Writing
Notes on game design, development and the cloud
Mostly game design and development — what we learn turning a beloved board game into a digital one — with the occasional detour into the cloud.
2026
- Oct 22, 2026 A* when cost isn't distance: pathfinding for board games Most A* tutorials stop at a grid with a few walls. Here's what changes when every step costs money, some costs live between the squares, and your estimate has to stay honest. Game Dev
- Oct 21, 2026 Two years to find a path A* was the obvious choice for Empire Builder's pathfinding. Making it trustworthy took the better part of two years, a river that cost players millions, and a lesson about who owns what on a two-person team. Game Dev
- Oct 14, 2026 Multiplayer for a board game Why no off-the-shelf networking solution fit a digital board game, how we ended up rolling our own messaging on top of PlayFab, and why the messes were worth making. Game Dev
- Oct 7, 2026 Getting Empire Builder off the ground How two developers who could never find time to play a board game ended up building the digital version, and what we got wrong about "the rules are already written." Game Dev