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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!

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 9: 8-Bit Xmas 2020

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 9: 8-Bit Xmas 2020 (Dr. Covio) Introduction: Video games are a lot like movies, an excellent effort can give rise to a sequel, potentially even a series, one which perfects a formula and offers something new and fun while retaining everything that made past installments worthwhile. It is a difficult tightrope to walk: providing more of what works without merely delivering a carbon copy, while also experimenting wi
Scrobins

Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 8: The Assembly Line

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 8: The Assembly Line Introduction: It was around September 2017 that I first learned about homebrew games. Months earlier I shipped my collection of old video games and consoles from my parents’ home and hoped to expand my library. Searching for the “essential” gems no self-respecting vintage gamer should be without, I stumbled upon a pair of articles from The Verge and Wired about new games for old consoles. Curi
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 7: Quest Arrest

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 7: Quest Arrest Introduction: Behind every great homebrew game is a developer or team with a good story about why there was an irresistible urge to create a new game. As we can all relate, inside them resides that memory from our youth in which we passed days on end, perfectly content with one or another game that gripped our imagination. If we were lucky, we found other games that gave us that same good feeling,
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 6: Jay & Silent Bob: Mall Brawl

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 6: Jay & Silent Bob: Mall Brawl Introduction: Ask any homebrewer what inspired them to create a particular game or why they became a brewer in the first place, and many will point to a cultural icon of yesteryear that still resonates with them. Some games serve as an homage to a beloved game from a console’s licensed era. Other games are a thinly veiled adaptation of a beloved world that never received the vid
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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A Homebrew Draws Near!

Episode 5: Rollie

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 5: Rollie Introduction: Homebrewing is a level of NES-fandom defined by both discipline and creativity. If we lived in an RPG, learning to code and develop would mark the class change/level up from being a fan who merely talks about what a fun game would look like to becoming the fan capable of actualizing it. While learning to code, brewers also discover how to implement gameplay features, and thus learn how to m
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Scrobins in A Homebrew Draws Near!

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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 4: Trophy

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 4: Trophy Introduction: The timeline for developing a homebrew is rarely brief. From a game’s first imaginings to its final publication and availability to fans, months, even years may pass. But some games can trace their history across decades to the developer’s childhood and the games that brought them joy. Though time and tide may occupy their mind for a spell, pulling their attention in myriad different direct
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
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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 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 3: Anguna Zero

A Homebrew Draws Near! A blog series by @Scrobins Episode 3: Anguna: Scourge of the Goblin King Introduction: Just about every classic console has experienced new life with the rise of homebrew games to supplement its library. However few homebrewers develop games beyond one preferred console. Those brewers who dare to branch out find new challenges to enhance their skills, and new audiences eager to play with the fruits of their efforts. For this entry, I’m coverin
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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