Letter From the Editor
Letter From the Editor
Addressing assumptions & sharing my favorite things
Hiya,
Realized I never really gave a formal introduction — I just hit the ground running which is sorta in my DNA being Kenyan and all. Anyway, hi. How are you? Thank you for being here.
I had a conversation this week with someone in Web3 and they asked me if Web3 Gaming was my niche. And here’s the truth: gaming does not pay my bills. Nor do I make the concentrated effort to be a “gaming influencer,” — in fact if you see me fake smiling and pretending to enjoy a Web3 battle game on Twitch (because that’s apparently the only genre for Web3 games), just know I’ve lost the plot completely. No shade to Web3 Gaming influencers, but that’s just not what I do. I am interested in Web3 Games, not because I find them particularly more enjoyable than normal games. As a matter of fact, they don’t often offer the enjoyment I am looking for when I sit down to play games — and that’s just me being frank. I am interested in Web3 Gaming because of the unique and largely unexplored game-mechanics that blockchain allows!
I am a game-design obsessed girlie who probably should go get a masters in Game Design but, you know, work and life and what not take precedent. So instead, I am learning informally, and learning by playing but also by talking to game designers and creators, and I am sharing everything I learn here in my newsletter.
I do get asked to start a Twitch rather often, mostly from my boyfriend but from other people who aren’t required to say nice things to me as well. The issue is, I doubt anyone would want to sit and watch me play the games I like. And I am not saying that in a self-deprecating way, I mean this: the games I enjoy playing are what most people would classify as “boring”. My favorite game genre is probably puzzles, closely followed by simulation games. I don’t like violent, gory, or horror games at all — so that cancels out over half of the Web3 Games. I much prefer solving mysteries, farming games, hotel management games, solitaire (I LOVE solitaire actually), a good round of Sudoku, etc. But hi — if this is your vibe, leave a comment. Maybe my cynicism towards being a gaming influencer will change if I am encouraged (and paid) to play the games I genuinely like, versus the random 1st person shooter games in my DMs begging for promo.
Anyway, I digress — the point I am making is Web3 Gaming is my niche but not in the way that you think. It’s like when Jesus said: “I am in this world but not of it.”
It’s my thing as in I find it ceaselessly interesting and though there are times I feel like having a real Katt Williams moment where I just tell it like it really is and expose how shady some people in this industry are — I restrain from doing that because for the most part, I have had great experiences and have learned so much both from gamers and the people that make games. The good far outweigh the bad in my case, and I thank God for that.
These words are my own, from my heart flow
What I am loving lately:
THE BEAUTY OF GAMES BY FRANK LANTZ - I just started reading this book and I already know it will be one of those books I reference for years to come. Frank Lantz is a game designer that intimately understands and most importantly, appreciates his craft. Frank also has a newsletter that you can find: here.
THE KOREAN LANGUAGE - You will have to bear with me this year. I am learning a new language and I am rather obsessive about the language acquisition process. I will definitely be writing about my journey to learn Korean in much, much more details. But don’t worry — I don’t wish to bore you by sharing my spelling and grammar drills.
I am really excited to share with you less about what I am learning in my Korean lessons, and more about how I am learning. There is an important distinction. The latter is a systematic framework that can be borrowed and applied to acquiring other languages, or even learning things completely unrelated to linguistics.
In essence, I am in the process of designing my own language learning framework based on play pedagogy. In other words, I am gamifiying language learning (without using the God forsaken app commonly known as Duolingo). One of the methods I'm utilizing to learn Korean is through a practice known as "Comprehensible Input." This involves watching gaming videos, similar to what I would normally watch, but in Korean. The goal is to intuitively and subconsciously grasp the meaning. I'll delve deeper into this in a future letter.
Plans to design a game?
I am constantly thinking of games and different ideas for games, and the odds are very likely that I will design a few games in my life. Right now, I am content in both just playing games and in my practice of writing consistently. So writing about games, play, and learning is my bread and butter at the moment. ALSO, to be frank, I can also be rather utilitarian — which I know may come as a surprise given that my primary subject matter and area of interest has no substantial utilitarian benefit, or so I am told. But the truth of the matter is, I would rather design gaming systems and play frameworks to make the necessary and tedious works of our lives not so draining or tedious, rather than focusing on designing a game, atleast for now.
If the question is; will I design playful experiences and game-like loops, the answer is yes, and I already do for nearly every area of my life. However, if the question revolves around designing a game purely for the purpose of being fun with no ulterior motives, I must admit that, at least for now, that is highly unlikely. I am a business person after all, albeit one in an artistic domain. But a business person nonetheless, and for our kind, there is almost always the motive of acquiring capital, power, or ____. Fill in the blank. My prayer is you encounter business people who are truthful and upfront about our singular focus. In short, my current aim is to understand games. Tomorrow, my goal will likely be to use my understanding to create games that make sense (and cents). However, in another time, I may sit down to make a game without wanting anything out of it, perhaps for my children or my grandchildren. We will see when we get there, and trust me, I will let you know.
BUT, If I did design a game today … Bella Hadid would def be the brand ambassador. Again, the business person in me is talking but hear me out. Bella gaming on the blockchain = $$$
Thank you for reading this more personal letter. We will return to our regularly scheduled program next week.
If you haven’t yet, read our interview with Preston Attebery, which you can find here.
Due to the popularity of our interview series, I am excited to announce another upcoming interview with a well-loved and respected fashionista and up-and-coming game designer...
Any guesses on who 👀
— Cynthia ౨ৎ ⊹ ‧ ♱
I won't mind watching you play solitaire ps it's my favorite. My guess is Eloka can't wait to see who it will be