jane dump (brain dump)

The Indomitable Rocket Dog level editor got some love for the first time almost since I started working on it. Now with an actual GUI and context sensitive hints!

The goal is to make it so you don't have to be me and know all of the hot keys in order to use it.

Another gift post, but in a different medium: should we call it Beydazzling?

I have a friend who’s getting married. She is the most unbelievably stylish person that I know, like it gets tired for me to just compliment her every time I see her but what else can I do, and she’s also into Beyblades. Like really into Beyblades.

I know nothing about Beyblades, but I thought it would be fun to get her a wedding gift of a super over-the-top, high femme/goth/vaporwave/terminally online custom Beyblade launcher. Not something you’d want to play with in a serious tournament, but something you might keep on your wall, or whip out for an impromptu drunk game at MAGFest.

Much to my surprise, I couldn’t find anything in the style I was looking for. Beyblade mods and custom attachments, yes; bedazzled grips and launchers, no. (I still can’t believe no one is doing this, so tag me with whoever I managed to miss.)

Of course, I immediately fell down an obsessive rabbit hole of how to make the glitteriest Beyblade launcher possible. Not just bedazzled in clean straight lines—a truly over the top, high femme Beyblade launcher.

I did a few materials tests on $5 launchers already.

Materials test 1:

Various combos of glitter glue, holo vinyl, nail stickers, and rhinestones. This was never meant to look cohesive, it was just a surface to test combos on, but I didn’t like any of them. E6000 in particular was hard for me to work with, inevitably getting all over the tops of my rhinestones and dulling them down.

Materials test 2:

Various layers/combos of E6000, hot glue, glitter, rhinestones, and charms. Hot glue can be layered for a 3D treatment, which I liked, but it was also stringy on the gems. Empty glue areas felt goopy rather than intentional. Likewise, it didn’t feel intentionally maximalist—just maximalist.

Materials test 3:

Decoden glue, rhinestones, charms. God I love living in NYC—I decided to give the decoden approach a shot this afternoon, found a decoden shop in Flushing, and got back home with my spoils before the evening ended. It also appears to be the best combo of 3D, glittery, solid hold, and non-stringy. But we’ll have to check that in a few days.

I think this is pretty rad, frankly.

My first pass at the handle went so unbelievably badly. I have one shit photo of it, which is appropriate, because it was shit. Convenient censoring.

I was panicking because I didn’t have spares of anything: not grips, not glue, not decorations. I almost had a meltdown, but then reminded myself that there was time to breathe before it cured.

In my hysteria, I decided: in for a penny, in for a pound. I switched from the disaster-in-progress grip to take a whack at the launcher. I scribbled a few lines and dropped in some charms, and quickly realized it looked way better—probably because I had kept it in a cleaner, tighter area than the handle, which I was almost treating like spackle or resin coating. Once I saw that come together, I hurriedly cleaned off the handle and scrubbed it with rubbing alcohol, then went back in to redo it. Thankfully none of the key charms I needed were goopy, and things mostly slotted into place.

I think part of the issue was just the glue color. I bought the glue prior to getting the handle, which wasn’t ideal: I had clearish-white shimmer and opaque blue-galaxy, and the blue just wasn’t looking right, so it was white or bust. Also, I forgot to sand my surfaces, so maybe it’ll all fall off. But for now, I’m happy with it.

I needed something sturdy, but that would also fit in my purse—since ideally I’d like to give it to them directly/see them open it, rather than just leaving it on a gift table. So the packaging has to survive being on its side in my purse til the reception or afterparty. (If you think I’m being rude for cutting the present line, I think there’s a very high chance that people take their Beyblades out for a spin tonight anyway.) So I found a big purse, and started going through my materials.

Found a tin box from some sort of sweets company. Perfect height, only wish it was narrower. Carefully lined it with holographic vinyl, which almost immediately became irrelevant.

Some weird metallic bubble-wrap-adjacent material from other packages in the mail. Perfect to add some space age padding. Cut to the size of the box and the lid. Cool reflections, although those too will basically immediately be un-see-able. lol.

Man, I wish I could just leave it like this, the reflections are rad! But unfortunately, no amount of museum tack or tape would keep this in place, especially not on its side in my purse. Time to find padding.

Cut several layers of bubble wrap to layer on the lid, since that’s where the most decorative elements are.

Found a cache of tissue paper. For the paper with non-on-theme patterns, I turned them into little boulders to mold around the box corners and where the launcher needed the most support. Then I found the most bridal-ish tissue paper I had and wrapped it around those blobs.

The side of the box still had the original designs, so I found some starry/witchy tape and just wrapped it around to cover.

The only big bummer with this box is that I had to leave slices to make the grip openable; otherwise they might have accidentally unwrapped it, which would ruin the effect. So you’ll see some dents where the wrapping got difficult, and also some underside peeking through where the bumps and grooves are for opening the thing.

Anyway, at this point, I started testing by putting the box together and shaking it all around. There was no real movement to speak of, and nothing sounded like it was in imminent danger of whacking a wall or coming loose. So, tentatively optimistic about this staying nicely packaged and also not broken.

Two of my friends are getting married soon. They’re both the most effortlessly fashionable people I know—somehow really Online, really trendy, and really timeless at the same time—and they’re both really into Beyblades.

So while I don’t really know anything about Beyblades, I decided to put on my crafting hat and try to make them a special wedding gift: a beautiful Bey-dazzled bridal betrothal bouquet.

This is a BeybladeX base, piped with iridescent decoden cream, and sprinkled with Y2K/Frutiger Aero/magical girl charms. It features various charms for luck in battles, and for warding off negative opponent envy of their exceptional coolness.

There’s also a locket in the upper left. If you open it, you’ll see a photo (blurred here for privacy) of the happy couple gazing at each other.

Like I said, I don’t know anything about Beyblades, but everything attaches correctly, the ripcord is smooth, and the blade does in fact spin beautifully. It might not be competition-legal, but I hope it gives them many fun nights playing Beyblade battles at MAGFest.

I'm working on some new code poems for an upcoming project!

Two of my friends are getting married soon. They’re both the most effortlessly fashionable people I know—somehow really Online, really trendy, and really timeless at the same time—and they’re both really into Beyblades.

So while I don’t really know anything about Beyblades, I decided to put on my crafting hat and try to make them a special wedding gift: a beautiful Bey-dazzled bridal betrothal bouquet.

This is a BeybladeX base, piped with iridescent decoden cream, and sprinkled with Y2K/Frutiger Aero/magical girl charms. It features various charms for luck in battles, and for warding off negative opponent envy of their exceptional coolness.

There’s also a locket in the upper left. If you open it, you’ll see a photo (blurred here for privacy) of the happy couple gazing at each other.

Like I said, I don’t know anything about Beyblades, but everything attaches correctly, the ripcord is smooth, and the blade does in fact spin beautifully. It might not be competition-legal, but I hope it gives them many fun nights playing Beyblade battles at MAGFest.

Check it out here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4545390/Hypnogenesis/

After the positive response that Allen and I got at GDC we decided to make a home version and this is the first step!

I think we're the only game on Steam that mentions Nam Jun Paik in the description but I could be wrong.

Another gift post, but in a different medium: should we call it Beydazzling?

I have a friend who’s getting married. She is the most unbelievably stylish person that I know, like it gets tired for me to just compliment her every time I see her but what else can I do, and she’s also into Beyblades. Like really into Beyblades.

I know nothing about Beyblades, but I thought it would be fun to get her a wedding gift of a super over-the-top, high femme/goth/vaporwave/terminally online custom Beyblade launcher. Not something you’d want to play with in a serious tournament, but something you might keep on your wall, or whip out for an impromptu drunk game at MAGFest.

Much to my surprise, I couldn’t find anything in the style I was looking for. Beyblade mods and custom attachments, yes; bedazzled grips and launchers, no. (I still can’t believe no one is doing this, so tag me with whoever I managed to miss.)

Of course, I immediately fell down an obsessive rabbit hole of how to make the glitteriest Beyblade launcher possible. Not just bedazzled in clean straight lines—a truly over the top, high femme Beyblade launcher.

I did a few materials tests on $5 launchers already.

Materials test 1:

Various combos of glitter glue, holo vinyl, nail stickers, and rhinestones. This was never meant to look cohesive, it was just a surface to test combos on, but I didn’t like any of them. E6000 in particular was hard for me to work with, inevitably getting all over the tops of my rhinestones and dulling them down.

Materials test 2:

Various layers/combos of E6000, hot glue, glitter, rhinestones, and charms. Hot glue can be layered for a 3D treatment, which I liked, but it was also stringy on the gems. Empty glue areas felt goopy rather than intentional. Likewise, it didn’t feel intentionally maximalist—just maximalist.

Materials test 3:

Decoden glue, rhinestones, charms. God I love living in NYC—I decided to give the decoden approach a shot this afternoon, found a decoden shop in Flushing, and got back home with my spoils before the evening ended. It also appears to be the best combo of 3D, glittery, solid hold, and non-stringy. But we’ll have to check that in a few days.

I think this is pretty rad, frankly.

My first pass at the handle went so unbelievably badly. I have one shit photo of it, which is appropriate, because it was shit. Convenient censoring.

I was panicking because I didn’t have spares of anything: not grips, not glue, not decorations. I almost had a meltdown, but then reminded myself that there was time to breathe before it cured.

In my hysteria, I decided: in for a penny, in for a pound. I switched from the disaster-in-progress grip to take a whack at the launcher. I scribbled a few lines and dropped in some charms, and quickly realized it looked way better—probably because I had kept it in a cleaner, tighter area than the handle, which I was almost treating like spackle or resin coating. Once I saw that come together, I hurriedly cleaned off the handle and scrubbed it with rubbing alcohol, then went back in to redo it. Thankfully none of the key charms I needed were goopy, and things mostly slotted into place.

I think part of the issue was just the glue color. I bought the glue prior to getting the handle, which wasn’t ideal: I had clearish-white shimmer and opaque blue-galaxy, and the blue just wasn’t looking right, so it was white or bust. Also, I forgot to sand my surfaces, so maybe it’ll all fall off. But for now, I’m happy with it.

Another gift post, but in a different medium: should we call it Beydazzling?

I have a friend who’s getting married. She is the most unbelievably stylish person that I know, like it gets tired for me to just compliment her every time I see her but what else can I do, and she’s also into Beyblades. Like really into Beyblades.

I know nothing about Beyblades, but I thought it would be fun to get her a wedding gift of a super over-the-top, high femme/goth/vaporwave/terminally online custom Beyblade launcher. Not something you’d want to play with in a serious tournament, but something you might keep on your wall, or whip out for an impromptu drunk game at MAGFest.

Much to my surprise, I couldn’t find anything in the style I was looking for. Beyblade mods and custom attachments, yes; bedazzled grips and launchers, no. (I still can’t believe no one is doing this, so tag me with whoever I managed to miss.)

Of course, I immediately fell down an obsessive rabbit hole of how to make the glitteriest Beyblade launcher possible. Not just bedazzled in clean straight lines—a truly over the top, high femme Beyblade launcher.

I did a few materials tests on $5 launchers already.

Materials test 1:

Various combos of glitter glue, holo vinyl, nail stickers, and rhinestones. This was never meant to look cohesive, it was just a surface to test combos on, but I didn’t like any of them. E6000 in particular was hard for me to work with, inevitably getting all over the tops of my rhinestones and dulling them down.

Materials test 2:

Various layers/combos of E6000, hot glue, glitter, rhinestones, and charms. Hot glue can be layered for a 3D treatment, which I liked, but it was also stringy on the gems. Empty glue areas felt goopy rather than intentional. Likewise, it didn’t feel intentionally maximalist—just maximalist.

Materials test 3:

Decoden glue, rhinestones, charms. God I love living in NYC—I decided to give the decoden approach a shot this afternoon, found a decoden shop in Flushing, and got back home with my spoils before the evening ended. It also appears to be the best combo of 3D, glittery, solid hold, and non-stringy. But we’ll have to check that in a few days.

I think this is pretty rad, frankly.

My first pass at the handle went so unbelievably badly. I have one shit photo of it, which is appropriate, because it was shit. Convenient censoring.

I was panicking because I didn’t have spares of anything: not grips, not glue, not decorations. I almost had a meltdown, but then reminded myself that there was time to breathe before it cured.

In my hysteria, I decided: in for a penny, in for a pound. I switched from the disaster-in-progress grip to take a whack at the launcher. I scribbled a few lines and dropped in some charms, and quickly realized it looked way better—probably because I had kept it in a cleaner, tighter area than the handle, which I was almost treating like spackle or resin coating. Once I saw that come together, I hurriedly cleaned off the handle and scrubbed it with rubbing alcohol, then went back in to redo it. Thankfully none of the key charms I needed were goopy, and things mostly slotted into place.

I think part of the issue was just the glue color. I bought the glue prior to getting the handle, which wasn’t ideal: I had clearish-white shimmer and opaque blue-galaxy, and the blue just wasn’t looking right, so it was white or bust. Also, I forgot to sand my surfaces, so maybe it’ll all fall off. But for now, I’m happy with it.

Another gift post, but in a different medium: should we call it Beydazzling?

I have a friend who’s getting married. She is the most unbelievably stylish person that I know, like it gets tired for me to just compliment her every time I see her but what else can I do, and she’s also into Beyblades. Like really into Beyblades.

I know nothing about Beyblades, but I thought it would be fun to get her a wedding gift of a super over-the-top, high femme/goth/vaporwave/terminally online custom Beyblade launcher. Not something you’d want to play with in a serious tournament, but something you might keep on your wall, or whip out for an impromptu drunk game at MAGFest.

Much to my surprise, I couldn’t find anything in the style I was looking for. Beyblade mods and custom attachments, yes; bedazzled grips and launchers, no. (I still can’t believe no one is doing this, so tag me with whoever I managed to miss.)

Of course, I immediately fell down an obsessive rabbit hole of how to make the glitteriest Beyblade launcher possible. Not just bedazzled in clean straight lines—a truly over the top, high femme Beyblade launcher.

I did a few materials tests on $5 launchers already.

Materials test 1:

Various combos of glitter glue, holo vinyl, nail stickers, and rhinestones. This was never meant to look cohesive, it was just a surface to test combos on, but I didn’t like any of them. E6000 in particular was hard for me to work with, inevitably getting all over the tops of my rhinestones and dulling them down.

Materials test 2:

Various layers/combos of E6000, hot glue, glitter, rhinestones, and charms. Hot glue can be layered for a 3D treatment, which I liked, but it was also stringy on the gems. Empty glue areas felt goopy rather than intentional. Likewise, it didn’t feel intentionally maximalist—just maximalist.

Materials test 3:

Decoden glue, rhinestones, charms. God I love living in NYC—I decided to give the decoden approach a shot this afternoon, found a decoden shop in Flushing, and got back home with my spoils before the evening ended. It also appears to be the best combo of 3D, glittery, solid hold, and non-stringy. But we’ll have to check that in a few days.

🐕🚀🐕🚀🐕🚀🐕🚀 Made some big updates to The Indomitable Rocket Dog including a few new screens by @jane-dump!

Exciting news: Allen and I will be showing Hypnogenesis at the Experimental Games Showcase at GDC next month!

We'll be talking about using video synthesis techniques to make video feedback a core gameplay mechanic. After the showcase we'll host a live demo.