A 10th Grader's Game Development Process

     I find myself getting more efficient with this whole game making thing over time. Back in 10th grade I had no idea what I was doing, but was happy to finally have a general direction to run in. I found out games were made through programming, took a few Java classes, and went to Google for the rest.

     I figured out lots of things on my own, like object oriented structures and game specific things like animations, health bars, menu flow, music playback, and collision detection. What never crossed my mind back then was listening to how others created games. If I did, I'd know about certain things that just don't work and could have side-stepped a lot of problems. Also, my code would be legible.

Take a peek into the mind of a 10th grade developer in training after the break.

First XCode Experience

     When toying around with Xcode for the first time, I finally got to see what something I produced would look like on an actual gaming device. I made a simple app with a button that changed an image and text on screen, linked to a charity website, and was based on my favorite show. It felt great making it and I learned a lot about iPhone game development.

     There was something simply magical about seeing something I made working on the device I wanted to develop for. It was exciting. I showed everyone. And I fantasized about just how much magic I could fit into the little box in my hands. Just seeing my app icon among the others I was so familiar with, it's just something that's too surreal to explain.

Status Report #10

   Huh. It's funny to think about how I've been doing this blog for about 10 weeks now. It feels a lot longer. I think I've grown a lot since last summer and I feel like the transition of who I was to who I want to be is happening.

     Anyway, this week was about finishing Candy Shop Catch and letting people know it exists. Take a look at what I'm up to after the break.

PC Master Race Everywhere

     I'm liking all the custom machinery ideas going around lately. I'd like to be in a world where upgrading aspects of your devices becomes the norm. Things like Phonebloks and Steam Machines seem like the perfect solution to the annoyance of new and improved technology releasing every six months. Just swap out a component whenever you want to instead of spending hundreds to get the shiny new toy that's basically the same as the one you have.

     It's interesting to think about how they will affect how games are made though. Will developers come up with quality settings and minimum specs like for PC games? Maybe I should experiment with developing games that way...