iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

In our latest episode of KickSaga, I interview Jason Diaz of Nonymous Games about his latest Kickstarter Farrago. This is Tony's second launch on Kickstarter, so we'll learn about the lessons he learned the first time around as well as how he was able to keep his budget lean. youtu.be/RSzw6_lxit8

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Farrago (Before Launch) - KickSaga 21.1

YouTube video by Matt Rodela - Muse & Mettle Games

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

Reviewing feedback forms from #unpub, I'm momentarily thrilled by receiving 4+ in average feedback across all categories for the two games I tested. But I know these games aren't nearly complete, with obvious flaws that I need to fix. This is a good reminder...

Play testers mid-game during a play of the Interstellar Influence prototype, one of the designs I brought to Unpub.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

#unpub was hopping this year! Got in a bunch of great tests and played a ton of great games. Thanks to the organizers for another great year! And special thanks to @thinkdeepplaylight.bsky.social and @goosepoopgames.com for letting me use some time at their tables. They have great games brewing!

A view of the unpub hall with full tables all around.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

Djembe: Drums of the World, now playtesting at #unpub at table K3! Come dance to the rhythm!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

Playtesting a new co-design with @backwardscapgames.bsky.social called Interstellar Influence at Unpub this weekend. You take on the role of competing alien societies influencing humanity through history. A fresh twist on traditional civ games featuring hidden agendas and shared track manipulation.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

Hear ye, hear ye! The announcement video for Twisted Trumpets is live! Be sure to share it near and far! Thanks to @amanpossessed.bsky.social for his excellent 3D modeling and animation work! youtu.be/TN4dRnZJqqU

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Introducing Twisted Trumpets: A Whimsical New Tile-laying Path-building Family Board Game

YouTube video by Matt Rodela - Muse & Mettle Games

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 02/12/2025

Had a blast hanging with James at @tinrobotgames.bsky.social on the Board Game Binge podcast today!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 29/11/2025

Twisted Trumpets is now available to purchase online! Via the Play to Z Games website: www.playtozgames.com/game/twisted... Via Amazon: amzn.to/4pDcltk It will make a great gift for those gamers in your life looking for a quick game that's easy to play but deep on strategy!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 04/11/2025

PSA: This is your reminder that sometimes a sticky issue in your game design can be fixed not by focusing on the issue itself, but by adjusting a macro-level aspect of the game. Look at things like action selection/order and overall game length to see if that might fix multiple issues at once.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 26/10/2025

✅️ First sale of first published game. ✅️ Signed my first copy of my own game. ✅️ Attended the biggest board game convention in the world. ✅️ Feeling exhausted, excited, and greatful. @playtozgames.bsky.social #spielessen #twistedtrumpets #boardgames

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 24/10/2025

The guys at @kinsonkeygames.bsky.social took some time out of their busy schedule of launching Galactic Cruises to support my humble little pipe-building game. Look how far we've come fellas!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 23/10/2025

All set up and ready to demo Twisted Trumpets at Essen! Come check it out at booth 5F115. #playtoz #spielessen @spielessen.bsky.social

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 24/09/2025

I'm looking for anyone interested in interviewing me about my upcoming game Twisted Trumpets which is being published by Play to Z Games and will be available to purchase at Essen and in retail shortly thereafter.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 08/08/2025

Having fun taking some shots of my upcoming game. I have one pre-production copy of it to do with what I want until it releases sometime this fall. What should I do with this guy besides admire it with the lens?

Shot of the Twisted Trumpets board game box with a bugle sitting next to it and a boardgame shelf in soft focus in the background.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 03/08/2025

Love seeing the photos of #TwistedTrumpets being demoed at #Gencon this weekend! I couldn't be there, so I'm living vicariously through your photos. If you see it, snap a photo for me! Photo credit: Isaac Hirschfeld @playtozgames.bsky.social

Twisted Trumpets box on a demo table at GenCon.

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Reposted by Matthew Rodela

Michael Sprague 🎲✂️ @backwardscapgames.bsky.social · 15/07/2025

Please consider helping my buddy @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social and do the thumbs up thing on BGG! Twisted Trumpets is debuting at Essen! boardgamegeek.com/geekpreview/...

Instructional photo of where to thumbs up on BGG. Red arrow pointing to the thumb on the left.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 25/01/2025

Tied for first place in the ProtoTank event at #tantrumcon! Got some great feedback on Djembe and I look forward to heading that advice to take the game to the next level!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 24/01/2025

Prepping Djembe to pitch at the ProtoTank event at #tantrumcon. Wish me luck!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 24/01/2025

Kicked off #tantrumcon with "Jesus Take the Wheel" and "Casino Fromage", both great unpublished games looking for a good home.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 21/01/2025

A work conflict came up and now I'm not able to go to Unpub this year. Does anyone want my ticket and tables? The tables I have are: - Friday at 5-9pm ($60) - Saturday 10-12pm ($35) - Sunday 10-2pm ($60) Let me know if you're interested!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 26/12/2024

Holiday games with the family included Only Murders in the Building, Middle Ages, and Wyrmspan. All were fun, though Wrysmpan was a little too complex for my parents to wrap their heads around, they were good sports about it as we helped them through their turns.

View of my fiefdom at the end of Middle Ages.

Mid-game table view of Middle Ages with tiles laid out.

Mid-game view of Only Murders in the Building.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 25/12/2024

Artie and I are excited to dig into this new book!

Artie the dog with his head in the book "Around the World in Eighty Games".

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 22/12/2024

Finalizing the rulebook for Twisted Trumpets, and trying my hardest to vanquish the "I'll get to that later" demons that keep telling me to skip the hard stuff (like creating diagrams and detailed examples for actions).

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 16/12/2024

Quite enjoyed my first play of HiFi. It's a puzzly game with a unique shared tableau and great table presence! #boardgames

HiFi game on the table at the end of a game.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 10/12/2024

In this episode I revisit Fritz Paull's "Prestige", a game that was previously dropped by it's publisher and almost didn't see the light of day. Learn about how it eventually got published and some of the pros and cons of the experience from the publisher who picked it up. youtu.be/rR6k5BIxZbU

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Prestige (After Launch) - KickSaga 14.2

YouTube video by Matt Rodela - Muse & Mettle Games

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 10/12/2024

RIP Jerry. Hopefully kitty heaven is full of nothing but board games you can sprawl across!

Photo of Jerry sprawled across a board game.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 09/12/2024

Thanks @amanpossessed.bsky.social for the great candid shot of folks playtesting Time Jam! It was great to see players so in love with the theme and invested in the mechanisms. If publishers can get over the connection to real-world music stars, I think this one has a good shot at going somewhere!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 07/12/2024

Unexpectedly was gifted a block at Unpub from 1:30 - 4:30 today. Stop by and help me test "Time Jam", a gateway+ card drafting game about travelling back in time to assemble a super group of real-life famous musicians! #paxu #unpub

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 06/12/2024

Finished up some quick and dirty sell sheets for my two closest-to-finished games and now to finish packing for my bright-and-early 7:30 AM train to Philly. #paxubound

Djembe, a unique rhythm-matching tableau building game where you take on the role of a tribal leader in 12th century Mali, directing your tribe to build drums, dance, and please the spirits during the annual harvest festival.

Time Jam, a family-weight card drafting game where you send workers back in time to recruit famous musicians from the "past" in order to create the ultimate super group and match them up to the ideal high-tech venue.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 27/11/2024

I use it to research board game themes and it's where our local playtesting group meets!

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 24/11/2024

My first time going to Pax Unplugged this year. I have a couple prototypes, but missed out on Unpub blocks. What tips do you havr for me, both as a designer and just a fan of board games?

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 22/11/2024

Was literally crying laughing playtesting Red String Theory by @backwardscapgames.bsky.social, a cooperative word-association party game where the end result is a conspiracy-theory-esque cork board. So fun.

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Matthew Rodela @muse-and-mettle.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

Say hello to Arturo "Artie" Rodela, aka Scruffy Muffin.

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