I’ve been gone awhile because things have been very hard at home. I find myself at an unfathomable point, and my heart is absolutely broken. If you’re able to donate and share, my gratitude is deep. I never wanted to get here. Thank you for your consideration and assistance. gofund.me/0b0592ad0

it's been re-indexed! but keep up the calls to Stripe/Paypal/Visa/Mastercard, y'all! stop-paypros.neocities.org

Today I learned that a game I made in partnership with Jennifer Ann's Group has been de-indexed on Itch. A Thousand Cuts is a texting game - no other graphics, no depictions of human forms literally at all - about how hard it is to report sexual assault to Title IX adjudicators at universities.

here she is: my narrative portfolio!! 🥹 i’ve worked hard on her hehe. i’m so happy to have finally assembled her and to now be showing her off!! nataliecheco.carrd.co

if I weren't laughing (very darkly) I'd be crying my dudes

At least 6 people who worked on Double Exposure were present at GDC, but none of the ones who were laid off were contacted. I can't speculate on why D9 didn't send any representatives to accept the award at all, but it sure would've been nice if they'd had the opportunity to say something like this🤷

I wish so much that this acceptance speech could have been heard at the GDCAs last week. I support it 100%.

In this case, I would like to break the cycle and the silence on my own erasure. Since the night of the GDC Awards, I often think about what I would have said if I had been given the opportunity to speak. I think it would have been something like this:

I deleted my posts about The Award because several outlets have run stories that make it sound as if nobody who worked on the game was at gdc *at all* and have not quoted other devs who also talked about this, and one has unfounded rumors about whose fault this was or wasn't

richmond may have one of the worst postal systems in the country and a spotty record w/r/t running water, but at least we also have

just covered God of War + Senua's Sacrifice in class. meaning that if I had a nickel for every time in the last month that I taught a game about a traumatized person going to Hellheim while carrying a talking severed head, I'd have 2 nickels. which isn't a lot but it's weird that it happened twice.

it's been over 10 years since I was introduced to this song by the first Walking Dead game and I still cry every time it comes on. it feels particularly poignant right now tho youtu.be/fdq2Hy3WH6k?...

one of the delightful things about teaching again is that I can have serious conversations with students about games called stuff like "Dream Daddy," "Boyfriend Dungeon," "Don't Shit Your Pants," or "Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion"

no better example of the idiocy of search engine AI snippets than searching for a Shrek meme and being told that Shrek supported freedom of association in Belarus

Hey folks! My severance ends tomorrow and I’m still looking for contact work to tide me over until I can find a more permanent position! Hit me up!

If you slip Elisabeth Kübler-Ross a little cash she'll show you how to unlock the secret bonus stage of grief where you have to use your street fighting skills to demolish a car.

really apocalyptic to sit here looking at this from Richmond, VA, where a snowstorm knocked out power to the city pumps 2 days ago. the backup pump failed, then the entire IT infrastructure. we haven't had running water since. this includes hospitals. 2025 not looking good for climate change 🫠

really excited to be heading to GDC this year for the first time since 2019 - this time as part of the Pixelles Ensemble. let me know if you'll be around and would like to chat!

Hamzas grandmother is sick and needs money for medication and treatment 😪💔 if you’re able please send a few dollars their way

BIPOC game studies conference at the Rochester Museum of Play is looking for submissions. Deadline is soon!

Hello! as I have joined the ranks of the Laid Off, I am taking on new freelance writing/consulting work. I've written for the life is strange series, various homestuck properties, and magic the gathering. I am a lead writer and narrative designer with 8 years of dev experience.

watching this show as an Anne Rice reader is wild because the books go to the most insane places of any series I have ever read. I keep thinking "will this show get enough seasons that they cast Jesus and Satan? will Lestat indeed kiss his mom with tongue?"

finally started Interview With The Vampire. ended up bingeing it at record speed. I fear these queers have changed my brain chemistry forever

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The biggest waste of money I’ve seen in video game development, across many years and studios (not my current one - one of the reasons I wanted to work there), wasn’t on graphics. It was abruptly being told to throw out months or years of work bc one executive decided they didn’t like something.

I would really like to use this site to chat with friends/keep up with fellow game devs, but I feel like my ability to do so is limited until there's a private account feature

The studio leadership is going to be giving the PD their marching orders, often in the form of those strategic goals. If there's a publisher involved, that's where the studio leadership is likely getting those goals. The PD, then, ends up being the person who has to negotiate with everyone above.

Welp. I was among the folks laid off from Deck Nine Games today. I'm so very proud of the work our team did and the journey we had. And, hey, I'm looking for narrative work again. I have experience in AAA, indie, consulting, and more. I know things are tough now, but any leads are appreciated.

I’ve been hit with the gun that lays you off so… hello, I’m Aysha, I write for games. Experience with both indie and AAA, along with IP writing and worldbuilding. I’ve lead teams and i’m great in a room. Hit me up

if you work in the games industry - no matter what role or level - please consider getting a paid DeleteMe account. you truly *never* know what random-ass circumstances will lead to bad actors harassing the pants off everyone at your studio joindeleteme.com

haven't really decided if I want to be active on this site yet or not. idk. for years, twitter was a positive space for me to network, learn, and befriend ppl, but being public on the internet in really any sense now feels riskier and riskier, and the returns less meaningful and sincere

I wrote about Jezebel and the terrifying state of women’s media. www.thehandbasket.co/p/rip-jezebe...

I am begging everyone I know to read the diaries of Ziad, a Palestinian man who has been publishing his experiences of the bombings in the Guardian www.theguardian.com/global-devel...

for teaching kids + teens the basics of interactive narrative, I feel like Twine (with the Harlowe format) is still the best route...but are there better options? newer tools? would love to know others' opinions

hoping to use this space to be more thoughtful, more community-focused, more uplifting, more present. less spiteful, less doom spiral-y, less unfocused anger. we'll see if that sticks ✨