iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

I got interviewed about my monster-focused art practice for Monster Lab. What a special treat! I feel like a big city artist now, fancy big-city style! www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJuS...

youtube.com

Zack Wood - Yokai, games, and monster tarot

YouTube video by ¡AU! Monster Lab

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

And it was so much fun I made a sequel, which is actually interactive (each choice changes the next part of the poem): wzackw.com/backinthesto... Not on itch yet, let me know what you think or if anything doesn't seem to work!

wzackw.com

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

Got my game poem "The Stone Garden" up on itch. Made in Decker at a game poem jam inspired by @farfama.bsky.social wzackw.itch.io/the-stone-ga... You can also just play it in your browser (wzackw.com/stonegarden....), but it's fun to have a collection of my games together on itch :)

wzackw.itch.io

The Stone Garden by wzackw

A short, linear game poem

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Alistair Aitcheson & Mademoiselle Cafetière @agaitcheson.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

I guess if there's a concluding lesson, it's that making sure everyone knows it's fine to not enjoy playing is a big part of what allows people to enjoy the play

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 11/10/2026

I put a playable version of the old school text game I'm making on itch! "A Seed, a Sword, a Symbol," an object-oriented dream puzzle solver: wzackw.itch.io/a-seed-a-swo...

wzackw.itch.io

A Seed, a Sword, a Symbol by wzackw

A text game companion to a deck of cards. Discover and learn to use all the dream objects hidden in dream land!

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 06/10/2026

Rescheduled, but so excited!

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Kate Barrett @thewaether.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

I'm doing a little experiment with pre-rendered backgrounds. I wanted the backgrounds to look lousy as hell, btw

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Team Lazerbeam @teamlazerbeam.bsky.social · 21/09/2026

Last week Shroom and Gloom found it's way to a whole bunch of new people. We got a lot of repeat questions, so figured it's high time we make an updated FAQ! Here are the answers to the 6 questions we most commonly get about Shroom and Gloom. #gamedev #indiedev #shroomandgloom #indiegames

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

im so curious! it looked random and seemingly unnecessary

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

Can't stop making gardens!

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Making a game poem (aka making a literal poem i wrote interactive) using Decker @farfama.bsky.social Love the Mac OS 7 aesthetic

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 13/09/2026

Ready to debate this person with a powerpoint presentation about how i designed the levels of my game. come at me with your paltry criticism bro

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

I wrote a post about the yōkai-making workshops I did for the Ancient Monsters Blog! websites.umass.edu/felton/2026/...

websites.umass.edu

Teaching Traditional Japanese Monsters: The Yōkai – The Ancient Monsters Blog

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Long ago I reached @superbunnyhop.bsky.social to play Monster Garden by sending him a DM that said "JAWJA!" because we're both from Georgia. So never be afraid to yell local slang at youtubers! youtu.be/emvJxRFeuYg?... (Monster Garden is at 1:06, weirdly the "most replayed" part of the video)

youtu.be

Games From My Inbox: Volume 7

YouTube video by Super Bunnyhop

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Ed Morrish @edmorrish.com · 19/05/2026

the fuck it will

A white man in a business suit pointing a handgun at an open laptop

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Eteo Games @eteogames.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

How does a card reading in a video game compare to the real deal? Zack Wood examines The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood, finding the game successfully invokes "sense of wonder and imagination that makes divination fun". www.eteogames.com/card-creatio...

eteogames.com

Card Creation and Divination in The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood

The Cosmic Wheel Sisterhood often strays from the confines of traditional Tarot, successfully evoking the wonder and creativity of giving card readings.

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Jordan @jordanpfot.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

Might be the greatest opening paragraph of anything ever.

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Ferran 斐浪 @ferran.games · 23/02/2026

I just released a side project I've been working for the last weeks! 🪐🧵🎶 Solar System String Sequencer, a playful music instrument made to explore the musicality of our solar system through the sonification of its planets and their orbits. You can play it right now on itch at fonserbc.itch.io/ssss

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

Any fans of Lovecraft/Cthulhu Mythos stories? Need recommendations of some with striking visuals for illustrations (I also remember reading a few I can't find now...)

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

Did I mention Monster Garden's on sale for the RPG Maker Sale? "Very Positive" RPG Maker game alert! store.steampowered.com/app/719660/M...

store.steampowered.com

Save 67% on Monster Garden on Steam

Befriend strange monsters as you explore the surreal magic of the monster garden and discover its secrets!

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Alistair Aitcheson & Mademoiselle Cafetière @agaitcheson.bsky.social · 01/02/2026

Had an amazing time as a ballerina at Lost Cabaret in Bristol 😁 I get the audience to draw pictures on their phones and come up with a dance inspired by each one. Not pictured: me rolling on the floor pretending to be an orange 🍊

Me, in clown make-up and a red nose, pigtail braids, a tiara and a Black Swan style ballet outfit. I am smiling open mouthed with amazement at the audience. Behind me on a projection screen is a picture of a smiling face in a top hat and the caption "Laughing Cavalier"

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

Oh I thought it was a crowdfunding campaign for a second!

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farfama @farfama.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

My game curation project @exhibitplay.com received its first supporter! This will go towards a fund for commissioning written pieces and original micro games based on one of the current lists. A call for pitches will happen soon. If you have the means, you can support the project on buymeacoffee.

buymeacoffee.com

Exhibit Play

Welcome to Exhibit Play. We're dedicated to discovering and sharing hyper specific curated game lists. All human curated.Created by Farfama

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Eteo Games @eteogames.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

It's time for our monthly roundup! Here we recap our articles on the seasons, with pieces on Harvest Moon, Persona 4 and Animal Crossing. There's also recommended reading on the seasons theme, and a selection of our favourite community comments from this month. ❄️ www.eteogames.com/the-monthly-...

eteogames.com

The Monthly Roundup: Seasons

This month on Archetypes our writers explored the theme of seasons, examining games including Harvest Moon, Persona 4 and Animal Crossing.

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Alistair Aitcheson & Mademoiselle Cafetière @agaitcheson.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Tickets still available for my upcoming show! www.ticketsource.co.uk/alistair-ait... If you have friends in London who'd enjoy a bit of clown anarchy please share with them 😊🧡

Show poster for "My Date with Pierce Brosnan + The Incredible Playable Show" on Fri 6 Feb, LONDON Theatre Deli

A clown in a french maid's outfit gazes lovingly at a stuffed dummy of Pierce Brosnan

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Eteo Games @eteogames.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

All of our articles on seasons are now live. Have you read them all yet? There's still time to catch up! 🍂 👉 vist.ly/4nnyq

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Alistair Aitcheson & Mademoiselle Cafetière @agaitcheson.bsky.social · 18/01/2026

This year's award trophies are tarot cards made by past awardees and luminaries. I had the great honour of creating the trophy for the Performance Award for the incredible Ferryman Collective @ferrymanvr.bsky.social and their latest groundbreaking VR performance 🧡

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farfama @farfama.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

Check out this wonderful collection of game poems! I helped out as one of many first readers, reviewing a lot of submissions. So many incredibly projects that explored the poetic potential of games really well. The final selection has a wide range of thought provoking, and visually unique games.

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Alistair Aitcheson & Mademoiselle Cafetière @agaitcheson.bsky.social · 05/01/2026

LONDON! The most romantic immersive show starring a talking dummy and a clown is coming to you on FRIDAY 6 FEBRUARY Tell your friends, tell your enemies, tell your lovers! 💖 Play Cupid using your phone, and wreak havoc as my guests in the café of lonely hearts 🥰 Tickets: alistair.games/tickets

Poster for "My Date with Pierce Brosnan" - Frin6 Feb, 7:30pm, LONDON Theatre Deli
A clown in a french maid's outfit gazes lovingly at a cheap dummy of Pierce Brosnan
Caption: She's about to meet the man of her dreams... a talking dummy controlled by you the audience!

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Eteo Games @eteogames.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

Though sad and uncomfortable, winter - and death - are often necessary to prevent game worlds from feeling stagnant. In our first article on Seasons, @hollynielsen.bsky.social explores how winter provides vital friction in the Harvest Moon series: vist.ly/4kb34

vist.ly

Winter and Death in Harvest Moon

While letting go of a beloved pet is hard, death plays an essential role in preventing farming sims from feeling stagnant.

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 01/01/2026

I was gonna say, I love the HM art! All the cover art for the posts have been looking great, too!

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 26/12/2025

Cookoo year in summary. (no paywall, just bloggin) www.patreon.com/posts/2025-w...

patreon.com

2025 Wrapped (slightly early) | Zack

Get more from Zack on Patreon

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

My GOTY is the fan hack of Chrono Trigger. The translation is noticeably much better, they balanced the tech system, and I think added new story content (haven't finished yet). Now I wanna play balanced/boosted mods of all the classics!

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Alistair Aitcheson & Mademoiselle Cafetière @agaitcheson.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

My GOTY this year is Magic Garden :) I pick a GOTY based on what I've discovered this year, not what came out this year, and UFO 50 has been an absolute gem. Still only tried about a third of the games!

The game Magic Garden from UFO 50. Pixelated game in 8-bit colours with lots of purple green and orange. A young girl leads a trail of purple blobs around a chequerboard grid. Angry looking dark blue blobs are also on the grid

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farfama @farfama.bsky.social · 24/12/2025

Shared some end of the year reflections. Check it out!

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 17/11/2025

I've been doing monster making workshops for a while, where we play a bunch of games and imagine, draw and embody new monsters. I always wanted to exhibit the drawings in some special way, and finally got to try it as an installation called "Portal to Monster World" Pics: wzackw.com?p=2795

wzackw.com

Monster Portal

Project at El Hacedor artist residency in Burgos, Spain. September 21 to October 5th, 2025. Held monster creation workshop where participants imagined, embodied and drew new monsters. Exhibited the…

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 12/11/2025

If we don't know each other yet, I made a game called Monster Garden (store.steampowered.com/app/719660/M...) that was shown at @playtopia.bsky.social in 2018 but this will be my first time there! I also made a deck of cards based on the game that I use for a playful collaborative divination game!

store.steampowered.com

Monster Garden on Steam

Befriend strange monsters as you explore the surreal magic of the monster garden and discover its secrets!

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wzackw @wzackw.bsky.social · 11/11/2025

Howdy! Do I know anyone who will be at @playtopia.bsky.social in Cape Town next month?

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