Making a game on a custom bytecode VM in 7 days and 3kB
5 months ago
- #shader
- #bytecode
- #game-development
- Built a 3kB Windows executable shoot 'em up game for Langjam Gamejam.
- Combined interests: language tooling, game development, procedural graphics, and demoscene-style size constraints.
- Embedded a custom bytecode VM and used a fullscreen pixel shader for rendering.
- Inspired by demoscene productions like Ikadalawampu and kkrieger.
- Designed a minimalist bytecode with float arrays for data storage and simple control flow.
- Implemented a live-coding workflow for rapid iteration on game logic and shaders.
- Used a C-like syntax for the custom language with syntactic sugar for readability.
- Simple game design with infinite gameplay and increasing difficulty.
- Compared bytecode size to C++ and found bytecode version was smaller.
- Project was fun and successful, with plans for future game dev explorations.