Are you a hobbyist, a designer, or a publisher? What's your favorite game and why?

Hobbyist and would-be designer and publisher. ;-) 

I would put Agricola, Ark Nova, and Terraforming Mars all at the top. I would happily play any of those if they hit the table. I think I would pick Agricola as the top, though.

Agricola : Much like Mars, the initial occupation and minors draft is where the magic is for me. Discovering synergies and planning out your actions / pacing is just FUN. Since Agricola has no continued drafting mechanism, I think Agricola has higher re-playability. You only get to see a small subset of the available cards in a single game (whereas with Mars, it isn’t unusual to churn through all the cards in a game). This only increases with the wild decks (3k cards).

I also love the planning, pacing, and constrained actions (something that I personally have trouble mapping out, but I still love the tension it creates in the game).

Unabashed gaming geek. RPGs, board games, and exploring the intersection of AI, blockchain, and the pen & paper. 

I have never played any of those and I tend to get anxious and overwhelmed in games with long term synergies like that, but you make a compelling pitch. I think my apprehensions are a fossil from a younger, more chaotic time in my life and I'd kind of like to get one of those heavier games on the table sometime now that I've got some more stability to work with