PsychicParrot 🦜 (Jeff) 😷❤️

https://mastodon.gamedev.place/@psychicparrot42

:godot: Ancient #indie game maker. Author of game dev books. All round good egg. Boosts a lot, especially games. Racing game fanatic. AI rejecter. Creativity, love, art and nature are the true magic in this universe 🍄 He/Him. Existing on unceded Algonquin territory. Please wear a mask.

Tea Monster Games: http://www.teamonstergames.com
Games on Itch: https://psychicparrot.itch.io/
Die for the Economy! on XBox One: https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/store/die-for-the-economy/9p31jrcwk5gx
My Unity C# Book: https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/mono/10.1201/9780429317132/game-programming-cookbook-unity-3d-jeff-murray

Public Key

npub1whzlc650ffme2rgtdu73rdxvql6z66gk679gegud5yjdu8r7awfq0zuc5d

NIP-05 Address

[email protected]

Profile Code

nprofile1qqs8t30ud2855au4p59k70g3knxq0apddytd0z5v5wx6zfx7r3lwhyspz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0ds0es5qe

Publishing to

relay.damus.io

nos.lol

Author Public Key

npub1whzlc650ffme2rgtdu73rdxvql6z66gk679gegud5yjdu8r7awfq0zuc5d

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Last Notes

2025-10-02 14:42:59 GMT

Messaging the Canadian gov again this week to ask why they're doing nothing to stop genocide in Gaza. As with all my previous messages, I doubt I'll ever get a reply, but I'll keep doing it anyway. Maybe somewhere a number goes up for 'people contacting the office opposed to this', maybe not, but I think it's worth a few minutes to write a message now and then.
If you're a Canadian citizen and you fancy sending the gov a message, you can contact the PMs office here:
https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/connect/contact

2025-07-24 12:26:59 GMT

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Fair point. I usually give them a handful of bird feed, and a slice of wet whole-wheat bread.. but reading up on it now it seems like I should cut out the bread. I’ll just chuck the seed out for them from now on, instead 👍

2025-07-24 12:08:41 GMT

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Went out at the *perfect* moment! As soon as I went out, a bus drove past FULL (lots of people standing) of commuters! They all got to look out the window and see this nutter throwing bread out for the birds lol mission accomplished! 🤣🤣🤣🦜
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/114/908/118/480/709/951/original/275af94523bf9854.jpeg

2025-07-24 11:52:08 GMT

Our back garden backs onto a slip road onto the highway, so often buses full of commuters go past when I’m feeding the birds in the morning and I see people looking over. I’m thinking today I’ll wear my new rubber parrot mask and go feed the birds in it, just to give some people on the bus something to liven up their boring journey today.

2025-07-12 20:27:44 GMT

Hi there! Take a seat, I'll be your reply guy for today. Is there anything I can patronize you with now, as you wait for the main bullshit reply? Or do you prefer to wait for the absolutely pointless response to your post that'll take me a little while longer to come up with? 🤔

2025-07-07 15:21:27 GMT

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I at least expected the Liberals to take longer before going full throttle fash, but now?? Not sure there's any difference between them and the Conservatives.

2025-06-27 12:08:25 GMT

🤔

2025-06-03 21:11:40 GMT

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"Each year, the 117 lowest-consumption countries each consume less electricity than ChatGPT"
..
"NVIDIA’s servers alone could burn through 85.4–134.0 terawatt hours (TWh) each year by 2027 — or three to five times the electricity consumption of Ireland."
Source for all this info:
https://www.businessenergyuk.com/knowledge-hub/chatgpt-energy-consumption-visualized/

2025-06-03 20:59:28 GMT

Do people who use generative AI actually understand the environmental disaster it's contributing to every time they use it? Do they understand that every word it generates is pollution and burning of resources? Or do they just ignore that and pretend it isn't happening for their own convenience and comfort? You know, just like the pandemic?

2025-05-13 21:48:23 GMT

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This Intellivision came with a box full of cartridges, all in really good condition, including instructions booklets and the little overlay thingies for the controllers. 😍
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/114/502/711/378/228/705/original/435bd7765ec48846.jpeg

2025-05-13 21:44:53 GMT

Amazingly, I just plugged this beastie into the 4 year old tv aerial plug, tuned it in and it works! 😲 picture isn’t perfect obviously, but it’s pretty awesome to say that I didn’t need to do anything other than plug it in! I’m in my element playing this little Intellivision thingy. Looking forward to playing Star Strike next, and doing a bit more Burger Time on it later 🤓
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/114/502/705/761/673/634/original/4a0bec1c7a3db007.jpeg

2025-05-09 12:14:17 GMT

Saw this beauty in the garden this morning! Such a beautiful bird, bigger than it looks in the picture (like, the size of a cat maybe-ish?) It's a pileated woodpecker apparently, just chillin' and eating all the bugs. #bird #wildlife #canada
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/114/477/797/522/890/410/original/1ec1e4b02403db14.jpeg

2024-12-20 11:09:35 GMT

I'll do a proper post from my other account later but I just wanted to say that my game Die for the Economy! launched today and it wouldn't be as good without the help of @npub1g4h…2wq3 and @npub1a5s…78y3 - Bob did magic making the cover art and also took my original (ugly) game graphics and turned them into something lovely to look at. Andy helped me get it out the door in a solid state and also helped with some brilliant suggestions to improve odd bits here and there. I had some great help!

2024-12-14 02:45:34 GMT

Is it wrong to enjoy your own game as much as I’m enjoying mine? Playing Die for the Economy with an arcade controller is just.. 😀👍👍
Launching on Xbox One and Steam December 20th. Wishlist on Steam here https://store.steampowered.com/app/3266590/Die_for_the_Economy/
#indiedev #gamedev #steam #xbox #berzerk #diefortheeconomy
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/648/865/614/132/587/original/e614b53e3d981a78.jpeg

2024-12-09 16:58:53 GMT

The lovely Paul from @npub1ccu…kxp4
is about to go live on a livestream that'll be featuring a whole host of lovely indie dev interviews!
#indiegames #indiedev #gamedev #heartofneon #videogames
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5PMP9i3a_0&ab_channel=HeartofNeon

2024-12-09 13:15:54 GMT

Made a final pass at the audio last week on Die for the Economy! Balanced out volumes, replaced a few placeholders and went in a totally new direction for the music. The music is by François Gérin-Lajoie from his (free!) asset pack on Itch.io “12 Sci-fi Chiptune (8-bit) Music Tracks”.
What do you think of the new vibe? Does it sound like an arcade?
https://youtu.be/4pTeXr_RsUU?si=jiYFfOP78WyA4Pq7
#DieForTheEconomy #IndieDev

2024-10-29 18:46:05 GMT

I watched a video last night about indie game marketing and the parts about the description were really useful. I've just updated the Steam page for Die for the Economy! with some more concise descriptions and a bullet point list. Not really sure how I can 'optimise' the Steam page any more than I have, so I'm calling it done for now.
Link to marketing video: https://youtu.be/NWyZlGMysH8?si=PF9URFLF1G1LreXK
Link to my updated Steam page following this advice: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3266590/Die_for_the_Economy/
#indiedev

2024-10-26 18:00:05 GMT

Happy 24th birthday to my fav console, the beautiful PS2! And to all the other PS2s out there still rocking it and still in our living rooms and game rooms keeping us entertained by some of the best console games ever made! #retrogaming #ps2 #playstation2
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/375/017/204/731/349/original/6ea9115529dfcb16.jpeg

2024-10-25 15:42:46 GMT

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Here's the pause menu in action, just incase that makes a pause menu any more exciting!! 🤣 #diefortheeconomy #indiedev
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/368/818/400/890/886/original/5b45cf4538d49784.mp4

2024-10-25 14:29:42 GMT

Pause.. menu! #indiedev #diefortheeconomy
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/368/522/843/915/512/original/c82968db6435cb9c.png

2024-10-24 16:36:47 GMT

Added a little flash to the lives display when the player dies, to draw attention to it. Want to make sure people associate the lives display with the action, like. It also flashes when you get an extra life, too, to draw attention to it. #indiedev
(in my browser, the ALT icon looks like it's on top of the flashy bit I wanted to show lol, so you might have to open up the image to see it)
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/363/355/508/484/916/original/c74bd1d91b868207.mp4

2024-10-24 15:45:15 GMT

Found this picture on my phone, thought I'd share it with you guys.. MMmmmmm.
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/363/163/424/232/259/original/1b63c25f82d07bcd.jpg

2024-10-22 02:29:34 GMT

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Ello! If my ‘tribute to Berzerk’, Die for the Economy!, looks like your cup of tea.. here’s a link to the Steam page - wishlists are most welcome! Thanks for the boosts you lovelies 👍
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3266590/Die_for_the_Economy/ #indiegame #indiedev #videogames #diefortheeconomy #berzerk #retro

2024-10-22 01:58:40 GMT

Got my press kit site up today for my game. Still waiting for Valve to approve the Steam page, so I don’t think there’s all that much else I can do on this marketing front until the Steam page is up (for wishlists innit?). I’m going to write a press release and send that out after the page is up, so tomorrow I’ll go back to working on the game and carry on waiting!

2024-10-10 20:08:53 GMT

I played a free demo of a very cool snakey type game on Steam, which also happens to be made by some other lovely game makers here in Ottawa! It's called Wormhole and it's really fun, trippy and well made. Have a look, if trippy fun arcadey things are your bag. https://store.steampowered.com/app/2671590/WORMHOLE/
#indiegames #indiedev #videogames

2024-10-10 16:40:46 GMT

If you're looking for some low poly spooky assets for your 3d game, GameDev.TV are giving away a full 69 piece Halloween themed BLENDER asset pack over at their website AND you're free to use it for commercial work, too. Very nice! http://www.gamedev.tv/asset-packs/halloween-assets-2024?utm_source=Klaviyo&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Halloween%20Gift%20%28Active%20Newsletter%29%202024&_kx=YHCIMDN19zJyvBJ-iC4Ed7oA5hZEOgZGcun0XG5zOd4.VVjemm #indiedev #halloween #indiegames #gamedev

2024-10-09 18:24:41 GMT

Updated my LinkedIn profile to reflect my job more accurately.
#indiedev
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/278/886/997/397/669/original/e45aadaf86e29c99.png

2024-10-08 11:39:55 GMT

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Yay! Cheers, Molegato! Here’s my retro arcade game, Jack Dragon and the Stone of Peace 💕
http://store.steampowered.com/app/2557660/Jack_Dragon_and_the_Stone_of_Peace/
#indiegames #gamedev

2024-10-06 01:04:07 GMT

A lovely Italian retro gamer made a gameplay video of my Speccy Bomb Jack-alike, Jack Dragon. He seemed to like it, which made me very happy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_QojXBkscrE&ab_channel=AlexBattista If you're interested in the game, it's on my Itch page :)
#retrogaming #retro #zxSpectrum

2024-10-01 23:06:33 GMT

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Obligatory linkies to RC Rush…!
Xbox: https://www.xbox.com/en-US/games/store/rc-rush/9NBD9L0BWFP5
Steam and SteamVR: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1654800/RC_Rush/
Cheers me dears!
#indiedev #indiegames

2024-10-01 15:58:36 GMT

Wow, it was 2 years ago this week I submitted RC Rush to Xbox for final cert! So proud of this game. Proud of the fact we built it (me and my pal Sylvain Demers). It was an epic for just two of us - 50+ levels, 30 trucks, career, 4 game modes, 100 race, elimination and time trial events, PC VR and PC only online multiplayer - but we did it. It took 1.5 yrs and despite not selling nearly enough, it’s a cool game with mostly positive reviews- we're not the only ones who like it! Very proud 😎
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/233/004/362/753/759/original/da538a802af5f2fc.jpeg

2024-09-30 12:43:32 GMT

Have any of you lovelies tried adding a hard drive to a Playstation 2? The cd drive on my PS2 is clunky as heck and I wonder how much longer it'll last, so I was thinking about getting a hard drive adaptor, chucking in an old SATA drive and then trying to source all the games I own (staying legal, of course!) as files to put on the drive instead. Is it hard to do? Anyone tried it? If so, any issues to watch for? #retrogaming #ps2

2024-09-27 13:13:32 GMT

Please, game devs,
Don't use A.I. to generate cover art for your games. I'd rather see stick figures for cover art than know you burned half a forest of energy to generate it. And it doesn't look as good as you think it does: It looks like A.I. made it, and we all know it did. A lot of us will refuse to buy your games because of it. Just make or commission cover art that isn't torching the planet and stealing other people's work.
Please. #indiedev

2024-09-22 12:30:44 GMT

Die for the Economy! WIP update. Down to the last items on the Trello board now, so it's almost ready to go :) .. this vid shows off the new random mode, as well as the nifty procedural room name generator and the 'in the dark' super hard mode! Also, new robot explosions! Phew!
http://youtu.be/-UebXQOaCTU
#indiedev #indiegames #indiegamedev #screenshotsaturday #indie

2024-09-20 20:09:34 GMT

I've been enjoying a game called Compu-Tron x3000 and I def. recommend it, if this looks like your cup of tea. It's a retro text-based indie game, where you're basically trying to solve a mystery through an old mainframe!
The developer (Circyn) has a Steam page, or you can get it over on Itch.io .. it's currently 50% off on Itch, so I'd recommend that if you're looking to buy it!
Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3032250/CompuTron_x3000
Itch:
https://circynsoftware.itch.io/compu-tron-x3000
#indiegames #narrative #textbased #narrativegame

2024-09-20 15:34:43 GMT

Yesterday, I hated my game and I could only see the bad bits.
Today, I like my game, it's nice. I really like how it's coming together.
Tomorrow.. who knows?! 🤷‍♂️
🤣
#indiedev #gamedev

2024-09-18 13:52:05 GMT

The interview I did for Heart of Neon / IGDA Foundation's recent #WeAreIndieDev event is now available as a standalone video, just incase you'd like to watch it on repeat and wonder at my old potato-shaped noggin 🤷‍♂️ .. or maybe I should hard sell this a bit more... something like:
"YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT JEFF SAID ABOUT GAMES IN THIS SHOCKING NEW VIDEO!!!" ??
🤔
Maybe not, eh? Here's the link..
http://youtu.be/heIZ92-iEi0?si=-NWurcFkb_dvl0ZN
#indiedev #indiegames @npub1ccu…kxp4 #IGDA

2024-09-16 19:27:14 GMT

What do you prefer?
1. Choose game mode on main menu:
PLAY GAME
ENDLESS MODE
OPTIONS
etc.
OR
2. Choose game mode in sub-menu after you hit 'play game':
PLAY GAME
-> CHOOSE GAME TYPE
REGULAR
ENDLESS
#indiedev #indiegames #gamedev

2024-09-16 16:55:49 GMT

With regard to the lighting in the red zone here.. did I take this too far?
#lighting #indiedev #indiegame
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/148/273/905/696/247/original/83ccc300a5d563ff.mp4

2024-09-13 18:33:16 GMT

Die for the Economy! gameplay update video ..
The latest version of the game is absolutely light years from where it started! A lot has changed.
https://youtu.be/sJQvWVhqQtM
#indiedev #indiegames #gamedev

2024-09-12 16:39:41 GMT

Loving hearing some indie game developer stories over on the IGDA / Heart of Neon #WeAreIndieDev livestream right now. Some lovely games on display, too! https://www.youtube.com/@heartofneon/live #indiegames #indiedev

2024-09-12 15:58:11 GMT

Also, there's only 2 minutes to get your beautiful butt over to YouTube for the Heart of Neon #WeAreIndieDev livestream.. http://www.youtube.com/@heartofneon/live #indiegames #indiedev #indiestuff #humans

2024-09-12 14:20:31 GMT

Little old me was interviewed for the awesome Heart of Neon #WeAreIndieDev livestream event that's happening today! (kicking off at 12pm EST) .. along with a whole load of really awesome indie developers telling their stories.
Come and hear some real indie game dev stories at 12EST today..
http://www.youtube.com/@heartofneon/live
#indiedev #indiegame #indielife #gamedev #humans @npub1ccu…kxp4

2024-09-06 11:33:02 GMT

The only indie game developer guide anybody needs is right here:
https://punchingrobots.com/10-simple-mistakes-indie-developers-should-avoid/
#indiedev #gamedev #indiegames

2024-09-04 18:29:34 GMT

@npub1g4h…2wq3 is making my game beautiful with his incredible pixel wrangling! Look at that bezel! JUST LOOK AT IT! 🤩 IT'S GORGEOUS!! #indiegame
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/113/080/685/334/666/204/original/bcd62b4d54620168.png

2024-09-02 20:51:10 GMT

Little update video with Die for the Economy! gameplay in it. Still lots to do, and a bunch of things to polish etc. but it’s coming together quite nicely and it plays well too, I think. Wonderful [email protected] is helping me wrangle pixels now, as well, which is giving me lots of motivation to work on it. Hoping to get it wrapped by end of October-ish.. all dependent on how the next couple of weeks go, like! https://youtu.be/9XIh_E8N0eY
#indiedev #indiegames #gamedev #videogames

2024-08-22 15:37:36 GMT

One thing I do have in common with game publishers is that we both want to make the most epic, ultimate, uber:game of bigness with a budget of only $1 (CAD).
#indiedev #solodev #indiegames

2024-08-14 19:38:38 GMT

My game Jack Dragon and the Stone of Peace sold over 420 copies so far this month on Xbox. On Steam this month, it sold 1. 🤔
#indiegames #indiedev #solodev

2024-08-09 14:49:05 GMT

Die for the Economy! is a PC game I'm working on. Destroy the security servers and teleport out of there! https://youtu.be/jc15TSucchs
#indiedev #indiegames #solodev

2024-08-09 13:34:23 GMT

Adding speech bubbles to the robots in my Berzerk-alike, so that you know which one insulted you and you can go get some retribution 🤖 .. ohhh I forgot to mention, the game has a name now ..
'Die for the Economy!'
#indiedev #solodev #indiegames
https://cdn.masto.host/mastodongamedevplace/media_attachments/files/112/932/316/255/876/616/original/8e7f08bb9124b440.png

2024-08-03 15:24:23 GMT

The ZX Spectrum community are lovely. When they buy my Speccy games they often pay $1 or more. They could just as easily get my stuff from some piratey sites and yet they come to Itch and give me a little donation instead. It’s kind, it makes me feel like my work is respected and every penny is very appreciated :) Lovely folks! #zxspectrum #retrocomputing

2024-08-01 20:37:30 GMT

What's going on with that Berzerk-alike you've been working on, Jeff? Well, Jeff, let me show you.. it's still called Office Escape but that could change at any minute depending on whether or not there's already a game called Office Escape out there. Anyway, here's a vid..
https://youtu.be/x3ie1wdUVH4 #indiedev #solodev #indiegames

2024-06-17 18:30:07 GMT

In Visual Studio, there's a keyboard shortcut to jump to the .cpp file from the .h file and I can't remember what it is or find it! Anyone know what it is? I know that you can jump to the header from the cpp with CTRL+K then O, but what's the other way around?? 🤓 🤔