iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 3h

I made this with my elementary school-aged kid. We don't know what we're doing with lighting or sound, but I still found the result really fun XD

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 9h

Oh man I cannot WAIT for lunchtime to arrive so I can watch this 20 minute video of former Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin showcasing his 10-year quest to make an massive elaborate minecraft city. Wildest thing I've seen this week.

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Reposted by Joseph Arthur Ellis

Z @dxdydz.northsky.social · 28/09/2026

One night, when my oldest kid was 1 or 2, as I was putting her to bed, she said, "We need to do the Ceremony of Time." Well, who can resist an offer like that?

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

3 levels of concentration while working: 1. Unfocused. Music playing over speakers. Not particularly focused. Casual easy work. 2. Focused. Music off. Need to think to be productive, no distractions. 3. Super focused. Headphones on. Music at dangerous volume levels. Completely locked in.

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Reposted by Joseph Arthur Ellis

Dare Obasanjo @carnage4life.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Going from claiming your company is working on technology that might destroy humanity to leaking you’re on track to generate $100 billion in sales this year, just in time for the IPO. Makes it hard to defend the claims that this hasn’t all been a cynical form of marketing and regulatory capture.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

Weird 🎲✂️ takes a lot longer than designing a more conventional game, maybe by an order of magnitude. Either one can yield an awesome or sucky game, but the weird games take longer.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

A hard to describe 🎲✂️ concept is explicit rules theming vs implicit "feel" theming. Easy to overdo rules that explicitly model a theme, like a complex, slow, boring race car game. Sometimes you just need 1 or 2 good hooks for a theme to punch. Positive example: Engelstein's Super Skill Pinball.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Finally started watching Taskmaster and it's as good as I hoped. My advice is just start with the Mantzoukas season to get hooked. Then watch seasons at random. Man I am such a sucker for game show+comedy. Would love to sink my 🎲✂️ teeth into such a venture some day.

static.klipy.com

Taskmaster Alex Horne

ALT: Taskmaster Alex Horne

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Was sick for a few days, just found the 5 additional msgs about our game, sorry for the delayed responses!

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

What percentage of the work day do you all spend selecting the ideal gif reaction for the work chat? Above or below 80%?

static.klipy.com

ALT:

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

I'm dumbfounded as to how complex board games get 🎲✂️'d. I love complex games. Every time I make something heavy, people get confused and I have to streamline. Prototype UX problems get multiply with complexity. I'm thinking you need a playtest group that really REALLY loves complex games.

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Reposted by Joseph Arthur Ellis

Buy Mass Effect The Board Game! @ithayla.bsky.social · 08/09/2026

just played this. it freaking rules. if this finds the right audience plaid hat has a hit on their hands.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Hi 🎲✂️ friends, for over a year I've been developing a new, highly asymmetric 2-player game for Plaid Hat with a fantasy theme and a lot of Netrunner inspiration. Please send me a chat here if you are interested in playtesting it on screentop.gg or via print and play.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Working on Summoner Wars Online live on twitch today. About to start: twitch.tv/joepinion

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Good game hosts and game teachers are as valuable (and as rare) as good DMs.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

How do ya'll balance creative output tasks like 🎲✂️ with things like watching movies and playing video games? I find that I only have time for one or the other, so if I have the energy for game design, I do that and no video games get played. Too tired? Video games. So I'm missing out no matter what.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Cool to see that we are objectively awesome. 😁

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

Rosalina wearing her derpy face this morning.

Black and white pet snake with a derby face

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 06/08/2026

In the last few weeks, the 8-year-old has melded with the "neighborhood gang" of 9 kids. Since they are going to each other's houses, the playground, etc, without parents, he has been bestowed a standalone smart watch so we can keep tabs on him. 😬 Wish us luck!

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

Excited that Brumble Quest was successful enough in its Gen Con debut that we're working on the next one for 2027. I have 🎲✂️'d a lot of Brumble Games but my newest one is the pick. Follow me here if you want more info early! :)

Brumble Quest game cover. "The Point-Driven Party Game, by J. Arthur Ellis"

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Did manage a 🎲✂️ meetup at Gen Con at our hotel, played quite a few prototypes! Really enjoyed meeting @angrytetris.bsky.social and playing his SUPER smart chip game and playing @ianzang.bsky.social's hilarious prototype, plus more that aren't on bsky afaik. Shoulda taken pictures.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

Got a selfie with the famous Patrick Leder at GenCon today, he picked up Super Auto Pets for a friend

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 25/07/2026

I swear I'm the best in the world at inputting the digits from the authenticator app before the time runs out.

static.klipy.com

Nicky Ricky Dicky Dawn: Funny Face

ALT: Nicky Ricky Dicky Dawn: Funny Face

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

Is anybody who hangs out here in 🎲✂️ going to or know about the Community Playtest Night at #GenCon2026 ? Thinking about a design meetup with some of the folks I know, but maybe we should just go there instead ?? Looks like maybe they sold out and added a second set of tickets.

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Reposted by Joseph Arthur Ellis

Dan Thurot @danthurot.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

Brumble Quest is an odd fit for the Plaid Hat catalog, a ten-minute prisoner's dilemma that plays with up to fifty people at once, although perhaps only with yardsticks or laser pointers. Despite its oddness, however, it's a near-perfect small-box production. My review: spacebiff.com/2026/07/20/b...

spacebiff.com

Delver’s Dilemma

Brumble Quest is a peculiar inclusion in Plaid Hat’s catalog. Unlike their other touchstones, whether expandable duelers like Ashes and Summoner Wars or comedy adventures in the vein of Forgo…

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

I'm designing a little poker-adjacent puzzle game. It's digital although you COULD play it with a 52-card deck if you were willing to do all the work. Base rule implementation is almost done, then will move on to animation/sound, modes, menus, etc. Will post progress in the 🎲✂️ feed if nobody minds.

screenshot of a simple protoype of a 4x4 grid with standard cards. Looks like a simple app.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

Liminal space in EscapeThis escape room in Mansfield Ohio!

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 13/07/2026

I have done 🎲✂️ on a lot of games with asymmetric player powers, and I have NEVER regretted cutting down on timing windows early in the design phase. The fewer the better, and the more often the effects can be done by an active choice instead of a triggered effect, the cleaner it'll feel.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

I like World Order, but I am not liking the expansion with the events. Very fiddly, rules wise.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Is it possible to do good 🎲✂️ and produce a good game that you personally dislike? I don't think so. Every game I've made comes from what I want as a gamer. For example, I have no understanding of what people want out of a solo variant, so I should probably just stay away from such things haha.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

Over the years, I've 🎲✂️ many Brumble Games and it has helped my design/developer skills immensely. Most of them will never be played by anybody besides my friends, but I heartily recommend doing small designs without a product in mind.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

Here's something as different and weird as me.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 22/06/2026

Please reply and recommend your top 🎲✂️ related Gen Con events for 2026!

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

So much 🎲✂️ discourse is about the tactics of game design, e.g. clever ideas, weird techniques. But most of what you need to be successful at game design is strategy e.g. a schedule for iterations, a system for getting honest feedback, a commitment to not calling it done until it's actually great.

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Reposted by Joseph Arthur Ellis

Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Hey friends Please meet my big nasty baby 🥰 I’m honored to work with PHG on this. Happy Friday!

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Many hours later that post is still up, the photos are still up, and the only clarification is in the comments. Seems like they're happy to let less plugged in backers still take these photos at face value. Pretty scummy IMO.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Coding stream, come say hi: twitch.tv/joepinion

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 20/11/2025

The thing that we all ACTUALLY want from AI is a sci-fi phone/computer assistant that we can just talk to casually and it opens files and moves folders around and does all that boring shit for us. So far the attempts, like Gemini on my phone, are beyond pathetic far WORSE than old google assistant.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 20/11/2025

I hope Josh Hutcherson doesn't regret going for it with this faceplant of a segment, because us fans of TI4 still really loved it. XD youtu.be/XtcPqkNW8vY?...

youtu.be

Josh Hutcherson Calls The Hunger Games His College Days; Says Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 Is Scarier

YouTube video by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

Whoops, our power went out. Hopefully it returns soon

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

Playing some Summoner Wars Online live in 15 minutes... with dragons! Will give away some digital decks during the stream.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 26/09/2025

There's just nothing like fresh eyes on a 🎲✂️ prototype. For ourselves (and the people playing with us regularly), we all have too much of what the game wants to be or has been in our heads. There just is no way to think your way out of it, you have to see what a new player sees.

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Joseph Arthur Ellis @jarthurellis.bsky.social · 25/09/2025

My newest 🎲✂️ experiment: trying to design a regular-ass worker placement game. My games tend to have weird innovations in them, which involve a ridiculous amount of work and a lot of games that are dead ends. What will happen if I try something more contained?

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