Lapis-chan

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Lua-tan

I've been away from web development for several years now but I've recently wanted to take another look at it, maybe do some freelance work, etc. I've been looking around at different tools lately and found a really awesome framework called Lapis. Lapis allows you to write rich web applications using Lua, a language I both know very well, and enjoy to use. Lapis sits on top of OpenResty, a customized nginx package that enables direct Lua scripting on the web. Lapis has a lot of really great built-in tools including a Lua-scriptable templating engine, built-in input verification, database models for both PostgreSQL and MySQL, and so much more. But not too much more. Lapis sticks with Lua's principles and only includes the tools that are required and nothing else.

Using Lua is great, and using Lua and Lapis to write web applications is a real treat compared to other

Ludum Dare 33: Post Mortem

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Shark Swimulator Title Screen

Another Ludum Dare has come and gone. Colby and I decided to participate again, this time taking a more active approach than four months ago when we decided to enter on a whim. We spent about a week setting up a code base we felt comfortable with and even came up with a few ideas for each potential theme to help us get the ball rolling right away. We also too an active role in voting and were very happy with the theme for Ludum Dare 33: You are the Monster.

To prepare our code, we first decided on the libraries we would be using so we could create template project that was ready to go. Firstly, we have recently switched paradigms and have moved away from class-based object-oriented programming (OOP) in favour of data-driven entity-component-systems (ECS). We have significantly improved the readability and sensibility of our code with this

IT Simulator

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Title Screen

When I was first contacted by Binary Cocoa to help them finish off IT Simulator, I was in the middle of my Ludum Dare project. I offered to help out after the contest if they still needed me, and they were gracious enough to wait for me. I've worked with Binary Cocoa in the past on the BOCO title so I was already familiar with some other projects they had up their sleeves, including IT Simulator.

IT Simulator is a title that was made in partnership with Fisher's Technology, a private business based in Idaho, the same state where Binary Cocoa is headquartered. Fisher's Technology wanted Binary Cocoa to create an arcade-style game to be used as a marketing tool at an upcoming IT conference.

Loading Screen

The gist of IT Simulator is that you are a Fisher's Technology IT worker who must travel to various locations to fix and prevent the

My First Ludum Dare!

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Alright, now that we’ve had some much needed sleep, it’s time to talk about our project, “Not My Panties!”. We weren’t originally planning to join Ludum Dare, but once the theme was released, myself and Colby decide to at least think up some ideas. After about two hours of brainstorming, we settled on “A game where a cross-dressing boy is avoiding being outed by fighting off his pursuers with a giant DS Touch Pen”. With a subject and weapon in mind, we committed to enter our first Ludum Dare Jam.

With commitment to the jam, we needed to work out exactly what sort of game we were going to make. Since it was our first jam, we decided on taking the easy route and making a turn-based battle system. I had made one of these before for a different game, so it was minimal effort to recreate

I Released a Game!

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BOCO has finally been released! You can purchase it on the Official Website for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android or on the Google Play Store. The version on the website is DRM free and comes with the game, the sound track, and the source code (I'm sorry) and costs $3. The version from the Play Store is just the Android game and costs $1. I made this game with the guys from Binary Cocoa, so check out their website too!

I guess this officially makes me a game developer, eh?