Mark Nauta

5 years of Vinny today!

Really excited for the conference! My talk is about Designing Interesting Choices and all that goes into that.

Working on Games: 😍 Working in Games: 😱

See you in Lisbon in two months 🇵🇹 devgamm.com/lisbon2026/ @marknauta.bsky.social @iamguyceratops.bsky.social @jakubamanita.bsky.social @joshuaasberg.bsky.social

On a run of reading some really good books this month! Piranesi A Trade of Blood Between Two Fires

I wonder how many gamedevs are getting deja vu from the wording of this public statement... A24, a certified filmmaking darling, turns into a pariah overnight, and companies still think, "That won't happen to us though. Audiences and the creatives working for us are wrong."

Still buzzing from the knicks victory. If I had to sum up why them winning feels so good it would be that a cursed franchise from the weaker eastern conference led by a 6’0” player beat a blessed franchise from the stronger western conference led by a 7’6” player… And that’s special.

Watching Yomi no Tsugai made me nostalgic so I started rewatching FMAB, and that made me rediscover the simple joy of saying, “FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST” then saying, “FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST” again but slightly different.

Vin breaking in some new toys (that he got for my birthday)

Managed to verify/recover this account. So I am good to continue not posting that much.

[513404-chilly-autumn-breeze]

About to post something for account verification purposes. Do not be alarmed.

Wizards getting the number one pick in the draft lottery took some of the edge off of this hell weekend.

My google account and discord are hacked atm. If you get any messages from me ignore them.

Hunter’s Instincts

Happy Chimera Squad day to all that celebrate!

I just backed Realis on @kickstarter.com www.kickstarter.com/projects/cru...

I am a couple decades late, but I just read House of Leaves. What a unique reading experience! It’s one of those pieces of art that makes me question, “Where does someone even begin making something like this?” Very cool stuff.

As my years-long DnD game is coming to a close, I decided to get a commission done of all of the player characters and my main NPC. I think it turned out great!

Been playing some Overwatch again because I'm a degenerate. I'm generally Master/Low GM. Here's my latest tier list of the heroes based on how fun the game is when that hero is in your match. This list didn't have Vendetta, but she would be bottom tier for now until she gets nerfed.

Last working day of 2025 complete!

How are the Dems gonna win now without Dick Cheney's endorsement lul

It’s been 4 years of Vin! He truly is the sweetest little guy. Not sure how I’d manage without him.

I was a Firaxis narrative designer/writer and lost my job today. Any help sharing leads on new opportunities would be great! Over 3.5 years, I contributed to Civilization VII and Marvel’s Midnight Suns, helping turn maps, mechanics, and chaos into memorable stories. See my work benreeves.carrd.co

I am safe, but many people I love and respect are not... These people are absolute gems. If you are hiring, it would be irresponsible to not consider them.

Hi! I was laid off from Firaxis this morning. I wrote leaders and civs for Civilization VII (NDA for now) and Deadpool and Storm for Marvel's Midnight Suns. I also wrote the award-nominated Hindsight. I'm available for full time, remote work starting ASAP. DMs are open: emmkid.info

Hey y'all- I was impacted by the layoffs at Firaxis this morning. If you or anyone you know needs a mid to senior level materials artist that has experience in building material libraries, lighting, 2D art, and props I'm your girl!https://www.artstation.com/daniellazeman

It's not conceited if it's true.

I’m only exposed to the New York Times when they write something stupid and/or terrible… so yeah I end up getting exposed to them pretty often.

Republicans banning adult content because they are into fucking kids.

If you have the chance to see Justice live, definitely do it. Best concert of my life.

Is there a subscription service that makes it so you don't have to talk about, see posts about, or interact with anything AI related at all? Asking for me.

Being a Wizards fan is pain. Number 6 pick in the lottery after building a young team the right way and having the best odds. Mavs getting the number 1 pick after making the dumbest trade of all time is criminal.

Happy - checks notes- 5th!? Birthday to Chimera Squad!

Is there a greater joy in life than seeing your pet happy and healthy after a few days of them being sick?

Every day I dream of making a proper mech game.

Played through Sayonara Wild Hearts again this weekend. Still slaps.

After DM-ing 30 sessions and 2 real-world years of leaving hints and breadcrumbs, I finally pulled off the "Eclipse-like" event that I had been planning from the start. (It wasn't nearly as traumatic, and the players seemed to have a good time, despite it being catastrophic to the game world)

GDC? Hah, yeah I’m at GDC. I’m having a - Good Day with my Cat

Have fun at GDC everyone!

Can the AI bubble burst already? It’s almost my regularly scheduled time to speak up at a company meeting and cast doubt on the next tech bro hype train that nobody asked for or wants.

It's so wild to me that for years and years there's been this frequent discourse on "Are Video Games Art?" but now there's this large (or at least loud) portion of the gaming audience that doesn't want games to "say" anything or challenge their worldview in any way. Like, what are we doing here?

New tech investment opportunity where instead of asking AI for game ideas you just give me a few mill and I come back with a dope game in 2-5 years. Fingers crossed a VC sees this! #gamedev

Just finished Pluto (I go months/years b/w reactivating my Netflix) and wow, what a great show. I’d heard it was good, but it’s honestly one of the best anime I’ve seen in a while. Definitely check out if you like murder mysteries or thrillers. Similar tonally to Monster if you’ve seen that.