Michael Yang

Michael Yang

@justgravyllc.com

Game Dev 🃏 | Software Engineer 👾 | AOW Scuba Diver 🪼 | Designer of Compile | justgravyllc.com

160 followers101 following69 posts

Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

I'll be hosting a Compile event at Mox Boarding House in Portland on October 25th starting at noon! Entry is free and I'll have plenty of goodies from the Event Kit to give away: events.moxboardinghouse.com/p/n/DXvFgjmV...

events.moxboardinghouse.comMonthly Compile Tournament with Michael YangBooting up all Compilers!Participate in our monthly Compile tournament held by the creator, Michael Yang!In the card game Compile, you are competing Artificial Intelligences trying to understand the w...
Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

The first real playtest for Compile: Digital has started! It's awesome to see people playing matches in real time; I forget the magic of the internet and software sometimes but this is a beautiful reminder.

Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

Compile tournament finals start at 4pm today on Hall D. I'll be there for the whole thing with a demo of Compile: Digital running until my laptop dies!

Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

I'm throwing my hat in the ring in a Compile qualifier tomorrow! Competition seemed serious in the first qualifier today - I'm going to enjoy losing :)

Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

I didn't lose! I'm pleasantly surprised at how tough the competition was but I decided to turn it in today. People really loved opening a deck and trading the gold protocols

Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

Here are the events I'll definitely be at in GenCon: - Thursday 7/30 @ 12pm - 1pm / Booth #2841 (socializing) - Friday 7/31 @ 9am - 1pm / Hall D 107 (Compile tournament) - Saturday 8/1 @ 4pm - 8pm / Hall D 107 (tournament finals) - Sunday 8/2 @ 12pm - 1pm / Booth #2841 (booth shmoozing)

Michael Yang reposted

Dan Nixon (Comic Book Yeti) 🔜 PAX Unplugged
@dnix7.bsky.social

Comic Book Yeti with another game review. Tyler @tlance8.bsky.social takes a look at Compile by Michael Yang @justgravyllc.com @comicbookyeti.com #boardgames #PAXUnplugged

comicbookyeti.comCompile - Board Game ReviewType of Game: Area Majority/Influence, Hand Management, Deck ConstructionNumber of Players: 2Age: 14+Designer: Michael YangArtist: Keegan Moore, Nolan Nasser, Allen PanakalPublisher: Synapse GamesThis...

Michael Yang reposted

W. Eric Martin | Board Game Beat
@index.wericmartin.com.ap.brid.gy

Use the seven deadly sins to achieve victory in Compile: Main 3

wericmartin.comMichael Yang Invites More CompilationsI previewed Michael Yang's card game Compile: Main 1 ahead of its debut from Greater Than Games at Gen Con 2024 and loved the complex interactions created when you shuffled three six-card mini-decks together to try to outwit an opposing AI, that is, a human player who is pretending to be an AI, the same as you. Compile: Main 2 debuted at Gen Con 2025 — now from Synapses Games following the dashed distribution dreams of Greater Than Games owner Flat River Group — and in Q3 2026 Yang and Synapses Games will release Compile: Main 3, with this game being a similar format to the previous two. If you're not familiar with _Compile_ , here's an overview: > The premise is that you are artificial intelligences pitting your digital brains against one another to determine the top bot. To set up, choose six of the twelve protocols included in the game. Each protocol consists of a deck of six cards and an identifier card — Light, Plague, Gravity, etc. — that mentions the playstyle of that protocol; Spirit, for example, is "flip, shift, draw". One player chooses a protocol, then the next player chooses two, then the first player chooses two of the remaining three, giving each player three protocols. To win, you must _compile_ your protocols first. Let's learn how... > Lay out your three protocol cards in a row facing your opponent's protocols, then shuffle your cards to form a deck, drawing five cards as a starting hand. Each card lists its related protocol and a numerical strength that's zero or higher; additionally, it has three fields that might feature, from top to bottom, an ongoing ability, a comes-into-play effect, and another type of ability. > On a turn, either you ditch as many cards as you wish from your hand, then refill your hand to five cards, or you play a card into its matching protocol area. When you do this, you stack this card on any others in this protocol so that only the top ongoing ability field is visible, then carry out the comes-into-play effect, if any. Demoing __Compile: Main 1__ with mock-up cards at GAMA Expo 2024 > If the total strength of the protocol you played on is at least 10, you announce that you're compiling this protocol next turn. If the opponent doesn't drop your strength below 10 or exceed your strength in this lane, on your next turn you discard all cards in this protocol as well as all of the opponent's cards in the facing protocol, then flip the protocol to the "compiled" side. You can continue to play cards to this protocol on future turns, but you can't compile it again, so you're only getting the effects of those cards...which might still be enough of a reason to play them. > Card effects do all the things you might expect — draw cards, move cards from one row to another, force the opponent to discard, force _you_ to discard (when you play something really good) — along with other things that might surprise you, like swapping protocols, which might trigger a "compile check" that your opponent could not anticipate, or flipping cards face down or face up again. You can see a face-down card at the middle left of the image above; it has a strength of 2 and no effects, but if you flip it face up, its comes-into-play effect triggers again, and as in other games of this type, you want to abuse card powers as much as possible. Each **_Compile: Main #_** is a standalone game with twelve protocols, and these protocols can be mixed from one game to another. Two supplemental packs — Compile: Aux 1 and Compile: Aux 2 — have been released, with each pack containing three protocols, and as one might expect Compile: Aux 3 will also be released in Q3 2026. _Compile: Main 3_ features protocols based on the "seven deadly sins" — Envy, Pride, Wrath, Gluttony, Lust, Greed, and Sloth — as well as five non-sin-themed protocols: Ambush, Fulcrum, Momentum, Nova, and Overwhelm. The protocols in _Compile: Aux 3_ are Flexible, Inert, and Rigid. (Designer Michael Yang has previewed a few cards from _Main 3_ in this BoardGameGeek thread.) _Compile: Main 3_ also features a solo mode, which hasn't previously appeared in a _Compile: Main_ game. In solo mode, you face the BOT (Basic Oppositional Terminal). In a press release announcing _Compile: Main 3_ , Synapses Games publisher Carl Briere writes, "Solo mode is something we have wanted to bring to _Compile_ for a long time, and Michael Yang has delivered it in the most uncompromising way possible. The BOT is not a watered-down experience. It is an opponent with its own logic, and the twelve escalating scenarios give solo players a real progression to work through and conquer." Sample cards from __Compile: Main 3__ • • • • • • • • • • • • • • Like what you read? Leave a tip to support independent board game journalism! Leave a tip
Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

I did an interview with David and Alyssa Bray at @tabletopmerchant.bsky.social. First question was about paintball which was super unexpected! Then talk about Compile, career, and other such things. Good times! www.buzzsprout.com/1859235/epis...

buzzsprout.comEp. 34 - Michael Yang, Designer of Compile - Tabletop Merchant PodcastIn this week’s episode, we sit down with Michael Yang, the designer behind the breakout two-player card game Compile, to talk about his fascinating path through gaming and design. From studying comput...
Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

I'll be hosting a Compile tournament at Mox Boarding House in Portland, OR on March 21st! This is the first time I'm running a Compile tournament myself and I'm very excited. There'll be lots of Compile and prizes for everyone. Sign-ups are here: events.moxboardinghouse.com/p/n/x7ls7tjR...

events.moxboardinghouse.comCompile Tournament with Michael YangBooting up all Compilers!Participate in the first ever Compile tournament held by the creator, Michael Yang!In the card game Compile, you are competing Artificial Intelligences trying to understand th...
Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

Kevin from Meeple Mountain reviewed Compile: Main 2! He echoes a sentiment I've heard a few times that Main 2 is a better starting point than Main 1. Good to have people sharing their ideas because I'm too close to the game to know any better. www.meeplemountain.com/reviews/comp...

meeplemountain.comCompile: Main 2 Game Review – Meeple MountainRace to compile your protocols faster than a rival rogue AI. Join Kevin as he reviews Compile: Main 2 from Synapse Games!
Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

Look at that! What a great weekend with a nice cherry on top!

Fairplay Magazin@fairplaymagazin.bsky.social

Der Endstand unserer Scoutaktion steht fest. Herzlichen Glückwunsch an alle Verlage. Und Lieben Dank!! an alle Scouts! Wir sehen uns zur nächsten Spiel! #Scoutaktion #fairplaymagazin #fairplayscoutaktion #fairplaylist

Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

Big day at Essen today - I'm told there's somehow more people on Saturday! Starting off with playtesting / signing at the Synapses booth (Hall 2, E610) from 10:30 to 12:30. Then, I'll be doing signings of the French version of Compile at the Geek Attitude Games booth (Hall 3, R215) from 2 to 3:30.

Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

First day of Essen! I'll be at the (surprisingly giant) Pegasus Spiele booth (Hall 3, M120) between 12 and 1pm chatting and doing signings. Then, I'll be playtesting Main 3 stuff at the Synapses booth (Hall 2, E 610) between 2:30 and 4:30pm. Swing by for a game and deep dive into new cards!

Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

Here's my booth schedule for Essen: Thursday 12 - 1pm Pegasus Spiele (Hall 3, M-120) 2:30 - 4:30pm Playtesting at Synapses (Hall 2, E-610) Friday 10:30 - 12pm Synapses (Hall 2, E-610) Saturday 10:30- 12:30pm Playtesting at Synapses (Hall 2, E-610) 2pm - 3:30pm Geek Attitude Games (Hall 3, R-215)

Michael Yang reposted

Misut Meeple
@misutmeeple.com

📰Domingo: Tochorreseña📰 Hoy analizamos Compile - Unidad Principal 1, un juego para 2 diseñado por Michael Yang en el que competiremos por compilar nuestros tres protocolos. En español por @malditogames.bsky.social 💻 🫶Se agradecen los RTs y los FAVs🫶 misutmeeple.com/2025/08/rese...

misutmeeple.comReseña: Compile – Unidad principal 1 | Misut MeepleReseña de Compile - Unidad principal 1, diseñado por Michael Yang, ilustrado por Nolan Nasser y Keegan Moore

Michael Yang reposted

Shut Up & Sit Down
@shutupshow.bsky.social

In today’s Board Games Direct, we’re taking it down to just TWO players! This crop of games thrive on getting into your opponents’ head, and poking away at all that gray matter. Ooh! Ughh! Oww! My strategies!!! My tactics!!!! This isn’t fair!!!

Michael Yang reposted

Peer Sylvester
@peersylvester.bsky.social

Es reiste jüngst zur Berlin-Con: @georgiosp.bsky.social Und kam mit ein paar Eindrücken zurück. #brettspiele #BerlinCon

spielbar.comBolle reiste jüngst zur Berlin-ConDie Berlin-Con ist so etwa eine Woche her und die ersten Eindrücke werden nun online veröffentlicht. Gerade die Content-Creator Bubble reproduziert nun die Informationen aus der Pressemitteilung der Veranstalter, fasst die Infos aus den Verlagsgesprächen zusammen und bilanziert die eigene Spielrunden. Wer mehr als nur diese Seite liest, wird hier wohl kaum Interesse an den gleichen Informationen haben, die es andernorts zu Genüge gibt.
Michael Yang
@justgravyllc.com

On impulse, I decided to attend Origins this past weekend and what a crazy treat to be at a convention where Compile wins an award in a category filled with games I enjoy and respect. Huge thanks to all of the people that gave a bit of themselves to this game. Compile's future is bright!

Michael Yang reposted

Greater Than Games
@greaterthangames.bsky.social

𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗹𝗲: 𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝟮 𝗣𝗿𝗲-𝗢𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗔𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗡𝗼𝘄! 🤩Compile is back and ready to be pre-ordered for your next game!🤩 Check out more info by following the link below! buff.ly/5ZLVkzg

buff.lyCompile: Main 2 Pre-Orders Available Now!Compile is back and ready to be pre-ordered for your next game! Pre-order Compile: Main 2, Aux 2, and Playmat 2 today for a release this summer at Gen Con! You may be lucky enough to grab your copy…