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About this blog

As a new game crosses the finish line, destined perhaps to become the next essential gem, this blog will feature an in-depth look into the heart behind the homebrew.

 

Entries in this blog

A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 43: Flap Happy

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 43: Flap Happy Introduction: I’ve covered a number of homebrew games made by veteran programmers with significant experience developing for modern platforms who are now channeling their nostalgia to bring something new to the consoles of their childhoods. These passion projects represent a bridge between the adult skills and modern gaming sensibilities of the developer now, and their inner child craving the chanc
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 42: NESdev Competition/Action 53 Multicart

Episode 42: NESdev Competition/Action 53 Multicart Introduction: Our enjoyment can be found in things of various sizes and levels of “completeness.” For all of the feature-length films and long-running shows we love, some of our favorite movies and tv shows are shorts, miniseries, and anthologies. So too is our love of video games, with favorites found among those experiments in which the developers showed off their skills in a proof of concept, or demos that could whet our
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 41: Oratorio

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 41: Oratorio Introduction: Many of the games I’ve written about draw inspiration from classic games of yesteryear, sometimes while reaching into modern generation technology and gaming sensibilities to bring something new to the cartridges we pop into our very old consoles. Rarer though is the developer who ports an entire modern genre to a modern console, highlighting how the limits of the NES lie much further t
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 40: The Meating

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 40: The Meating Introduction: I keep a list of games and developers that I’m eager to write about and interview for this blog in the hope that we might connect, and I can eventually devote a post to them. The friendships I’ve developed in this community have gone a long way toward making some of these hopes manifest at the most opportune moments. People can be busy and may be slow to respond to a message, especia
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 39: Lion Mancala

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 39: Lion Mancala Introduction: The greatest gift to our community is the emergence of a new developer with fresh ideas, bringing games to our consoles that make us exclaim “I can’t believe we’re only just now getting a game about X!” I keep an eye out across the internet in order to stay on top of homebrew news, trying to stay apprised of progress to games I'm aware of, and learn about new games as well as people
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 38: Kudzu

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 38: Kudzu Introduction: A good adventure is anywhere you can find it, if you know where to look. And a good story can be written about anything, if you’re creative and bold enough to write it. Where some saw obsolete video game hardware and software, dismissing them as relics of the past that gave way to more advanced technology, others saw stories left untold. When some look at kudzu, a species of invasive, coil
Scrobins

Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 37: Full Quiet

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 37: Full Quiet Introduction: I’ve frequently praised new homebrew for both giving us new gems in beloved genres, and for pushing the limits of homebrew closer to the heights of the console’s licensed era. But for all the achievements developers have collectively reached, one peak remained to be summited: scale. While myriad games have proven so addictive, fans will pour hours into them, we have not yet received t
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 36: Red Moon Lost Days

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 36: Red Moon Lost Days Introduction: While each generation of video games and the consoles that defined them touch on nearly every major genre, there are some specific associations that endured. For instance, the Sega CD conjures memories of the brief trend of full motion video (FMV) games, and the 16-bit era, between the SNES and the Sega Genesis, was perhaps the pinnacle of console beat-‘em-ups. The early disc
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 35: Sly Dog Studios & The Candelabra Epic

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by Scrobins Episode 35: Sly Dog Studios & The Candelabra Epic   Introduction: Once a developer decides to make a sequel to follow up on a previous game, there is the inevitable question of whether the next entry should offer more of the winning formula or strike out for new territory? On the one hand, by sticking with what's tried and true, you run the risk of becoming stale, and on the other, by wanting to innovate and stay
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 34: HaraForce

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 34: HaraForce Introduction: It should come as no surprise that the homebrew community spans the globe. I’ve had the privilege of interviewing brewers across four continents. But for all the interconnectedness that makes homebrew a small world, there are islands. Japan, the birthplace of Nintendo and Sega, is also the center of a thriving homebrew, or “doujin” Famicom scene. However, many players in the West are un
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 33: Sam's Journey

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 33: Sam’s Journey Introduction: So much of homebrew derives from people making and playing the games they loved as kids, but some of the creators from those nostalgic days are returning to embrace the love fans have for the older stuff. Whether it’s the Oliver Twins dusting off unreleased games decades later or Yuzo Koshiro working on something new, the rising popularity of new games for old consoles is bringing a
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 32: Crabbie Attack!

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 32: Crabbie Attack! Introduction: Playing a new game (hopefully) means we are seeing fun through the developers’ eyes. Hints of their own passions echo throughout the code, reflecting on other aspects of their personality that shapes the overall game. Across the Mario franchise turtles are generally enemies, but for other creators turtles might be the hero. Sometimes playing with those personal preferences can be
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 31: GunTneR

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 31: GunTneR Introduction: Homebrew is brimming with tales of nostalgia and love letters to cherished games of developers’ childhoods. Though money changes hands, homebrew development isn’t particularly lucrative, and most brewers will tell you their work is done out of passion for the hobby. But some developers exude such an unfiltered, unadulterated joy in their wizardry, that watching them at work, figuring out
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 26: Alwa's Awakening

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 26: Alwa’s Awakening Introduction: The deep catalog of 8-bit inspired games has fired up enthusiasm for retro content, leading to the development of similar new games, hunger for the old games that served as the catalyst for this new appetite, and adding momentum to the homebrew games that bridge the gap between them. Some of the most popular of these retro/modern hybrids hew so closely to the limits of the hardwa
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 30: Jessie Jaeger in Cleopatra's Curse

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 30: Jessie Jaeger in Cleopatra’s Curse Introduction: Franchise opportunities in Hollywood may make us cynical, but when they appear in gaming, we fans still get excited. Maybe it’s a reflection of video games as a younger medium that audiences aren’t yet turned off by the notion of a creator tapping into a winning formula with a new character or gaming mechanic that is immediately fun and which teases hope for mor
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 29: Life on Mars

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 29: Life on Mars Introduction: When you create something special, something you are proud of that others enjoy, you might feel the urge to bring your work to as many outlets as possible in order to spread it further. In recent years, we’ve seen this as great homebrew games make their way from the NES and other older consoles to the Switch and other modern platforms. This has enabled games like NEScape to spread fr
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 28: Copper Jacket

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 28: Copper Jacket Introduction: I try very hard to stay informed of what’s happening in homebrew. Keeping tabs on a number of developers’ pages and social media sometimes causes my phone to buzz nonstop. But for all my dorky vigilance, several devs often suddenly pop up on my radar with very fleshed out projects, and it’s all I can do not to break my devices hitting refresh for any news. Homebrew can be a very dif
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 27: Dangerous Demolition

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 27: Dangerous Demolition Introduction: If nebulae are the cradles for new stars, game jams and other compos often serve as the cradles for promising new homebrew. Though it is uncommon for jam games to continue into full-fledged productions, it is rarer still to see any new games receive the physical treatment. Nonetheless these challenges and competitions bring out the best in retro console love, demonstrating th
Scrobins

Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Special Episode: The State of Homebrew 2022

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Special Episode: The State of Homebrew 2022 The evolution of homebrew has collected an enthusiastic mix of developers and gamers, all of whom draw on the love of something meaningful from their pasts to dream of what might be possible in the years to come. Though we may bring to bear the skills we have cultivated as adults, in this realm it is done to feed our inner child. Homebrew has come a long way across several decades, w
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 25: Homebrew Magazines

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 25: Homebrew Magazines Introduction: Nearly every gaming fan, new or old, modern or retro, has or had a regularly published magazine they eagerly awaited, which often contained news on upcoming games, tips for improving their luck/skill at existing games, and shared a general love with the magazine’s creators and fans. Inspired by institutions like Nintendo Power and Game Informer, several enterprising members of
Scrobins

Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 24: Super Tilt Bro.

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 24: Super Tilt Bro. Introduction: Homebrew first caught my eye when I sought to build out my game collection and I discovered new games for old consoles. Some games that stood out reinvented accessories like Super Russian Roulette’s use of the Zapper and Tailgate Party’s use of the Power Pad, while others applied modern gaming ideas to the old hardware like Candelabra: Estocerro and Spook-o’-tron’s use of both NES
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 23: Rarity: Retro Video Game Collecting in the Modern Era

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 23: Rarity: Retro Video Game Collecting in the Modern Era Introduction: For most of my life, I haven’t been someone who enjoyed documentaries. Even behind the scenes specials about subjects I liked had a hard time keeping my interest. But in the past few years, something unlocked in my brain that appreciated the stories behind my favorite interests, which sometimes offered a level of drama that rivaled the subject
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 22: Fire and Rescue

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 22: Fire and Rescue Introduction: Among the many homebrewers I have been privileged to interview, several were also academics: professors who teach game design and development by day, and by night put into practice those same lessons into their own passion projects. Their expertise is expressed through their style, and sometimes traces of the teacher are apparent in their games, either highlighting the lessons the
A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 21: Dungeons & DoomKnights

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 21: Dungeons & DoomKnights Introduction: In the gaming world, where evolution and innovation is constant, the excitement of new firsts never wanes. Whether it’s the arrival of a new console, new tools & technology, or a new game showing off the possibilities of the previous two, being the first carries the power to excite imaginations over how this new thing heralds something we should take notice of, and
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 20: Demons of Asteborg

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 20: Demons of Asteborg   Introduction: Alongside the homebrew games we’ve discovered and loved the past several years, gaming on modern platforms has enjoyed its own retro renaissance, producing games offering offer an old-school “8-bit aesthetic” that players have eaten up. These games don’t technically adhere to the limits of the beloved consoles of old, but channel our nostalgia to catch our eyes. If only
Scrobins

Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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