Making a Vampire Survivors-like Game for the Playdate (ft. davemakes)

[@mixolumia]

Had a blast working with you and I hope we get to do it again sometime!

[@SquidGodDev]

You're the best Dave 🦑🦑🦑

[@SnowPeaGames]

Loved the UI and the many ways you managed to tie it to the story/concept. Looks great!

[@dangermouse8466]

Great job. Do you have any advice for a newbie like me ie where to start learning about game development?

[@mixolumia]

@@dangermouse8466 everybody has to find their own path, the thing that makes it click and gets you started is different for everyone. But youtube is full of fantastic tutorials, and there are several great free game engines you can tinker with. Learning to search them out yourself is part of the process :) Good luck!

[@jackjameson6826]

sick work

[@CodingPhase]

bro your channel always inspires me to get back into game development for fun

[@SquidGodDev]

Heck yeah

[@Otakutaru]

20:18 That part where the game unwraps and the seamless loading screen, my favourite

[@hackticdev]

Looks really nice! I will have to get a Playdate at some point to try some of these games out

[@ScOULaris]

Picked this up yesterday and am loving it. Really cool seeing how it came to be. I'll be keeping an eye out for any future PD games from you for sure.

[@kplays_6000]

I'm a AAA game developer who has spent my entire career and education with C/C++, and I'm surprised to see so little support and functionality for the C API. I hope projects like this see a full LUA SDK port to the C SDK as there is quite a lot missing from it

[@SquidGodDev]

Yeah it is a bit sparse. There is basically only one developer working on the SDK, so hopefully they can get some more help or something.

[@jaaxc1036]

I also wished they would’ve just made it a C++ API. But I guess the ABI is more stable in C. I think some people on the forums have managed to get C++ working by changing a few files and that C++ support was in the dev teams roadmap.

[@kplays_6000]

@@jaaxc1036 I've heard through compiler modifications that people managed to get C++ to work, but only the base features, no standard library or anything. But OOP is probably worth it

[@jaaxc1036]

@@kplays_6000 not just OOP, templates, concepts, modules, constexpr, lambdas, list goes on

[@kplays_6000]

@@jaaxc1036 that's amazing!! I'll look into this further!

[@Santerim]

Yay a new video

[@philstollery2073]

Doesn’t just look nice, it plays brilliantly. The graphics and audio are awesome. You might be getting tapped for season 2 from Panic for this one I think. Well done. I’m using your videos to try and get my game done. Thank you for all you share. $6 well spent on supporting this awesome resource.

[@DaddyGamerReviews]

the thought process in the sprite design was particularly inspiring! Hero being big white spot, enemies being white outlines. Genius. Overall amazing video keep it up!

[@GrilledPandas]

Really impressed with the effort from both of you lads. Gonna pick up Dave's block game

[@Weusneus]

Dude, your editing is really sick! I get the feeling you’re getting better each video. And this is coming from a professional video editor. ✨

[@SquidGodDev]

Thank you! Means a lot coming from a pro, and glad it's coming through. Lot's to learn on the editing front, but it feels manageable when I just pick a few things to learn for each video.

[@Desi-qw9fc]

That launch screen to title screen transition at 20:25 is SLICK

[@ZenkaiGoose]

Fantastic video! You guys killed!

[@ruolbu]

I appreciate that you moved away from collision detection. That's one of those moments where a 'port' of the original game mechanics to a new system just has to change the game in order to work. Like a GBA port of Need for Speed. Just not the same, but with some concessions you can make it work. Yeah the specific dynamics will change because of the different implementation and maybe the gamefeel will be different as well. But it was finished and now looks very good and fun.

[@Shaftoe76]

This was amazing to watch! Really great to see people helping one another in this space

[@DocGeraud]

This looks amazing, and the devlog was really nice to watch! Can't wait to try the game on my Playdate 😊

[@RyanNiemer]

This is simply amazing! You all have inspired me to try to make my own game(s) and I can't wait for my Playdate to arrive!

[@OdinWright]

Seeing this video again makes me so much more excited to finally get my Playdate in the next week or so.

[@jackpaice]

Dave seems like an incredibly talented dev. Would love to see more collabs between you two

[@astrangerontheinternet6901]

at 6:20 the enemies kinda look like a swam flying around

[@ShringoMania]

Hello, I think it would be great if you added a custom icon for those who prefer the view as list setting in the home page

[@grantt4532]

This is my 3rd video of yours I'm watching. And I'm probably going to continue to watch every playdate video ever

[@SquidGodDev]

First "sponsor" for the channel :) Check out Mixolumia! www.mixolumia.com/ Check out Core Fault here too!: squidgod.itch.io/core-fault Source code for this game + all my previous games are available on my Patreon: www.patreon.com/squidgoddev

[@sureshchavan4827]

Hey hi

[@Ryuu28_voidgames]

THIS GAME LOOK SOOO GOOD! The art looks amazing, the story is fun and the gameplay looks cool!

[@oliviercrenier3184]

Still waiting for my playdate (should arrive before July) but I can already say your game is on the top of my "playdate wish list" . Very interresting to follow your making of the game"... (and thanks for making me discover Mixoluma)

[@dropedan]

I'm not a game dev or even have a playdate but I've been really enjoying your content, it's just great.

[@elbee2324]

Watching this video several months ago as a random pick encouraged me to get a Playdate. Time has passed, and now I have it and this game in my hands, and I am certainly impressed. I can definitely see room and scope for a sequel. :-D

[@CitrusArchitect]

Dude!!!!!! How do you make games so fast that look so good?! This is without a doubt the most polished looking one yet, not to mention your video is extremely well edited and clearly took a lot of time! Collaborating certainly seems like it was worth it, I hope you do more in the future. I say this every single time, but gosh darn it I cannot wait for my Playdate to finally ship to me so I can buy and play all of your games!

[@SquidGodDev]

Thanks! I am speed. Well the looking good was mostly Dave, so gotta give credit where it's due.

[@benjidaniel5595]

Thank you so much for documenting your journey! I thoroughly enjoyed watching. Really gives me hope that I might one day make a game for the Playdate once my device arrives! :D

[@matthewp3497]

Your stuff is so inspiring. Got me motivated to get back to work on my own stuff!

[@_hedwyn]

This game looks incredible! I'm so excited to see games of this quality comign to the playdate, I can't wait to pick it up for myself

[@ElderEmoSupremo]

I love your content! It makes me want to get a playdate just to experience your games

[@NotFamousReal]

Really enjoyed watching this process! I made a VS like game on Android called Zombies in the Neighborhood and one thing that I've learned and love is that while initially the development felt much like "copying" features and ideas, as you test it and keep making it you end up doing unique things and it started to become more unique.

[@SquidGodDev]

Definitely our experience as well

[@Gizmosauce]

Looove how you guys made the aoe blast sound affect go with the tempo of the music!

[@michaeldamon7500]

You guys did a great job. The gameplay seems very fun and the artwork is really cool.

[@TANIMAYTO]

This looks so good! Congrats on another complete project ;0

[@AmRealityInc]

Hell ya! Another awesome video.

[@ariowirawan16]

Always love when people making interesting and fun game even with soo much limitations The arts is good and cute Amazing video as always

[@SquidGodDev]

Thanks Ario!

[@regalpigeon3414]

Hey! I’ve been watching your videos for a while now so i was so happy to see you got some inspiration from my game Neophyte! It totally caught me off guard. Good luck on this project - it looks awesome and I hope I can try it out one day

[@SquidGodDev]

AHhh Regal Pigeon hey! Love Neophyte. Your style and game polish is awesome. Looking forward to the update you're working on :)

[@ClangandChiill]

I'm impressed at how fleshed out this game actually is, and how enjoyable it looks to play. I had all but dismissed the playdate as a modern game & watch before this video. Good job! Keep it up! Would love to see you try and tackle c and really push the limits of this little console.

[@DRdarktnt]

I'm making 1 game per month (of any size and quality) this year and thanks to discovering your videos, this months project is a playdate game (even though I don't have a playdate). If all goes well (when does it ever), I'll be posting on discord for playtesting at the end of March. Keep up the good work :)

[@SquidGodDev]

1 game per month sounds like a great plan. It's definitely helped me a lot by having that sort of cadence. Looking forward to your game!

[@soviut303]

Nice work. I actually preferred some of the concept logos to the final one. The first one shown with the vertical line through the O and U look gave me the best sense of drilling down into a planet since the line sort of looked like a bore hole.

[@SquidGodDev]

Yeah they were all good tbh. Couldn't really go wrong with any of them.

[@Tomayto]

Awesome devlog and editing. Instant buy.

[@GameboyZeroOfficial]

Really enjoyed watching this video. Thanks for sharing your stories.

[@theburntcrumpet8371]

Man I wish I could justify the cost of a playdate. This looks awesome

[@MilitechCorp]

Yeah same playdate costs 450$ where I’m from and I can’t even order it from the official site for 200$. I can literally get Xbox X for 450$ with game pass so it doesn’t even make sense to buy it like I’m not rich for it but I want it so much but can’t justify the cost like you

[@SophronovArtyom]

It’s actually really impressive, wow

[@Potatocurry96]

Game looks sick and props for Dave’s help. Can’t forget about the video production, lookin buttery Squid 🧈

[@SquidGodDev]

Thanks bro :)

[@kevinmakesgames]

I've been neglecting my Playdate lately but I'm charging it back up now to install this. Great work!

[@sinfinite7516]

Wow this looks like a bunch of fun

[@simplyindev]

Love the new vid, it's great to see some collaboration projects!

[@SquidGodDev]

Thanks Justin :)

[@DommoDommo]

Wow this came out awesome! I'd love to see more on that blender render from Dave too!!

[@renaudmarshall9903]

Looks great! Can't wait until I get my Playdate to try it out personally!

[@13Sins]

Been waiting for this for so long :D

[@_gamma.]

AHA! I remember when you were doing that quad tree thing, really interesting to see how you were using it! An “oil” ability that leaves a trail might be cool, I think a weapon that shoots backwards would add nice variety

[@jolt2372]

I'm not a fan of this perticular type of genre of game, but man.. Seeing the development process and effort you guys put into it, makes me want to play it more!

[@elaquen7]

Congrats on being included in the catalog!

[@azrhyga]

Looks very great!! I like it a lot!! Good job making it :D

[@Otakutaru]

I would have used the dpad for movement and the crank for aiming, that would have made the controlability better. Being able to move and shoot the mosters behind you

[@SquidGodDev]

Physically, it's pretty tricky to use the d-pad and the crank at the same time. You kind of have to hold it in an awkward grip, so there are some accessibility considerations.

[@Otakutaru]

@@SquidGodDev Oh right

[@finnleijh6321]

this makes me want to buy a playdate good job man

[@acehomi]

Love this collab! Wish I owned a playdate.

[@TinyYellowMachine]

Let's gooooooo. Congrats on the release Dave n' Squid!

[@SquidGodDev]

TY TYM!!

[@nolatron001]

This is awesome!

[@yearls]

Omg, another reason to get a Playdate, this was fascinating to watch. XD

[@donnasquibb8256]

I think this is your best game yet

[@0everest0]

Yooo, new vid that's not a tutorial. POG.

[@tristunalekzander5608]

You don't need to recalculate the quad the tree, you can just divide the scene into squares and leave it alone. You only have to check for collisions in the same square and adjacent squares. Recalculating quad trees on the fly is for multi-threaded systems and raycasting. Remember, all you are trying to do with a quad tree is reduce the amount of times you check for collisions. You can play around with how big the squares are to get a better performance.

[@SquidGodDev]

I think I maybe should've read up more on quad trees lol. Welp, thanks for the tips - I'll use 'em if I have to do something like this again 😅

[@nightmare4lol]

Holy shit, this is really cool. Who knew collaboration was key to a great looking game?

[@ColdOneK]

artist did a heck of a job while under a 2 color constraint - game looks like it'll be fun

[@cidermanone]

I've just bought your game, and I can't wait to try it. Any idea how I can find that Tim Hei demo? Is it available for download too?

[@SquidGodDev]

He didn't release it, since he decided to focus on another project.

[@Clark326]

I don't own a playdate but this game looks really cool. I enjoyed your video. It would be nice to see you finish the other game mentioned in the video. I would also love to see you make a game inspired by Sega "Cadash" for the playdate.

[@BloodyScythe666]

the only thing I really don't like is the angle of the laser firing. I'd much rather have it either always aim for the closest enemy or fire in a swoop-animation e.g. in a quarter of a circle (ofc balancing the damage and range for that)

[@sevafinogenov]

I'd recommend taking a look at vector field pathfinding. This technique should work better with big number of agents. Anyway, this game looks awesome, was very nice to see all those optimization and tricks to make it work!

[@SquidGodDev]

Interesting - didn't think about that approach. Would be cool to see how that would work.

[@tristunalekzander5608]

The jittering with the diagonal happens because you aren't moving vertically at the same time as moving horizontally. Instead of incrementing the camera's floating point position, increment a single floating point number, which when it reaches 1 it resets, and you move in the desired direction. This ensures that when you move diagonally, you move 1 vertical and 1 horizontal pixel at the same exact time. The interpolation is a relatively slow function and I can still see the jitteriness even after you have implemented it, because the character itself and all the enemies have the same problem.

[@SquidGodDev]

Oh interesting. That makes sense - I'll make sure to implement it like that next time. Thanks for the tip

[@tristunalekzander5608]

​@@SquidGodDev No prob! I did realize though if you are still using the crank for steering, ignore my advice, cause my advice only works if you can only move in straight lines and 45 degree angles.

[@NachozMan]

Such a cool piece of hardware

[@hulubangaGutenWami]

This is awesome

[@gsilverfish]

Could you explain why the tilemap was affecting performance? I thought the whole point of tiles was that they are efficient! (Sorry my comment is a year late, haha)

[@SquidGodDev]

The biggest effect on performance was really changing it from a more complex map to a simple one with 4 outside walls and a few square blocks that cut down on the number of collision rects that needed to be created, rather than a change from a tilemap to not a tilemap. Tilemap is probably more efficient in the complex shape case because it can optimize the number of collision rects being created by combining different sections, but the map was sort of big so it was still tanking performance.

[@TarikA]

Love the laser. Great sprites, great "port" of Vampire Survivors!

[@EmoryM]

This stuff was figured out a while ago by Craig Reynolds, you want to look at Boids and steering behaviors.

[@SquidGodDev]

That'd be interesting to try, though I don't know what the performance impact would be since you're looping over all the enemies and doing a couple division calculations for every pair every frame.

[@MELL0WD]

You are great at what you are doing💥🤙

[@TommasoDS]

Looks AWESOME! But as an italian, I feel the need of the innuendos and double meanings that Vampire Survivors has! XD

[@Kasairoe]

Wow, thats pretty cool

[@modology]

would be cool if there is a way to break the capped 30fps. something around 50fps would make it so much smoother

[@SquidGodDev]

Yeah writing it in C you can definitely get it to work. I'll need to explore writing games in C at some point

[@Pinkurori]

It looks so nice holy shit. Good job you two 😁👍

[@ydz_666]

I think this is a masterpeice. Really.

[@SquidGodDev]

Thank you! You're too kind

[@ogpillow0872]

I cant wait for my playdate to ship! as soon as it does, im buying this game immediately, it looks so cute and fun!

[@SoupySnax]

I’m still waiting for mine to be shipped, still a while away. 5th Batch. But I’m definitely picking up this game when I do.

[@DejayClayton]

Equipment icons look nice, like the original Metroid powerups

[@hollyching7686]

gosh I love this! I hope you collab together again!!!

[@denvernaicker8250]

Well done!

[@Frevisable]

Well, if I finally buy a playdate it’s gonna be a must have game ❤

[@Ownich-h2q]

What a great game and vlog ! I wish this video has more views! Btw, how many hours did you spend from idea to implementation ? Once again great job!

[@SquidGodDev]

Hours? Not sure actually. It was over a few months, so at least a hundred - maybe a couple.

[@Ownich-h2q]

@@SquidGodDev Thank you for your reply !

[@madfuture1984]

Downloaded this without even finishing the video 😂 I saw Vampire Hunters and knew I needed it. Just side loading now!

[@conradofmf]

Loved this game. Don't have a Playdate, but I would definetly buy some kind of mobile ver. to try it out.

[@OscarRobbing]

Game looks sick

[@andeecollard]

Very cool collaboration ❤

[@bravadoavocado2382]

I love bullet heavens, fav new game genre

[@goobertnelius]

Honestly after watching this video I would buy a play date mainly so I can make the spaghett code I write more efficient and less like spaghett

[@Gh0styGames]

Is there a store with all the games you've developed in it? Also how can dl the Metroidvania game you made onto playdate or its not available?

[@SquidGodDev]

Yeah they're all on my Itch page: squidgod.itch.io/ Core Fault is also on Catalog: play.date/games/core-fault/

[@Farbklex]

Dave be like: Some mockups, gameplay ideas, graphics, animations, original soundtrack oh and let me casually boot up Blender again.

[@SquidGodDev]

IKR!! Crazy awesome and talented

[@ThisUploaded]

Your projects really make me wish playdates weren't so hard to come by at a reasonable price. Also makes me wonder how much of this stuff would be possible on the Gameboy using something like Gameboy studio.

[@SquidGodDev]

I would love to try out GBStudio at some point to see what I could do there