Crafting a 13KB Game: The Story of Space Huggers
Frank developed "Space Huggers," a 13KB run-and-gun roguelike for the Js13kGames competition, using his LittleJS engine. The game features procedural levels, cooperative play, and a 16-bit art style.
Read original article
Frank, a game developer, shares his experience creating "Space Huggers," a 13KB game for the Js13kGames competition, which challenges participants to develop web browser games within a strict size limit. The game, a run-and-gun roguelike platformer, features procedurally generated environments and pixel art, inspired by classics like Broforce and Contra. Frank developed a new game engine, LittleJS, to facilitate high-quality, low-size games, which he open-sourced. The design process emphasized core gameplay over extensive content, incorporating cooperative play for up to four players. The art style mimics 16-bit games, utilizing a limited color palette to optimize storage. Frank's approach to player and enemy design involved procedural animation and AI that mimics player controls, enhancing gameplay complexity. The game includes various abilities and weapons, encouraging dynamic interactions and emergent gameplay. Frank's journey into tiny game development began after a burnout from larger projects, leading him to explore the creative potential of compact coding. His previous entries in the competition have garnered awards, showcasing his growth and passion for this unique format.
- "Space Huggers" is a 13KB game developed for the Js13kGames competition.
- The game features procedurally generated levels and supports up to four players.
- Frank created the LittleJS engine to enable high-quality, low-size game development.
- The art style is inspired by 16-bit games, using a limited color palette for efficiency.
- Frank's experience in tiny game development stemmed from a desire to return to simpler coding after burnout.
Related
Put the DVD logo in the corner (2023)
A small arcade game, "Put the DVD Logo in the Corner," was created in four days using the PICO-8 engine. Its simplicity, strong theme, and developer's positive experience hint at future game development.
Asteroids Game in Racket (2021)
The article details implementing the Asteroids game in Racket, focusing on a game and physics engine within 1000 lines of code, enabling spaceship control, collision detection, and user interaction.
Porting My JavaScript Game Engine to C for No Reason
Dominic Szablewski announced the high_impact game engine, a C port of his Impact JavaScript engine, designed for 2D action games, supporting multiple platforms and featuring essential game development tools.
Below the Root: A story, a computer game and my lifelong obsession (2015)
The author reflects on how the 1984 game "Below the Root" inspired their programming career, leading to the development of "The Dreamsong" while facing challenges with rights and modern technology.
Show HN: Stipple Effect – a scriptable pixel art editor to make game art faster
Stipple Effect is a lightweight pixel art editor for indie game developers, featuring animation support, scripting, layer management, and robust tools for creating and managing video game art assets.
- Many users express admiration for the game's design and its resemblance to other popular games like Broforce.
- There is a shared appreciation for the challenge of creating games within strict size limits, with references to past competitions.
- Some users discuss technical issues, such as performance slowdowns during gameplay.
- Frank's LittleJS engine receives positive feedback for its usability and community support.
- Users share links to related content, showcasing interest in other small-scale games and competitions.
12 commentshttps://endtimes.dev/why-your-website-should-be-under-14kb-i...
In 2000 (I think), I put 2 Java Applets into the 5k competition. One a maze game with a thousand rooms (10x10x10), the other a spelling checker that checked the contents of an input field against a word list. Both were quite poor and I didn't do well.
The general standard was really impressive. I remember that there was pretty good chess game done in Javascript.
Related
Put the DVD logo in the corner (2023)
A small arcade game, "Put the DVD Logo in the Corner," was created in four days using the PICO-8 engine. Its simplicity, strong theme, and developer's positive experience hint at future game development.
Asteroids Game in Racket (2021)
The article details implementing the Asteroids game in Racket, focusing on a game and physics engine within 1000 lines of code, enabling spaceship control, collision detection, and user interaction.
Porting My JavaScript Game Engine to C for No Reason
Dominic Szablewski announced the high_impact game engine, a C port of his Impact JavaScript engine, designed for 2D action games, supporting multiple platforms and featuring essential game development tools.
Below the Root: A story, a computer game and my lifelong obsession (2015)
The author reflects on how the 1984 game "Below the Root" inspired their programming career, leading to the development of "The Dreamsong" while facing challenges with rights and modern technology.
Show HN: Stipple Effect – a scriptable pixel art editor to make game art faster
Stipple Effect is a lightweight pixel art editor for indie game developers, featuring animation support, scripting, layer management, and robust tools for creating and managing video game art assets.