Recross the Paths

This week, Jay Dragon joins me to talk about game design through the lens of The Magpie's Cube, a whimsical sticker cube that gives players license to create. Jay is the Lead Game Designer at Steve Jackson Games and the Editorial Director at Possum Creek Games. We discuss the power and potential of stickers, the joy of unraveling Magic's grammar, outsmarting games (and being okay with being outsmarted), and much more.
Support Jay on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/possumcreek
Possum Creek Games: https://possumcreekgames.com/
Jay's delightful article on The Magpie's Cube: https://possumcreek.medium.com/the-magpies-cube-54eac20f36fd
Jay on CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/user/view/5ee002664724960f538f6a5f
Jay on bsky: https://bsky.app/profile/jdragsky.bsky.social

Email the show at [email protected]

This week, Dan guides us through the wasteland of Mad Max Cube, a crushing desert environment that showcases the brutality of the Mad Max universe. There's precious little Blue, even less Green, and there's no deckbuilding! We discuss embracing your restrictions, drawing inspiration from possibly the worst format ever, how aesthetics shape design, and much more.
Mad Max Cube on CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/about/1t3q2?view=primer
Dan on CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/user/view/5ddebd342e9e9a18f63ae37e
Dan is @danconsiglio on Discord

Email the show at [email protected]

This week, Ana welcomes us to The Vintage Cube Retirement Home (aka the Boomer Cube), a resting place for those cards that just can't cut it in the most contemporary Vintage environments. We explore the value of having a thesis, balancing powerful cards in a powerless environment, the joy of every draft being different, and much more.
The Vintage Cube Retirement Home on CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/about/077a945b-f5b0-403c-8900-27bfda429257?view=primer
Ana on CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/user/view/603c2eb15a1ef3103ba4feb7
Ana is @squiddlyinks on Discord
Email the show at [email protected]

This week, Adam takes us on the nickel tour of The Bargain Bin. This project explores the value of building on a budget and what happens when you aggressively break singleton. We discuss cleanliness over complexity, vulnerability around sharing your ideas, intentionality in design and feedback, how cube is like Shrek, and much more.
The Bargain Bin on CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/about/50Cent
Adam on CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/user/view/5f3c056c69d5fd104e8d8f17
Adam's articles on CoolStuffInc: https://www.coolstuffinc.com/a/?tagged[]=adam%20melfa
Adam is @adam0013 on Discord

Email the show at [email protected]

You're reading that correctly, this is the original Desert Cube! Andrew (Loxodon_Meyerarch) takes us on a tour of the rainless wasteland of Corince that inspired a whole subgenre of cube design. We discuss inspirations for this historic project, balancing flavor and gameplay, staying true to your own design goals, and much more.
A copy of The Desert Cube on CubeCobra: https://cubecobra.com/cube/about/2mh?view=primer
The Desert Cube on CubeTutor (through the Wayback Machine): https://web.archive.org/web/20140626041326/https://www.cubetutor.com/cubeblog/10432
Email the show at [email protected] if you'd like to get in touch with Andrew (or with Kade about anything else!)