Simulation games are usually attempting to simulate real-world systems in such a way as to mimic the essence of the system while accounting for accuracy along with physical performance. It's a balancing act. The goal is to approximate the real-world counterpart in a believable and resource efficient way. The key to simulating anything is to … Continue reading Simulation Optimization Techniques
This is gonna be a long one, but it will also be highly informative; hold onto your butts! I've created and made available a fully working Monogame examples project over on GitHub as a reference for the topics discussed in this article, you are encouraged to check it out. It is my goal to curate … Continue reading SpriteBatch vs VertexBuffer
Wow it's been a while since I posted anything, I should aim to keep these a little shorter for a while and see how that goes 🙂 Display Modes I'm not sure why I haven't done this yet, but I noticed Eden didn't support fullscreen borderless display mode! Shameful! I couldn't let that go any … Continue reading Display Modes
Another year of Eden development! In the past year the following major features, systems and noteworthy mechanics were introduced or heavily expanded upon (this is in no way exhaustive of the new features and changes): Power Flow System & Mechanisms Levers/switches Conduit/power systems Doors Pressure Plates Pumps and Drains Floodgates Multiple Playable Races Humans, Goblins, … Continue reading Eden – Second Year in Review
As Eden begins to mature it is time to start focusing the different mechanical aspects of the game. Today I'll explain the way liquids work within the worlds of Eden. Currently there are three types of liquid terrain, water, magma and acid. Each will have their respective uses aside from simply being a part of … Continue reading Eden – Fluid Mechanics
Today I wanted to showcase the various tools I've used developing Eden. I specifically want to point out that everything in this list is absolutely free except for Aseprite (and it's very reasonable). Everything in this list is outstanding at what it does and I wouldn't include it if I haven't been impressed in more … Continue reading Eden – Development Tools
It's far more important that a thing works, than for it to work quickly. Software optimization is a slippery slope and should be embarked upon with an ample supply of caution, focus and above all else, metrics; always metrics. An established mantra is that you should not optimize anything until you see a problem. The … Continue reading Optimization – Profiling & Cache Coherence
'Creatures' is a ubiquitous term for any kind of living actor in Eden, I don't mean to imply that everything is a creature or monster. Eden brings to life a wide variety of different animals, humanoids, monsters and critters. Each critter is designed to emulate it's real life or fantasy world counterpart. For example, animals … Continue reading Eden – Creatures
Today marks the first year of formal development on Eden. After finding inspiration from a newly released (at the time) early access game called RimWorld and a long-held adoration for Dwarf Fortress I decided it was time to create something. Coincidentally I had just put myself through a pretty good course on Unity but decided due to the … Continue reading Eden – First Year in Review
Let's say you don't have a ton of time or aren't an artist or aren't able/willing/want to hire an artist and you're working as a small group or a sole developer on a game, but you need a lot of graphics/sprites, what can you do? Well in my case, not having a lot of time … Continue reading Sprites on a Budget
Eden Devblog 