Jesse Burneko
@jburneko.itch.io
Professional video game developer. Self-publisher of Gothic and psychological horror themed RPGs. Avid reader of early Gothics, mid-20th century fantasy, and crime fiction.
Bloodthorn Press
https://jburneko.itch.io/
Bloodthorn Press
https://jburneko.itch.io/
Every once in a while I remember how bad the 2007 remake of Sleuth is despite being made by all the people I would want making a Sleuth remake. It kind of haunts me.
November 19, 2025 at 4:30 AM
Every once in a while I remember how bad the 2007 remake of Sleuth is despite being made by all the people I would want making a Sleuth remake. It kind of haunts me.
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
A frustration I have with fantasy and trpg dialog is the lack of historical depth and curiousity beyond marketed brands.
Its like talking about the history of metal and refusing to budge from an ahistorical focus on Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden and Metallica as the sole important artists. Its wrong.
Its like talking about the history of metal and refusing to budge from an ahistorical focus on Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden and Metallica as the sole important artists. Its wrong.
November 17, 2025 at 7:49 PM
A frustration I have with fantasy and trpg dialog is the lack of historical depth and curiousity beyond marketed brands.
Its like talking about the history of metal and refusing to budge from an ahistorical focus on Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden and Metallica as the sole important artists. Its wrong.
Its like talking about the history of metal and refusing to budge from an ahistorical focus on Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden and Metallica as the sole important artists. Its wrong.
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
I do not think this is like intentional behavior in many cases. Its a social pressure driven by consumption. Its thorny, but I think needs pushed back against somehow.
Probably by being loud and enthusistatic with cited sources to poke holes at nostalgia blinded talking point.
Probably by being loud and enthusistatic with cited sources to poke holes at nostalgia blinded talking point.
One of the more insidious parts of nerd culture is positioning itself as outsider-y while simultaneously enforcing a narrow selection of acceptable media for discussion. The media always has marketing behind it, usually legacy brand and sold like kid’s toys.
November 13, 2025 at 5:17 PM
I do not think this is like intentional behavior in many cases. Its a social pressure driven by consumption. Its thorny, but I think needs pushed back against somehow.
Probably by being loud and enthusistatic with cited sources to poke holes at nostalgia blinded talking point.
Probably by being loud and enthusistatic with cited sources to poke holes at nostalgia blinded talking point.
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
I’ll be streaming Sea of Thieves tonight from 8pm-10pm PST for Obsidian’s Extra Life Charity Stream!
All proceeds go to Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC). Catch the stream at
twitch.tv/obsidian! See you there :D
All proceeds go to Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC). Catch the stream at
twitch.tv/obsidian! See you there :D
November 6, 2025 at 9:43 PM
I’ll be streaming Sea of Thieves tonight from 8pm-10pm PST for Obsidian’s Extra Life Charity Stream!
All proceeds go to Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC). Catch the stream at
twitch.tv/obsidian! See you there :D
All proceeds go to Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC). Catch the stream at
twitch.tv/obsidian! See you there :D
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
A lot of PbtA games have adopted (or at least internalized, if not strictly mechanized) the "party" mode of play, but I really really like the ones that fit more into a mode of "you are the main cast of a tv show, whose plotlines will diverge and intersect"
November 6, 2025 at 4:01 AM
A lot of PbtA games have adopted (or at least internalized, if not strictly mechanized) the "party" mode of play, but I really really like the ones that fit more into a mode of "you are the main cast of a tv show, whose plotlines will diverge and intersect"
Saw Frankenstein yesterday. My first movie in the theater since... Cats.
November 3, 2025 at 5:20 PM
Saw Frankenstein yesterday. My first movie in the theater since... Cats.
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
The sound I make inside while talking about *historical* rpg theory to those who heard it by telephone.
*good and bad points, unformed ideas, misunderstood and forgotten ones.
*good and bad points, unformed ideas, misunderstood and forgotten ones.
AAAIIEE.
October 29, 2025 at 2:49 PM
The sound I make inside while talking about *historical* rpg theory to those who heard it by telephone.
*good and bad points, unformed ideas, misunderstood and forgotten ones.
*good and bad points, unformed ideas, misunderstood and forgotten ones.
Ran Mothership recently. The main monster killed two characters. A third character failed a ship to airlock jump. A fourth character ignited the fuel tanks of a space station blowing it up. The fifth character managed to crawl into cryopods where they were rescued 180 years later.
October 25, 2025 at 7:17 PM
Ran Mothership recently. The main monster killed two characters. A third character failed a ship to airlock jump. A fourth character ignited the fuel tanks of a space station blowing it up. The fifth character managed to crawl into cryopods where they were rescued 180 years later.
If you see this, post a vampire that isn't Dracula.
October 23, 2025 at 7:19 AM
If you see this, post a vampire that isn't Dracula.
So, the Kickstarter I was running for Haunted didn't fund. But the first rule of Kickstarter is always have a Plan B! Haunted (and Horrible Children) are now available for direct purchase. You can find all the relevant links in my final update:
www.kickstarter.com/projects/jbu...
Happy Halloween!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/jbu...
Happy Halloween!
Update 4: Thank You and Haunted Availability · Haunted
Hello!Well, the project didn't make it. But that's okay! I knew it was kind of a long shot. As promised, Haunted is available anyway! If you're still interested, here's where to find it.DigitalIf yo...
www.kickstarter.com
October 20, 2025 at 7:14 PM
So, the Kickstarter I was running for Haunted didn't fund. But the first rule of Kickstarter is always have a Plan B! Haunted (and Horrible Children) are now available for direct purchase. You can find all the relevant links in my final update:
www.kickstarter.com/projects/jbu...
Happy Halloween!
www.kickstarter.com/projects/jbu...
Happy Halloween!
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
anyway hasbro is making cosy slop for a terminally uncritical market.
if you want queer content in your ttrpgs, go buy an indie game by an actual queer. Those tend to have things to say beyond 'please stop calling hasbro problematic on twitter'.
if you want queer content in your ttrpgs, go buy an indie game by an actual queer. Those tend to have things to say beyond 'please stop calling hasbro problematic on twitter'.
October 20, 2025 at 3:10 PM
anyway hasbro is making cosy slop for a terminally uncritical market.
if you want queer content in your ttrpgs, go buy an indie game by an actual queer. Those tend to have things to say beyond 'please stop calling hasbro problematic on twitter'.
if you want queer content in your ttrpgs, go buy an indie game by an actual queer. Those tend to have things to say beyond 'please stop calling hasbro problematic on twitter'.
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
Two things that cheese me off in an RPG.
1. Puzzles that require me to solve them with my brain. I came to RP, not do puzzles. I genuinely HATE puzzles. Having them in my adventure time fun is torture.
2. Santa Claus, Krampus, or anything Xmas-themed. Hell no.
I see you, cloud. I'm yelling.
1. Puzzles that require me to solve them with my brain. I came to RP, not do puzzles. I genuinely HATE puzzles. Having them in my adventure time fun is torture.
2. Santa Claus, Krampus, or anything Xmas-themed. Hell no.
I see you, cloud. I'm yelling.
October 20, 2025 at 12:40 AM
Two things that cheese me off in an RPG.
1. Puzzles that require me to solve them with my brain. I came to RP, not do puzzles. I genuinely HATE puzzles. Having them in my adventure time fun is torture.
2. Santa Claus, Krampus, or anything Xmas-themed. Hell no.
I see you, cloud. I'm yelling.
1. Puzzles that require me to solve them with my brain. I came to RP, not do puzzles. I genuinely HATE puzzles. Having them in my adventure time fun is torture.
2. Santa Claus, Krampus, or anything Xmas-themed. Hell no.
I see you, cloud. I'm yelling.
Haunted is entering its last week of crowdfunding. It's admittedly struggling a bit. www.kickstarter.com/projects/jbu...
Haunted
A Game About Murder And What Comes After
www.kickstarter.com
October 13, 2025 at 6:52 PM
Haunted is entering its last week of crowdfunding. It's admittedly struggling a bit. www.kickstarter.com/projects/jbu...
Sorcerer. Followed closely by Story Engine and My Life w/ Master.
For tons of folks, there was that -one- game that blew the doors open and showed what #TTRPGs could be. The one that started the #IndieGame rabbit hole.
What was YOUR "gateway" indie #TTRPG? The first one that made you realize a whole other world was out there?
What was YOUR "gateway" indie #TTRPG? The first one that made you realize a whole other world was out there?
October 13, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Sorcerer. Followed closely by Story Engine and My Life w/ Master.
I have really strong feelings about all this. I feel like it's worth writing about too. It's very interconnected with a lot of my feelings about "the industry" and "the hobby" as a whole (which have never been positive). Maybe I'll tackle it after I close out the Haunted Kickstarter.
Hello friends. Needed to get some ideas down and break this quarter-long dry spell at the Club.
Empty whining? A manifesto? Maybe both.
Empty whining? A manifesto? Maybe both.
The New Novelty
Hello readers. It’s been a while. You may have noticed I haven’t put anything up for a few months. Things are good here, no worries. No medical emergencies, no family or work drama. My kid’s school…
www.indiegamereadingclub.com
October 12, 2025 at 10:36 PM
I have really strong feelings about all this. I feel like it's worth writing about too. It's very interconnected with a lot of my feelings about "the industry" and "the hobby" as a whole (which have never been positive). Maybe I'll tackle it after I close out the Haunted Kickstarter.
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
Hello friends. Needed to get some ideas down and break this quarter-long dry spell at the Club.
Empty whining? A manifesto? Maybe both.
Empty whining? A manifesto? Maybe both.
The New Novelty
Hello readers. It’s been a while. You may have noticed I haven’t put anything up for a few months. Things are good here, no worries. No medical emergencies, no family or work drama. My kid’s school…
www.indiegamereadingclub.com
October 12, 2025 at 3:15 AM
Hello friends. Needed to get some ideas down and break this quarter-long dry spell at the Club.
Empty whining? A manifesto? Maybe both.
Empty whining? A manifesto? Maybe both.
The "news" is where the money is flowing.
it's always like
>TTRPG creators complain that TTRPG journalists don't cover small games
>TTRPG journalists say their job is to report the news not be advertisers
>”the news” is always at least two headlines for every D&D book or whatever movie-budget D&D actual play podcast is coming out next
>TTRPG creators complain that TTRPG journalists don't cover small games
>TTRPG journalists say their job is to report the news not be advertisers
>”the news” is always at least two headlines for every D&D book or whatever movie-budget D&D actual play podcast is coming out next
October 10, 2025 at 4:40 PM
The "news" is where the money is flowing.
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
it's always like
>TTRPG creators complain that TTRPG journalists don't cover small games
>TTRPG journalists say their job is to report the news not be advertisers
>”the news” is always at least two headlines for every D&D book or whatever movie-budget D&D actual play podcast is coming out next
>TTRPG creators complain that TTRPG journalists don't cover small games
>TTRPG journalists say their job is to report the news not be advertisers
>”the news” is always at least two headlines for every D&D book or whatever movie-budget D&D actual play podcast is coming out next
October 10, 2025 at 4:14 PM
it's always like
>TTRPG creators complain that TTRPG journalists don't cover small games
>TTRPG journalists say their job is to report the news not be advertisers
>”the news” is always at least two headlines for every D&D book or whatever movie-budget D&D actual play podcast is coming out next
>TTRPG creators complain that TTRPG journalists don't cover small games
>TTRPG journalists say their job is to report the news not be advertisers
>”the news” is always at least two headlines for every D&D book or whatever movie-budget D&D actual play podcast is coming out next
I have literally never heard of nor ever experienced this kind of game. I remember once learning about Mao, as like, an abstract thought experiment. I wonder what it says about me that I have never seen this "in the wild" so to speak.
Hey, there's this genre of games that should have a name but I don't know what to call it. Do you have a name for it?
They're casual social/party games. You can play them easily in a dorm room or on a train.
At the start, one or two people know the trick. The object is to figure it out —
They're casual social/party games. You can play them easily in a dorm room or on a train.
At the start, one or two people know the trick. The object is to figure it out —
October 9, 2025 at 5:20 PM
I have literally never heard of nor ever experienced this kind of game. I remember once learning about Mao, as like, an abstract thought experiment. I wonder what it says about me that I have never seen this "in the wild" so to speak.
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
Random:
One of my biggest bugbears in ttrpgs is action ordering.
So many interesting ways, yet so few are used (and often the most tedious win out).
Pure "fiat/fiction first" *yawn*.
Ordered turns where each unit does all their actions in a go? *double yawn*
One of my biggest bugbears in ttrpgs is action ordering.
So many interesting ways, yet so few are used (and often the most tedious win out).
Pure "fiat/fiction first" *yawn*.
Ordered turns where each unit does all their actions in a go? *double yawn*
October 8, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Random:
One of my biggest bugbears in ttrpgs is action ordering.
So many interesting ways, yet so few are used (and often the most tedious win out).
Pure "fiat/fiction first" *yawn*.
Ordered turns where each unit does all their actions in a go? *double yawn*
One of my biggest bugbears in ttrpgs is action ordering.
So many interesting ways, yet so few are used (and often the most tedious win out).
Pure "fiat/fiction first" *yawn*.
Ordered turns where each unit does all their actions in a go? *double yawn*
Week 3 and 35% of the way there. At this pace it's going to be tight but not out of the question. www.kickstarter.com/projects/jbu...
Haunted
A Game About Murder And What Comes After
www.kickstarter.com
October 7, 2025 at 1:44 AM
Week 3 and 35% of the way there. At this pace it's going to be tight but not out of the question. www.kickstarter.com/projects/jbu...
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
We really need more gamer perzines. Zine about your life experiences as a gamer, as a gamemaster, as a player.
October 4, 2025 at 1:08 AM
We really need more gamer perzines. Zine about your life experiences as a gamer, as a gamemaster, as a player.
I’ve talking up my own Kickstarter for months but I think ambitious little indie projects like this are important. www.kickstarter.com/projects/lud...
Monsterhearts: Welcome to Drowned Lake
A Card-Based RPG About the Messy Lives of Teenage Monsters
www.kickstarter.com
October 3, 2025 at 4:18 AM
I’ve talking up my own Kickstarter for months but I think ambitious little indie projects like this are important. www.kickstarter.com/projects/lud...
Reposted by Jesse Burneko
Maybe I'm not a game designer. Maybe I'm a games *practitioner*.
October 2, 2025 at 6:09 PM
Maybe I'm not a game designer. Maybe I'm a games *practitioner*.