Ben Kirman
@ben.kirman.org
Postdisciplinary games academic: Make/study/teach the playful, weird, wonderful and radical. (he/him)
#criticaldesign #speculativedesign #designfiction #gamedesign
Projects:
https://ben.kirman.org
#criticaldesign #speculativedesign #designfiction #gamedesign
Projects:
https://ben.kirman.org
Need to share what will likely be my lifetime's finest #boardgame victory, but will be utterly incomprehensible to explain: We were playing 13 Beavers (boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/42...), and not only did I correctly get through the "Tempting Tunnel", to win I had an 11, chose HIGHER, and drew a 13.
13 Beavers
Players must navigate the board with luck and nerve to reach Beaver Paradise.
boardgamegeek.com
January 21, 2026 at 3:45 PM
Need to share what will likely be my lifetime's finest #boardgame victory, but will be utterly incomprehensible to explain: We were playing 13 Beavers (boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/42...), and not only did I correctly get through the "Tempting Tunnel", to win I had an 11, chose HIGHER, and drew a 13.
A bunch of interesting games at the IGGI Game Jam this week: itch.io/jam/iggi-jam...
Highlights are the (3!) Qualtrics games, as well as Hemomaxxing, a game where you try and increase blood flow to your face, and "i believe in you my idiot son" where you build a son to be proud of.
Highlights are the (3!) Qualtrics games, as well as Hemomaxxing, a game where you try and increase blood flow to your face, and "i believe in you my idiot son" where you build a son to be proud of.
Submissions to IGGI Jam 2026
itch.io
January 16, 2026 at 12:12 PM
A bunch of interesting games at the IGGI Game Jam this week: itch.io/jam/iggi-jam...
Highlights are the (3!) Qualtrics games, as well as Hemomaxxing, a game where you try and increase blood flow to your face, and "i believe in you my idiot son" where you build a son to be proud of.
Highlights are the (3!) Qualtrics games, as well as Hemomaxxing, a game where you try and increase blood flow to your face, and "i believe in you my idiot son" where you build a son to be proud of.
Had a great time with the @iggi-phd.bsky.social jam this week. One of the suggested constraints was to use Qualtrics (survey platform) as a game engine, and it piqued my interest so I put a small game together. It's called Research Survey - benkirman.itch.io/research-sur...
Research Survey by benkirman
A survey to collect data that is important for research.
benkirman.itch.io
January 16, 2026 at 12:07 PM
Had a great time with the @iggi-phd.bsky.social jam this week. One of the suggested constraints was to use Qualtrics (survey platform) as a game engine, and it piqued my interest so I put a small game together. It's called Research Survey - benkirman.itch.io/research-sur...
happy 40th birthday to this top lad. he's still h̖̠͎̩ṳn͎͎g̗͙̟r̥͓͔̻͕y͓̟̮͙
January 15, 2026 at 2:23 PM
happy 40th birthday to this top lad. he's still h̖̠͎̩ṳn͎͎g̗͙̟r̥͓͔̻͕y͓̟̮͙
People aren't wrong about Home Assistant being the most haunted platform to tinker with. The clothes dryer keeps switching on whenever the Red Arrows fly past.
January 10, 2026 at 6:04 PM
People aren't wrong about Home Assistant being the most haunted platform to tinker with. The clothes dryer keeps switching on whenever the Red Arrows fly past.
Reposted by Ben Kirman
If you see this post, you are blessed with a prize from the FUN CHICKEN
November 29, 2025 at 12:23 AM
If you see this post, you are blessed with a prize from the FUN CHICKEN
Big fan of game rulebooks that forbid shitty people from playing. Just a couple of sentences in the preamble setting out the most basic rules in case anyone forgot. (Hope is for the Dead by Wird Designs)
January 8, 2026 at 5:10 PM
Big fan of game rulebooks that forbid shitty people from playing. Just a couple of sentences in the preamble setting out the most basic rules in case anyone forgot. (Hope is for the Dead by Wird Designs)
If you fancy doing a "little" puzzle (that will take HOURS) I can recommend this: thomaswc.com/2025.html
Sort 2025 things into 45 categories of 45 items each. Very USA-centric but clever how it pans out, it gets easier, then a lot harder as you go.
Sort 2025 things into 45 categories of 45 items each. Very USA-centric but clever how it pans out, it gets easier, then a lot harder as you go.
2025
thomaswc.com
December 31, 2025 at 12:01 PM
If you fancy doing a "little" puzzle (that will take HOURS) I can recommend this: thomaswc.com/2025.html
Sort 2025 things into 45 categories of 45 items each. Very USA-centric but clever how it pans out, it gets easier, then a lot harder as you go.
Sort 2025 things into 45 categories of 45 items each. Very USA-centric but clever how it pans out, it gets easier, then a lot harder as you go.
My nephew saw this at a buffet, his eyes went really wide and with awe and delight he whispered "gravy fountain"
December 29, 2025 at 1:29 PM
My nephew saw this at a buffet, his eyes went really wide and with awe and delight he whispered "gravy fountain"
A blessing on folks that have out of office messages like "I'm out of the office until X. Bye." with no apologies, no alternative contact, and especially no promise to "read your email when I return". ✨
December 15, 2025 at 3:10 PM
A blessing on folks that have out of office messages like "I'm out of the office until X. Bye." with no apologies, no alternative contact, and especially no promise to "read your email when I return". ✨
Got this little bugger working again after ~15 years. He's gone the colour of a pub ceiling and mainly speaks french, but his ears still work! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabaztag
December 3, 2025 at 6:58 PM
Got this little bugger working again after ~15 years. He's gone the colour of a pub ceiling and mainly speaks french, but his ears still work! en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabaztag
I only know Mayday through the card sleeves that I will now never buy. But the pattern of deception here is cartoon villain stuff. Getting customers to "return" faulty items to the next person who buys one...
This thread goes into detail with photos of the design copying… and the replies link to MULTIPLE previous threads about these products and the publisher’s business practices.
November 20, 2025 at 4:50 PM
I only know Mayday through the card sleeves that I will now never buy. But the pattern of deception here is cartoon villain stuff. Getting customers to "return" faulty items to the next person who buys one...
Reposted by Ben Kirman
A neat little quiz game: Is a headline homophobia from the 80s-90s or transphobia from the 2010s-2020s? Because it's all the same bullshit, repackaged for the hate du jour
haveigotphobiaforyou.com
haveigotphobiaforyou.com
Have I Got Phobia For You
Bringing attention to the often harmful practices of our mainstream media. Thankfully the days of vile hostility against gay people are now more or less over, but, reading today’s newspapers, there’s ...
haveigotphobiaforyou.com
November 4, 2025 at 6:42 PM
A neat little quiz game: Is a headline homophobia from the 80s-90s or transphobia from the 2010s-2020s? Because it's all the same bullshit, repackaged for the hate du jour
haveigotphobiaforyou.com
haveigotphobiaforyou.com
Reposted by Ben Kirman
CFP for a special issue of Eludamos. What are antifascist games? Proposal deadline is December 19.
eludamos.org/index.php/el...
eludamos.org/index.php/el...
Special Issue: WHAT ARE ANTIFASCIST GAMES?
| Eludamos: Journal for Computer Game Culture
eludamos.org
November 17, 2025 at 5:18 PM
CFP for a special issue of Eludamos. What are antifascist games? Proposal deadline is December 19.
eludamos.org/index.php/el...
eludamos.org/index.php/el...
Reposted by Ben Kirman
This made me think of the next level for your mean dice: carving them out of cheese.
November 14, 2025 at 2:20 PM
This made me think of the next level for your mean dice: carving them out of cheese.
Reposted by Ben Kirman
That sinking feeling when you are reading an interesting article and then the screen fades to the popup and you realise that it is on the newsletter platform that hosts and promotes nazis.
No, I won't even continue reading for free.
No, I won't even continue reading for free.
November 12, 2025 at 7:32 PM
That sinking feeling when you are reading an interesting article and then the screen fades to the popup and you realise that it is on the newsletter platform that hosts and promotes nazis.
No, I won't even continue reading for free.
No, I won't even continue reading for free.
Reposted by Ben Kirman
🚀 NEW MAGAZINE ⌨️
Back in the ’80s there were printed mags of BASIC programs to type in, we’ve brought that back but for web pages!
10 amazing games, toys, puzzles and utilities, no coding knowledge needed
vole.wtf/doctype/
Back in the ’80s there were printed mags of BASIC programs to type in, we’ve brought that back but for web pages!
10 amazing games, toys, puzzles and utilities, no coding knowledge needed
vole.wtf/doctype/
DOCTYPE magazine 🚀⌨️
’80s BASIC type-in mags are back, but this time for HTML!
vole.wtf
November 11, 2025 at 12:01 PM
🚀 NEW MAGAZINE ⌨️
Back in the ’80s there were printed mags of BASIC programs to type in, we’ve brought that back but for web pages!
10 amazing games, toys, puzzles and utilities, no coding knowledge needed
vole.wtf/doctype/
Back in the ’80s there were printed mags of BASIC programs to type in, we’ve brought that back but for web pages!
10 amazing games, toys, puzzles and utilities, no coding knowledge needed
vole.wtf/doctype/
Just had to ssh into a pumpkin because it was playing amen break too frequently
October 28, 2025 at 7:39 PM
Just had to ssh into a pumpkin because it was playing amen break too frequently
Decolonisers of Catan (with dice that only roll 7s) #boardgames #catan
October 17, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Decolonisers of Catan (with dice that only roll 7s) #boardgames #catan
Reposted by Ben Kirman
I zine-ified Screw That: A Resource Scarcity game this morning.
oliverbates.itch.io/screw-that
It's a (very) small frustrating game/LARP sort of thing about a future where your plumbing stops working for some reason.
#zines #games #indie
oliverbates.itch.io/screw-that
It's a (very) small frustrating game/LARP sort of thing about a future where your plumbing stops working for some reason.
#zines #games #indie
SCREW THAT! A resource scarcity game by oliver bates
A little resource scarcity game, exploring possible futures and systems
oliverbates.itch.io
October 15, 2025 at 10:48 AM
I zine-ified Screw That: A Resource Scarcity game this morning.
oliverbates.itch.io/screw-that
It's a (very) small frustrating game/LARP sort of thing about a future where your plumbing stops working for some reason.
#zines #games #indie
oliverbates.itch.io/screw-that
It's a (very) small frustrating game/LARP sort of thing about a future where your plumbing stops working for some reason.
#zines #games #indie
Reposted by Ben Kirman
Casual Games for Protesters
Simple games for marches, rallies, and occupations.
www.protestgames.org
October 13, 2025 at 4:08 PM
from the Dog Internet archives. WHAT DO THEY KNOW?
October 9, 2025 at 4:12 PM
from the Dog Internet archives. WHAT DO THEY KNOW?
Sometimes dice in tabletop games are a bit "swing-y". I designed and made this full set of dice for people who prefer more consistent results. I call them Mean Dice.
benkirman.itch.io/mean-dice
#ttrpg #boardgames #dice #gamedesign #statistilols
benkirman.itch.io/mean-dice
#ttrpg #boardgames #dice #gamedesign #statistilols
Mean Dice by benkirman
For tabletop game players who don't like how
benkirman.itch.io
October 8, 2025 at 3:05 PM
Sometimes dice in tabletop games are a bit "swing-y". I designed and made this full set of dice for people who prefer more consistent results. I call them Mean Dice.
benkirman.itch.io/mean-dice
#ttrpg #boardgames #dice #gamedesign #statistilols
benkirman.itch.io/mean-dice
#ttrpg #boardgames #dice #gamedesign #statistilols
Reposted by Ben Kirman
@boardgamegeek.com was kind enough to let me publish a designer diary for #crossbronxexpressway
boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogp...
@gmtgames.bsky.social
boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogp...
@gmtgames.bsky.social
Designer Diary: Cross Bronx Expressway, or Presenting a History on the Table | BoardGameGeek News
boardgamegeek.com
September 23, 2025 at 2:53 PM
@boardgamegeek.com was kind enough to let me publish a designer diary for #crossbronxexpressway
boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogp...
@gmtgames.bsky.social
boardgamegeek.com/blog/1/blogp...
@gmtgames.bsky.social