Adventures in Coding: Suddenly Caught Up; and Painting the Walls

I was panicking a bit last week because I felt like I was really behind with the TechUp course (I was a week behind the advertised schedule). I knew from the online course forum that most people were in the same boat, but it still felt like it was taking forever. However, once I’d finished the huge beginners’ Python module, the next few course modules turned out to be much quicker and easier and I’ve been able to get through them in the space of a few days. It means I’ve got some time to have another look at the Python projects I had to rush through in order not to fall further behind with that module.

In hobby coding this week, I’ve now got the skeleton of my short PunyInform game and am gradually ‘painting the walls’, i.e. adding colour to the game by coding examine responses etc. I’m hoping to have a first draft by the end of the week.

Some exciting retro computer news to talk about in the next few days too…

Planets
An old favourite, and something to investigate again soon.

Adventures In Coding: Late Night Code Thoughts

I am still making my way through the TechUp course and learning a little bit more about Python every day. It’s a gradual process and some days I feel like it’s going in one ear and out the other, but I know from experience that it will sink in with practice! We’re moving onto testing modules this week and there was a really interesting lecture on it this evening. I still think I prefer the development side of things, but it’s given me some things to think about.

I’m still buzzing from making my four-hours-to-code-it Petite Mort game for EctoComp. It was so much fun to be able to squeeze in a bite-size piece of Adventuron coding in the middle of everything else that’s going on at the moment! I’m getting some nice feedback and some useful reports of bugs to fix for my post-competition release. I’m now hoping to do the same with a small PunyInform game for the jam they’re holding this month – I’m getting a tiny bit done every day and counting it as my NaNoWriMo this year! It’s so important to be able to spend a bit of time with my creative projects even when I’m super busy with other things.

As is standard for the autumn, day job work has quietened down a bit recently – which is absolutely fine by me, as I wouldn’t be able to fit all my studying in if business was as manic as it was in the summer. I’m still getting a chunk every week, but it’s at a nice manageable level.

Next door's cat
Next door’s cat has been visiting us a lot recently. We think he just really likes our cosy sofa throw!

Semi-flying Friday post… and some bonus coding adventures!

I’ll double up earworm playlists next week (maybe by then I’ll have got all the Hallowe’en songs out of my head) but just a quick post today to enthuse about all my coding adventures! I’m still merrily rolling along with my TechUp course (absolutely loving learning Python) and today have managed to spend four hours making my Petite Mort entry for the EctoComp game competition! Now to get some last-minute testing done over the weekend… though there’s a lot of Hallowe’en watching to be done as well 🙂

Skeletal!
This character is something to be avoided in my new game!

Adventures in Coding: Slightly More Serious Adventures

I did promise I was going to tell you all about the software development course I’m doing soon! I have a place on the TechUp Skills Bootcamp in Software Development, which starts next week. I’m going to be learning Python and finding out about opportunities for moving into a tech career, which is very exciting.

Until I started making text adventures with Adventuron just over two years ago, I didn’t even consider that coding was something I could do seriously. I’d made a few simple QBASIC games as a kid but hadn’t even thought about it in years. But I have absolutely loved learning to code and create games – I find Adventuron the most intuitive as that’s how I got started, but I’ve also been enjoying dabbling in PunyInform, as well as a bit of BBC BASIC due to my nostalgia for the BBC Micro.

Learning more standard and modern programming languages is something I’ve wanted to do for a while, and I’m so glad I’ve got this opportunity. I can’t wait to get started.

Pixel vampire bat
A seasonal illustration from my Hallowe’en game two years ago… because I’ve got a couple more games I want to make soon as well. Naturally. Anyone got a magic ‘time stop’ button they can lend me?

Adventures in Coding: Retreating, Reflecting and Rallying

I feel like I’ve been talking about making my next game all summer, but unfortunately I’ve not been able to get much done on it!

Since ParserComp in June life has been a bit mental. I had a very busy summer with work, I’ve been marathon training for London (twelve days to go – eek!), events have started up again, and with all of that going on I’ve been making sure to prioritise ‘me time’ (i.e. videogaming) in the evenings and on weekends, so I’ve been struggling to find time for game creation. I really wanted to get one of my games finished for IFComp, but it hasn’t happened this year. However, October is looking nice and empty (after London that is!), so I’m hoping to be able to make a fun short scary game for this year’s EctoComp.

I possibly burnt myself out a bit early in the year. I was really proud of what I did with Barry Basic and the Quick Escape, and I had a lot of fun making Waiting for the Day Train, and I got a lot of work done on Marie (which is going to be enormous!) in between those two projects, but all of that was pretty intense and so maybe I needed to do other things for a while. I’m keen to get going again now, but I am going to wait until after the marathon and just brew some ideas in the meantime. I am a massive Hallowe’en fan and had such a good time making Hallowe’en: Night of the Misty Manor for the Adventuron Hallowe’en Jam a couple of years ago, so I’m already excited even though I don’t know what I’m making yet!

(I already have three ideas just from writing this post…)

Pixel vampire
The Fat Vampire may return! You never know…

Adventures In Coding: Getting Started

After several weeks of game planning, I finally had time to get started on the coding for Game Next this last weekend. Life is fairly busy but I’m going to keep plugging away and try and get a bit done every day.

Code for Adventuron game
The first of what will probably be hundreds of boolean variables.

It’s nice to be back in the Adventuron editor again.

Adventures In Coding: The Return

After a couple of weeks off I’m excited to get back into game creation this week. I’ll be playing with various experimental stuff and also returning to my work on Marie.

Cecil
Cecil doesn’t have a world to explore yet… but he will.

Part of the reason I’ve been doing my new ‘Screengrabs From Games That Don’t Exist’ series on Saturdays is that I have a ridiculous number of game ideas and not enough time to implement them. I’ve got a few pinned down for working on during the rest of the summer, but there are so many others that will have to stay in the parallel universe for now. One day!

Flying Monday post

No adventures in coding to report this week. I would like to have been playing with a few experimental games I want to make and working on my ongoing projects, but I’ve been snowed under with day job work and haven’t had the time or energy. Hoping for a light at the end of the tunnel by the end of the week!

Switch Lite
I also need to switch this thing on tonight and check it’s still okay, as I haven’t had time to use it for a few months now. Maybe I’ll actually have chance to play games on it one of these days!