Mike Selinker is an American game designer,

puzzle A puzzle is a game, Problem solving, problem, or toy that tests a person's ingenuity or knowledge. In a puzzle, the solver is expected to put pieces together (Disentanglement puzzle, or take them apart) in a logical way, in order to arrive at th ...

maker, and the founder and president of Lone Shark Games.

Credits

Selinker's design credits include ''

Pirates of the Spanish Main The Pirates Constructible Strategy Game is a tabletop game manufactured by WizKids, Inc., with aspects of both miniatures game and collectible card game genres. "Pirates of the Spanish Main" (the initial release of the ''Pirates'' line) is th ...

'' and ''

Fightball ''Fightball'' is a real-time card game designed by James Ernest and Mike Selinker and published by Cheapass Games in 2002. ''Fightball'' is the third real-time card game published by Cheapass Games, following the success of ''Falling'' and '' ...

'' with

James Ernest James Ernest is an American game designer and juggler, best known as the owner and lead designer of Cheapass Games. Career Prior to founding Cheapass Games, Ernest worked as a juggler at various venues, including Camlann Medieval Village, and a ...

, '' Axis & Allies Revised Edition'' with Larry Harris, the ''

Marvel Super Heroes Adventure Game The ''Marvel Super Heroes Adventure Game'' is a role-playing game published by TSR, Inc. that uses the ''SAGA System'' and features characters published by Marvel Comics. It should not be confused with the earlier '' Marvel Super Heroes Game'', a ...

'', '' Risk Godstorm'', ''Gloria Mundi'', ''Key Largo'', ''Stonehenge'', ''Thornwatch'', and '' Pathfinder Adventure Card Game''. He was a creative director for the 3rd edition of '' Dungeons & Dragons'' and the ''

Harry Potter Trading Card Game The ''Harry Potter Trading Card Game'' is an out-of-print collectible card game based in the world of J. K. Rowling's '' Harry Potter'' novels. Created by Wizards of the Coast in August 2001, the game was designed to compete with the ''Yu- ...

''. As a

maker, he created the fictional police officer Lt. Nodumbo for '' GAMES World of Puzzles''. Selinker founded ''LIVE/WIRE'' with Tim Beach and the ''

Maze of Games The Maze of Games is one of America's largest annual puzzlehunts, and is held at the Gen Con and Origins gaming conventions. Started in 1995 as an offshoot of LIVE/WIRE, the Maze of Games has been the largest event at one or both of those conventi ...

'' with

Teeuwynn Woodruff Teeuwynn Woodruff is a writer and game designer who has worked primarily on role-playing games, TV writing and interviewing, and trading card games. Freelancer Teeuwynn Woodruff was introduced to role-playing games at an early age, playing her ...

. He also has written

poker Poker is a family of comparing card games in which players wager over which hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, however in some places the rules may vary. While the earliest known form of the game w ...

books such as ''Dealer's Choice: The Complete Handbook of Saturday Night Poker'', with James Ernest and

Phil Foglio Philip Foglio (born May 1, 1956) is an American cartoonist and comic book artist known for his humorous science fiction and fantasy art. Early life and career Foglio was born on May 1, 1956, in Mount Vernon, New York, and moved with his family to ...

. He has also written puzzles for the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'', the ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', and ''Games'' magazine. He has also authored "The Kobold Guide to Board Game Design" and "Puzzlecraft: The Ultimate Guide on How to Construct Every Kind of Puzzle." Selinker and James Ernest created

Titanic Games Paizo Inc. (originally Paizo Publishing.) is an American role-playing game publishing company based in Redmond, Washington, best known for the tabletop role-playing game ''Pathfinder''. The company's name is derived from the Greek word ''paizō ...

with

Paizo Publishing Paizo Inc. (originally Paizo Publishing.) is an American role-playing game publishing company based in Redmond, Washington, best known for the tabletop role-playing game ''Pathfinder Roleplaying Game, Pathfinder''. The company's name is derived ...

in 2005 to add board game publishing to Paizo's already established role-playing game publications.

Lone Shark Games

Selinker founded the Lone Shark Games design studio with James Ernest, and is the company's president. In March 2010, in conjunction with '' Wired'' magazine and

Universal Pictures Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Ameri ...

, the company announced plans to release a group of "Runners" to go "on the lam". The Runners were to be hunted by anyone in the United States who desired to find them. Anyone that caught a Runner would receive a US$7,500 "bounty". Of the contest, Selinker said, "Our Runners are out there hiding among 300 million people. Of course, that's 300 million people who might turn them in ..." After a long time employee accused Selinker of creating an abusive and toxic work environment, he took an unpaid leave of absence from Lone Shark in November 2021.

Awards

Selinker won three 2004 Origins Awards for ''

Pirates Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...

'', '' Axis & Allies: D-Day'', and ''

Betrayal at House on the Hill ''Betrayal at House on the Hill'' is a board game published by Avalon Hill in 2004, designed by Bruce Glassco and developed by Rob Daviau, Bill McQuillan, Mike Selinker, and Teeuwynn Woodruff. Players all begin as allies exploring a haunted house ...

''. His game '' Alpha Blitz'' was ''

Games Magazine ''GAMES World of Puzzles'' is a puzzle magazine formed from the merger of Games and World of Puzzles in October 2014. The entire magazine interior is now newsprint (as opposed to the part-glossy/part-newsprint format of the original ''Games'') an ...

s 1998

Word Game Word games (also called word game puzzles or word search games) are spoken, board, or video games often designed to test ability with language or to explore its properties. Word games are generally used as a source of entertainment, but can add ...

of the Year.

Personal life

Selinker is a member of the National Puzzlers League under the nickname "Slik".

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Selinker, Mike American company founders Board game designers Crossword compilers Dungeons & Dragons game designers Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Puzzle designers Year of birth missing (living people)