John Wordsworth
@johnwordsworth.bsky.social
Game developer and tech leader in Sweden. All about Game Dev, TTRPGs, and board games. Working on a Tabletop RPG and a video game. Former Tech Director at Paradox Interactive. Maths PhD Survivor.
Got a lot of board gaming time in during the dreary and dark Swedish November! Heat: Pedal to the Metal is probably going to be my “most pleasant board game surprise” this year!
December 1, 2025 at 7:23 PM
Got a lot of board gaming time in during the dreary and dark Swedish November! Heat: Pedal to the Metal is probably going to be my “most pleasant board game surprise” this year!
Today’s random side project was building little 3D printable holders for stacks of cards for board games.
November 16, 2025 at 8:51 PM
Today’s random side project was building little 3D printable holders for stacks of cards for board games.
Heat: Pedal to the Metal was an unexpected hit on the board gaming weekend. It was easy to pick up with some tense races. Maybe a little random, but really fun. I could imagine a Mario Kart version with “specials” instead of “sponsor upgrades”. Overall, a lot of great games played this weekend!
November 9, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Heat: Pedal to the Metal was an unexpected hit on the board gaming weekend. It was easy to pick up with some tense races. Maybe a little random, but really fun. I could imagine a Mario Kart version with “specials” instead of “sponsor upgrades”. Overall, a lot of great games played this weekend!
What better way to spend the journey home from a board gaming weekend m than an hour scribbling down some new content for my Dragonbane (and D&D 5e) Solo Adventure I’m writing to flesh out the world for the Tabletop RPG I’m making?
November 9, 2025 at 6:54 PM
What better way to spend the journey home from a board gaming weekend m than an hour scribbling down some new content for my Dragonbane (and D&D 5e) Solo Adventure I’m writing to flesh out the world for the Tabletop RPG I’m making?
Enjoying a board gaming weekend with some friends in the north. Now we are onto Heat: Pedal to the Metal…
November 8, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Enjoying a board gaming weekend with some friends in the north. Now we are onto Heat: Pedal to the Metal…
Huh, would you look at that - someone replaced the OneDrive system tray icon with a croissant!
November 4, 2025 at 4:58 PM
Huh, would you look at that - someone replaced the OneDrive system tray icon with a croissant!
Super satisfying that the prototype that @jefftanton.bsky.social, @amypearson.bsky.social and I have been working on for the last few months has been shared outside of our little group for the first time. A bit of swearing at Unity along the way, but it's been a lot of fun so far!
August 23, 2025 at 5:39 PM
Super satisfying that the prototype that @jefftanton.bsky.social, @amypearson.bsky.social and I have been working on for the last few months has been shared outside of our little group for the first time. A bit of swearing at Unity along the way, but it's been a lot of fun so far!
Is it me, or do the long text descriptions under the items in the Humble Bundles now sound like the AI Prompt you would write to produce that game if it were generated by an LLM?
August 22, 2025 at 7:45 PM
Is it me, or do the long text descriptions under the items in the Humble Bundles now sound like the AI Prompt you would write to produce that game if it were generated by an LLM?
Thought I would give the big PhD brain a whirl. I wish I hadn’t bothered studying dynamical systems of coupled oscillators for 4 years for my PhD when this is the level that is expected of postgraduates apparently!
August 8, 2025 at 2:14 PM
Thought I would give the big PhD brain a whirl. I wish I hadn’t bothered studying dynamical systems of coupled oscillators for 4 years for my PhD when this is the level that is expected of postgraduates apparently!
Having a good time with The Alters. Love the premise, story and (most of the) characters. A bit stressful trying to understand “how much time pressure is there really?”and a bit too much micro-management to be perfect, but a great ride so far after ~10 hours.
July 6, 2025 at 12:25 PM
Having a good time with The Alters. Love the premise, story and (most of the) characters. A bit stressful trying to understand “how much time pressure is there really?”and a bit too much micro-management to be perfect, but a great ride so far after ~10 hours.
I know a lot for other people are probably hoping for a bit more hot weather in Stockholm - but this next week is the perfect summer weather for me! Warm enough to enjoy, but not too hot to do errands and such. Okay, maybe a tad too much rain - but I’m not complaining!
June 29, 2025 at 8:37 PM
I know a lot for other people are probably hoping for a bit more hot weather in Stockholm - but this next week is the perfect summer weather for me! Warm enough to enjoy, but not too hot to do errands and such. Okay, maybe a tad too much rain - but I’m not complaining!
Played a short one-shot of the Marvel Multiverse RPG today via Roll20 / Demiplane. Had a lot of fun running around as Rocket Raccoon and the D616 system felt pretty simple but interesting enough with all the powers to be fun. Could definitely see myself playing more - with custom heroes.
June 28, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Played a short one-shot of the Marvel Multiverse RPG today via Roll20 / Demiplane. Had a lot of fun running around as Rocket Raccoon and the D616 system felt pretty simple but interesting enough with all the powers to be fun. Could definitely see myself playing more - with custom heroes.
Ooooh - Reflection is coming to C++ in C++26. Although, I can see it’s one of those features that feels like they said “we are adding it, but we’re going to make the syntax such that you hopefully won’t want to use it” 😅.
June 28, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Ooooh - Reflection is coming to C++ in C++26. Although, I can see it’s one of those features that feels like they said “we are adding it, but we’re going to make the syntax such that you hopefully won’t want to use it” 😅.
This time last week some friends and I were gearing up to watch Halestorm and Iron Maiden in Stockholm. Both were fantastic and it was a pretty epic night all round. So much energy and Iron Maiden’s staging and overall presence was amazing to experience live.
June 19, 2025 at 3:46 PM
This time last week some friends and I were gearing up to watch Halestorm and Iron Maiden in Stockholm. Both were fantastic and it was a pretty epic night all round. So much energy and Iron Maiden’s staging and overall presence was amazing to experience live.
Ran the Arkham Horror RPG: Hungering Abyss box set at the weekend for some friends who were in town. It feels like it's built as a bridge between board games and RPG - and while I don't know if the system would hold up for a long campaign, we had a blast playing the scenario across 8-9 hours.
June 17, 2025 at 8:39 AM
Ran the Arkham Horror RPG: Hungering Abyss box set at the weekend for some friends who were in town. It feels like it's built as a bridge between board games and RPG - and while I don't know if the system would hold up for a long campaign, we had a blast playing the scenario across 8-9 hours.
Almost done with Expedition 33 and it is going to be a very strong contender for my GOTY for sure. Love the addition of dodge/parry to the JRPG formula. Not too long - but long enough. Good variety in how the characters play and I’ve been super engrossed in the plot. *Chef’s Kiss*
May 26, 2025 at 7:03 PM
Almost done with Expedition 33 and it is going to be a very strong contender for my GOTY for sure. Love the addition of dodge/parry to the JRPG formula. Not too long - but long enough. Good variety in how the characters play and I’ve been super engrossed in the plot. *Chef’s Kiss*
Not long got back from a few days in Norway and got super lucky with the weather for this time of year. It was gloriously relaxing walking around nature and the Fjords for a few days. There was even a touch of sunburn!
May 1, 2025 at 2:45 PM
Not long got back from a few days in Norway and got super lucky with the weather for this time of year. It was gloriously relaxing walking around nature and the Fjords for a few days. There was even a touch of sunburn!
Had a good time playing South of Midnight. The setting and music make for an immersive experience, the narrative is decent and it’s gorgeous. Very run of the mill gameplay and combat though - but I appreciate that it respects my time and doesn’t outstay its welcome.
April 23, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Had a good time playing South of Midnight. The setting and music make for an immersive experience, the narrative is decent and it’s gorgeous. Very run of the mill gameplay and combat though - but I appreciate that it respects my time and doesn’t outstay its welcome.
Having fun with Gloomhaven: Buttons and Bugs. The framing is cute and there's a lot in a small box. The mechanics are smart, especially the double-sided skill cards - but sometimes a tad limited maybe. Aim to complete the campaign, but not sure I'll play again with another hero. #SoloBoardgaming
April 17, 2025 at 9:23 PM
Having fun with Gloomhaven: Buttons and Bugs. The framing is cute and there's a lot in a small box. The mechanics are smart, especially the double-sided skill cards - but sometimes a tad limited maybe. Aim to complete the campaign, but not sure I'll play again with another hero. #SoloBoardgaming
Sweden and the Nordics deciding to beat the Nintendo Switch 2 scalpers by just charging scalper prices right out of the gate!
£580 for the bundle that costs £430 in the UK! A 35% mark-up feels quite steep!
£580 for the bundle that costs £430 in the UK! A 35% mark-up feels quite steep!
April 4, 2025 at 11:48 AM
Sweden and the Nordics deciding to beat the Nintendo Switch 2 scalpers by just charging scalper prices right out of the gate!
£580 for the bundle that costs £430 in the UK! A 35% mark-up feels quite steep!
£580 for the bundle that costs £430 in the UK! A 35% mark-up feels quite steep!
Well, I wouldn’t say I’ve found a *good* use for it yet, but very happy that my Inky Screen is starting to show data every day that’s interesting to wake up and read. Board Game Geek’s “hot list” and my recent video gaming time. Just need to get my daily calendar on there next!
March 24, 2025 at 6:56 PM
Well, I wouldn’t say I’ve found a *good* use for it yet, but very happy that my Inky Screen is starting to show data every day that’s interesting to wake up and read. Board Game Geek’s “hot list” and my recent video gaming time. Just need to get my daily calendar on there next!
A friend bought me “Potion Craft” recently and I’m hooked. It’s a chill, Steam Deck friendly game with an incredibly cool potion crafting mechanic using a map and various ingredients. It’s overall giving me loads of inspiration for both video game and TTRPG mechanics around alchemy.
March 18, 2025 at 8:18 AM
A friend bought me “Potion Craft” recently and I’m hooked. It’s a chill, Steam Deck friendly game with an incredibly cool potion crafting mechanic using a map and various ingredients. It’s overall giving me loads of inspiration for both video game and TTRPG mechanics around alchemy.
Picked up the 'Pimoroni Inky Frame 7.3' and it arrived today. The 30s redraw is a little rough, but otherwise it's a lovely device which I was inspired to pick up due to TRMNL. Got MicroPython running... Now, as with many cool things, just need to decide what to actually do with it 😅
March 12, 2025 at 8:28 PM
Picked up the 'Pimoroni Inky Frame 7.3' and it arrived today. The 30s redraw is a little rough, but otherwise it's a lovely device which I was inspired to pick up due to TRMNL. Got MicroPython running... Now, as with many cool things, just need to decide what to actually do with it 😅
Still new to solo board games but had a great time with Kingdom Legacy. It was ~6 hours & easy to pack up between turns. You get to build a fantasy kingdom while making meaningful decisions and overcoming threats - all with a deck of cards plus stickers. Fantastic! fryxgames.se/product/king...
March 11, 2025 at 5:50 PM
Still new to solo board games but had a great time with Kingdom Legacy. It was ~6 hours & easy to pack up between turns. You get to build a fantasy kingdom while making meaningful decisions and overcoming threats - all with a deck of cards plus stickers. Fantastic! fryxgames.se/product/king...
Played Arcs yesterday and had a great time with it. The trick-taking-esque action and initiative system made for nice non-deterministic rounds with some fun surprises. It’s a game that has an awful lot of depth with a relatively small amount of core mechanics. Look forward to playing it again!
February 23, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Played Arcs yesterday and had a great time with it. The trick-taking-esque action and initiative system made for nice non-deterministic rounds with some fun surprises. It’s a game that has an awful lot of depth with a relatively small amount of core mechanics. Look forward to playing it again!