Is there a cool beginners tutorial to learn how to program and develop for the PlayDate?

Hi all!

With the SDK out and a playdate on the way....I would love to make a tiny game myself. I've read the documentation and watched some YouTube videos but I couldnt find a cool first project if you are not (that) experienced with programming. All tips are welcome, I would really love to create something even though I've never build a game before :). If Pulp is a better way to start...than pulp is fine with me as well.......:smiley:

Thanks in advance.

Pulp is definitely the way to go with limited programming experience. Maybe the documentation for pulp might be of help?

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I just started a small game and it’s my first time ever building a game, I think the best thing I can advise is to start really, really, really basic.

First make an empty project and get it to print your name or something at the center of the screen.

Does your game have a player? Cool go to neil.today/drawdate and make some ugly version of it in roughly the size you want, then add it to the project and figure out how to show it on screen.

Can it walk left/right? Find how to move the player when pressing left/right

Keep going like this in really small steps. When you get stuck - I’ve already learned that people here are extremely nice and willing to help (:slight_smile:

I'd recommend starting with this

4.1. A Basic Playdate Game in Lua
https://sdk.play.date/1.9.0/Inside%20Playdate.html#_a_basic_playdate_game_in_lua

And add a few things of your own.

@SquidGodDev has been making some great content on YouTube. I particularly found this helpful for Pulp:

Yes, Pulp is the best entry point if you're new to programming. Here's a link to an overview of resources to help you get started:

Hey! I know this is a real dead-post revival but I saw this post suggested as I was repping myself... :slight_smile:

It's my opinion, but I highly suggest you learn the Lua SDK rather than pulp - it will teach you much more about programming in general and leads much better into programming on different engines and with different languages.

I've made this Tutorial Series with the idea that without any coding experience, you can get familiar all the SDK functionality.

I based my tutorial style on how I really learned to program... more than a year after I started. The trick is to follow a more experienced programmer all while coding everything yourself. That's exactly how the series is made, where I tell you what to code, and you code it yourself. Episode-by-episode, you build up knowledge, muscle memory, and coding experience, so that by the end of the series you can confidently build your own game from the ground-up.

So check it out! Hope to see you in there!