I released Fake It To Make It in February of 2017. Some things have changed since then… but clearly not enough. The game’s core themes are still relevant, and it continues to be played around 4,000 times each month

Fake It To Make It addresses just one slice of online media exploitation: polarizing “news” created to generate ad profit. In the past several years, I’ve been continuing to explore how games can provoke reflection on the wider topic of modern-day attention manipulation.

Specifically, I’ve been working on Influence, Inc., a PC game with a tentative release date of April 2022.

• Influence, Inc. is a strategy-simulation game about modern-day propaganda and advertising.
• You manage a digital influence agency and choose missions from a variety of clients: corporations, talent agencies, governments, and others.
• You choose who you want to work with, and what types of jobs you are willing to undertake.

I still have lots of work to do before release, and I’d be so grateful for your help!

1. If you use Steam, please wishlist the game!

This helps the magical Steam algorithms understand that people are interested in Influence, Inc. and makes it more likely that others will find it.

(If you don’t use Steam, don’t fear. Influence, Inc. will eventually release on other platforms, like Itch.io and GOG.)

2. Provide feedback on the game content.

Influence, Inc. touches on a number of political and otherwise sensitive topics.

This is absolutely deliberate: one my goals as a game creator is to provoke reflection on modern-day dilemmas. But, I also want to be sure that I do so responsibly and thoughtfully.

Do you have expertise in protest movements, social media, disinformation, press freedom, authoritarianism, and/or election integrity? There are many excellent books and articles on these topics that I’ve been consulting! However, I’m also abstracting and fictionalizing as I design, and so I’d value getting feedback on the game content itself.

Click the button below to read more specific lists of topics and sign up to provide feedback. (But, please do be warned that this list includes some minor plot spoilers.)

3. Sign up for updates about Influence, Inc.

Join the mailing list using the form below to receive game-related updates a few times a month!