Peter McDonald
@pdmcdonald.bsky.social
Assistant Professor of Design, Informal and Creative Education, UW-Madison. Game and play scholar, potter and dog friend.
Pinned
Run and Jump: The Meaning of the 2D Platformer
How abstract design decisions in 2D platform games create rich worlds of meaning for players.Since the 1980s, 2D platform games have captivated their audiences.
direct.mit.edu
Run and Jump is out in the world! You can grab it from the MIT bookstore, or read it through their open access portal here: direct.mit.edu/books/oa-mon...
I hope you all enjoy it!
I hope you all enjoy it!
Another Fluxus game that I talk about in The Impossible Reversal (www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...) is Yoko Ono's HIDE-AND-SEEK PIECE, which reads:
Hide until everybody goes home.
Hide until everybody forgets about you.
Hide until everybody dies.
Hide until everybody goes home.
Hide until everybody forgets about you.
Hide until everybody dies.
The Impossible Reversal
Tracing the cultural history of play—from Fluxus to SimCityGames and gamified activities have become ubiquitous in many adults’ lives, and play is widely...
www.upress.umn.edu
November 11, 2025 at 8:30 PM
Another Fluxus game that I talk about in The Impossible Reversal (www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...) is Yoko Ono's HIDE-AND-SEEK PIECE, which reads:
Hide until everybody goes home.
Hide until everybody forgets about you.
Hide until everybody dies.
Hide until everybody goes home.
Hide until everybody forgets about you.
Hide until everybody dies.
Reposted by Peter McDonald
The editorial board of Press Start invites book reviews for its upcoming regular issues!
- Word count: 1200-1500
- Deadline: 31 January 2026
More information in the thread, and please see the attached image for the list of available books for review:
- Word count: 1200-1500
- Deadline: 31 January 2026
More information in the thread, and please see the attached image for the list of available books for review:
November 8, 2025 at 2:59 AM
The editorial board of Press Start invites book reviews for its upcoming regular issues!
- Word count: 1200-1500
- Deadline: 31 January 2026
More information in the thread, and please see the attached image for the list of available books for review:
- Word count: 1200-1500
- Deadline: 31 January 2026
More information in the thread, and please see the attached image for the list of available books for review:
In my upcoming book, I look at experimental games by Fluxus artists. These have been touchstones for game studies scholars like Mary Flanagan and Ian Bogost, but usually only in a cursory way. I thought it might be fun to take a look at a couple of examples.
www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...
www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...
The Impossible Reversal
Tracing the cultural history of play—from Fluxus to SimCityGames and gamified activities have become ubiquitous in many adults’ lives, and play is widely...
www.upress.umn.edu
November 5, 2025 at 9:08 PM
In my upcoming book, I look at experimental games by Fluxus artists. These have been touchstones for game studies scholars like Mary Flanagan and Ian Bogost, but usually only in a cursory way. I thought it might be fun to take a look at a couple of examples.
www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...
www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...
I've been editing the page proofs for my forthcoming game studies book, The Impossible Reversal (coming out in Feb with @uminnpress.bsky.social). I'm starting to get pretty excited! The table of contents turned out to be pretty enticing, no?
October 28, 2025 at 7:15 PM
I've been editing the page proofs for my forthcoming game studies book, The Impossible Reversal (coming out in Feb with @uminnpress.bsky.social). I'm starting to get pretty excited! The table of contents turned out to be pretty enticing, no?
Dr. Krista-Lee Malone is live streaming with some of the finalists for the GEE! Learning Game Awards on twitch. Tune in here: www.twitch.tv/gameranthro
GamerAnthro - Twitch
PML Gee Awards Finalists!
www.twitch.tv
August 21, 2025 at 3:38 PM
Dr. Krista-Lee Malone is live streaming with some of the finalists for the GEE! Learning Game Awards on twitch. Tune in here: www.twitch.tv/gameranthro
Reposted by Peter McDonald
A true horror; a choice to know, discover, and inspire less. A victory for the reaction. An assault on our youths and future.
A massive attack on several humanities units (Arabic Studies, Judaic Studies, Holocaust Studies, Classics, Religion, German & Scandinavian, Russian/East European/Eurasian Studies) *and* tenure now unfolding at the University of Oregon (a blue state!). Closure of units and faculty layoffs threatened.
August 18, 2025 at 7:33 PM
A true horror; a choice to know, discover, and inspire less. A victory for the reaction. An assault on our youths and future.
The cover for my upcoming book, The Impossible Reversal, is up on UP Minnesota's website! Super thrilled by this design. (you can pre-order it there as well).
www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...
www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...
The Impossible Reversal
Tracing the cultural history of play—from Fluxus to SimCityGames and gamified activities have become ubiquitous in many adults’ lives, and play is widely...
www.upress.umn.edu
August 18, 2025 at 2:58 PM
The cover for my upcoming book, The Impossible Reversal, is up on UP Minnesota's website! Super thrilled by this design. (you can pre-order it there as well).
www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...
www.upress.umn.edu/978151791622...
Reposted by Peter McDonald
I believe they call this "finding out" arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...
August 9, 2025 at 7:58 PM
I believe they call this "finding out" arstechnica.com/tech-policy/...
Reposted by Peter McDonald
You can read my testimonial on the KS page, but I *loved* BFF! The Golden Years and I'm so excited to see it in this finely aged version 💖
July 29, 2025 at 11:43 PM
You can read my testimonial on the KS page, but I *loved* BFF! The Golden Years and I'm so excited to see it in this finely aged version 💖
Reposted by Peter McDonald
So Codenames (and thus CGE) has blocked me, a Trans developer and designer, because I had the nerves to send them the two replies you find below. Judge for yourself if these are worth a ban.
This is their way of dealing with empathy and care in this ongoing conversation.
This is their way of dealing with empathy and care in this ongoing conversation.
July 27, 2025 at 8:51 AM
So Codenames (and thus CGE) has blocked me, a Trans developer and designer, because I had the nerves to send them the two replies you find below. Judge for yourself if these are worth a ban.
This is their way of dealing with empathy and care in this ongoing conversation.
This is their way of dealing with empathy and care in this ongoing conversation.
Reposted by Peter McDonald
hi nerds! i released a new #ttrpg today. COLDBLOODS is a 3-5 player game about mercurial vampires. drink the blood of humans to gain their knowledge, be physically changed by your monstrous actions, and maybe - if you're lucky - earn the respect of your ancient family.
Coldbloods by Anna Anthropy
This party sucks!
w.itch.io
June 30, 2025 at 9:46 PM
hi nerds! i released a new #ttrpg today. COLDBLOODS is a 3-5 player game about mercurial vampires. drink the blood of humans to gain their knowledge, be physically changed by your monstrous actions, and maybe - if you're lucky - earn the respect of your ancient family.
And now the more experimental batch! First is a proof of concept called Line: A 1D Platformer. It represents height by color--gray scale for platforms and blue--red for objects and enemies. When you jump you shift hues, which reorients the player to the temporal rather than spatial aspects. (13/17)
June 26, 2025 at 8:22 PM
And now the more experimental batch! First is a proof of concept called Line: A 1D Platformer. It represents height by color--gray scale for platforms and blue--red for objects and enemies. When you jump you shift hues, which reorients the player to the temporal rather than spatial aspects. (13/17)
I feel some pride in the growing number of platformers made with GBStudio and my tool PlatformerPlus. For instance, Kero Kero Cowboy. So many frog avatars in my lists. This one has Kirbyish spunk combined with levels designed to coherently push one or another aspect of movement.
June 26, 2025 at 7:14 PM
I feel some pride in the growing number of platformers made with GBStudio and my tool PlatformerPlus. For instance, Kero Kero Cowboy. So many frog avatars in my lists. This one has Kirbyish spunk combined with levels designed to coherently push one or another aspect of movement.
There have been a couple of big releases this year. I've been following the Siege and the Sandfox for a while (partly because it uses Unreal). It is a stealth metroidvania with a few really spectacular moments. But ultimately its narrative, visuals, movement play the same note too often. (8/17)
June 26, 2025 at 6:20 PM
There have been a couple of big releases this year. I've been following the Siege and the Sandfox for a while (partly because it uses Unreal). It is a stealth metroidvania with a few really spectacular moments. But ultimately its narrative, visuals, movement play the same note too often. (8/17)
A couple of micro-trends that I mentioned in my wrap up from last year continue. The momentum platformer had a strong showing in SeaFrog, which elegantly combines skating and traditional platforming. It piles on style, and makes many thoughtful design choices (esp. with enemies). (2/17)
June 26, 2025 at 4:50 PM
A couple of micro-trends that I mentioned in my wrap up from last year continue. The momentum platformer had a strong showing in SeaFrog, which elegantly combines skating and traditional platforming. It piles on style, and makes many thoughtful design choices (esp. with enemies). (2/17)
When I wrote Run and Jump (direct.mit.edu/books/oa-mon...) I thought that airing my thoughts on 2D platformers would let me take some distance from the genre. Actually, it has only made me pay closer attention to new releases. So, I thought I'd share what I've seen so far this year.(1/17)
Run and Jump: The Meaning of the 2D Platformer
How abstract design decisions in 2D platform games create rich worlds of meaning for players.Since the 1980s, 2D platform games have captivated their audie
direct.mit.edu
June 26, 2025 at 4:41 PM
When I wrote Run and Jump (direct.mit.edu/books/oa-mon...) I thought that airing my thoughts on 2D platformers would let me take some distance from the genre. Actually, it has only made me pay closer attention to new releases. So, I thought I'd share what I've seen so far this year.(1/17)
Has anyone build an easy AI scraper poison pill? Something that would add a bunch of garbage data that is invisible to human users but visible to crawlers?
June 12, 2025 at 11:37 PM
Has anyone build an easy AI scraper poison pill? Something that would add a bunch of garbage data that is invisible to human users but visible to crawlers?
Reposted by Peter McDonald
The End of Gameplay is out RIGHT NOW!
My masterpiece.
A pixel art adventure through my mind, broken by kill gameplay 🔪
love, droqen
store.steampowered.com/app/3120040/...
My masterpiece.
A pixel art adventure through my mind, broken by kill gameplay 🔪
love, droqen
store.steampowered.com/app/3120040/...
May 12, 2025 at 4:57 PM
The End of Gameplay is out RIGHT NOW!
My masterpiece.
A pixel art adventure through my mind, broken by kill gameplay 🔪
love, droqen
store.steampowered.com/app/3120040/...
My masterpiece.
A pixel art adventure through my mind, broken by kill gameplay 🔪
love, droqen
store.steampowered.com/app/3120040/...
Reposted by Peter McDonald
Submissions for the 2025 GEE! Awards are now open. There are categories for formal learning, informal learning, analog games, and games by small studios. I've judged the analog games in past years and love seeing the variety and experimentation that people develop.
www.geeawards.com
www.geeawards.com
2025 Gee Learning Games Award
The GEE! award recognizes excellence in educational game design. The award is judged by international leaders in the field. Winners are announced at the Play Make Learn conference in Madison, WI.
www.geeawards.com
April 7, 2025 at 4:03 PM
Submissions for the 2025 GEE! Awards are now open. There are categories for formal learning, informal learning, analog games, and games by small studios. I've judged the analog games in past years and love seeing the variety and experimentation that people develop.
www.geeawards.com
www.geeawards.com
Reposted by Peter McDonald
I just learned the exciting hack that you can prevent Google’s AI from showing up at the top of your results by including a curse word, which has given me the perfect excuse to start every query with “fucking.”
February 9, 2025 at 3:56 AM
I just learned the exciting hack that you can prevent Google’s AI from showing up at the top of your results by including a curse word, which has given me the perfect excuse to start every query with “fucking.”
Reposted by Peter McDonald
In another of the year's in-depth Q&As, @nothingunfinished.bsky.social spoke with UW-Madison professor @pdmcdonald.bsky.social in August about his book "Run And Jump: The Meaning Of The 2D Platformer"
tonemadison.com/articles/fun...
tonemadison.com/articles/fun...
Functional play in the abstract: an interview with game studies author Peter McDonald
The UW–Madison assistant professor discusses the philosophies behind his new book, "Run And Jump: The Meaning Of The 2D Platformer."
tonemadison.com
December 30, 2024 at 4:58 PM
In another of the year's in-depth Q&As, @nothingunfinished.bsky.social spoke with UW-Madison professor @pdmcdonald.bsky.social in August about his book "Run And Jump: The Meaning Of The 2D Platformer"
tonemadison.com/articles/fun...
tonemadison.com/articles/fun...
Some love from (and for) The Video Game Library
515. RUN AND JUMP: THE MEANING OF THE 2D PLATFORMER
👉 www.thevideogamelibrary.org/book/run-and...
@pdmcdonald.bsky.social #GameStudies #Gaming #VideoGames #Booksky #Gamesky #Platformer @mitpress.bsky.social #Mario #MegaMan #DonkeyKong #Sonic #Owlboy #Klonoa #Downwell #AdventureIsland #Rainworld
👉 www.thevideogamelibrary.org/book/run-and...
@pdmcdonald.bsky.social #GameStudies #Gaming #VideoGames #Booksky #Gamesky #Platformer @mitpress.bsky.social #Mario #MegaMan #DonkeyKong #Sonic #Owlboy #Klonoa #Downwell #AdventureIsland #Rainworld
December 26, 2024 at 10:39 PM
Some love from (and for) The Video Game Library
(37/?) Ending my list with some oddballs. My favorite platformer of 2024 was Goodboy Galaxy. It gives the player three tools--a gun, a shield, a jump--but charts multiple paths per level by stripping one of the three. A total surprise, inventive and charming, with Mario 64 as my closest referent.
December 13, 2024 at 6:40 PM
(37/?) Ending my list with some oddballs. My favorite platformer of 2024 was Goodboy Galaxy. It gives the player three tools--a gun, a shield, a jump--but charts multiple paths per level by stripping one of the three. A total surprise, inventive and charming, with Mario 64 as my closest referent.
(27/?) Continuing my year of platformers in 2024 with some smaller games from itch.io. First up is Frogfall, a game about planning out a series of jumps without landing. It gets a lot of depth and variation out of that simple idea. kultisti.itch.io/frogfall
December 6, 2024 at 5:49 PM
(27/?) Continuing my year of platformers in 2024 with some smaller games from itch.io. First up is Frogfall, a game about planning out a series of jumps without landing. It gets a lot of depth and variation out of that simple idea. kultisti.itch.io/frogfall