#12 Learning Game Dev - Week 0
Game Dev Bootcamp Preparation!
Happy new year!
To start off 2025 - I got accepted into a 12-week, fully-funded (by the West of England Combined Authority - or WECA) Game Dev bootcamp! This works really well for me as I’ve spent the past year or so growing as an animator, but I’ve consistently found myself missing the ability to move beyond authoring animations.
I’ve also been getting into game dev as a whole - some of the most fun I had last year was during the 3 game jams I did. Again, I found myself hamstrung by my lack of programming ability, and I relied either on my teammate or utilising no-code solutions (GB Studio).
We’re to start the first session of proper learning on Thursday, so before then I’m spending my time playing some games the tutors have recommended - Tunic and Death’s Door. (They also suggested Stanley’s Parable, but I’ve played that already.)
Both of these games are similar - isometric-3D, explorer-adventurer Legend of Zelda type games made in Unity (the engine of choice for the next 12 weeks) . I’m really, really enjoying them - Tunic, in particular. They’re both also free on XBox Game Pass which works out really well for me, as we’ve gotten a couple months free of Game Pass thanks to switching to EE from Virgin.
I think it’s an informal goal of the bootcamp to develop a prototype by the end of the 12 weeks, and so I’ve been coming up with ideas of fun mechanics to develop. I’m aiming for a 15-minute long demo of polished gameplay that shows of my skills, focusing on good animation and fun gameplay. Right now I’m leaning towards an isometric-3D game, definitely informed by Tunic and Death’s Door. They’re just so fun!
The longest I’ve spent on a game is 7 days, and I came away with about 5 minutes of content (No Money, No Problem). I’m keen to see if 15 polished minutes is way over the top, or easily achievable in 12 weeks. Mathematically it should be a breeze, but who knows?
Part of the bootcamp too is a networking event with game studios at the end of the 12 weeks, so I’m very keen to make something fun that I can show off! There’ll also be some in-person game jams, which I’m very eager to attend and meet other local devs.
Another thing I’ve been doing to prep for this bootcamp and to get my feet wet with Unity is by going through this video by GMTK:
Mark has an excellent pedagogical approach and while I’ve blown through the actual tutorial portion fairly quickly, I’m looking forward to tackling the bonus challenges and also recreating a classic game. I’m thinking of either Tetris or Snake.
That’s it! I’ll keep updating my blog as the weeks continue on. Thanks for reading!