Dennispr
@dennis.videogameworkshop.com
I make games that might teach you a thing or two! Currently making cool stuff at www.videogameworkshop.com
I talk about designing developing and playing games + programming.
PhD, Speaker: LEGO, GDC, TEDx
Previous: Hero Elementary + Skillsville
I talk about designing developing and playing games + programming.
PhD, Speaker: LEGO, GDC, TEDx
Previous: Hero Elementary + Skillsville
Pinned
We made a PBS Kids game! If you've ever wondered how the web games you played as a kid were developed, check this episode out!
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames #podcast #edusky
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames #podcast #edusky
How We Made a PBS Kids Game: Sound It Out!
YouTube video by Videogame Workshop
youtu.be
In this episode we talked about the design of our PBS Kids educational game "Sound It Out!" If you want a behind the scenes look, check it out.
Reposted by Dennispr
Last Headliner puzzle of the year is up now!
"$400K ____ shipment hijacked en route to Illinois Costco locations"
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames
"$400K ____ shipment hijacked en route to Illinois Costco locations"
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames
HEADLINER
A crossword puzzle about ridiculous news in horrific times.
www.videogameworkshop.com
December 31, 2025 at 11:32 PM
Last Headliner puzzle of the year is up now!
"$400K ____ shipment hijacked en route to Illinois Costco locations"
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames
"$400K ____ shipment hijacked en route to Illinois Costco locations"
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames
Reposted by Dennispr
Like most RPGs, Pokémon has a lot of menus. The funny thing is, there could be A LOT more. Pokémon cleverly hides it's menus inside the game’s world.
#gamedev #indiegamedev #gamedesign
#gamedev #indiegamedev #gamedesign
Diegetic Menus in Pokémon
Pokémon cleverly hides menus inside the game’s world.
open.substack.com
December 30, 2025 at 9:16 PM
Like most RPGs, Pokémon has a lot of menus. The funny thing is, there could be A LOT more. Pokémon cleverly hides it's menus inside the game’s world.
#gamedev #indiegamedev #gamedesign
#gamedev #indiegamedev #gamedesign
Need a silly christmas eve puzzle with the weird and wacky headlines from last week? Check out this week’s Headliner!
Weekly Headliner puzzle up now!
"Washington state officials warn of toilet ____ after floods: ‘Try to stay calm’"
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames
"Washington state officials warn of toilet ____ after floods: ‘Try to stay calm’"
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames
HEADLINER
A crossword puzzle about ridiculous news in horrific times.
www.videogameworkshop.com
December 24, 2025 at 6:15 PM
Need a silly christmas eve puzzle with the weird and wacky headlines from last week? Check out this week’s Headliner!
Traveling for the holidays? Charlie and I talked about travel in games!
Fast-time, Real-time, Hub-and-spoke, Over-world, and Level-select. There are many ways to travel in games! We're chatting about great uses of each type, and why you might choose one over another.
#gamedev #indiegamedev #podcast
#gamedev #indiegamedev #podcast
Travel Mechanics in Games
YouTube video by Videogame Workshop
youtu.be
December 22, 2025 at 1:38 AM
Traveling for the holidays? Charlie and I talked about travel in games!
When playtesters say the puzzle is too hard, but you're already out of beta.
#gamedev #indiedev #gamedesign
#gamedev #indiedev #gamedesign
December 19, 2025 at 3:57 PM
When playtesters say the puzzle is too hard, but you're already out of beta.
#gamedev #indiedev #gamedesign
#gamedev #indiedev #gamedesign
Every dev should have a tweening library ready to go. Don't have one? Take a look at this? Don't know what tweening is? Check out this video: youtu.be/Fy0aCDmgnxg?... tweening takes a small amount of time but really adds juice!
#Gamedev #indiedev #gamefeel
#Gamedev #indiedev #gamefeel
December 8, 2025 at 6:19 PM
Every dev should have a tweening library ready to go. Don't have one? Take a look at this? Don't know what tweening is? Check out this video: youtu.be/Fy0aCDmgnxg?... tweening takes a small amount of time but really adds juice!
#Gamedev #indiedev #gamefeel
#Gamedev #indiedev #gamefeel
Alien: Isolation is still my #1 movie to game adaptation. It's strange how many adaptations miss the mark because standard action / shooter mechanics don't mesh with the actual tone of the movie but they do it anyway cause they appeal to mass market.
#gamedesign
#gamedesign
There are a few main problems games based on movies tend to struggle with, giving the whole sub-genera a bad rep.
#GameDev #IndieGameDev #GameDesign
#GameDev #IndieGameDev #GameDesign
Games Based on Movies Are Hard To Make | Videogame Workshop
Get more from Videogame Workshop on Patreon
www.patreon.com
December 5, 2025 at 5:05 PM
Alien: Isolation is still my #1 movie to game adaptation. It's strange how many adaptations miss the mark because standard action / shooter mechanics don't mesh with the actual tone of the movie but they do it anyway cause they appeal to mass market.
#gamedesign
#gamedesign
In this episode we talked about the design of our PBS Kids educational game "Sound It Out!" If you want a behind the scenes look, check it out.
We made a PBS Kids game! If you've ever wondered how the web games you played as a kid were developed, check this episode out!
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames #podcast #edusky
#gamedev #indiegamedev #indiegames #podcast #edusky
How We Made a PBS Kids Game: Sound It Out!
YouTube video by Videogame Workshop
youtu.be
December 3, 2025 at 1:55 PM
In this episode we talked about the design of our PBS Kids educational game "Sound It Out!" If you want a behind the scenes look, check it out.
Why did I randomly think about Chess AI and how humans react to it today? Because I don’t think modern devs understand how demoralizing it is for AI systems to automatically reject appliations. Especially if there is no feedback about why.
December 2, 2025 at 4:44 PM
Why did I randomly think about Chess AI and how humans react to it today? Because I don’t think modern devs understand how demoralizing it is for AI systems to automatically reject appliations. Especially if there is no feedback about why.
When the first Chess game with AI released, devs learned a lot about human egos. Mainly, if a person spends a long time thinking about a move it’s demoralizing if the AI instanly counters.
The fix? Devs added an artifical snooze to the AI to simulate thinking.
#gamedev #gamedesign #indiedev
The fix? Devs added an artifical snooze to the AI to simulate thinking.
#gamedev #gamedesign #indiedev
December 2, 2025 at 4:41 PM
When the first Chess game with AI released, devs learned a lot about human egos. Mainly, if a person spends a long time thinking about a move it’s demoralizing if the AI instanly counters.
The fix? Devs added an artifical snooze to the AI to simulate thinking.
#gamedev #gamedesign #indiedev
The fix? Devs added an artifical snooze to the AI to simulate thinking.
#gamedev #gamedesign #indiedev
I said Ludo Narrative Dissonance. Once. Unironically.
December 1, 2025 at 6:11 PM
I said Ludo Narrative Dissonance. Once. Unironically.
I love looking at old design docs. Here’s one form the early days of Donkey Kong Country where they were still working out how to get Diddy kong and the Animal partners. It’s cool to see what made it and what didn’t.
#gamedev #gamedesign #indeidev
#gamedev #gamedesign #indeidev
December 1, 2025 at 3:58 PM
I love looking at old design docs. Here’s one form the early days of Donkey Kong Country where they were still working out how to get Diddy kong and the Animal partners. It’s cool to see what made it and what didn’t.
#gamedev #gamedesign #indeidev
#gamedev #gamedesign #indeidev
While I'm not a huge fan of alternate controllers, this gameboy peripheral that gassed kids with nitrous oxide was probably the best way to play Yoda Stories.
November 28, 2025 at 4:25 PM
While I'm not a huge fan of alternate controllers, this gameboy peripheral that gassed kids with nitrous oxide was probably the best way to play Yoda Stories.
November 27, 2025 at 7:34 PM
I made a joke a long time ago that games would eventually market themselves as artisanal, small batch, and cruelty free.
#gamedev #indiedev
#gamedev #indiedev
Indie game developers have a new sales pitch: being ‘AI free’
Indie game developers have a new sales pitch: being ‘AI free’
“We can produce results that meet our quality standards without its assistance.”
buff.ly
November 25, 2025 at 6:57 PM
I love videos like this. No one sets out to make a bad game or have a nightmare development, so hearing how it got to that point is always super interesting and @mattmcmuscles.bsky.social does a great job of conveying that story.
This one certainly left a long, confusing and arduous bloodstained trail in it's wake...
WATCH - youtu.be/jH3zvmNcxIs
WATCH - youtu.be/jH3zvmNcxIs
November 24, 2025 at 4:50 AM
I love videos like this. No one sets out to make a bad game or have a nightmare development, so hearing how it got to that point is always super interesting and @mattmcmuscles.bsky.social does a great job of conveying that story.
Reposted by Dennispr
At the most fundamental level, bloodborne is a game about maintaining legacy code
November 21, 2025 at 2:30 PM
At the most fundamental level, bloodborne is a game about maintaining legacy code
Reposted by Dennispr
Players can’t count… or read… or listen. At least not in the way game designers assume they can.
#GameDev #IndieGameDev #GameDesign
#GameDev #IndieGameDev #GameDesign
Your Players Can’t Count | Videogame Workshop
Get more from Videogame Workshop on Patreon
www.patreon.com
November 19, 2025 at 3:48 AM
Players can’t count… or read… or listen. At least not in the way game designers assume they can.
#GameDev #IndieGameDev #GameDesign
#GameDev #IndieGameDev #GameDesign
I want to rig my router to play the internet dialup modem sound every time a new client logs on.
November 18, 2025 at 2:56 AM
I want to rig my router to play the internet dialup modem sound every time a new client logs on.
Reposted by Dennispr
Never forget the all-time greatest placeholder asset, from Doom 64
November 17, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Never forget the all-time greatest placeholder asset, from Doom 64
Metroid is such an interesting franchise in that it's generally not super popular in japan, but is a big hit in the US. Devs from past games like other M have talked about actively trying to make it more appealing for broader audiences and yet seemed to alienate the core audience by doing so.
November 15, 2025 at 2:58 AM
Metroid is such an interesting franchise in that it's generally not super popular in japan, but is a big hit in the US. Devs from past games like other M have talked about actively trying to make it more appealing for broader audiences and yet seemed to alienate the core audience by doing so.
Instead of our usual podcast this week, check out our #ThinkyCon talk about how your players can’t Read, Count, or Listen - and what to do about it. www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEvW...
#gamedev #indiedev #gamedesign @videogameworkshop.com @thinkygames.com @charlie.videogameworkshop.com
#gamedev #indiedev #gamedesign @videogameworkshop.com @thinkygames.com @charlie.videogameworkshop.com
Adults Can’t Count Either - Dennis Ramirez & Charlie Mackin (ThinkyCon 2025)
YouTube video by Thinky Games
www.youtube.com
November 13, 2025 at 7:14 PM
Instead of our usual podcast this week, check out our #ThinkyCon talk about how your players can’t Read, Count, or Listen - and what to do about it. www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEvW...
#gamedev #indiedev #gamedesign @videogameworkshop.com @thinkygames.com @charlie.videogameworkshop.com
#gamedev #indiedev #gamedesign @videogameworkshop.com @thinkygames.com @charlie.videogameworkshop.com
Reposted by Dennispr
Shader systems are ridiculously powerful if you’re clever enough.
Most people use them to create visual effects. You know what’s cooler?
Running Linux.
Inside an emulated RISC-V CPU. Inside a pixel shader. Inside of VRChat...
Most people use them to create visual effects. You know what’s cooler?
Running Linux.
Inside an emulated RISC-V CPU. Inside a pixel shader. Inside of VRChat...
November 10, 2025 at 9:44 PM
Shader systems are ridiculously powerful if you’re clever enough.
Most people use them to create visual effects. You know what’s cooler?
Running Linux.
Inside an emulated RISC-V CPU. Inside a pixel shader. Inside of VRChat...
Most people use them to create visual effects. You know what’s cooler?
Running Linux.
Inside an emulated RISC-V CPU. Inside a pixel shader. Inside of VRChat...