John Rudolph Drexler
@johnrudolphdrexler.com
Laravel and Product Management: Thunk.dev
I also make games: Catacombian.com
NYC (by way of St. Louis, Chattanooga, Jakarta, & Oakland)
I also make games: Catacombian.com
NYC (by way of St. Louis, Chattanooga, Jakarta, & Oakland)
Most games simulate some real life scenario. So how do you decide which parts of the real world to represent in game mechanisms? This is where the real artistry of game design comes into play. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/13-...
Notes on Play | 13: Less is more in simulation games
Most games simulate some real world scenario. So how do you decide which parts of the real world to represent in game mechanisms? This is where the real artistry of game design comes to light.
notesonplay.transistor.fm
November 14, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Most games simulate some real life scenario. So how do you decide which parts of the real world to represent in game mechanisms? This is where the real artistry of game design comes into play. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/13-...
Our pal @calebporzio.bsky.social stopped by to do a retrospective on what went well, and what we'll do differently next time at Wire:live. Lots of lulz podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/79-...
Talking Businessly | 79: The wire:live retro (empaneling Caleb Porzio)
Our dear friend Caleb Porzio drops by for some laughs, and a retrospective on Wire:live. We discuss what went well, what could improve, and what we'll do differently next time.
podcast.thunk.dev
November 12, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Our pal @calebporzio.bsky.social stopped by to do a retrospective on what went well, and what we'll do differently next time at Wire:live. Lots of lulz podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/79-...
After each play test of my games, I have dozens of half baked notes on what to fix next. But which changes do I actually make before the next test? As always, the answer is to break it down into problem statements. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/12-...
Notes on Play | 12: Problem-centered design
Between each iteration of my game, I'll have dozens of ideas. But which do I actually implement? I find it extremely helpful to break my ideas down into problem statements, and then focus on just s...
notesonplay.transistor.fm
November 7, 2025 at 1:19 PM
After each play test of my games, I have dozens of half baked notes on what to fix next. But which changes do I actually make before the next test? As always, the answer is to break it down into problem statements. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/12-...
Honored to have @mattstauffer.com on the podcast! @tighten.com has been a model for us in so many ways, so we grilled Matt with questions about how to build a great team, hiring senior devs, and strategy / differentiation. podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/78-...
Talking Businessly | 78: Empaneling Matt Stauffer
Matt runs Tighten, and is a kind of big brother to us. We ask him about running agencies, building teams, hiring senior developers, and a lot more. Watch his new Laracast series
podcast.thunk.dev
November 6, 2025 at 12:39 PM
Honored to have @mattstauffer.com on the podcast! @tighten.com has been a model for us in so many ways, so we grilled Matt with questions about how to build a great team, hiring senior devs, and strategy / differentiation. podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/78-...
Project-based estimates/pricing are a bet that someone necessarily loses. Either we overestimate and the client overpays, or we underestimate and get hosed. Total misalignment of incentives. Trust is difficult to build.
That's why we have always and will always bill hourly.
That's why we have always and will always bill hourly.
November 6, 2025 at 12:13 PM
Project-based estimates/pricing are a bet that someone necessarily loses. Either we overestimate and the client overpays, or we underestimate and get hosed. Total misalignment of incentives. Trust is difficult to build.
That's why we have always and will always bill hourly.
That's why we have always and will always bill hourly.
I ate at this sushi restaurant weekly. Incredible service. Outstanding reviews. Packed every night. They decided to retire, and shut the business down at its peak. So contrary to the conventional American wisdom of selling / milking profits with declining quality. Kind of beautiful.
November 5, 2025 at 11:07 PM
I ate at this sushi restaurant weekly. Incredible service. Outstanding reviews. Packed every night. They decided to retire, and shut the business down at its peak. So contrary to the conventional American wisdom of selling / milking profits with declining quality. Kind of beautiful.
The wildest part is that even if Sliwa or Cuomo had dropped out, he still would have won. The people have spoken loud and clear.
November 5, 2025 at 3:27 PM
The wildest part is that even if Sliwa or Cuomo had dropped out, he still would have won. The people have spoken loud and clear.
So funny to watch non-NYers crashing out on twitter about the mayor of a city they never visit, whose policies will in no way affect them, who got over 1M votes from the people he actually represents.
November 5, 2025 at 3:19 PM
So funny to watch non-NYers crashing out on twitter about the mayor of a city they never visit, whose policies will in no way affect them, who got over 1M votes from the people he actually represents.
Back to our regularly scheduled program
November 1, 2025 at 4:54 PM
Back to our regularly scheduled program
The further you get from the southern border, the more brazen white people get about putting random foods in a tortilla and calling it a taco.
October 30, 2025 at 4:19 PM
The further you get from the southern border, the more brazen white people get about putting random foods in a tortilla and calling it a taco.
Reposted by John Rudolph Drexler
Livewire v4 beta has been tagged! Go forth ⚡️ github.com/livewire/liv...
Docs can be found here livewire.laravel.com/docs/4.x/upg...
Docs can be found here livewire.laravel.com/docs/4.x/upg...
Release v4.0.0-beta.1 · livewire/livewire
Livewire v4 beta release ⚡️
We’re excited to announce the first beta release of Livewire v4!
This version brings major improvements, internal rewrites, and new features. Things are still in progres...
github.com
October 28, 2025 at 10:17 PM
Livewire v4 beta has been tagged! Go forth ⚡️ github.com/livewire/liv...
Docs can be found here livewire.laravel.com/docs/4.x/upg...
Docs can be found here livewire.laravel.com/docs/4.x/upg...
We’re live! … wire:live 😏
October 28, 2025 at 1:35 PM
We’re live! … wire:live 😏
Distribution is harder than making things. I printed 1500 games, then sold 600 via kickstarter, conventions, connections, friends, and family. So how they heck do I sell the other 900? notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/11-...
Notes on Play | 11: Distribution is harder than making things
I've got a great game with great reviews. So how the heck do I get it onto shelves? Here's everything I've tried.
notesonplay.transistor.fm
October 24, 2025 at 1:11 PM
Distribution is harder than making things. I printed 1500 games, then sold 600 via kickstarter, conventions, connections, friends, and family. So how they heck do I sell the other 900? notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/11-...
"AI types fast. So if you think work is typing, it seems really productive."
- (paraphrasing) @coulb.com
- (paraphrasing) @coulb.com
October 23, 2025 at 6:35 PM
"AI types fast. So if you think work is typing, it seems really productive."
- (paraphrasing) @coulb.com
- (paraphrasing) @coulb.com
We missed a couple weeks. And this episode explains why 😓 podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/77-...
Talking Businessly | 77: Silly season takes no prisoners
Our biggest client had a problem. We tried to get out in front of it, with mixed success. Here's what we learned. Join the new social game here. Listen to John's clickbait episode about it here.
podcast.thunk.dev
October 20, 2025 at 9:07 PM
We missed a couple weeks. And this episode explains why 😓 podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/77-...
Ok link is live. Game will run mon-fri this week, and you can join late! Start a team, coordinate, build an empire, lie, cheat, steal. thesocialgame.gg/games/370174...
October 18, 2025 at 1:45 PM
Ok link is live. Game will run mon-fri this week, and you can join late! Start a team, coordinate, build an empire, lie, cheat, steal. thesocialgame.gg/games/370174...
I'm building an online "board game" that can accommodate hundreds of players at once. If you want to test it with us next week, join the discord! (link below) notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/10-...
Notes on Play | 10: A board game with hundreds of players
Play the new prototype with us by joining our discord! I built a game that feels like a board game, but is secretly a social game that requires collaboration, deception, and communication.
notesonplay.transistor.fm
October 17, 2025 at 2:06 PM
I'm building an online "board game" that can accommodate hundreds of players at once. If you want to test it with us next week, join the discord! (link below) notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/10-...
Reposted by John Rudolph Drexler
David Simon, creator of ‘The Wire’, being interviewed by Ari Shapiro (NPR)
October 9, 2025 at 4:42 AM
David Simon, creator of ‘The Wire’, being interviewed by Ari Shapiro (NPR)
Games are complex. But there are good ways to communicate that complexity to players without overwhelming them. Shout out to one of my fav games 7 Wonders 🫶 notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/9-m...
Notes on Play | 9: Managing the player's cognitive load
How do you communicate complex rules to players? It's worth thinking about what kind of complexity you're communicating, how you communicate it, and when you communicate it. This episode has a coup...
notesonplay.transistor.fm
October 10, 2025 at 12:47 PM
Games are complex. But there are good ways to communicate that complexity to players without overwhelming them. Shout out to one of my fav games 7 Wonders 🫶 notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/9-m...
getting ads for both, and it's getting real confusing
October 9, 2025 at 9:35 PM
getting ads for both, and it's getting real confusing
AI is a miracle for programming. But it's horrible at creative work. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/8-a...
Notes on Play | 8: AI is horrible at game design
LLMs excel at churning out sugar free vanilla paste. That's great when you're writing code. And it's awful when you're doing creative work.
notesonplay.transistor.fm
October 3, 2025 at 12:16 PM
AI is a miracle for programming. But it's horrible at creative work. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/8-a...
I've been using Forge daily for years, so it means the world to me that I got to play a role in building this new generation. So proud of this team. Can't wait to see what people do with all these new tools.
Also this video is sick.
Also this video is sick.
This is the biggest update to server management since 2014.
◆ Instant Laravel VPS servers
◆ Zero downtime deployments
◆ Team terminal sessions
◆ Free on-forge domains
◆ Health checks, Heartbeats, & real-time metrics
◆ Instant Laravel VPS servers
◆ Zero downtime deployments
◆ Team terminal sessions
◆ Free on-forge domains
◆ Health checks, Heartbeats, & real-time metrics
October 1, 2025 at 1:39 PM
I've been using Forge daily for years, so it means the world to me that I got to play a role in building this new generation. So proud of this team. Can't wait to see what people do with all these new tools.
Also this video is sick.
Also this video is sick.
This is a fun one. Brainstorming the conference talks we want to give podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/76-...
Talking Businessly | 76: Pitching our next conference talks
We are busy as heck, with more work coming in. Forge launches this week. Wire:live is filling up fast. Listen to John's new game podcast. We brainstorm the next conference talks we want to give.
podcast.thunk.dev
September 30, 2025 at 6:15 PM
This is a fun one. Brainstorming the conference talks we want to give podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/76-...
This is the single most useful piece of game design advice I wish I had gotten 10 years ago. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/7-e...
Notes on Play | 7: Escape the mind palace
A game is only a game if it is playable. It is so hard for me to resist the temptation to retreat to the
notesonplay.transistor.fm
September 19, 2025 at 12:26 PM
This is the single most useful piece of game design advice I wish I had gotten 10 years ago. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/7-e...