http://numberless.net/blog a place to think! Tue, 19 Aug 2008 20:07:51 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en As I mentioned in my last post, next month's Escapist game is a board game called "omg hire me." It's about the mundanity of job searching, and specifically about the "loop" practiced during this process. Unlike some of my other titles, the game design is not straightforward. As is typical ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/08/19/im-working-on-omg-hire-me/ Attending WordCamp seems like as good a time as any to start posting here again. I fell off the wagon a bit recently -- new jobs tend to have that effect -- but I hope to get back in the habit of musing about game design. Starting... later. I'm still publishing ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/08/16/im-at-wordcamp-its-time-to-update-my-blog/ Horrible visual design, and lack of consistency with OS X interface elements aside, Firefox 3 is an abomination of a release, with an ever-growing list of aggravating usability issues noticeable on day one. These aren't simply growing pains. These are features that worked fine in FF2 gone completely AWOL, in ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/06/20/firefox-3-is-a-usability-nightmare/ As always, Dr. Ian Bogost rocked the house at the Social Gaming Summit last week. Speaking on the first panel of the day, Ian discussed the potency of playing a character who is "us, but also slightly not us." The comment was made in reference to area/code's Parking Wars, where players ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/06/19/mundanity-in-game-design/ And I mean that in two entirely different ways. Last week I attended the Social Gaming Summit, the latest event to focus on a growing sector of the game industry. The term "social games" is actually a slight misnomer -- referring to games built on social networks (eg: Scrabulous, Parking ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/06/19/social-games-are-big/ Over at LinkedIn, former PlayFirst lead Chris Bennett posted the following question: Those of you who use Facebook regularly; think about the games you have played. What has been missing from those games to make them a rich and meaningful experience for you and your friends? How could a Facebook game ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/06/11/whats-missing-from-facebook-games/ Last week was a busy one for me over at Escapist Magazine. Not only did my latest game get published, but my first feature column for the site did as well. I'm pleased with both (thought admittedly more excited about the game). Now available to play is You Have to Lock ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/06/10/new-game-and-new-feature-at-the-escapist/ Busy month. It feels like I just returned from France, and in two days I'm moving to San Francisco (that's right, potential employers, moving to San Francisco). In between those major transitions, I completed two non-digital games and a pretty nifty Off the Grid. It's probably why I haven't started ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/04/21/two-more-games-and-some-thoughts-on-risk/ I figured it out! All by myself! If you're confused, then you need to go play You Have to Burn the Rope. And read about it here and here. And watch a teaser trailer here. It's a simple, super-short platforming game with one boss, and the secret to beating him is ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/04/16/i-know-why-you-have-to-burn-the-rope-is-so-satisfying/ It's time to get your vote on, because area/code's Sharkrunners has been nominated for a Webby Award in the Games category! Sharkrunners is a real-time, browser-based game developed for Discovery Channel's Shark Week. Players take on the roles of daring shark researchers, and take their crews out on the open seas ... http://numberless.net/blog/2008/04/09/sharkrunners-was-nominated-for-a-webby/