Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
@queso2469.bsky.social
Still working at Muse Games, making cool, weird, multiplayer games.
Director on Stars of Icarus (wishlist it on steam pls)
Opinions are everyone else's.
Director on Stars of Icarus (wishlist it on steam pls)
Opinions are everyone else's.
*Almost* all feedback is useful while making games, even "this sucks" at least tells you someone didn't have fun.
The exception: Someone telling you how they think *other* people will react to your game. They're usually wrong, and just masking their own feelings in a difficult to unpack way.
The exception: Someone telling you how they think *other* people will react to your game. They're usually wrong, and just masking their own feelings in a difficult to unpack way.
January 5, 2026 at 4:18 PM
*Almost* all feedback is useful while making games, even "this sucks" at least tells you someone didn't have fun.
The exception: Someone telling you how they think *other* people will react to your game. They're usually wrong, and just masking their own feelings in a difficult to unpack way.
The exception: Someone telling you how they think *other* people will react to your game. They're usually wrong, and just masking their own feelings in a difficult to unpack way.
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
the one piece of genuine utility provided by ai and nfts and crypto and metaverse shit over the years is that folks keep lists of who's been into that shit, and there's 0 overlap with people it'd be good to work with. easier than ever to avoid these people who were always gonna wreck your shit
January 5, 2026 at 3:23 AM
the one piece of genuine utility provided by ai and nfts and crypto and metaverse shit over the years is that folks keep lists of who's been into that shit, and there's 0 overlap with people it'd be good to work with. easier than ever to avoid these people who were always gonna wreck your shit
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
"people can still download your art from bsky and feed it into AI" if gamer behavior has taught me anything, just one extra button press is more than enough to annoy a MASSIVE amount of people into not making the effort
December 25, 2025 at 10:01 PM
"people can still download your art from bsky and feed it into AI" if gamer behavior has taught me anything, just one extra button press is more than enough to annoy a MASSIVE amount of people into not making the effort
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
US citizen born in US deported based entirely on DHS/ICE looking at the paperwork proving her citizenship and saying "nah". No judicial process, or rather a court reviewed it and was overridden by ICE.
There is no rule of law in America, and there is no such thing as "Citizenship" in America.
There is no rule of law in America, and there is no such thing as "Citizenship" in America.
"Her family has now been told she has been deported, despite US District Judge Brendan Hurson ruling Thursday that she could not be deported pending a hearing...attorneys said Monday that they have...confirm[ed] with the hospital she was born in Maryland." https://bit.ly/3MMdJvz
ICE detains woman whose lawyer insists is US citizen. DHS says she isn't
Federal agents arrested Dulce Consuelo Diaz Morales on her way home in Baltimore, Maryland.
bit.ly
December 23, 2025 at 4:46 PM
US citizen born in US deported based entirely on DHS/ICE looking at the paperwork proving her citizenship and saying "nah". No judicial process, or rather a court reviewed it and was overridden by ICE.
There is no rule of law in America, and there is no such thing as "Citizenship" in America.
There is no rule of law in America, and there is no such thing as "Citizenship" in America.
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
One thing I find funny is that so many of these studios that have CEOS claiming they've 'fully embraced AI' can't find ONE use of it at the company that isn't incredibly minor and not really time-saving.
Level-5's full integration examples: Generating blurry background crowd JPGs & mood-boarding.
Level-5's full integration examples: Generating blurry background crowd JPGs & mood-boarding.
December 23, 2025 at 3:33 PM
One thing I find funny is that so many of these studios that have CEOS claiming they've 'fully embraced AI' can't find ONE use of it at the company that isn't incredibly minor and not really time-saving.
Level-5's full integration examples: Generating blurry background crowd JPGs & mood-boarding.
Level-5's full integration examples: Generating blurry background crowd JPGs & mood-boarding.
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
the game being called "unbeatable" despite being obviously beatable is an example of what we in the biz call "ludonarrative dissonance"
December 20, 2025 at 1:59 AM
the game being called "unbeatable" despite being obviously beatable is an example of what we in the biz call "ludonarrative dissonance"
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
Is it walking into rake week for studio heads? Do I have to check on all my team leads and boss?
"It’s time to face reality, AI is here to stay" - Kingdom Come: Deliverance head Daniel Vávra says Larian got a "crazy shitstorm" for doing what "absolutely everyone else is doing", and that while he's "no fan of AI generated art" it's going nowhere.
www.videogameschronicle.com/news/its-tim...
www.videogameschronicle.com/news/its-tim...
‘It’s time to face reality, AI is here to stay’: Kingdom Come Deliverance studio head responds to Larian backlash | VGC
Daniel Vávra says AI is a frightening prospect but has its uses, and that “absolutely everyone else” is using it…
www.videogameschronicle.com
December 18, 2025 at 6:42 PM
Is it walking into rake week for studio heads? Do I have to check on all my team leads and boss?
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
I begged them to let me hire some weirdos to write some Lower Decks EU novels with saucy covers and they said no.
So can we get Star Trek novels set after the series like authors did during the wilderness period.
I would love a Discovery, Prodigy, Lower Decks novels continuing the adventures of those characters. Definitely an Enterprise G novel.
#StarTrek
I would love a Discovery, Prodigy, Lower Decks novels continuing the adventures of those characters. Definitely an Enterprise G novel.
#StarTrek
December 16, 2025 at 5:03 AM
I begged them to let me hire some weirdos to write some Lower Decks EU novels with saucy covers and they said no.
Hey, if you're a sicko for space, 6DoF games, 00s anime, games about repairing things under fire, turret shooting, flying spaceships, PvP, or asymmetric combat, you should play the alpha playtest for Stars of Icarus. We just extended access to Early January.
store.steampowered.com/app/2278950/...
store.steampowered.com/app/2278950/...
Stars of Icarus on Steam
Assemble your crew and take to the stars in a team-based PvP dogfight. Enter the forgotten arenas of space, master your ship's loadout and strategize with the rest of your ragtag squadron. Victory or ...
store.steampowered.com
December 16, 2025 at 5:01 AM
Hey, if you're a sicko for space, 6DoF games, 00s anime, games about repairing things under fire, turret shooting, flying spaceships, PvP, or asymmetric combat, you should play the alpha playtest for Stars of Icarus. We just extended access to Early January.
store.steampowered.com/app/2278950/...
store.steampowered.com/app/2278950/...
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
extraction games are the most I have ever felt "am i so out of touch / it's the kids who are wrong", man. Like they're trying to trick me into thinking that I, someone with 1500+ hours in Apex and one wonderful summer spent in Straftat lobbies, don't like PVP shooters. I don't get it.
December 15, 2025 at 6:44 PM
extraction games are the most I have ever felt "am i so out of touch / it's the kids who are wrong", man. Like they're trying to trick me into thinking that I, someone with 1500+ hours in Apex and one wonderful summer spent in Straftat lobbies, don't like PVP shooters. I don't get it.
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
We'll be hosting a Dev Stream of Stars of Icarus tomorrow at 1700 EST!
Join us at www.twitch.tv/musegamesnyc and watch us fly, shoot, and repair in the stars!
#devstream #starsoficarus
Join us at www.twitch.tv/musegamesnyc and watch us fly, shoot, and repair in the stars!
#devstream #starsoficarus
MuseGamesNYC - Twitch
We’re Muse Games, an independent game studio in NYC. We focus on boundary-pushing multiplayer gameplay, with the aim of bringing people closer together through games. We're known for Wildmender, Embr,...
www.twitch.tv
December 11, 2025 at 5:18 PM
We'll be hosting a Dev Stream of Stars of Icarus tomorrow at 1700 EST!
Join us at www.twitch.tv/musegamesnyc and watch us fly, shoot, and repair in the stars!
#devstream #starsoficarus
Join us at www.twitch.tv/musegamesnyc and watch us fly, shoot, and repair in the stars!
#devstream #starsoficarus
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
Stars of Icarus is a space-based successor to the majestic Guns of Icarus, and pits your crew against rivals in intense dogfights that rely on teamwork. #StarsOfIcarus #Multiplayer #SpaceGame
www.pcgamesn.com/stars-of-ica...
www.pcgamesn.com/stars-of-ica...
This space combat sequel to a multiplayer favorite feels like competitive No Man's Sky, and a big playtest is live now
A Stars of Icarus playtest lets you try the squad-based space combat dogfighter on Steam, bringing teamwork to the forefront of competition.
www.pcgamesn.com
December 7, 2025 at 11:41 AM
Stars of Icarus is a space-based successor to the majestic Guns of Icarus, and pits your crew against rivals in intense dogfights that rely on teamwork. #StarsOfIcarus #Multiplayer #SpaceGame
www.pcgamesn.com/stars-of-ica...
www.pcgamesn.com/stars-of-ica...
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
Love Discord being like "bro you didnt complete any quests this year" yeah man I dont know what those are and I'm working really hard not to have to learn
December 5, 2025 at 4:17 PM
Love Discord being like "bro you didnt complete any quests this year" yeah man I dont know what those are and I'm working really hard not to have to learn
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
Private Equity
December 2, 2025 at 1:15 AM
Private Equity
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
“Wow so you get to play games all day?” as a reaction to me being a game dev still has the power to make me instantly need a nap
What’s the worst question someone can ask after you tell them your profession? For linguists, it’s definitely “how many languages do you speak?”, but I’m curious what else is happening to the rest of y’all out there?!
December 1, 2025 at 9:54 PM
“Wow so you get to play games all day?” as a reaction to me being a game dev still has the power to make me instantly need a nap
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
this is obviously an attempt at small talk, but stymied by the fact people outside game dev have heard of zero games (with a 1% margin of error)
"I'm a game developer."
"Oh? Anything I've heard of?"
First off, I have no idea what your gaming could even potentially look like. But second, this really sounds like "Have you worked on anything important enough for me to treat you differently?"
"Oh? Anything I've heard of?"
First off, I have no idea what your gaming could even potentially look like. But second, this really sounds like "Have you worked on anything important enough for me to treat you differently?"
What’s the worst question someone can ask after you tell them your profession? For linguists, it’s definitely “how many languages do you speak?”, but I’m curious what else is happening to the rest of y’all out there?!
December 1, 2025 at 9:54 PM
this is obviously an attempt at small talk, but stymied by the fact people outside game dev have heard of zero games (with a 1% margin of error)
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
this oft-reposted brian eno quote also applies to the star trek enterprise theme tune
November 26, 2025 at 10:40 PM
this oft-reposted brian eno quote also applies to the star trek enterprise theme tune
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
Game Designer and AI Programmer looking at this together, trying to figure out a way to avoid this (currently 10% repro rate after 6h of gameplay)
So this happened in Oslo yesterday. Four articulated buses got stuck in a roundabout.
November 26, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Game Designer and AI Programmer looking at this together, trying to figure out a way to avoid this (currently 10% repro rate after 6h of gameplay)
People Make Games still doing the work of real journalism in this industry.
EXCLUSIVE: So far it's been unclear what proof Rockstar Games has to justify its firing of 34 union members, who it claims were leaking "confidential information in a public forum".
PMG has now seen some of the messages which contributed to this decision being made.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TvW...
PMG has now seen some of the messages which contributed to this decision being made.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=8TvW...
The Messages Rockstar Saw Before Firing 34 Union Members
YouTube video by People Make Games
www.youtube.com
November 24, 2025 at 5:20 PM
People Make Games still doing the work of real journalism in this industry.
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
using AI for code is great to get you 50% of the way there, especially if you were 80% there already
November 24, 2025 at 3:50 PM
using AI for code is great to get you 50% of the way there, especially if you were 80% there already
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
The silence from New Jersey’s loudest lawmakers was deafening last week after the Port Authority announced it would jack the PATH train fare from $3 to a whopping $4 over the next four years: https://gothamist.visitlink.me/MU5kMO
November 24, 2025 at 1:00 PM
The silence from New Jersey’s loudest lawmakers was deafening last week after the Port Authority announced it would jack the PATH train fare from $3 to a whopping $4 over the next four years: https://gothamist.visitlink.me/MU5kMO
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
Is there a reason that UK MP's are taking consultation from American YouTubers but not, say, indie game developers who would be affected by changes in the law?
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...
November 12, 2025 at 11:28 AM
Is there a reason that UK MP's are taking consultation from American YouTubers but not, say, indie game developers who would be affected by changes in the law?
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...
hansard.parliament.uk/commons/2025...
Reposted by Matthew "Queso" Niederberger
Counterpoint: no it’s not, that’s a stupid thing to say
“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 1:36 AM
Counterpoint: no it’s not, that’s a stupid thing to say