iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

Dolly was kindness incarnate. Tim was an irreplaceable presence among weirdos and theater kids. Peter Cullen was literally the voice of courage and loyalty for millions. The three of you will be missed.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 09/06/2026

Does anyone else notice that autocorrect across its various incarnations is getting progressively worse?

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 07/06/2026

You want to be scared? Ask an LLM if scientists have any data about the expected date of the next apocalyptic tectonic or weather event. It won't say "soon" outright, but it may just refuse to answer completely or weasel around the question.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

"Never shall I forget that night, the first night in camp, which has turned my life into one long night. Never shall I forget that smoke. Never shall I forget the little faces of the children whose bodies I saw turned into wreaths of smoke beneath a silent blue sky."

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 31/05/2026

One of the most heartbreaking lines I've ever read, from Elie Wiesel's "Night:" When the three days were up, there was a new decree: every Jew must wear the yellow star... "The yellow star? Oh well, what of it? You don't die of it..." (Poor Father! Of what then did you die?"

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

I was at the mall and saw a Kay Jewelers banner: "Every Kiss Begins With Kay." Well, one thing I like doing for my own enjoyment is singing sophomoric parodies of things. So I went to go do one for Kay and accidentally uncovered a deep truth of the universe: "Every Poop Begins With Pee."

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

I know you couldn't do it on a C64, but my Apogee64 #fantasyconsole now supports multiple scripts with the CALL filename, label/line number command! #gamedev #solodev #indiedev #c64

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

It's been a busy night working on the commands for my Apogee64 Fantasy Console, but I now have output, flow, variable, math, random, and string commands working! #gamedev #indiedev #solodev #fantasyconsole

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 27/04/2026

I'm always really bad at doing dev logs. I just don't have the time or think about doing it at all. I have no idea how Andrew Braybrook did it in this series for Zzap Magazine about the production of Paradroid, likely the first real dev log ever... www.zzap64.co.uk/zzap3/para_b... #indiedev #gamedev

zzap64.co.uk

Birth of a Paradroid. part I. courtesy of Dave Foreman.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

Here's the finished game for the #Gamedev.js Jam 2026, Merlin's Magickal Machine. You play as a little Wizard who lives on an island that is secretly a music-making machine! Give it a try! the-wizards-tales.itch.io/mmm #music #solodev #indiedev #gamedev #retrogames #indiegaming #gamejam

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

Merlin's Musickal Machine by The Wandering Wizard

A cozy musical game about a little Wizard who lives on an island that is actually a music-making machine!

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 25/04/2026

It's the last day to vote on my entry for the Gunscreen Horror Jam. My computer is absolute garbage, so I didn't get to play or rate many other games, so please check out everyone else's submissions for me as well! #gamedev #solodev #indiedev #retro #retrodev #gamejam itch.io/jam/gunscree...

itch.io

Rate It's Jeff! (Dahmer) by The Wandering Wizard for 🏆 $1000+ 🏆- GUNSCREEN HORROR JAM

Your neighbor is a weird fella named Jeff... Dahmer.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

A screencap of the game I'm working on for the #gamedevjs game jam! It's called "Merlin's Musickal Machine."

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

It sucks... I'm in the middle of making one of the happiest games I've ever made, and my beloved pet rat Bennie dies. Well, now my heart's not in it, because it's with The Thousand. #gamedev #indiedev #solodev "My heart has joined the Thousand, for my friend stopped running today."

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

My heart has joined the Thousand, for my friend stopped running today. Goodbye, Bennie, my sweet girl.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

The incredible queenfaith has posted a video playthrough of my jam entry, It's Jeff! Check it out here, and thank her for me by throwing her a like and subscribe. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofVJ... #gamejam #indiedev #solodev #tic80 #gamedev #retrogames

youtube.com

It's Jeff! Dahmer

YouTube video by Queen faith Official

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 16/04/2026

My entry to the Gunscreen Horror Jam: "It's Jeff!" You play as Jeffrey Dahmer's next door neighbor, and must take care of your own home while peeping in on his. Gather enough evidence to put him away, but don't be a bad neighbor or else he might come for YOU! the-wizards-tales.itch.io/itsjeff #tic80

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

It's Jeff! (Dahmer) by The Wandering Wizard

Your neighbor is a weird fella named Jeff... Dahmer.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

I didn't know if I was originally going to go this way, but after some very successful implementations that went much quicker and easier than I thought they would, I'm adding 3d capabilities, including a full 3d editor and animator, to the Apogee64 #fantasyconsole #indiedev #solodev #gamedev #retro

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

That garbage issue I was talking about... Jeff (Dahmer) hits the garbage and it becomes a singularity which he gets trapped in. #Gamedev is always so full of weird, emergent little moments like that which make for great stories. #indiedev #solodev #tic80 #horror

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

I always get to the point where the amount of stuff going on in the game makes the trouble seem more than I care to bother with, but I keep on going. Who knew the state machine defining how often a serial killer takes out his garbage could be so annoying? #indiedev #solodev #gamedev #tic80

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

You know, you wouldn't think trying to program with a broken rib would pose much of an issue, but I can't concentrate for the life of me. #solodev #indiedev #gamedev

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

Time to start the final week's work on my entry for Gunscreen's Horror Jam, with the theme Real Life Serial Killers: "It's Jeff!" a C64-style game on #tic80 where you play as Jeffrey Dahmer's next door neighbor, going about your life while collecting evidence. #indiegames #indiedev #solodev #gamedev

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

Please check out my Apogee64 Fantasy Console and game dev engine. If you can help out in any way, that would be amazing, but even sharing can go a long way. www.patreon.com/Apogee64 #gamedev #solodev #indiedev #fantasyconsole #gaming #retrogaming #retrogames #patreon

patreon.com

The Apogee64 Universal Engine | Patreon

A Commodore 64-inspired fantasy retro console

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Introducing the early stages of my game for the Gunscreen Horror Jam, "It's Jeff! (...Dahmer)." Right now all you can really do is wash dishes, but soon, very soon, Jeff will be watching! #tic80 #tic-80 #indiegames #indiedev #solodev #retrogames #indiegame #retrogame www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGpp...

youtube.com

It's Jeff! (Dahmer) - Devsnap 01

YouTube video by The Wandering Wizard

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

Always carry around a two pack of cigars with you when you go out. If someone asks for a cigarette, say 'I only have a two pack of cigars, and I'm willing to give you one, but only if you smoke it with me.' See what happens.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

I joined the Gunscreen Horror Jam to draw some attention to my upcoming C64-inspired fantasy console, but it's not ready for show yet, so let me take this opportunity draw attention to #tic80, which taught me such a thing exists! I'll be using it instead. #indiedev #gamedev #solodev #apogee64

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

Please take a look at the Patreon for my FREE Apogee64 Fantasy console, coming soon! #indiedev #gamedev #solodev #fantasyconsole #retro #gamedevelopment #indiegamedev www.patrron.com/apogee64

patrron.com

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

There's gonna be a new fantasy console in town soon. Introducing the Apogee64, a Commodore 64-inspired fantasy console, with its own game-centric BASIC dialect, dedicated graphics, sound, and font editors, and more! COMING SOON! the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogeesfx/de... #indiedev #solodev #gamedev

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

There's a Brand New Fantasy Console in Town!

Everything I found that was causing problems with the ApogeeSFX! sound editor and music tracker has been repaired. You can now make-a the music with Apogee! That having been said, there is one more sl...

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

I put my ApogeeGFX! graphics and animation editor into the Game Tool Jam, unfortunately with some save and load bugs. Fortunately, the gracious host Shadowdara decided to allow reuploads, so, alas! Repaired! Go take a look! the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogeegfx/de... #gamedev #solodev #indiedev

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

Some important bugfixes and a jam!

ApogeeGFX! is updated and ready to tango. I was having some issues with functionality that was lost when I pulled it out of the Commodore 64 fantasy console it is integrated into (oh, did I not tell y...

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 02/04/2026

All three of my Commodore 64-inspired game editors, ApogeeGFX! for graphics and animation, ApogeeSFX! for sound and music, and ApogeeFNT! for fonts, are now fully and officially released, for FREE!! the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogeefnt/de... #gamedev #indiedev #solodev

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

Three retro editors!

You know by now, I hope, that I've been working on a retro fantasy console inspired by Commodore 64. The Apogee64 Engine has, so far, a graphics editor, a sound editor with music tracker, and this fon...

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

I added ApogeeGFX! to the Game Tool Jam on itch.io, but now I can't fix any of the errors I've found in it for two weeks. This makes me antsy because most of the errors are bad ones involving saving and loading. Grargh!! Plus, I was hoping to launch the Apogee64 fantasy console Patreon this week!

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 29/03/2026

Another new release, third in three days! I'm breaking the tools out of the fantasy console I've been building secretly for the last few years that I've been using myself. Now, as Apogee64 draws near, I'm releasing them to you! the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogeefnt/de... #gamedev #indiedev #solodev

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

OK, Nevermind. New Release.

After all the work I did to get the ApogeeGFX! and ApogeeSFX! editors up and running, I didn't think I'd be able to do a third release in three days, but there wasn't much work to do. Since everything...

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

Did I tell you my secret project I've been working on behind the scenes for years? My lifelong ambition is finally taking shape. Right now, let me just show you what it's inspired by...

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

Day two of releasing the tools I'm using in my Apogee64 Fantasy Console. Today's release is the SFX editor and music tracker! Enjoy, and keep an eye out for more (I probably will NOT have one ready for tomorrow!) the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogeesfx #gamedev #indiedev #solodev #music #sfx

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

ApogeeSFX! by The Wandering Wizard

The retro SFX editor and music tracker of the Gods.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

You want to try out a great graphics/animation editor designed by someone who is both a programmer and an artist/animator? Check out ApogeeGFX, part of a C64-inspired //REDACTED// I've been working on. #art #gamedev #solodev #indiedev the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogeegfx

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

ApogeeGFX by The Wandering Wizard

Play in your browser

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

How we did #AI before they had AI. Type in a name for your kingdom and watch it generate a flag and statistics without using generative AI. #gamedev #indiedev the-wizards-tales.itch.io/kingdomforge

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

Kingdom Forge by The Wandering Wizard

How we used to do AI generation before we had AI.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

I wrote this song when I was partially paralyzed, laying on the floor of an RV for six months shortly after my soulmate of ten years found out she was dying and left me, using a guitar warped in the Arizona sun. Suno AI helped me bring Nekromance to life. suno.com/s/VXoLKj4TpK...

suno.com

Nekromance - Dark Folk Punk version

Listen and make your own on Suno.

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

Now with combat and injury tracker! the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogee-engin... #indiedev #gamedev #solodev #ttrpg #rpg ...oh, by the way, I'm looking for playtesters for the tabletop version and to try to break the utility. Let me know if you would like to play the greatest tabletop RPG ever made!

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

Apogee TTRPG Utility Has Combat Now!

It's been a trudge, spending days on end doing nothing but finding little issues and missing brackets and all the normal things that make coding annoying, but the Apogee Universal Cinematic TTRPG Engi...

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Real talk Has anyone ever woken up ready to work on a project but you can't because your mind wants to lay there and parody eighties songs? "And I tell myself, I pooped my pants. I'm ashamed that my shorts are droopin'. And I filled my shoes, With diarrhea Cuz I'm the King of Stinky Pooping."

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Finally, the power of a god can be in your hands! Make your own lifeform of any sort. Pop some cybernetics on there, or make it a kaiju. A massive customizable character creator for the Apogee Universal Cinematic #TTRPG Engine. the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogee-engin... #indiedev #solodev #gamedev

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

Devlog

A multi tool for the Apogee Universal Cinematic TTRPG Engine. Play in your browser

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 05/03/2026

Old people shouldn't say "Boo" because it makes their mouths look like a butthole. In completely unrelated news, check out the Apogee Cinematic Universal #TTRPG app, with several updates including an initiative roller. Go make whatever you want, and enjoy! the-wizards-tales.itch.io/apogee-engin...

the-wizards-tales.itch.io

The Apogee Universal Cinematic TTRPG Engine by The Wandering Wizard

A multi tool for the Apogee Universal Cinematic TTRPG Engine

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The Wandering Wizard @wizardstales.bsky.social · 28/02/2026

I just played an arcade game from the 90s called "Ninja Baseball Batman" and I'll be damned if it wasn't one of the best brawlers I've ever played.

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