Diatoms Press Kit

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  • 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.

Images of Published Game

  • A photo of Diatoms the board game with the box standing up on a wooden table and all components arrayed around it.
  • Closeup of a player board from Diatoms the board game
  • Close-up of the "Notes on Collecting Diatoms" page of the Diatoms player reference notebook with other game components in the periphery.
  • A close up of the diatom tiles in Petri dishes from Diatoms the game
  • A top-down photo of a player board from Diatoms the game with diatom tiles arranged on it and the solo play Careers rulebook underneath with the Mosaic Commissions cards stacked on top, showing Commission #34 which shows diatom shapes arranged as a phoenix
  • Top-down photo of Diatoms components showing three petri dishes with diatom tiles. Flowing on two of the petri dishes edges is the center water tile with the Diatoms wordmark on a purple background. In the bottom right is the 1st place ribbon
  • A photo of the Diatoms box on a wooden table
  • A closeup of the side of the Diatoms box with a water tiles and the lens tool highlighting a water tile intersection point
  • A close-up of various Diatoms game components including a purple Field Notes book on top of a player board, water tiles, and other pieces surround the photo perimeter.
  • A top-down shot of a completed player mosaic in Diatoms the game.
  • Graphic of the Diatoms box cover which has a large DIATOMS wordmark in the center with "A Game of Microscopic Proportions" in smaller text underneath. An ornate arrangement of diatom mosaics surrounds the wordmark, with two golden microscopes in the bottom corners and the words "Designed By Sabrina Culyba" in the center bottom.

Online Presence

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

Awards

2023 Cardboard Edison Award for great unpublished board games

Release Dates & History

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

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.

    Online at:

About the Designer

Photo of Sabrina Culyba - purple glasses with long brown hair and light complexion

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: linkedin.com/in/sabrinaculyba/
linktree: linktr.ee/sabrina.c
bluesky: sabrinac.bsky.social

(Culyba is pronounced “Sul-bah”)