James Wallis
@jameswallis.bsky.social
Game designer, publisher, teacher, critic, writer, evangelist, FRSA. For my books, games, podcast, game design workshops, lectures, trade bodies &c., check my linktree https://linktr.ee/james.wallis
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James Wallis
@jameswallis.bsky.social
· Oct 18
Hello! I'm best known for running Hogshead Publishing in the 1990s, but these days I'm setting up Big Table, a trade body for the UK tabletop industry. Follow us: @bigtable.bsky.social
Reposted by James Wallis
whilst we're at it we also have a couple of advert spots left in the next issue that I'd quite like to fill this week so I don't have to think about it any more
so if you fancy reaching the coolest readers in the tabletop game scene & want more info, drop us a line at advertise@wyrd.science
ta!
so if you fancy reaching the coolest readers in the tabletop game scene & want more info, drop us a line at advertise@wyrd.science
ta!
February 16, 2026 at 12:42 PM
whilst we're at it we also have a couple of advert spots left in the next issue that I'd quite like to fill this week so I don't have to think about it any more
so if you fancy reaching the coolest readers in the tabletop game scene & want more info, drop us a line at advertise@wyrd.science
ta!
so if you fancy reaching the coolest readers in the tabletop game scene & want more info, drop us a line at advertise@wyrd.science
ta!
Reposted by James Wallis
Just looking through some old comics and found a mail order advert for Small Prophets
February 15, 2026 at 5:42 PM
Just looking through some old comics and found a mail order advert for Small Prophets
Reposted by James Wallis
A magnificent set of choices led to this. What a time to be alive www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Amazon delivery van 'stuck on The Broomway after following GPS'
HM Coastguard Southend says the van driver had been trying to get to Foulness Island.
www.bbc.co.uk
February 15, 2026 at 7:05 PM
A magnificent set of choices led to this. What a time to be alive www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Reposted by James Wallis
The CBC made this clever & cute video that uses kids to explain the rules of curling:
February 13, 2026 at 7:43 PM
The CBC made this clever & cute video that uses kids to explain the rules of curling:
Delighted to see that GB has shown the world nobody slides down a slippery slope faster than us.
February 13, 2026 at 11:32 PM
Delighted to see that GB has shown the world nobody slides down a slippery slope faster than us.
What's a word that changes your opinion of someone when you hear them mis-pronounce it?
For me: 'et cetera'/'ecksetra'.
For me: 'et cetera'/'ecksetra'.
February 13, 2026 at 6:15 PM
What's a word that changes your opinion of someone when you hear them mis-pronounce it?
For me: 'et cetera'/'ecksetra'.
For me: 'et cetera'/'ecksetra'.
Reposted by James Wallis
if you played sonic the hedgehog and put down the controller, sonic would look at you and tap his foot impatiently. this was proof that sega genesis cartridges had souls. the decision was made to make the storage cases a lot larger than the cartridges so they would have room to move around in there
February 11, 2026 at 3:58 PM
if you played sonic the hedgehog and put down the controller, sonic would look at you and tap his foot impatiently. this was proof that sega genesis cartridges had souls. the decision was made to make the storage cases a lot larger than the cartridges so they would have room to move around in there
Announcement on train: we are delayed "because a lorry has hit the bridge at Needham Market" - a pause filled with the weariness of a thousand lifetimes - "again."
February 12, 2026 at 2:44 PM
Announcement on train: we are delayed "because a lorry has hit the bridge at Needham Market" - a pause filled with the weariness of a thousand lifetimes - "again."
Reposted by James Wallis
Interrupting my regularly scheduled programming to announce the happy news that the Baltic Sea froze over, generating vast surfaces suitable for long-distance skating. My old friend Jens Liljestrand and I took some time off to explore the edge of the archipelago today, and it was glorious ❄️❄️❄️
February 11, 2026 at 8:08 PM
Interrupting my regularly scheduled programming to announce the happy news that the Baltic Sea froze over, generating vast surfaces suitable for long-distance skating. My old friend Jens Liljestrand and I took some time off to explore the edge of the archipelago today, and it was glorious ❄️❄️❄️
Reposted by James Wallis
go london greatest city in da woild baybee
February 11, 2026 at 10:12 PM
go london greatest city in da woild baybee
Who do I know who runs or consults on crowdfunding campaigns? Looking to recommend someone for a client. This is not a game-industry project.
February 11, 2026 at 5:03 PM
Who do I know who runs or consults on crowdfunding campaigns? Looking to recommend someone for a client. This is not a game-industry project.
Dammit, I know that I read something in the last two weeks about Acquire selling 50,000 copies a year in the late 60s or early 70s. Can I find it again? Of course not.
February 11, 2026 at 4:28 PM
Dammit, I know that I read something in the last two weeks about Acquire selling 50,000 copies a year in the late 60s or early 70s. Can I find it again? Of course not.
Small Prophets is pure magic.
February 11, 2026 at 4:22 PM
Small Prophets is pure magic.
Reposted by James Wallis
we need to talk about that Ring Super Bowl ad
February 10, 2026 at 8:18 PM
we need to talk about that Ring Super Bowl ad
Reposted by James Wallis
Jim Henson’s proposed idea for The Cheapest Muppet Movie Ever Made
November 25, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Jim Henson’s proposed idea for The Cheapest Muppet Movie Ever Made
Leia: Mandelore
Obi-Wan: Ferrix
Chewie: RAUGHAGH
C3PO: Oh, a very good move if I may say
Leia: Did he play Kashyyyk again?
Han: He always plays Kashyyyk. I'll go Kamino
Luke: Bespin
Leia: Crait
Obi-Wan: Mornington Coruscant!
Chewie: RAARUGARGH!
C3P0: Oh dear, I did warn you about winning
Obi-Wan: Ferrix
Chewie: RAUGHAGH
C3PO: Oh, a very good move if I may say
Leia: Did he play Kashyyyk again?
Han: He always plays Kashyyyk. I'll go Kamino
Luke: Bespin
Leia: Crait
Obi-Wan: Mornington Coruscant!
Chewie: RAARUGARGH!
C3P0: Oh dear, I did warn you about winning
February 10, 2026 at 4:55 PM
Leia: Mandelore
Obi-Wan: Ferrix
Chewie: RAUGHAGH
C3PO: Oh, a very good move if I may say
Leia: Did he play Kashyyyk again?
Han: He always plays Kashyyyk. I'll go Kamino
Luke: Bespin
Leia: Crait
Obi-Wan: Mornington Coruscant!
Chewie: RAARUGARGH!
C3P0: Oh dear, I did warn you about winning
Obi-Wan: Ferrix
Chewie: RAUGHAGH
C3PO: Oh, a very good move if I may say
Leia: Did he play Kashyyyk again?
Han: He always plays Kashyyyk. I'll go Kamino
Luke: Bespin
Leia: Crait
Obi-Wan: Mornington Coruscant!
Chewie: RAARUGARGH!
C3P0: Oh dear, I did warn you about winning
Reposted by James Wallis
Against the Silver Slavers
The next fantasy novella in Greg Stolze's beloved Borzhu cycle.
www.kickstarter.com
February 10, 2026 at 2:30 PM
TIL in 1971 Alex Randolph created a chess variant where players either don't know the identity of the opponent's pieces, or their pieces. Titled Mimikri, it was only released in Germany... and it is uncannily similar to a prototype I devised last summer for a thing
boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/20...
boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/20...
Mimikri
Mimikri can be played as two variants of traditional chess.
In the first, players know the identity their own pieces but not that of their opponent. Only by studying the opponent's moves, can the pie...
boardgamegeek.com
February 10, 2026 at 9:07 AM
TIL in 1971 Alex Randolph created a chess variant where players either don't know the identity of the opponent's pieces, or their pieces. Titled Mimikri, it was only released in Germany... and it is uncannily similar to a prototype I devised last summer for a thing
boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/20...
boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/20...
If your game hasn't been remotely playtested then it hasn't been playtested.
Something I’ve seen repeatedly in tabletop game design is designers mistaking a "situated experience" for a marketable game.
It looks like this:
🎲✂️(1/19)
It looks like this:
🎲✂️(1/19)
February 10, 2026 at 8:48 AM
If your game hasn't been remotely playtested then it hasn't been playtested.
Reposted by James Wallis
Trans Youth Suicides Skyrocketed In UK After Care Drawdown; Government Covers It Up
open.substack.com/pub/erininth...
open.substack.com/pub/erininth...
Trans Youth Suicides Skyrocketed In UK After Care Drawdown; Government Covers It Up
A Freedom of Information request to the National Child Mortality Database reveals that 22 trans children under 18 died by suicide in England in 2021-22 alone.
open.substack.com
February 9, 2026 at 6:38 PM
Trans Youth Suicides Skyrocketed In UK After Care Drawdown; Government Covers It Up
open.substack.com/pub/erininth...
open.substack.com/pub/erininth...
Didn't you guys have a president called something something Walker Bush? Must be an omen.
February 9, 2026 at 1:35 PM
Didn't you guys have a president called something something Walker Bush? Must be an omen.
What the Olympics snowboard commentary team really needs is Stanley Unwin.
February 7, 2026 at 7:15 PM
What the Olympics snowboard commentary team really needs is Stanley Unwin.
Reposted by James Wallis
I'm sorry the guy changing the rules on the fly is named what
I stand with County Executive Calvin Ball as he signs emergency legislation today prohibiting privately owned buildings from being used as ICE detention centers.
Howard County chose dignity, accountability, and its people. Tune into our event now:
bit.ly/4a2VtHw
Howard County chose dignity, accountability, and its people. Tune into our event now:
bit.ly/4a2VtHw
Redirecting...
bit.ly
February 7, 2026 at 2:34 PM
I'm sorry the guy changing the rules on the fly is named what
Reposted by James Wallis
how do you write this story without noting there was a campaign literally called SUBSTACKERS AGAINST NAZIS in…2023
Revealed: How Substack makes money from hosting Nazi newsletters
Exclusive: Site takes a cut of subscriptions to content that promotes far-right ideology, white supremacy and antisemitism
www.theguardian.com
February 7, 2026 at 5:14 PM
how do you write this story without noting there was a campaign literally called SUBSTACKERS AGAINST NAZIS in…2023
Reposted by James Wallis
I think everyone who read the rascal article or just saw the headline or even just heard the jist second-hand needs to read Jay's response.
possumcreek.medium.com/a-response-t...
possumcreek.medium.com/a-response-t...
A Response To Rascal
Hi, Jay here.
possumcreek.medium.com
February 7, 2026 at 4:24 PM
I think everyone who read the rascal article or just saw the headline or even just heard the jist second-hand needs to read Jay's response.
possumcreek.medium.com/a-response-t...
possumcreek.medium.com/a-response-t...