I’m trying to generalize here, which is dangerous when it comes to puzzles. There are lots of puzzles that don’t fit this. But this fits a good number, so I’m going to try to generalize. #gamedesign #gaming

I debated using this verb family or using gather but I consider gather more of a goal than a verb in most uses - it’s a way to get you to move or build in certain ways, not an action you do on its own. #gamedesign #gaming

Buy verbs are easy to add even when they’re not part of the core loop. #gamedesign #gaming

Shhhh

I’m a big fan of the stacking things on top of other things genre of games. #gamedesign #gaming

Spoke with King of Dragon Pass designer David Dunham about Thousand Hells, his upcoming "tactical narrative" game that's aiming to make a new watermark for storytelling systems he formalized in the '90s: www.pcgamer.com/games/rpg/th...

Trying out a new format this week. Wish me luck! #gamedesign #gaming

I will be leading a session at #gamesforchange in a week or so. If you're in or near New York City on July 21-22, stop by! #g4c

I’d rather have them compare me to artists or professors than CEOs. #gaming #gamedesign

Experts can have fun doing a challenge quickly. New players can’t have fun with a really hard challenge they can’t even see. #gaming #gamedesign

Nice thread either way lots of nice games.

These are not meant to be master level puzzles, except maybe the Sunday crossword. #gaming #gamedesign

It’s hard to make people want things, but it’s easy to hook into things they already want. #gaming #gamedesign

I’m only showing one in the video today, but I’m grouping all the Linkedin Games together for the analysis this week. #gaming #gamedesign

Whew. Glad to hear this part.

If I was writing soccer, I would have the US men’s team voluntarily not play Balogun to show that they care more about the sport than just winning.

We raised our expectations of Matilda to one gold egg a month, she unfortunately did not achieve that goal. The farmer says one gold egg a year is the most realistic and sustainable pace. So today we’re gutting Matilda. We know the gold eggs are in there somewhere.

Converting multiplayer games into single-players games isn’t just crafting puzzles from the rule set, but it can be a solid start. #gaming #gamedesign #roblox

For games with simple rules and simple content, progression is often mastery. #gaming #gamedesign #roblox

Strong 1983 vibes

How players rate games gets complicated, so take my analysis here with a grain of salt. #gaming #gamedesign #roblox

Changing goals does have a cost, but it’s paid in player confusion and UI. #gaming #gamedesign #roblox

As a game designer, maybe we just need new sports. Any sport where there is a gender bias in success as a player is a bad game design.

This is kind of like a real-time strategy game with one type of unit and all the building is done for you. #gaming #gamedesign #roblox

Hard agree.

Understand your tolerance for free-to-play monetization and stick to your standards. #gaming #gamedesign

Maintaining the flow of content to keep a liveops game running at maximum efficiency is costly. #gaming #gamedesign

Even just target selection alone is interesting. There might be a nice casual space with a slightly simpler combat system and no player interaction other than target selection. #gaming #gamedesign

If you’re going to give me a lot of things I can collect, give me a reason to collect a lot of them. #gaming #gamedesign

I consider the core loop the thing that players do the most. But there can be tension between what it seems like players are supposed to do and what they actually do. #gaming #gamedesign

I make my students discuss this in their wtiteups for their student projects. I think it’s an important thing to recognize and think about when growing as a game designer. And if you’re not doing it, you’re not experimenting enough.

Let’s make converting cinematic tropes into interactive tropes the hot new gaming trend of 2026. Can someone do a good Scooby Doo hallway sequence game? #gaming #gamedesign

If James Bond is like a AAA console game that is always showing off top-tier new content to keep you engaged, old Star Trek or Dr Who is more of a roguelike - shuffle around the same easy to generate content but in interesting ways. #gaming #gamedesign

I always thought it odd that D&D gives XP for success and none for failure when reality does it the other way. #gaming #gamedesign

Explosions make everything better. Even tutorials. #gaming #gamedesign

The tutorial is the game; the game is the tutorial. #gaming #gamedesign

The Met put its entire collection online for free so I made a game out of it! 10 artifacts a day, and you guess where and when each one's from. Anthropeum.com if anyone wants to give it a shot and leave feedback :) #history #archeology #arthistory #museums

Dynamics are the ways that rules fit together to make something more. #gaming #gamedesign

This. A thousand times this. By which I mean I don’t understand why people don’t do it a billion dollars.

If you can’t think of six distinct ways to get through each level of your game, it might need more depth. #gaming #gamedesign

Are you a Pokémon Go player of any era who has feelings about how the game's data has been used? Has it soured your memories of the game? Have you stopped playing because of it? Would you want to chat about it for a Kotaku story? Please reach out here or email me at [email protected]

Nothing is more fun than watching your plans fall apart. #gaming #gamedesign

Logical deduction is fun! #gaming #gamedesign

I'm about to share a banger game idea that I just don't have the time or energy to pursue in the hopes it reaches the right audience. Think power wash simulator... Now replace cleaning interesting and iconic locations... With a laundry service cleaning and mending interesting and iconic outfits.

I remember the original Thief game. This feels a lot like it. Which makes sense, since some of the same people worked on it. #gaming #gamedesign

The devs who post process videos of boring stuff (shader debugging, UI polish, hit detection tuning) consistently get more traction than the ones who only post trailers. Players follow problems more than reveals. Not a rule, just a pattern I keep seeing. #indiedev #gamedev

A clear vision keeps a game focused. #gaming #gamedesign

What would it take to achieve high prosperity and equality while remaining within planetary boundaries? The World Inequality Lab is very excited to launch the #GlobalJusticeReport. [1/7]

Learning through failure is often the strongest learning. #gaming #gamedesign

Great example. The hard parts are often not the visible parts. Sometimes the hard part is making it invisible.