iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Matt Firor @thefiror.bsky.social · 10/10/2026

Today is the 25th Anniversary of the launch of one of the most important games I ever worked on: Dark Age of Camelot. It is insane to think it was that long ago - October 2001. Here’s a summary of that day written 15yrs ago kotaku.com/how-a-classic-mmo-surviv…

3164

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Sardonicus @sardonicus.eu · 10h

Gonna start my own motorcycle gang, but for people that don’t have motorcycles and enjoy TTRPG’s

121087

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Adam Kinzinger @adamkinzinger.substack.com · 9h

The people who don’t want you to watch miss rachel want you to watch a public execution

1103663901

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 17h

I suppose I should mention that - just purely based on statistics - the unannounced game SOME of you are in will necessarily be some form of Make My Video, featuring Marky Mark Wahlberg. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Make_My...

en.wikipedia.org

Make My Video - Wikipedia

000

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 17h

Assuming we live in an infinite universe, nestled within an infinite multiverse, then TECHNICALLY we are all in an unannounced Sega video game somewhere. Your true purpose is to find that universe before you miss your chance. It may already be too late. Don’t delay.

110

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Lum @brokentoys.social · 18h

Dark Age of Camelot is absolutely the game I'm proudest of working on, and I'm happy it's still running definitely lightning in a bottle in terms of game development. the initial launch team was CRAZY small (I think I was employee 20 and came on a month before launch)

4272

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Onyx @advantage87.bsky.social · 18h

daoc introduced him to a lifetime of awesomeness

011

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Mitchell @mitchw.bsky.social · 18h

I fucking absolutely loved this game and wish I could experience this kind of gaming again in my life

021

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 20h

Everybody who ever had the good fortune to meet Andrew absolutely adored him. An excellent coworker, but an extraordinary friend. He gave me a pep talk on the evening before I proposed to my wife (on a business trip to Ireland), so I think about him every year when our anniversary rolls around.

130

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Has early voting started in DC? If so, this is like a RED FLASHING SIREN emergency. If not, it’s still bad but not actively interfering (yet).

030

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Joe, baby, I would never treat you like that. Please just invite me into your D&D bunker and I will give you and Bubbles unlimited hugs.

000

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Killer additions across the board.

010

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

The Pivot is happening sooner than expected. Those internal polls must be a NIGHTMARE.

030

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Dan Gerstein @pebby.net · 09/10/2026

DAoC was such a special game to me and was the closest analogue to a MUD in MMO form to me. Shadowbane and WAR (Warhammer Online) both had similar, experimental vibes. They were all PvP focused but the myriad ways people could interact in their settings was so cool. Games connecting people rule.

062

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Dan Gerstein @pebby.net · 09/10/2026

My friends and I pretended to be sick from school on the day it released. We joined Midgard (duh!) and I was a Troll Berserker in pink dyed armor running a guild called Flower Power who would go into the world PvP areas encouraging people to stop fighting and dance on the hills. Thanks for the fun!!

021

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Jeffrey S. Mueller @themightyjerd.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

I played the crap out of DAoC. Such a great game... Also how I met my ex-wife.

021

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Jen Allaway Writes Games With Big Hearts @allawayj.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Dark Age Of Camelot was how my dad bonded with his kids. My brother and sister had accounts, but at a measly 7, I didn't play enough to have my own account. So I had to "earn" time on my siblings accounts. How, you ask? spamming their crafting macros for them.

151

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Adam Sessler 🇺🇦 @adamsessler.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

25 Years ago the first MMO to launch in playable form. it was not a small accomplishment.

041

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

I like it AND I would say it’s good.

100

Reposted by Josh Drescher

Rob "Xemu" Fermier @xemu.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

During Age of Mythology development, we were literally in *crunch* hours when DAOC came out... everyone left the office at like 11 PM and went back to their homes and we all met up and played there until the wee hours. Good times.

1233

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

So I am eternally grateful for DAoC and anyone who ever played it because that gave so many of of us a chance to learn, experiment, and prove ourselves. You can still play it today, which is honestly a bit of a miracle considering how ephemeral much of this industry has become. Happy 25th, DAoC!

1120

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

The volatility we now face means studios aren’t giving promising young devs a chance to take big swings, fail, learn, improve and try again. Every project is an all-in bet with no room for experimentation, so how can you trust young, energetic creatives to try unproven ideas?

1110

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

DAoC wasn’t just an influential and successful game, it provided a safe haven for nearly a decade for hundreds of people who went on to become highly visible leaders all around the industry. It felt brief at the time, but seems miraculously stable and long-lived given the modern state of things.

1120

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

25 years ago today, we launched Dark Age of Camelot. It was the first game I worked on as a (professional) developer. I made friends at Mythic that are still important parts of my life today and as time has worn on, I’ve come to regard those years as some of the best of my career.

Various boxes from DAoC and its expansions.

A wooden trophy given to DAoC launch devs in 2006 on the 5th anniversary of its release. It reads:

“Five years ago we didn’t impossible.
Josh Drescher
Dark Age of Camelot
October 9, 2001”

3414

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

I only did a little bit of work on UO late in its lifecycle, but talking to more experienced devs was always an incredible source of wild stories. And quite a lot of them ended with "but somehow no players have found that yet, so it's probably fine".

060

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

His face is saying: “They still do not know that my shoes are full of honey…”

010

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Ya gotta love a tip drill interception.

000

Reposted by Josh Drescher

William Gibson @greatdismal.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

Having long been aware of those tech bros who read my work as utopian porn, where they’ve taken that doesn’t exactly surprise me.

11169541772

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

I said I liked it. I didn’t say it was good.

120

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

This had better be the proper 1970s Zodiac Cartel and the storyline had better end several years later with Ryan Gosling's soaking wet Ghost Rider staring helplessly as a demon drags Aquarius to Hell forever.

020

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

There are also many smaller illustrations throughout. Often quite sketchy. I quite like them.

Someone (maybe Bilbo?) watching two figures talking in front of a fire.

Goblins emerging from their hidden crack in the mountain to kidnap the Dwarves.

Gollum rowing on top of a strangely shaped piece of wood that almost looks like a reptilian swan.

Bilbo, back home, glowering at a set of plate armor he has set up on a stand.

000

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

The version of The Hobbit with illustrations by Tove Jansson has arrived and it is DELIGHTFUL. So much of how we imagine Tolkien’s world would look has narrowed due to decades of popular illustrations and adaptations that have slowly converged over time. It’s lovely to see a totally different take.

120

Josh Drescher @joshdrescher.bsky.social · 08/10/2026