Some helpful information to get everyone started:
For those who are new to the Pokemon Mini console, welcome! Here's some useful resources to get you primed:
- Documentation is catalogued here.
- There is an emulator for development, so you don't need to get the console, cart, nor loader. The "PokeMini" Emulator by JustBurn is great, and includes a debugger.
- A collection of dev tools are catalogued here.
- You can find some examples of homebrew games made by our community (to use for inspiration) catalogued here.
- You can always ask questions in our Discord (the forum is also here, but is more useful for documenting progress on projects).
Since we're all scattered around the globe, it helps to make a bookmarked list of timezones for each team member for reference, that way you can easily schedule meetups, and be aware of when its 3am when you're wondering why someone's not replying immediately
This tool is incredibly useful for that.
Since setting up the first week's teams is done in advance, it's highly encouraged to attend the first week. It helps to make use of the time leading up to the start of the jam to coordinate with your team members. It helps to schedule when each member will be able to do their own part, and that you have a pipeline that makes sense.
If you or any of your team members are new to working on game dev teams, it's useful to know how to structure your Development Pipeline:
Gameplay mechanics come first, then you can begin programming while making assets (visual/audio) as they're needed.
It's also highly advised to use a task scheduling tool, especially if you've never used one before, as this is a common industry standard.
Trello is a fantastic free option.
If assets are left for last, programmers can always use placeholders from other games in the meantime, just be sure that your artists will finish with enough time to allow the programmer to insert said assets when everything's done. This is an important learning experience for anyone who wants to develop games, and isn't inherently obvious, so don't get too caught up on it-- remember, communication is key for working on teams!
If something comes up and you won't be available , be sure to let your team know. It's ok! Things happen, just keep in mind nobody can read minds so
let your team know ASAP.
Remember:
Prizes are given to the most helpful devs, so the more you support your teammates and participate, the better your prize will be! Don't be worried if your game isn't the most visually stunning, or the most unique gameplay; the point here is to help foster good development practices, and give you both the confidence and experience you need to be great developers!
Admins are excluded from prizes, naturally, by the way.
We will be helping out to set an example, though.
In the time leading up to the jam, if you have any resources/references you'd like to have featured here, please comment or let me know on Discord and I'll add them.