Nick Burns (Alt-Fire Dev)
@nickburns.bsky.social
Indie Game Developer, Designer, and Educator
Cofounder of SkyPyre Studios / www.skypyre.com
Working on Alt-Fire / www.skypyre.com/alt-fire
(He/Him)
Website / www.nickburns.ca
YouTube / www.youtube.com/nickburns
ArtStation / www.artstation.com/nickburns
Cofounder of SkyPyre Studios / www.skypyre.com
Working on Alt-Fire / www.skypyre.com/alt-fire
(He/Him)
Website / www.nickburns.ca
YouTube / www.youtube.com/nickburns
ArtStation / www.artstation.com/nickburns
Okay a really like the design of the new Affinity app.
Not sure about the Canva integration, but as of now you can ignore it/hide it.
Finally my team can all get on the same version of it too since its free!
#affinity #graphicdesign
Not sure about the Canva integration, but as of now you can ignore it/hide it.
Finally my team can all get on the same version of it too since its free!
#affinity #graphicdesign
October 31, 2025 at 2:00 PM
Okay a really like the design of the new Affinity app.
Not sure about the Canva integration, but as of now you can ignore it/hide it.
Finally my team can all get on the same version of it too since its free!
#affinity #graphicdesign
Not sure about the Canva integration, but as of now you can ignore it/hide it.
Finally my team can all get on the same version of it too since its free!
#affinity #graphicdesign
A sneak peek behind the scenes of a #skypyre convention setup!
@tjmoyes.bsky.social and I collaborated to build this beauty - THE BOOTH!
A pair of screens on the front, in two laptops running it from behind. With ample storage!
#indiedev #gamedev #vglx
@tjmoyes.bsky.social and I collaborated to build this beauty - THE BOOTH!
A pair of screens on the front, in two laptops running it from behind. With ample storage!
#indiedev #gamedev #vglx
October 26, 2025 at 8:25 PM
A sneak peek behind the scenes of a #skypyre convention setup!
@tjmoyes.bsky.social and I collaborated to build this beauty - THE BOOTH!
A pair of screens on the front, in two laptops running it from behind. With ample storage!
#indiedev #gamedev #vglx
@tjmoyes.bsky.social and I collaborated to build this beauty - THE BOOTH!
A pair of screens on the front, in two laptops running it from behind. With ample storage!
#indiedev #gamedev #vglx
October 25, 2025 at 1:17 PM
I've never felt quite as seen as I do now that Unreal - a game engine started with FPS games mind you - has native first person rendering 🙌
3 tick boxes later and you have this. No panini projection, no distortion, just - works.
#altfire #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
3 tick boxes later and you have this. No panini projection, no distortion, just - works.
#altfire #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
June 21, 2025 at 9:44 PM
I've never felt quite as seen as I do now that Unreal - a game engine started with FPS games mind you - has native first person rendering 🙌
3 tick boxes later and you have this. No panini projection, no distortion, just - works.
#altfire #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
3 tick boxes later and you have this. No panini projection, no distortion, just - works.
#altfire #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
#WishlistWednesday time! Say it with me now:
Become the bubblemancer's apprentice, and wishlist #Mushroam on Steam!
Here are some shots from the #demo you can play right now!
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5
#pixelart #voxel #puzzle #platformer
Become the bubblemancer's apprentice, and wishlist #Mushroam on Steam!
Here are some shots from the #demo you can play right now!
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5
#pixelart #voxel #puzzle #platformer
June 11, 2025 at 12:15 PM
#WishlistWednesday time! Say it with me now:
Become the bubblemancer's apprentice, and wishlist #Mushroam on Steam!
Here are some shots from the #demo you can play right now!
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5
#pixelart #voxel #puzzle #platformer
Become the bubblemancer's apprentice, and wishlist #Mushroam on Steam!
Here are some shots from the #demo you can play right now!
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5
#pixelart #voxel #puzzle #platformer
Wow there is a crazy game on Steam right now if you go to store.steampowered.com/app/3562630/...
Instant win if you press both big green buttons!
(but actually, check out the demo and *wishlist!*)
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #puzzle #platformer #pixelart #voxel
Instant win if you press both big green buttons!
(but actually, check out the demo and *wishlist!*)
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #puzzle #platformer #pixelart #voxel
June 10, 2025 at 11:34 AM
Wow there is a crazy game on Steam right now if you go to store.steampowered.com/app/3562630/...
Instant win if you press both big green buttons!
(but actually, check out the demo and *wishlist!*)
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #puzzle #platformer #pixelart #voxel
Instant win if you press both big green buttons!
(but actually, check out the demo and *wishlist!*)
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #puzzle #platformer #pixelart #voxel
Hot tip #UE5 devs, if you are working on ton of maps, and want lighting to be consistent & easily debuggable, stuff 'em in a blueprint and tell your designers to use that instead!
I'll admit the BP viewport having a sky is unsettling though...
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #lighting
I'll admit the BP viewport having a sky is unsettling though...
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #lighting
May 25, 2025 at 1:36 PM
Drippity drip drop!
New mechanic in #mushroam, where you can redirect drops of water to your advantage. Something neat they do is disable sentries!
(still WIP)
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #wishlistwednesday
New mechanic in #mushroam, where you can redirect drops of water to your advantage. Something neat they do is disable sentries!
(still WIP)
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #wishlistwednesday
May 21, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Drippity drip drop!
New mechanic in #mushroam, where you can redirect drops of water to your advantage. Something neat they do is disable sentries!
(still WIP)
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #wishlistwednesday
New mechanic in #mushroam, where you can redirect drops of water to your advantage. Something neat they do is disable sentries!
(still WIP)
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #wishlistwednesday
Spent some time this morning adding a 'temp rifle' which will be the base for all future weapons in #altfire.
Every weapon will initially start with this mesh, and once its mechanics are settled it'll get swapped for its own custom one.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
Every weapon will initially start with this mesh, and once its mechanics are settled it'll get swapped for its own custom one.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
May 10, 2025 at 5:04 PM
Spent some time this morning adding a 'temp rifle' which will be the base for all future weapons in #altfire.
Every weapon will initially start with this mesh, and once its mechanics are settled it'll get swapped for its own custom one.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
Every weapon will initially start with this mesh, and once its mechanics are settled it'll get swapped for its own custom one.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
When the Farquaad vibe hits.
I have successfully refactored and rebuilt (and now surpassed) all the previous player controller code.
Feels good to just delete all the old broken stuff and finally clear out the content browser / blueprint list.
#indiedev #programming #gamedev #ue5 #altfire
I have successfully refactored and rebuilt (and now surpassed) all the previous player controller code.
Feels good to just delete all the old broken stuff and finally clear out the content browser / blueprint list.
#indiedev #programming #gamedev #ue5 #altfire
May 8, 2025 at 6:34 PM
When the Farquaad vibe hits.
I have successfully refactored and rebuilt (and now surpassed) all the previous player controller code.
Feels good to just delete all the old broken stuff and finally clear out the content browser / blueprint list.
#indiedev #programming #gamedev #ue5 #altfire
I have successfully refactored and rebuilt (and now surpassed) all the previous player controller code.
Feels good to just delete all the old broken stuff and finally clear out the content browser / blueprint list.
#indiedev #programming #gamedev #ue5 #altfire
Last weekend the #skypyre team did a little game jam to come up with new levels (which was a great success) but we also added a new mechanic - LASERS!
FX by @dunx.bsky.social
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #wishlistwednesday #lasers
FX by @dunx.bsky.social
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #wishlistwednesday #lasers
May 7, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Last weekend the #skypyre team did a little game jam to come up with new levels (which was a great success) but we also added a new mechanic - LASERS!
FX by @dunx.bsky.social
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #wishlistwednesday #lasers
FX by @dunx.bsky.social
#mushroam #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #ue5 #wishlistwednesday #lasers
Reworking the player has included reworking the HUD, but I've taken the chance to add some visual spice to it.
Refining some of the elements like HUD effects when taking damage and acquiring vitality pickups. All of which are material driven!
#altfire #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #ui
Refining some of the elements like HUD effects when taking damage and acquiring vitality pickups. All of which are material driven!
#altfire #indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #fps #ue5 #ui
May 7, 2025 at 11:31 AM
Turns out roundish physics props have a bit of a funny bug interaction with BSP. They *slowly crawl* away.
@michaeldillabough.bsky.social put it well, there is a speed running strat in here somewhere 🤣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5
@michaeldillabough.bsky.social put it well, there is a speed running strat in here somewhere 🤣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5
April 25, 2025 at 7:31 PM
Turns out roundish physics props have a bit of a funny bug interaction with BSP. They *slowly crawl* away.
@michaeldillabough.bsky.social put it well, there is a speed running strat in here somewhere 🤣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5
@michaeldillabough.bsky.social put it well, there is a speed running strat in here somewhere 🤣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5
I couldn't handle the indecisive Canadian spring for #screenshotsaturday I made myself my own pool day!
In my rework of AF's player controller, I finally got around to adding swimming... and all the audio/visual hell that came along with water 🙃
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5
In my rework of AF's player controller, I finally got around to adding swimming... and all the audio/visual hell that came along with water 🙃
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5
April 12, 2025 at 6:37 PM
I couldn't handle the indecisive Canadian spring for #screenshotsaturday I made myself my own pool day!
In my rework of AF's player controller, I finally got around to adding swimming... and all the audio/visual hell that came along with water 🙃
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5
In my rework of AF's player controller, I finally got around to adding swimming... and all the audio/visual hell that came along with water 🙃
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5
#ScreenshotSaturday time!
One thing led to another and now I've refactored all my previous first person animation into lean, code driven procedural animation (all the leaning, bobbing, etc)
You don't want to see how it worked before 🫣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5 #animation
One thing led to another and now I've refactored all my previous first person animation into lean, code driven procedural animation (all the leaning, bobbing, etc)
You don't want to see how it worked before 🫣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5 #animation
April 5, 2025 at 3:51 PM
#ScreenshotSaturday time!
One thing led to another and now I've refactored all my previous first person animation into lean, code driven procedural animation (all the leaning, bobbing, etc)
You don't want to see how it worked before 🫣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5 #animation
One thing led to another and now I've refactored all my previous first person animation into lean, code driven procedural animation (all the leaning, bobbing, etc)
You don't want to see how it worked before 🫣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5 #animation
I've been enjoying using Milanote for planning on this project recently. I find it great for visually exploring ideas, like this breakdown of AF's pistol functionality.
Visually and easily shows inputs, actions, inspirations, etc.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #milanote
Visually and easily shows inputs, actions, inspirations, etc.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #milanote
March 31, 2025 at 1:29 PM
If you wishlist Mushroam on Steam, you can save Mush from being stuck in this infinite editor void!
store.steampowered.com/app/3562630/
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #mushroam #ue5 #wishlistWednesday
store.steampowered.com/app/3562630/
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #mushroam #ue5 #wishlistWednesday
March 26, 2025 at 1:08 PM
If you wishlist Mushroam on Steam, you can save Mush from being stuck in this infinite editor void!
store.steampowered.com/app/3562630/
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #mushroam #ue5 #wishlistWednesday
store.steampowered.com/app/3562630/
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #mushroam #ue5 #wishlistWednesday
This, apparently!
March 22, 2025 at 11:13 PM
This, apparently!
OKAY! Let's get some Screenshot Saturday going!'
Quick shot of my art test level. What can I say I'm a sucker for up lighting 🤣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
Quick shot of my art test level. What can I say I'm a sucker for up lighting 🤣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
March 22, 2025 at 11:12 AM
OKAY! Let's get some Screenshot Saturday going!'
Quick shot of my art test level. What can I say I'm a sucker for up lighting 🤣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
Quick shot of my art test level. What can I say I'm a sucker for up lighting 🤣
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #fps #ue5 #screenshotsaturday
A few of the key rooms from my art test level featured in devlog 4.
I was actually inspired to do an art test based on the Halo UE5 demo they showed, where they had their artists set out to make distinct areas, to establish the art style.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #ue5
I was actually inspired to do an art test based on the Halo UE5 demo they showed, where they had their artists set out to make distinct areas, to establish the art style.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #ue5
March 11, 2025 at 11:59 AM
A few of the key rooms from my art test level featured in devlog 4.
I was actually inspired to do an art test based on the Halo UE5 demo they showed, where they had their artists set out to make distinct areas, to establish the art style.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #ue5
I was actually inspired to do an art test based on the Halo UE5 demo they showed, where they had their artists set out to make distinct areas, to establish the art style.
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #ue5
Ah yes, the classic game world prop - THE WOODEN PALLET!
Starting to get into a groove with texture painting.
Now I just have to do this for... 96 other.. props 🙃
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #art
Starting to get into a groove with texture painting.
Now I just have to do this for... 96 other.. props 🙃
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #art
February 13, 2025 at 11:43 AM
Ah yes, the classic game world prop - THE WOODEN PALLET!
Starting to get into a groove with texture painting.
Now I just have to do this for... 96 other.. props 🙃
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #art
Starting to get into a groove with texture painting.
Now I just have to do this for... 96 other.. props 🙃
#indiegame #indiedev #gamedev #altfire #art
A meandering set of weapon ideas.
I got really inspired by artists on ArtStation that just doodle pages full of wacky and interesting weapon concepts, so I decided to let my curiosity wander me around, and see what I could come up with.
#indiedev #fps #art #clipstudio #altfire #artfire
I got really inspired by artists on ArtStation that just doodle pages full of wacky and interesting weapon concepts, so I decided to let my curiosity wander me around, and see what I could come up with.
#indiedev #fps #art #clipstudio #altfire #artfire
February 4, 2025 at 12:31 PM