Josh
@joshmlabelle.bsky.social
Writer & Narrative Designer || Creative Director on Disney Dreamlight Valley ||"Hunter: The Reckoning - Day for Night" coming 2026 || "A Crown of Sorcery & Steel" out from Choice of Games || 1st place IFComp 2020🏆|| Opinions my own || www.joshlabelle.com
Pinned
Josh
@joshmlabelle.bsky.social
· Oct 9
Hunter: The Reckoning — Day For Night on Steam
These monsters aren’t just in the movies! Will you hunt the vampires, werewolves and others stalking Hollywood, or will you become a monster instead? An interactive, text-based game set in the World o...
store.steampowered.com
Just announced! I've been working on an interactive novel in the Hunter: The Reckoning franchise!
Day For Night lets you play as a veteran Hunter fighting back against the monsters of Hollywood over one blockbuster summer.
store.steampowered.com/app/3133670/...
Day For Night lets you play as a veteran Hunter fighting back against the monsters of Hollywood over one blockbuster summer.
store.steampowered.com/app/3133670/...
Reposted by Josh
Remember: no matter what game you're working on, you'll end up making about 25% of it in the end. The key is to choose the correct 25%.
#gamedev #indiegame
#gamedev #indiegame
November 25, 2025 at 4:19 PM
Remember: no matter what game you're working on, you'll end up making about 25% of it in the end. The key is to choose the correct 25%.
#gamedev #indiegame
#gamedev #indiegame
I spent the first day of my post-expansion launch staycation getting a ton of writing done on my side-project, then building backlog Lego sets while rewatching A-tier Buffy eps (School Hard, The Wish).
The last part is really reminding me how much story we used to be able to pack into 44 minutes.
The last part is really reminding me how much story we used to be able to pack into 44 minutes.
November 25, 2025 at 12:02 AM
I spent the first day of my post-expansion launch staycation getting a ton of writing done on my side-project, then building backlog Lego sets while rewatching A-tier Buffy eps (School Hard, The Wish).
The last part is really reminding me how much story we used to be able to pack into 44 minutes.
The last part is really reminding me how much story we used to be able to pack into 44 minutes.
Wow, this is wild. It has to have been much, much harder to code this way and I can't imagine this protects against 90% of typos.
The typo protection is so broken in SNES Family Feud that the real fun is improving comedy answers.
So long as the letters that would spell your word are in the right order, it doesn't matter what's between them.
So for example, if I'm trying to get SHOWER, I can write SHOot WaltER In The Face.
So long as the letters that would spell your word are in the right order, it doesn't matter what's between them.
So for example, if I'm trying to get SHOWER, I can write SHOot WaltER In The Face.
November 22, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Wow, this is wild. It has to have been much, much harder to code this way and I can't imagine this protects against 90% of typos.
Reposted by Josh
Disney Dreamlight Valley: Wishblossom Ranch is rolling out on all platforms now!
It's time to get your yee-haw on.
www.pcgamer.com/games/life-s...
It's time to get your yee-haw on.
www.pcgamer.com/games/life-s...
Disney Dreamlight Valley's Wishblossom Ranch DLC is as whimsical as the game gets
There's a new home to find in Wishblossom Ranch.
www.pcgamer.com
November 19, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Disney Dreamlight Valley: Wishblossom Ranch is rolling out on all platforms now!
It's time to get your yee-haw on.
www.pcgamer.com/games/life-s...
It's time to get your yee-haw on.
www.pcgamer.com/games/life-s...
Geese are doing a From The Basement version of Getting Killed and it releases tomorrow on one of the most stressful days of my year. The universe does love me.
November 19, 2025 at 3:00 AM
Geese are doing a From The Basement version of Getting Killed and it releases tomorrow on one of the most stressful days of my year. The universe does love me.
Frequently, when looking through digital storefronts trying to decide on a new game to play, I find myself describing in my head the exact game that I want to play, and honestly underneath all the intellectualizing, it's almost always just Mass Effect 2 that I'm describing.
November 16, 2025 at 5:14 AM
Frequently, when looking through digital storefronts trying to decide on a new game to play, I find myself describing in my head the exact game that I want to play, and honestly underneath all the intellectualizing, it's almost always just Mass Effect 2 that I'm describing.
This Irish guy who's been opening for Geese doesn't even have an album out until next month but his voice is absolutely unbelievable and the songwriting is really strong. This has been a really great couple of years for music, man. Music! It's good again!
youtu.be/HrWvDv4ESIo?...
youtu.be/HrWvDv4ESIo?...
Dove Ellis - Pale Song (Official Music Video)
YouTube video by Dove Ellis
youtu.be
November 14, 2025 at 4:01 AM
This Irish guy who's been opening for Geese doesn't even have an album out until next month but his voice is absolutely unbelievable and the songwriting is really strong. This has been a really great couple of years for music, man. Music! It's good again!
youtu.be/HrWvDv4ESIo?...
youtu.be/HrWvDv4ESIo?...
One weird thing I've had a lot of cause to think about in game narrative is: "what is the minimum you need for something to feel like a story?"
I think it's tough to make three "beats" feel like a real story. Not impossible, but four beats is much easier.
I think it's tough to make three "beats" feel like a real story. Not impossible, but four beats is much easier.
November 9, 2025 at 1:22 AM
One weird thing I've had a lot of cause to think about in game narrative is: "what is the minimum you need for something to feel like a story?"
I think it's tough to make three "beats" feel like a real story. Not impossible, but four beats is much easier.
I think it's tough to make three "beats" feel like a real story. Not impossible, but four beats is much easier.
Man, Dispatch is so good. Really exciting stuff. So great to see a narrative game where they made so many good choices about where to put the focus and the dispatching mini-game is so fast and fun and generates so many funny moments.
November 9, 2025 at 12:57 AM
Man, Dispatch is so good. Really exciting stuff. So great to see a narrative game where they made so many good choices about where to put the focus and the dispatching mini-game is so fast and fun and generates so many funny moments.
I've spent most of today listening to Beethoven piano trios and would like to boldly state: Beethoven, he was very good
November 8, 2025 at 5:58 PM
I've spent most of today listening to Beethoven piano trios and would like to boldly state: Beethoven, he was very good
Reposted by Josh
Tiny Book Shop is a LOT of fun, and very wholesome. When the customers don't like the books I recommend, I get so mad. When they do the little dance that means they do like it, I get so happy. That's the power of Games.
November 6, 2025 at 3:15 PM
Tiny Book Shop is a LOT of fun, and very wholesome. When the customers don't like the books I recommend, I get so mad. When they do the little dance that means they do like it, I get so happy. That's the power of Games.
Reposted by Josh
Dispatch coming out in episodes appears to have been a very good strategy for developer Adhoc Studio. Astounding numbers here. Episodic games often risk losing audience attention over time but 8 episodes across 4 weeks seems like the perfect cadence to keep players hooked and talking
November 5, 2025 at 6:28 PM
Dispatch coming out in episodes appears to have been a very good strategy for developer Adhoc Studio. Astounding numbers here. Episodic games often risk losing audience attention over time but 8 episodes across 4 weeks seems like the perfect cadence to keep players hooked and talking
Reposted by Josh
It's cool how we keep proving over and over and over again that there's a significant market for narrative-heavy, character-driven, single-player experiences in video games and publishers just categorically refuse to believe us
Dispatch has sold 1 million copies in under two weeks
Dispatch has sold 1 million copies in under two weeks
The episodic superhero comedy features big-name actors like Aaron Paul and Jeffrey Wright.
www.gamedeveloper.com
November 4, 2025 at 1:57 PM
It's cool how we keep proving over and over and over again that there's a significant market for narrative-heavy, character-driven, single-player experiences in video games and publishers just categorically refuse to believe us
Reposted by Josh
Considering the recent wave of nostalgic movie documentaries, it blows my mind that nobody has made one about the Sherman Oaks Galleria, aka The Mall In Every 80s Movie. Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Night of the Comet, Commando, Phantom of the Mall, Innerspace, Chopping Mall, Terminator 2 etc...
November 3, 2025 at 4:15 PM
Considering the recent wave of nostalgic movie documentaries, it blows my mind that nobody has made one about the Sherman Oaks Galleria, aka The Mall In Every 80s Movie. Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Night of the Comet, Commando, Phantom of the Mall, Innerspace, Chopping Mall, Terminator 2 etc...
Reposted by Josh
RIP Adam Greenberg
He was the superb cinematographer who shot Near Dark (watch it!), Terminator 2: Judgment Day and, of course, The Terminator, which means he’s responsible for one of my favourite shots in cinema that also coined a new genre for its film:
He was the superb cinematographer who shot Near Dark (watch it!), Terminator 2: Judgment Day and, of course, The Terminator, which means he’s responsible for one of my favourite shots in cinema that also coined a new genre for its film:
November 2, 2025 at 9:08 PM
RIP Adam Greenberg
He was the superb cinematographer who shot Near Dark (watch it!), Terminator 2: Judgment Day and, of course, The Terminator, which means he’s responsible for one of my favourite shots in cinema that also coined a new genre for its film:
He was the superb cinematographer who shot Near Dark (watch it!), Terminator 2: Judgment Day and, of course, The Terminator, which means he’s responsible for one of my favourite shots in cinema that also coined a new genre for its film:
Outer Worlds 2 has the same "quest log" problem that Baldur's Gate 3 had. Basically, it's that by playing naturally, you're sure to quickly end up with a dozen contradictory quests in your log. ie "Genocide all the goblins" and "Prep the goblins for the invasion" kind of stuff.
November 2, 2025 at 12:25 AM
Outer Worlds 2 has the same "quest log" problem that Baldur's Gate 3 had. Basically, it's that by playing naturally, you're sure to quickly end up with a dozen contradictory quests in your log. ie "Genocide all the goblins" and "Prep the goblins for the invasion" kind of stuff.
Bach! My man! Nobody does it better!
youtu.be/We8YYyp8LLo?...
youtu.be/We8YYyp8LLo?...
Bach - Et misericordia from Magnificat BWV 243 | Netherlands Bach Society
YouTube video by Netherlands Bach Society
youtu.be
October 29, 2025 at 5:31 PM
Bach! My man! Nobody does it better!
youtu.be/We8YYyp8LLo?...
youtu.be/We8YYyp8LLo?...
One of the most interesting tensions I see in Geese/Cameron Winter's music is the one between being afraid to make something beautiful but being unable to stop yourself.
Gen X had a similar tension but this feels like a new and particularly Gen Z version of it in a way that's very exciting to me.
Gen X had a similar tension but this feels like a new and particularly Gen Z version of it in a way that's very exciting to me.
October 28, 2025 at 4:41 PM
One of the most interesting tensions I see in Geese/Cameron Winter's music is the one between being afraid to make something beautiful but being unable to stop yourself.
Gen X had a similar tension but this feels like a new and particularly Gen Z version of it in a way that's very exciting to me.
Gen X had a similar tension but this feels like a new and particularly Gen Z version of it in a way that's very exciting to me.
I'm so Geese-pilled, man. This is the most excited I've been about a band since at least Big Thief. They sound like everything and nothing. I can't wait to see how they develop. Their record is sold out basically everywhere in Toronto so something's obviously Happening here.
October 26, 2025 at 10:38 PM
I'm so Geese-pilled, man. This is the most excited I've been about a band since at least Big Thief. They sound like everything and nothing. I can't wait to see how they develop. Their record is sold out basically everywhere in Toronto so something's obviously Happening here.
I love that a lot of Gen Z musicians don't seem to have been introduced to the dichotomies that defined previous generations of music. Like no one ever told them you're not "supposed to" like both Bruce Springsteen and Steely Dan and so they're making these absolutely inexplicable musical chimeras.
October 26, 2025 at 1:52 AM
I love that a lot of Gen Z musicians don't seem to have been introduced to the dichotomies that defined previous generations of music. Like no one ever told them you're not "supposed to" like both Bruce Springsteen and Steely Dan and so they're making these absolutely inexplicable musical chimeras.
On my first listen of GEESE's Getting Killed, I thought it was bad but weirdly compelling.
I'm on full listen #3 and I now think this is the best album I've heard in at least ten years, maybe more.
So much of the best stuff might not be instantly likable but just sticks in your craw in a funny way
I'm on full listen #3 and I now think this is the best album I've heard in at least ten years, maybe more.
So much of the best stuff might not be instantly likable but just sticks in your craw in a funny way
October 24, 2025 at 8:09 PM
On my first listen of GEESE's Getting Killed, I thought it was bad but weirdly compelling.
I'm on full listen #3 and I now think this is the best album I've heard in at least ten years, maybe more.
So much of the best stuff might not be instantly likable but just sticks in your craw in a funny way
I'm on full listen #3 and I now think this is the best album I've heard in at least ten years, maybe more.
So much of the best stuff might not be instantly likable but just sticks in your craw in a funny way
Reposted by Josh
Just announced! I've been working on an interactive novel in the Hunter: The Reckoning franchise!
Day For Night lets you play as a veteran Hunter fighting back against the monsters of Hollywood over one blockbuster summer.
store.steampowered.com/app/3133670/...
Day For Night lets you play as a veteran Hunter fighting back against the monsters of Hollywood over one blockbuster summer.
store.steampowered.com/app/3133670/...
Hunter: The Reckoning — Day For Night on Steam
These monsters aren’t just in the movies! Will you hunt the vampires, werewolves and others stalking Hollywood, or will you become a monster instead? An interactive, text-based game set in the World o...
store.steampowered.com
October 9, 2025 at 4:38 PM
Just announced! I've been working on an interactive novel in the Hunter: The Reckoning franchise!
Day For Night lets you play as a veteran Hunter fighting back against the monsters of Hollywood over one blockbuster summer.
store.steampowered.com/app/3133670/...
Day For Night lets you play as a veteran Hunter fighting back against the monsters of Hollywood over one blockbuster summer.
store.steampowered.com/app/3133670/...
Aside from the acting, sets, effects, and atmosphere, it's the pacing of this movie that's really unmatched, especially in '30s horror flicks. Just watch the sequels where it takes like a half hour to get to a man being invisible.
October 20, 2025 at 2:47 AM
Aside from the acting, sets, effects, and atmosphere, it's the pacing of this movie that's really unmatched, especially in '30s horror flicks. Just watch the sequels where it takes like a half hour to get to a man being invisible.