James Barnhart ➡️ UnPub25
@jakekbarnhart.bsky.social
Game Designer, Artist, Educator, and all around goof. Let’s talk making great games and great communities! Designer of Engage! Senior Game Designer l Null Signal Games
If y’all are at TooManyGames Con today, I’ll be on the panel “From The Ground Up: Building a Thriving Game Development Industry in Your City” talking about @breakmygame.com and PGMG how we have formed designer communities in Philly. Come check it out! 🎲✂️
June 29, 2025 at 4:15 PM
If y’all are at TooManyGames Con today, I’ll be on the panel “From The Ground Up: Building a Thriving Game Development Industry in Your City” talking about @breakmygame.com and PGMG how we have formed designer communities in Philly. Come check it out! 🎲✂️
Netrunner players! For those of you who miss Smoke, and the stealth mechanic more broadly, tell me why you love that mechanic and your favorite stealth cards and decks! Also interested in the opinions of stealth detractors! Why do you think this missed for you?
Asking for a friend
#netrunner
🎲✂️
Asking for a friend
#netrunner
🎲✂️
May 24, 2025 at 7:34 PM
Netrunner players! For those of you who miss Smoke, and the stealth mechanic more broadly, tell me why you love that mechanic and your favorite stealth cards and decks! Also interested in the opinions of stealth detractors! Why do you think this missed for you?
Asking for a friend
#netrunner
🎲✂️
Asking for a friend
#netrunner
🎲✂️
3/3 Aim for elegance. Often this means simple (cards with 10-20 words total), but not always. The trick is to avoid “shoe leather”, or as PCH says don’t add any rule that doesn’t add +10 fun. Every line is a barrier to your game, it has to pull its weight or be cut, no matter how cool it reads 🎲✂️
May 22, 2025 at 7:09 PM
3/3 Aim for elegance. Often this means simple (cards with 10-20 words total), but not always. The trick is to avoid “shoe leather”, or as PCH says don’t add any rule that doesn’t add +10 fun. Every line is a barrier to your game, it has to pull its weight or be cut, no matter how cool it reads 🎲✂️
2/3 Both of these cards do similar effects & quest the player to engineer an asymmetrical board wipe. The key difference is elegance and text density. Split Up needs only 10 words vs Birdcage’s 54 to convey nearly identical content. As designers we should strive to mean a lot while saying little 🎲✂️
May 22, 2025 at 3:31 PM
2/3 Both of these cards do similar effects & quest the player to engineer an asymmetrical board wipe. The key difference is elegance and text density. Split Up needs only 10 words vs Birdcage’s 54 to convey nearly identical content. As designers we should strive to mean a lot while saying little 🎲✂️
Tip #2 of “Elevating Your Card Design” ELEGANCE = DEPTH>COMPLEXITY: If I could give 1 bit of advice to a new designer it would probably be to set word count limits on their cards to increase their depth to complexity ratio. Compare “Birdcage” vs “Split Up”, which is better & why?
1/3 #Netrunner 🎲✂️
1/3 #Netrunner 🎲✂️
May 22, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Tip #2 of “Elevating Your Card Design” ELEGANCE = DEPTH>COMPLEXITY: If I could give 1 bit of advice to a new designer it would probably be to set word count limits on their cards to increase their depth to complexity ratio. Compare “Birdcage” vs “Split Up”, which is better & why?
1/3 #Netrunner 🎲✂️
1/3 #Netrunner 🎲✂️
3/3 Fully Operational play conditions players to exist in the tense space between glacier & asset spam (where we observe them having the most fun) by offering big value for building & icing several remotes. Identify the best parts of your core loop and make cards that funnel your players to it. 🎲✂️
May 21, 2025 at 3:26 PM
3/3 Fully Operational play conditions players to exist in the tense space between glacier & asset spam (where we observe them having the most fun) by offering big value for building & icing several remotes. Identify the best parts of your core loop and make cards that funnel your players to it. 🎲✂️
2/3 In Elevation, an intermediate product, it was important to make “level up moment” cards with “hidden curriculum” that taught players how to have more fun playing Netrunner. Ritual demonstrates this principle in action, signaling the benefits of drawing early in your turn and planning ahead. ✂️🎲
May 21, 2025 at 1:13 PM
2/3 In Elevation, an intermediate product, it was important to make “level up moment” cards with “hidden curriculum” that taught players how to have more fun playing Netrunner. Ritual demonstrates this principle in action, signaling the benefits of drawing early in your turn and planning ahead. ✂️🎲
Tip #1 of “Elevating Your Card Design” PLAY CONDITIONING & SIGNPOSTING: Make sure your designs reward players for play patterns that maximize intrinsic fun. Without this intention we risk players optimizing fun out of the game, so it’s incumbent on designers to make fun optimal!
1/3 #Netrunner 🎲✂️
1/3 #Netrunner 🎲✂️
May 21, 2025 at 1:04 PM
Tip #1 of “Elevating Your Card Design” PLAY CONDITIONING & SIGNPOSTING: Make sure your designs reward players for play patterns that maximize intrinsic fun. Without this intention we risk players optimizing fun out of the game, so it’s incumbent on designers to make fun optimal!
1/3 #Netrunner 🎲✂️
1/3 #Netrunner 🎲✂️
Netrunner players! How would you build around this flip ID? Fast advance? Remoteless? How do you cover your central servers? What do you spend your influence on? 🎲✂️
April 15, 2025 at 2:46 PM
Netrunner players! How would you build around this flip ID? Fast advance? Remoteless? How do you cover your central servers? What do you spend your influence on? 🎲✂️
Breaking News! My first article with Null Signal Games is live! So excited to share two of my favorite ID’s in the set! Inverting the psychology of tags with Synapse Global is one of my favorite moments from Elevation design. 🎲✂️
nullsignal.games/blog/new-tal...
nullsignal.games/blog/new-tal...
April 14, 2025 at 2:15 PM
Breaking News! My first article with Null Signal Games is live! So excited to share two of my favorite ID’s in the set! Inverting the psychology of tags with Synapse Global is one of my favorite moments from Elevation design. 🎲✂️
nullsignal.games/blog/new-tal...
nullsignal.games/blog/new-tal...
Y’all I’m geeking. The card fan for Elevation dropped recently. I want to hear your speculation about the cards! Call your shots now and I will give you +10 designer brownie points for each card you get right come April 24th ;) 🎲✂️
It has been an absolute joy to work on this set. IT LOOKS SO GOOD!
It has been an absolute joy to work on this set. IT LOOKS SO GOOD!
April 3, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Y’all I’m geeking. The card fan for Elevation dropped recently. I want to hear your speculation about the cards! Call your shots now and I will give you +10 designer brownie points for each card you get right come April 24th ;) 🎲✂️
It has been an absolute joy to work on this set. IT LOOKS SO GOOD!
It has been an absolute joy to work on this set. IT LOOKS SO GOOD!
A few years ago we said goodbye to our perfectly grumpy girl Catbeard at 13. Yesterday, her likeness was revealed immortalized on a Magic card. We miss her everyday but I am so grateful to the artist and art director who ensured that we will see her hop up on the table again. Love you Beardo ❤️
March 18, 2025 at 7:55 PM
A few years ago we said goodbye to our perfectly grumpy girl Catbeard at 13. Yesterday, her likeness was revealed immortalized on a Magic card. We miss her everyday but I am so grateful to the artist and art director who ensured that we will see her hop up on the table again. Love you Beardo ❤️
Sometimes days are bad, but always kitties are good.
February 26, 2025 at 12:58 AM
Sometimes days are bad, but always kitties are good.
So excited to finally be able to share some of the Netrunner cards I helped design for Elevation! All our teams @netrunner.nullsignal.games did an amazing job with these and I can’t wait for players to get them on the table and finally play with them! Incredible feeling to see them become real! 🎲✂️
February 24, 2025 at 4:28 PM
So excited to finally be able to share some of the Netrunner cards I helped design for Elevation! All our teams @netrunner.nullsignal.games did an amazing job with these and I can’t wait for players to get them on the table and finally play with them! Incredible feeling to see them become real! 🎲✂️
1st 🥇 Place: Mystery Booster 2 1/24/25
Archetype: Azorius Superfriends
This deck might be one of my favorites I’ve drafted. I wish I could have recorded the navigation for this one, as I really had some cool choices & moments of reading signals, wheeling key cards, & finding the lane for my seat
Archetype: Azorius Superfriends
This deck might be one of my favorites I’ve drafted. I wish I could have recorded the navigation for this one, as I really had some cool choices & moments of reading signals, wheeling key cards, & finding the lane for my seat
February 10, 2025 at 1:47 PM
1st 🥇 Place: Mystery Booster 2 1/24/25
Archetype: Azorius Superfriends
This deck might be one of my favorites I’ve drafted. I wish I could have recorded the navigation for this one, as I really had some cool choices & moments of reading signals, wheeling key cards, & finding the lane for my seat
Archetype: Azorius Superfriends
This deck might be one of my favorites I’ve drafted. I wish I could have recorded the navigation for this one, as I really had some cool choices & moments of reading signals, wheeling key cards, & finding the lane for my seat
Last night’s playtest w/ @breakmygame.com was one of the biggest yet! It’s great to see the Philly scene growing and I feel lucky to be surrounded by so many kind, talented, & thoughtful people. I’ve been a part of many creative communities over the years and Game Design is undoubtedly the best 🎲✂️
January 21, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Last night’s playtest w/ @breakmygame.com was one of the biggest yet! It’s great to see the Philly scene growing and I feel lucky to be surrounded by so many kind, talented, & thoughtful people. I’ve been a part of many creative communities over the years and Game Design is undoubtedly the best 🎲✂️
Testing Cyclops at PAXU has been awesome! Thanks to everyone for the kind words and excellent feedback! 🎲✂️
December 8, 2024 at 7:44 PM
Testing Cyclops at PAXU has been awesome! Thanks to everyone for the kind words and excellent feedback! 🎲✂️
Cyclops prototype is ready for PAXU! Can’t wait to see y’all in less than 1 week! 🎲✂️ Post up below and let folks know where you will be at during the con and what you are bringing/going to be up to! We wanna see everyone and all the rad stuff y’all are making!
November 30, 2024 at 7:11 PM
Cyclops prototype is ready for PAXU! Can’t wait to see y’all in less than 1 week! 🎲✂️ Post up below and let folks know where you will be at during the con and what you are bringing/going to be up to! We wanna see everyone and all the rad stuff y’all are making!
Hey all! @tysonw.bsky.social, @moltingstar.bsky.social, & I will be at PAXU & available for pitch meetings for Cyclops! We think this one has some real potential!
Anyone know a publisher who is interested in a one vs many anti AI hidden movement with a rad card based deduction mechanism? 🎲✂️
Anyone know a publisher who is interested in a one vs many anti AI hidden movement with a rad card based deduction mechanism? 🎲✂️
November 27, 2024 at 9:36 PM
Hey all! @tysonw.bsky.social, @moltingstar.bsky.social, & I will be at PAXU & available for pitch meetings for Cyclops! We think this one has some real potential!
Anyone know a publisher who is interested in a one vs many anti AI hidden movement with a rad card based deduction mechanism? 🎲✂️
Anyone know a publisher who is interested in a one vs many anti AI hidden movement with a rad card based deduction mechanism? 🎲✂️
Yeah it’s a many vs many hidden movement about overthrowing a panopticon AI program. Sell sheet below!
November 26, 2024 at 1:01 AM
Yeah it’s a many vs many hidden movement about overthrowing a panopticon AI program. Sell sheet below!
@tysonw.bsky.social @moltingstar.bsky.social and I are bringing Cyclops! A many vs many hidden movement about overthrowing a panopticon AI program! We will be in the UnPub room most of the weekend at the GMGP table. I can’t wait to catch up and test what you are working on as well!
November 25, 2024 at 1:51 PM
@tysonw.bsky.social @moltingstar.bsky.social and I are bringing Cyclops! A many vs many hidden movement about overthrowing a panopticon AI program! We will be in the UnPub room most of the weekend at the GMGP table. I can’t wait to catch up and test what you are working on as well!
Pack 1 picks 1-3 in this power cube draft and I think I’ve got a stew going. 🔥🪄
November 24, 2024 at 8:25 PM
Pack 1 picks 1-3 in this power cube draft and I think I’ve got a stew going. 🔥🪄
Y’all! The Cyclops prototype just arrived in the mail and I’m geeking out. I love game design so much and the goosebumps of seeing it come together never gets old! 🎲✂️ Cant wait to share this with y’all at PAXU!
November 22, 2024 at 4:54 PM
Y’all! The Cyclops prototype just arrived in the mail and I’m geeking out. I love game design so much and the goosebumps of seeing it come together never gets old! 🎲✂️ Cant wait to share this with y’all at PAXU!
Pretty pumped about how the dry erase secret maps for Cyclops are coming out. Final parts of the prototype arrive in a few days and we could not be more excited! 🎲✂️
November 21, 2024 at 4:32 PM
Pretty pumped about how the dry erase secret maps for Cyclops are coming out. Final parts of the prototype arrive in a few days and we could not be more excited! 🎲✂️
Greetings citizen! So stoked about the new look of the insidiously friendly PALbot designs @tysonw.bsky.social whipped up for Cyclops . Those creepy smiley faces are [chef’s kiss] 🎲✂️
November 20, 2024 at 2:51 PM
Greetings citizen! So stoked about the new look of the insidiously friendly PALbot designs @tysonw.bsky.social whipped up for Cyclops . Those creepy smiley faces are [chef’s kiss] 🎲✂️