iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 23/09/2026

Inspired by the newsletter I sent on Monday and a nudge from a friend I made a tiny book today. Making a small app that lets you design your own book then print it out so you can cut it out and glue it all together. #papercraft #crafting

A photo of my tiny book open beside a pencil and a 5p piece. Shows the book open with 2 pages of text.

A photo of my tiny book beside a pencil and a 5p piece. The book is green with the title The House That Went for a Walk

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

Got a nice little group of games on beepmini.com now. Am really pleased with the games list, looks nice and retro but also like they are all from the same developer/ era. I have another 4 or 5 games that I made when making beepmicro so I will tidy and release them too #gamedev #indiedev #javascript

A grid of 8 retro influenced games on a pink background.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

When I had designed a chunk of the world I printed it and gave it to my 10 year old son who helped me to work out the position of the rainbows and the doors and keys to try and make it an interesting experience. #gamedesign #js13k

A pen and paper version of the game level. It has the level printed in black and white with pencil and pink highlighter drawn on top to try different things.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 07/09/2026

Here's a screenshot of the game and the splash screen. It's almost done now. A bit of level tidying and then some play-testing but I'm pretty happy with it. #js13k #gamedev #indiedev #javascript

A screenshot of a tiny unicorn flying through a colourful cave world. The screenshot uses vector assets with a glow effect to look "retro". The unicorn is white with a pink outline and has a rainbow coming out of its bum.

The Unicorn Escape splash screen. There's a unicorn in the middle of the screen with the game name (Unicorn Escape) above and "click to begin" written underneath. The image has a dark background and there's particles flying out from the centre of the screen in the colours of the rainbow.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

I fixed a lot of bugs this evening, and I now have a little unicorn character. He doesn't animate but he does look cute I think. I may add simple animations in the future but everything is restricted by the 13k size limit. #js13k #gamedev #javascript

The start of the level layout for my unicorn game. Mostly a dark background with brown rocks and a pink unicorn character.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Started building the actual world this evening. It's a bit slower going than I imagined but it is working, which is the main thing. I want to finish the first version tomorrow and then I test it a lot! Then make it look prettier, and hopefully add music if the budget allows. #js13k #gamedev

A screenshot of the vector level editor building the world map for my unicorn game. This shows an incomplete world with lots of rocks and paths that will need to be traversed.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

This is a horrible drawing I scribbled on my tablet but it shows my early thoughts for the level layout. It will change since I haven't worked out any critical paths or puzzles or tested anything, but I am trying to work out how to make it look interesting and be enjoyable to explore. #gamedev

A black and white image showing a cave system for the unicorn to bounce around and try to escape from.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

This is a simple vector editor I made for the map editor. It's based on another simple editor I made for drawing shapes for my vector game library. I can basically just add squares and then split them up and draw the points around, or add lines. It outputs json for the engine to consume. #indiedev

A primitive vector editor I am using as a level editor. It's a dark screen with some toolbar buttons and a colour palette at the top, a right sidebar containing screen dimensions and export options, and the main section just shows some vector shapes and a few icons for different objects that can be interacted with

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

This image shows our hero, the unicorn (currently a pink square). Once fully powered up it leaves a rainbow trail everywhere it goes, which is can bounce off of to reach higher locations. #gamejam

Early screenshot of my unicorn (currently a pink square) bouncing around a vector environment, with a rainbow trail following behind it.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

Added custom fonts to the engine, so it uses a vector drawn using the same system as everything else. Lightweight and looks pretty unique! #gamedev #indiedev #javascript

A screenshot of the app using the full BeepMicro font with letters, numbers and punctuation. In different sizes, weights, and colours, all made dynamically from coordinates.

A screenshot of another prototype game using the new font. Shows a small square character with a smiley face, traversing a world of much larger squares

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

In preparation for the js13k game jam I am making a small vector game library that I call BeepMicro. It mostly draws vector shapes from an array and takes care of timing and input. See some screenshots of test games I've made below. #gamedev #js13k #javascript

A minimal retro vector version of Breakout with a dark background and bright colours.

A circular shooter game inspired by Tempest

A space invaders clone with rows of brightly coloured enemies towards the top, and a triangular spaceship at the bottom

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 23/07/2026

@leafo.itch.io hi - the update emails are missing images for the top section. Used to work but has been like this for a few weeks now. Checked the html and the image is still there, removing max-width: 100% fixes it. Wonder if it's a gmail rendering issue.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 10/07/2026

My sky generator is coming along. I really want to simplify it now. Over 4000 lines of code (although I do comment a lot so about half is comments). A lot for a weekend project (2 weeks later). Looks nice though 😊 #indiedev #javascript #gamedev

A 6x6 grid of generated skies made with javascript.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

I've been working on a random landscape generator for my retro 3d engine. This is far more complex than I had imagined it would be when I started. Means I can make skies easily for games. #javascript #indiedev #indiegames #gamedev

A 6x6 grid of generated landscape images, with sunsets, space scapes, and water scenes

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 17/06/2026

The editor is coming along slowly but surely. 3D math isn't fun, especially when you're doing rotations in multiple axis (took me ages) and rotations within a group. UVWs were also a pain. But it's starting to feel good. #gamedev #indiedev #javascript

A screenshot of a 3d object editor showing a simple wall object with buttresses. There's a large 3d viewport and a sidebar containing object management and a panel with object properties on it.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Also making a procedural material editor to go with this. You can create overlapping layers and build up textures with parameters, so that the engine can just store json data to describe a material and then rebuild everything when the game loads. #gamedev #indiedev #javascript

A 3D material editor showing a material that has some grass with flowers on it.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

Possibly now making a simple 3d editor. Uses three.js so all the 3d stuff is basically done for me, and the editor just lets you combine 3d primitives, but it's mostly working - if rather flakey at the moment. Will take a lot of work to make it intuitive to use. #gamedev #three.js #javascript

A view of a simple 3d editor. Shows a giant cylinder and a small ramp with a bunch of input boxes for changing the size, position and rotation.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 02/06/2026

Trying to talk to someone about my car insurance renewal and got the following options on their whatsapp chat. Absolute trash... Can anyone recommend a comparison website. I have a distrust of them so have never used them. I feel like anything that relies on a revenue share is not impartial.

A screenshot of automated responses from a whatsapp chat. The options are cut off so I have no way to know the full text. It says:

Got another question?
Learn how to accept...
How do I stop my re...
I want to discuss m...

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

Because of the things I've been doing with the generative map design I've now been able to upgrade the graphics in Key Kwest, so soon you'll be able to see curved corners on the water! #gamedev #indiegame #javascript

A screenshot of the tile based game Key Kwest. The corners on the water areas are now rounded where they used to be square tiles.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

Experimenting with a procedural world again. This time I made the rules a lot simpler which is making it quicker to work on. I quite like this screenshot of a village by a lake. #gamedev #indiegame #javascript

A retro pixel art styled procedural world with a king character stood in the middle of a small village by a lake, surrounded by woods and grass.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

Making some more complex levels. I retro fitted a level editor I made last year so it can make levels for this. Has made the process a lot simpler. #gamedev #indiedev #javascript #indiegame

A screenshot of my game Code Machine. It shows a retro styled game with a level at the top containing 2 robots and some doors, and crates that have to be moved around to solve a puzzle. The lower half of the screen shows a series of commands the robot has to follow to escape the level

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

I think I might be done with most of the programming now! I just need to finish the visual design, create levels, add sound and music. So nothing much then! 4 days to go 😬 #gamejam #indiegame #gamedev #javascript

A screenshot of my retro style gamejam game. It shows 3 robots in a room with a fire burning, and a door to escape from. There is also a control panel where you can place a list of commands for your robot to follow. Currently there's only a pause/ wait command since it's a demo

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

The interface is coming along nicely. Also added a fire obstacle. #gamedev #indiedev #gamejam #javascript

A screenshot of my retro game. Shows a robot in a room with some buttons and a list of commands the robot will follow.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

Done a little bit of work making it look nicer. Am currently working on adding fire to the game... 🔥 #indiedev #indiegame #gamedev #gamejam

A screenshot of a retro style 2d game showing a small robot in a strange shaped room and a set of controls that can be used to program the robot to get to the exit

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

Was on holiday last week and got an email about the gamedev.js gamejam. So while on holiday I started making a game for the jam with beepmini. I've now got 6 days left to finish it off. Here's a screenshot of the current state. Check the image alt text for info. #gamejam #gamedevjs #javascript

An early screenshot of my game Code Machine (or maybe Machine Code). It shows a level at the top with grey walls, a pink square as the character, a crate, button and a yellow conveyor belt made from arrows. There is a locked door (open with the button) and an open door (the exit). The lower half has a series of arrow buttons, a run button, and a list of "commands" which are also arrows with numbers. The commands are created with the first set of buttons, and the numbers represent how many times that command is repeated.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

I wonder if Jacqueline Fletcher will ever stop emailing me like she promises. #spam #junkmail

A screenshot of 20+ emails from Jacqueline Fletcher saying this is her last attempt to reach me and she won't try again.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 08/04/2026

My retro photo app inspired by the Gameboy camera is coming on. Here's a beautiful selfie 🤭 #javascript #photography #gamrboy

A low resolution pixelated selfie of a middle aged man with a beard and glasses sitting in front of a window in 6 colours.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 07/04/2026

Added layers, a smudge tool and color picker to Paint Ninja this week. It's surprisingly fun to create art with now. Anything else I should add to make it a viable as a lightweight image creator? #javascript #noai #art #creativity

A screenshot of a simple image editor. There is a top toolbar with file controls and a toolbar with brush types, sizes and colours. Underneath is a blank canvas.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 29/03/2026

Started making a little gameboy camera style web app last night. Just for fun. Will probably stick it on one (or two) of my websites soon. #javascript #webapp #creativecoding #screenshotsunday

A screenshot of a camera app with a retro pixellated screen in 4 beautiful shades of grey and a lovely dithered effect.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

Got my Noppy cards in the post today. They are just like a proper collectible card series. Lovely to have something handmade. @thomasnoppers.com

A collection of 9 trading cards made by Noppy. They are for Magic the Gathering and feature characters from pop culture such as Kirby, the ninja turtles, Venusaur, and Link from Zelda. Everyone is depicted relaxing in some way.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

I don't normally join in with memes but I keep seeing this and it got me thinking, so here's my 9 games. The ones I remember most fondly or lfet the greatest impression. #9games #retrogames

A 3x3 grid of games posters/ box art. From top left to bottom right we have, Zelda Ocarina of Time (N64), ICO (PS2), Goldeneye (N64), Beyond Good and Evil (Gamecube), Prince of Persia Sands of Time (Gamecube), Mario Kart 64 (N64), Perfect Dark (N64), Zelda Links Awakening (Gameboy), Super Mario World (Snes)

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 07/03/2026

Had an idea for a game last night so made a quick editor as a proof of concept. It's a "3d" editor that involves you drawing pixel layers that then get stacked giving a faux 3d effect when the layers are transformed and drawn on top of each other. #gamedev #screenshotsaturday #javascript

A screenshot of a sprite stack editor with a simple pixel art editoron the left and a faux 3d render of the object on the right. The render shows a simple house with green grass, white walls and a red roof.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

I made a vector editor for my game Splatter Balls. It lets me create outlines that I can use in the game to define what the balls collide with. It was supposed to be a quick thing so I don't have to write the points out by hand but I may have got carried away. #gamedev #indiedev #javascript

A 32x32 grid with blue dots connected by black lines. There's an input field containing the coordinates of the dots and some buttons for loading, clearing, and rotating the shape.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

I am making some updates to my game Splatter Balls. Adding more levels and features, and am planning to add gameplay modes as well. The debug information for the current level is perhaps a bit over the top. #gamedev #indiedev #javascrit #game

A screenshot of the game Splatter Balls in debug mode. There are lots of black blocks and spikes and lots of light blue chevrons pointing in different directions. The balls follow the chevrons. Each chevron has a black debug circle around it. There are also yellow splatters that also have black circles around them. The black blocks have their bounding boxes drawn on top. This makes for a very busy, confused looking screen.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

Added built in debug logging to beepmini, so if there's a problem you get an error message and stack trace. The stack trace is new, but helps a lot for working out what function caused the error. #gamedev #indiedev #javascript

A screenshot of beepmini showing an error message and stack trace which is a list of functions in the reverse order they were called

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 05/01/2026

Am currently trying to add AI to the adventure game maker in BeepMini. Specifically enemy AI (NOT chatgpt ai). That is how the enemy decides where to move, when to attack etc. Never done anything this complex before, it's really frying my brain. beepmini.com/tools/advent... #gamedev #indiedev

A screenshot of my enemy ai todo list. Includes:

- better enemy ai
- enemy properties
- astar to chase player
- attack player when near enough (must be facing player and in tile next to them)
- user setting to grab hearts, coins, etc that the player can pickup
- user setting to drop items (including ones grabbed) on death
- field of view/ line of sight
- run around when on fire
- allow player sneak attacks (use field of view)
- respawn option on map reload (otherwise delete from map list)

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 23/11/2025

I have spent the last couple of weeks refactoring the map editor for beepmini.com - this adds the ability to add additional levels in each game. Today I finally got it loading the old maps from the old version and seeing the tiny thumbnail of Key Kwest is very cool (I think). #gamedev #javascript

A cropped image of the beepmini level editor showing a thumbnail of the Key Kwest world map in its entirety.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 18/10/2025

Making artwork for my fantasy console. This will be the screen where you load a game cassette. It shows a textmode image of the console with a mini version of the splash screen. #screenshotstaurday #indiegame #gamedev #javascript

A retro style console. Reminiscent of the og gameboy with a vertical screen like a phone and a pink lower half where the controls are. The screen shows a blue scene with the console name in white and yellow reading Beep Mini

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

Today I added a submission form for the emoji art gallery as well, and had a couple of submissions already. Plus I added some more of my own. I wish I'd thought of adding these submission forms earlier. #javascript #webdev #creativecoding

A screenshot showing a collection of small artworks made from emojis laid out in a grid. There's a parrot, a bumble bee, 2 minions (from the films) a smiley face, and a poo emoji.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 01/10/2025

Last night I published a gallery of flow fields animations people have sent in. I still have a bunch more to add. I also added some additional colour palettes to make them even more beautiful. You can view the gallery here: brush.ninja/gallery/part... #javascript #physics #particlesystems

A screenshot showing a gallery of 6 flow fields images. There's more on the website.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 25/09/2025

Having a little play with procedural generation to try and make a really big map you can walk around in Beep8. This uses algorithms, and repeatable random numbers to create a consistent world from a single seed number. #javascript #gamedev #indiedev

A top down tilebased world showing a beach with the sea in the top left and different grass lands in the bottom right.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 22/09/2025

Hey Neal, was fun until level 16 where I'm getting a javascript error

A screenshot of "I'm not a Robot" level 16, with the javascript console open and the error "Can't access property generateShapes"

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

Here's some more screenshots from the finished version of the app using the built in formulae. #javascript #flowfields #generativeart #creativecoding

Flow field demo, primarily green showing 8 boxy spirals in a grid.

Flow field demo showing pastel shaded particles that look like a set of tendrils reaching out.

Flow field demo using a haphazard formulae to make a random seeming mathematical pattern.

A fiery flow field demo with spiraling particles that have some jitter to them

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 18/09/2025

Saw some particle flow images last night and thought it would be fun to make a quick app for Brush.ninja. I am not very good at the maths but found a bunch of formulae online and am enjoying the results. #javascript #creativecoding #particles

A colourful particle flow image showing a series of particles and the path they are following.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 15/09/2025

Some progress on beep8 and the game maker! The game maker can now make game files that can be loaded. And the game is almost functionally complete. I need to separate a few bits and then I can turn it into a "console" that can load games you or others have made! #gamedev #javascript #indiedev

A screenshot showing the a screenshot of Key Kwest, my hunt them up. It's a retro styled game with a dark background and brightly coloured tiles. Everything is drawn on a grid. The main character is bright yellow.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

A little bit of progress on the comic I mentioned a couple of weeks ago. They have gone from thumbnails to rough sketches. And now I see it like this I realise it will take longer than I thought! #comic #art

A photo of my iPad showing rough layouts of the first few pages of the comic book I am making. There are 12 pages on the screen with blue sketches that I will use to work out the layout for the final drawings.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 30/08/2025

Spent some time tidying it up and making it more reusable across my projects.

The pixel art editor with icons for brush sizes and an improved design.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 30/08/2025

Currently making a small pixel art editor for beep8. This is mostly for the map editor so you can design icons for the games you make. Everything else will use the textmode editor. #beep8 #pixelart #indiedev #gamedev #javascript

A pixel art editor with brush size buttons, a 16 x 16 image, and a colour palette.

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Ben @binarymoon.bsky.social · 16/08/2025

Here's a photo of the first 8 pages. I think it'll be 20 pages in total. See the photo caption to explain the story so far. The thumbnails mean something to me but are probably a mess to others. #comic #design

Thumbnails of the first 8 pages of the comic showing a boy at school, going into the art supplies cupboard that has a ladder down into a cave. Befriends a panda fox and discovers a city.

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