Fractal Diane
@fractaldiane.bsky.social
game dev, code witch, composer
they/she
my games: https://dianesparks.itch.io/
my music: https://on.soundcloud.com/MuAm9
music commissions: https://ko-fi.com/fractaldiane/commissions
icon by PineconePaladin, banner by Magpie_Feather
they/she
my games: https://dianesparks.itch.io/
my music: https://on.soundcloud.com/MuAm9
music commissions: https://ko-fi.com/fractaldiane/commissions
icon by PineconePaladin, banner by Magpie_Feather
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Steam intentionally killing an old, respected, and beloved decade old indie game studio through bullshit policy is fucking wild
Our upcoming game HORSES was preemptively banned from Steam, with no path to appeal. The game will still launch next week on December 2nd and will be available on EGS, GOG, Humble, and Itch for $4.99. Here is a detailed FAQ covering what happened: horses.wtf/BannedFromSt...
November 26, 2025 at 1:08 AM
Steam intentionally killing an old, respected, and beloved decade old indie game studio through bullshit policy is fucking wild
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Related: People I know IRL who know what I do for a living often ask what they need to know about online safety for their about-to-be-teenagers, and there's a lot of answers, but the thing I always emphasize most is: under no circumstances should you ever threaten to take access away from them.
And a lot of you post the photos but put an emoji sticker over the kid's face or whatever: that is really, really, really not sufficient to prevent people from doing things with them you do not want to know about. Do not post photos of your kids online, period.
I am one of those people who is *really, really good* at identifying exactly where and when a photo was taken from basic context clues (a skill I developed for human rights research and journalism purposes).
Trust me on this, don’t post photos of your kids on the public internet.
Trust me on this, don’t post photos of your kids on the public internet.
January 10, 2025 at 5:37 AM
Related: People I know IRL who know what I do for a living often ask what they need to know about online safety for their about-to-be-teenagers, and there's a lot of answers, but the thing I always emphasize most is: under no circumstances should you ever threaten to take access away from them.
Reposted by Fractal Diane
y'know, if tech companies weren't so fired up to call every single thing "AI" it would be a lot easier to distinguish "ML spam filter that is well-sandboxed and tuned on your emails" from "giant context and IP-eroding foundation model that makes people paranoid and unhappy"
since the "google is now training gemini on your email contents" thing keeps bumping around here: it's _not happening_. I say this not to defend google but because I know a lot of people that have broken their filtering and made their lives much more annoying from sheer misinformation.
The malwarebytes Google opting-your-emails-into-ai-training thing is not true. The post is based on one bad tweet.
I know anti-tech lamenting is a Bluesky core principle, but please use the same judgement you would for any other clickbait.
www.theverge.com/news/826902/...
I know anti-tech lamenting is a Bluesky core principle, but please use the same judgement you would for any other clickbait.
www.theverge.com/news/826902/...
November 23, 2025 at 12:58 PM
y'know, if tech companies weren't so fired up to call every single thing "AI" it would be a lot easier to distinguish "ML spam filter that is well-sandboxed and tuned on your emails" from "giant context and IP-eroding foundation model that makes people paranoid and unhappy"
sometimes you just get that feeling
feat. @whenwolvescryout.gremgang.com
feat. @whenwolvescryout.gremgang.com
November 21, 2025 at 4:43 PM
sometimes you just get that feeling
feat. @whenwolvescryout.gremgang.com
feat. @whenwolvescryout.gremgang.com
Reposted by Fractal Diane
happy transgender day of remembrance
thank you for sticking around in the hardest of times. if you haven't, you are missed dearly
please live 💜
thank you for sticking around in the hardest of times. if you haven't, you are missed dearly
please live 💜
November 20, 2025 at 10:57 AM
happy transgender day of remembrance
thank you for sticking around in the hardest of times. if you haven't, you are missed dearly
please live 💜
thank you for sticking around in the hardest of times. if you haven't, you are missed dearly
please live 💜
Reposted by Fractal Diane
If a kufiya is religious attire then baguettes are religious food
We were invited to screen Still Playing at Amiens Jail in France as part of the cultural activity
They asked me to take off my Kufiya claming its religious symbol
I explained it’s part of my culture worn by people regardless of their religion
I refused to take it off & the screening was cancelled
They asked me to take off my Kufiya claming its religious symbol
I explained it’s part of my culture worn by people regardless of their religion
I refused to take it off & the screening was cancelled
November 20, 2025 at 12:22 PM
If a kufiya is religious attire then baguettes are religious food
Reposted by Fractal Diane
psst, no one is struggling with this - we are trying to create singular things that resonate with a huge audience or resonate hugely with a specific audience. We "struggle" with how tech and VC funding has broken almost every creative economy we have. So thanks but no thanks
November 19, 2025 at 11:54 PM
psst, no one is struggling with this - we are trying to create singular things that resonate with a huge audience or resonate hugely with a specific audience. We "struggle" with how tech and VC funding has broken almost every creative economy we have. So thanks but no thanks
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Audio (sound effects, music, and dialogue) has a weird relationship with temp assets, mostly because of issues revolving around human psychology.
Problem #1: How do you communicate that something you're hearing is temp?
Problem #1: How do you communicate that something you're hearing is temp?
The annoying thing about the "oh we left a placeholder" generative AI slop excuse is that that is EXACTLY NOT how you should be using placeholders. Anything "not obviously terrible with a panicked hurried half-awake glance" is getting shipped.
In gamedev, if you're using a placeholder asset, best practices involve marking it as placeholder so garishly and offensively clearly PLACEHOLDER that you can't possibly miss it. Also flagging that asset in the dev process so it can be identified quickly before the final build.
November 19, 2025 at 3:36 PM
Audio (sound effects, music, and dialogue) has a weird relationship with temp assets, mostly because of issues revolving around human psychology.
Problem #1: How do you communicate that something you're hearing is temp?
Problem #1: How do you communicate that something you're hearing is temp?
Reposted by Fractal Diane
This concept is often hard for devs to grasp too, not just players. I put it as "the joy of doing" vs. "the joy of being".
Why does some grind or hard challenge feel joyful in game A, but a chore in game B? You enjoy *existing* in game A. The "thing to do" serves that joy.
Pet the dog. Enjoy being
Why does some grind or hard challenge feel joyful in game A, but a chore in game B? You enjoy *existing* in game A. The "thing to do" serves that joy.
Pet the dog. Enjoy being
November 18, 2025 at 11:28 PM
This concept is often hard for devs to grasp too, not just players. I put it as "the joy of doing" vs. "the joy of being".
Why does some grind or hard challenge feel joyful in game A, but a chore in game B? You enjoy *existing* in game A. The "thing to do" serves that joy.
Pet the dog. Enjoy being
Why does some grind or hard challenge feel joyful in game A, but a chore in game B? You enjoy *existing* in game A. The "thing to do" serves that joy.
Pet the dog. Enjoy being
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Reposted by Fractal Diane
game awards 2016: we signed a sponsorship deal with schick, here is a bit razor mascot man. he's buff for some reason
game awards 2025: we signed a sponsorship deal with a company that knowingly sells ad time to the government agency that kidnaps immigrants
game awards 2025: we signed a sponsorship deal with a company that knowingly sells ad time to the government agency that kidnaps immigrants
November 17, 2025 at 6:30 PM
game awards 2016: we signed a sponsorship deal with schick, here is a bit razor mascot man. he's buff for some reason
game awards 2025: we signed a sponsorship deal with a company that knowingly sells ad time to the government agency that kidnaps immigrants
game awards 2025: we signed a sponsorship deal with a company that knowingly sells ad time to the government agency that kidnaps immigrants
Reposted by Fractal Diane
like i am not going to devote a fraction of my brain to being upset for longer than a minute, but this says about all you need to know about the legitimacy of TGA's awards at least as it applies to music
November 17, 2025 at 6:08 PM
like i am not going to devote a fraction of my brain to being upset for longer than a minute, but this says about all you need to know about the legitimacy of TGA's awards at least as it applies to music
Reposted by Fractal Diane
It really needs to be pointed out how every one of these embarrassing statements is made by a c-suite executive and not an artist or even art department lead
"Surely there's a middle ground here?" The CEO of Helldivers 2 studio Arrowhead says people "jump to extreme takes" when debating generative AI, and that there needs to be more nuance in the discussion.
www.videogameschronicle.com/news/surely-...
www.videogameschronicle.com/news/surely-...
‘Surely there’s a middle ground here?’ Helldivers studio CEO says people ‘jump to extreme takes’ when debating GenAI | VGC
“This is such a trigger point for big parts of the games industry today”…
www.videogameschronicle.com
November 17, 2025 at 3:05 PM
It really needs to be pointed out how every one of these embarrassing statements is made by a c-suite executive and not an artist or even art department lead
Reposted by Fractal Diane
It literally has a disclosure on its Steam page. It didn't "slip through", man. You tried to charge people for a thing that's got slop in it and they're mad.
I have an extension to add a pop-up on the Steam page for it but I really think it should be by default top-of-page.
I have an extension to add a pop-up on the Steam page for it but I really think it should be by default top-of-page.
November 17, 2025 at 12:11 AM
It literally has a disclosure on its Steam page. It didn't "slip through", man. You tried to charge people for a thing that's got slop in it and they're mad.
I have an extension to add a pop-up on the Steam page for it but I really think it should be by default top-of-page.
I have an extension to add a pop-up on the Steam page for it but I really think it should be by default top-of-page.
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Hello fellow nerds! I've got a hypothesis about the intersectionality of gamers and disabilities I'm trying to test. Even if you're not a gamer or disabled, please take 10 minutes and fill this out!
Thanks so much, and feel free to ask me any questions.
forms.gle/S7F7iSGMAMd7...
Thanks so much, and feel free to ask me any questions.
forms.gle/S7F7iSGMAMd7...
Gaming Habits, Conventions, and Disability Intersectionality
Hi all! My name is Sara Winters. I am blind (due to a genetic condition called ocular albinism), a disability accessibility consultant, and gamer, and while I've done a ton of work in the accessibilit...
forms.gle
November 16, 2025 at 3:44 PM
Hello fellow nerds! I've got a hypothesis about the intersectionality of gamers and disabilities I'm trying to test. Even if you're not a gamer or disabled, please take 10 minutes and fill this out!
Thanks so much, and feel free to ask me any questions.
forms.gle/S7F7iSGMAMd7...
Thanks so much, and feel free to ask me any questions.
forms.gle/S7F7iSGMAMd7...
Reposted by Fractal Diane
3 years ago today, Riot Games offered me a job making more money than I ever thought I’d make in my life. I had 19 interviews over 2.5 months to get it. Partner and I were moving to LA for it. I put in notice at my job and apartment.
2 weeks later they rescinded the offer due to “headcount issues”.
2 weeks later they rescinded the offer due to “headcount issues”.
November 15, 2025 at 2:07 PM
3 years ago today, Riot Games offered me a job making more money than I ever thought I’d make in my life. I had 19 interviews over 2.5 months to get it. Partner and I were moving to LA for it. I put in notice at my job and apartment.
2 weeks later they rescinded the offer due to “headcount issues”.
2 weeks later they rescinded the offer due to “headcount issues”.
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Silicon Valley, 1990s: Free and open access to all the world’s knowledge will usher a new utopian age of information!
Silicon Valley, 2025:
Silicon Valley, 2025:
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November 15, 2025 at 1:28 AM
Silicon Valley, 1990s: Free and open access to all the world’s knowledge will usher a new utopian age of information!
Silicon Valley, 2025:
Silicon Valley, 2025:
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Then why do I keep talking to devs in the US whose salary is suddenly $0
The average salary for games industry professionals based in the United States was $142,000 in 2025, according to a new report from GDC Festival of Gaming.
www.gamesindustry.biz/gdc-survey-a...
www.gamesindustry.biz/gdc-survey-a...
GDC Survey: Average salary for US games professionals was $142,000 in 2025
Findings reveal 33% of workers feel employers are "working to close existing pay gaps," while one-tenth report no efforts are being made
www.gamesindustry.biz
November 14, 2025 at 9:14 PM
Then why do I keep talking to devs in the US whose salary is suddenly $0
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Lots of folks captioning aurora photos like "for a few minutes we didn't think about politics"
guess I'm built different, every time I'm out trying to see night sky stuff I frequently think about how much light pollution is entirely preventable with just a tiny bit of regulation
guess I'm built different, every time I'm out trying to see night sky stuff I frequently think about how much light pollution is entirely preventable with just a tiny bit of regulation
November 13, 2025 at 10:03 PM
Lots of folks captioning aurora photos like "for a few minutes we didn't think about politics"
guess I'm built different, every time I'm out trying to see night sky stuff I frequently think about how much light pollution is entirely preventable with just a tiny bit of regulation
guess I'm built different, every time I'm out trying to see night sky stuff I frequently think about how much light pollution is entirely preventable with just a tiny bit of regulation
Reposted by Fractal Diane
The US straight up saying that fascism is a foundation of Western civilisation wasn't on my bingo card but OK
November 13, 2025 at 10:11 PM
The US straight up saying that fascism is a foundation of Western civilisation wasn't on my bingo card but OK
Reposted by Fractal Diane
The Rockstar union case made its way into UK Parliament earlier today
Video game giant Rockstar has sacked more than 30 workers across the UK, including my constituents working at their Edinburgh office. I urged Ministers to support workers who have lost their jobs, and stop this from happening again.
November 13, 2025 at 5:17 PM
The Rockstar union case made its way into UK Parliament earlier today
Reposted by Fractal Diane
"The mainstream understanding of AI is as an interefering piece of shit which doesn't work" pt II
www.askamanager.org/2025/11/the-...
www.askamanager.org/2025/11/the-...
November 12, 2025 at 8:47 PM
"The mainstream understanding of AI is as an interefering piece of shit which doesn't work" pt II
www.askamanager.org/2025/11/the-...
www.askamanager.org/2025/11/the-...
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Reposted by Fractal Diane
Hello, not only do we not use AI we would rather cut off our own arms than do so. Demonschool is 100% human made.
“It’s important to assume every game company is now using AI.” Nexon CEO comments on role of human creativity as AI tools become the norm
automaton-media.com/en/news/its-...
automaton-media.com/en/news/its-...
“It’s important to assume every game company is now using AI.” Nexon CEO comments on role of human creativity as AI tools become the norm - AUTOMATON WEST
In an interview following the launch of ARC Raiders, the CEO of Embark Studios' parent company Nexon shares his views on AI.
automaton-media.com
November 12, 2025 at 3:36 AM
Hello, not only do we not use AI we would rather cut off our own arms than do so. Demonschool is 100% human made.
Reposted by Fractal Diane
this generation of game industry guys like Tim here have always fascinated me, because they may or may not have actually been artists at one point but they don't seem to have ever had much interest or curiosity towards art. their real primary function has been to be a sort of libertarian ideologue.
sincerely cannot imagine being this stupid or anti-art
November 11, 2025 at 5:24 PM
this generation of game industry guys like Tim here have always fascinated me, because they may or may not have actually been artists at one point but they don't seem to have ever had much interest or curiosity towards art. their real primary function has been to be a sort of libertarian ideologue.