Daelos
Guarding the guardians
- 219
- 58
(I looked around for a thread like this but couldn't find one - if there is another one, please merge!)
I've been programming since I was six years old (= copying from the yellow pages in BYTE magazine into the state-of-the-art BBC Microcomputer we had in the 80's), and kept doing it semi-regularly as I was growing up. Got my degree in CompSci, and suddenly my career pivoted into infosec/netsec and the coding was all but forgotten.
As the kids got past the nappy-stage, career was safely established and I got some more spare time I fell back in love with programming. After a couple of smaller almost-projects, I found Unity3D a few years ago. Which was perfect for me: I'm not a good coder. I use shortcuts, I make all my variables public 'cause I'm lazy that way, and I only use about 50% of the tools available in C#. If I remember to create and use interfaces and to inherit a few classes, I'm happy and when I learned about how to build a proper event system with statics and delegates I felt like a genius.
Nor am I a good artist, or musician, or... anything really. But with Unity, it was suddenly possible to get a few neat assets from the store, copy from others mistakes, and get through by watching YouTube-tutorials. Suddenly I could make what almost looks like games.
I'm not doing this to build the next MineCraft, but because it's a perfect way to channel the creative drive that some times need a place to go. Diving into making a procedural voxel world and coming out at the other end with something that actually works is immensely satisfying. The past 6 months in particular, I've spent quite a lot of time by my PC (and the girlfriend is finding out that having a partner who plays video games is nowhere as irritating as one who tries to make them), building up a skillset that makes even more fun stuff possible.
This weekend: I'm teaming up with the kids (8, 8 and 10 years old) to enter Ludum Dare. They will draw art and record piano samples, as well as help me brainstorm, design and playtest. I'll do the coding. It's going to be a blast.
Anyone else out there that make games as a hobby?
I've been programming since I was six years old (= copying from the yellow pages in BYTE magazine into the state-of-the-art BBC Microcomputer we had in the 80's), and kept doing it semi-regularly as I was growing up. Got my degree in CompSci, and suddenly my career pivoted into infosec/netsec and the coding was all but forgotten.
As the kids got past the nappy-stage, career was safely established and I got some more spare time I fell back in love with programming. After a couple of smaller almost-projects, I found Unity3D a few years ago. Which was perfect for me: I'm not a good coder. I use shortcuts, I make all my variables public 'cause I'm lazy that way, and I only use about 50% of the tools available in C#. If I remember to create and use interfaces and to inherit a few classes, I'm happy and when I learned about how to build a proper event system with statics and delegates I felt like a genius.
Nor am I a good artist, or musician, or... anything really. But with Unity, it was suddenly possible to get a few neat assets from the store, copy from others mistakes, and get through by watching YouTube-tutorials. Suddenly I could make what almost looks like games.
I'm not doing this to build the next MineCraft, but because it's a perfect way to channel the creative drive that some times need a place to go. Diving into making a procedural voxel world and coming out at the other end with something that actually works is immensely satisfying. The past 6 months in particular, I've spent quite a lot of time by my PC (and the girlfriend is finding out that having a partner who plays video games is nowhere as irritating as one who tries to make them), building up a skillset that makes even more fun stuff possible.
This weekend: I'm teaming up with the kids (8, 8 and 10 years old) to enter Ludum Dare. They will draw art and record piano samples, as well as help me brainstorm, design and playtest. I'll do the coding. It's going to be a blast.
Anyone else out there that make games as a hobby?
- 2
