Elan Ruskin
@despair.bsky.social
Using integers and making games. Also @despair on Twitter, @crash@mastodon.gamedev.place
Pinned
Elan Ruskin
@despair.bsky.social
· Dec 28
Normalize checking whether things are true before believing them.
“Predator: Badlands” was much better than I expected. Story’s built like a video game: weapons are introduced, demonstrated, used with improvisation. There’s boss battles and a stealth sequence with Ghost-style chain assassination. A new tech tree opens in the third act. (1/2)
November 10, 2025 at 2:15 AM
“Predator: Badlands” was much better than I expected. Story’s built like a video game: weapons are introduced, demonstrated, used with improvisation. There’s boss battles and a stealth sequence with Ghost-style chain assassination. A new tech tree opens in the third act. (1/2)
Probably the ultimate Turing test.
October 15, 2025 at 6:07 AM
Probably the ultimate Turing test.
x86 `bsr` opcode gives an undefined* result for input value 0. Windows intrinsic _BitScanReverse64()'s returns 0 for input 0 to handle this case. Use it in a ternary statement to generate branchless code.
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
October 15, 2025 at 1:19 AM
x86 `bsr` opcode gives an undefined* result for input value 0. Windows intrinsic _BitScanReverse64()'s returns 0 for input 0 to handle this case. Use it in a ternary statement to generate branchless code.
Hope this helps.
Hope this helps.
Tron: Ares is a very colorful movie in which many things happen. But it misses a big part of what made the original "Tron" work. Since no one asked, let's talk a bit about cyberpunk, video games, and religious allegory.
October 13, 2025 at 6:09 AM
Tron: Ares is a very colorful movie in which many things happen. But it misses a big part of what made the original "Tron" work. Since no one asked, let's talk a bit about cyberpunk, video games, and religious allegory.
[Me: buys various plumbing and cleaning chemicals at hardware store]
Cashier (joking): Heh, are you building a bomb?
Correct answer: "Ha ha no, these are all for different rooms."
My answer (distracted): "What? No, combining this would just make chlorine gas; you'd need an oxidizer for detonation."
Cashier (joking): Heh, are you building a bomb?
Correct answer: "Ha ha no, these are all for different rooms."
My answer (distracted): "What? No, combining this would just make chlorine gas; you'd need an oxidizer for detonation."
September 30, 2025 at 12:04 AM
[Me: buys various plumbing and cleaning chemicals at hardware store]
Cashier (joking): Heh, are you building a bomb?
Correct answer: "Ha ha no, these are all for different rooms."
My answer (distracted): "What? No, combining this would just make chlorine gas; you'd need an oxidizer for detonation."
Cashier (joking): Heh, are you building a bomb?
Correct answer: "Ha ha no, these are all for different rooms."
My answer (distracted): "What? No, combining this would just make chlorine gas; you'd need an oxidizer for detonation."
Marvel’s Wolverine - Gameplay Trailer | PS5 Games
YouTube video by PlayStation
youtu.be
September 24, 2025 at 10:43 PM
In 426BC, Athenian politician Cleon prosecuted the comedian Aristophanes for making fun of him in front of foreigners. In response, Aristophanes produced The Knights, a play comprised entirely of slander against Cleon. It won Best Comedy in 424BC.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kni...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kni...
September 20, 2025 at 3:53 AM
In 426BC, Athenian politician Cleon prosecuted the comedian Aristophanes for making fun of him in front of foreigners. In response, Aristophanes produced The Knights, a play comprised entirely of slander against Cleon. It won Best Comedy in 424BC.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kni...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Kni...
Just noticed I misspelled “prefetching” as “prekvetching” in a dozen comments, and tbh that might be a more honest description of how I perf
September 4, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Just noticed I misspelled “prefetching” as “prekvetching” in a dozen comments, and tbh that might be a more honest description of how I perf
Tim Sweeney is catching heat for saying games perform poorly when their devs leave optimization til too late, and … is this not obviously true? You have to plan for the hardware you’ll ship on the same way you need to measure a room before putting furniture in it.
clawsomegamer.com/tim-sweeney-...
clawsomegamer.com/tim-sweeney-...
Tim Sweeney on Unreal Engine 5 Optimization Issues: "The main cause is order of development"
Unreal Engine 5 has optimization issues, but Tim Sweeney think developer education can solve the problems.
clawsomegamer.com
August 31, 2025 at 10:42 PM
Tim Sweeney is catching heat for saying games perform poorly when their devs leave optimization til too late, and … is this not obviously true? You have to plan for the hardware you’ll ship on the same way you need to measure a room before putting furniture in it.
clawsomegamer.com/tim-sweeney-...
clawsomegamer.com/tim-sweeney-...
What the heck is going on here? Walter White?! I just asked it whether I should use Fantastik or Windex in my bathroom, and now it’s dropping hints about cooking meth.
August 28, 2025 at 7:30 AM
What the heck is going on here? Walter White?! I just asked it whether I should use Fantastik or Windex in my bathroom, and now it’s dropping hints about cooking meth.
Copilot is alarmingly enthusiastic about this topic.
August 23, 2025 at 12:59 AM
Copilot is alarmingly enthusiastic about this topic.
The four tiers of error report severity:
① ASSERT()
② ERROR()
③ WARN()
④ KVETCH()
① ASSERT()
② ERROR()
③ WARN()
④ KVETCH()
August 18, 2025 at 10:35 PM
The four tiers of error report severity:
① ASSERT()
② ERROR()
③ WARN()
④ KVETCH()
① ASSERT()
② ERROR()
③ WARN()
④ KVETCH()
Well, that Strange New Worlds was extremely TOS in the best way. Maximum Roddenberry. Set phasers to allegory.
August 18, 2025 at 12:00 AM
Well, that Strange New Worlds was extremely TOS in the best way. Maximum Roddenberry. Set phasers to allegory.
A letter to the editor of a Burbank newspaper is very concerned that letting people build low-rise apartment buildings along a major bus route would replacement single-family houses with rental units, making the neighborhood less affordable.
The single-family houses:
The single-family houses:
August 8, 2025 at 3:01 AM
A letter to the editor of a Burbank newspaper is very concerned that letting people build low-rise apartment buildings along a major bus route would replacement single-family houses with rental units, making the neighborhood less affordable.
The single-family houses:
The single-family houses:
One day left to submit talk proposals for GDC 2026! They're trying a variety of new formats next year.
gdconf.com/gdc-call-for...
gdconf.com/gdc-call-for...
GDC Call for Submissions | Game Developers Conference
Submit talks for GDC 2026.
gdconf.com
August 6, 2025 at 8:23 PM
One day left to submit talk proposals for GDC 2026! They're trying a variety of new formats next year.
gdconf.com/gdc-call-for...
gdconf.com/gdc-call-for...
Reposted by Elan Ruskin
roman burrito thread
you also have the laganum, which is (at some points) a pancake-ish kinda dough snack. slather on a "salsa" of garlic, onions, olives, and vinegar. pile on some roasted lamb or pork and caramelized onions, with some parsley or cilantro. chickpeas sub for beans. artichoke hearts, too
July 29, 2025 at 6:43 PM
roman burrito thread
July 23, 2025 at 3:17 AM
Pet peeve:
when people hit enter
on every
pause in their thinking
so
a single sentence
becomes a dozen messages
stretched out in time
over minutes
but each one needing me to look
if they're finally done
and waiting for me to reply.
I call this "Shatnerspacing"
when people hit enter
on every
pause in their thinking
so
a single sentence
becomes a dozen messages
stretched out in time
over minutes
but each one needing me to look
if they're finally done
and waiting for me to reply.
I call this "Shatnerspacing"
July 22, 2025 at 4:31 PM
Pet peeve:
when people hit enter
on every
pause in their thinking
so
a single sentence
becomes a dozen messages
stretched out in time
over minutes
but each one needing me to look
if they're finally done
and waiting for me to reply.
I call this "Shatnerspacing"
when people hit enter
on every
pause in their thinking
so
a single sentence
becomes a dozen messages
stretched out in time
over minutes
but each one needing me to look
if they're finally done
and waiting for me to reply.
I call this "Shatnerspacing"
This, and: the most impactful writing work in games is in barks, lore, environmental narrative, diegetic text. Games are not screenplays! The player experiences the story by inhabiting it.
This is true for videogames writers.
I've met too many writers (at every stage of their career) who think they can arrive and write 'the big stuff'.
It's normal, it's natural, you should want to write that, but you also need to get over it.
The barks are vital. The level dialogue essential. 'We-
I've met too many writers (at every stage of their career) who think they can arrive and write 'the big stuff'.
It's normal, it's natural, you should want to write that, but you also need to get over it.
The barks are vital. The level dialogue essential. 'We-
Something no one tells you about working anywhere as an artist:
Not everything you do at work is "portfolio worthy". It's just stuff you did at work, you won't always get the cool kid assignments. Which means your pro work is just a curated archive of projects throughout your career.
Not everything you do at work is "portfolio worthy". It's just stuff you did at work, you won't always get the cool kid assignments. Which means your pro work is just a curated archive of projects throughout your career.
July 10, 2025 at 7:56 PM
This, and: the most impactful writing work in games is in barks, lore, environmental narrative, diegetic text. Games are not screenplays! The player experiences the story by inhabiting it.
Years later, still the best assert message I've written.
July 7, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Years later, still the best assert message I've written.
On this day I like to reread the Declaration of Independence, which contains one of my favorite things: an itemized list of grievances.
www.archives.gov/founding-doc...
www.archives.gov/founding-doc...
July 5, 2025 at 1:28 AM
On this day I like to reread the Declaration of Independence, which contains one of my favorite things: an itemized list of grievances.
www.archives.gov/founding-doc...
www.archives.gov/founding-doc...
This fight sequence where #Murderbot pattern-matches all of the standard SecUnit attack animations so it can parry perfectly makes me suspect someone on that VFX team is an Elden Ring expert.
youtu.be/jp_4Uc8G4fA?...
youtu.be/jp_4Uc8G4fA?...
Murderbot — DeltFall Fights SecUnit | Scene | Apple TV+
YouTube video by Apple TV
youtu.be
June 20, 2025 at 8:59 PM
This fight sequence where #Murderbot pattern-matches all of the standard SecUnit attack animations so it can parry perfectly makes me suspect someone on that VFX team is an Elden Ring expert.
youtu.be/jp_4Uc8G4fA?...
youtu.be/jp_4Uc8G4fA?...