Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
@blinks.itch.io
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
I think a lot about “default” expectations in our time — how often they are of very recent construction. (We have dates for when umpires were introduced to kriegsspiel)
If I do my job right, my students don’t assume roleplaying games have a “master” — any more than that games have a win condition.
If I do my job right, my students don’t assume roleplaying games have a “master” — any more than that games have a win condition.
Generations of game designers tried their best but the only word they could muster was “GMless”
November 15, 2025 at 6:49 PM
I think a lot about “default” expectations in our time — how often they are of very recent construction. (We have dates for when umpires were introduced to kriegsspiel)
If I do my job right, my students don’t assume roleplaying games have a “master” — any more than that games have a win condition.
If I do my job right, my students don’t assume roleplaying games have a “master” — any more than that games have a win condition.
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
And we've now hit 1,000 backers!
Thanks all for the interest in roleplaying history!
(The first character I ever made was an elf, written out on the green character sheets for Basic D&D.)
Thanks all for the interest in roleplaying history!
(The first character I ever made was an elf, written out on the green character sheets for Basic D&D.)
Who's up thinking about that first character they ever made?
www.backerkit.com/c/projects/e...
www.backerkit.com/c/projects/e...
November 15, 2025 at 6:42 AM
And we've now hit 1,000 backers!
Thanks all for the interest in roleplaying history!
(The first character I ever made was an elf, written out on the green character sheets for Basic D&D.)
Thanks all for the interest in roleplaying history!
(The first character I ever made was an elf, written out on the green character sheets for Basic D&D.)
Cross Bronx Expressway -- my public sector was too quick to build housing and it left us in a rough budgeting spot. Community and I survived through the 40s, 50s, and 60s to get to the end with Private sector's win.
Lots learned for next time though.
Lots learned for next time though.
November 16, 2025 at 4:06 AM
Cross Bronx Expressway -- my public sector was too quick to build housing and it left us in a rough budgeting spot. Community and I survived through the 40s, 50s, and 60s to get to the end with Private sector's win.
Lots learned for next time though.
Lots learned for next time though.
In no particular order:
- Here I Stand
- Cockroach Poker
- Spades
- Combat Commander
- The Gang
- Crokinole
- Leaving Earth
- Innovation
- Can't Stop
- Slay the Spire: TBG
- Here I Stand
- Cockroach Poker
- Spades
- Combat Commander
- The Gang
- Crokinole
- Leaving Earth
- Innovation
- Can't Stop
- Slay the Spire: TBG
board game enthusiasts of bluesky, what are your top 10 board games of all time
November 15, 2025 at 1:46 PM
In no particular order:
- Here I Stand
- Cockroach Poker
- Spades
- Combat Commander
- The Gang
- Crokinole
- Leaving Earth
- Innovation
- Can't Stop
- Slay the Spire: TBG
- Here I Stand
- Cockroach Poker
- Spades
- Combat Commander
- The Gang
- Crokinole
- Leaving Earth
- Innovation
- Can't Stop
- Slay the Spire: TBG
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
This past weekend, I was delighted to attend @sdhistcon.bsky.social, where on Saturday I played not one, not two, but three games about selling opium. It was quite the day. Read about it here: spacebiff.com/2025/11/13/s...
SDHist 2025: Day of Copium
This past weekend, I attended SDHistCon in San Diego, the most interesting board gaming convention currently running. Here are the official snapshots: the Summit Award went to War Story: Occupied F…
spacebiff.com
November 13, 2025 at 9:51 PM
This past weekend, I was delighted to attend @sdhistcon.bsky.social, where on Saturday I played not one, not two, but three games about selling opium. It was quite the day. Read about it here: spacebiff.com/2025/11/13/s...
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
That thing where you've got a Big Task to complete, but you're not feeling it and you can't find a way into it, but you can't settle to do anything else because the Big Task is looming over you?
That.
That.
a drawing of a person sitting at a desk with a computer that says hello on it
ALT: a drawing of a person sitting at a desk with a computer that says hello on it
media.tenor.com
November 12, 2025 at 10:21 AM
That thing where you've got a Big Task to complete, but you're not feeling it and you can't find a way into it, but you can't settle to do anything else because the Big Task is looming over you?
That.
That.
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
Apocalypse World has had a bigger impact on my life than any other roleplaying game. It's just a phenomenal game, designed by phenomenal people. You should pick up a copy of the new edition!
Here We GO! Come along, my dearies!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Apocalypse World: Burned Over
The 3rd edition of the groundbreaking original.
www.kickstarter.com
November 12, 2025 at 3:14 AM
Apocalypse World has had a bigger impact on my life than any other roleplaying game. It's just a phenomenal game, designed by phenomenal people. You should pick up a copy of the new edition!
A productive demo of Echo from the Dark yesterday at #SDHistCon
November 8, 2025 at 2:27 PM
A productive demo of Echo from the Dark yesterday at #SDHistCon
Leek & potato soup (leeks, butter, potatoes, water) is pretty excellent if you have time. You use pretty much everything -- the greens make a great broth even by themselves -- and it's filling like crazy.
IT IS TIME FOR BLUESKY RECIPE POSTING
do you have a cheap, healthy, low-cost recipe? post it here! or quote tweet this post. or dunk on me for something I don't care just post easy meals that people can make right now.
do you have a cheap, healthy, low-cost recipe? post it here! or quote tweet this post. or dunk on me for something I don't care just post easy meals that people can make right now.
November 4, 2025 at 3:34 AM
Leek & potato soup (leeks, butter, potatoes, water) is pretty excellent if you have time. You use pretty much everything -- the greens make a great broth even by themselves -- and it's filling like crazy.
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
Did ether of us say T minus 1? Today was T minus 1.
Launch in under 24 hours. Probably under 12.
See you there, dearies!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Launch in under 24 hours. Probably under 12.
See you there, dearies!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Coming soon: Apocalypse World: Burned Over
The 3rd edition of the groundbreaking original.
www.kickstarter.com
November 3, 2025 at 4:57 AM
Did ether of us say T minus 1? Today was T minus 1.
Launch in under 24 hours. Probably under 12.
See you there, dearies!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Launch in under 24 hours. Probably under 12.
See you there, dearies!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Good gaming in October.
November 2, 2025 at 6:26 AM
Good gaming in October.
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
🚨 Programming alert: Concordia, Formula D, and Roll Through the Ages: The Bronze Age are now all in beta on Board Game Arena 🚨
November 1, 2025 at 3:05 AM
🚨 Programming alert: Concordia, Formula D, and Roll Through the Ages: The Bronze Age are now all in beta on Board Game Arena 🚨
Clues by Sam
A daily logic puzzle where you deduce who are criminals and who are innocent!
cluesbysam.com
October 30, 2025 at 5:08 AM
Stoked to get this to the table. Turned out amazing.
October 28, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Stoked to get this to the table. Turned out amazing.
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
I don’t even post here.
My feed is @gwillow.me, @gailsimone.bsky.social, gay porn, and @themightylayman.bsky.social hate-loving his husband @tompeyer.bsky.social (not to be confused with gay porn)
October 28, 2025 at 3:42 AM
I don’t even post here.
Clues by Sam
A daily logic puzzle where you deduce who are criminals and who are innocent!
cluesbysam.com
October 9, 2025 at 9:28 PM
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
honestly if I have to pin down my apathy toward sell sheets, it's because making art & selling it are different skills and I resent how often they're expected to be bundled together - I resent any trend which *demands* the artist also be conversant in sales & advertising to get published
hollandspiele's "don't send us sell sheets or TTS mods" game submission guidelines continue to make the pile of submissions I still have to go through smaller
October 7, 2025 at 9:49 PM
honestly if I have to pin down my apathy toward sell sheets, it's because making art & selling it are different skills and I resent how often they're expected to be bundled together - I resent any trend which *demands* the artist also be conversant in sales & advertising to get published
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
tonight dan thurot is going to interview me about city of six Moons
he's gonna ask me questions because that's how interviews work
what I want to know is, what questions do *you* want me to ask *him*? reply below
now the foot is on the other shoe, "space" "-" "biff"
... no one tell him this
he's gonna ask me questions because that's how interviews work
what I want to know is, what questions do *you* want me to ask *him*? reply below
now the foot is on the other shoe, "space" "-" "biff"
... no one tell him this
October 6, 2025 at 10:31 AM
tonight dan thurot is going to interview me about city of six Moons
he's gonna ask me questions because that's how interviews work
what I want to know is, what questions do *you* want me to ask *him*? reply below
now the foot is on the other shoe, "space" "-" "biff"
... no one tell him this
he's gonna ask me questions because that's how interviews work
what I want to know is, what questions do *you* want me to ask *him*? reply below
now the foot is on the other shoe, "space" "-" "biff"
... no one tell him this
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
Steam’s Autumn Sale starts today and to celebrate, all GMT digital titles on Steam and mobile from our friends at Playdek are 50% off! The sale lasts until October 6th. store.steampowered.com/curator/3715...
September 29, 2025 at 9:55 PM
Steam’s Autumn Sale starts today and to celebrate, all GMT digital titles on Steam and mobile from our friends at Playdek are 50% off! The sale lasts until October 6th. store.steampowered.com/curator/3715...
Glad to know this happens to the professionals too.
What on earth brain it's 11:59 on the countdown clock and you're rewriting basic moves?
ARE YOU TRYING TO FUCK WITH ME, BRAIN?
I WILL DENY YOU CAFFEINE DO NOT TEST ME
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
ARE YOU TRYING TO FUCK WITH ME, BRAIN?
I WILL DENY YOU CAFFEINE DO NOT TEST ME
www.kickstarter.com/projects/lum...
Coming soon: Apocalypse World: Burned Over
The 3rd edition of the groundbreaking original.
www.kickstarter.com
September 24, 2025 at 1:03 PM
Glad to know this happens to the professionals too.
Space Empires: 4x. All good things must come to an end.
September 21, 2025 at 4:11 AM
Space Empires: 4x. All good things must come to an end.
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
“the story of the #crossbronxexpressway is a lens through which we can better understand our modern world.”
pre-orders charging means the game ships soon. i recorded a podcast called endnotes to hold folk over while they wait for it to arrive.
@gmtgames.bsky.social
[ link below]
pre-orders charging means the game ships soon. i recorded a podcast called endnotes to hold folk over while they wait for it to arrive.
@gmtgames.bsky.social
[ link below]
September 16, 2025 at 4:21 PM
“the story of the #crossbronxexpressway is a lens through which we can better understand our modern world.”
pre-orders charging means the game ships soon. i recorded a podcast called endnotes to hold folk over while they wait for it to arrive.
@gmtgames.bsky.social
[ link below]
pre-orders charging means the game ships soon. i recorded a podcast called endnotes to hold folk over while they wait for it to arrive.
@gmtgames.bsky.social
[ link below]
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
In the recent @gmtgames.bsky.social monthly update (details here: mailchi.mp/ff0c91890711...) Gene shared how the box cover for the 20th Anniversary Edition of Combat Commander will look like.
It is splendid and very thematic. Waiting for the game to arrive soon!
It is splendid and very thematic. Waiting for the game to arrive soon!
September 19, 2025 at 4:30 PM
In the recent @gmtgames.bsky.social monthly update (details here: mailchi.mp/ff0c91890711...) Gene shared how the box cover for the 20th Anniversary Edition of Combat Commander will look like.
It is splendid and very thematic. Waiting for the game to arrive soon!
It is splendid and very thematic. Waiting for the game to arrive soon!
Reposted by Adam Blinkinsop (he/they)
Credit to @stcymsn.bsky.social for putting words to this principle in their dissertation! It's a principle I had seen elsewhere in more words, and had been trying to follow myself, but the clear framing here helped so much in my efforts to communicate how I was approaching conversations.
![2.1 Lenses, Not Boxes
I wondered whether this section was necessary, but games discourse seems to repeatedly find itself adrift in questions of whether (blank) counts as a (blank). We have seen the question repeatedly: Do games count as art? [41] Do games without goals count as games? [79] Is The Sims a game? [190] Are hypertexts interactive fiction? [157] Are Twine pieces literature? [151]. In fairness to the researchers cited here, all of whom I respect immensely, many of these sources pose or imply the question rhetorically. Still, the necessity of such a framing frustrates me.
“Is a ?” is, in my opinion, a fruitless question. The question can never be answered to anyone’s satisfaction, and it often serves as either a provocation to espouse politics or as a cover to institute gatekeeping. Its agenda is usually opaque to onlookers and bewildering to those trying to advance the field from across disciplines.
We should be thinking in lenses, not boxes.
It is always more interesting to ask “If we think of through the lens of (blank), what do we learn?” We know it is more interesting to ask “What do we learn by considering Tom Stoppard through the lens of poststructuralism?” than to ask “Is Stoppard’s work poststructuralist?” And while some works may be more or less fruitful when examined through different lenses, sometimes the most unlikely pairings of lenses and objects are the most rewarding. Certainly any of the questions above would be much better served by reframing them in this way.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:cdxsm75rownk2vqn7545giu5/bafkreih2vbzhicfvkeyjkezprvsyxsfmejop7ti46ixidpmut2agyjzmse@jpeg)
September 16, 2025 at 5:59 PM
Credit to @stcymsn.bsky.social for putting words to this principle in their dissertation! It's a principle I had seen elsewhere in more words, and had been trying to follow myself, but the clear framing here helped so much in my efforts to communicate how I was approaching conversations.