iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 09/10/2026

As if the idea itself wasn't the epitome of assholery, this is from their absurd EULA.

Text from a subsection of the EULA of tv-top.games

Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

There's also the question of whether you're specifically looking to use the standard domino shape or if that shape is flexible. If you use the domino shape pictured you could tesselate with "The Hat" aperiodic monotile (my personal design "white whale".

A tesselation of a aperiodic monotile with a domino pattern roughly sketched over it.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

A rectolinear overlapping tesselation could prove interesting (if perhaps confusing). In this example you could go with either tiles broken up by shaded/unshaded with smaller dominoes bridging the red/yellow shapes or red/yellow tiles with larger dominoes bridging the shaded/unshaded shapes.

An overlapping tesselation of red and yellow 'x' shaped tiles.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Collapsible game table topper project complete!

Half of the collapsible game table topper on a folding table

The underside of half of the collapsible game table topper.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

My new, compact little trick-taker with intentionally swingy scores, Significant Digits, now in playtesting mode. It hopefully satisfies my main design pillar for trick-takers of making players look at their hands in a new way. 🎲✂️

5 prototype cards for my wip Significant Digits splayed out on a paper cutter.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

I'm specifically looking for two sizes. What I'd call the standard 2g gel packets that frequently come with larger games and electronics, and the slimmer 1g packets that frequently come with meds/vitamins and smaller items.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

Packing to move house and ran across first proof-of-concept cards for "Not a Pipe" as a trick-taker. They had unreasonable to produce windows in the cards for the overlay effect.

2 Rough prototype playing cards for the game "This Is Not a Game About a Pipe".

Rough prototype playing card for the game "This Is Not a Game About a Pipe".

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Whoa! And this was before the bgg takedown.

A screenshot of the website WorthPoint with sales results for a copy of the card game This Is Not a Game About a Pipe for $75.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

Completed the campaign for Regicide Legacy! Wow! I cannot recommend this highly enough. Greatly expanding upon the elegant design of Regicide, Badger From Mars knocked this production out of the park. Incredibly tense moments, brutal defeats, and glorious victories! IMHO, best with two players.

The box for the game Regicide Legacy on a table.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 02/01/2026

For those following along, here's the bit from the ARS DMCA takedown notice sent to BGG that demonstrates one of the problems creating a weak public domain. ARS doesn't have to identify the expiration of the copyright. They can continue to claim it as long as it's impossible to prove otherwise.

An email snippet with the text "While the original artwork was created in 1929, copyright in the US begins running on the date of first publication in the US. We do not have a record that the original artwork was published in the US on a date that places the work in the public domain, and, therefore, the work is still protected by copyright in the US. The work is also still protected in other Berne-signatory countries worldwide."

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 30/12/2025

Well, it was a nice run. I got this geekmail last night. When I self-published This Is Not a Game About a Pipe, I thought, as many did, that The Treachery of Images was now in the public domain. 1/4

The text of a dm on boardgamegeek.com notifying me of the removal of my game listing due to a DMCA takedown request from Artists Rights Society.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 21/12/2025

@amalelmohtar.com in the wild. Stack of books at a family vacation rental house.

A stack of books on a piece of furniture.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 07/12/2025

Adulting and Chasing Shadows, both great games by fellow IGNM alums @ericdittmore.bsky.social and @vawcer.bsky.social. So much fun!

Game boxes for the games Adulting and Chasing Shadows.

Cards from the game Adulting on a table in the middle of a game.

Cards from the game Chasing Shadows on a table in the middle of a game.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 18/11/2025

To help celebrate this Saturday's short run release of the trick-taking game This Is Not a Game About a Pipe at Pax Unplugged, reply with your favorite "this is not a pipe" memes! boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/45... #Magritte #TheTreacheryofImages #ThisIsNotaPipe #PaxUnplugged #cardgames

A fake captcha with the pipe from The Treachery of Images asking the user to click on all squares with "une pipe".

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 16/11/2025

Indie Games Night Market signage ready!

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 15/11/2025

This is a card! See it! It's right there! Unfortunately I've fallen into Magritte's trap. It's just a picture of a card. Want a real one? Come to the Indie Games Night Market at Pax Unplugged. You can get this one and plenty of others. #IGNM #PaxUnplugged #ThisIsNotaGameAboutaPipe

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

And of course the original version of Mastermind came with 2 people to watch you with disdain as you play.

Original box cover for the game Mastermind showing 2 people looking smug.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 12/11/2025

This is Winning! And you can be winning too by checking out the work of amazing designers at the Indie Games Night Market at Pax Unplugged! #IGNM #PaxUnplugged #ThisIsNotaGameAboutaPipe

Cards from the game This Is Not a Game About a Pipe representing the 20 of "Winning".

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 31/10/2025

Hope you have a surreal Halloween!

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 29/10/2025

Mies van der Rohe's original sketches for his cantilevered Brno chair (and others) are from 1930. Not an easy theme to adapt to a game, but I'm enjoying the challenge.

Hand drawn sketches of cantilevered chairs by Mies van der Rohe.

A picture of a Brno cantilevered chair made by Knoll.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 25/10/2025

Designing a game based on the iconic Brno chair is a major challenge, but I think I may have a line on it. Working towards having a workable prototype to playtest at PaxU. What's the most challenging theme that's inspired you to design a game? 🎲✂️

Picture of the Brno cantilevered chair made with flat steel and black leather.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

Production copies of This Is Not a Game About a Pipe have arrived! They'll be on sale at the Indie Games Night Market at Pax Unplugged on Saturday, November 22nd! boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/45... #IGNM #PAXUnplugged #TabletopGames #CardGames #TrickTaking #Magritte #ThisIsNotaPipe #Surrealism

A cardboard box containing copies of the card game This Is Not a Game About a Pipe.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 08/10/2025

Working on die cut stickers to hand out with each copy of This Is Not a Game About a Pipe at the Indie Games Night Market. Come get yours! boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/45...

An outlined image of Magritte's pipe. Under it are the words "Nuh uh!" in red.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 17/09/2025

Just dropped a chunk of change on short-run production copies of my surrealist trick-taker This Is Not a Game About a Pipe. Incoming mid-October. Very exciting! Come by the Indie Games Night Market Friday night at PAX Unplugged this year to grab a copy!

Cover art for the game This Is Not a Game About a Pipe. It contains the title and a picture of a game box with Magritte's pipe on it.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 14/09/2025

Looking for a relevant book to give your new graduates in the coming year?

A book cover for the fictional parody book, "Oh the places your AI agent will go!".

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 30/08/2025

Magritte's famous work adapted to a surrealist trick-taking game. mac-mcanally.itch.io/this-is-not-...

The box cover for the game, "This Is Not a Game About a Pipe". The title of the game with a picture of a game box with Magritte's famous pipe on it.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 12/08/2025

100 people in line by 9:00am. Ticket vouchers are given out at noon in synch with those in Central Park. Curious about where the cutoff will be, but not curious enough to wait around after I get mine.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 05/08/2025

Excited to be a part of the Indie Games Night Market with my surrealist trick taking game, This Is Not a Game About a Pipe! If you're going to be at PAXU this year, stop by on Friday night and grab a copy. Check out the other new games in the vendor listing. I feel like I'm in great company!

Cover art for the game, This Is Not a Game About a Pipe with the title of the game and a picture of a game box with Magritte's pipe on it.

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Mac McAnally @macaroobanzai.bsky.social · 29/03/2025

Advanced POD prototype of This Is Not a Game About a Pipe came today. Some expected cut drift, but they look stellar!

A few cards from the game This Is Not a Game About a Pipe.

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