a lot lately for... huh... research... and I've never seen anything like it.
There are so many mechanics, so much content, but the game doesn't seem at all interested in onboarding the player. Everything is just ... overwhelming?
There are so many mechanics, so much content, but the game doesn't seem at all interested in onboarding the player. Everything is just ... overwhelming?
Bruhh
Drop Duchy - Any% in 6:36 by rokuiti
Drop Duchy - Any% in 6:36 by rokuiti
www.speedrun.com
June 4, 2025 at 5:21 PM
Bruhh
LinkedIn influencers are unironically sharing this advice all day long, using Clair Obscur and Balatro as proofs that the strategy 100% work
free advice for game developers: try to make the next smash hit video game, such as grand theft auto. if you do, you'll be making more than just a video game – you'll be making millions of dollars
June 1, 2025 at 8:57 AM
LinkedIn influencers are unironically sharing this advice all day long, using Clair Obscur and Balatro as proofs that the strategy 100% work
The game works much better than I anticipated, and all I can think about is that I have to redo all my plans for the studio now…
May 17, 2025 at 3:46 PM
The game works much better than I anticipated, and all I can think about is that I have to redo all my plans for the studio now…
Even if I'm not fond of the concept of noting games, I've got to admit that waking up to this makes me proud
www.metacritic.com/game/drop-du...
www.metacritic.com/game/drop-du...
May 6, 2025 at 8:13 AM
Even if I'm not fond of the concept of noting games, I've got to admit that waking up to this makes me proud
www.metacritic.com/game/drop-du...
www.metacritic.com/game/drop-du...