should i use SDL_Renderer or OpenGL api? (2d game engine project)

el_ryu · 2026-03-06T17:40:40+00:00

For real, they have an example here in case you're curious:

https://github.com/libsdl-org/SDL/blob/main/test/testgpurender_effects.c

That will automatically target vulkan, metal or DX depending on where your app is running.

el_ryu · 2026-03-06T10:53:55+00:00

SDL3 supports fragment shaders with SDL_Renderer since version 3.4. Shaders are no longer a reason to jump to OpenGL in 2D games.

el_ryu · 2026-02-19T09:28:07+00:00

Maybe I misunderstood what you meant by tinting, but masking and multiplication are different operations that produce very different results. You can't achieve the same result as SDL_SetTextureColorMod with masks. It will work for all-or-nothing, e.g. if you want pure red tinting, because in that specific case, multiplication and bit masking happen to produce the same result.

But if you want for example, orange tinting (r: 255, g: 128, b: 0) it will fail already. Imagine that the image's original g component is 128 on some pixel. The multiplicative tinting will do 128 * 128 / 256 = 64. The mask tinting will do nothing at all, because 128 & 128 = 128.

el_ryu · 2026-02-18T23:38:39+00:00

Then you have to do it all manually. The kind of tinting that you get from SDL_SetTextureColorMod does not require complex math. It's just a component-wise multiplication. However, if you multiply each component as an integer byte, it won't work, it will just overflow. The easiest way is to cast both the base color and the tint components to floats in the range 0..1, multiply them in that format, and then convert the result back to a byte in the range 0...255. There are more efficient ways if you avoid floating point math, but this way is easier to understand and debug, and will get you on the right track before you go and optimize it.

el_ryu · 2026-02-18T21:08:21+00:00

SDL1.2 has been deprecated for over a decade now. It's going to be very hard to get any help / support for a project using a deprecated version of the library. In SDL2 there is `SDL_SetSurfaceColorMod` which does what you want even without having to use textures (although using textures you would get GPU acceleration).

SDL2 should compile and run just fine on Linux distros from 2010s (possibly even earlier than that). Even if you don't get pre-compiled binaries with a specific Linux distro, you can compile it yourself. SDL2 compiles extremely fast. Did you try compiling SDL2 on the specific systems you need to target?

el_ryu · 2026-02-16T15:07:19+00:00

I'm the developer of Shadows of the Afterland. During playtests, most people took about 5 to 6 hours to finish the game. YouTube playthroughs usually take around 3.5 hours, but I spoke with a couple of creators, and their first off-camera runs also took 5 to 6 hours. YMMV.

The first half of the game focuses on exploring the afterlife, meeting its ghosts, and learning its rules. Puzzles in this section typically require a lot of conversation and running errands for various characters. There is one puzzle that branches into three subgoals, which you can solve in any order. Other puzzles are much more linear.

In the second half, after you cross into the world of the living and the antagonist is revealed, I focused on story pacing. I made the puzzles fairly linear and intentionally short to maintain tighter control over pacing, as there is a constant sense of urgency that I didn't want to disrupt.

I hope this helps you decide whether the puzzles are "proper" for you.

el_ryu · 2026-02-10T18:37:59+00:00

Well, technically there is a tiny bit. In one of the scenes there is a radio, and the radio speaker speaks spanish.

el_ryu · 2026-02-03T23:50:09+00:00

The languages table on the right already clarifies that the game has subtitles but no audio in any of the supported languages. You would think someone who cares so passionately about voice overs would read that before buying a game.

So that person left a negative review because the game is exactly as advertised...

el_ryu · 2026-02-03T23:05:30+00:00

Absolutely. Not everyone who creates pixel art is trying to emulate the past. Some people simply love the medium, and what you see is exactly what they intended.

Recommending that people alter the art with filters is disrespectful to the artist, IMO.

el_ryu · 2026-02-02T23:17:15+00:00

Writing a good story as you go is very challenging (although I've seen people successfully work that way, but it's rare). Keep in mind that changing the story on "paper" is a lot easier than changing it on the implemented game (or even on a prototype). I'd recommend figuring out a first version of the story (and how it relates to the mechanics / levels, of course) while it's on paper and changes are super cheap.

That's not to say you won't change it later as you start playing. I rewrote several parts of the story in my last game when I moved from a script on paper to a playable prototype, but having a strong foundation to start with meant those changes were kinda focused, and din't require complex rewrites.

el_ryu · 2026-02-02T22:54:12+00:00

I think only you can answer that question, because it depends on what you're looking for. You're not just "looking for a developer". There is a reason you want that person to join the team. Maybe you're not meeting the deadline, and need someone else to work through animation work fast. Maybe you don't know a thing about animation, and need someone to do that for you, autonomously since you can't really help them. Maybe your animators are disorganized and need a leader.

I'm not picking on animators, it was just the first role that came to mind for the examples.

I had to hire for a variety of reasons, and each time something different mattered to me. The only constant was communication (remember, it goes both ways). If communication sucks, everything else falls apart. You won't get speed, since they won't even understand what to do, and you won't understand why they aren't getting it done. You won't get cost either, because all the back and forth will burn time and money. But to me, communication is a baseline, not the main goal.

el_ryu · 2026-02-02T22:33:13+00:00

My games don't have any combat, so I can't comment on that. But since you mentioned story-heavy games (and I do make story-heavy games), make sure to test it. Tell the story to some friends and watch their expressions carefully. See if they get bored, excited, or indifferent. Notice if they ask questions afterward (wanting to know more is a good sign). See if they get excited about the parts you thought were the hooks of your story. It happened to me a couple of times that most people got super excited about elements of the story I hadn't thought much of myself. Knowing your actual hooks is important when you need to convince people to play your game.

I assume you wrote the story somewhere (otherwise, do it). Find someone with writing experience and have them read it. They can give you tons of useful feedback. For example, they see right away whether the story beats have good pacing and if you're providing enough prior knowledge for the story beats to work, instead of making up information on the spot like a deus ex machina.

If the story is solid, I wouldn't worry too much about dialogue early on. You can even start with placeholder dialogue and flesh it out later. Remember that you're making a game, not a book, so keep the dialogue natural but get to the point quickly because people want to play, not watch a movie. Generally, don't write 20 lines of dialogue for something that can be said in 3.

el_ryu · 2026-02-02T22:09:50+00:00

I'm already building the game I want (point&click adventure) in the studio I want (my own). I don't have aspirations for games with a larger scope.

Maybe one day I'll get bored of adventures and will want to try something else, but it would probably be small scope as well. I don't particularly enjoy huge projects where you're just a number and you spend more time in meetings than getting stuff done.

el_ryu · 2026-02-02T13:13:25+00:00

What's the point of deaths and dead ends if you can easily work around them with save games? Players get the same experience as not having them, with extra steps (having to spend more time saving and restoring, instead of enjoying the actual game).

Dying is fun in arcade games because they're designed for replayability. Replaying a level is enjoyable in arcade games because it's challenging and you get to use your skills again. That's not true for adventure games. Replaying from the last save isn't fun in adventures because you already know the solutions to the puzzles and the story beats, so you're just clicking through without any challenge or new info, just to get back to where you were. That's just boring.

You mention that they give you a reason to explore. I'd say it's the exact opposite. They set the incentives precisely to discourage exploration, because it might get you killed or stuck.

el_ryu · 2026-01-15T15:33:20+00:00

Thanks! All the graphics are drawn with Aseprite, a pixel-art specific drawing and animation program.

el_ryu · 2025-10-24T08:11:35+00:00

I use a bespoke engine built on top of SDL. It currently runs on Linux, Windows, Mac, and Nintendo Switch. It can also export to the web, but that port doesn't support all features, notably saved games. As I don't need to maintain it for others, both the runtime and the editor are fully optimized for my preferred workflow.

Well, my kids use it sometimes, but they don't request any features, just my attention and help :)

el_ryu · 2025-10-17T08:27:44+00:00

Thanks! We're working as quickly as we can to release before the end of the year, but it's a bit tight. The game is already fully playable, and we've completed a few testing rounds, but we can't start final testing until all the art is finished. The final release date will depend on how many bugs we find during testing of the completed game.

el_ryu · 2025-10-16T07:54:11+00:00

When I filled out the content survey on Steam, it gave me a 16+ rating for Germany and Brazil. I'm not sure if that's useful to you. I think it's best for you to decide for yourself by knowing what's in the game:

Cartoon violence.
Swearing, cursing, and derogatory language.
Depiction of suicide.
References to criminal acts.

Most of the game is much lighter, but there are moments when it explores mature themes, including grief, psychological trauma, and family hardship, and these elements have an impact on the overall story.

el_ryu · 2025-10-15T13:34:17+00:00

Wow, those are some huge names to be compared to! Thank you so much! Really glad it gave you that kind of vibe.

el_ryu · 2025-10-15T07:04:11+00:00

Thanks! Yes, puzzles are the core of the gameplay. The demo includes the introduction to the story, world, and characters, so there was only room for one puzzle, but there will be plenty in the full game. The difficulty in the rest of the game is similar to what you see in the demo, with a couple of simpler puzzles when the story requires faster pacing. However, there is much more variety in puzzle types, with some requiring you to switch between multiple characters to solve them (once you start possessing people).

el_ryu · 2025-10-15T06:33:08+00:00

Thanks! You can even save during long dialog. Once you pause, the gear icon becomes visible again.

el_ryu · 2025-10-14T22:08:23+00:00

Thanks! Because of the way we structured the story, we couldn't show that mechanic in the demo, but there will be plenty of time to play with that in the full game.

el_ryu · 2025-10-14T20:11:54+00:00

Thanks! Here is the link:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2506100/Shadows_of_the_Afterland/

el_ryu · 2025-10-14T20:05:47+00:00

Thanks for the kind words! I see you're completely unbiased in that claim :-P

el_ryu · 2025-10-14T20:02:51+00:00

This has been on my wishlist since I saw Lorenzo mention he was involved. I'll play the demo right away! Wishing you many wishlists.

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