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Steven Don 🇺🇦

@shdon.com
399 followers 145 following 158 posts

47yro geek | he/him | PHP developer by trade | game developer for fun | dabbling in pixel art Rest in peace, Jumber, my hero: www.shdon.com/blog/2023/11/24/jumbe…

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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 07/08/2026
Written entirely in 8086 assembly and supporting CGA, Tandy/EGA and VGA. I have 1344 bytes of tile graphics in there (488 bytes per graphics mode) pushing the compiled binary past 4kB to 4548 bytes. Pretty much functionally identical to the C64 version, though it adds a joystick calibration screen.
Snake Temple for DOS running in glorious 4-colour CGA mode.Snake Temple running in decadent 16-colour EGA (or Tandy) mode.Snake Temple running in extravagant 256-colour MCGA/VGA mode.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 06/08/2026
After creating a C64 game, I couldn't neglect DOS, of course, so porting has begun. And when you make a retro game in 2026, it has to support CGA, EGA, and VGA!
The same tile set in (top to bottom) CGA, EGA, and VGA. The files (from left to right) are: empty floor, health potion, snake, wall (top view), wall (side view), treasure chest, and player.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 23/07/2026
Inspired by "The Snake Temple" for the Oric Atmos ( bunsen.itch.io/the-snake-te... ), I pulled out my #c64 and recreated it in #c64basic
A screenshot (through the VICE emulator) of my recreation of The Snake Temple, showing a small blue figure in a maze filled with green snakes and blue health potions. About a third of the maze has been explored so far, and the character has 83 health points.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 24/06/2026
It's been ages since I did one of the #pixel_dailies, but the #fireplace was something that I really wanted to do in #pixelart @pixeldailies.bsky.social
A fireplace with a fire blazing inside it, spare logs lying to the left and a tool stand to the right. On the mantle are a dome clock, a candelabra with 3 lit candles, and a porcelain vase.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 09/04/2026
As I had to reinstall my PC, it doesn't meet Win11's requirements and I don't want to downgrade to Win11 anyway, I've switched to Linux recently. And one of two patches I've submitted to Wine has just been merged, fixing Wine's built-in task manager's graphs which got clipped on resizing the window.
Wine's built-in task manager before my patch. Note the clipped graphs and the spacing between the horizontal grid lines being much greater than that between the vertical grid lines.Wine's built-in task manager after my patch. The graphs now display completely and have a square grid.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 22/01/2026
A new train arrives so I can continue my journey home. Normally this takes 40 minutes. This time, it will have taken 3 hours and 10 minutes.
A welcome sight... the replacement train pulls into the station, so I can finally go home.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 22/01/2026
Wel, this is interesting... My train home broke down and we were stranded outside the station for an hour and a half in darkness. An evacuation train came alongside and we've just transferred onto it. I left the office at 22:00 (10:00pm) and likely won't be home before 1:00am...
A dark train compartment with the only light provided from the on-board travel information displays.A dark train compartment with no on-board lighting at all.ProRail staff at open doors in a stranded train next to an evacuation train.ProRail and NS staff preparing a ramp between a stranded train and an evacuation train.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 13/12/2025
Don't forget @georgebsocial.bsky.social's masterpiece from a year earlier... I wonder if I can still register this shareware title.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 24/11/2025
An hour long delay for me on the @eurostarnews.bsky.social. Fortunately I saw @golosogames.bsky.social and Pierre Corbinais in the waiting area, whose train was delayed even more, and we had a nice post #AdvX25 chat.
A schedule display at the London St. Pancras International terminal showing the 12:31 train to Paris only just boarding at 13:24, my 12:01 train to Brussels being delayed 44 minutes (and rising), and the 13:32 train to Brussels having been cancelled outright.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 23/11/2025
@darmato.bsky.social gave an inspiring talk about imposter syndrome at #AdvX25 And I got to get my photo taken with him too!
Dominic Armato and myself at the AdventureX conference at LSBU
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 23/11/2025
Stark Holborn's #AdvX25 talk about crafting the proc gen world and narrative for Shadows of Doubt was really good. And this slide was a standout among a great set.
A slide shown during a presentation. The slide is titled "But why not LLMs?" with underneath it the face of Jessica Fletcher of "Murder, She Wrote" with a "what kind of abomination is that?" look on her face.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 22/11/2025
I love tha #AdvX25 started off with a short tribute to those we've lost recent. R.I.P. Roberta Vaughan and Burgerbecky
A slide with the late Roberta Vaughan's portrait at AdventureXA slide with the portrait of the late Rebecca "burgerbecky" Heineman shown at AdventureX
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 06/11/2025
I've always loved the title screen of the first Space Quest game (also the first #adventuregame I ever played). So I figured I'd recreate it in #blender and animate it.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 29/10/2025
And now, we wait. Provisional results will likely be in later tonight and they're a pretty good indication of how the 150 seats in parliament will be divided up among the parties. Maybe one or two seats might shift when the definitive results are in tomorrow morning. And, well, that's all folks! (7)
The traditional end screen of a "Looney Tunes" cartoon with the "That's all Folks!" text.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 29/10/2025
And at 13:18 (1:18pm), just two minutes after arriving at the polling station, I'm walking out again. Four minutes after that, at 13:22 (1:22pm) I'm back home, having done my civic duty. The whole thing has taken under 11 minutes of my time. (6)
The sign and flag of the polling station, from the other side, as I'm leaving.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 29/10/2025
I find the person who gets my vote (easy, because of the list I received in advance) and fill the circle red. I voted for @matthijs85.bsky.social of the Dutch Pirate Party @piratenpartij.nl. Then, I fold up the paper and put it in the box. No picture of that, because of the lack of a third hand. (5)
Me marking a circle on the ballot paper in red, thus casting my vote.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 29/10/2025
I hand in my voting pass and present my government ID (in my case a passport, but could do an ID card or driving licence) and am given the ballot paper. 1093 candidates over 25 parties to choose from. The paper is so large, it's a bit unweildy. (4)
The actual ballot paper, my passport that I used to identify myself lying on top of it.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 29/10/2025
At 13:16 (1:16pm) I arrive at the polling station. There's no line, I can go straight inside. At voting rush hour, there might be a short wait, though I've never had to wait more than 15 minutes myself even at the busiest of times. (3)
A flag with the text "stembureau" (polling station) on it.A sign identifying this polling station as Polling Station 3.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 29/10/2025
I left the house at 13:12 (1:12pm) with my voting pass in hand. I could authorise somebody else to vote on my behalf by giving them this pass with my signature, and did that once when I was abroad on election day. I can go to any polling station in town, or request voting in another city.
My voting pass, with personal information obscured.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 29/10/2025
So, today is election day in the Netherlands. Especially for my American friends, here's what that's like. Every adult Dutch citizen gets sent a voting pass by post a few weeks in advance, and a list of candidates a few days prior to the election. We have a lot of parties, so the list is huge. (1)
A list of candidates for the 2025 Dutch general election. A total of 1093 candidates spread out over 25 parties.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 26/10/2025
Unusual to see adblocker detection on a website actually recommend using a blocker. Normally sites try to deny access to people with adblockers.
A notice from a website that says: "No adblocker detected. Consider using an extension like uBlock Origin to save time and bandwidth. Click here to close."
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 25/10/2025
Okay, sorry, but I just had to.
An image that is entirely transparent. Nothing is visible.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 22/10/2025
Is it perhaps reminding you of a certain Daventry castle?
The left side of Daventry castle in the AGI version of King's Quest 1.The right side of Daventry castle in the AGI version of King's Quest 1.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 21/10/2025
Results for #109AdvChal came in a bit earlier than expected and I was astonished to see that I'd ended up in the shared #1 position right next to @gugames.eu's great Eulogy for Nonno! Guga did some great work and his game had my vote for first place, so I'm happy to share the top spot with him!
Screenshot from the rankings page of the $109 Adventure Challenge, showing my game "Intern's First Day" and Gugames.eu's game "Eulogy for Nonno" sharing the #1 position.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 18/10/2025
Having fixed all the (known) bugs and glitches, I'm now adding extra interactions to my #109AdvChal game "Intern's First Day" to release as a post-jam update when the voting period is over in 4 days. #indiedev #pointandclick #adventuregame
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 03/10/2025
You know about my latest short game, as you streamed it recently 😁 Intern's First Day is about a little intern who has to survive his first day at the weird Lab Lab. The jam version is available at shdon.itch.io/interns-firs... - soon to be update with several quality of life improvements.
An intern stands by the reception/security booth outside a steel security gate and a sign reading "LAB". He says to the receptionist "Good morning, ma'am, I'm the intern, here for my first day!"
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 01/10/2025
Welp, I've given this particular company a 1-star review. They don't deserve it, but it's not possible give them the -5 stars that they do deserve. Incompetent scumbags. And am I the only one who feels this way... well... the graph speaks for itself:
A graph of ratings with the 1-star bar being so long the more positive ratings are barely even visible.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 20/09/2025
Finishing up character art for my #109AdvChal game "Intern's First Day": Dr. Flora Fauna (biologist), Prof. Ray Gamma (nuclear physicist), Prof. Cogswell Crank (engineer) #indiedev #pointandclick #adventuregame
On the left, an old lady in a green dress and lab coat wearing purple shoes and glasses, flowers in her beehive hairdo. In the middle a rotund bald man with a grey moustache and beard, wearing a lab coat. On the right, a black balding man wearing a lab coat and a striped purple tie.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 17/09/2025
A game called "Intern's First Day" where an intern starts at a lab that has a pet piranha cannot be considered complete without a sign like this. #indiedev #pointandclick #adventuregame
A sign with the text "days without blub eating an intern" above two cards showing the digits 00.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 14/09/2025
My little intern riding the self-driving shuttle to the main lab. Screen took way longer than it should have. My home-made engine wasn't intended for it, but there's 4 layers of parallax. Drawing Rayman style detached limbs for ease of animation. #109AdvChal #indiegame #pointandclick #adventuregame
A vehicle whizzing along a road next to a park. We see a cutaway of the main vehicle to reveal the interior with a geeky character inside.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 10/09/2025
The first completed background for my upcoming short point and click adventure for the #109AdvChal jam, titled "Intern's First Day" #indiegame #pointandclick #adventuregame
A low resolution cartoonish game screen with a reception booth/guard house near the gate in a wall with barbed wire. A sign with "LAB" in gold lettering stands to the side.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 01/09/2025
Someone: Do you save often enough? Me:
A closeup photo of my keyboard, the S key having worn to the point where you can see through the keycap.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 21/08/2025
No, no, NO!! JUST NO! Of all the places I don't want #AI, a disk utility has to rank at the very top!
An update dialog for EaseUS Partition Master, listing among the added features: "Added AI assistant, now you can chat with your disk in natural language"
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 18/08/2025
Been a long time since I had enough mental energy to do even a tiny bit of #gamedev stuff, but now I did. This simple swirling #vortex effect will be in the background of the title menu of a game I've planned for quite a while now.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 13/08/2025
Just received my two vanity mugs from @villainyvs.bsky.social and two grog ones gifted by fellow community member McSpooge! Special thanks to @nikki-phoenix.bsky.social ❤ Check out Villainy's Twitch stream at www.twitch.tv/villainyvs and of course the merch at villainy-vs-shop.fourthwall.com
Four mugs on a white background. Two on the left with an image of skull Murray in a space helmet with my username "shdon", two on the right with an image of a mug of grog and the text "69% drunk on grog™ - Nice"
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 08/07/2025
Today it's been 3 years since Jumber was killed. I will not forget. www.shdon.com/blog/2023/11...
My friend Jumber, the last time I saw him alive in person.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 26/05/2025
Disgusting. I think spammers already have a special place in hell, but having a fake unsubscribe page makes me wish for something worse than that upon them. #spam The "web developer" who did this deserves every bad thing that happens to them.
A web form saying "unsubscribe from our newsletter" with an email field and an "unsubscribe" button below it.The source code of the web form in the other picture, demonstrating that the form is ineffective and it even blatantly says so, that it is simply "simulating and unsubscribe action"
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 11/02/2025
Heh, I used the AGI dithering system in my oldest released adventure game (not really running on AGI, but deliberately given a similar aesthetic), and made it a plot device.
A screen from my game Spy Quest 1, with graphics in AGI style with the 16 colour EGA palette.A screen from my game Spy Quest 1, with graphics in AGI style dithered to the default 4 colour CGA palette (black/cyan/magenta/white).
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 20/01/2025
My #pixelart for #Inauguration2025 #Felon47.
The Statue of Liberty sits, crying, in a dejected pose. In the background, an American flag with swastikas instead of stars. At the bottom is an excerpt from The New Colossus, reading "give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses..."
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 08/01/2025
Just before leaving for work today, this postcard fell onto my doormat, sent by the awesome @adventuregamegeek.bsky.social . I always try to incorporate a Mondriaan painting in my adventure games, so seeing this put a huge smile on my face!
A postcard showing a 1921 work by Dutch artist Piet Mondriaan
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 11/12/2024
Drat. It's no fun waiting in the cold for an hour with 4000 other evacuees while the emergency services determine that yes, this was a false alarm triggered by an idiot.
The Delftse Poort office building in the centre of Rotterdam, Netherlands, with thousands of office workers standing outside after evacuating the building due to a fire alarm.
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Steven Don 🇺🇦 @shdon.com · 16/11/2024
#bigbox releases of awesome #adventuregames always make me happy! Got my boxed copy of original Inspector Waffles as Kickstarter reward for Inspector Waffles: Early Days by @golosogames.bsky.social. Out now on Steam store.steampowered.com/app/2614580/... and Itch golosogames.itch.io/inspector-wa...
The Inspector Waffles big box release with its contents on display: the game itself on CD and USB card, a poster, IW stickers and a trading card.
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