Kevin Hovdestad
@hovdestad.ca
Director, Brand Development at CATAN Studio
Kids got new iPads for Christmas, and I need @shappy.bsky.social and @johnathan.bsky.social to know that some of their amazing @rawsignal.ca stickers finally found good homes.
December 29, 2025 at 2:43 PM
Kids got new iPads for Christmas, and I need @shappy.bsky.social and @johnathan.bsky.social to know that some of their amazing @rawsignal.ca stickers finally found good homes.
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
This might sound harsh, and judgmental, but if video is your preferred way of getting information about a topic, you’re a fucking moron
December 28, 2025 at 2:05 AM
This might sound harsh, and judgmental, but if video is your preferred way of getting information about a topic, you’re a fucking moron
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
Zero tolerance is the ONLY and FITTING response to genAI being used in production of media.
Sure, you might think it's too harsh. Sure, they might've only used it for early stuff in development, etc
Listen, it's not even a SLIPPERY slope, there is NO friction at all unless we speak out against it.
Sure, you might think it's too harsh. Sure, they might've only used it for early stuff in development, etc
Listen, it's not even a SLIPPERY slope, there is NO friction at all unless we speak out against it.
December 22, 2025 at 10:48 PM
Zero tolerance is the ONLY and FITTING response to genAI being used in production of media.
Sure, you might think it's too harsh. Sure, they might've only used it for early stuff in development, etc
Listen, it's not even a SLIPPERY slope, there is NO friction at all unless we speak out against it.
Sure, you might think it's too harsh. Sure, they might've only used it for early stuff in development, etc
Listen, it's not even a SLIPPERY slope, there is NO friction at all unless we speak out against it.
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
This one is easy: No. Don’t use the evil slop generation “tools” anywhere in your process. Consumers have been so, so clear on their preferences here.
As the backlash to generative AI in video games continues to pick up steam heading into 2026, it'll be fascinating to see what is considered "made with generative AI." Can a dev team say they're not using AI if they're writing design docs with Copilot or using chatGPT to make schedules and budgets?
December 21, 2025 at 4:19 PM
This one is easy: No. Don’t use the evil slop generation “tools” anywhere in your process. Consumers have been so, so clear on their preferences here.
No, it’s not. Consumers loathe generative AI badly enough that you a) cannot use it; and b) might have to come up with other terms for other things we used to describe with AI. That’s not a crisis.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's GOTY retraction signals the start of something huge
The debate over gen AI in games is about to get a lot messier in 2026
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33's GOTY retraction signals the start of something huge
www.polygon.com
December 23, 2025 at 2:35 AM
No, it’s not. Consumers loathe generative AI badly enough that you a) cannot use it; and b) might have to come up with other terms for other things we used to describe with AI. That’s not a crisis.
This one is easy: No. Don’t use the evil slop generation “tools” anywhere in your process. Consumers have been so, so clear on their preferences here.
As the backlash to generative AI in video games continues to pick up steam heading into 2026, it'll be fascinating to see what is considered "made with generative AI." Can a dev team say they're not using AI if they're writing design docs with Copilot or using chatGPT to make schedules and budgets?
December 21, 2025 at 4:19 PM
This one is easy: No. Don’t use the evil slop generation “tools” anywhere in your process. Consumers have been so, so clear on their preferences here.
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
this is a good battle to pick. the CEO mentioned using "AI" and got so much shit for it immediately that he's rattled and backpedaling. easy win there
this shit, despite its faults, is not going anywhere and people are going to have to pick their battles
Larian CEO Responds to Divinity Gen AI Backlash: 'We Are Neither Releasing a Game With Any AI Components, Nor Are We Looking at Trimming Down Teams to Replace Them With AI' - IGN
This morning, the news broke that Larian Studios, developer of Baldur's Gate 3 and the upcoming, just-announced Divinity, is apparently using generative AI behind the scenes. The backlash has been swi...
www.ign.com
December 17, 2025 at 5:11 PM
this is a good battle to pick. the CEO mentioned using "AI" and got so much shit for it immediately that he's rattled and backpedaling. easy win there
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
my team has never used ChatGPT for any of our writing. these are 100% artisanal handmade mistakes, thank you
December 17, 2025 at 12:43 AM
my team has never used ChatGPT for any of our writing. these are 100% artisanal handmade mistakes, thank you
Happy to report that the new Bluey game is - for its target audience age - fantastic. Highly recommend.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsGY...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsGY...
Bluey's Quest for The Gold Pen | Official Launch Trailer
YouTube video by Halfbrick Studios
www.youtube.com
December 17, 2025 at 12:30 AM
Happy to report that the new Bluey game is - for its target audience age - fantastic. Highly recommend.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsGY...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=SsGY...
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
Merriam-Webster’s human editors have chosen ‘slop’ as the 2025 Word of the Year.
December 15, 2025 at 2:07 PM
Merriam-Webster’s human editors have chosen ‘slop’ as the 2025 Word of the Year.
The Blair Witch Project, Joker (2019), and Rise of Skywalker.
Never mind movies you’ve watched multiple times, name a movie you’ve watched once and would never watch again.
December 9, 2025 at 3:37 PM
The Blair Witch Project, Joker (2019), and Rise of Skywalker.
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
Some people (not me) use Sunday morning to catch up on their politics, so here was my Say No to AI piece from this week for that. www.sfgate.com/tech/article...
The time has come to declare war on AI
"It's now in everything, even if you don't want it there."
www.sfgate.com
December 7, 2025 at 1:44 PM
Some people (not me) use Sunday morning to catch up on their politics, so here was my Say No to AI piece from this week for that. www.sfgate.com/tech/article...
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
why is miss universe always from earth
November 18, 2025 at 10:58 PM
why is miss universe always from earth
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
I gotta say this is a pretty decent list (bolstered by the fact that it's huge, but still). You'll get a better picture of where games are this year browsing through this than anything (literally anything) that happens at The Game Awards.
The best games of 2025, picked by NPR's staff
From indies like Blue Prince to big console exclusives like Donkey Kong Bananza, NPR staff members and contributors round up their favorite games of 2025.
www.npr.org
December 3, 2025 at 9:18 PM
I gotta say this is a pretty decent list (bolstered by the fact that it's huge, but still). You'll get a better picture of where games are this year browsing through this than anything (literally anything) that happens at The Game Awards.
I’m calling it now, we’re taking the year off from puns in 2026.
November 25, 2025 at 6:05 AM
I’m calling it now, we’re taking the year off from puns in 2026.
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
Go a step further: Do not read the opinions of your community. It's creative poison.
Often as game designers we love to make people happy. But if you index too much on making the community, or people in the community, happy, then you're ceding too much of your judgment to them.
Often as game designers we love to make people happy. But if you index too much on making the community, or people in the community, happy, then you're ceding too much of your judgment to them.
One of the producers on Guilty Gear Strive said it was basically impossible to source player feedback on balance changes online because nobody had original opinions and would just parrot what the most popular content creators said and so they had to rely on data and I think about that every day.
November 24, 2025 at 4:03 AM
Go a step further: Do not read the opinions of your community. It's creative poison.
Often as game designers we love to make people happy. But if you index too much on making the community, or people in the community, happy, then you're ceding too much of your judgment to them.
Often as game designers we love to make people happy. But if you index too much on making the community, or people in the community, happy, then you're ceding too much of your judgment to them.
You will only ever find me dressed for comfort on a plane, sorry.
Trump's Transportation Secretary on how to improve air travel:
"People dress up like they're going to bed when they fly... We want to push people as we come into a really busy travel season, help people out, be in a good mood, dress up"
"People dress up like they're going to bed when they fly... We want to push people as we come into a really busy travel season, help people out, be in a good mood, dress up"
November 21, 2025 at 12:11 PM
You will only ever find me dressed for comfort on a plane, sorry.
I’m gonna be a zombie from insufficient sleep, but I’m at PAX Unplugged this weekend! Excited to see a bunch of friends and do a little early Christmas shopping. Come by the CATAN booth during the afternoons or message me if you wanna catch up!
November 21, 2025 at 10:07 AM
I’m gonna be a zombie from insufficient sleep, but I’m at PAX Unplugged this weekend! Excited to see a bunch of friends and do a little early Christmas shopping. Come by the CATAN booth during the afternoons or message me if you wanna catch up!
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
we don't just need to be funding small studios to make one game, we need to be funding them to make the ones they can fuck up before they can make the ones they learn from.
The winner takes all-instant hit-meme-flywheel mentality that has completely overtaken the games industry and even #indiedev is poison.
It deteriorates the space for risk and sustainable growth, until all that's left is to to either make slot-machines or slop-machines.
It deteriorates the space for risk and sustainable growth, until all that's left is to to either make slot-machines or slop-machines.
November 14, 2025 at 11:13 AM
we don't just need to be funding small studios to make one game, we need to be funding them to make the ones they can fuck up before they can make the ones they learn from.
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
A reminder that for every billion dollars made on PC gaming, Newell pockets $300m.
He keeps out of the public eye better than some billionaires, but he is still a libertarian billionaire, and billionaires should not exist.
He keeps out of the public eye better than some billionaires, but he is still a libertarian billionaire, and billionaires should not exist.
Gabe Newell Just Bought a New $500 Million Yacht With a Basketball Court and '15 Gaming Stations'
insider-gaming.com/gabe-newell-...
insider-gaming.com/gabe-newell-...
Gabe Newell Just Bought a New $500 Million Yacht With a Basketball Court and '15 Gaming Stations'
Gabe Newell, the co-founder of Valve, just took receipt of a $500 million yacht with a staggering amount of equipment on board.
insider-gaming.com
November 17, 2025 at 4:43 PM
A reminder that for every billion dollars made on PC gaming, Newell pockets $300m.
He keeps out of the public eye better than some billionaires, but he is still a libertarian billionaire, and billionaires should not exist.
He keeps out of the public eye better than some billionaires, but he is still a libertarian billionaire, and billionaires should not exist.
My incredible friend @joneaves.bsky.social is going to do superhuman things and cycle 1,000km for childhood cancer research, and he’s incredibly close to his fundraising goal. Help push him over the top?
live-for-lily-foundation.grassrootz.com/act-to-mcg/j...
live-for-lily-foundation.grassrootz.com/act-to-mcg/j...
Jon Eaves in ACT to MCG
Hi there
I am riding over 1000km in the 2026 Ride for Lily, to fundraise $5000 to help Live for Lily Foundation fund research in to childhood cancer.
I turn 60 in 2026, which is a pretty awesome t...
live-for-lily-foundation.grassrootz.com
November 16, 2025 at 1:11 AM
My incredible friend @joneaves.bsky.social is going to do superhuman things and cycle 1,000km for childhood cancer research, and he’s incredibly close to his fundraising goal. Help push him over the top?
live-for-lily-foundation.grassrootz.com/act-to-mcg/j...
live-for-lily-foundation.grassrootz.com/act-to-mcg/j...
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
Even the island got a good look at the beautiful northern lights! 🥰🌌
November 14, 2025 at 11:52 PM
Even the island got a good look at the beautiful northern lights! 🥰🌌
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
Just fucking insane to see the absolute (intentional) collapse of full remote jobs available for AAA studios in so short a time. Why would I EVER move for a job again when I could be laid off weeks after moving my entire life across the globe??
November 14, 2025 at 7:12 AM
Just fucking insane to see the absolute (intentional) collapse of full remote jobs available for AAA studios in so short a time. Why would I EVER move for a job again when I could be laid off weeks after moving my entire life across the globe??
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
Well, it's a little clearer now why billionaires are so invested in technology that produces better written emails.
November 12, 2025 at 10:23 PM
Well, it's a little clearer now why billionaires are so invested in technology that produces better written emails.
Reposted by Kevin Hovdestad
My AI strategy? That’s a great question. It’s a nuanced topic that calls for a multipronged approach best outlined in this excellent ebook by thought leaders in the field of intelligence:
www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/26184
www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/26184
Simple Sabotage Field Manual by United States. Office of Strategic Services
Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by volunteers.
www.gutenberg.org
November 12, 2025 at 11:30 PM
My AI strategy? That’s a great question. It’s a nuanced topic that calls for a multipronged approach best outlined in this excellent ebook by thought leaders in the field of intelligence:
www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/26184
www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/26184