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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David
@robindavid.bsky.social
280 followers 170 following 280 posts
I make games. 🎲 ✂️ Irish in Berlin https://www.robin-david.com/
www.robin-david.com
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · Aug 20
I've hand-assembled 20 copies of Invaluable, just for fun! Grab one on the BGG marketplace! https://boardgamegeek.com/market/product/3816451
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 16h
Finished, not perfect. 🎲✂️
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 1d
Love love love this video. Thanks for talking about this with such honesty. I also hit significant burnout this year, and attributed it to a mentally challenging job combined with a mentally challenging hobby. I'm still doing Essen this year, but only to play - no pitching or meetings or stress.
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Reposted by Robin David
marcelineleiman.bsky.social
Marceline Leiman (High Tide, available now!!) @marcelineleiman.bsky.social · 2d
So when you’re planning for your pitch, think not just in terms of your fun, mechanical hooks—make sure everything is working towards fulfilling the appeal of your game’s promised experience.
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 2d
Less time in the rulebook serves everyone. 🎲✂️
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 3d
Who wants to do some treasure hunting?
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 3d
Seeing improvement was a kind of meta-victory.
Reposted by Robin David
chrisbacke.bsky.social
Chris Backe @chrisbacke.bsky.social · 3d
Ever wondered how publishers think about #gamedesign? Obviously every publisher is different, but a few have talked about their design thought process publicly.

How Do Publishers Think About Game Design?
open.substack.com/pub/entrogam...
How Do Publishers Think About Game Design?
5 examples to help you craft your your own design philosophy
open.substack.com
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 4d
One of my best gaming experiences in recent years was diving really deep into Go.
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 4d
🎲✂️
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 4d
That's a good score! Glass Road remains one of my top 10 of all time. Certainly, my favourite Rosenberg.
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 4d
Yes, that's a good observation. I was always making backup plans. I like Steam a fair bit more!
robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 4d
Just dropping Quertymartin's review of Invaluable here. https://boardgamegeek.com/blog/46/blogpost/178774/september-2025-playing-reading-listening
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 5d
A three-player Age of Steam play. While I respect this design, I don't really like the game! Every move has to be so carefully calculated - it's like playing in a straitjacket.

Oh, I lost by a LOT OF POINTS!
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 5d
Min Tin Monster Mash Up by Chris Backe fits a lot of cool ideas into a tiny box!
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 6d
"we are the cheeky girls", whispered ethereally as Helen Mirren steps out of the shadows with an axe
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 6d
Your game cannot do everything, so make it do one thing really well. 🎲✂️
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 6d
Oh wow! That's wonderful!
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 7d
@galens-games.bsky.social
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 7d
Verdant Arizona is here!! The final mint-tin game looks amazing. :)

This is top-notch production work from Galen's Games.
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Reposted by Robin David
kevinwilson42.bsky.social
Kevin Wilson @kevinwilson42.bsky.social · 9d
The thing I'm always chasing is a stable enough game with room for astonishing events to occur. Memorable moments that stick with the players, that they find themselves re-telling to folks who weren't there. That drama is what I enjoy in games and what I usually try to design for.
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 8d
I can think of a few experiences where enthusiasm has completely dissipated by the end of scoring. Be careful! Can you move some to mid-game, simplify scoring, or think of other victory conditions? 🎲✂️
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 9d
Honestly, my group are great. They didn't give me any grief for it. We're all busy and stressed and super gracious to each other, squeezing this game session in every week for 5 years now. Letting a player nap during a game is next level.
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robindavid.bsky.social
Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 9d
I do an online roleplaying session one evening every week. This week, I was totally confused about where we were starting the session - where did all these trolls come from?

"That's because you fell asleep at the end of our last session! You missed a huge chunk!"

I need a holiday!
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Reposted by Robin David
gamesbymanuel.bsky.social
Manuel Correia @gamesbymanuel.bsky.social · Sep 9
I balanced one of my earliest prototypes so much that no matter what the players did, it always ended in a tie.
It was SO BORING!
🎲✂️
ericlang.bsky.social
Eric Lang @ericlang.bsky.social · Sep 9
"This feels balanced" is like the most backhanded feedback I can imagine for an exceptions based game.

If it's the only feedback, and the game was mine, I'd probably throw it away.
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Robin David @robindavid.bsky.social · 10d
Long procedures and moments of autopilot are so so dangerous. 🎲✂️
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