iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Really excited for the conference! My talk is about Designing Interesting Choices and all that goes into that.

Event poster with a picture of me that says, "I'm Speaking at DevGAMM Lisbon 2026. Nov 17-18

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

Working on Games: 😍 Working in Games: 😱

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

On a run of reading some really good books this month! Piranesi A Trade of Blood Between Two Fires

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 26/06/2026

I wonder how many gamedevs are getting deja vu from the wording of this public statement... A24, a certified filmmaking darling, turns into a pariah overnight, and companies still think, "That won't happen to us though. Audiences and the creatives working for us are wrong."

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 14/06/2026

Still buzzing from the knicks victory. If I had to sum up why them winning feels so good it would be that a cursed franchise from the weaker eastern conference led by a 6’0” player beat a blessed franchise from the stronger western conference led by a 7’6” player… And that’s special.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

Watching Yomi no Tsugai made me nostalgic so I started rewatching FMAB, and that made me rediscover the simple joy of saying, “FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST” then saying, “FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST” again but slightly different.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

Vin breaking in some new toys (that he got for my birthday)

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 18/05/2026

Managed to verify/recover this account. So I am good to continue not posting that much.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

[513404-chilly-autumn-breeze]

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

About to post something for account verification purposes. Do not be alarmed.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

Wizards getting the number one pick in the draft lottery took some of the edge off of this hell weekend.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

@support.bsky.team the email for my account has been compromised and I don’t have access to it. I can’t change the email or deactivate my account without access to that email though, so I am stuck. Can you help?

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

My google account and discord are hacked atm. If you get any messages from me ignore them.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Happy Chimera Squad day to all that celebrate!

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

I am a couple decades late, but I just read House of Leaves. What a unique reading experience! It’s one of those pieces of art that makes me question, “Where does someone even begin making something like this?” Very cool stuff.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

As my years-long DnD game is coming to a close, I decided to get a commission done of all of the player characters and my main NPC. I think it turned out great!

8 Fantasy characters in front of a medieval castle.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 06/01/2026

Been playing some Overwatch again because I'm a degenerate. I'm generally Master/Low GM. Here's my latest tier list of the heroes based on how fun the game is when that hero is in your match. This list didn't have Vendetta, but she would be bottom tier for now until she gets nerfed.

Tier list of overwatch heroes based on how fun it is if that hero is in your game.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

Last working day of 2025 complete!

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 04/11/2025

How are the Dems gonna win now without Dick Cheney's endorsement lul

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 29/09/2025

It’s been 4 years of Vin! He truly is the sweetest little guy. Not sure how I’d manage without him.

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Reposted by Mark Nauta

Ben Reeves @benjaminreeves.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

I was a Firaxis narrative designer/writer and lost my job today. Any help sharing leads on new opportunities would be great! Over 3.5 years, I contributed to Civilization VII and Marvel’s Midnight Suns, helping turn maps, mechanics, and chaos into memorable stories. See my work benreeves.carrd.co

benreeves.carrd.co

Benjamin Reeves Is Incredible

Ben Reeves narrative designer and writer

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

I am safe, but many people I love and respect are not... These people are absolute gems. If you are hiring, it would be irresponsible to not consider them.

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Reposted by Mark Nauta

Emma Kidwell えま @emmakidwell.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

Hi! I was laid off from Firaxis this morning. I wrote leaders and civs for Civilization VII (NDA for now) and Deadpool and Storm for Marvel's Midnight Suns. I also wrote the award-nominated Hindsight. I'm available for full time, remote work starting ASAP. DMs are open: emmkid.info

emmkid.info

Portfolio

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Reposted by Mark Nauta

maya 🧜 @lightningfused.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

I got laid off from Firaxis today. I helped ship Marvel's Midnight Suns DLC and Civilization VII, and would love to talk to you about mid level Producer roles.

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Reposted by Mark Nauta

Daniella Zeman-Black 📼 VIDEOHOLE EPISODE 2 OUT ON STEAM @noodleverse.bsky.social · 04/09/2025

Hey y'all- I was impacted by the layoffs at Firaxis this morning. If you or anyone you know needs a mid to senior level materials artist that has experience in building material libraries, lighting, 2D art, and props I'm your girl!https://www.artstation.com/daniellazeman

artstation.com

Daniella Zeman

Concept/Materials/Lighting @ Firaxis Games

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 04/08/2025

It's not conceited if it's true.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

I’m only exposed to the New York Times when they write something stupid and/or terrible… so yeah I end up getting exposed to them pretty often.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 24/07/2025

Republicans banning adult content because they are into fucking kids.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 13/06/2025

If you have the chance to see Justice live, definitely do it. Best concert of my life.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 03/06/2025

Is there a subscription service that makes it so you don't have to talk about, see posts about, or interact with anything AI related at all? Asking for me.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 13/05/2025

Being a Wizards fan is pain. Number 6 pick in the lottery after building a young team the right way and having the best odds. Mavs getting the number 1 pick after making the dumbest trade of all time is criminal.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

Happy - checks notes- 5th!? Birthday to Chimera Squad!

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 24/04/2025

Is there a greater joy in life than seeing your pet happy and healthy after a few days of them being sick?

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 08/04/2025

Every day I dream of making a proper mech game.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 07/04/2025

Played through Sayonara Wild Hearts again this weekend. Still slaps.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

After DM-ing 30 sessions and 2 real-world years of leaving hints and breadcrumbs, I finally pulled off the "Eclipse-like" event that I had been planning from the start. (It wasn't nearly as traumatic, and the players seemed to have a good time, despite it being catastrophic to the game world)

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 17/03/2025

GDC? Hah, yeah I’m at GDC. I’m having a - Good Day with my Cat

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 11/03/2025

If you are into genAI art you - - have a child’s understanding of creativity - have faulty morals or are laughably ignorant of how it is generated - are someone I don’t want to talk to

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 09/03/2025

Can the AI bubble burst already? It’s almost my regularly scheduled time to speak up at a company meeting and cast doubt on the next tech bro hype train that nobody asked for or wants.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 06/03/2025

It's so wild to me that for years and years there's been this frequent discourse on "Are Video Games Art?" but now there's this large (or at least loud) portion of the gaming audience that doesn't want games to "say" anything or challenge their worldview in any way. Like, what are we doing here?

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 19/02/2025

New tech investment opportunity where instead of asking AI for game ideas you just give me a few mill and I come back with a dope game in 2-5 years. Fingers crossed a VC sees this! #gamedev

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

Just finished Pluto (I go months/years b/w reactivating my Netflix) and wow, what a great show. I’d heard it was good, but it’s honestly one of the best anime I’ve seen in a while. Definitely check out if you like murder mysteries or thrillers. Similar tonally to Monster if you’ve seen that.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 10/02/2025

I just got featured in an Alumni Spotlight for the Classical Studies department at W&M (which I went to a long time ago). www.wm.edu/as/classical... It's funny how I have this degree, work at Firaxis, but somehow don't work on Civ... and the XCOM crest has shaky Latin on it... oh god I'm a fraud.

wm.edu

Mark Nauta '11, Game Director at Firaxis Game

Mark Nauta, W&M '11 (Classical Civilization and Computer Science) talks about his career in video game development and design.

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Mark Nauta @marknauta.bsky.social · 09/02/2025

The only time I meaningfully seek out fan response to something is when the thing is made by me or people I care about personally, and uhh… the internet has really not been good for people’s brains. I feel the mental damage from just dipping a toe in. Can’t imagine being submerged.

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