Dev Log: Fall 2026
I’m in the final stretch of pregnancy. My body has been blessedly mobile until recently, but some of the most demoralizing changes are almost old news by now.
A few months back, I lost my ability to draw due to pregnancy-related carpal tunnel syndrome. This is a temporary impairment, but a hard one to accept when drawing has always been a part of my life, how I see the world, how I process things. It’s forced me to consider how I rely on drawing and what kind of things I can produce without it.
This has mostly brought me closer to code. I’ve had a lot of fun laying the groundwork for a new project almost entirely in code and lousy placeholder scribbles. In my near-decade making games and despite my own stubbornness, I’ve learned a bit about how to code more effectively and more in line with my vision. The equations take shape in my mind more immediately than before. I sit back and regard my code while recouping the blood in my fingers (typing still isn’t easy, but stopping to think about it helps).
Often, the code changes my vision in surprising ways. Not necessarily because I’ve hit my technical limits (I can always brute-force it with something uglier/less efficient) but because something elegant has emerged.
The term “vibe coding” depresses me, because it sounds fun - it sounds like what I’ve been doing! - but it’s not. I’m using code to cut to a feeling. Maybe I’m in the sweet spot right now of what seasoned programmers risk losing: the balance between form and efficiency. I occasionally catch myself trying too hard to get at the latter. Ultimately, the efficiency will only matter down the line, when I’m collaborating and bug-fixing and cursing myself for not thinking about it more. But where it really counts, figuring out what a game IS, I can’t let it dominate.
Does any of this make sense? It’s possible the baby will come, and I’ll look at my months of code and wonder why the hell I thought this was a game. Maybe all I’m doing is compulsively feathering the nest, but it feels right for now. In a few weeks (but really, any time now) I’ll get to see her and hold her. It’ll all have been worth it, and it’ll all have been important in some way, whatever it was.
NPR Shoutout + Lost Ringu Snippet
NPR has curated a list of the Best Games of 2026 (so far) and has kindly included Perfect Tides: Station to Station.
Mara is part of the cast artwork for this year’s AdventureX expo. I won’t be attending this year due to giving birth Very Soon, but I’m honored to be featured in spirit. Artwork by Graham Annable, which is a double delight for me.
Digging through old laptop files, I found a bit of writing from 2022 when I was in the pre-production stage with Perfect Tides: Station to Station. This never found its way into the game, but I think it’s a pretty nice bit of text on its own:
Student Slain in Manner Bizarrely Resembling Film
In an event that has never before taken place, an 18-year-old student met her untimely demise Thursday night at a friend’s east side apartment. It’s a murder that is leaving police and neighbors baffled. Mara Whitefish, hailing from the coastal island town of Perfect Tides, became an obscure statistic of 1 yesterday when she was murdered in an identical fashion to the character played by Martin Henderson in the 2002 horror film “The Ring” from Dreamworks Pictures.
According to police, at around 3:30 AM, Miss Whitefish was visited by a female child with lengthy dark hair, approximately 8 years old, who at first seemed to be contained inside the TV screen in the form of an image, but then proceeded to physically join Miss Whitefish in the room and subsequently attack her. Whitefish was found unresponsive, her face discolored and in an unrecognizable contortion.
“The Ring” itself is an American adaptation of the 1998 Japanese psychological thriller “Ringu” — further complicating the question of how the film’s story, in all its convoluted machinations, could’ve flawlessly predicted the real-life circumstances of Miss Whitefish’s death. While experts on the topic are few, Alan Bennett, professor of film studies at Columbia University and author of “Manifestations: A Dark Festival of the Mind” finds the scenario not only plausible, but sadly avoidable.
“If only she had thought about it more,” lamented Bennett. “How the incident would happen, what it would look like, how it would feel — all of it makes a difference.” In his book he conducts multiple studies, each showing that the cumulative effect of worrying about a particular scenario can severely lower the risk of its occurrence. “I guess other things took priority in her life,” he added, shaking his head.
Some more relevant links:
- The games industry isn’t taking care of its caretakers - Mothership has done a series of interviews with caretakers in the games industry who struggle to find support. Their piece was inspired by my post-GDC thoughts from March, and it’s heartening to see the interest and discussion around this topic!
- Perfect Tides: Station to Station and Love’s Truths as We Live Them - Gamers With Glasses’ review of PT:STS.
- Skybox reviews Perfect Tides: Station to Station with a critique of the game’s writing and point n’ click mechanics.
As we crest the hill of this year and the games landscape grows more crowded, I’m very grateful that people are giving PT:STS their attention and thought.
I do not have too much to report on the “what’s next” front just yet, but I have been writing and plotting a lot over the past few weeks, making vigorous use of the remaining months before life as I know it shifts again. I’ve gone through enough change to know that it hurts and is wonderful. I look forward to what I’ve got left, and what waits on the other side.
Summer Sales + Review Roundup
Well, we’re deep into summer! That happened a little too quick for my liking. Some PT-related housekeeping:
Narrascope Keynote
You can now watch the VOD of my Narrascope keynote and Q&A.
Sales
Both Perfect Tides and Perfect Tides: Station to Station are currently 20% off during the Steam summer sale. You can get them bundled for even less.
Perfect Tides: Station to Station is also discounted in the Nintendo store.
Podcasts + Streams
- Post Games ran an extra-long Earliest Game of the Year Awards episode. Lots of great recommendations by a variety of guests, and Perfect Tides: Station to Station is mentioned a whopping 6 times. You (and I) love to see it. The above version is free, but an extended episode is available on Patreon.
- The latest Save Your Game podcast episode includes a deep dive into Perfect Tides: Station to Station. I’ll be sure to give my hearty thanks to Matt and Roses once they’re back from their America 250 performance.
- Jess Morrissette posted the VOD from his full 8-hour playthrough of Perfect Tides. It was fun to catch a few bits of this stream live!
