“A gathering run on generous authority is run with a strong, confident hand, but it is run selflessly, for the sake of others.” For game designers, I think this means being advocates for and protectors of our players.

I like thinking about the role of a game designer as a host because it naturally shifts me into a place of empathy and generosity. When I am planning a gathering, I am focused on my guests.

In the past, when someone asked me what I did, I would proudly exclaim that I was a game developer. These days, I tell them that I'm interested in helping people create communities, and I do that by making games.

The idea of honoring your audience may sound a little strange in the games industry. A lot of time and energy goes into writing articles, giving talks, and creating online courses dedicated to extracting value from players.

Humanity, now maybe more than ever, seems to be hyper-focused on the pursuit of freedom and choice. We chafe at the thought of being restricted, and we are suspicious of a loving God who places boundaries in our lives.

Pride seems to always get in the way, like a little yappy dog jumping at your feet. It trips you up and hinders your progress. Worst of all, it prevents you from doing your best work.

I used to think that honors and awards would fill me up, but it turns out that they just left me hollow.

Programmers have a reputation for being grumpy. It might just be a misconception, and a little PR help could clear it up. However, as a programmer and a follower of Jesus, the existence of this reputation creates tension in me. Being grumpy is at odds with the joy Jesus said should fill us.

It's a technique taught in both writing and game design. The easy thing to do is tell your audience an idea; the better approach is to show your audience.

Way back in the garden, Adam and Eve started a game that we continue to play. We all know how to play it. I see my kids do it all the time. That game is the blame game.

A simple thing I've found to help bring peace to the game development process is implementing standards.

In my life, I've found that things not only go better when we follow God's principles, but we tend to reap a bunch of unexpected benefits as well. Telling the truth in code follows this same trend.

When you focus on writing code that describes and declares, it naturally tells the truth.

Have you ever considered that the code you write could be telling a lie? We’ll explore three common programming mistakes that lead to untruthful code.

What would your project look like if you took on the posture of a steward?

We miss creating for creation's sake. And so today, we are releasing the first of hopefully many, video game experiments.

God has hidden the truth precisely so we can have the joy of discovering it, and so He can have the joy of watching us search, following Him with passion, in community.

"You can design anything to be a drug," I said, speaking to a group of video game design students at Oklahoma Christian University.

As a programmer, I spend a lot of time thinking about names—way more time than the average person. Names are powerful, and yet in our modern, western world, we forget that sometimes.

How Game Design elements contribute to telling stories that matter, and why video games are important and can change people for the good.