Pulling Strings

For the past several years, I've been entering game design contests almost whenever I find one, if only for the personal challenge. I really enjoy over-the-table games (as opposed to video games), both playing them and making them. Even though I rarely do very well in these design contests, back in 2003, I happened to enter a contest for designing games with simultaneous movement, and my entry, Pulling Strings, while a finalist, did not win. Fast forward to 2005, when someone came across my game in the About Board / Card Games archive and added Pulling Strings to the Board Game Geek database. From there, a sort of snowball gained momentum, and a couple of weeks later, Super Duper Games added Pulling Strings to their list of games playable via their web site. So, I'm kind of flabbergasted. Who'd-a-thunk that an obscure over-the-table game I wrote for a contest a couple of years ago would suddenly gain a small following? And who'd-a-thunk that someone would like it well enough to make their own boards to play or program it so others could play online?

Upcoming Trip

I'm really looking forward to getting out of Ann Arbor for a few days. The missus and I are going to NY to visit her family, but we will also get a couple days off to ourselves while they take care of our two-year-old. Ah, looking forward to it helps me get through the tough days.

Clark