John Rudolph Drexler
@johnrudolphdrexler.com
Laravel and Product Management: Thunk.dev
I also make games: Catacombian.com
NYC (by way of St. Louis, Chattanooga, Jakarta, & Oakland)
I also make games: Catacombian.com
NYC (by way of St. Louis, Chattanooga, Jakarta, & Oakland)
I'm making a game that takes place in the past and the present. I'm giddy. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/19-...
February 13, 2026 at 4:26 PM
I'm making a game that takes place in the past and the present. I'm giddy. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/19-...
New brand, new site. You should hire us. But don't take our word for it: the new site is chock full of testimonials from our amazing clients. thunk.dev
February 10, 2026 at 1:12 PM
New brand, new site. You should hire us. But don't take our word for it: the new site is chock full of testimonials from our amazing clients. thunk.dev
There's a big vibe shift happening in the agency world. Here's our hypothesis of where we fit into the future. podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/85-...
Talking Businessly | 85: Our billion dollar theory of the future
It feels like there's a dark cloud over web development right now. So where does Thunk fit into the future, and how do we win? We lay it all out here.
podcast.thunk.dev
February 4, 2026 at 2:48 PM
There's a big vibe shift happening in the agency world. Here's our hypothesis of where we fit into the future. podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/85-...
Reposted by John Rudolph Drexler
The cool thing about being at 80% is that you only have 80% to go.
The cool thing about being at 90% is knowing you only have 80% to go.
The cool thing about being at 99% is that you only have 80% to go.
The cool thing about being at 90% is knowing you only have 80% to go.
The cool thing about being at 99% is that you only have 80% to go.
December 14, 2024 at 3:07 AM
The cool thing about being at 80% is that you only have 80% to go.
The cool thing about being at 90% is knowing you only have 80% to go.
The cool thing about being at 99% is that you only have 80% to go.
The cool thing about being at 90% is knowing you only have 80% to go.
The cool thing about being at 99% is that you only have 80% to go.
I prototyped a LOT of new games last year, and haven't talked about most of them. Now it's time to pick one to finish. www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRGR...
18: Every prototype I made in 2025
YouTube video by Catacombian Games
www.youtube.com
January 23, 2026 at 2:10 PM
I prototyped a LOT of new games last year, and haven't talked about most of them. Now it's time to pick one to finish. www.youtube.com/watch?v=JRGR...
Aaron Swartz downloads academic articles from JSTOR. Arguably, he broke no laws. He faces 35 years in prison.
Nvidia uses a pirated database of books to train LLMs. They spawn a new generation of billion dollar companies built on plagiarism. They're hit with a meager civil suit.
Nvidia uses a pirated database of books to train LLMs. They spawn a new generation of billion dollar companies built on plagiarism. They're hit with a meager civil suit.
January 22, 2026 at 3:26 PM
Aaron Swartz downloads academic articles from JSTOR. Arguably, he broke no laws. He faces 35 years in prison.
Nvidia uses a pirated database of books to train LLMs. They spawn a new generation of billion dollar companies built on plagiarism. They're hit with a meager civil suit.
Nvidia uses a pirated database of books to train LLMs. They spawn a new generation of billion dollar companies built on plagiarism. They're hit with a meager civil suit.
Wonderful essay. "The important details you haven’t noticed are invisible to you, and the details you have noticed seem completely obvious and you see right through them... If you wish to not get stuck, seek to perceive what you have not yet perceived." johnsalvatier.org/blog/2017/re...
Reality has a surprising amount of detail
johnsalvatier.org
January 21, 2026 at 5:04 PM
Wonderful essay. "The important details you haven’t noticed are invisible to you, and the details you have noticed seem completely obvious and you see right through them... If you wish to not get stuck, seek to perceive what you have not yet perceived." johnsalvatier.org/blog/2017/re...
Writing code is so easy, even Claude can do it. But an extremely low percentage of products actually find market fit. People who are good at executing, and reaching / understanding / listening to humans still have an unfair advantage.
A tale as old as time:
It turns out, building something is the easy part.
Building something people want? That’s the real challenge.
It turns out, building something is the easy part.
Building something people want? That’s the real challenge.
January 20, 2026 at 12:46 PM
Writing code is so easy, even Claude can do it. But an extremely low percentage of products actually find market fit. People who are good at executing, and reaching / understanding / listening to humans still have an unfair advantage.
Fascism indicator. At a game convention in suburban Pennsylvania. Lots of Star Wars cosplay. But literally all of them are cosplaying as the Empire. Zero Resistance cosplayers.
January 17, 2026 at 4:18 PM
Fascism indicator. At a game convention in suburban Pennsylvania. Lots of Star Wars cosplay. But literally all of them are cosplaying as the Empire. Zero Resistance cosplayers.
Reposted by John Rudolph Drexler
Prague's Kafka International Named Most Alienating Airport
YouTube video by The Onion
www.youtube.com
January 14, 2026 at 6:12 AM
Producing code is easier than ever. But being responsible for a real software product is still very hard.
January 13, 2026 at 12:16 PM
Producing code is easier than ever. But being responsible for a real software product is still very hard.
Why my basketball board game didn't work. Full episode here: notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/17-...
January 12, 2026 at 6:49 PM
Why my basketball board game didn't work. Full episode here: notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/17-...
My theme for 2026 is "do a good job." podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/83-...
Talking Businessly | 83: Do a good job ™
Our goal for 2026 is to do a good job. John wants to start doing some serious, long term business development.
podcast.thunk.dev
January 6, 2026 at 7:35 PM
My theme for 2026 is "do a good job." podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/83-...
recession indicator: all the spam I receive is for fake job postings
December 23, 2025 at 5:33 PM
recession indicator: all the spam I receive is for fake job postings
Desire paths are fascinating. When players try to play my game over and over in a way I didn't intend, I can either fight them, or accommodate them. I recently pivoted to the latter and the results were awesome. www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxvB...
15: Paying attention to "desire paths"
YouTube video by Catacombian Games
www.youtube.com
December 12, 2025 at 4:14 PM
Desire paths are fascinating. When players try to play my game over and over in a way I didn't intend, I can either fight them, or accommodate them. I recently pivoted to the latter and the results were awesome. www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxvB...
We established pay bands at Thunk. Also, we discuss what makes a for a terrible AI-driven pull request. podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/81-...
Talking Businessly | 81: We set up pay bands
We hired someone. We set up standardized pay bands. We discuss how we use AI, and what makes a bad AI-driven pull request. We like Three Body Problem. John sang in choir.
podcast.thunk.dev
December 9, 2025 at 3:15 PM
We established pay bands at Thunk. Also, we discuss what makes a for a terrible AI-driven pull request. podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/81-...
All my games are 50% off until Dec 1! Argue about something fun over Thanksgiving with our new social game Hot Takes, or play card game Colossi. Links below
November 20, 2025 at 2:19 PM
All my games are 50% off until Dec 1! Argue about something fun over Thanksgiving with our new social game Hot Takes, or play card game Colossi. Links below
Most games simulate some real life scenario. So how do you decide which parts of the real world to represent in game mechanisms? This is where the real artistry of game design comes into play. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/13-...
Notes on Play | 13: Less is more in simulation games
Most games simulate some real world scenario. So how do you decide which parts of the real world to represent in game mechanisms? This is where the real artistry of game design comes to light.
notesonplay.transistor.fm
November 14, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Most games simulate some real life scenario. So how do you decide which parts of the real world to represent in game mechanisms? This is where the real artistry of game design comes into play. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/13-...
Our pal @calebporzio.bsky.social stopped by to do a retrospective on what went well, and what we'll do differently next time at Wire:live. Lots of lulz podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/79-...
Talking Businessly | 79: The wire:live retro (empaneling Caleb Porzio)
Our dear friend Caleb Porzio drops by for some laughs, and a retrospective on Wire:live. We discuss what went well, what could improve, and what we'll do differently next time.
podcast.thunk.dev
November 12, 2025 at 2:13 PM
Our pal @calebporzio.bsky.social stopped by to do a retrospective on what went well, and what we'll do differently next time at Wire:live. Lots of lulz podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/79-...
After each play test of my games, I have dozens of half baked notes on what to fix next. But which changes do I actually make before the next test? As always, the answer is to break it down into problem statements. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/12-...
Notes on Play | 12: Problem-centered design
Between each iteration of my game, I'll have dozens of ideas. But which do I actually implement? I find it extremely helpful to break my ideas down into problem statements, and then focus on just s...
notesonplay.transistor.fm
November 7, 2025 at 1:19 PM
After each play test of my games, I have dozens of half baked notes on what to fix next. But which changes do I actually make before the next test? As always, the answer is to break it down into problem statements. notesonplay.transistor.fm/episodes/12-...
Honored to have @mattstauffer.com on the podcast! @tighten.com has been a model for us in so many ways, so we grilled Matt with questions about how to build a great team, hiring senior devs, and strategy / differentiation. podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/78-...
Talking Businessly | 78: Empaneling Matt Stauffer
Matt runs Tighten, and is a kind of big brother to us. We ask him about running agencies, building teams, hiring senior developers, and a lot more. Watch his new Laracast series
podcast.thunk.dev
November 6, 2025 at 12:39 PM
Honored to have @mattstauffer.com on the podcast! @tighten.com has been a model for us in so many ways, so we grilled Matt with questions about how to build a great team, hiring senior devs, and strategy / differentiation. podcast.thunk.dev/episodes/78-...
Project-based estimates/pricing are a bet that someone necessarily loses. Either we overestimate and the client overpays, or we underestimate and get hosed. Total misalignment of incentives. Trust is difficult to build.
That's why we have always and will always bill hourly.
That's why we have always and will always bill hourly.
November 6, 2025 at 12:13 PM
Project-based estimates/pricing are a bet that someone necessarily loses. Either we overestimate and the client overpays, or we underestimate and get hosed. Total misalignment of incentives. Trust is difficult to build.
That's why we have always and will always bill hourly.
That's why we have always and will always bill hourly.
I ate at this sushi restaurant weekly. Incredible service. Outstanding reviews. Packed every night. They decided to retire, and shut the business down at its peak. So contrary to the conventional American wisdom of selling / milking profits with declining quality. Kind of beautiful.
November 5, 2025 at 11:07 PM
I ate at this sushi restaurant weekly. Incredible service. Outstanding reviews. Packed every night. They decided to retire, and shut the business down at its peak. So contrary to the conventional American wisdom of selling / milking profits with declining quality. Kind of beautiful.
The wildest part is that even if Sliwa or Cuomo had dropped out, he still would have won. The people have spoken loud and clear.
November 5, 2025 at 3:27 PM
The wildest part is that even if Sliwa or Cuomo had dropped out, he still would have won. The people have spoken loud and clear.
So funny to watch non-NYers crashing out on twitter about the mayor of a city they never visit, whose policies will in no way affect them, who got over 1M votes from the people he actually represents.
November 5, 2025 at 3:19 PM
So funny to watch non-NYers crashing out on twitter about the mayor of a city they never visit, whose policies will in no way affect them, who got over 1M votes from the people he actually represents.