Dev Spotlight: Andrzej Mazur
OP Games launched its latest initiative, the Dev Spotlight, last March 11 to introduce the community to the brilliant minds behind the titles of Arcadia. For the inaugural episode, Andrzej Mazur of js13kGames and Enclave Games was given the Discord stage as he and his team developed two (2) of the most beloved games among players: Triska Reloaded and Forest Cuties.
Becoming a Web3 Developer
Andrzej didn’t start off as a game developer, in fact, he began as a front-end developer which was his occupation for quite some time. However, he started experimenting with JavaScript, jQuery, and other technologies originally meant for front-end frameworks to see if they can be used to build web games. In 2012, Andrzej shifted his focus to building games, running game jams, and trying to see if building HTML5 games would present better opportunities.
Transitioning to Web3 for Andrzej and his wife Ewa, who is Enclave Games’ graphic designer, was the next step. As before, their game earnings would come from advertising and having to follow parameters set by publisher portals. Web3 helped monetize game development further while also directly connecting them to communities who enjoy their games and want to contribute to its improvement.
“I think it’s revolutionizing everything and putting everything upside down, because it’s changing the perspective for developers,” Andrzej commented on the difference between developing in Web2 to Web3.
In Web3, players can become an owner of a fraction of a game or even game assets which is the step in collaboration between developers and their communities. It’s also shifted how game developers can earn money and build the games themselves. It removes the need for middlemen who can put restrictions on the earnings and game licenses; the outcome becomes dependent on the developers and their communities instead.
Building with Open Source
Part of the Web3 revolution is that public goods are encouraged for use and distributed readily. Open source game engines such as Phaser, Defold, or Godot make it easier for developers to build games for their communities.
For Andrzej’s case, he has used Phaser for his games regularly since 2013.
“That’s why I love using Phaser the most. The tool is available for free in the open, available on GitHub, there’s a vibrant community around the building, demos, tools, plugins and whatnot. And so many developers are helping with the development of the engine itself, or showcasing its possibilities with so many cool games big and small, and actively helping other developers build games for themselves. So I really enjoy using Phaser. And I really recommend anyone trying game development, checking Phaser because usually if someone has some kind of idea what to build or some kind of a game that wants to try if you’re trying to search for the tutorials, doing something that will help you build the game there.”
Furthermore, developers can also open source templates and tools that they use for their games to encourage other aspirants to create. For example, Andrzej’s studio has an Enclave Phaser Template readily available on GitHub. This increases the material available for everyone to use and build upon.
Creating as a Community
With Web3’s community focus and open source tools, it’s become easier to create games as a community. Hackathons, game jams, and collaboration are staples in Web3 game development which Andrzej has embraced. In fact, Triska Reloaded even came from a js13kGames competition — it was based on Ewa’s designs and was coded by Rémi, a long time participant who won the competition in 2020. He helped make a refreshed version of the original Triskaidekaphobia from 2014 to celebrate the tenth edition of the competition in 2021 as this new build fits within the 13 kilobyte size limit.
The js13kGames competition is a hackathon which happens online in August every year since 2012 with the 11th edition happening this August. Moreover, the Gamedev.js Jam is coming closer as it’s slated to be happening on April 13th to 26th. There will be a Decentralized category in both with awesome prizes to be won.
Arcadia by OP Games has also served as homes for Triska Reloaded and Forest Cuties which Andrzej and his team developed. As a Web3 optimized online arcade, Arcadia allows game developers to put up their games here for tokenization, community, and decentralization.
For more information on how to optimize your games for Web3 or publish your games on Arcadia, visit the OP Games’ website.
