The hottest Game Development Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Technology Topics

Under the microscope: Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX & Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX (Dreamcast, PlayStation)

Rings of Saturn • 14 implied HN points • 25 Jun 25
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. You can unlock all characters and bikes in 'Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX' with a specific button code. Just remember to follow the right sequence at the title screen.
  2. There are some cool pause menu codes for 'Mat Hoffman's Pro BMX' that let you do things like slow motion and show the balance meter. It's a fun way to play the game!
  3. In 'Dave Mirra Freestyle BMX,' there's a hidden cheat code to unlock all characters, including the 'Amish Boy.' You just have to enter the right code after unlocking another character.

Under the microscope: MDK (PlayStation)

Rings of Saturn • 29 implied HN points • 11 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. MDK has hidden cheat codes that many players might not know about, adding more fun to the gameplay.
  2. Some codes need to be unlocked with other specific codes to work, which can change game mechanics and visuals significantly.
  3. Finding these codes involves programming and testing various button combinations, which can be a fun challenge for enthusiasts.

Extending the demos: Metropolis Street Racer (Dreamcast)

Rings of Saturn • 29 implied HN points • 28 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. The demo of Metropolis Street Racer from the Dream On Volume 7 disc was initially not playable, but a patch was created to enable gameplay and access an early version of the game.
  2. There are also patches for the E3 demo and the Opel Challenge demo, allowing players to unlock full menus and features not originally available in those demos.
  3. Exploring these demo versions gives a unique insight into the game's development, showing how it changed before its final release.

Under the microscope: Off-World Interceptor (3DO, Saturn, PlayStation)

Rings of Saturn • 29 implied HN points • 14 Nov 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. New cheat codes for the game _Off-World Interceptor_ were found, which had been hidden for 30 years. These codes work across multiple platforms like 3DO, Saturn, and PlayStation.
  2. The cheat codes can kickstart various features in the game, such as level selection, invincibility, and unlimited time. Players can enter these codes at the Options screen for added fun.
  3. The author used a tool called Ghidra to analyze the game’s memory and discover these codes. This shows that there’s still fun to be had from old games with a bit of technical know-how.
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Forecasting, Game QA, and Personalized Embodied Agents

ppdispatch • 8 implied HN points • 30 May 25
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. A new type of learning called outcome-based reinforcement learning is helping smaller language models make accurate predictions, even better than some big models.
  2. Researchers are looking at how AI agents remember information to provide personalized help, but they still struggle with remembering complex user preferences.
  3. A new benchmark for video game testing helps measure how well AI models can find bugs and glitches in games, making the testing process better and more efficient.

Lets compile Linux DOOM

Deus In Machina • 36 implied HN points • 01 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Compiling the Linux DOOM source code requires setting up the source code from the id-software repository and navigating through different build methods like Make and CMake.
  2. Encountering and solving errors in the compilation process involves making adjustments to data types, structure pointers, and handling variables like errno to ensure successful building of the DOOM executable.
  3. To address color depth issues and display errors while running the DOOM game on modern systems, utilizing tools like Xephyr, setting specific environmental variables, and modifying code sections related to color maps and display resolutions becomes critical.

Under the microscope: Skeleton Warriors (Saturn, PlayStation)

Rings of Saturn • 14 implied HN points • 08 Dec 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. The article talks about finding cheat codes for the game Skeleton Warriors on the Saturn and PlayStation consoles. It highlights how some of these codes were previously unknown and required research and coding to uncover.
  2. The author used a combination of brute force methods and mathematical approaches to determine the missing cheat codes. They collaborated with a cryptographer to solve complex hashing problems involved in the game.
  3. Mick West, a cofounder of Neversoft, contributed to the findings by sharing source code and insights about how the cheats work in the game. This shows a connection between game development and player discovery.

Stable Point Aware 3D, Cosmos, Autonomous game characters and Digits by Nvidia, Qwen Chat, Hailuo's Subject Reference, rStar-Math, Text-to-Video gen with Transparency, Cohere's North, STAR, & more

AI Brews • 12 implied HN points • 10 Jan 25
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Stability AI has released a new tool called Stable Point Aware 3D, which lets you edit 3D objects from just one image really quickly. It's free to use for everyone.
  2. Microsoft has made its Phi-4 model open-source and introduced rStar-Math, a new technique that improves math solving in smaller language models.
  3. Qwen Chat is a new web app allowing users to interact with various Qwen models, making it easy to compare their capabilities all in one place.

Getting Started With Unreal Engine 5 For Developers, Part 1: Building Blocks

Load-bearing Tomato • 16 implied HN points • 21 Aug 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. In Unreal Engine 5, Actors and Components are the main building blocks. Actors are objects in the game world, while Components add specific features to those Actors.
  2. Inheritance is a key concept in creating different types of objects. You can create child classes for specific behaviors while still sharing common features from a parent class.
  3. Functions and Events help organize code. Use Functions for reusable code and Events for actions triggered by certain events in your game.

Design a Tic-Tac-Toe Game [with Code]

The ZenMode • 42 implied HN points • 15 Feb 23
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Designing a Tic-Tac-Toe game involves creating a user interface with components like a game board, player information, game status, and start/restart buttons.
  2. Implementing game logic requires components like game state, move validation, win condition detection, tie condition detection, and player management.
  3. For scalability, maintainability, and extensibility, consider using components like load balancer, cloud-based infrastructure, modular architecture, clean code, and automated testing.

Premature Optimization and Rapid Prototyping

Load-bearing Tomato • 8 implied HN points • 23 Apr 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Games need to start with quick experiments to see what works, this is called rapid prototyping. Flexibility is important so designers can try new ideas without being held back.
  2. Code doesn’t have to be perfect; it just needs to be good enough for what the game requires. Sometimes a simpler solution works best and saves time.
  3. It's crucial to know when to optimize code. If the game is running well and meeting its needs, there might not be a need to improve it right away.

"We Only Hire Seniors", And Other Mistakes

Load-bearing Tomato • 7 implied HN points • 16 May 24
💼 Business Game Development
  1. Hiring only seniors can create problems because it limits decision-making and leads to too many meetings. New or junior employees can help speed things up by handling tasks while seniors make bigger decisions.
  2. Having a mix of experience levels in a team is crucial for growth. If companies only hire seniors, they won't have new talent coming up, which can lead to challenges in the future.
  3. Good management is important in game development. Issues often come from poor organization rather than from the skill level of individual team members.

How Sound Works In Games

Load-bearing Tomato • 5 implied HN points • 06 Aug 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Sound in games is made to work in real-time, which means it can't be exactly like in real life. Instead, game developers use simplified calculations to make it feel realistic without needing huge amounts of computer power.
  2. To create sound effects in games, developers use Emitters to play sounds and Listeners to receive them. This setup helps in determining how loud a sound is based on the distance and direction from where it is coming.
  3. Using Rooms and Portals helps organize sounds in the game environment. This makes it easier for the game to decide what sounds the player can hear and adjust them accordingly, leading to a more immersive experience.

"AI Fans" Have No Imagination

Load-bearing Tomato • 12 implied HN points • 16 Feb 23
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. The popular AI art generators succeed because they cater to people's self-interest.
  2. Claiming AI is the future of game development is flawed; AI lacks the understanding required for complex tasks like concept art.
  3. Developers are already effectively using AI technology in areas like animation to enhance games.

*Bonus* Remaking Pokemon Yellow in Godot

Why Now • 5 implied HN points • 12 Apr 23
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. The article discusses remaking Pokemon Yellow in Godot game engine.
  2. The author talks about creating the main character, Pallet Town, and a menu in the game.
  3. The development process involves working with Godot's scripting language, creating custom art assets, and implementing game logic.

Any-to-Any Generative AI Model, Generative AI for 3D game development, Mobile app Development from Text, Context Window of 1 Billion+ tokens, Bark on Discord and more

AI Brews • 2 HN points • 07 Jul 23
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Microsoft Research introduces a novel generative model that can create any combination of output from any input modalities.
  2. MoonlanderAI launches a generative AI platform for building immersive 3D games using text descriptions.
  3. Bark on Discord now provides text-to-audio capabilities, offering realistic multilingual speech and various audio outputs.

Reading CSV files in UE5 C++

Load-bearing Tomato • 0 implied HN points • 23 Jul 25
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Using CSV files in UE5 can be tricky because the official documentation might not work as expected. It's important to double-check the methods for loading and parsing your data.
  2. To correctly read CSV files in UE5, use the 'LoadFileToString' method and then the 'CsvParser' module. This approach is confirmed to work, especially in version 5.3 and later.
  3. When writing CSV files, make sure to format your data properly with headers and ensure your output saves correctly. This process can save you frustration when managing your game data.

The Iterative Digest #106

The Iterative Digest • 0 implied HN points • 14 Feb 23
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Nintendo Direct had big announcements like Game Boy/GBA titles on Switch, Metroid Prime Remaster, and more
  2. Nintendo announced a 10% pay rise for its developers despite lower profits
  3. A 32-part documentary on the making of Psychonauts 2 was released by Double Fine

Scrabble Game

Judson’s Substack • 0 implied HN points • 11 Jul 23
🚌 Education Game Development
  1. The program allows two players to enter words and calculates their scores based on letter values.
  2. The program then determines the winner based on the scores - player 1 wins, player 2 wins, or a tie can occur.
  3. It uses ASCII values to assign points to each letter in the words and checks if the characters are letters.

Drag And Drop Godot

Michaela’s Substack • 0 implied HN points • 07 Dec 23
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Add the `mouse_filter` option to nodes in Godot to enable more flexible drag and drop functionality.
  2. Utilize `_can_drop_data` and `_drop_data` functions while ensuring proper setup in both source and target nodes for effective drag and drop implementation.
  3. Joining community forums like the Godot Discord can provide prompt and helpful solutions to specific coding challenges.

Decentralization on Ronin

Ronin’s Newsletter • 0 implied HN points • 16 Feb 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Decentralization fortifies Ronin's security by distributing power and control across multiple participants, reducing vulnerabilities.
  2. Decentralization on Ronin aims for antifragility, ensuring the protocol can thrive even without the core team, but there are trade-offs like slower processes.
  3. Ronin is progressively enhancing decentralization with roles like validators, governors, and game developers each playing key parts in maintaining a resilient network.

Today’s Top 5 HN posts

Top 5 HN Posts of the day • 0 implied HN points • 01 May 24
🕹 Technology Game Development
  1. Today's top 5 HackerNews posts include topics like printing music with CSS Grid, the reclassification of marijuana by the US drug control agency, and the File Filesystem from 2021.
  2. Additional job opportunities mentioned include positions for managing teams, supercharging SEO for startups, and senior game developer roles, each tied to different Y Combinator batches.
  3. The post also shares the option to subscribe for more daily top 5 HackerNews posts, along with links to share on social media.