@reidrac is CODING
My streaming sessions are on my Twitch channel.
The sessions that I recorded “off-line” and copies of some Twitch videos are on my YouTube channel.
Background info
I’ve been developing games for old systems for a while, and I used to post about my development process on my Mastodon account –previously on Twitter– and my blog.
This is the next step: sharing my coding sessions for everybody to “enjoy”.
If you like the sessions, feel free to buy me a coffee. Thanks!
What’s new?
2023-08-29 - Back soon?
I’m finishing a break after the “making a DOS game” experiment. Not sure when, but it is possible I’ll stream again. Watch this space!
2023-07-14 - making a DOS game is done!
The experiment is finished, and the game… pretty much, although is not ready for the game jam. That’s not a problem! “Gold Miner Run!” will be released in August once I finish with the music and the level design.
How was the experience? Exhausting! I have made similar games in 3 to 4 months and, although I didn’t finish all of it, starting on a new platform without an existing stable codebase and cramming all the process in about a month and a half is probably too much.
At the end it has been 20 videos between 1 and 2 hours each, so not too bad! Hopefully people found it as interesting as I did.
2023-05-29 - starting a series
This is an experiment, but I’m starting a series of videos on one theme: making a DOS game. Hopefully a simple one, and I will wrap it up nicelly in month and a half or so.
The first video is up on this new playlist.
F.A.Q.
Where I can find the videos?
My streaming sessions are on my Twitch channel.
Some of those videos are also available on my YouTube channel.
If you are only interested in the videos of the “making a DOS game” series, those are in this playlist on YouTube.
Are you streaming all the sessions?
Initially my home Internet connection didn’t allow for live streaming with enough quality, so there are a few sessions recorded “off-line” and uploaded “as-is” without any editing. Those sessions are on YouTube.
Currently my Internet connection is slightly better and I can do streaming.
Do you have a planned schedule?
My programming time is scarce, so I may stream when I have time for it, usually at night time ( around 20:30 GMT).
Currently I’m trying to stream Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Are you streaming in English?
Yes, with a strong accent. English is my second language.
I can also speak Spanish, but I will speak English in all the sessions because in that way I think the content will be accessible to more people.
Sometimes I won’t have the mic on –e.g. I’m not alone or in a quiet space–.
Is your code Open Source?
Some of it is Open Source already, and some will be at some point.
Check my GitHub and GitLab accounts.
Some things are in my self-hosted repos.
When will you be working on system X or game Y?
I don’t know for sure. I have a TODO and I usually work on projects when I feel is the right time for them.
If I’m working on a game and I have a deadline, it is very likely I will work on it until it is finished.
Do you develop your retro-games on the real system?
No. I cross-compile from a modern machine to the target system, using an emulator for testing.
These are some emulators I recommend.
What compiler are you using for your retro-gamedev?
It depends on the system:
I write the games in C and assembler, and I use Python for my tools.
Do you only do retro-gamedev?
No, I may work on other projects that may not be retro-gaming –or even gamedev– related.
What editor are you using?
I’m using neovim with tmux, and this is my configuration.
For some languages I use a LSP server to get some IDE-like features. In my C projects I use the good old ctags.
What other tools do you use in your retro-gamedev projects?
I use git to manage my source code.
For the graphics I love Gimp, and Tiled for the maps. My operating system is Debian.
Almost all my custom tooling is built with Python.
You should be using X, Y, and Z!
I’m aware of other tools, compilers, editors, etc; and I use what works best for me. Thanks!
What do you use to record the videos?
I’m using OBS Studio.
You are doing it wrong!
That’s possible! I make mistakes, and sometimes I learn from them (not always, though).
My approach to solve a problem may not the best, but it is my approach and I tend to focus on the results –specially in retro-gamedev: very often the best engineering practices aren’t the most useful when programming for old 8-bit machines–.
Feel free to suggest ideas, it will be appreciated.