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Taylor Hardwick

@darthtayrah.bsky.social
827 followers 691 following 68 posts

Postdoc @RMIT on gender, games and kids’ play cultures 👾 Freeplay board🤘DiGRAA board ⭐️ silly little guy 🤠 she/her 🌿

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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Game dev mates!! My pals at USyd have been cooking up something special: @ludolio.com, a platform that brings games into classrooms while making sure devs get paid 🙏 the catalogue currently slays but if you’re like, it could slay more, you should register your game 👀 www.ludolio.com/for-developers
ludolio.com
For Developers – Ludolio
Discover how Ludolio empowers game developers to reach new audiences and grow through library partnerships.
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Freeplay @free-play.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
A friendly reminder to, PREORDER very cool new Parallels T-shirts ・゚✧*:・゚✧ Caps, totes and stickers will be available for purchase on the night, but T-shirts will have very limited sizing availability - so please be sure to preorder if you don’t want to miss out on your size! Love freeplay. Xx
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Freeplay @free-play.bsky.social · 19/05/2026
✦ PARALLELS 2026 — THE CALL-OUT IS HERE ✦ Making a game, and wanna yap about it at Parallels 2026? Now is the time to let us know! Speaker submissions close on the 5th of June. That’s THREE WEEKS. Don't overthink it. Just apply here: forms.gle/j8NkrdqMnwoH...
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Brendan Keogh @brkeogh.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Freeplay rules!!!!!! 🥹❤️‍🔥
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Chris “Mutton” Button @bibbybhoy.bsky.social · 13/04/2026
Roblox is adding two new account types in an effort to improve child protection, as the platform faces regulatory pressure and perceptions of enabling predatory behaviour. But experts are worried that Roblox's measures just heap more pressure on parents. www.gadgetguy.com.au/roblox-adds-...
gadgetguy.com.au
Roblox adds Kids accounts, experts fear for pressure on parents
Roblox is adding a Kids account type to try and protect children online, but experts worry that parents will be left to pick up the slack.
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common-or-garden Mads 🦆 @madmacsfuryroad.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Given the news yesterday, I've seen a lot of speculation about the logistics of running events, and I wanted to give some perspective on the challenges of it in the current moment. madmacsfuryroad.bearblog.dev/the-1000-pro...
madmacsfuryroad.bearblog.dev
The $1,000 Problem
When you run an event, one of the major determining factors of cost is scale. Let's say you want to run something that only needs (1) a physical space an...
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Leah J. Williams @legenette.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
my thoughts on @free-play.bsky.social and why it remains so, so important (especially in the bad times!!!!)
screenhub.com.au
Freeplay is one of Australia's most important creative festivals, so why is its future in doubt? | ScreenHub: Film, TV, Streaming and Games
Freeplay, one of the Australia's longest-running game festivals, remains an essential platform for bold, creative, and compelling art.
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
Freeplay rules! Fund art!!!!!
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Delphinium 💙 @cinnadev.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
Delphinium's Kickstarter will go live on October 27th, 9:00AM ACDT 🩵💫
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Studio Folly — DOGPILE!!! @folly.studio · 01/10/2025
Announcing... DOGPILE!!! ✨🦴 Dogpile is a roguelike deckbuilder about merging DOGS. Play dogs, get money, customize your dogs with special traits, refine your deck, PLAY MORE DOGS! Free demo is live on Steam, WISHLIST NOW!!! store.steampowered.com/app/3839300/...
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Leon Xiao @leonxiao.com · 30/09/2025
Great to collab with colleagues at Sydney. Global video game/loot box policy evaluation is an international collaborative effort. Would be great to work with German 🇩🇪, Spanish 🇪🇸, and Brazilian 🇧🇷 colleagues to check (forthcoming) national rules. Please do get in touch with us if interested! 👋🏻
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 30/09/2025
New article in @theconversation.com today reflecting on Australia’s 2024 loot box regulations and how, 1 year later, there remains widespread non-compliance - and generally really confusing age ratings for mobile games on the App Stores! theconversation.com/loot-boxes-a...
theconversation.com
Loot boxes are still rife in kids’ mobile games, despite ban on ‘gambling-like’ features
Games with ‘loot boxes’ should be classified for over-15s – but a new study shows many of the most popular mobile games completely ignore the rules.
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☁️ Little Pink Clouds ☁️ @lil-pink-clouds.bsky.social · 16/09/2025
Letters to Arralla is OUT NOW on Steam with a limited time 20% launch discount!! 🏝️💌 After 5 long years of development and lots of fruit & veggies eaten to power our developers, this cheeky game is finally ready to be delivered directly into your hands!! ☺️ Play now on Steam! youtu.be/7GbGTEpsoIM
youtu.be
Letters to Arralla OUT NOW!
YouTube video by Little Pink Clouds
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Frosty Games 🍦 @frostygamesfest.com · 15/09/2025
Frosty is back to celebrate the coolest upcoming and recently released games made in Australia & Aotearoa, this December 🍦🥳 We’ll be featuring exclusive reveals, announcements, and updates. Developers can submit their games now until Sep 30! ⤵️ forms.gle/tt8y9N1dPweS...
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Amy Remeikis @amyremeikis.bsky.social · 15/09/2025
Given this is making some waves - here is the piece and you can judge for yourself. (I'm fine, there are no issues - right wing ecosystem just doing what right wing ecosystem does). Take care of you - it's rough out there! Ax amyremeikis.substack.com/p/charlie-ki...
amyremeikis.substack.com
Charlie Kirk died in the America he wanted
I mourn the loss of human life. I feel compassion, empathy and grief at an inexcusable killing. But I find nothing to lionise in his legacy.
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 12/09/2025
✨I’m recruiting for a research project on game monetisation!✨ I’m keen to chat to game devs about how monetisation shapes the dev process. Interviews will be 60mins via Zoom. To learn more, head to bit.ly/40mOB3f if you'd like to participate, shoot me a DM or email taylor.hardwick@sydney.edu.au 😊
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 12/09/2025
✨I’m recruiting for a research project on game monetisation!✨ I’m keen to chat to game devs about how monetisation shapes the dev process. Interviews will be 60mins via Zoom. To learn more, head to bit.ly/40mOB3f if you'd like to participate, shoot me a DM or email taylor.hardwick@sydney.edu.au 😊
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ally @allyhennessy.bsky.social · 05/09/2025
FREAKON IS BACK www.freakon.com.au/blogs/news/f...
freakon.com.au
FREAKON 2025 ANNOUNCED - SEASON OF DECAY
We’re looking around at a world rife with rot. More layoffs, more greed, and the birth of a whole new type of AI guy have filled the air with a foul stench. It’s tempting to imagine our community coul...
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Leon Xiao @leonxiao.com · 11/08/2025
We’ll be hosting GachaCon 2026, a hybrid academic conference on gacha games with Genshin Impact as the theme, on 12–13 February 2026 at the School of Creative Media, City University of Hong Kong. 🇭🇰🇨🇳 Call for Papers: tinyurl.com/gachaconcfp
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 07/08/2025
You can take a girl out of Dubbo but you can’t stop Dubbo from following the girl forever and ever and ever (team Freeplay @ Dubbo skate park tho)
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Waypoint @waypoint-events.com · 04/08/2025
The return of Waypoint Constellations✨ 🎫 events.humanitix.com/waypoint-con... A close collaboration with @serenade.games to celebrate Sydney's games and creators. 🗓️On Oct 14th just before SXSW's games festival begins Follow and sign up for more info as we tease out the secrets of this event.
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 03/08/2025
Freeplay 💕💕💕
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Freeplay @free-play.bsky.social · 07/07/2025
The Freeplay Angles 2025 schedule is now online, and tickets are on sale! Angles runs from 31st July - 2nd August at Science Gallery Melbourne. www.freeplay.net.au
Freeplay Angles, at Science Gallery (Grattan St, Carlton) on Thurs 31/07, Fri 01/08, and Sat 02/08. The image shows a tarot spread of Lovers, Death, and Fortune in an orange and blue colour scheme. The image is by Percy Harris.
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Brendan Keogh @brkeogh.bsky.social · 24/05/2025
If you liked or hated my takes on ‘deprofessionalisation’, I went into a lot more detail in this great chat with @pushtotalk.gg for his newsletter. Connected what’s going on now to what I observed in the Australian industry in the 2010s www.pushtotalk.gg/p/gamings-gr...
pushtotalk.gg
Gaming’s Great Downsizing and the Garage-Band Game Economy
Brendan Keogh explains the post-2008 collapse of the Australian games industry and how it might prefigure changes coming for the rest of the world
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 30/04/2025
Super excited to present our research on how children perceive & experience harm resulting from game monetisation at #CHI2025 today! Co-authored with @marcuscarter.com @saharkin.bsky.social @tianyizhangshao.bsky.social & @benegliston.bsky.social - check it out here: dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/...
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 17/04/2025
Really interesting and important report out today on deceptive design practices in games and how they impact players from @cprc-research.bsky.social @coolrobbie.bsky.social and @bradyjay.bsky.social - some really great recommendations on making games safer for everyone! cprc.org.au/report/playi...
cprc.org.au
Playing the Player - CPRC
Australians of all ages are engaging with gaming to relax, learn or connect with friends, but common design features can leave players worse-off – 95% of Australian adult gamers encounter manipulative...
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
Some thoughts from @benegliston.bsky.social @tianyizhangshao.bsky.social and myself in The Conversation today on the spenny Switch 2 release price and how it reflects the state of the industry (& mostly, sorry gamers)
theconversation.com
Sorry gamers, Nintendo’s hefty Switch 2 price tag signals the new normal – and it might still go up
We saw Sony adjust prices for the PS5 mid-generation in response to production costs. So there’s no reason to assume the Switch 2 price will remain static.
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
New article in @theconversation.com today by myself and @marcuscarter.com on how kids talk about when spending money in Roblox is harmful to them. TLDR; virtual currencies and random reward features should be better regulated! theconversation.com/literally-ju...
theconversation.com
‘Literally just child gambling’: what kids say about Roblox, lootboxes and money in online games
Kids who play Roblox games describe ‘scary’ virtual currencies and ‘cash grab’ random rewards.
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 23/03/2025
New article in @theconversation.com today by myself and @marcuscarter.com on how kids talk about when spending money in Roblox is harmful to them. TLDR; virtual currencies and random reward features should be better regulated! theconversation.com/literally-ju...
theconversation.com
‘Literally just child gambling’: what kids say about Roblox, lootboxes and money in online games
Kids who play Roblox games describe ‘scary’ virtual currencies and ‘cash grab’ random rewards.
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Brendan Keogh @brkeogh.bsky.social · 17/12/2024
Incredibly excited to announce this special issue of Media Industries Journal that I co-edited with Chris Young and @dayofthemutants.bsky.social on the topic of LOCAL DIGITAL GAME PRODUCTION. journals.publishing.umich.edu/mij/issue/31...
List of article titles and authors on the journal website:

Global Localities of Game Production
Chris J. Young, Emilie Reed and Brendan Keogh

Game Design for a Fiverr: Precarity, Regionality, and Platform-Mediation in the Gig Economy
Scott DeJong and Michael Iantorno

Globalization and Heterogeneity: Locating the Malaysian Indie Game Production Culture
K.T. Wong

Situating Platform-Based Precarity: Platformization and the (Dis)embedding of the Dutch Game Industry (1980-2022)
Anne Heslinga

Independent Game Production in Southern China
Hugh Davies
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SIFTER @sifterhq.bsky.social · 11/12/2024
2024 The definitive list of Australian made video games Our 6th annual list of every game released in 2024 that was made in Australia. Check it out + share www.sifter.com.au/post/2024-the-def… #videogames #gamedev
sifter.com.au
2024 The definitive list of Australian made video games | SIFTER
SIFTER's sixth annual list collecting every single game released in 2024 that has been made in Australia, from PC, Xbox, PlayStation Switch and more.
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Purplepingers ☭ @purplepingers.bsky.social · 12/12/2024
Truly incredible stuff happening I think it’s called class consciousness
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 11/12/2024
I don’t mean to brag but I really know my um dragon flags. @folly.studio’s new game is v cute and real silly go go go realbirdfakebird.com
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Studio Folly — DOGPILE!!! @folly.studio · 10/12/2024
NEW GAME ALERT REAL BIRD FAKE BIRD It’s a cute daily browser game where you separate the REALS from the FAKES! Play RIGHT NOW: realbirdfakebird.com
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Rebecca Solnit @rebeccasolnit.bsky.social · 08/12/2024
Insurrection in Georgia, coup attempt defeated by civil society and parliament in South Korea, and now Assad may be gone, Damascus liberated, and prisoners in Sednaya prison released by rebels. It had been a week.
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Amy Remeikis @amyremeikis.bsky.social · 04/12/2024
The sad and inevitable truth is in another 10 years, when it is all said and done and it is irrefutable Israel committed a genocide in Palestine, there will be many a handwringing think piece from those who defend Israel's actions now, claiming 'we didn't know'. They know. Remember that they knew.
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Ben Eltham @beneltham.bsky.social · 03/12/2024
In session in the Federal Court for Monash Uni’s wage theft case. I’ll be live posting from this hearing today. The NTEU alleges Australia’s largest university has not lawfully paid hundreds, perhaps thousands, of its casual teachers going back to 2016. Justice Snaden is the judge.
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 02/12/2024
My cat’s at the vet under anaesthetic for the second time in a month (he’s gotta get some teeth out) and I’m feeling so anxious for the baby 😭
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Rasheed Abueideh - Now crowdfunding Dreams on a Pillow 🍉 @rasheedabueideh.bsky.social · 28/11/2024
After years away from game dev, I couldn’t stay silent about my people’s dehumanization. I made Dreams on a Pillow 🍉a game inspired by a famous Palestinian folktale about the 1948 Nakba. I’m crowdfunding it now—please back & share! 🔗 launchgood.com/1948
launchgood.com
Dreams on a Pillow - a videogame experience about the 1948 Nakba, based on a true story | LaunchGood
A pseudo-3D stealth adventure game about a land full of people being made into a people without land
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Marcus Carter @marcuscarter.com · 28/11/2024
All you need to know about how much the government actually understands youth online safety: Apparently YouTube is "primarily for the purposes of education and health support" www.pm.gov.au/media/social...
pm.gov.au
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Jini Maxwell @astroblob.bsky.social · 28/11/2024
Chloe's Tiktok about Honk! Untitled Goose Exhibition is a) unbelievably nice and b) literally poetry. A must watch!! 🔔
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 27/11/2024
All morning a noisy miner has been sneaking into my apartment via different windows, but it’s been lucky because every time it’s tried, my cat has been distracted by staring at a wall
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 27/11/2024
Today I gave a paper at #aanzca24 based on my PhD research, where I argue that digital events can be inclusive, accessible, & actually... good. Vitally, these events could be a model for normalising digital and hybrid events ‘post’ pandemic. You can check out my slides here:
drive.google.com
Hardwick_Back to the auditorium.pdf
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
“We want to get kids back on the soccer field” but national subsidy of children’s sport & investment in public & playful spaces when?????
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 25/11/2024
It’s almost like this is something that impacts people deeply and should therefore have been thought about for longer than an angry phone call from Murdoch
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 24/11/2024
Super excited for #aanzca24 this week! On Wednesday I’ll be presenting a paper on how games events had the perfect opportunity to normalise digital & hybrid events post-2020 and… largely didn’t.
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Taylor Hardwick @darthtayrah.bsky.social · 24/11/2024
1000xResist rewired my brain in the best way. Incredible game about diasporic experience, sisterhood and trauma, & it’s so so beautiful!!
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Tama Leaver @tamaleaver.bsky.social · 22/11/2024
It's been really heartening working with @dezuanni.bsky.social, @aleeshajoy.bsky.social and Amanda Levido to produce the ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child's response to the Social Media Ban for Under16s Bill that was tabled yesterday. digitalchild.org.au/research/pub...
Responding to the Online Safety Amendment Bill 2024 Social Media Minimum Age140 Experts say banning people under 16 from social media won't make social media safechildren have a right to be online and have fun, positive, educational, and safe experiences.We should be enabling Australian children and teens to be full, articulate, deeply literate digital citizens.
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