Mr Dino
@mrdino.bsky.social
Dad, husband, software designer, game developer and stuff.
It seems that after Pong, Breakout was easier than I expected.
As I hoped, this stage was an opportunity to improve the library. I reworked the collision detection from Pong, which could prove useful later on. I also plan to separate the handling of user input from the automatic game update logic.
As I hoped, this stage was an opportunity to improve the library. I reworked the collision detection from Pong, which could prove useful later on. I also plan to separate the handling of user input from the automatic game update logic.
November 11, 2025 at 8:02 PM
It seems that after Pong, Breakout was easier than I expected.
As I hoped, this stage was an opportunity to improve the library. I reworked the collision detection from Pong, which could prove useful later on. I also plan to separate the handling of user input from the automatic game update logic.
As I hoped, this stage was an opportunity to improve the library. I reworked the collision detection from Pong, which could prove useful later on. I also plan to separate the handling of user input from the automatic game update logic.
Here's my new personnal challenge after Pong : Breakout !
Same situation, 1 week max, no polishing but still improving and expanding the library.
Same situation, 1 week max, no polishing but still improving and expanding the library.
November 11, 2025 at 4:39 PM
Here's my new personnal challenge after Pong : Breakout !
Same situation, 1 week max, no polishing but still improving and expanding the library.
Same situation, 1 week max, no polishing but still improving and expanding the library.
Here's a Pong clone coded with #monogame. I spent less than three evenings on it, as it's very basic: no scoring, no victory system, no sound (for now).
Can you guess what happens after Pong?
Can you guess what happens after Pong?
November 9, 2025 at 4:11 PM
Here's a Pong clone coded with #monogame. I spent less than three evenings on it, as it's very basic: no scoring, no victory system, no sound (for now).
Can you guess what happens after Pong?
Can you guess what happens after Pong?
Today, I'm trying my hand at #pixelart. After two decades of working with vector drawing, this feels laborious. It’s going to take time to get comfortable with this technique and even longer before I’m satisfied with my work.
November 24, 2024 at 9:33 AM
Today, I'm trying my hand at #pixelart. After two decades of working with vector drawing, this feels laborious. It’s going to take time to get comfortable with this technique and even longer before I’m satisfied with my work.
Feature creep is inevitable, and letting go of ideas is often harder than finding inspiration. Motivation can be unpredictable, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by your own creation. Yet, you push forward, unwilling to stop, fearing that all the time invested would otherwise be wasted.
November 20, 2024 at 5:06 PM
Feature creep is inevitable, and letting go of ideas is often harder than finding inspiration. Motivation can be unpredictable, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by your own creation. Yet, you push forward, unwilling to stop, fearing that all the time invested would otherwise be wasted.
I'm not a genuine indie gamedev and my advice is not law, but if you're considering starting, begin with something simple. Set clear limits for the project's duration and your daily dev time. Share your progress frequently, organize playtests, and stay connected with others—don't work in isolation.
November 20, 2024 at 5:01 PM
I'm not a genuine indie gamedev and my advice is not law, but if you're considering starting, begin with something simple. Set clear limits for the project's duration and your daily dev time. Share your progress frequently, organize playtests, and stay connected with others—don't work in isolation.
Expressing the range of emotions I've experienced over the years is challenging. Meeting other gamedevs (thanks to @extracoin.bsky.social) has been incredibly enriching, but it also triggered my imposter syndrome. I wanted to perform at the level of professional teams who work full-time.
November 20, 2024 at 4:45 PM
Expressing the range of emotions I've experienced over the years is challenging. Meeting other gamedevs (thanks to @extracoin.bsky.social) has been incredibly enriching, but it also triggered my imposter syndrome. I wanted to perform at the level of professional teams who work full-time.
What did I end up doing, but far too late?
- Documenting all jobs, skills, states, and mechanics
- Writing the story
- Coding my own level editor
- Implementing proper debugging (especially for AI)
- Integrating sounds and music
- Scripting builds and content packing
- Coding shaders
- Documenting all jobs, skills, states, and mechanics
- Writing the story
- Coding my own level editor
- Implementing proper debugging (especially for AI)
- Integrating sounds and music
- Scripting builds and content packing
- Coding shaders
November 20, 2024 at 11:13 AM
What did I end up doing, but far too late?
- Documenting all jobs, skills, states, and mechanics
- Writing the story
- Coding my own level editor
- Implementing proper debugging (especially for AI)
- Integrating sounds and music
- Scripting builds and content packing
- Coding shaders
- Documenting all jobs, skills, states, and mechanics
- Writing the story
- Coding my own level editor
- Implementing proper debugging (especially for AI)
- Integrating sounds and music
- Scripting builds and content packing
- Coding shaders
Moving forward without a plan means repeating the same mistakes and realizing too late that months of effort could’ve been saved by simply writing down your goals. Planning helps you measure the effort, equip yourself with tools, automate processes, and stay focused on the goal.
November 20, 2024 at 10:40 AM
Moving forward without a plan means repeating the same mistakes and realizing too late that months of effort could’ve been saved by simply writing down your goals. Planning helps you measure the effort, equip yourself with tools, automate processes, and stay focused on the goal.
The interface was not left out and with each iteration I would try to improve the aesthetics and bring more coherence. UX design is a profession apparently!
Here are some samples to show the evolution.
Here are some samples to show the evolution.
November 20, 2024 at 10:30 AM
The interface was not left out and with each iteration I would try to improve the aesthetics and bring more coherence. UX design is a profession apparently!
Here are some samples to show the evolution.
Here are some samples to show the evolution.
I ended up with 28 jobs. Count 30 frames per unit that made over 800 sprites. And at that time I didn't have any sprite packaging software yet. To top it all off, I had defined 6 factions and for each sprite sheet, I generated as many color variants using a homebrew hue shifting program.
November 20, 2024 at 10:24 AM
I ended up with 28 jobs. Count 30 frames per unit that made over 800 sprites. And at that time I didn't have any sprite packaging software yet. To top it all off, I had defined 6 factions and for each sprite sheet, I generated as many color variants using a homebrew hue shifting program.
And really, what could be easier to tackle alone, without experience, and in my spare time than a tactical RPG with a job and experience system, an inventory, and skills? You know what? Let’s redesign everything once more instead.
I really should have implemented a ragdoll system...
I really should have implemented a ragdoll system...
November 20, 2024 at 10:08 AM
And really, what could be easier to tackle alone, without experience, and in my spare time than a tactical RPG with a job and experience system, an inventory, and skills? You know what? Let’s redesign everything once more instead.
I really should have implemented a ragdoll system...
I really should have implemented a ragdoll system...
What I needed to hear back then was that I would progress quickly, constantly questioning my work. As I began sharing on social media, every comment or suggestion led to changes—whether in the interface, scenery, or menus. It was also when I started considering making a real game.
November 20, 2024 at 9:59 AM
What I needed to hear back then was that I would progress quickly, constantly questioning my work. As I began sharing on social media, every comment or suggestion led to changes—whether in the interface, scenery, or menus. It was also when I started considering making a real game.
If I could go back, I’d have paused development and started writing specifications. I hadn’t yet met other game developers, who likely would have advised me to define key gameplay elements, the game rules, the storyline, and the maximum playtime.
November 20, 2024 at 9:53 AM
If I could go back, I’d have paused development and started writing specifications. I hadn’t yet met other game developers, who likely would have advised me to define key gameplay elements, the game rules, the storyline, and the maximum playtime.
Visually, it no longer felt right, so I decided to switch to a more volumetric aesthetic, with four directions, movement and attack animations, and the introduction of new female character classes. Each idea sparked another, and I added content without considering its gameplay justification.
November 20, 2024 at 9:45 AM
Visually, it no longer felt right, so I decided to switch to a more volumetric aesthetic, with four directions, movement and attack animations, and the introduction of new female character classes. Each idea sparked another, and I added content without considering its gameplay justification.
Since I always loved FF Tactics and Vandal Hearts I finally decided to go for the same angle. It was a technical challenge and achieving it was a source of even more motivation. At that point I was spending almost all my free time on this project. I stopped playing videogames and become good at C#.
November 20, 2024 at 9:34 AM
Since I always loved FF Tactics and Vandal Hearts I finally decided to go for the same angle. It was a technical challenge and achieving it was a source of even more motivation. At that point I was spending almost all my free time on this project. I stopped playing videogames and become good at C#.
I've always been fascinated by the concept of character classes and wanted to create a detailed system.
Eventually, I decided to change the aesthetic because I felt too restricted. It didn’t impact the code, and since the project was a hobby, I didn’t have a fixed plan anyway.
Eventually, I decided to change the aesthetic because I felt too restricted. It didn’t impact the code, and since the project was a hobby, I didn’t have a fixed plan anyway.
November 20, 2024 at 9:29 AM
I've always been fascinated by the concept of character classes and wanted to create a detailed system.
Eventually, I decided to change the aesthetic because I felt too restricted. It didn’t impact the code, and since the project was a hobby, I didn’t have a fixed plan anyway.
Eventually, I decided to change the aesthetic because I felt too restricted. It didn’t impact the code, and since the project was a hobby, I didn’t have a fixed plan anyway.
The initial results came quickly, and I began sharing images with friends who were encouraging and curious, fueling the idea engine.
I quickly aimed to create something more complex and visually appealing. Technically, I faced few challenges, and the more I created, the more new ideas emerged.
I quickly aimed to create something more complex and visually appealing. Technically, I faced few challenges, and the more I created, the more new ideas emerged.
November 20, 2024 at 9:16 AM
The initial results came quickly, and I began sharing images with friends who were encouraging and curious, fueling the idea engine.
I quickly aimed to create something more complex and visually appealing. Technically, I faced few challenges, and the more I created, the more new ideas emerged.
I quickly aimed to create something more complex and visually appealing. Technically, I faced few challenges, and the more I created, the more new ideas emerged.
Around the same time, I came across the Indie Game Bundle, which features games compatible with Linux. I was particularly captivated by Revenge of the Titans and its unique aesthetic.
I imposed myself graphic limits to create a unique aesthetic and reduce workload; I should have stuck with it!
I imposed myself graphic limits to create a unique aesthetic and reduce workload; I should have stuck with it!
November 20, 2024 at 9:10 AM
Around the same time, I came across the Indie Game Bundle, which features games compatible with Linux. I was particularly captivated by Revenge of the Titans and its unique aesthetic.
I imposed myself graphic limits to create a unique aesthetic and reduce workload; I should have stuck with it!
I imposed myself graphic limits to create a unique aesthetic and reduce workload; I should have stuck with it!
At the time I was using Linux and needed to learn C# for professional purposes. Mono and #MonoGame were bundled with Ubuntu as were tools like Inkscape and Tiled Mapeditor.
I was eager to quickly bring some of my ideas together.
I was eager to quickly bring some of my ideas together.
November 20, 2024 at 9:01 AM
At the time I was using Linux and needed to learn C# for professional purposes. Mono and #MonoGame were bundled with Ubuntu as were tools like Inkscape and Tiled Mapeditor.
I was eager to quickly bring some of my ideas together.
I was eager to quickly bring some of my ideas together.
As a follow-up, and since I only shared a portion of my work on Cohort, I decided to post a series of messages featuring graphics and insights that I hope will be helpful to fellow game developers.
Prepare for a long thread because this project lasted 12 years.
#gamedev #gameart #postmortem
🧵1/n
Prepare for a long thread because this project lasted 12 years.
#gamedev #gameart #postmortem
🧵1/n
November 20, 2024 at 8:37 AM
As a follow-up, and since I only shared a portion of my work on Cohort, I decided to post a series of messages featuring graphics and insights that I hope will be helpful to fellow game developers.
Prepare for a long thread because this project lasted 12 years.
#gamedev #gameart #postmortem
🧵1/n
Prepare for a long thread because this project lasted 12 years.
#gamedev #gameart #postmortem
🧵1/n