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Alex Johansson

@alexvscoding.bsky.social
188 followers 53 following 135 posts

Award winning experimental designer, educator and maker from Yorkshire. Advocate for approachable design, makes playful experiences for those marginalised by tech, most recently people with dementia. presskit.itch.io/alex-johansson-pre…

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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
The Merchant's Eden is sitting at "Mostly Positive" on Steam shortly after release, in part because it does not cater to expectations of established TD norms. Not to say it's without faults, but indies willing to step outside of norms in this bleak market is something I think should be celebrated.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
The best bit is that creative expression wasn't objective driven, I just fancied making my defences aesthetically pleasing, which when contrasted against a lot of of tower defence games that are highly punitive for anything less than optimal placement was a real breath of fresh air.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 17/08/2026
The Merchant's Eden is 100% my game of the year, The tension between needing to expand and optimise my settlement with preserving the historic charm of the winding streets, Mediterranean trees and leaving ample room for the foundations of my church was such a fun and refreshing challenge.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 06/08/2026
Telecommunicate, illuminate, eliminate. Learn the secret language of Morse Code and vanquish the advancing imperial fleet. #morsecode #hamradio #gamedev
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/06/2026
Hey folks! Weird request. I got featured in EDGE magazine issue #415 with MORSE, I had a friend send me a copy of it but it got lost in the mail. Does anyone have a copy they’d be willing to sell me? I’d really appreciate it ♥️
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 14/06/2026
Wired up three dutch pots ahead of my session tomorrow with local Caribbean people living with dementia at Memory Hub, very excited for the session! 🍲🦜 #dementia #altctrl
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 08/06/2026
Recently I've been designing games for people living locally with dementia, using familiar objects such as teapots, watering cans and walking sticks as the controllers to play with. The Sheffield Star covered the story today with a front page mention, which I'm very grateful for!
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 09/05/2026
Running alternative controller workshops with people living with dementia next month, for which I've worked with @nachimir.bsky.social to make crocodile clips for older hands: + Magnetic lead clamp for easy connection + Larger surface area so less fiddly to handle + Familiar form of a clothes peg
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Very excited to share that MORSE, my strategy game that teaches Morse Code got featured in RadCom, the UK's national Amateur Radio magazine! Always a thrill seeing the game in print, thanks to the RSGB for covering the project! #morse #morsecode #rsgb #hamradio #games
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Today is Morse Code day! This week the game is 20% off and I'll be updating the demo with a bunch of features to help with Amateur Radio outreach and plenty the polish. Read more about it here: store.steampowered.com/news/app/197... #hamradio #morse #gamedev #morsecode #morsecodeday
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 09/04/2026
Experimenting with turning warm teapots into games controllers for folks living with dementia : )
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 01/04/2026
Extremely excited to announce I've secured a partnership with @johnromero.bsky.social to bring the DOOMhandle to market, stay tuned for more details! 🔥🚪🔥 #doom #gamedev #games
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 28/03/2026
Doing a bold re-imagining of DOOM
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 21/03/2026
I am extremely excited to announce that MORSE now has 3 dedicated training modes to sharpen your telegraphy skills - Calibration, Speed and Listening! Really chuffed with how seamlessly these educational modes integrate into the game. #hamradio #screenshotsaturday #indiedev #gamedev #games #morse
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Connected up this little fella to the Teaspoon Telegraph 💧 #hamradio #games #morsecode
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/03/2026
More videogames should be controlled with wizard staffs
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 06/03/2026
Here's a preview of one of MORSE's 3 new training modes: Test your ability recognising the sound of letters in Morse Code. Update arriving next week! 👂⚫ ⚫◼️ ⚫◼️⚫ #hamradio #morsecode #morse #screenshotsaturday #gamedev #games
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 05/03/2026
Very excited to be finally adding a calibration tutorial to MORSE, so folks can have a better understanding of how to tweak their telegraph. Coming soon! 🎚️ #hamradio #morsecode #gamedev #games
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
Here's what that outreach mode looks like in practice: MORSE is currently on display in Strasbourg, so I tracked down the name of the local (REF67) and national (REF) amateur radio clubs and added them to MORSE to give players a direct local connection to engaging with the hobby.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 20/02/2026
Pushed an update out for MORSE today with a suite of features to support Amateur Radio including an outreach mode for radio clubs to use, a non-visual Morse input mode, support for Vband and more! Read about it here: store.steampowered.com/news/app/197... #hamradio #morse #gamedev #morsecode
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 27/01/2026
Feels good to finally get back to making weird stuff
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Since launch, MORSE has inspired a variety of weird and wonderful homebrew telegraph controllers, so I’ve put together an article highlighting community projects. Look here at what folks are making! 🛠️📻👀 store.steampowered.com/news/app/197... #hamradio #morse #homebrew #gamedev #indiedev
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 30/12/2025
In keeping with New Year Festivities, I'm pushing out a small update to overhaul the explosions in MORSE! Your artillery is now composed of animated fireballs, smoke and splashes. 🎆 #hamradio #morse #gamedev #pixelart #vfx
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
As an early Christmas present to the ham radio community and MORSE players...🎄 Introducing the Teaspoon Telegraph, a beautifully crafted, open-source games controller and telegraph key designed by @nachimir.bsky.social! Learn more here: ympt.co.uk/teaspoontx.h... #hamradio #MORSE #indiedev #maker
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
Playing my Morse Code game but with a pair of DK Bongos 🥁🥁🦍 --- --- .... .... / --- --- .... .... / .- .... #hamradio #donkeykong #morse #gamedev #screenshotsaturday #indie #altctrl #indiedev
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
I actually got a bit teary coming across this: Someone posted to the MORSE Steam forums this beautifully assembled homebrew Iambic telegraph key. JUST LOOK AT THE INTERNALS OF THIS THING #hamradio #ham #radioham #gamedev #morse #indie
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 25/11/2025
MORSE will be exhibiting at EGX Birmingham this weekend, come along and try the game out with a glowing telegraph, bring your telegraph too if you fancy playing with your own key! www.egx.net/global/en-gb... @egxofficial.bsky.social #hamradio #gamedev #morsecode #morse #egx #mcm
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 23/11/2025
Going to be streaming my Morse Code game on Steam in just under an hour, I'll be using my glowing telegraph and assortment of different Morse keys! See you soon: store.steampowered.com/app/1976860/... #hamradio #gamedev #morsecode #morse
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 22/11/2025
Had the pleasure of being interviewed by Bob McCreadie from the TX Factor at National Hamfest in September to chat about MORSE, a game to encourage people to engage with amateur radio. I had to share the video introduction as it put a huge smile on my face when I watched for the first time
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
Case in point: I just used the instructions in the third image's instructions to configure a telegraph to work with a computer with an Arduino for Good Game Dev Festival next week! goodgamedev.co.uk #hamradio #morse #cw #indiedev #games
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
These are my kind of people. It's so satisfying to see that with even a small amount of encouragement, folks will venture far outside the box of how we conventionally control games, and how abundant and varied that expression becomes! #hamradio #morsecode #gamedev #altctrl #morse
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
MORSE's launch discount of 20% off ends in less than an hour! Grab it whilst you can! store.steampowered.com/app/1976860/... #hamradio #gamedev #morsecode
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
If you're running an ham radio event in the next year (big or small) and you're interested in having MORSE along at the event to reach younger people/the broader public, please get in touch, I want the game to serve as a tool to bring more people into this wonderful hobby. 73, Alex #hamradio
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
It was really wonderful working with the RSGB, they were incredibly enthusiastic, accommodating and forward thinking. I hope there is more opportunities to work with them again and to take the game to other Hamfests and events.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
I also got interviewed for several different ham radio news channels and found after the event, I got a mention in the RSGB's monthly magazine, RadCom as part of their Hamfest coverage!
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
But sure enough, I had two different attendees wire up their own telegraph keys to MORSE, the one here pictured is a "Homebrew" Iambic telegraph made out of a plug socket which I was really excited to try out!
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
Another highlight was before the event, I had installed a connection port on the back of my alt ctrl to make connecting up different keys easy but also with the theory that attendees might connect up their personal telegraph keys. Some members of my local hackspace were understandably sceptical...
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
What was particularly sweet was the game served as an intergenerational meeting point: Kids otherwise disengaged with radio were drawn in by the game, whilst older hams disengaged from games were drawn in by the collection of telegraphs. The game was approachable to and served both groups.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
The other was a setup with an Iambic key running on a Steamdeck, this setup was to draw in existing enthusiasts of ham radio (who for the most part prefer paddle keys for entering Morse Code. Between the setups, I had my assortment of different telegraph key types to mix and match.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
For the festival, I ran a dual setup of the game, each instance aimed at engaging two different audiences: The first was a straight telegraph key with a 5 metre glowing LED rope (running on PC), designed to stand out from afar and provide an interface people non-hams would be familiar with.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
Morse Code generally is used within ham radio as an entry point activity for outreach as it's relatively straightforward to get started with and can be adapted in lots of interesting ways, such as treasure hunts, writing your name in Morse or commonly, Morse Battleships...
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
UK National Hamfest is a yearly event where all the UK's amateur radio enthusiasts and experts gather on Newark Showground for a weekend of activities, markets and stalls. I was eager to get along so I contacted the Radio Society of Great Britain, who were happy to give me booth space in their area.
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 16/11/2025
Thanks to all for the wonderful response to MORSE! One of the highlights of the games' development I'd like to shine a light on was showing it at UK National Hamfest in September, as guests of the Radio Society of Great Britain! (- .... .-. . .- -..) #hamradio #hamfest #indiegame #gamedev
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
My strategy game, MORSE released this week! MORSE teaches you Morse Code through timing, tactics and telegraphy. Learn a secret language, build your own telegraph and jump head first down the rabbit hole of ham radio. 🔥⚓️⚫️➖ #hamradio #screenshotsaturday #gamedev #morsecode
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
MORSE rubbing shoulders with @gamemakerstoolkit.com on the Steam "Typing Games" trending list AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA this is so exciting!
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
MORSE has been received well : )
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
David has been an incredible producer and collaborator to work with, us delivering both MORSE but also co-creating games installations with local school children for Plug in and Play games festival in Rotherham less than two weeks before MORSE shipped. It has been a busy few months to say the least!
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 11/11/2025
The Kaisers fleet approaches! Use timing, tactics and telegraphy to thwart the attack and learn a lost language. MORSE is now available on Steam, give it a play and start your journey into amateur radio! store.steampowered.com/app/1976860/... #hamradio #gamedev #morsecode
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 08/11/2025
Ahead of MORSE's launch next week, I'll be streaming the game with my glowing telegraph setup on the Online Amateur Radio Community (OARC) Discord at 5pm (GMT)! Join us! oarc.uk/join #hamradio #morsecode #gamedev #games
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Alex Johansson @alexvscoding.bsky.social · 07/11/2025
.... . .-.. .-.. --- #pitchyagame! MORSE is a strategy game that teaches you the lost language of Morse Code through timing, tactics and telegraphy. Designed to be compatible with different Telegraph Key types, releasing on Steamdeck and PC, November 11th! #hamradio #gamedev
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