iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 15/01/2024

Trying out Bleak Sword DX, a little action combat focused game with an incredible retro-diorama aesthetic. Not very far yet but enamored with its presentation.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 12/01/2024

Break almost over… got one more daytime weekday brewery trip in with bonus Commander. Meanwhile has some great beers.

Magic cards on a wooden tabletop. This deck is the “Veloci-ramp-tor” precon.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 10/01/2024

Belated birthday dinner; went to a favorite Japanese place. Couple of nigiri/rolls not pictured because I was too excited!

Shishamo, striped bass and salmon ceviche, chicken kara-age

Matcha cheesecake and a yuzu crème brûlée

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 07/01/2024

Cleaning the garage out today and finding a LOT of nostalgic stuff (personal and games related).

Tub full of large PC game boxes: Ultimate Doom, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, Bladur’s Gate and Tales of the Sword Coast visible on top.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 06/01/2024

We made a really good beef noodle soup. Even better the second day! Mood improved.

Bowl of beef noodle soup with mushrooms, green onion, ginger, and sriracha. Sriracha and black vinegar nearby.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 06/01/2024

We see this fella on our walks all the time (and sometimes hear him). Good blue chicken.

A peacock hanging out on the roof of a white-bricked house against a grey sky.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 05/01/2024

Been working on and off for a while cutting Commander pre-cons down into “Brawl” versions. A few of the decks are too politics-focused to work well, but it’s a fun exercise (and I can play with more decks without a pod).

Magic: the Gathering cards in piles on a table. From Galea, Kindler of Hope Commander pre-con deck.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 02/01/2024

More holiday break arcade action! I’m glad we still have a handful of them around.

Rows of arcade machines in an industrial-looking building with lots of natural light.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 01/01/2024

ok I feel like 2023 must not have gotten off to the right start, so I'm going to make sure 2024 does

Screenshot from Morrowind intro: wooden boat interior, dark elf NPC Jiub informs the player they've arrived in Morrowind.

Screenshot from Morrowind: view of Seyda Neen, the player's arrival point, from the boat. Shoreline, town buildings, and a silt strider in the background. A guard awaits the player at the dock.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 01/01/2024

We played Flamecraft today; it's fun, easy to learn, quick, and (most importantly) is chock full of adorable little dragons doing jobs. Great game if you're looking for something light and have a love for cute little guys. boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/33...

Cute, colorful illustration of a café. A waiter holds a small dragon as it breathes fire onto a crème brûlée while a pink-haired witch in a red pointy hat looks on expectantly.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 31/12/2023

Snacks and mulled cider for board games!

Mulled cider in pot on stove with cinnamon sticks; caramel whisky and mugs in background.

Cheeses, salamis, olives, vegetables, pita chips and a variety of dips.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 29/12/2023

achievement unlocked: every possible ooze spawned.

Gloomhaven board game enemy card populated with ten dice representing oozes’ HP. Ooze action card describing oozes spawning additional oozes on their turn.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 29/12/2023

Time for margaritas and dungeon crawling - steady Gloomhaven progress!

Gloomhaven board game - minis on dungeon tiles next to a margarita in a mason jar.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 28/12/2023

I really like Cultic's presentation and it feels pretty good, but I think it might be a little too scary for me, a giant baby.

Screenshot from Cultic. Pixelated retro first person shooter. Character holding a lighter, view of a drawbridge in a narrow canyon, cloudy night sky in background.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 28/12/2023

Making carnitas today. Prepared for torment while the house smells amazing for 8 hours and I can’t eat them yet.

Slow cooker filled with pork, onion, garlic, orange, and seasonings.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 26/12/2023

Turns out I have a lot in common with worm from Mobile Suit Baba...

Dialogue window from Mobile Suit Baba describing the worm unit: "They aren't very fast and have no special skill, but they try their best."

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 26/12/2023

Got some really cool stuff this year. Gonna have to practice a lot before I can paint that tyranid guy, but nice to have an aspirational project! I love the alligator capo.

A Warhammer 40K Hive Tyrant, Phantasy Star IV diorama with sand worm battle, Themeberchaud red dragon ornament, alligator guitar capo, Monster Hunter World art book, and Pathfinder 2E Kingmaker adventure.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 26/12/2023

My mom got us these claws that are supposedly for tearing up meat like carnitas, but now I’m just running around the house with them pretending to be a bear.

Black plastic claws with a grip to put your hand through, similar to brass knuckles.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 24/12/2023

The illustrations and example materials in 50 Years of Text Games are great. There are early ads, code snippets, maps, and “screenshots” that add so much detail and context to the articles.

Code snippet in MDL from Zork, handling part of the Carousel Room.

Simple black and white line map of many rooms in an early version of Adventure.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 22/12/2023

It's not much, but I changed how exits function in my tiny text game! I have been slowly extending a Godot parser-based text adventure tutorial I followed; current challenge is making it button-based. Especially proud of my NPCs' periodic text barks, like a MUD might have!

Screenshot of a text adventure game. Describes rooms and the NPCs in them.

"Inn Hallway - The back hallway of the inn. From here, the din of the common room is muted, and you can smell tantalizing dishes being cooked up in the nearby kitchen."

"Back Patio - The back porch of the Wavy Noodle Inn. Wooden posts prop up the wide patio roof. Weathered benches, chairs, and tables provide ample space to relax away from the bustle of the town square. A sneaky little goblin is prowling around here. The innkeeper is here, taking a break. The innkeeper yawns."

Option buttons are "Enter the inn's back hall," "Talk to the innkeeper," and "Engage the enemies!"

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 21/12/2023

Rounded out the day at the arcade, where we found no fewer than ten machines with credits already paid for. Felt like magic…

Modern Black Knight and Star Wars pinball machines

The Typing of the Dead cabinet complete with Japanese keyboard controllers

Twister (the movie) and Jurassic Park pinball machines

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 20/12/2023

Great day so far; had French dips at Hopfields and some beers at Lazarus. Hoping to visit a lot of breweries I don’t usually get to on break.

Two French dip sandwiches with pommels frites on a wooden table.

Upstairs at Lazarus Brewing, cozy stone fireplace and a couple beers on a coffee table on an old-looking rug. A Christmas model train runs along the mantle.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 19/12/2023

Separated! Suncrunch and Rumblyrocks have to fight to treasure chests on their own. Not ideal for a support that plays like a 4E warlord…

Two Gloomhaven boardgame characters surrounded by enemies and cut off from each other by rocky obstacles.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 19/12/2023

Break means I finally have time for board games. One day we’ll finish a Gloomhaven campaign. Beem Suncrunch and Hilty Rumblyrocks assault the necromancer’s stronghold!

Gloomhaven board game set up - enemy cards, player stations, and a dungeon made of tiles with minis.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 18/12/2023

Checking out Against the Storm; only in the tutorial so far but seems very cool. Been itching for a city building game recently and this one even has lizard guys! Big fan of lizard guys.

Screenshot from Against the Storm, view of a stylized city in isometric view with information panels.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 17/12/2023

Time for festive holiday film watching!

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 15/12/2023

Playing The Case of the Golden Idol after many recs from friends. Fun puzzles so far. Immediately thought "MURMAIDER MURMAIDER MURMAIDER" on seeing this chapter title. www.youtube.com/watch?v=INny...

"Chapter 2 - The Cursed Inheritance
The Murder at the Little Mermaid"

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 14/12/2023

Battletech at the Barnes and Noble? Out doing holiday shopping and didn’t expect to see this here!

Two Battletech boxes for mech minis-based game and beginner box situated above Munchkin.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 14/12/2023

Long-awaited holiday break starts now with a nice beer and some video games. Sure has been a year. Hope all y’all get some time to rest too. Cheers!

Tall gold can of beer: Meanwhile Dunkel Lager.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 12/12/2023

Now that I have a new PC, I can play No Man's Sky again and see all the cool updates. It's one of my go-to games for relaxing, but I was unable to play for a bit due to a stuttering issue that I think was CPU-related.

Screenshot from No Man's Sky: an icy, blue planet with two pillars of frost and a moon ringed with light and clouds in the sky.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 10/12/2023

Good day today, got my new PC running and now seeing Godzilla!

Godzilla Minus One movie poster at the Alamo Drafthouse

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 09/12/2023

Yesterday I visited a community college campus that is in an old mall. Weird but cool seeing that type of former commercial space transformed for education.

View from second floor railing, escalators and old shopfronts turned classroom. Large windows near the ceiling.

A repurposed mall store front labeled “Art Gallery,” dark tile surrounds closed double wooden doors with blacked-out windows.

A mall directory with a map of the building’s rooms, classrooms in place of stores.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 08/12/2023

The case for my new machine came in! First new PC in like 8 years, really excited.

Fractal North black computer case with thin vertical wood accents on the front and no optical drive bay.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 06/12/2023

Ain’t no update-released-today party like a sleeving-magic-decks-in-bed-with-a-beer party (I am old)

Veloci-ramp-tor Magic the Gathering Commander pre-con, box of yellow sleeves, and can of beer set against a comforter.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 03/12/2023

Cunningham, a new west coast IPA at Austin Beerworks. Really tasty! Perfect day, too.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 03/12/2023

My dad is getting ready to sell the house I grew up in (and I have Emotions about it), so he’s getting rid of stuff. I love this old photo of Dallas, so I took it. It was always in the house growing up, but so faded now.

A faded old photograph of Dallas, Texas. Reunion Tower, just left of center, appears to be the tallest.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 30/11/2023

Something from a game that has haunted me since childhood.

Image from Ecco the Dolphin; splash screen for the level "Welcome to the Machine." Blue text on a totally black background with level name and password.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 27/11/2023

New son joining the team… still don’t have a good name for him!

Two Monster Hunter plushes (Yian Kut-Ku and Rathalos) flank three Dark Souls figures (Oscar, Solaire, and Siegmeyer) with a little carved raven in front.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 26/11/2023

Me, thinking thoughts for too long but unable to do anything else

Strange, misshapen doll made of clay and dried grasses with text “What am I?!” From a Rifftrax short.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 26/11/2023

Playing some FFXIV to check out some of the newer stuff they've added. Love this little hot spring.

Male Viera and Female Roegadyn in a hot spring at night in Kugane.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 24/11/2023

Got this little raven guy at the ren faire to join all my sons at my work desk, but not sure what to name him yet.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 21/11/2023

Young me would have lost her shit over a Jurassic Park/M:tG crossover... that's not to say adult me isn't.

Alternate version of Rampaging Ferocidon card with art treatment done in Jurassic Park's visual style.

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allison berryman @onwi.bsky.social · 19/11/2023

My first real gamedev experience was with the TES Construction Set for Morrowind, figuring out how to make a house for myself with every book in it so I could read them in my own library.