Soren Johnson
@SorenJohnson
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Founder of @MohawkGames . Designer of Civ 3, Civ 4, Dragon Age Legends, Offworld Trading Company, and Old World. Mouth Breather. Big fan of @LeylaCatJ .
Alexandria, VA
Joined March 2009
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Old World is LIVE TODAY on Steam and GOG! The Heroes of the Aegean DLC is free to own for the first two weeks (and also free for all previous EGS owners). Be sure to leave a user review to let others know your thoughts!
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For reference, I spent 6,480 hours making Civ 3. (18 months X 4.5 weeks per month X 80 hours per week)
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Foddy: When players finished Getting Over It, players could join a chat room where Bennet would congratulate them IN REAL-TIME. (He got a notification on his phone every time someone finished the game so he could log on.) Some examples:
#GDC19
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Didn’t expect this to be my most popular post ever, so I should say that I probably overestimated the hours as I did take a lot of vacation my first summer at Firaxis - two weeks in the Galapagos/Ecuador, two weeks in Spain, and two weeks seeing 16 MLB games in 10 stadiums.
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Some solid environmental storytelling at the local park
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I had planned to take six months off (Mar-Aug 2000) while deciding where to work after graduating, but Firaxis needed me IMMEDIATELY. These trips were already planned, so I got them approved ahead of time. The team go used to me disappearing and returning with a beard/tan.
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If people didn’t wildly overestimate the number of games they could play, there would be no games industry.
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On the other hand, I don’t remember taking ANY vacation the summer of 2001, and it was a very, very hard finish. I only found out about 9/11 when I stumbled into the office at 1PM after a very late Sunday work night and wondered where everyone was. Maybe yesterday was Saturday?
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Also, if you enjoyed Civ 3, there is a pretty good chance you will like my latest game, Old World, currently 25% off! For the record, I averaged 40 hours per week (if anything, probably less) over the course of the project. (OTOH, took 6 years to make!)
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Humfrey: Console developers often default to small font sizes that are difficult to read in practice because they are developing their game from their desks, not a couch. Film subtitles should be the target size.
#gdc18
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PSA: All recorded
#GDC
sessions on the Vault automatically become free-to-watch after two years. GDC talks are an important part of the heritage of game development, and I would encourage everyone to browse the site to see what is available right now.
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Things every Civ designer learns:
- There are only 10 distinct colors
- Chariots are too darn big to fit on a tile
- Colossus has one L and three S's
- The AI is bad at amphibious assault
- The easiest level will never be easy enough
- The hardest level will never be hard enough
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Within the next 5 years, the majority of diners won't eat out unless they are being properly valued for that time.
The model is called "eat-to-earn" and it will become standard for restaurants in the future.
Let’s talk about why ↓
Within the next 5 years, the majority of gamers won't play games unless they are being properly valued for that time.
The model is called "play-to-earn" and it will become standard for video games in the future.
Let’s talk about why ↓
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For those interested, I had a great discussion on both the bad and the good that comes from this type of work pattern with
@ClickNothing
who was also going through the same thing at the same time for Splinter Cell.
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I’ve learned over many years there is no reward for solving super hard game design problems. It’s better to reframe the problem to make it easier to solve. The players aren’t going to give you any credit if the hill was steeper (and maybe there was a good reason it was steeper).
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A little bit of news to announce about... OUR NEXT GAME 10 CROWNS!
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Today, my five-year journey to re-invent 4X gaming with
@LeylaCatJ
and the rest of
@mohawkgames
ends. I am grateful to everyone who contributed to the project and look forward to seeing where the community takes it.
Old World is finished!
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I remember way back around 2003 when Jake was pretty much the only person at the company who believed in a turn-based XCOM reboot. Civilization would have soldiered on no matter who was in charge, but without Jake at Firaxis, there would have been no XCOM: Enemy Unknown.
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I want to share some of the story of how
@LeylaCatJ
came onboard at Mohawk Games and helped make Old World the game it is today.
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Yabuki: Or the noodle arms or hair arms or DNA arms or police tape arms (or chain arms or snake arms or mechanical arms)
#gdc18
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Sawyer: We fixed a gun that players thought was too weak by making the audio sound more powerful.
#GDC16
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PC Gamer just picked Old World as its Strategy Game of the Year. Thanks to
@LeylaCatJ
and everyone
@mohawkgames
for making that happen.
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Finished Sid Meier’s Memoir, and I wanted to share some of the passages that stood out to me. This one perfectly combines Sid’s dry, self-deprecating sense of humor with his general design philosophy.
@sid_meier
@SidMeiersMemoir
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Just overheard this conversation between my 11yo twins:
- Can you help me setup this [Discord] server?
- Sure, just add me, and I’ll help.
- I don’t think you are going to like it.
- Why not?
- It’s about Prussia.
Me: ??????????
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Civ6's current player count (111K) is already 20% higher than Civ5's ALL-TIME PEAK (91K). That's insane.
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(Was reminded that 9/11 was actually a Tuesday, not a Monday. So, yeah, my memory of what day it was back then was very much a blur. Weekends were pretty much like weekdays as far as I was concerned.)
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I love her as a husband, respect her as a leader, am in awe of her strength, and am ready to follow where she leads.
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@NewBanqueStu
@RadioFreeTom
Thanks - nice to see we are in the ranking-Star-Wars-movies phase of Civ discussion.
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Trump should be impeached, but some will assume it is too much trouble with two weeks left. However, the reason to impeach Trump is not to remove him but because it would make him ineligible for public office again. He is going to run/grift for president for the next four years.
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Q: How is it ok that Doki Doki Literature Club broke player expectations without warning them?
Robertson: Did you buy the game because you heard people talking about how the writing broke expectations?
Q: Yes
Robertson: There’s your answer.
#GDC23
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The best thing Minecraft and Roblox have done is to teach a generation that video games should look like garbage.
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Do you know what is the best-selling (non-Valve) game on Steam released before 2009?
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It's Spore.
(Not on sale or anything. Look, I don't have a good explanation either.)
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Amazingly, I received two emails from former males employees asking me to tell Leyla to delete these tweets, which sort of proves her point. I hope I never ask a husband to make his wife keep silent.
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Glassdoor just recommended that I apply for a job at Firaxis. I mean, pretty good match there, I guess?
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Just looking around, female attendance at GDC must be at an all-time high. It's amazing how things have changed!
#GDC16
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Austin: Wildermyth uses “casting calls” to find characters appropriate to the event (and skip the event if not found). Old World basically works the same way.
#GDC2022
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Not gonna spoil anything but before watching Dr Strange 2 be sure to see WandaVision, read The Tomb of Dracula
#44
, then rewatch the Portuguese dub of the third season of Teletubbies, and finally read the installation instructions for your NETGEAR Nighthawk C7000 Router.
Not gonna spoil anything, but make sure you watch the seventh episode of the season 6 of "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D", the first episode of "What If...?", the whole "Loki" series, "Deadpool 2", the entire final season of "X-Men: The Animated Series" and unbelievably "Inhumans".
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Designer Notes 72: Harvey Smith (
@Harvey1966
), Lead Designer of Deus Ex and Creative Director of the Dishonored Series
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One never needs to explain why a game failed - failure is the default state. What is important is figuring out why a game succeeds.
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When people ask if I think an AI can ever do my job, they don’t realize how often I wonder if I can do my job.
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Old World comes out on Steam and GOG this THURSDAY. Who's excited?!?
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The trick to game design is being able to tell the difference between an actual good idea and smelling your own farts.
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Stenger: When choosing leaders for Civ 6, we want diversity across each axis here. A resistance leader (even if ultimately a “loser” of history) is just as important to include as a “victor” is.
#GDC2022
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IMPEACH
- Force Republican Senators to go on record for or against him
- Give the GOP an off-ramp as impeachment could bar Trump from future office
- Set a precedent that launching a coup has consequences
THIS IS NOT COMPLICATED!
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Designer Notes 80: Jake Solomon (
@SolomonJake
), Lead Designer of XCOM: Enemy Unknown, XCOM 2, and Midnight Suns. Part 1!
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As a comparison to how I failed as CEO, she discovered last week that one of our contractors had been sexually harassing women online. She immediately terminated him. Who would you rather follow?
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Not a bad headline!
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Offworld Trading Company is now live on Steam!!!
http://t.co/12orGTo9nX
http://t.co/BZuqjRK5IX
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So, to sum up, Leyla has been working as a marketing person, as a lead writer, as an art director, as a community manager, and as an executive producer. She started doing volunteer work and is now leading the company as CEO.
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Have only played Into the Breach for an hour, and - yep - I'm already mad I didn't design it.
Am looking forward to being upset that I didn't design Into the Breach myself.
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Happy to start discussing our new turn-based strategy game Old World, which is about build an empire AND a dynasty:
Read more about it here:
PRE-ORDER it here:
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Happy Birthday to me! In lieu of presents, all I want this year is a user review:
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Old World, Mohawk's new historical 4X strategy game, launches TODAY at 11AM ET:
Join
@LeylaCatJ
and I on the Mohawk stream to celebrate the release and play the game!
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As it has sunken in more, I feel that Alex Jaffe's (
@Blinkity
) Cursed Problems GDC lecture is a foundational game design talk. Understanding which problems are solvable and which ones can only be mitigated is hugely important for knowing what to work on.
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Apparently, the time-to-GOT-mod for Old World was less than a week.
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Just taught my 13yo son Splendor. First move, he reserved a card, so I gently suggested that he focus on taking gems and buying the first-row cards to get his engine going. Didn't want to blow him out in his first game.
He said "nah" and, later, reserved four more.
I lost, 15-8.
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Old World now has a release date. Hope to see you in July!
The full release of Old World is coming July 1st 2021 to the Epic Games Store!
Dynamic Event System with over 3000 unique events! 🖼
Choose from 7 Nations ⚔
Innovative Order system 📜
Original soundtrack from
@ChristopherTin
🎻
Get the game now!
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Designer Notes
#45
: Rami Ismail, co-founder of Vlambeer (Ridiculous Fishing, Nuclear Throne, Super Crate Box, Luftrausers)!
@tha_rami
@LeylaCatJ
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Designer Notes
#70
: Justin Ma (
@JarMustard
), Co-Founder of Subset Games and Co-Designer of FTL and Into the Breach
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MacArthur Fellowships were announced yesterday. Since 1981, they have recognized 1,014 individuals for "exceptional creativity." Past recipients include 4 cartoonists, 1 violin maker, 1 font designer, and 1 basket weaver.
The list also includes 0 video game developers.
@macfound
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"Old World is a brilliant 4X, and one that I'd actually recommend over Civilization"
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A game's options screen is a post-mortem hidden in plain sight.
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Read Lord of the Rings twice, watched the movies multiple times, listened to various audiobooks, played Tolkien games, and - honestly - I have no idea which one is Merry and which one is Pippin.
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Designer Notes
#61
: Chet Faliszek (
@chetfaliszek
), co-founder of
@StrayBombay
, half of Old Man Murray, formerly of Valve where he worked as a writer/designer on titles such as Left 4 Dead and Portal 2.
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Designer Notes
#46
: Brendon Chung (
@BlendoGames
), designer of Atom Zombie Smasher, Thirty Flights of Loving, and Quadrilateral Cowboy - Part 1!
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I wonder if Putin remembered to turn off Preserve Random Seed.
my expert advice for Putin as a longtime 4X player is to reload from the last autosave and hope you generate a different random event
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Was an amazing
#GDC19
.
Fans of the podcast can look forward to new episodes with
@tha_rami
,
@betterthemask
,
@LucaRedwood
,
@radiofreelunch
, and Przemyslaw Marszal/Michal Drozdowski of
@11bitstudios
!
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Suggested watching WandaVision to the kids, but they’re not interested because it black-and-white “like from the 90s.”
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Just think - there will never be another Friday with Donald Trump as President of the USA.
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I just got this email in my box TODAY. I have a very good response for him!
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How many times has this happened to you?
1. Login to a website with the correct password
2. Site tells you the password is wrong
3. Click the reset password link
4. Type in the same password
5. Site says you can't use your last password
6. Grimace
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My
#GDC23
talk on how hard it is to intentionally design a game to communicate a message, or even for the game to just reflect the designer's own beliefs, is now up on YouTube:
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Old World, Mohawk's new historical 4X strategy game, is coming out on Early Access May 5th!
Pre-order here:
#OldWorld
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The story of how Peter Molyneux got his start in video games as a baked bean importer who Commodore mistook for a software company with a similar name is not nearly well-known enough. No other story quite sums up how different the “industry” was back in the 80s.
I spoke to Peter Molyneux, the storied, elusive game designer whose work includes Populous, Theme Park and Fable. Peter reflects on how his eagerness to impress journalists impacted his staff, Microsoft’s initial scorn toward Minecraft, and much more:
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Curious what Old World looked like when we first pitched the game? Wonder no more! Here's what we sent to publishers back in 2017.
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