Game Presskit
Diatoms
A Game of Microscopic Proportions
Designer: Sabrina Culyba
Publisher: Ludoliminal
#DiatomsTheGame – @ludoliminal on instagram, bluesky
Game Summary:
Diatoms is a puzzly tile-placement, pattern-making game where you create microscopic mosaics out of single-cell algae. Vie with your fellow players to collect diatoms for your mosaic: take turns placing tiles representing algae colonies, earning diatoms of different colors and shapes, then strategically place these diatoms on your own mosaic, taking care to consider how your arrangement will be scored by the judges at the end of the game. Everyone will create a unique mosaic, but only one player will win first place for their microscopic art.
Official Images of published game:
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Online Presence
Official Site: https://diatomsthegame.com
Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ludoliminal/diatoms
Board Game Geek: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/370210/diatoms
Hashtag: #DiatomsTheGame
Game Stats
Ages: 8+
Core Mechanics: Tile-Placement, Pattern-Making
Supports: 2-4 players
Time: 30-40 minutes
Solo Mode “Commissions”:
Time: 10-15 minutes per Commission
(36 Commissions in box)
English Rulebooks
Release Dates & History
September 26, 2023 – Kickstarter launch (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ludoliminal/diatoms)
Fall 2024 – Release to Backers and Retail Backers
March 2025 – Anticipated Retail Release in partnership with 25th Century Games
Brief Game Development History
In 2021, Ludoliminal founder Sabrina Culyba was selected as an Carina Initiatives’ Astra Fund Fellow with a grant to create a thinky, family-weight game to support math identity. Diatoms was developed over the following 2 years, with the game largely design-complete by December of 2022. In May of 2023 Diatoms was awarded the Cardboard Edison Award for best unpublished game. In Fall of 2023, Ludoliminal successfully Kickstarter Diatoms. The game production was completed in Summer of 2024 and delivered to Kickstarter backers in Fall of 2024. Diatoms is Ludoliminal’s first published title. Ludoliminal is partnered with 25th Century Games for 2025 Retail Release of Diatoms.
Pre-production version of the game
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Awards
Game Credits
- Game Design: Sabrina Culyba
- Game Development: Sabrina Culyba
- Additional Game Development: David Culyba
- Art Direction: Sabrina Culyba
- Visual Design: Sabrina Culyba
- Illustration: Nim Ben-Reuven
- Additional Visual Design: Nim Ben-Reuven
- Foundational Support: Carina Initiatives
- Sales & Retail Release Partner: 25th Century Games
About Ludoliminal
Ludoliminal is an award-winning indie game design and publishing studio located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. Founded in late 2020 by Sabrina Culyba, Ludoliminal’s original works focus on original, unique games for families to enjoy together. Ludoliminal also provides consultation and facilitation for games (both digital and analog) for playtesting, and for game jams. Ludoliminal was founded on the value that games and game-making are positive forces for humans to understand and support themselves and the world.
Official Website: https://ludoliminal.com
instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ludoliminal/
About the Designer
Illustration by Hazel Culyba
Sabrina Culyba (she/her) is a game designer and founder of indie game studio Ludoliminal. Her professional work has spanned online games, VR, mobile apps, and location-based entertainment across a variety of industries from entertainment to education. Sabrina is the author of The Transformational Framework. She serves on the boards for Global Game Jam and Broke the Game, as well as the Editorial Advisory for Play Story Press. She is an affiliate designer at Carnegie Mellon’s Center for Transformational Play and runs Pittsburgh Playtest.
Sabrina lives in Pittsburgh with her amazing partner and their two small humans, where she makes games and collaborates on other game-related endeavors under the umbrella of her independent studio, Ludoliminal. Once you’ve finished reading this, she suggests you look up “diatom microscopic art” and follow her into the niche rabbit-hole of this obscure artform.
linked in: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sabrinaculyba/
linktree: https://linktr.ee/sabrina.c
bluesky: https://app.bsky.cz/profile/sabrinac.bsky.social
(Culyba is pronounced “Sul-bah”)
