Feature
The how and why of producing homebrew games for the NES and Atari 2600.
Many people want to make their own videogames. And some software developers have known this for years, long exploiting our intimidation of learning scary programming languages with products that allow us to make cookie-cutter offerings using their templates, from Klik & Play on through the still-thriving RPG Maker series. It’s been catching on so much lately that LittleBigPlanet is soon getting a sequel despite developer MediaMolecule insisting there wouldn’t be one; the upcoming Mega Man Universe, similarly, will let players create their own customizable levels and characters.
That’s all fine and good if you want to make a game on someone else’s terms, and while the mainstream is steadily getting more in line with the “user-created content” movement, the homebrew equivalent has been thriving for years without such restrictions. What’s more, it’s gaining legitimacy, snagging headlines and the attention of purists more than ever this year, thanks to higher-profile games getting legit physical releases that not only play in emulators but, more impressively, also on their original hardware. Since we, like you, have just a passing knowledge of how games are actually made under the hood, we talked to some folks at the forefront of the burgeoning homebrew movement to find out what goes into taking these games from concept to cart.
