Raph Koster+

I think they were always meant to be hills? But no I don’t recall.

I think they were always meant to be hills? But no I don’t recall.

I wrote quite a bit about this back in the mid-2000s. Computers really enabled s

I wrote quite a bit about this back in the mid-2000s. Computers really enabled something new. Back then I predicted that 1p games would get wrapped inside multiplayer contexts and I think that’s come true.

FWIW, I love single-player games and prefer playing them myself. :D

FWIW, I love single-player games and prefer playing them myself. :D

Reminds me of this chart that everyone hated back in the day. :D www.raphkoster.

Reminds me of this chart that everyone hated back in the day. :D www.raphkoster.com/2012/03/13/x...

We put out a huge update just a couple of weeks ago, with tons of new creature a

We put out a huge update just a couple of weeks ago, with tons of new creature additions, big optimizations, character customization, and more. Finaling another right now!

I think they came out quite wonderful! You did a great job.

I think they came out quite wonderful! You did a great job.

I can't believe you just... let me ramble. :D

I can't believe you just... let me ramble. :D

www.gamedeveloper.com/business/an-... remains true, to my mind. We still need a

www.gamedeveloper.com/business/an-... remains true, to my mind. We still need a new platform.

And there are some sorts of games just demand larger investment (money or sweat

And there are some sorts of games just demand larger investment (money or sweat equity) than others. It wouldn't be the first time that genres died at the hands of business realities, as @molleindustria.org notes. But it'll be the first time in a while that it's the commercial core of the artform.

The dynamics I described in www.raphkoster.com/2018/01/17/t... and in www.raphko

The dynamics I described in www.raphkoster.com/2018/01/17/t... and in www.raphkoster.com/wp-content/u... are still very much there, even at the indie end of the market.

For all the wonderful quirkiness that's out there, the culture of "every success

For all the wonderful quirkiness that's out there, the culture of "every successive game in a genre must encompass everything offered by all previous genre titles, with better graphics" is still very much there. Games culture has been driven by tech progress for so long.

The writing has been on the wall for a long time. I spoke about Moore's Wall in

The writing has been on the wall for a long time. I spoke about Moore's Wall in that same year. The big question I have is actually how the *audience* will adapt. For all we speak of the embrace of indie games, the fact is that the audience bar is higher than ever.

"Oh, plenty of people will be willing to play, read, or hear their content. The

"Oh, plenty of people will be willing to play, read, or hear their content. The question isn’t whether they can find an audience — on the Internet, everyone can find an audience. No, the question is whether all forms of fixed content will effectively be donations to the common weal."

"And they’ll probably all have to blog like mad because what will sell will not

"And they’ll probably all have to blog like mad because what will sell will not be just the game, it’ll be the experience of the interaction with that content provider. If there’s one thing that the Web makes possible, it’s enough content to make the typical content creator superfluous."

"We’ve got two things to look forward to if this particular future comes true: l

"We’ve got two things to look forward to if this particular future comes true: lots of new innovative games coming from the gaming equivalent of John Keats or Michael Hedges; and lots of folks who have to make games on the side while they hold down a day job."

This is a good talk. It also echoes some things I have been saying for years (I

This is a good talk. It also echoes some things I have been saying for years (I stole @bruces.bsky.social 's line about musicians long ago, probably back when we hung out in Austin)... Back in 2005, I wrote a blog post called "The Future of Content" that ended with:

Aww.. glad it made a difference!

Aww.. glad it made a difference!

It came out great!!

It came out great!!

This is out now and @noclipvideo has done their usual stellar job!

This is out now and @noclipvideo has done their usual stellar job!

It is good to see you back :)

It is good to see you back :)

I did this interview a while ago and had forgotten it was coming out!

I did this interview a while ago and had forgotten it was coming out!

I also would not at all say you have fun “once you are not confused.” Fun is usu

I also would not at all say you have fun “once you are not confused.” Fun is usually the reward for understanding. Once you are not facing uncertainty, fun generally goes away.

I think people start having fun at the very start of Super Mario even though it

I think people start having fun at the very start of Super Mario even though it is exactly that sort of basic training. I often say that games are systems that teach themselves. Progression through a game is mostly stacking and recombining prior learnings as you encounter new challenges.

I should make that first sentence a new book blurb. :D

I should make that first sentence a new book blurb. :D

For example, your decision space moves from “how do press jump” to “when do I pr

For example, your decision space moves from “how do press jump” to “when do I press jump to land where I want” to “where do I want to land” and “I have limited stamina, how often should I jump” and so on.

Rote interaction, already-chunked patterns, mastered problem spaces. If you’re p

Rote interaction, already-chunked patterns, mastered problem spaces. If you’re playing any sort of action game, you master movement and control interactions really early, and then tend to scaffold new things on them, not learn more about them. Same is true for any other sort of interaction.

Decisions are about prediction based on priors. And then you see the outcome of

Decisions are about prediction based on priors. And then you see the outcome of your agency… not sure how you can elide learning from that process, esp in games… but maybe we have a terminology issue

It’s well established that chance success results in most of the same biochemica

It’s well established that chance success results in most of the same biochemical processes happening in the brain. Deducing unknown factors in a huge part of fun. It may surprise you that at this point almost everything in that book has been scientifically validated! PS, why the snark?

I have in fact publicly stated that’s why I wrote Theory of Fun. To go back to t

I have in fact publicly stated that’s why I wrote Theory of Fun. To go back to the basics :)

Interesting decision -> form hypothesis -> take action -> observe result -> upda

Interesting decision -> form hypothesis -> take action -> observe result -> update priors. That’s basically the definition of learning. Without it, the decisions may as well be left to chance.

As usual I have signed all the copies of my books at the GDC bookstore!

As usual I have signed all the copies of my books at the GDC bookstore!

As usual I have signed all the copies of my books at the @officialgdc.bsky.socia

As usual I have signed all the copies of my books at the @officialgdc.bsky.social bookstore!

Thank you!

Thank you!

Wow, we’re almost overlapping!

Wow, we’re almost overlapping!

Today I came across a project that rebuilt all of Tatooine from SWG in VRChat, a

Today I came across a project that rebuilt all of Tatooine from SWG in VRChat, and another that is recreating all of UO as a Valheim mod. Kind of wild to see.

I still think of those as mastery, just more in the psychology and mutual unders

I still think of those as mastery, just more in the psychology and mutual understanding vein. We’ve all known players who are really good at “what will make this particular person laugh” for example.

I just shared this in a different thread, but it covers a lot of why I think it

I just shared this in a different thread, but it covers a lot of why I think it has a lot of nuance. What’s silly imho is using definitional stuff to exclude as opposed to using it to help communicate, analyze and come to personal understandings. www.raphkoster.com/2013/04/16/p...

*shrug* I don’t think it is, it’s a pretty nuanced issue.

*shrug* I don’t think it is, it’s a pretty nuanced issue.

Am about to start a 2.5hr drive so can’t provide more links just now, apologies

Am about to start a 2.5hr drive so can’t provide more links just now, apologies

Many! :D My blog is full of them! maybe best overview of my current take is www.

Many! :D My blog is full of them! maybe best overview of my current take is www.raphkoster.com/2013/04/16/p... but there are also others across the site inc in presentations section

We might run afoul of semantics right off the bat. :D I don’t think fun is what

We might run afoul of semantics right off the bat. :D I don’t think fun is what makes games noteworthy and I think we find fun in all sorts of things inc narrative and more. What makes them noteworthy imho is their systemic nature, which is a structural quality different from other media

I think you completely misunderstood my work :D

I think you completely misunderstood my work :D

FWIW the last big thing I tossed out in this debate was pretty nuanced but also

FWIW the last big thing I tossed out in this debate was pretty nuanced but also like 90m long. I wish more story ppl had reacted to it. youtu.be/U_93O3_g9Yc?...

Also there is (speaking personally from the systems side) a feeling of “but this

Also there is (speaking personally from the systems side) a feeling of “but this other part, the systems stuff, is so so important, and it’s unique to games and books and movies don’t do it well.” There is still, by volume, so little out there on deep analysis of systems.

The disagreement is usually hugely reductionist once it’s on social media. If

The disagreement is usually hugely reductionist once it’s on social media. If it gets framed as “games are generally not as suited to telling stories in the ways that books and movies have traditionally told stories, but better at storytelling in a different modality” ppl just get bored. :D

Recommended posts, 2017-2025 It's been over five years since the last time I gat

Recommended posts, 2017-2025 It's been over five years since the last time I gathered up recommended posts in one place and added them to the menu above. I figured I was due. As usual this will include talks and interviews as well as articles. Just think of it as "my take on what the best stuff to look at on the site is." https://www.raphkoster.com/2025/11/26/recommended-posts-2017-2025/

Recommended posts, 2017-2025 It's been over five years since the last time I ga

Recommended posts, 2017-2025 It's been over five years since the last time I gathered up recommended posts in one place and added them to the menu above. I figured I was due. As usual this will include talks and interviews as well as articles. Just think of it as "my take on what the best stuff to…

I never posted widely about the public health simulator design I wrote as Covid

I never posted widely about the public health simulator design I wrote as Covid was shutting down the world. Until now. https://www.raphkoster.com/2025/11/16/looking-back-at-a-pandemic-simulator/

I never posted widely about the public health simulator design I wrote as Covid

I never posted widely about the public health simulator design I wrote as Covid was shutting down the world. Until now.

This update went in today. Can't wait to see what people do...

This update went in today. Can't wait to see what people do...

This is unexpected. Not one, but three versions, and of course I am far from the

This is unexpected. Not one, but three versions, and of course I am far from the only author whose quotes are for sale on canvas prints. Looks like three different manufacturers, and no, I do not get a cut. Fair use, I assume :D

Haha, playing Geoguessr in UO. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XG1IDA8c2OQ

Haha, playing Geoguessr in UO. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XG1IDA8c2OQ

RE: https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@raphkoster/115487304568572107 Well, this lan

RE: https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@raphkoster/115487304568572107 Well, this landed on the front page of Hacker News! https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=45841262

Game design is simple, actually. Except when it isn't. Here are the 12 things yo

Game design is simple, actually. Except when it isn't. Here are the 12 things you need to know. https://www.raphkoster.com/2025/11/03/game-design-is-simple-actually/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

We've been working on overhauling the visuals in STARS REACH for a while. Here's

We've been working on overhauling the visuals in STARS REACH for a while. Here's a look at what's coming up! https://www.raphkoster.com/2025/10/29/stars-reach-visual-upgrades/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

I've been bad about blogging when stuff got added to my site. So here's a catalo

I've been bad about blogging when stuff got added to my site. So here's a catalog of the last couple of years including a bunch of podcasts and talks! https://www.raphkoster.com/2025/10/25/new-stuff-on-the-site/?utm_source=mastodon&utm_medium=jetpack_social

Site updates It's been quite a while since the site was refreshed. I was forced

Site updates It's been quite a while since the site was refreshed. I was forced into it by a PHP upgrade that rendered the old customizable theme I was using obsolete. We're now running a new theme that has been styled to match the old one pretty closely, but I did go ahead and do some streamlining: way less plugins (especially ancient ones), simpler layout in several places, much better handling

A giant build done by players in Stars Reach. It’s showing us what we need to op

A giant build done by players in Stars Reach. It’s showing us what we need to optimize! https://youtu.be/rhvm3enxWkU

Worth reading if you are curious about Stars Reach! https://hooby.blog/posts/wha

Worth reading if you are curious about Stars Reach! https://hooby.blog/posts/what-you-need-to-know-about-stars-reach/

Stars Reach doesn’t look like you remember I've been remiss in posting updates o

Stars Reach doesn’t look like you remember I've been remiss in posting updates on Stars Reach here. I mean, the Kickstarter finished back in March (late pledges still accepted)! Today, though, I want to brag about our awesome AI and proc gen driven worlds. Over the last few releases, we have been rolling out yet https://www.raphkoster.com/2025/06/20/stars-reach-doesnt-look-like-you-remember/ #Game

"That's the craziest thing I have ever seen in any video game!" https://www.yout

"That's the craziest thing I have ever seen in any video game!" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTmaGQynIjg

Kickstarter is here! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/starsreach/stars-reach

Kickstarter is here! https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/starsreach/stars-reach

A shot by Paxus of a meteor storm hitting a planet in Stars Reach, after the rec

A shot by Paxus of a meteor storm hitting a planet in Stars Reach, after the recent new skies & lighting upgrade. And yes, those lava heated holes are actually there.

I'm still writing lore stories for STARS REACH and loving it. Flashbacks to the

I'm still writing lore stories for STARS REACH and loving it. Flashbacks to the days when I used to workshop with Bruce Sterling and others back at Turkey City in Austin. He always told me to "pin down my muse" but of course there isn't a Greek muse of games. ;) https://starsreach.com/staying-grounded-part-one/

Here's their experimental mushroom garden plot. :) You can check out the Kicksta

Here's their experimental mushroom garden plot. :) You can check out the Kickstarter here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/starsreach/stars-reach

How many games do you know where in-game guilds create *entire research papers*?

How many games do you know where in-game guilds create *entire research papers*? Possible thanks to the simulation we're doing in Stars Reach. :)

What goes into the art and style of Stars Reach? And what can you expect in the

What goes into the art and style of Stars Reach? And what can you expect in the future? An interview with Magnus Hollmo, the Art Director of Stars Reach uncovers the creative vision behind the game! https://youtu.be/QYTD0gENtSk

WADDLE DOWNTOWN Designer Unboxing

I made a quick little unboxing video of my new boardgame WADDLE DOWNTOWN, co-designed with Isaac Shalev and published by WizKids. You can find out more about WADDLE DOWNTOWN on its BoardGameGeek page: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/315677/waddle-downtown

Central Valley

In 2016 and 2017 I started writing songs, each set in a different part of the USA, about the way that the world and the country looked from that place. This one is about California's Central Valley. In the Central Valley the signs all say It’s not a crime to feed a family There’s a fire on the horizon Drink deep, the water’s all gone The San Joaquin’s just not able Salt water’s creeping up the table Good tilling soil is getting poison Drink deep, the water’s all gone Chorus I guess this is what they call a systemic problem Save the fish or leave folks jobless Address the drought or

Digital Bards: Interactive Media and the Evolution of Storytelling

This was a talk given as a Distinguished Speaker at the University of Alabama Huntsville in October of 2016. Digital Bards: Interactive Media and the Evolution of Storytelling Print media was itself a revolution of earlier oral storytelling practices, and today we see digital media and videogames in particular challenging traditional notions of what storytelling even is. New paradigms have been developed over the last few decades of game development many of which have not filtered back into academia, and new interactive structures are causing debate within games themselves as well. In this t

My first game

At PAX East, there was a panel where game developers talked about their first games. I was asked to send in a video of mine, and this is what I sent.

Putting the World in World Wide Web

Raph Koster's joint keynote for the Web 3d Symposium and Sandbox event at SIGGRAPH.

November - acoustic guitar

An original guitar instrumental. Tuning CGCGBbC.