Bez(de(n))
2025-02-19
I started working on this project many, many years ago - round 2010. It was originally intended to be a game - horizontal shooter with minimalist graphics. I abandoned it several times (for years at a time) and kept coming back to it whenever I had a free moment. The entire development can be divided into three “phases.” For now, three - because it’s been abandoned again…
Bezden
Originally, the game was titled Bezden (an Old Polish name for a deep abyss). It was developed as a project for the iPhone (iOS 5). A short video from that version has been preserved - the game was running on an iPhone 3GS. Several levels were fully playable. I personally handled both the coding and the graphics. The awesome chip music was created by Wiklund/FLT. Unfortunately, after a few years of sporadic work (just a few hours a month in my free time), the project was suspended.
Bezdee
After a several-year break, I returned to developing the game. I changed the title to Bezdee. I rewrote the code so the game would use OpenGL ES 1.x for rendering graphics. Levels were created as simple BMP graphics in indexed mode. Specific colors represented backgrounds, enemies, and bonuses. There was no separate level editor - I used Pro Motion to create both the graphics and the game levels.
The game unfolds across four distinct planetary environments, each featuring five action-packed stages. Gameplay follows a classic side-scrolling shoot-‘em-up formula: fly right, unleash firepower, and survive the chaos.
But as is often the case, time and motivation ran out… and the game project was once again suspended for years.
Bez
Finally, the third attempt. In 2024, I decided to completely refactor the project. The game shifted its target platform from smartphones to PC. It no longer uses OpenGL - just SDL 2.0 and simple 2D rendering. Essentially, everything has been changed and reworked.
I also revised the game’s concept: levels will be much more varied, and gameplay will be more challenging - not just ‘fly and shoot.’ There’s still a lot of work ahead to tie everything together and reach a somewhat playable state.
For level editing, I currently use a custom-configured Tiled Map Editor tailored specifically for this project.
Unfortunately, I have less and less time for personal projects... and another indefinite suspension of development is already looming on the horizon.