Aaron A. Reed
@aaronareed.bsky.social
Maker of books, games, games about books, and books about games. Social media content syndicated to multiple platforms: https://linktr.ee/aaronareed
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Aaron A. Reed
@aaronareed.bsky.social
· Nov 12
Downcrawl 2E - Roleplaying in a Weird, Wondrous Underworld
Downcrawl 2E is a TTRPG toolkit for exploring a weird, wondrous underworld of stalactite cities and fungal gods. Now supports zero-prep and solo play!
www.backerkit.com
Yay I'm finally here! I'm Aaron A. Reed, a writer and game designer who has written books about games, games about books, and lots of permutations in between. You might know me from Ice-Bound, Blue Lacuna, 50 Years of Text Games, or my latest thing, a #TTRPG: www.backerkit.com/c/projects/a...
Roguelike Celebration is happening today and my awesome friend Johnathan is giving this inspiring talk (gonna be a great time). www.roguelike.club
October 25, 2025 at 3:07 PM
Roguelike Celebration is happening today and my awesome friend Johnathan is giving this inspiring talk (gonna be a great time). www.roguelike.club
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
Nice! Looking forward to reading a deep dive on a tough design space many designers engage with.
October 15, 2025 at 12:16 AM
Nice! Looking forward to reading a deep dive on a tough design space many designers engage with.
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
"Which would you rather play, a GMless or a diceless RPG"
To which I say, "why not both"
To which you say, "examples please"
Leaving out (checks notes) every single one of my games, let me throw out a few. If I miss your favs, chime in!
To which I say, "why not both"
To which you say, "examples please"
Leaving out (checks notes) every single one of my games, let me throw out a few. If I miss your favs, chime in!
October 3, 2025 at 9:57 PM
"Which would you rather play, a GMless or a diceless RPG"
To which I say, "why not both"
To which you say, "examples please"
Leaving out (checks notes) every single one of my games, let me throw out a few. If I miss your favs, chime in!
To which I say, "why not both"
To which you say, "examples please"
Leaving out (checks notes) every single one of my games, let me throw out a few. If I miss your favs, chime in!
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
Hey it's #SteamSale! You can get
🔥 IMMORTALITY for $9.99
👁️ TELLING LIES for $4.99
☕ HER STORY for $4.99
& wishlist Project C and Project D whilst you are there...
It's a good time to play good games in the present and wish for good games in the future! ✨
store.steampowered.com/developer/Sa...
🔥 IMMORTALITY for $9.99
👁️ TELLING LIES for $4.99
☕ HER STORY for $4.99
& wishlist Project C and Project D whilst you are there...
It's a good time to play good games in the present and wish for good games in the future! ✨
store.steampowered.com/developer/Sa...
September 30, 2025 at 7:48 PM
Hey it's #SteamSale! You can get
🔥 IMMORTALITY for $9.99
👁️ TELLING LIES for $4.99
☕ HER STORY for $4.99
& wishlist Project C and Project D whilst you are there...
It's a good time to play good games in the present and wish for good games in the future! ✨
store.steampowered.com/developer/Sa...
🔥 IMMORTALITY for $9.99
👁️ TELLING LIES for $4.99
☕ HER STORY for $4.99
& wishlist Project C and Project D whilst you are there...
It's a good time to play good games in the present and wish for good games in the future! ✨
store.steampowered.com/developer/Sa...
Wow, Alien Earth started out so strong but has sure gotten real dumb the last couple episodes...
September 10, 2025 at 4:30 AM
Wow, Alien Earth started out so strong but has sure gotten real dumb the last couple episodes...
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
It’s an honor to help launch this series with @anasalter.bsky.social
The first copies of my next book, a short reflection on the lasting impact of indie game Undertale, have arrived at @uchicagopress.bsky.social and are in good company with @n-w-f.bsky.social's upcoming book on Animal Crossing. Find both at: press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/se...
September 9, 2025 at 6:51 PM
It’s an honor to help launch this series with @anasalter.bsky.social
⬇️ 🚨🚨Heads up, this sale ends tonight!🚨🚨
This is a _rare_ occasion when my physical books are on sale as well my digital stuff (probably increasingly rare if the tariff situation continues to worsen).
This is a _rare_ occasion when my physical books are on sale as well my digital stuff (probably increasingly rare if the tariff situation continues to worsen).
Reminder: my #BookSale this weekend includes:
🚪 Subcutanean, spooky novel that changes for each reader: subcutanean.textories.com
⚔️ Downcrawl 2E, #TTRPG of underworld exploration: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
💾 50 Years of Text Games, history of interactive fiction: if50.textories.com
🚪 Subcutanean, spooky novel that changes for each reader: subcutanean.textories.com
⚔️ Downcrawl 2E, #TTRPG of underworld exploration: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
💾 50 Years of Text Games, history of interactive fiction: if50.textories.com
Downcrawl 2E - Aaron A. Reed | Downcrawl | DriveThruRPG
Explore cursed mazes. Build stalactite cities. Get addicted to mushrooms.
Welcome Down.
Downcrawl is a tabletop roleplaying toolkit that helps you build and explore a weird, wondrous underworld so far...
www.drivethrurpg.com
September 9, 2025 at 11:03 PM
⬇️ 🚨🚨Heads up, this sale ends tonight!🚨🚨
This is a _rare_ occasion when my physical books are on sale as well my digital stuff (probably increasingly rare if the tariff situation continues to worsen).
This is a _rare_ occasion when my physical books are on sale as well my digital stuff (probably increasingly rare if the tariff situation continues to worsen).
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
good morning, i wrote a manifesto about a new direction for game design / play
possumcreek.medium.com/the-expressi...
possumcreek.medium.com/the-expressi...
The Expressionist Games Manifesto
“Work! Intoxication! Brain-racking! Chewing, eating, gorging, rooting up! Rapturous birth pangs! Jabbing of the brush, preferably right…
possumcreek.medium.com
September 8, 2025 at 12:41 PM
good morning, i wrote a manifesto about a new direction for game design / play
possumcreek.medium.com/the-expressi...
possumcreek.medium.com/the-expressi...
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
I cannot recommend Aaron's books enough, they are fantastic games and 50 years of text games is an amazing dive into the history of games that has largely been left out of the popular consciousness
Reminder: my #BookSale this weekend includes:
🚪 Subcutanean, spooky novel that changes for each reader: subcutanean.textories.com
⚔️ Downcrawl 2E, #TTRPG of underworld exploration: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
💾 50 Years of Text Games, history of interactive fiction: if50.textories.com
🚪 Subcutanean, spooky novel that changes for each reader: subcutanean.textories.com
⚔️ Downcrawl 2E, #TTRPG of underworld exploration: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
💾 50 Years of Text Games, history of interactive fiction: if50.textories.com
Downcrawl 2E - Aaron A. Reed | Downcrawl | DriveThruRPG
Explore cursed mazes. Build stalactite cities. Get addicted to mushrooms.
Welcome Down.
Downcrawl is a tabletop roleplaying toolkit that helps you build and explore a weird, wondrous underworld so far...
www.drivethrurpg.com
September 7, 2025 at 4:09 PM
I cannot recommend Aaron's books enough, they are fantastic games and 50 years of text games is an amazing dive into the history of games that has largely been left out of the popular consciousness
Reminder: my #BookSale this weekend includes:
🚪 Subcutanean, spooky novel that changes for each reader: subcutanean.textories.com
⚔️ Downcrawl 2E, #TTRPG of underworld exploration: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
💾 50 Years of Text Games, history of interactive fiction: if50.textories.com
🚪 Subcutanean, spooky novel that changes for each reader: subcutanean.textories.com
⚔️ Downcrawl 2E, #TTRPG of underworld exploration: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
💾 50 Years of Text Games, history of interactive fiction: if50.textories.com
Downcrawl 2E - Aaron A. Reed | Downcrawl | DriveThruRPG
Explore cursed mazes. Build stalactite cities. Get addicted to mushrooms.
Welcome Down.
Downcrawl is a tabletop roleplaying toolkit that helps you build and explore a weird, wondrous underworld so far...
www.drivethrurpg.com
September 7, 2025 at 3:22 PM
Reminder: my #BookSale this weekend includes:
🚪 Subcutanean, spooky novel that changes for each reader: subcutanean.textories.com
⚔️ Downcrawl 2E, #TTRPG of underworld exploration: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
💾 50 Years of Text Games, history of interactive fiction: if50.textories.com
🚪 Subcutanean, spooky novel that changes for each reader: subcutanean.textories.com
⚔️ Downcrawl 2E, #TTRPG of underworld exploration: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
💾 50 Years of Text Games, history of interactive fiction: if50.textories.com
ReSkies or NuBlues or whatever they're called on here much appreciated 🙏
🎃🍁🍂AUTUMN SALE!🍂🍁🎃 All my books and games are on sale for one week only to celebrate the impending arrival of cooler days and pumpkin lattes.
RPGs: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/publisher...
50 Years of Text Games: if50.textories.com
Subcutanean: subcutanean.textories.com
Cool swag: aaronareed.net/store/
RPGs: www.drivethrurpg.com/en/publisher...
50 Years of Text Games: if50.textories.com
Subcutanean: subcutanean.textories.com
Cool swag: aaronareed.net/store/
September 5, 2025 at 12:09 AM
ReSkies or NuBlues or whatever they're called on here much appreciated 🙏
#Downcrawl2E Adventure Zine #2 is here (and ON SALE for launch week)! Explore a new underworld region clinging to an endless roof over bottomless void, in the legendary place Where The Rock Stops. #ttrpg #hexcrawl #DriveThruRPG
www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
and SPEAKING OF SALES... (1/2)
www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
and SPEAKING OF SALES... (1/2)
September 4, 2025 at 3:43 PM
#Downcrawl2E Adventure Zine #2 is here (and ON SALE for launch week)! Explore a new underworld region clinging to an endless roof over bottomless void, in the legendary place Where The Rock Stops. #ttrpg #hexcrawl #DriveThruRPG
www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
and SPEAKING OF SALES... (1/2)
www.drivethrurpg.com/en/product/5...
and SPEAKING OF SALES... (1/2)
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
our game about DEAD GODS and TAKING BILLIONAIRES TO COURT FOR THEIR CRIMES is in the graun!! thx @yourkyotowife.bsky.social for a thoughtful write-up touching on our complex conversational systems & how joy + rage power transformation 🔥 @allwillrise.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/games/2025/a...
www.theguardian.com/games/2025/a...
All Will Rise, the game empowering players to tackle real-world problems
With its rousing card game about activism, indie studio Speculative Agency hopes to inspire players to engage with issues such as pollution and the climate crisis
www.theguardian.com
August 21, 2025 at 5:26 PM
our game about DEAD GODS and TAKING BILLIONAIRES TO COURT FOR THEIR CRIMES is in the graun!! thx @yourkyotowife.bsky.social for a thoughtful write-up touching on our complex conversational systems & how joy + rage power transformation 🔥 @allwillrise.bsky.social
www.theguardian.com/games/2025/a...
www.theguardian.com/games/2025/a...
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
@aaronareed.bsky.social's Downcrawl has blown me away with its simultaneous simplicity and complexity.
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Name a #TTRPG creator (designer, writer, illustrator, etc) you are currently obsessed with and a short point about why.
I'll go first!
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Name a #TTRPG creator (designer, writer, illustrator, etc) you are currently obsessed with and a short point about why.
I'll go first!
August 19, 2025 at 10:46 PM
@aaronareed.bsky.social's Downcrawl has blown me away with its simultaneous simplicity and complexity.
---
Name a #TTRPG creator (designer, writer, illustrator, etc) you are currently obsessed with and a short point about why.
I'll go first!
---
Name a #TTRPG creator (designer, writer, illustrator, etc) you are currently obsessed with and a short point about why.
I'll go first!
I hiked the 211-mile John Muir Trail #JMT in the Sierra Nevada this summer, and made a video montage of thirty-second clips from each day of my trip: youtu.be/KXIiEFTvQ64
30 Seconds a Day on the John Muir Trail (JMT)
YouTube video by Aaron Reed
youtu.be
August 14, 2025 at 7:59 PM
I hiked the 211-mile John Muir Trail #JMT in the Sierra Nevada this summer, and made a video montage of thirty-second clips from each day of my trip: youtu.be/KXIiEFTvQ64
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
Look, some of you are sickos banging on the window at night, saying YES to more games like King of Dragon Pass
and YES to kaleidoscopic psychopomp journeys into underworlds
so you gotta say YES to Thousand Hells, it's the law
and YES to kaleidoscopic psychopomp journeys into underworlds
so you gotta say YES to Thousand Hells, it's the law
😈 Announcing Thousand Hells: The Underworld Heists, a procedural narrative RPG by A Sharp @radiofreelunch.bsky.social and published by us!
▶ Wishlist the game now on Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/3794210/...
▶ Wishlist the game now on Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/3794210/...
August 7, 2025 at 5:11 PM
Look, some of you are sickos banging on the window at night, saying YES to more games like King of Dragon Pass
and YES to kaleidoscopic psychopomp journeys into underworlds
so you gotta say YES to Thousand Hells, it's the law
and YES to kaleidoscopic psychopomp journeys into underworlds
so you gotta say YES to Thousand Hells, it's the law
Lucky enough to be one of the writers involved in bringing this wild stygian world to life! If you've ever wanted to barter with a dead swan god or infiltrate the fortress where souls go to be flensed, wishlist this game...
😈 Announcing Thousand Hells: The Underworld Heists, a procedural narrative RPG by A Sharp @radiofreelunch.bsky.social and published by us!
▶ Wishlist the game now on Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/3794210/...
▶ Wishlist the game now on Steam: store.steampowered.com/app/3794210/...
August 7, 2025 at 6:13 PM
Lucky enough to be one of the writers involved in bringing this wild stygian world to life! If you've ever wanted to barter with a dead swan god or infiltrate the fortress where souls go to be flensed, wishlist this game...
About to fulfill a long-time dream by hiking the John Muir Trail through the Sierra Nevada. If you need me, I'll be back in August. 😎🌲🏔️
July 2, 2025 at 12:29 AM
About to fulfill a long-time dream by hiking the John Muir Trail through the Sierra Nevada. If you need me, I'll be back in August. 😎🌲🏔️
Great coverage of #Downcrawl2E from The Dungeon Dive with this video walkthrough explaining the game in detail and playing through a few moves as Bartok the Brother Botanist! #ttrpg
youtu.be/_zuQYhMwTgs?...
youtu.be/_zuQYhMwTgs?...
Keeping it Underground - Downcrawl 2e - overview with game play
YouTube video by The Dungeon Dive
youtu.be
June 16, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Great coverage of #Downcrawl2E from The Dungeon Dive with this video walkthrough explaining the game in detail and playing through a few moves as Bartok the Brother Botanist! #ttrpg
youtu.be/_zuQYhMwTgs?...
youtu.be/_zuQYhMwTgs?...
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
The cool conference: narrascope.org
Link to toss them some $$ to keep the lights on: iftechfoundation.org/give/
This is a great org and event! If you support narrative in games, every little bit helps!
Link to toss them some $$ to keep the lights on: iftechfoundation.org/give/
This is a great org and event! If you support narrative in games, every little bit helps!
June 1, 2025 at 8:34 PM
The cool conference: narrascope.org
Link to toss them some $$ to keep the lights on: iftechfoundation.org/give/
This is a great org and event! If you support narrative in games, every little bit helps!
Link to toss them some $$ to keep the lights on: iftechfoundation.org/give/
This is a great org and event! If you support narrative in games, every little bit helps!
Biggest things I liked about Arc:
* Not having to care abt the difference between tab/bookmark/history (there's just pages, some starred, some active)
* Different workspaces 4 diff sets of pages
* Auto-pruning old tabs (I used to use an extension for this)
Any recs for similar browsers/workflows?
* Not having to care abt the difference between tab/bookmark/history (there's just pages, some starred, some active)
* Different workspaces 4 diff sets of pages
* Auto-pruning old tabs (I used to use an extension for this)
Any recs for similar browsers/workflows?
May 27, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Biggest things I liked about Arc:
* Not having to care abt the difference between tab/bookmark/history (there's just pages, some starred, some active)
* Different workspaces 4 diff sets of pages
* Auto-pruning old tabs (I used to use an extension for this)
Any recs for similar browsers/workflows?
* Not having to care abt the difference between tab/bookmark/history (there's just pages, some starred, some active)
* Different workspaces 4 diff sets of pages
* Auto-pruning old tabs (I used to use an extension for this)
Any recs for similar browsers/workflows?
Pour one out today for the Arc browser, which elegantly solved a number of web surfing frustrations using clever human design ingenuity. Officially discontinued today in favor of an AI clownshow. Getting so goddamn sick of this hypewagon paving over everything beautiful and useful.
May 27, 2025 at 5:05 PM
Pour one out today for the Arc browser, which elegantly solved a number of web surfing frustrations using clever human design ingenuity. Officially discontinued today in favor of an AI clownshow. Getting so goddamn sick of this hypewagon paving over everything beautiful and useful.
Traditional post-#TTRPG con list of characters I played this weekend:
* speedy cartoon ferret
* post-apocalyptic battle twink
* sad vampire from 1600s China
* high school friend who moved away
* avenging bard with violin crossbow
* changeling troll
This is objectively the best hobby
* speedy cartoon ferret
* post-apocalyptic battle twink
* sad vampire from 1600s China
* high school friend who moved away
* avenging bard with violin crossbow
* changeling troll
This is objectively the best hobby
May 27, 2025 at 2:27 AM
Traditional post-#TTRPG con list of characters I played this weekend:
* speedy cartoon ferret
* post-apocalyptic battle twink
* sad vampire from 1600s China
* high school friend who moved away
* avenging bard with violin crossbow
* changeling troll
This is objectively the best hobby
* speedy cartoon ferret
* post-apocalyptic battle twink
* sad vampire from 1600s China
* high school friend who moved away
* avenging bard with violin crossbow
* changeling troll
This is objectively the best hobby
Played "500 Year Old Vampire" by @timhutchings.bsky.social at #KublaCon with a truly glorious arts and crafts spread provided by our GM, best letter writing and vision boarding game about being a sad vampire and sad vampire historian ever
May 25, 2025 at 4:23 PM
Played "500 Year Old Vampire" by @timhutchings.bsky.social at #KublaCon with a truly glorious arts and crafts spread provided by our GM, best letter writing and vision boarding game about being a sad vampire and sad vampire historian ever
Reposted by Aaron A. Reed
Today is the last day for in-person registration for NarraScope. (Registration for remote attendance is open until June 18th.)
narrascope.org
narrascope.org
Narrascope 2025 | Celebrating Narrative Games
NarraScope 2025 at Drexel University is an event that supports interactive narrative, adventure games, and interactive fiction by bringing together writers, developers, and players.
narrascope.org
May 23, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Today is the last day for in-person registration for NarraScope. (Registration for remote attendance is open until June 18th.)
narrascope.org
narrascope.org