Oh dear! It’s been 4.5 months since my last post. I suppose it’s time to catch up a bit!
Considering my last post was Fletch Fest part 1 and there were never any follow-ups, we can start there! Fletch Fest this year went well overall. This was our fourth year hosting the event and it was a lot of fun! I always love seeing all of the creative things folks get up to. You can view all of the Fletch Fest entries here.
After that, I participated in the Pursuing Pixels’ Game Game James Jam in June with the same group of friends that I participate with every year! We made a match-3 game called PR0-T3KT. I was really happy with how the game turned out, although there were 1 or 2 bugs that we didn’t end up resolving before the jam ended. Despite that, we ended up taking first place and winning the whole thing!
Then, at the beginning of July, I participated in Usagi Jam 2026. This unrated jam was hosted to celebrate the release of Usagi Engine 1.0. I teamed up with Achie to make a cute rat puzzle game called Ricochedda. This was my first time working in the engine, and honestly I had a lot of fun. It felt very familiar to me as it is trying to position itself as a bit more flexible than PICO-8 but a bit less complex than LOVE2D. Having worked in both of those engines, I felt right at home. I’m very excited to see the engine continue to grow!
And today, LOWREZJAM begins! I am writing this about 30 minutes before the jam officially starts and themes get announced. This is probably my favorite jam of the year, as it really pushes my creative abilities and I love working in the restricted canvas.
Outside of game jams, I have been struggling quite a bit with health and energy. There’s quite a bit of fatigue, and my unmedicated ADHD continues to add obstacles to my life. Getting the ADHD diagnosis back in June was really exciting, but since then I’ve had to jump through a ton of hoops with my psychiatrist to get on meds. The latest development is that I need a number of tests run on my heart to make sure I can handle stimulants, which means additional cost and time waiting to get scheduled, going to the doctor, hoping for insurance to cover it… ugh. Between work and household chores, the health stuff is pretty limiting so I spend most of my free time laying down watching YouTube, playing games, or on the couch with my wife and dog <3
It’s honestly been a pretty tough 2026 overall. I’m really thankful to have a supportive family, friends, and online community; but there is also a lot of grief regarding how limited my ability to invest in them is. I am not streaming or chatting in my Discord as I have in the past, and my friendships are a little more quiet when I lack the ability to respond. Mrs Fletch’s health concerns are more serious than mine and it has been hard to watch her bubble shrink as well. So much is being taken from her at a relatively young age and, well, there’s a lot to mourn and be angry about. Disability and chronic illness is just incredibly unfair and seeking out specialized care can be an arduous journey.
Despite that, I’m holding onto the successes and triumphs and joys. I’ve been finding more disabled and chronically ill spaces online that provide a lot of comfort, solidarity, and advocacy, and I am so so thankful for those spaces! <3 In case you’re in a similar place, here are some recommendations for you:
There are so many others, but these six are the communities I regularly visit and it’s nice to be seen, heard, and understood.
Big hugs and much love!! Looking forward to seeing what LOWREZJAM brings!
