We all grew up playing video games and all these years we have grown fond of some systems, either because we loved the artistic sections that they were capable to offer or simply because there were some games that ended up stealing our hearts to this day.
Many people, regardless of whether they are large or independent developers or even video game enthusiasts without much technical knowledge, develop games for those systems that gave us so many hours of fun 10, 20 or more than 30 years ago because they see it as a challenge to create new software for outdated and limited hardware or because they wanted to breathe new life into their favorite retro systems. Whatever the objective of these developers are, developing video games for retro systems is a trend that is growing every day, and these games are known as “homebrews”, so let’s dig a little deeper into that concept.
A homebrew game is a title that is not officially licensed or supported by a hardware developer, but was conceived through experimentation with different design tools and techniques, adhering to the limitations imposed by the system that is going to run it, although this is not applicable all the time since some homebrew game developers manage to get around these limitations in some ways and are able to create games that manage to surpass these limitations thanks to their ingenuity when it comes to exploiting the capacity of the hardware through programming technique, support routines or customized special chips in the case of cartridge-based systems that boosts their original specs.
So, developing new games on retro systems is a very important part of the video game industry because in this way many people can start their careers as independent developers or aspire to work for AAA developers and in addition to obtaining a paid job. They also help to create new tools and methods to keep retro systems in excellent condition so that they can be enjoyed for many more years to reach future generations.
At NAPE Games we know the importance of homebrew games and it is for these reasons that in addition to developing games for current systems, we have also focused on the study and development of new titles for retro systems that influenced our team to enter into the world of video game development. Being PLOID and Reknum: The Awakening our own creations for NES, and our designer and programmer, Napoleón Malpica with Manu Segura jointly developed another game for the NES called Uchusen: Ultimate Ploid Battle for the FNAC Special Pixel GameJAM 2019, in addition we plan to develop new adventures for different retro systems that will be from the liked the most hardcore gamers and those who are starting in the world of video games.
