kheehoon chan
banner
crapstacular.bsky.social
kheehoon chan
@crapstacular.bsky.social
Here for 饭 //
Freelance writer/editor //
news @rascal.news, author of Mouthwashing: Design Works, contributor @funland.itch.io //
NYVGCC award, TGA Future Class '21 //
https://linktr.ee/kheehoonchan //

#freepalestine #milkteaalliance #六月四号 //
they/them
Pinned
Surprise! I'm stoked to share that I'm writing this book. It's a dream to learn more about the game's development history from @wrongorgan.bsky.social themselves!
Just piggybacking off @chasecarter.bsky.social 's excellent piece on themed crowdfunding months - if any designers or creators have any thoughts about this, particularly the close proximity of themed months and Topias next year on Backerkit, please hit me up! [email protected]
Themed crowdfunding months provide creative ways to bring together associated tabletop creators and raise consistent money.

But as the trend spreads, the calendar is beginning to feel mighty crowded.
Every day cannot be a holiday
Much to month about.
www.rascal.news
November 26, 2025 at 12:04 PM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
Really wild situation here: a celebrated and well-regarded indie dev and publisher is facing shutdown because Valve banned their game from Steam and won't talk to them about it, at all.

www.ign.com/articles/uns...
Unsettling Horror Game Horses Banned From Steam, Leaving Studio With 'High Risk' of Closure - IGN
Indie horror game Horses is preparing to launch on December 2, on the Epic Games Store, GOG, Itch.io, and the Humble Store. But one place it won't be is on Steam, because Steam has banned the game for...
www.ign.com
November 25, 2025 at 5:25 PM
Here's a longer report for Rascal on DriveThruRPG's new shipping program for physical books, and how several folks in the tabletop industry see it as a bad deal for them altogether
DriveThruRPG's new Partner Shipping Program has drawn criticism from several corners of the tabletop industry, with professionals calling it "a half solution" and an “outright a bad deal”.
DriveThruRPG’s offset print option proves unpopular among small creators
Many cite the steep revenue cut without fulfillment support as a key issue.
www.rascal.news
November 26, 2025 at 2:24 AM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
Spoke to a number of devs about how, in the face of CEOs claiming gen-AI is the future, their declaration of being genAI free is making waves.
November 24, 2025 at 7:13 PM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
"Roll dice, grab a femur, survive. It’s a pestilent cycle that’s very reminiscent of doom metal, really: depraved, repetitive, transcendent."

Great article and interview with Giuseppe of Morbidware about bringing MÖRK BORG, the tabletop game, into the video game format and what that entails.
MÖRK BORG: Heresy Supreme's alpha demo not only nails the aesthetics of its source material but also introduces a satisfying roguelike loop, says @crapstacular.bsky.social.
MÖRK BORG: Heresy Supreme’s alpha demo plays like a gnarly doom metal roguelike
Expect sludgy, punishing fights.
www.rascal.news
November 24, 2025 at 7:50 PM
Wrote about a videogame (!!!) for Rascal - a roguelike adaptation of the absolutely stellar, doom metal-infused Mork Borg TTRPG
MÖRK BORG: Heresy Supreme's alpha demo not only nails the aesthetics of its source material but also introduces a satisfying roguelike loop, says @crapstacular.bsky.social.
MÖRK BORG: Heresy Supreme’s alpha demo plays like a gnarly doom metal roguelike
Expect sludgy, punishing fights.
www.rascal.news
November 24, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
Journalist challenge: Use “Machine Learning” when you mean machine learning and “LLM” when you mean LLM. Ditch “AI” as a catch-all term, it’s not useful for readers and it helps companies trying to confuse the public by obscuring the roles played by different technologies. 🧪
November 22, 2025 at 4:50 PM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
Workers with @kickstarterunited.org end their six-week strike victorious, enshrining 4-day work weeks and salary floors while also adding protections against gen AI replacing human labor.
Kickstarter United ends six-week strike with a resounding victory
Workers secure a 4-day work week, minimum salary floor, and protection against AI.
www.rascal.news
November 13, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
Can we circle back to the part where the NY Times never disclosed that they have incriminating information on Donald Trump from sent by Epstein that's been sitting on their email servers for nearly a decade?
Stuff like this makes me wonder why there hasn't been any reporting about Trump having affairs during his presidencies
November 12, 2025 at 7:15 PM
Just gonna reshare Chase's request - if you're a tabletop designer or a distributor, or even someone who is currently using DTRPG's Partner Shipping Program, please hit me up! [email protected] or just reply here.

Other folks who responded to Chase - I'm getting to you! Give me a while.
If you're a bookseller or tabletop designer with thoughts about DriveThruRPG's Partner Shipping Program -- specifically its cut from sales -- I want to hear from you for a followup article!

Email: [email protected]
Signal: ChaseTC.24
Or DM me here.
DriveThruRPG has launched a new program to sell publishers' offset books and other physical products. It's a boon to smaller creators, but also further consolidation for the one of the hobby's largest digital platforms.
November 12, 2025 at 10:50 AM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
Great to have some minis news from @crapstacular.bsky.social up on the site. It's been fun explaining our incredibly weird industry to them!
Good news for anyone with likes Warcradle Studios and Games Workshop alums. Bad news for anyone who wants virulent transphobes out of their hobby!
Warcradle Studios returns to Firestorm Armada — this time, with Robin Cruddace and Richard Morgan
The good, the bad, and the transphobic.
www.rascal.news
November 11, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Going to chronicle the number of days I'll spend on climbing the Manbreaker in Baby Steps
November 10, 2025 at 6:02 AM
Very offended that no one told me how good Nine Sols is
November 9, 2025 at 3:05 AM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
perhaps the most egregious thing that happened with the Future Class was when The Game Awards took money from Old Spice in the name of the FC & simply... pocketed it

it wasn't used to fund Future Class initiatives, it wasn't used to help lift marginalised developers

they just profited from us
November 7, 2025 at 5:59 AM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
If you're not willing to even keep up an *archived list* of the game developers you touted as future stars in the industry, let alone a notably *underprivileged* list of developers who were supposed to get resources *from your organization*, then you're not serious about that work. (3/5)
November 6, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Absolutely wild that this article is how we found out about this and not via official sources or on the Discord for FC members
EXCLUSIVE on @gamedeveloper.bsky.social: not only has The Game Awards not nominated a Future Class for 2025, it's told alumni it "does not have any active programming plans" for the award.

The Future Class page was taken down sometime this year—eliminating a definitive archive of honorees.
The Game Awards' Future Class program remains on ice
Future Class organizer Emily Weir has informed past honorees that The Game Awards has no active plans for the program.
www.gamedeveloper.com
November 7, 2025 at 1:26 AM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
Last year I did this interview with the intention of it being part of a longer reported piece in LARP and politics, but that fell through as things got...really intense after November.

Thanks still a fascinating exploration into what games can explore against a backdrop of history
"It's not a tomb. It's a town. And it will always be."

Czech larp group, Rolling, are based out of a former Nazi concentration camp hospital. Their performances embrace the complications and pain of that history.
A Czech larp group wrestles with Nazi history by roleplaying in its bones
Exploring Disco Elysium and the power of art in a former concentration camp.
www.rascal.news
November 6, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
If you worked/work at Square Enix and have any further specifics on the layoffs today you're willing to share, please reach out. Email and Signal in my bio, can keep you anonymous.
November 6, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
So not only is Square Enix going to try to replace 70% of its QA with AI, it's also apparently laying off at least 100 people (possibly significantly more) as it continues to consolidate its operations further and further:
www.ign.com/articles/squ...
Square Enix Announces Mass Layoffs As It Reorganizes to Consolidate Development in Japan - IGN
Square Enix has announced mass layoffs today, potentially impacting over 100 individuals, alongside a broader effort to consolidate its publishing organization and focus its development work in Japan.
www.ign.com
November 6, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
Couldn't get any review work for Nov, which is a pity because there are a lot of exciting indies releasing this month. I'm looking forward to these - and if you're open to commissioning any this month, please let me know!

Ambrosia Sky (store.steampowered.com/app/3580160/...)
Ambrosia Sky on Steam
You left. Now they’re dead. Ambrosia Sky: Act One is an immersive sim about exploring an asteroid colony devastated by a mysterious contamination. Survive and harvest strains of aggressive alien fungi...
store.steampowered.com
November 6, 2025 at 12:17 AM
Was a tad held up with personal stuff over the week, but wanted to share this interview I did with @liz-shrikestudio.bsky.social for her horror TTRPG, for @rascal.news - one of the most fascinating projects I've read these days
"There’s a lot of me in this project. Even if I’m often hiding behind the voices of Charlotte and Samantha."

@liz-shrikestudio.bsky.social tells Rascal about the process of creating her pseudo-autobiographical horror RPG about finding meaning before death, but also accepting the unknowable.
You Will Die In This Place is an autobiographical RPG told through multiple, fictional perspectives
You will be drawn to this game.
www.rascal.news
November 6, 2025 at 12:39 AM
Couldn't get any review work for Nov, which is a pity because there are a lot of exciting indies releasing this month. I'm looking forward to these - and if you're open to commissioning any this month, please let me know!

Ambrosia Sky (store.steampowered.com/app/3580160/...)
Ambrosia Sky on Steam
You left. Now they’re dead. Ambrosia Sky: Act One is an immersive sim about exploring an asteroid colony devastated by a mysterious contamination. Survive and harvest strains of aggressive alien fungi...
store.steampowered.com
November 6, 2025 at 12:17 AM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
DriveThruRPG has launched a new program to sell publishers' offset books and other physical products. It's a boon to smaller creators, but also further consolidation for the one of the hobby's largest digital platforms.
DriveThruRPG is now selling offset print books in the US
A step towards consolidating digital and physical tabletop RPG sales.
www.rascal.news
October 29, 2025 at 3:04 PM
Very excited to share a feature I wrote about parrying - as a parry Hater
October 29, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Reposted by kheehoon chan
i've got an interview up about the development process and folkloric background for One-Eyed Likho

among other things, i learned about the Aarne-Thompson-Uther Index, which classifies folktales from around the world
October 28, 2025 at 9:54 PM