So, let's begin again, shall we?

Starting off a new spot on the internet is tough.

Sure, some of you know me from the prehistoric days of the internet. You've been here through it. Some are real, physical friends. Others discovered me through gaming, especially small zines and adventures written for others to run at conventions.

Some of you have been a "fan" dating back to when I was running convention games.

Some followed my growth as a professional, slowly making my way through the industry.

Some discovered me through a little game called Colonial Gothic (or the soon-to-be d20-based version) and my company, Rogue Games.

And some have no clue I design, write, and publish games. These are the academics who were, and in some cases still are, my mentors, wondering why games. There are coworkers who I formed bonds with through shared pressure. Jobs that tested us, made us join together and survive careers filled with stress. Maybe it was the B2B magazine publisher slowly dying, cutting departments to the bone, leaving, in some cases (cough, cough, me), one person to run a department that once had five.

Finally, there are the new people I met as a contractor, hip-deep in emerging technology, working for a client with shifting priorities. Those priorities had me living a day-to-day existence of wondering if this was the day my contract would be canceled. Then, one day, well, last month, discovered that I and ninety percent of the other contractors were suddenly unemployed.

So, with all of that said: who the fuck am I?

I don't know. My life has seen me adjust, survive, lose, win, and nearly quit life.

Hello. My name is Richard. I deal with cancer. I am public about my mental health struggles. I am on the spectrum. I suffer from PTSD due to a childhood with the triple threat of abuse: physical, mental, and emotional. I survived a suicide attempt.

I am a lot of things. The one thing I am not is afraid to be open, sometimes too open. Yet that is me. I have learned that being open, you find those who share your experiences. Maybe, and I hate this word, you take inspiration from someone. Or, more than likely, you find yourself judged and ridiculed.

To that, all I have to say is: so what.

This thing. Hell, is this a blog? A stream of consciousness with no rhyme or reason? A publication with no point? Marketing for my "brand"? Or the attempt of a person who still has no fucking clue if what he believes is right?

Yeah, so: Insert Title Here.

It deals with my passions: games, books, movies, comic books, history, and everything else I find interesting. I might spout off about something. I might rant. I might scream at the machine that does not care about us. I might even pontificate about how we as people have become lost in a sea of technology that provides a false sense of belonging.

I don't know.

All I know, all I really know, is that I am Richard. I design games. I am married to a wonderful wife. I have an amazing family.

And I am a pretty nice guy.

© 2026, Richard Iorio