Me when someone is playtesting and they let out an exasperated sigh.

A fantastic example from @hytale.bsky.social, showing how you do not need pages and pages of documentation to introduce new tools. All you need is a 21 second video, and off users can go: www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lzK...

Me when someone is playtesting and they let out an exasperated sigh.

Calculating forward ROI is generally easy. We have 100 bugs, how much can we cut that down with how much effort? Calculating backward ROI is generally hard. We have 10 bugs, but we spend a lot of time preventing them. If we spent less time, how many more bugs would we get?

Bringing this list over to Bsky for those affected by the Epic layoffs, and those hiring. docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

Especially in these times of more and more layoffs, you have to make sure your portfolio is easy to find, easy to access, and linked in both your bio as well as in your posts about looking for work. Please, please, please, link your portfolio!!

Thus of ould, thus now

Temp assets should be as obvious as error'd assets

Temp assets should be as obvious as error'd assets

The cherry blossoms are blooming, which means the entirety of Amsterdam has descended onto a single park!

Someday I should start my talks like Troy McClure: "Hi, I am Robin-Yann Storm. You may know me from talks such as "Keeping Level Designers in the Zone Through Level Editor Design" and "Gyms, Zoos, and Museums: Your documentation should be in-game"."

When giving advice, I think it's important to differentiate between what can be taught, and what needs to be experienced It's like giving someone a recipe for cooking. They can follow all instructions, and the cake may just be ok. They have to get experience to make it better, which just takes time

Always gotta check the reviews on a hotel before booking, but jeez some people leave the worst reviews. "Price was great, location perfect, but no fish at breakfast and the TV did not have Netflix, 3/5" I just need to know if the bed was fine, the service good, and the location nice. That's it.

Every year we see talks at conferences where game developers say: "We overscoped. That was a mistake." Then new games get made, and halfway through a director will say: "...what if we changed our core features?" It's nuts that in 2026 we still need reminders to 'stick to scope'

I spent some of this week making an I/O system for level scripting in Unreal for @sleightofhand.game! I have long had thoughts on why these kick ass. Here's an unusually long blog post on: -why these kick ass -why they are necessary -how mine works -etc etc www.joewintergreen.com/i-o-systems-...

A good time to link what I wrote about this last year: rystorm.com/blog/this-is... With one section highlighted in particular:

This reminds me of developers saying immersion breaking yellow paint is required because players don't follow instructions. Go play some HL2 with the commentary nodes on. "We placed this geometry and this light, so players moved in that direction." The answer isnt yellow paint. It's better design.

MISSING! HELP! I am looking for the playing card deck from GDC 2020! It was printed but the show was cancelled. I have heard rumors that they gave them away but I've never seen one and no one on GDC staff has a set. I'm in it and want to complete my set! Let's bring my card home! To me!

A 14 second gif is all you need to understand why your level editor should have grid types, grid scaling, and grid rotation. It’s what makes your level design easier, and more unique.

The worst one of these that I keep seeing, over and over, is someone saying they’re looking for a job, with no portfolio link. And also no portfolio link in their bio. If someone has to chase down your portfolio, they won’t. The 40 reposts you just got have been useless. Link. Your. Portfolio.

Arrested Development was a documentary.

A 14 second gif is all you need to understand why your level editor should have grid types, grid scaling, and grid rotation. It’s what makes your level design easier, and more unique.

My video about Gyms, Zoos, and Museums for in-game documentation now has 100.000 views! Thank you so much to everyone who watched it, told me that it has helped them, said hi to me at GDC when they recognized me from this video! www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PJR...

Great thread about why debug commands are so important for game development, and not just for debugging!

At GDC I sat down with two students for 40 minutes so they could ask me any questions they had about the game industry. It was very helpful for them, for which I'm glad. They then asked me why I took the time to sit down with them in that busy week. It's because folks did that for me 15 years ago.

Death to business cards. Just have a QR code as the background of your phone, and connecting becomes fast & easy.

you don't have to go all the way to gdc to do so, but i must stress in 2026: meet your mutuals

There’s a bit of discourse around the size of #gdc2026 this year, and I do want to make one thing clear: the lower price point WORKED. The 30-40% first timers was AMAZING. It added SUCH an energy to the event. People just walking up and introducing themselves and creating new connections #gamedev

The older I get the less sense job titles make. Sooner or later I'll be talking to an associate senior staff producer IV¾

Youtube thumbnails from ancient times

Uuuuh should I be worried?

Generally an issue still, again and again at GDC and other conferences, is that people talk about “AI” without clarifying what kind. ML? LLMs? NPCs? You gotta be specific! I wrote about this a while ago: rystorm.com/blog/this-is... The history of the term “AI” in games has always been confusing.

Buenísimo este vídeo de @rystorm.com sobre gimnasios, zoos y museos www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PJR...

This is a very fun colour game to play. I think there is genuinely something to having played many quick reaction games, such as FPS, that require contrast to be important. My eyes feel trained to do this.

Please watch out for Akira slides.

Godot stays winning (Also just generally at GDC I hear of way more folks that are using it than previous years, and Godot foundation folks are present too to answer their questions!)

I have been meaning to make some in-engine documentation but I kept getting sidetracked. Anyway, I made something quick and simple because it's handy for going from blockout -> decor and for some reason the artists can't read my mind!!?! I hope @rystorm.com is proud.

I know enough engineers to understand all tech is trans tech

The worst one of these that I keep seeing, over and over, is someone saying they’re looking for a job, with no portfolio link. And also no portfolio link in their bio. If someone has to chase down your portfolio, they won’t. The 40 reposts you just got have been useless. Link. Your. Portfolio.

What if I told you this is what usually happens and most cases of not being majority-blueprint are because someone is an idiot

Due to a bunch of demand, and many system designers preferring to read rather than watch, here is a text version of my analysis of the Trial System in ARC Raiders (and other incentives in game development) rystorm.com/blog/the-sys... I hope this clarifies a bunch of the threads from this morning.

Back again at GDC! And the first stroopwafels have been given away! Get them while they last!

I’m riding some public transport in SF today, in the spirit of seeing what @idothethinking.bsky.social is often talking about, and my main takeaway is: SF public transport is LOUD! The bart metro is deafening inside, and the muni bus feels like it has zero shock absorbers, as if it’s rattling apart

When I first read about 'lunch in the park' as an addition to the GDC pass I was so worried it would mean fences in the park. I even warned some folks that they should 100% not do that because it would be a mess if they did. I really hope this somehow works out, but... fences man, what the hell.

Doing some light shopping

Remember that giant shopping mall next to Moscone where people would sometimes eat or watch a movie during GDC? It’s fully closed down. Boarded up. You can only see a sign saying “San Francisco Centre” with black boarded up windows below it. I know writers who use subtext, and they’re all cowards.

I am also hosting the OpenUSD Roundtables again, on Monday in room 306 and Wednesday in room 308!

For those heading to GDC, you can find me there again this year hosting the Tool Design Roundtables! Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday in Room 306 of the South hall.

Just thinking about this again these past two days The exact same game can succeed or fail based on whether the people jumping in are getting the game they expected A lot of the wrong players -- players that won't like it -- jumping in to play is really gonna color perception of that game.