…I am. Or at least, I think I am. Does a writer without readers actually exist? Ever since the wave function that was my day job underwent a spectacular collapse earlier this year, I haven’t had a dedicated platform for my journalism. But the nice thing about self-employment is that I can focus on whatever new tech I think is interesting, and play whatever games I want. So now, this.
The intent is for Ludo Ergo to function something like the blogs I wrote for back in the innocent, pre-social media days of the internet. I’ll report on games, and technology, and how technology is changing games, and share links and videos I found interesting, and update you about stories I’ve written for other outlets and the various new book projects I’m working on. It’ll be an old fashioned gallimaufry!
For now, you can expect a post like this at least once a week. Follow via RSS feed or subscribe to get these posts as an email newsletter.
Some News
- Sony unveiled the PlayStation 5 Pro, a probably unnecessary console unless you want to spend $700 to make already gorgeous games look slightly better
- Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks says AI has big potential in Dungeons & Dragons.
- Microsoft will lay off 650 people from its gaming division, on top of the 1,900 it cut earlier in the year
- Critical Role unveiled a jam-packed Fall programming schedule for Beacon, Twitch, YouTube, and its podcast network
- Rascal sat down with the designer hauling the much-anticipated Gloomhaven tabletop RPG across the finish line
- The entire staff of beloved video game studio Annapurna Interactive resigned in protest due to a dispute with leadership
- You can finally play Peter Molyneux’s classic god game Black & White again
- Nobody needs a full-sized displacer beast kitten, but I think I want one anyway
Now Playing
Tom Francis is my kind of guy—a former video game journalist turned game designer. His 2013 professional debut, Gunpoint, is an awesomely stylish and clever puzzle platformer, and made me an instant fan. In 2017, he released the tactical stealth game Heat Signature, and I spent many hours pounding my head against the desk as I tried to find the most funny and violent ways to complete each procedurally-designed level. Now Francis’ latest, published through his indie studio Suspicious Development, isn’t just his best yet, it’s one of the best games I’ve played all year.
Tactical Breach Wizards is a turn-based tactics PC game in the vein of the XCOM series, but with a Shadowrun twist: Players lead a team of wizards through a cyberpunk world on a quest to unravel a massive conspiracy. Each level is a puzzle to be cracked through use of your wizards’ weird and complimentary powers, which come together in delightful ways. It’s creative and silly and challenging, and generally lots of fun. I particularly love Francis’ writing, which is featured in cutscenes between missions. The dialog not only drives the plot, but it gives every wizard (and their enemies!) actual character arcs. Play it!
Watch This
It’s hard for me to believe, but it’s been 20 years since the creators of the Penny Arcade webcomic launched their own convention, and the event now known as PAX West is the largest gaming event in the US, with over 120,000 attendees in Seattle earlier this month. If you missed it, the panels are trickling onto the con’s YouTube channel, including this keynote “Storytime” conversation with Phil Spencer, the head of Microsoft’s gaming division. It’s an usually frank discussion with a CEO (Spencer is actually willing to call out his own mistakes) and a nice time capsule of the last two decades of console gaming.
Colophon
I consume an almost problematic amount of media, and most of it doesn’t warrant in-depth coverage. I always loved the “colophon” section in Wired Magazine, where the editors shared quick bites of whatever they were into while producing each issue, so I’m going to replicate some of that here in every post. I also like the colophon in Cory Doctorow’s blog Pluralistic, where he updates his readers on the media he’s been creating; I think it might be a fun way to motivate myself, since I’ll be more accountable to readers.
I’m currently watching: The Expanse, Season 6 • Last movie in a theater: ¡Casa Bonita Mi Amor! • Podcast: If Books Could Kill, “The Anxious Generation” • Reading: Clark Ashton Smith, “The Return of the Sorcerer” (affiliate link) • Listening to: Wind Rose, “Wintersaga“
I’m currently writing: Five reported articles about AI for a private client (one down, four to go) • An unnamed heist novel (currently 2103 words) • A D&D 5E adventure module for this year’s Gamehole Con (812 words)
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