paul
@thecastlebuilder.bsky.social
he/they. perhaps not just another software guy. newbie ttrpg designer. I blog about video games and ttrpgs weekly
blog: https://thoughtsabout.games/
games: https://thecastlebuilder.itch.io/
blog: https://thoughtsabout.games/
games: https://thecastlebuilder.itch.io/
Reposted by paul
I just don't think we should accept without contest corporate-owned blackbox SaaS as infrastructural to society's childrearing
November 26, 2025 at 2:26 AM
I just don't think we should accept without contest corporate-owned blackbox SaaS as infrastructural to society's childrearing
This week's post is both rather long and uncharacteristically spoilerful. Still, it was helpful for me to attempt to hone my thoughts on Expedition 33's ending. Hope folks find something thought-provoking here!
Expedition 33 and Refusing to Let Go
thoughtsabout.games
November 25, 2025 at 7:34 AM
This week's post is both rather long and uncharacteristically spoilerful. Still, it was helpful for me to attempt to hone my thoughts on Expedition 33's ending. Hope folks find something thought-provoking here!
Reposted by paul
I used to handle interlibrary loans for a public library. ILL is a magnificent expression of the idea that readers deserve books, and books deserve readers. It’s libraries everywhere pooling their resources for the benefit of everyone.
Killing IMLS could have killed ILL.
This is great news. 📚
Killing IMLS could have killed ILL.
This is great news. 📚
Court permanently blocks Trump's executive order to dismantle federal agency for America's libraries IMLS
librarytechnology.org/pr/31973
librarytechnology.org/pr/31973
Court permanently blocks Trump's executive order to dismantle federal agency for America's libraries
Press Release: Court permanently blocks Trump's executive order to dismantle federal agency for America's libraries. The U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island struck down the Trump Adm...
librarytechnology.org
November 22, 2025 at 3:23 PM
I used to handle interlibrary loans for a public library. ILL is a magnificent expression of the idea that readers deserve books, and books deserve readers. It’s libraries everywhere pooling their resources for the benefit of everyone.
Killing IMLS could have killed ILL.
This is great news. 📚
Killing IMLS could have killed ILL.
This is great news. 📚
Reposted by paul
There's a lot to say about the Roblox CEO interview, and the right place to start is definitely his answers on children's safety, because that's kind of the fire that is hottest and closest.
However, I have to also say, the polymarket stuff is real 'summation of our neoliberal dumpster fire' shit.
However, I have to also say, the polymarket stuff is real 'summation of our neoliberal dumpster fire' shit.
November 21, 2025 at 6:40 PM
There's a lot to say about the Roblox CEO interview, and the right place to start is definitely his answers on children's safety, because that's kind of the fire that is hottest and closest.
However, I have to also say, the polymarket stuff is real 'summation of our neoliberal dumpster fire' shit.
However, I have to also say, the polymarket stuff is real 'summation of our neoliberal dumpster fire' shit.
I got to take this game for a whirl during my session of Heart today; I cut back and forth between the waking PCs on watch and the sleeping PC for whom an otherworldly force has come knocking.
The game has rough edges but it's totally viable and was great fun to play, I'll really enjoy refining it!
The game has rough edges but it's totally viable and was great fun to play, I'll really enjoy refining it!
As usual this needs some work, but my idea for Day 27 of #ttrpgpromptober: "Dreams/nightmares" felt like I was back in a groove! It's a generic campaign supplement for interludes where a PC dreams about future adventures and plays against their GM
link: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
link: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
#promptober Day 27 - Dreams/nightmares | Notion
Dream Sequence
thecastlebuilder.notion.site
November 21, 2025 at 1:23 AM
I got to take this game for a whirl during my session of Heart today; I cut back and forth between the waking PCs on watch and the sleeping PC for whom an otherworldly force has come knocking.
The game has rough edges but it's totally viable and was great fun to play, I'll really enjoy refining it!
The game has rough edges but it's totally viable and was great fun to play, I'll really enjoy refining it!
Technically I'm sliiiiightly late for my Monday blog post, but that's because I wrote a big ol' convention recap. This time with less capitalism! (I didn't buy anything).
It's wordy, but I hope it's also skimmable; please check it out and tell me if you have thoughts about the games I played!
It's wordy, but I hope it's also skimmable; please check it out and tell me if you have thoughts about the games I played!
KublaCon Fall 2025 Recap
thoughtsabout.games
November 18, 2025 at 8:11 AM
Technically I'm sliiiiightly late for my Monday blog post, but that's because I wrote a big ol' convention recap. This time with less capitalism! (I didn't buy anything).
It's wordy, but I hope it's also skimmable; please check it out and tell me if you have thoughts about the games I played!
It's wordy, but I hope it's also skimmable; please check it out and tell me if you have thoughts about the games I played!
Reposted by paul
RIP to a games industry pioneer and legend, Rebecca Heineman (@burgerbecky.bsky.social) If your unfamiliar, look her up. Her career is like the story of videogames itself.
November 18, 2025 at 3:01 AM
RIP to a games industry pioneer and legend, Rebecca Heineman (@burgerbecky.bsky.social) If your unfamiliar, look her up. Her career is like the story of videogames itself.
Reposted by paul
Two things can be true: 1.) The Game Awards are meaningless and we shouldn't take them all that seriously. 2.) Award shows of its scale DO rewrite the mainstream history of the art form, whether they deserve to or not, and its okay to care that it's so thoughtless despite having that responsibility.
November 17, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Two things can be true: 1.) The Game Awards are meaningless and we shouldn't take them all that seriously. 2.) Award shows of its scale DO rewrite the mainstream history of the art form, whether they deserve to or not, and its okay to care that it's so thoughtless despite having that responsibility.
I tragically couldn't fit this screencap into the post but it's too good not to share. This is campaign slogan material right here.
November 11, 2025 at 6:29 PM
I tragically couldn't fit this screencap into the post but it's too good not to share. This is campaign slogan material right here.
I'm back on Backtracking, my blogging project about working through the years and picking backlog games to finally get to. This time I played the cult hit The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay! thoughtsabout.games/blog/posts/b...
Backtracking: The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay (2004)
thoughtsabout.games
November 11, 2025 at 1:19 AM
I'm back on Backtracking, my blogging project about working through the years and picking backlog games to finally get to. This time I played the cult hit The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay! thoughtsabout.games/blog/posts/b...
I was surprised to find one of my free #ttrpg titles (available on itch) re-uploaded to Scribd, so I reported it for removal. But looking at the account, most of their uploads are random rpg materials like character sheets. Was reporting it an overreaction? Was there a valid reason to put it there?
November 10, 2025 at 5:41 PM
I was surprised to find one of my free #ttrpg titles (available on itch) re-uploaded to Scribd, so I reported it for removal. But looking at the account, most of their uploads are random rpg materials like character sheets. Was reporting it an overreaction? Was there a valid reason to put it there?
Reposted by paul
I'm still thinking about this show two years later.
October 19, 2025 at 8:51 PM
I'm still thinking about this show two years later.
Local bookstore chain is having a warehouse sale at one of their locations and the boxes are peppered with probably 20+copies of this book and I *have* to imagine that these were ordered because of a misreading North Carolina as Northern California
November 8, 2025 at 7:25 PM
Local bookstore chain is having a warehouse sale at one of their locations and the boxes are peppered with probably 20+copies of this book and I *have* to imagine that these were ordered because of a misreading North Carolina as Northern California
I've only worked in a couple of niche corners of the games industry (in software roles) but I constantly saw disdain and disrespect for QA folks, especially from leadership but also from engineers. It's viewed as an unskilled stepping-stone role, part of a hustle to advance into "real" contributions
Square Enix wants 70% of its QA work to be handled by generative AI by the end of 2027, in partnership with the University of Tokyo's Matsuo-Iwasawa Laboratory. https://bit.ly/4qKdyQR
November 6, 2025 at 6:00 PM
I've only worked in a couple of niche corners of the games industry (in software roles) but I constantly saw disdain and disrespect for QA folks, especially from leadership but also from engineers. It's viewed as an unskilled stepping-stone role, part of a hustle to advance into "real" contributions
Today's blog post is a little retrospective of the other thing I've been posting about incessantly this past month. Here's some stats, thoughts, and highlights from my #ttrpgpromptober posting last month! thoughtsabout.games/blog/posts/d...
TTRPG Promptober Retrospective
thoughtsabout.games
November 4, 2025 at 3:49 AM
Today's blog post is a little retrospective of the other thing I've been posting about incessantly this past month. Here's some stats, thoughts, and highlights from my #ttrpgpromptober posting last month! thoughtsabout.games/blog/posts/d...
Back to blogging weekly, I hope! I wrote a bit about how roguelite progression works (and works for me) and why Absolum's early hours are engaging me far more than Hades II's mid-to-late hours.
thoughtsabout.games/blog/posts/g...
thoughtsabout.games/blog/posts/g...
Pacing and Progression in Roguelites
thoughtsabout.games
October 27, 2025 at 9:43 PM
Back to blogging weekly, I hope! I wrote a bit about how roguelite progression works (and works for me) and why Absolum's early hours are engaging me far more than Hades II's mid-to-late hours.
thoughtsabout.games/blog/posts/g...
thoughtsabout.games/blog/posts/g...
Reposted by paul
New Side Story is up! Austin is joined first by Keith and Janine to talk Pokemon Legends: Z-A and then by Art, Dre, and Keith again to dig into roguelite beat-'em-up Absolum!
sidestory.show/15-the-mama-...
sidestory.show/15-the-mama-...
Side Story: 15: The Mama Button
This episode contains an extended conversation about the death of a pet. See the chapters below for time stamps. What makes a city good? Is it walkability? A wide variety of dining options? A good cha...
sidestory.show
October 21, 2025 at 10:53 PM
New Side Story is up! Austin is joined first by Keith and Janine to talk Pokemon Legends: Z-A and then by Art, Dre, and Keith again to dig into roguelite beat-'em-up Absolum!
sidestory.show/15-the-mama-...
sidestory.show/15-the-mama-...
I'm still deep in my game design daily challenge rabbit hole and I haven't played as much video games as lately, so I'm going to skip my weekly blog post today.
It's nice to post regularly just to practice getting thoughts out there, but anything I'd want to talk about this week is too half baked
It's nice to post regularly just to practice getting thoughts out there, but anything I'd want to talk about this week is too half baked
October 21, 2025 at 1:44 AM
I'm still deep in my game design daily challenge rabbit hole and I haven't played as much video games as lately, so I'm going to skip my weekly blog post today.
It's nice to post regularly just to practice getting thoughts out there, but anything I'd want to talk about this week is too half baked
It's nice to post regularly just to practice getting thoughts out there, but anything I'd want to talk about this week is too half baked
The blog post for this week is slightly indulgent, because as anyone watching this feed knows, I've been deep in the promptober mines. So, I went ahead and did a little brief commentary about how it's been going and some of the highlights so far!
thoughtsabout.games
October 14, 2025 at 3:57 AM
The blog post for this week is slightly indulgent, because as anyone watching this feed knows, I've been deep in the promptober mines. So, I went ahead and did a little brief commentary about how it's been going and some of the highlights so far!
played brief D&D campaigns (4e and 5e) in college, Call of Cthulhu with coworkers a few years later, then in 2018 stumbled onto @friends-table.bsky.social and was inspired to start GMing for some college buds! Dungeon World was the first game I ran, and FatT's output kept on expanding my taste
For tons of folks, there was that -one- game that blew the doors open and showed what #TTRPGs could be. The one that started the #IndieGame rabbit hole.
What was YOUR "gateway" indie #TTRPG? The first one that made you realize a whole other world was out there?
What was YOUR "gateway" indie #TTRPG? The first one that made you realize a whole other world was out there?
October 13, 2025 at 4:57 AM
played brief D&D campaigns (4e and 5e) in college, Call of Cthulhu with coworkers a few years later, then in 2018 stumbled onto @friends-table.bsky.social and was inspired to start GMing for some college buds! Dungeon World was the first game I ran, and FatT's output kept on expanding my taste
For my weekly blog post, I wrote about how Hades II is, despite it's many triumphs, far less daring than Supergiant's earlier work. I hope the praise in here doesn't come off as hedging; I really do believe that there's great stuff in Hades II! And yet, I yearn for something more experimental...
Hades II - The Safety of Sequels
thoughtsabout.games
October 7, 2025 at 5:56 AM
For my weekly blog post, I wrote about how Hades II is, despite it's many triumphs, far less daring than Supergiant's earlier work. I hope the praise in here doesn't come off as hedging; I really do believe that there's great stuff in Hades II! And yet, I yearn for something more experimental...
Reposted by paul
#ttrpgpromptober sorry that there's maybe nothing funnier to me today than someone illicitly gaining the powers of ROT CLARIFICATION and PROPHECY LUNG and GOSSAMER AMPLIFICATION and CHITIN NULLIFICATION and
October 3, 2025 at 12:01 AM
#ttrpgpromptober sorry that there's maybe nothing funnier to me today than someone illicitly gaining the powers of ROT CLARIFICATION and PROPHECY LUNG and GOSSAMER AMPLIFICATION and CHITIN NULLIFICATION and
If I keep writing Far Too Much™ I'd better make these actually available in text form, so I'm just gonna publish the notion pages:
day 1: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
day 2: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
day 1: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
day 2: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
I'm afraid that there's a good chance I'm gonna make a whole-ass game for each of these prompts. For day 2 of #ttrpgpromptober, I present to you: WORD WIZARDS
October 3, 2025 at 6:27 AM
If I keep writing Far Too Much™ I'd better make these actually available in text form, so I'm just gonna publish the notion pages:
day 1: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
day 2: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
day 1: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
day 2: thecastlebuilder.notion.site/promptober-D...
I'm terrible at keeping up with these daily-thing-for-a-month challenges but I also chicken out on posting them when I try, so maybe if I share then This Time Will Be Different
#Promptober is here! This time I included two free spaces, for people to make whatever they want (or to even take that day to rest). As usual, please use the #promptober or #ttrpgpromptober tags when you post! please also don't feel shy about tagging me in them so I can reskeet.
October 2, 2025 at 5:31 AM
I'm terrible at keeping up with these daily-thing-for-a-month challenges but I also chicken out on posting them when I try, so maybe if I share then This Time Will Be Different
Reposted by paul
Tell your favorite artists you love their work
September 29, 2025 at 6:30 PM
Tell your favorite artists you love their work