simple-programmer – Gameplay Coder

Added Brickout Game To GitHub

Hey guys,

The source code for one of the earlier games I created, Brickout, is now available on GitHub here. If you’re interested in looking at games under the hood, have a look!

This game is the first completed game using HTML5 + Phaser. To build the level, I used Tiled. I found level graphics on OpenGameArt from Matriax.

The bomb explosion animation was also on OpenGameArt, by Jetrel.

Meanwhile, I’m working on some new 2D games, made in either Phaser or Unity, so there’s more to come!

Like this:

The image above is a screenshot for a Unity game I’m currently working on. This is from the course on Udemy: Complete C# Unity Developer 2D: Learn to Code Making Games.

It’s the last project in the course (I’m almost done! YEAH! 💪🏿) , and it’s a tile-based, 2D, side-scrolling platformer, one of my favorite game genres, and I can’t wait to use all the skills I’ve learned in this course (and outside of it), to really go beyond the course material, and finish it! Though it’s gonna take me a while (AS IT SHOULD), because I have a lot planned for this game.

If I may digress for a moment: Speaking of finishing things, if you’re like me, and you find it challenging to sometimes finish your side projects, watch the following video.

John Sonmez talks about how to become a finisher and finish shit.

It’s from John Sonmez, founder of Bulldog Mindset, a company that helps people, particularly software developers, become better, stronger versions of themselves and get more out of life by improving their soft skills, mindset, philosophy, wealth, investing, and relationships. He also wrote a book called Soft Skills. It’s a great read; I invite you to give this book a read.

I’m also working on a simple RPG that will use an Active Time Battle System. I’ve always been a fan of battle systems in RPGs. I’m way more interesting the the working of battle systems than I am in the story lines. ⚔

Ever since I was introduced to the ATBS in Final Fantasy IV (and it was elaborated on in Final Fantasy VI), I’ve always been fascinated by it.

There is so much involved in this type of game, such as inventory, moving around in maps, stats, and the various intricacies involved in building a battle system.

This is a very exciting project, as I’ve never worked on an RPG before. Neither as side project (until now), or a client project – though I’d LOVE to work on a client’s RPG!

By the way, if you’re looking for a coder to help you build a 2D tile-based, single-player RPG, get in touch with me through this contact form, or e-mail me directly at cartrell@gameplaycoder.com. 😉

That’s it for now, guys. Take care,

– C. out.

P.S.: And should I survive all that, let’s not forget about card games, which I’m still considering specializing in. I want to make a battle card system (think collectible card game), that has mechanics similar to Yu-Gi-Oh!. It’s really the automation of the mechanics of this game that fascinate me. This will likely be THE most difficult game I’ve ever worked on, but I’m looking forward to the challenge.

How to Create a Blog That Boosts Your Software Development Career

Hey guys.

No updates for Thunderjack! in this post, but they’ll be back soon.

This post, I wanted to take some time to reiterate why I created this website.

I previously mentioned in my article, The “Taking Control Of Your Life” Contract, that I’ve been following John Sonmez for a while now. He is the founder of Simple Programmer, a company that helps software developers improve themselves, both professionally, and personally.

In efforts to improve my career as a freelance gameplay programmer, I found John Sonmez, SP, and his free course on creating a blog. This inspired me to go, “You know what? Fuck it. I’m gonna take the plunge, start start this blog, and see what happens”. 😠

It’s a five-part course that goes over several topics, such as getting set up with web hosting, choosing a theme, coming up with post ideas, and a very important aspect, remaining consistent. The course is split up into sections, and each section contains actionable to-do items that break down the process of getting started.

Staying consistent in keeping your blog updated at some regular interval is so important and is . I’ve made a commitment to one post per week. Occasionally, I can squeeze two in there, but as long as I can post at least once, I’m fine.

At the end of the course, John would like you to share his free course, and talk about it on your blog. Hence this article ✔

If you’re a software developer of any kind, and you do not have a blog, I invite you to consider starting one. A blog can help with improving your job opportunities, get your name out there, and establish yourself as an authority in your area of expertise. It will take time (think years). It won’t be a success overnight, and there are no guarantees that anything will happen.

John has one of many videos about blogging:

Finally, on a side note, John also has a book out called Soft Skills, which is a book that helps you to improve on that that – your soft skills. It covers topis like marketing yourself, learning how to learn, improving your career, productivity, and even fitness, finances, and spiritual balance. While the book is geared towards software developers, anyone can read this book. It’s an awesome book; I highly recommended it.

Well that’s it for this article. Look forward to additional on developing those soft skills.

Thanks for your continued support. I’ll talk to you next time. Take care.

– C. out.

Creating a Blog to Boost Your Career

Hey.

Putting yourself out there can be a challenging task. At least it is for me.

As I am working to advance my career, I’ve been hearing a lot about putting out your own content. Owning your own online space. I mean a space you can really call your own. YouTube is an excellent resource, but you don’t own the platform. Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn are also great resources, but you don’t own those platforms, either, no matter how long you’ve been on them, how many posts or videos you’ve made, how many followers you have, or how many likes you get.

What I’m talking about is having your own website or blog, hosted on a domain that YOU OWN. And on there is where you can post all your content. Content is king. More content! Om nom nom, rawr, rawr, RAWR!!

I’ve been following John Sonmez for quite some time now. He’s an highly successful entrepreneur, and author of two best-seller books, Soft Skills: The Software Developer’s Life Manual, and The Complete Software Developer’s Career Guide. He’s also the founder of Simple Programmer, a site which helps software developers advance their careers, on both the technical and interpersonal sides. He also provides coaching in several areas of life such as business, health and fitness, personal finance, and mental & social advancement. He also created over 50 online courses for Pluralsight, which is a software developer training platform. I don’t want to seem remiss by leaving things off here, but in a nutshell, he provides lots of value to his customers, clients, and followers.

One of John’s products is a blogging course, Creating a Blog to Boost Your Career. It’s a free 5-part e-mail course that will help get you set up with starting and hosting your own blog website. It will walk you through finding hosting, coming up with ideas to post about, and getting traffic.

If you’re wondering how to take your software development career to the next level, be it getting a higher paying job, a raise, more freelancing clients, or raising your freelance rates, a blog may be just what you’re looking for. I’d recommend giving this free course a try.

That’s all for now. Thanks for reading!
– C. out.