Dan Herbert
@danherbert.bsky.social
Working on a dynamic music system for this little game. There are different "layers" of music which play based on a current "tension" level.
The idea is that each stage is a series of waves, and as you progress through the waves the tension increases.
Should be good for juice.
The idea is that each stage is a series of waves, and as you progress through the waves the tension increases.
Should be good for juice.
November 14, 2025 at 5:39 AM
Working on a dynamic music system for this little game. There are different "layers" of music which play based on a current "tension" level.
The idea is that each stage is a series of waves, and as you progress through the waves the tension increases.
Should be good for juice.
The idea is that each stage is a series of waves, and as you progress through the waves the tension increases.
Should be good for juice.
Extremely rough #gamedev clip.
Doesn't look like much, but it's nice to see systems coming together.
All movement (player+enemy speed/accel/decel), weapon firing+spread+cool down, and enemy sequencing is driven by a "power allocation" system. Most things will be based on this.
Doesn't look like much, but it's nice to see systems coming together.
All movement (player+enemy speed/accel/decel), weapon firing+spread+cool down, and enemy sequencing is driven by a "power allocation" system. Most things will be based on this.
November 12, 2025 at 6:23 AM
Extremely rough #gamedev clip.
Doesn't look like much, but it's nice to see systems coming together.
All movement (player+enemy speed/accel/decel), weapon firing+spread+cool down, and enemy sequencing is driven by a "power allocation" system. Most things will be based on this.
Doesn't look like much, but it's nice to see systems coming together.
All movement (player+enemy speed/accel/decel), weapon firing+spread+cool down, and enemy sequencing is driven by a "power allocation" system. Most things will be based on this.
I really like my MacBook and Apple's M chips, but holey moley this PC running Kubuntu is _fast_. All my dev tools and software, and games, seem so much faster and feel "just ready to go let's go let's go".
Might become my daily driver for working/playing at home at this rate.
Might become my daily driver for working/playing at home at this rate.
November 11, 2025 at 9:24 AM
I really like my MacBook and Apple's M chips, but holey moley this PC running Kubuntu is _fast_. All my dev tools and software, and games, seem so much faster and feel "just ready to go let's go let's go".
Might become my daily driver for working/playing at home at this rate.
Might become my daily driver for working/playing at home at this rate.
Squeezing in an SSD today. GPU is about as big as everything else combined. A bit tricky for a case this size... 🤦♂️
November 9, 2025 at 5:10 AM
Squeezing in an SSD today. GPU is about as big as everything else combined. A bit tricky for a case this size... 🤦♂️
Trying Linux as an alternative to Win11 for gaming and gamedev, running off a USB drive for now.
Only had 1 USB drive so installing required a bit of legwork, but amazed at how well it worked.
Kubuntu live ISO VirtualBox > install onto USB drive plugged into host > reboot host off of USB drive.
Only had 1 USB drive so installing required a bit of legwork, but amazed at how well it worked.
Kubuntu live ISO VirtualBox > install onto USB drive plugged into host > reboot host off of USB drive.
November 8, 2025 at 8:37 AM
Trying Linux as an alternative to Win11 for gaming and gamedev, running off a USB drive for now.
Only had 1 USB drive so installing required a bit of legwork, but amazed at how well it worked.
Kubuntu live ISO VirtualBox > install onto USB drive plugged into host > reboot host off of USB drive.
Only had 1 USB drive so installing required a bit of legwork, but amazed at how well it worked.
Kubuntu live ISO VirtualBox > install onto USB drive plugged into host > reboot host off of USB drive.
Today I worked on a "spec sequencer".
The game will proc gen a set of specifications for the player/enemies, some of which are sequenced & timed. This determines movement, difficulty, weapons & attack timings.
The sequencer enacts/processes the specs.
Cool to see mechanics start to come together.
The game will proc gen a set of specifications for the player/enemies, some of which are sequenced & timed. This determines movement, difficulty, weapons & attack timings.
The sequencer enacts/processes the specs.
Cool to see mechanics start to come together.
November 7, 2025 at 8:43 AM
Today I worked on a "spec sequencer".
The game will proc gen a set of specifications for the player/enemies, some of which are sequenced & timed. This determines movement, difficulty, weapons & attack timings.
The sequencer enacts/processes the specs.
Cool to see mechanics start to come together.
The game will proc gen a set of specifications for the player/enemies, some of which are sequenced & timed. This determines movement, difficulty, weapons & attack timings.
The sequencer enacts/processes the specs.
Cool to see mechanics start to come together.
A small selection of photos from Brazil...
November 5, 2025 at 8:27 PM
A small selection of photos from Brazil...
Back in Aus after 3 weeks in Brazil. 48 hours commute + ~17 hour time zone jump got me feeling like the melting emoji
Gamedev/SaaS itch is super high, really happy to get back on it.
Gamedev/SaaS itch is super high, really happy to get back on it.
November 5, 2025 at 8:00 PM
Back in Aus after 3 weeks in Brazil. 48 hours commute + ~17 hour time zone jump got me feeling like the melting emoji
Gamedev/SaaS itch is super high, really happy to get back on it.
Gamedev/SaaS itch is super high, really happy to get back on it.
11 pages of game dev notes/design on this holiday so far.
Avoided this and work thinking at first, until the brain got too itchy (aka bored).
Pretty set to get cracking as soon as I get back home.
Avoided this and work thinking at first, until the brain got too itchy (aka bored).
Pretty set to get cracking as soon as I get back home.
October 31, 2025 at 8:39 PM
11 pages of game dev notes/design on this holiday so far.
Avoided this and work thinking at first, until the brain got too itchy (aka bored).
Pretty set to get cracking as soon as I get back home.
Avoided this and work thinking at first, until the brain got too itchy (aka bored).
Pretty set to get cracking as soon as I get back home.
Game design doc and sketches after a few days stewing on an idea. Gotta have juice!
October 29, 2025 at 6:21 PM
Game design doc and sketches after a few days stewing on an idea. Gotta have juice!
Wk 3 in Brazil- similar to my previous trip to EU, websites with heavy frontends are a major pain to use with slow/spotty internet.
The bar of "minimum reasonable user experience" is pretty low, yet it gets missed so often.
Good UI signals and fewer dependencies go a long way!
The bar of "minimum reasonable user experience" is pretty low, yet it gets missed so often.
Good UI signals and fewer dependencies go a long way!
October 27, 2025 at 11:41 PM
Wk 3 in Brazil- similar to my previous trip to EU, websites with heavy frontends are a major pain to use with slow/spotty internet.
The bar of "minimum reasonable user experience" is pretty low, yet it gets missed so often.
Good UI signals and fewer dependencies go a long way!
The bar of "minimum reasonable user experience" is pretty low, yet it gets missed so often.
Good UI signals and fewer dependencies go a long way!
Gutted to be missing Laracon AU this year. Looking to be great!
October 21, 2025 at 8:10 PM
Gutted to be missing Laracon AU this year. Looking to be great!
On Sundays, Avenida Paulista in São Paulo is closed to traffic - food/craft stalls fill the streets, bands play music, and McDonald's has a street facing DJ booth pumping out the beats while people dance in the street.
October 19, 2025 at 9:49 PM
On Sundays, Avenida Paulista in São Paulo is closed to traffic - food/craft stalls fill the streets, bands play music, and McDonald's has a street facing DJ booth pumping out the beats while people dance in the street.
Been brainstorming a set of virtual/digital themed resources which might be (loosely) comparable to resources from a game like Settlers. Eg, instead of "mine for gold ore" it might be "generate cycles" or "compress data".
Challenging to come up with options which don't sound cliche or crappy 😂
Challenging to come up with options which don't sound cliche or crappy 😂
October 18, 2025 at 9:50 PM
Been brainstorming a set of virtual/digital themed resources which might be (loosely) comparable to resources from a game like Settlers. Eg, instead of "mine for gold ore" it might be "generate cycles" or "compress data".
Challenging to come up with options which don't sound cliche or crappy 😂
Challenging to come up with options which don't sound cliche or crappy 😂
Couldn't live without my notebooks+nice pen... Never go anywhere without it, esp when away from home.
Time to kill & can't stop thinking about gamedev? Doodles/notes/planning.
Wake up with a solve to a bug? Get it off brain and back to sleep.
New SaaS feature? Noted.
Journal/pondering? Done.
Time to kill & can't stop thinking about gamedev? Doodles/notes/planning.
Wake up with a solve to a bug? Get it off brain and back to sleep.
New SaaS feature? Noted.
Journal/pondering? Done.
October 18, 2025 at 9:43 PM
Couldn't live without my notebooks+nice pen... Never go anywhere without it, esp when away from home.
Time to kill & can't stop thinking about gamedev? Doodles/notes/planning.
Wake up with a solve to a bug? Get it off brain and back to sleep.
New SaaS feature? Noted.
Journal/pondering? Done.
Time to kill & can't stop thinking about gamedev? Doodles/notes/planning.
Wake up with a solve to a bug? Get it off brain and back to sleep.
New SaaS feature? Noted.
Journal/pondering? Done.
On holiday in my partner's home country (Brazil), trying very hard to disconnect from game/SaaS dev.
Brain just won't let go - I think I've finally honed in on a core game loop that might be fun. Lots of notes and sketches to iterate on when back home.
Send help 😂
Brain just won't let go - I think I've finally honed in on a core game loop that might be fun. Lots of notes and sketches to iterate on when back home.
Send help 😂
October 14, 2025 at 1:52 PM
On holiday in my partner's home country (Brazil), trying very hard to disconnect from game/SaaS dev.
Brain just won't let go - I think I've finally honed in on a core game loop that might be fun. Lots of notes and sketches to iterate on when back home.
Send help 😂
Brain just won't let go - I think I've finally honed in on a core game loop that might be fun. Lots of notes and sketches to iterate on when back home.
Send help 😂
For anyone with `GameObject[]` in their #Unity inspectors and getting "GetName" errors + broken, change the editor font.
No joke - getting back into #gamedev and been frustrated by this for a couple weeks. Shocked that just changing the font fixed it.
Credit: discussions.unity.com/t/please-tel...
No joke - getting back into #gamedev and been frustrated by this for a couple weeks. Shocked that just changing the font fixed it.
Credit: discussions.unity.com/t/please-tel...
Please tell me about the error related to the List
I found a temporary fix to this problem. It has to do with the Inter Font that the editor is using. I have no idea why but when you change the editor font in the unity settings from Inter to System Fo...
discussions.unity.com
October 5, 2025 at 10:44 PM
For anyone with `GameObject[]` in their #Unity inspectors and getting "GetName" errors + broken, change the editor font.
No joke - getting back into #gamedev and been frustrated by this for a couple weeks. Shocked that just changing the font fixed it.
Credit: discussions.unity.com/t/please-tel...
No joke - getting back into #gamedev and been frustrated by this for a couple weeks. Shocked that just changing the font fixed it.
Credit: discussions.unity.com/t/please-tel...
Selling my 2x tickets to Good Things Festival in Melb in Dec - tixel.com/u/3366417
Tool, Weezer, Garbage, Refused, many more great bands in the lineup.
Tool, Weezer, Garbage, Refused, many more great bands in the lineup.
Daniel H. is selling tickets | Tixel
Daniel H. is selling tickets using Tixel
tixel.com
October 1, 2025 at 5:36 AM
Selling my 2x tickets to Good Things Festival in Melb in Dec - tixel.com/u/3366417
Tool, Weezer, Garbage, Refused, many more great bands in the lineup.
Tool, Weezer, Garbage, Refused, many more great bands in the lineup.
Been under the weather the last couple days, haven't been able to work. So much thinking and planning while idle though.
Have a core game loop and progression in mind (hybrid genres), and a direction for aesthetics.
Remains to be seen if these are "sick (good) ideas" or "sick (not good) ideas".
Have a core game loop and progression in mind (hybrid genres), and a direction for aesthetics.
Remains to be seen if these are "sick (good) ideas" or "sick (not good) ideas".
September 30, 2025 at 9:26 PM
Been under the weather the last couple days, haven't been able to work. So much thinking and planning while idle though.
Have a core game loop and progression in mind (hybrid genres), and a direction for aesthetics.
Remains to be seen if these are "sick (good) ideas" or "sick (not good) ideas".
Have a core game loop and progression in mind (hybrid genres), and a direction for aesthetics.
Remains to be seen if these are "sick (good) ideas" or "sick (not good) ideas".
One of the dev things I enjoy the most (esp in gamedev) is the transition from extremely rough prototype to actual build.
Been working on a headless simulation framework the last couple weeks (w a Unity frontend), and formalising/cleaning that up has been oh so satisfying.
Been working on a headless simulation framework the last couple weeks (w a Unity frontend), and formalising/cleaning that up has been oh so satisfying.
September 27, 2025 at 10:34 PM
One of the dev things I enjoy the most (esp in gamedev) is the transition from extremely rough prototype to actual build.
Been working on a headless simulation framework the last couple weeks (w a Unity frontend), and formalising/cleaning that up has been oh so satisfying.
Been working on a headless simulation framework the last couple weeks (w a Unity frontend), and formalising/cleaning that up has been oh so satisfying.
Laravel's LazyCollections + PHP's first class callables and generators is **chefs kiss**
September 26, 2025 at 6:52 AM
Laravel's LazyCollections + PHP's first class callables and generators is **chefs kiss**
Recently I've been prototyping #gamedev mechanics for something akin to Settlers 2.
For years I've wanted to create a minimal/zen settlers game, but I'm curious what sort of theme players might be interested in...
Brutally minimal - shapes and chill sounds? Cartoon? Hand drawn?
For years I've wanted to create a minimal/zen settlers game, but I'm curious what sort of theme players might be interested in...
Brutally minimal - shapes and chill sounds? Cartoon? Hand drawn?
September 23, 2025 at 11:31 PM
Recently I've been prototyping #gamedev mechanics for something akin to Settlers 2.
For years I've wanted to create a minimal/zen settlers game, but I'm curious what sort of theme players might be interested in...
Brutally minimal - shapes and chill sounds? Cartoon? Hand drawn?
For years I've wanted to create a minimal/zen settlers game, but I'm curious what sort of theme players might be interested in...
Brutally minimal - shapes and chill sounds? Cartoon? Hand drawn?
Yesterday I released a very minimal starter kit for Laravel + my Elide/HTMX package. It scaffolds a simple and lean project which is close to no build and has a dynamic front-end.
github.com/danherbert-i...
github.com/danherbert-i...
GitHub - danherbert-io/elide-simple-starter-kit: The skeleton application for the Laravel framework, setup to use Elide for Laravel.
The skeleton application for the Laravel framework, setup to use Elide for Laravel. - danherbert-io/elide-simple-starter-kit
github.com
September 8, 2025 at 9:15 PM
Yesterday I released a very minimal starter kit for Laravel + my Elide/HTMX package. It scaffolds a simple and lean project which is close to no build and has a dynamic front-end.
github.com/danherbert-i...
github.com/danherbert-i...
First day back on the bar in 10+ years. Didn't realise how much I missed it...
September 1, 2025 at 9:15 AM
First day back on the bar in 10+ years. Didn't realise how much I missed it...