Zach Hoekstra
@zhoekstra.bsky.social
Game Designer with three published games and like 800 others I dabble in. He/Him
Little moment of joy for the day - I prepped a carne asada marinade for a bunch of ribeye I'm cooking up tonight, and now my hands will smell of tasty latin american flavors for the rest of the afternoon
January 19, 2026 at 12:02 PM
Little moment of joy for the day - I prepped a carne asada marinade for a bunch of ribeye I'm cooking up tonight, and now my hands will smell of tasty latin american flavors for the rest of the afternoon
You don't get to use "But it will make me a lot of money, and I'm not *directly* hurting people" as a moral defense. You know it's wrong, you've just calculated that the actual damage will be managable.
Which is paradoxically why it's important to raise hell over even small things like this.
Which is paradoxically why it's important to raise hell over even small things like this.
Upper Deck has announced that they have acquired the Harry Potter license for a series of trading cards. They have not yet said that they will be using this license for games, and we urge them to refrain from doing so, to help keep gaming a welcoming environment.
The leadership of the Tabletop Game Designers Association was disappointed to see the publisher CGE touting Codenames: Back to Hogwarts, a new Harry Potter-themed version of Codenames.
January 19, 2026 at 10:36 AM
You don't get to use "But it will make me a lot of money, and I'm not *directly* hurting people" as a moral defense. You know it's wrong, you've just calculated that the actual damage will be managable.
Which is paradoxically why it's important to raise hell over even small things like this.
Which is paradoxically why it's important to raise hell over even small things like this.
Reposted by Zach Hoekstra
Upper Deck has announced that they have acquired the Harry Potter license for a series of trading cards. They have not yet said that they will be using this license for games, and we urge them to refrain from doing so, to help keep gaming a welcoming environment.
The leadership of the Tabletop Game Designers Association was disappointed to see the publisher CGE touting Codenames: Back to Hogwarts, a new Harry Potter-themed version of Codenames.
January 18, 2026 at 3:46 PM
Upper Deck has announced that they have acquired the Harry Potter license for a series of trading cards. They have not yet said that they will be using this license for games, and we urge them to refrain from doing so, to help keep gaming a welcoming environment.
Reposted by Zach Hoekstra
This is a good lesson, no matter how you come to learn it
January 18, 2026 at 3:11 PM
This is a good lesson, no matter how you come to learn it
🎲✂️ Buzzing with nervous and excited energy after a great digital Pact playtest with a group of designers who were both very excited to tell their story of Branchbourne, but also give critical and actionable feedback on graphic design. We're on the right track! And yet still have so far to go!
January 17, 2026 at 6:40 PM
🎲✂️ Buzzing with nervous and excited energy after a great digital Pact playtest with a group of designers who were both very excited to tell their story of Branchbourne, but also give critical and actionable feedback on graphic design. We're on the right track! And yet still have so far to go!
Adventures in 3-year-olds: today Aiden decided to make his own sandwich. He has chosen to make a peanut butter, honey, and turkey sandwich.
He has eaten the entire thing. I'm kind of scared to try it for myself.
He has eaten the entire thing. I'm kind of scared to try it for myself.
January 17, 2026 at 6:29 PM
Adventures in 3-year-olds: today Aiden decided to make his own sandwich. He has chosen to make a peanut butter, honey, and turkey sandwich.
He has eaten the entire thing. I'm kind of scared to try it for myself.
He has eaten the entire thing. I'm kind of scared to try it for myself.
🎲✂️ bsky, I have a terminology conundrum.
In PACT, most pieces move between different places on the board, and as such I have a lot of terms for the different ways to move a piece from location A to location B. Rarely, a piece can be removed from the board, and I've used the term Destroy for that.
In PACT, most pieces move between different places on the board, and as such I have a lot of terms for the different ways to move a piece from location A to location B. Rarely, a piece can be removed from the board, and I've used the term Destroy for that.
January 16, 2026 at 9:14 AM
🎲✂️ bsky, I have a terminology conundrum.
In PACT, most pieces move between different places on the board, and as such I have a lot of terms for the different ways to move a piece from location A to location B. Rarely, a piece can be removed from the board, and I've used the term Destroy for that.
In PACT, most pieces move between different places on the board, and as such I have a lot of terms for the different ways to move a piece from location A to location B. Rarely, a piece can be removed from the board, and I've used the term Destroy for that.
Reposted by Zach Hoekstra
YIKES.
Upper Deck (Marvel Legendary) just announced a CCG using the Harry Potter license.
Fans of UD are rallying against this decision. Like the CGE situation last year, I’m asking for your help.
Join us. Share your disgust and frustration, and help us push UD to retract their awful decision. 🎲✂️
Upper Deck (Marvel Legendary) just announced a CCG using the Harry Potter license.
Fans of UD are rallying against this decision. Like the CGE situation last year, I’m asking for your help.
Join us. Share your disgust and frustration, and help us push UD to retract their awful decision. 🎲✂️
UPPER DECK ANNOUNCES COVETED HARRY POTTER LICENSE, UPCOMING PRODUCT COLLECTION - Upper Deck
Carlsbad, CA (Jan. 7, 2026) – Upper Deck, the global leader in sports and entertainment collectibles, is adding another iconic license to its extensive portfolio – announcing a deal to create collecti...
upperdeck.com
January 14, 2026 at 2:35 PM
YIKES.
Upper Deck (Marvel Legendary) just announced a CCG using the Harry Potter license.
Fans of UD are rallying against this decision. Like the CGE situation last year, I’m asking for your help.
Join us. Share your disgust and frustration, and help us push UD to retract their awful decision. 🎲✂️
Upper Deck (Marvel Legendary) just announced a CCG using the Harry Potter license.
Fans of UD are rallying against this decision. Like the CGE situation last year, I’m asking for your help.
Join us. Share your disgust and frustration, and help us push UD to retract their awful decision. 🎲✂️
🎲✂️ 2026 is the year of Pact!
We've got quite a few things to work on leading up to the September launch of our Gamefound project (recently moved over from Kickstarter), not least of which is me getting past my Imposter Syndrome to start doing real promotion and work
gamefound.com/en/projects/...
We've got quite a few things to work on leading up to the September launch of our Gamefound project (recently moved over from Kickstarter), not least of which is me getting past my Imposter Syndrome to start doing real promotion and work
gamefound.com/en/projects/...
January 14, 2026 at 9:54 AM
🎲✂️ 2026 is the year of Pact!
We've got quite a few things to work on leading up to the September launch of our Gamefound project (recently moved over from Kickstarter), not least of which is me getting past my Imposter Syndrome to start doing real promotion and work
gamefound.com/en/projects/...
We've got quite a few things to work on leading up to the September launch of our Gamefound project (recently moved over from Kickstarter), not least of which is me getting past my Imposter Syndrome to start doing real promotion and work
gamefound.com/en/projects/...
I'm fairly certain that there's an ancient curse preventing @hollandspiele.bsky.social games from reaching me in Europe. 2y ago I ordered one from Second Chance games, and it just got straight up lost in customs.
January 10, 2026 at 12:11 PM
I'm fairly certain that there's an ancient curse preventing @hollandspiele.bsky.social games from reaching me in Europe. 2y ago I ordered one from Second Chance games, and it just got straight up lost in customs.
Rereading Bob Altemeyer for some game design research and man it is disheartening to look at his research into RWA and SDO given the last.... year.
January 4, 2026 at 7:43 PM
Rereading Bob Altemeyer for some game design research and man it is disheartening to look at his research into RWA and SDO given the last.... year.
Seize wonder and happiness while it's here. go out and build that snowman
January 3, 2026 at 12:20 PM
Seize wonder and happiness while it's here. go out and build that snowman
🎲✂️ Back on PACT development after a month of recovery from abdominal surgery. Now to see if my co-publisher will let me add 36 tarot cards to the box solely to better support games with <4 players...
January 2, 2026 at 3:45 PM
🎲✂️ Back on PACT development after a month of recovery from abdominal surgery. Now to see if my co-publisher will let me add 36 tarot cards to the box solely to better support games with <4 players...
YOU ARE ALL stupid vain rich people. You have three important things you care about:
1️⃣ an almost infinite amount of 💸
2️⃣enough time to be incredibly bored
3️⃣a pathetic need to be better than everyone around you
You need a 📄,✏️, and a deck of cards.
1️⃣ an almost infinite amount of 💸
2️⃣enough time to be incredibly bored
3️⃣a pathetic need to be better than everyone around you
You need a 📄,✏️, and a deck of cards.
I need everyone to make a shitpost game that fits into at most 3 posts on here before the end of the year otherwise thr sun will not rise again
Not enough shitpost games though
December 31, 2025 at 3:36 PM
YOU ARE ALL stupid vain rich people. You have three important things you care about:
1️⃣ an almost infinite amount of 💸
2️⃣enough time to be incredibly bored
3️⃣a pathetic need to be better than everyone around you
You need a 📄,✏️, and a deck of cards.
1️⃣ an almost infinite amount of 💸
2️⃣enough time to be incredibly bored
3️⃣a pathetic need to be better than everyone around you
You need a 📄,✏️, and a deck of cards.
Reposted by Zach Hoekstra
Draw Me A Horse (2+ players)
Round 1
Draw a horse. Best horse worth 1 point.
Round 2 onward:
Look up a random noun in a dictionary or a random Wikipedia article. Add that thing to the drawing, riding the thing drawn in the previous round. Best drawing scores pts equal to round number.
21 pts+ wins.
Round 1
Draw a horse. Best horse worth 1 point.
Round 2 onward:
Look up a random noun in a dictionary or a random Wikipedia article. Add that thing to the drawing, riding the thing drawn in the previous round. Best drawing scores pts equal to round number.
21 pts+ wins.
I need everyone to make a shitpost game that fits into at most 3 posts on here before the end of the year otherwise thr sun will not rise again
Not enough shitpost games though
December 31, 2025 at 6:07 AM
Draw Me A Horse (2+ players)
Round 1
Draw a horse. Best horse worth 1 point.
Round 2 onward:
Look up a random noun in a dictionary or a random Wikipedia article. Add that thing to the drawing, riding the thing drawn in the previous round. Best drawing scores pts equal to round number.
21 pts+ wins.
Round 1
Draw a horse. Best horse worth 1 point.
Round 2 onward:
Look up a random noun in a dictionary or a random Wikipedia article. Add that thing to the drawing, riding the thing drawn in the previous round. Best drawing scores pts equal to round number.
21 pts+ wins.
Man I really hoping to not be in the Netherlands for New Years Eve. It's not even 3pm and the mortars are already out
December 31, 2025 at 2:39 PM
Man I really hoping to not be in the Netherlands for New Years Eve. It's not even 3pm and the mortars are already out
Go to a party supply store and buy 50 small brightly colored party favors, the weirder the better. Pick an unsuspecting opponent, and hide all 50 in various places around their house.
Your score is equal to the number of favors they find AFTER 2 weeks have passed but BEFORE 2 months have passed.
Your score is equal to the number of favors they find AFTER 2 weeks have passed but BEFORE 2 months have passed.
I need everyone to make a shitpost game that fits into at most 3 posts on here before the end of the year otherwise thr sun will not rise again
Not enough shitpost games though
December 31, 2025 at 5:21 AM
Go to a party supply store and buy 50 small brightly colored party favors, the weirder the better. Pick an unsuspecting opponent, and hide all 50 in various places around their house.
Your score is equal to the number of favors they find AFTER 2 weeks have passed but BEFORE 2 months have passed.
Your score is equal to the number of favors they find AFTER 2 weeks have passed but BEFORE 2 months have passed.
Graphic Designers! When you are commissioned to make a company logo, what are the most important things you need to know to design a good one?
December 29, 2025 at 9:04 AM
Graphic Designers! When you are commissioned to make a company logo, what are the most important things you need to know to design a good one?
Reposted by Zach Hoekstra
"oh the game doesn't work if I do that?? I'm sorry, I didn't realize this 'game' was SCRIPTED, I expect games to support more than one strategy and have MULTIPLE PATHS TO VICTORY"
Sent my queen directly into their formation and she got captured for no gain, chess broken, how do u recover from this smdh
December 27, 2025 at 2:02 PM
"oh the game doesn't work if I do that?? I'm sorry, I didn't realize this 'game' was SCRIPTED, I expect games to support more than one strategy and have MULTIPLE PATHS TO VICTORY"
If you're looking for something new to put in the Christmas rotation, may I suggest this, the (intentionally) most poorly performed Nativity play in the world.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqW3...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqW3...
The Goes Wrong Show- The Nativity | FULL EPISODE | Sn 2 | Ep 1 | Lionsgate TV
YouTube video by LionsgateTV
www.youtube.com
December 25, 2025 at 12:35 PM
If you're looking for something new to put in the Christmas rotation, may I suggest this, the (intentionally) most poorly performed Nativity play in the world.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqW3...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqW3...
It's not a grand spectacle, but after a month of bouncing in and out of the hospital, this is a pretty special Christmas for me to be home and safe
December 25, 2025 at 7:47 AM
It's not a grand spectacle, but after a month of bouncing in and out of the hospital, this is a pretty special Christmas for me to be home and safe
So an update from me: I'm out of the hospital for the second time. Turns out when you remove a perforated appendix through a tiny hole, it can cause a nasty abscess. Thank fate we found it early when I started becoming feverish. I'm at home with a very uncomfortable drain in my side, to come out Wed
December 21, 2025 at 5:17 PM
So an update from me: I'm out of the hospital for the second time. Turns out when you remove a perforated appendix through a tiny hole, it can cause a nasty abscess. Thank fate we found it early when I started becoming feverish. I'm at home with a very uncomfortable drain in my side, to come out Wed
Reposted by Zach Hoekstra
Game designers who "can't draw" but want art for prototypes... beyond the wealth of public domain stuff available (there's lots) there are artists who make stuff that's VERY affordable and Itch has a ton on sale right now. #NoGenAI
itch.io/game-assets/...
itch.io/game-assets/...
December 19, 2025 at 3:02 PM
Game designers who "can't draw" but want art for prototypes... beyond the wealth of public domain stuff available (there's lots) there are artists who make stuff that's VERY affordable and Itch has a ton on sale right now. #NoGenAI
itch.io/game-assets/...
itch.io/game-assets/...
Reposted by Zach Hoekstra
Keep thinking about this term "pre-digested" that Kojima used to describe art that's instantly gratifying. And how it's better when people grow to love something instead.
I've gravitated, as player and designer, toward the latter, but that term "pre-digested" is new and feels very strong.
I've gravitated, as player and designer, toward the latter, but that term "pre-digested" is new and feels very strong.
December 17, 2025 at 7:32 PM
Keep thinking about this term "pre-digested" that Kojima used to describe art that's instantly gratifying. And how it's better when people grow to love something instead.
I've gravitated, as player and designer, toward the latter, but that term "pre-digested" is new and feels very strong.
I've gravitated, as player and designer, toward the latter, but that term "pre-digested" is new and feels very strong.
Burning time in the hospital with Balatro, and there is a special level of hell reserved for specifically Orange Stake Abandoned Deck. Somehow the RNG feels particularly malicious.
It's been continuously handing me jokers that synergize with face cards in a deck WITH NO FACE CARDS
It's been continuously handing me jokers that synergize with face cards in a deck WITH NO FACE CARDS
December 16, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Burning time in the hospital with Balatro, and there is a special level of hell reserved for specifically Orange Stake Abandoned Deck. Somehow the RNG feels particularly malicious.
It's been continuously handing me jokers that synergize with face cards in a deck WITH NO FACE CARDS
It's been continuously handing me jokers that synergize with face cards in a deck WITH NO FACE CARDS