New opportunity

It’s been a bit quiet around here. That has mostly to do with two things. First, the Belgian deparment of defense releases its end-of-year puzzle (kind of like GCHQ does for the UK). This is the 7th year of the puzzle, and the 7th year I’m competing. What started is a fun thing I did with my dad, has turned into a group of 4 people that I got to know through doing the puzzle, with each our own complementary strengths.

It is said, and I have to agree, that it’s the hardest puzzle of the year. That is basically why I like participating. It’s a way to put all my skills to the test and really dig deep to get to solve a puzzle. Some are solved at first glance, if you’re lucky enough to get the right idea on the first go. Others might take days or weeks of researching, code breaking, throwing things against the wall until something sticks to break. The feeling you get when breaking a puzzle is terrific. The contest runs until 28th of January. So a lot of my free time is spent puzzling.

The other thing that’s changed recently, is my job. I am now part of Bolt Blaster Games, the team behind The Spell Brigade. I can’t really express how happy I am to call myself a game dev and actually do this for a living. It feels unreal even talking about it here. I started this week, and it has been a real joy. Looking forward to creating content in the game and seeing it played and enjoyed by people around the world.

I will definitely continue my Ultima Underworld playthrough! But it’s somewhat on the backburner for now.