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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 11h

How it feels reading emails in the year 2026.

Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 02/10/2026

Friday Finance Tip! Tired of replying "stop" or "opt-out" to relentless spam emails? Try responding with "Hold! What you are doing to us is wrong! Why do you do this thing?" It's just as ineffective but ten times as fun, and maybe you can poison a robot somewhere to regurgitate the phrase!

Stupid B2B spam email 1: Hi Dan,
Equipment fails at the wrong time, never the budgeted one.
The work does not pause while you sort it.
A line you draw on only when you need it covers that.
Can we put 15 minutes in next Tuesday?
Regards,
Willa King
Business Lines Desk
P.S. One word and we stop.

Stupid B2B spam email 2
Hi Dan,

Is Pistol Shrimp planning a second location before the next busy stretch?

Our partners cover the build out for businesses in your industry.

Can we arrange 15 minutes next Tuesday?

Kind regards,
Adaline Richard
Lead, Commercial Funding

P.S. Say stop and the file closes.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 09/09/2026

We are aware that many of our players wish to steer their ships with the joystick in the "classic" style. We are working on supporting this feature for the next build, but enabling it will play a short clip of someone who isn't used to it crying while trying to play The Ur-Quan Masters. Enjoy!

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 09/09/2026

Top reasons to check out our free combat demo: 1) frantic 1v1 top-down combat with 38 totally unique spaceships 2) play solo, local multiplayer, online, or on LAN 3) runs on windows, mac, and linux 4) be/shoot aliens from The Ur-Quan Masters & Children of Infinity 5) a bird will insult you in-game

A screenshot from the Free Stars: Children of Infinity Combat Demo. an Akashaq ship which looks like a cat is pouncing across the screen while an Androsynth ship in blazer form is flying past it

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 07/09/2026

Melnorme... Trader? Meet Chupp Clipper. They have a bargain for you. They take your stuff in exchange for your life. No? Wrong choice! Play these ships and 36 more in the Free Stars: Children of Infinity Combat Demo, releasing on GOG and Steam TOMORROW!

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 07/09/2026

The Crimson Corporation has brought to our attention that the Nintendo Direct has been scheduled on top of the much more important launch of our demo tomorrow. To meet our KPI-or-die metrics, they have graciously provided us with resources to do our OWN direct presentation. Be there!

A flyer made by someone with a passion for graphic design. It reads: free stars children of infinity combat demo launch party. Featuring: dark lord kazon [picture the ilwrath from the ur-quan masters], rocket (cockatiel) [picture of a cockatiel], pressing this button [a green button which reads "release demo"], and guy who's played zelda. The bottom section says it's at 9am PDT on twitch.tv/pebby

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 06/09/2026

Fly me to the moon... or at least the nearest asteroid. Show Juffo-Wup who's boss in Children of Infinity, demo releasing Tuesday! #godot #mycon #juffowup #fibers #turgid

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 04/09/2026

Where were these aliens when humanity needed to stop the Kohr-Ah in The Ur-Quan Masters?! 😎Style on them😎with new ships in the Children of Infinity Combat Demo, releasing Sep 8th! #godot #gamedev #indiegames

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 03/09/2026

If you would like this one of a kind, non-color-accurate, uncut test print, the only flat star map in existence, you are welcome to it. Otherwise you are welcome to print the digital version we sent out for your own use!

A photo of the HyperSpace Star Map poster, it’s full of stars.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 25/08/2026

An exclusive alumni rat!? Is this @dittmanrat.bsky.social's doing?

An email preview from GDC Festival of Gaming. Subtitle "Dan, your exclusive alumni rat..."

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 08/08/2026

There is nothing quite as unglamorous as menus where players can change their control settings. Maybe only a disc eject message is worse. But they're important nonetheless! Special thanks to @kenney.nl for the input prompt art we're using throughout the game. #screenshotsaturday #godot #gamedev

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 02/08/2026

Ready to play some local PvP with a friend? Do you play on a PC with an Xbox, PS5, and Switch controller all connected at once? Don't worry, you can pick your favorite controller(s) and we will help you find your button(s)! #screenshotsaturday #godot #ux

An image of an interface from Free Stars: Children of Infinity. There are two boxes each reading Player 1 and Player 2, prompting players on what to do. The left box prompts for a button to be pressed and shows "back" and "accept" button icons for PS5, Switch, Xbox, and keyboard all at once. The right box has a "back" prompt with back buttons.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 31/07/2026

The secret to testing multiplayer is having help from another set of appendages. Thumbs not necessary.

Two very cute gray cockatiels staring at a Steam Deck screen that shows the title screen for Free Stars: Battles in the Beyond. One is apparently pecking the screen.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 29/07/2026

Thanks @aftermath.site for putting this together. Check out what we and many others have to say about determining our own creative present and future. Give time, support, and energy to all these people who are doing the work that we think matters to us humans.

Pistol Shrimp Games

Games: Free Stars: Children of Infinity, Free Stars: The Ur-Quan Masters

Steam page

We don't use AI anything because AI makes people feel awful, collectively. If people feel awful then how will they do any good work? In my 20+ years of development experience I have never seen so many people feeling so absolutely worthless and like they have no value at all. Ignoring all of the serious ecological, copyright, de-skilling, and power-concentration issues with AI, I will happily concede that AI can ‘make stuff done faster,’ but that's just an overdrive for what Bad Games Industry decisions have been making forever (work more, crunch more, get paid less, destroy your franchises, ship a sequel every year or die, etc). It's a blunt instrument to do what makes a lot of money for some people, not what makes actually better, sustainable, more enjoyable products for the creators and the players.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 28/07/2026

We can reply to a little B2B spam mail as a treat.

Picture of an email.

Response reads:
Ok but how much to do it with an old timey auctioneer instead?

Original message reads:
Hi Dan,
Quick follow-up on my note about selling Pistol Shrimp quietly.
One thing I skipped. We can keep the listing anonymous until
a vetted buyer shows real interest, and close through escrow.
Worth a quick reply?

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 25/07/2026

Can't decide who to send into battle? Don't worry, we're providing everything you need to fuel your indecision engine. #screenshotsaturday #godot #gamedev

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 19/07/2026

Does anyone in our network have an inside line to Steam/Valve for developers? Our store assets for Free Stars: Battles in the Beyond, were rejected for having extra text unrelated to the game's title. We asked what extra text they were talking about but have not heard back for over a week.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 12/07/2026

Some work in progress for the match results screen. After being destroyed by Captain Nooowwwwww after a brief comeback, the Cyborg player ragequit, ending the match early. #screenshotsaturday #godot

An in-game menu for Free Stars: Children of Infinity. The lefthand side shows three images of different aliens. Some squirrel things, a weird black cat blob, and a spider. The righthand side has two aliens. A purple suited humanoid, and a green spiny plant monster. In the middle of the image is a "kill feed" showing different captains defeating other ships.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 05/07/2026

Oh I guess happy 🦅independence🦅day🦅 too, enjoy this commemorative fleet. Maybe we can use it to get our independence back.

A collection of different red, white, and blue ships making a vague, shitty looking american flag motif. It's titled with eagle emojis.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 05/07/2026

Choose your fighter!! Preparing the perfect fleet in Children of Infinity. #screenshotsaturday #godot

Menu screen split into two halves with very colorful ships from Free Stars: Children of infinity. The lefthand side has many ships and a stat display with colorful readout of various stats. The righthand side has a small list of ships in a group called "Lovable Lunkers" with a big, checked "Ready" button.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 17/06/2026

Who's ready to party like it's 1992? The melee pros from The Ur-Quan Masters community are hosting a swan song tournament before our own demo releases. Get your battle stations ready and join them for some good fun! See plantmonster.net/uqm-league-2... for more info.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 10/06/2026

Lord 613 is live on the scene delivering their statement. They're not looking happy, Captain.

An Ur-Quan from Free Stars: Children of Infinity saying "You forget that the consequences of your slop will cause great suffering for your entire people."

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 10/06/2026

Pistol Shrimp releases official statement on the non-use of GenAI in its games, including Free Stars: Children of Infinity.

To put a final, clear pin in it: “AI” sucks. No AI is used in the creation of this game. I have never willingly talked with a chatbot. AI and its slop can see itself out the door and never come back. If AI is just a tool, then it is a tool for hollowing out your own soul. It is Elric’s Stormbringer: it takes while it supposedly gives, and there is nothing left of you afterward. If AI is just a way of getting things done, then maybe we need to examine why we’re doing these things and what purpose they serve in the first place. We need to understand the disingenuous language being pushed in the name of profit and profit alone.

Fuck AI. Go fuck off with that shit.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 10/06/2026

It would! We've (half) got it with an info panel, and we actually can display more information in 1 player practice mode since we have the full screen.

A collection of ship button UI in a game and a stat window below which describes the ship. A text blurb says "The closer the Penetrator is to an opponent, the more crew its song will siphon away."

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 01/06/2026

Happy Pride Month! We are pleased to reveal our terraforming plans in celebration. Please contact your representative to endorse Rainbow World for all Earth.

A picture of a radar scanner from The Ur-Quan Masters. The top text reads "Rainbow World" and has various scientific print-outs. The planet is a rainbow planet with a radar rectangle at the bottom with very rainbow colors. It's very gay.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 12/05/2026

Just another Tuesday Text Tale from the development logs.

Capture of a version control system log message GUI. The commit message reads: "Smaller and cuter Syreen crew in space visuals."

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 17/04/2026

We built a custom Path2D text writer for our project! Should we release it? It's pretty fun.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 06/04/2026

Dan is back safely and for some reason left this image to post upon return. Presenting this totally objective if not fully comprehensive tier list for how much fun various game development jargon is.

Tier list image ranking various terms
S: duck, bake, skin, spawn
A: polyphony, NURBs, skeleton, mipmap
B: vert, spline, sidechain, bloom, focus
C: PBR, keyframe, albedo
D: shader, texel, ambient occlusion, antialiasing

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 16/03/2026

New technologies are making untold levels of realism possible. The future of gaming is here with DLSS 5. #juffowup #turgid

DLSS 5 Off/On meme with a Mycon from The Ur-Quan Masters on the left with DLSS 5 off and a crimini mushroom on the right with DLSS 5 on

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 10/03/2026

We do a little impromptu playtesting for Children of Infinity with a melee match between @shivambhatt.bsky.social and @ravikanodia.bsky.social

Three people surrounding a laptop playing children of infinity. They’re picking ships.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 07/03/2026

In-game bug reporting? In our Melee demo?! Yes. We look forward to high quality player feedback. #screenshotsaturday #urquan

An in-game screenshot of a user report.
Title: "Shofixti is OP"
Body: "After playing approximately 100 melee matches, I have determined that the Shofixti Scout is OP.
It is not far that I can lose to such a dinky ship piloted by a space rodent.
Please consider increasing the point cost of the Shofixti Scout to the same cost as the Ur-Quan Dreadnought.
Thanks"
Email address: "lord223@pathofnowandforev.er"

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 26/02/2026

Just another day doing important story research.

Image of three browser tabs for Wikipedia: Flatulence, Skatole, Indole.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 21/02/2026

Did you know you can play Children of Infinity on the couch with a controller?! Unfortunately the Cyborg opponent does not stop shooting while you take a blurry photo. #screenshotsaturday

Feet kicked up on the bottom of image and a view of a spaceship combat game on a TV

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 07/02/2026

All of our domestic backers have had their Kickstarter physical rewards shipped as of today. Even the sickos with six sticker sheets!!! Please send photos of what you’re doing with them (or any rewards). International folks next. We only have so much space in our mailroom (Dan’s building lobby).

Several boxes and USPS mail tubs containing hundreds of envelopes.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 02/02/2026

Over five hundred Collectors Complete Editions of our physical Kickstarter rewards ready to ship out. This represents all of our domestic backers who pledged at this tier and got no add-ons, and it means about half of our backers shipments are done.

A collection of boxes overflowing with hundreds of white bubble mailers with shipping labels taped on them. The location appears to be a kitchen. There is a countertop with a black backpack on it. It has a pin on it which says "Fuck I.C.E."

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 10/01/2026

Lessons in packaging materials: your tolerance still isn't tolerant enough, and it's hard to predict the size of something that doesn't exist yet. We don't want them bent, so hundreds of new shipping envelopes are now on their way! 🥳

A paper bubble mailer packed with stuff showing a slightly bent folded poster.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 10/01/2026

The Star Maps are in!! This means _all_ of our Kickstarter backers can start getting their physical rewards. Our domestic, non-map-receiving backers have had their rewards shipped, and now we can move on to the rest.

An unfolded poster entitled HyperSpace Star Map showing a star chart for the game Free Stars: Children of Infinity. A section of the text in the legend is obscured for your safety.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 02/01/2026

300 packages going out to our backers tomorrow! Starting off the new year with some very specific ASMR.

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Pistol Shrimp Games - Demo OUT NOW! @pistolshrimpgames.com · 27/12/2025

Happy #screenshotsaturday, let's celebrate all of our favorite placeholders from 2025. Do you like Reptile Captain Placeholder1, or Slayer Captain Placeholder1? Maybe you like the radar texture cockatiel?! Or white dot! White dot is pretty cool. #godot

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