iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 11h

The steps get higher every year. The view from the top remains beautiful.

Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

I needed a periodic break from designing, so I wrote a 3k word essay about dramatic irony in MJ Lenderman’s ‘Wristwatch’ and board games. Will post later.

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Would you adopt this dog? Y/N What would you name them? (Herbert/Frosty/other?)

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

These two are very special in totally different ways. Y’all are in for a treat.

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Another great CuseCon almost over. Spent 90% of the time playtesting. Two riotous games of Billionaire Dog Party. Feeling good making unconventional art for the sake of creativity and community.

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

I need this game in my life right now. Give me playful, creative, chill and yet challenging.

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

It’s over! Thank you to everyone who backed The Monolith. Would love to play with y’all some day

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

Love this pic. When you kill a dude, you literally knock it over. Later, your shaman can cremate the casualty for Anger. My attempt to model a cycle of violence

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 14/09/2026

Really solid lil puzzley game, innovative, too

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 12/09/2026

Protospiel Rochester! One good test of Dumpster Heist in. Helped some high schoolers with their design, felt nice.

Phil in front of a small ballroom with a middling amount of people inside

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

@dvcgames.bsky.social check out the Diet Coke pic 😂 Thanks for the review, Mollie!

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Let’s play some BILLIONAIRE DOG PARTY! You adopt this dog. What do you name it?

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

I had a real nice time hanging out with the boys from Vancouver! Thanks again for having me And now RE 2-4 are coming to Switch 2 ❤️

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 06/09/2026

Wingspan Pocket by @elizhargrave.bsky.social is all solid crunch. Real proud of my aspiring ornithologist 12yo for learning this hefty game. And after playing, we continue to ‘ooo look at this birb!’ 😁

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 05/09/2026

Today was a Knizia day A very good day indeed

Cosmolancer AKA Kingdoms by Reiner Knizia

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

This gross weirdo is named after my dear friend and design partner @gabegodoi.bsky.social Love you, Gabe.

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

An education professor from Kentucky introduced us to Wendell Berry, and this book opened my mind in many good ways. Rest well.

A book on a quilt: What Are People For? - Essays by Wendell Berry

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

My Unpub mentee is live on KS with his delightful solo RPG, A BOWL OF TEMPORAL SOUP! If you like crunch and homemade goodness, check it out! www.kickstarter.com/projects/tac...

kickstarter.com

A Bowl of Temporal Soup: A Solo RPG of Anachronism Stew

Traverse the paradoxical land of Bigos, where the past, present, and future merge in this single-player TTRPG of anachronism stew.

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

I submitted to a game jam for my first time! 🎉🎲✂️ This is the filthiest game I’ve ever heard of: feralneighbor.itch.io/six-to-twelv...

feralneighbor.itch.io

Six To Twelve Feet Under by Feral Neighbor

Storytelling with footsies

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 31/08/2026

Only YOU can help Joe prevent forest fires

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

It was an honor to talk to @spookysyntax.bsky.social about The Monolith. She asks the best questions and got me to spill my guts about all the gut-spilling.

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Given infinite time and resources, would you adopt this dog?

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

Jinx-O is great. Someone give this game an award!

A grid board with a bunch of different words in each space, like Ladder Ball and Ham

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 22/08/2026

There’s still some tickets available for CuseCon, September 16-20. Super chill and friendly, plus it’s a hidden industry event. Many designers & publishers for a small con. (I hear some of you enjoy @dvcgames.bsky.social…!) Would love to see you there. www.cusecon.com

cusecon.com

CuseCon | CuseCon

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Having a surreal first time at the cat cafe. Last time I was in this space (6+ years ago), we crammed improv shows in here, including one of the most magical I’ve ever seen. Also, our cat is dying of cancer. It’s a lot.

Two kitties nuzzle in a corner, one is leaning down from a table, the other is on its hind legs

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 21/08/2026

Deeply satisfying when someone appreciates your work and puts down lovely words. “The Monolith proved, to my surprise, to be something close to the ideal experience for this kind of game.” 😍 And I never thought of the connection to Beanie Babies 1/2

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

I appreciate Colby for his transparency here, and for his doggedness in getting Monolith its fair shake. I have never doubted his faith in the game. It is so gratifying to work with a publisher who truly gets your vision and wants to blow it up.

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

The Monolith demands your heart. Pledge today for a discount! The Monolith will never thank you, but I will. A BIG thank you to everyone for their support 🤗 www.kickstarter.com/projects/pla...

kickstarter.com

The Monolith

Slay your enemies and offer their hearts to the vile monolith that holds you in thrall!

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 17/08/2026

For lunchtime reading pleasure - design diary on the most innovative part of Monolith: the combat. 🎲✂️ We launch tomorrow! Thank you 🙏 to all returning backers and new acolytes of the tower. boardgamegeek.com/thread/37544...

boardgamegeek.com

Design Diary #2 - COMBAT EXPLORED - On KS 8.18.26! | The Monolith

This is the second design diary for The Monolith, which is back on crowdfunding TOMORROW, August 18, for Plaid Hat Games. We are coming back stronger than ever with a reduced price, a 1-2 player mode,...

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Check out my friends’ solid lil game on BGA!

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

I have the privilege of editing DUST. This is such an incredibly ambitious game. If you are into old school adventure games, you will be quite pleased. There’s a friggin graphic novel in the box, y’all

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

Tonight and tomorrow are final tests for The Monolith before final files are due. The emotions haven’t fully settled in yet. 3.5 years in, I still love playing this game.

The Monolith prototype with a big 3D printed tower on a map with meeples and Shadows Over Camelot minis

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 12/08/2026

Give your heart to THE MONOLITH 8.18.26

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Still one of my favorite take-and-makes Verdant Arizona by @robindavid.bsky.social

Cactus cards in a grid display, with a truck meeple parked next to one card back that reads ‘Verdant Arizona’

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 04/08/2026

Next Monolith expansion confirmed

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

From now on, I will be reserving my best posts for Feral Neighbor Please follow for more

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 31/07/2026

If you’re at Gen Con, you can sign up for the Monolith KS relaunch for a chance to win a production copy. Crazy!

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 30/07/2026

Had another saxophone dream. Previously it was the clarinet. Seriously thinking about getting a used one to learn how to play 🎷

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Phil Gross @mistergross.bsky.social · 28/07/2026

🎲✂️ The math behind The Monolith map! Tunnels are adjacent to one another. Colored spaces are spawn points.

A point to point map of The Monolith, captioned How It Started

The Monolith’s final map, captioned How It’s Going

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