Awesome Playdate

A list of awesome resources for game development on Panic's Playdate console.

⚠️ Links may include spoilers

Game Development
Open Source Playdate Games & Example Code
Playdate Games & Dev Blogs
Social
- Discussion groups
- Accounts to follow

Game Development

Programming Frameworks & Languages

Pulp + Pulpscript

A "no-code alternative to the full SDK", Pulp provides a "click-and-place" game editor right in your browser.

Articles on Pulp + Pulpscript

Lua

Learn X in Y minutes, Where X=Lua - A succinct Lua cheatsheet for developers with experience in other languages like Python.

Playdate SDK

Panic publishes two versions of their SDK: a high-level API for Lua, similar to LÖVE, and a lower-level C library for applications with higher performance needs.

Playdate SDK Previews

Playdate Programming LIVE - 50 minute long programming demo that shows some of the SDK and simulator.
Playdate Unboxing + Project Setup
Early Playdate SDK release notes
Code sample in /r/PlaydateConsole

Lua Libraries

The following libraries are expected to work well-enough on the Playdate:

AnimatedSprite - A lua-based library for animating sprites. Containing finite state machine, json configuration and plugNplay behaviour.
deep - An "action-queue" library; helpful for things like z-indexing (although the Playdate already has z-index support in its draw ordering).
GFXP - A library with a collection of dithering patterns for the Playdate. An online version of the editor can be seen here.
Knife - A collection of useful micro-modules for Lua.
Jumper - A pure Lua pathfinding library for grid-based games.
lua-star - A* pathfinding in pure Lua.
middleclass - A simple OOP library for Lua that introduces inheritance, operator overloads, static variables, and mixin support.
Noble Engine - Noble Engine is a Lua-based game engine library built on top of the Playdate SDK that offers a variety of helpful features.
- Documentation
- Presentation from the creator
profile.lua - Performance profiling for Lua applications.
rxi/classic - A tiny class module for Lua. Attempts to stay simple and provide decent performance by avoiding unnecessary over-abstraction.
rxi/json.lua - A lightweight JSON library for Lua.
rxi/lume - A collection of functions for Lua, geared towards game development.
rxi/shash - A simple, lightweight spatial hash for Lua.
rxi/tick - A small Lua module that simplifies the calling of functions at a set interval or after a delay.
tiny-ecs - An entity component system in pure Lua.
vector.lua - An alternative 2D vector library for Lua.
bump.lua - A 2D colission detection library.
philanc/plc - Pure Lua Crypto. Crpytographic functions and utilities implemented in pure Lua.

LOVE

The Lua-based LÖVE framework offers a similar API to the Playdate Lua SDK, useful for prototyping before the public release of the Playdate SDK.

See love2d-community/awesome-love2d for additional resources.

Sheepolution's "How to LÖVE" tutorial - An oft-recommended intro to game development in Lua. Most concepts should be transferable to Playdate
love-playdate-emulation - A basic template for previewing games built with LÖVE in a Playdate-like environment.

C

Playdate Game Development in C - Alberto Benavent Ramón's Bachelor's Thesis in Multimedia Engineering, explores the hardware and software of the Playdate
Taxman Engine - A 2D, platform-independent game engine designed for the Playdate. Online demo here.

Low-level Hardware Documentation & Datasheets

This information was gleaned from a developer preview unit and screenshots.

Playdate Reverse Engineering - Unofficial documentation covering the Playdate's file formats, USB serial commands, and server API.
CPU: ST STM32F746
Audio: Cirrus 42L52CNZ
eMMC: Kioxia THGBMDG5D1LBAIT 4GB
SPI Flash: Winbond W25Q32JVS 4MB
DRAM: Winbond W967D6HBGX7I 16MB
LCD Module: Sharp LS027B7DH01A
- LCD Screen Programming Guide

Experimental & Other

These projects represent experiments with the Playdate. Use at your own risk.

Crankstart - An experimental Rust crate to write games for the Playdate in Rust.
playdate-rs - Unofficial Rust binding for Playdate C API.
VSCode-PlaydateTemplate - VSCode autocompletion with the Playdate simulator. Windows only.
mini3d-plus - 3D engine based on the mini3d library provided in the SDK examples.
pd-usb - JavaScript librarty for interacting with a Playdate connected over USB.

Development & Graphics tools

Tiled - 2D map editor
Thrshold - Figma plugin to apply a threshold effect filter
LDtk - A modern 2D level editor with a strong focus on user-friendliness
PlaydateLDtkImporter - Load tilemaps created with LDtk in playdate games

Development Concepts

Game Programming Patterns

Game Programming Patterns (book) - The Web version is free.

Graphics & Art

Ditherpunk - An article about monochrome image dithering.
Stabilized dithering using sphere mapping - A dithering implementation used in Return of the Obra Dinn.
Playdate Art: Scale - Important notes on designing sprites, fonts, and tiles for the Playdate.

Physics

Video Game Physics Part I: An Introduction to Rigid Body Dynamics - Core physics material for game developers.

Procedural Generation

Making Martian Faces - Notes about generating characters for Mars after Midnight.
Procedural Content Generation Wiki

Graphics

DrawDate - 1-bit, browser-based sprite editor. GitHub Source.

Fonts

Playdate Arcade Fonts - Collection of classic arcade fonts for the Playdate.
PDFontTool - Converts TrueType Font, OpenType Font to Playdate Font.

Open Source Playdate Games & Example Code

Artsy Gallery
Game of Life - An implementation of Conway's Game of Life meant to provide a template for games to be built in Love2d and ported to Playdate.
Klondike Solitaire for Playdate (GitHub Repo)
Oops You Started An Intergalactic War
- GitHub Repo
Playdate Anticipation Jam Submissions (Unofficial. - Nov. 2020) - A first "pre-Playdate" 1-bit game jam with Playdate-inspired submissions.
Six Card Golf - A love2d card game meant to be ported to Playdate.
Playnote Studio - An unofficial Flipnote Studio animation player for the Playdate.
Gimme Friction Baby - Lua/Playdate port of a classic casual Flash game.
Sketch, Share, Solve – Sketch, Share, Solve is a nonogram game for the Playdate.
Playlate – A template for Playdate to explore Playdate SDK and build your games faster.
Panels – Build interactive comics for the Playdate console.
Mini3D+ – Enhanced 3D engine for the Panic Playdate.

Tutorials & How-Tos

Playdate SDK

How to Make a Simple Playdate Game - How to make a simple Space Invaders-inspired game (Lua)
Unlicensed Paddle Game - How to build a Pong clone (Lua)

Pulp

Pulp Pong - How to recreate the all-time classic Pong

Playdate Games & Dev Blogs

Social

Discussion groups

Unofficial Playdate Discord
/r/PlaydateConsole/ - A Playdate subreddit. Panic employees comment here occasionally.

Accounts to follow

Official Playdate accounts

@panic - Official Panic Twitter.
@playdate - Official Playdate Twitter.
@playdateAlerts - Official Playdate news.

Game Dev Accounts

Playdate & Panic

@gregmaletic - Project lead on Playdate at Panic.
@mrgan - Designer at Panic. Contributes to Discord server.
@shauninman - Playdate Developer & Designer at Panic. Developing The Ratcheteer.
/u/dave__h - Playdate Developer, contributes to /r/PlaydateConsole and the unofficial Discord.
/u/gregmaletic - Project lead on Playdate at Panic, contributes to /r/PlaydateConsole.
/u/sardinebrunch - Playdate Developer at Panic, contributes to /r/PlaydateConsole.

Third-party Devs

@amanogames - Developing Pullfrog 2-Bits.
@andreintg - Developing Date of Life.
@aronegal - Developing Omaze.
@bfod - Developing Zipper.
@castpixel + @Nelsormensch - Developing Forrest Byrnes: Up In Smoke.
@ChuhaiLabs - Developing Whitewater Wipeout.
@cmakcmak - Developing Saturday Edition.
@dadakogames - Developing Questy Chess.
@davemakes - Developing Executive Golf DX and other Playdate games.
@davemakes - Developing Robot Fishing.
@dmierau - Developing Playmaker.
@Dovuro - Misc. Jam games, including a version of Chess, and a port of Bubble Factory.
@dukope - Developing Mars after Midnight.
@DuncanFyfe - Developing Demon Quest 85.
@frankjonen - Developing Silverball Tactics.
@GerudoGibbs - Developing Spellcorked.
@gingerbeardman - Developing Daily Driver.
@helvetica - Developing Snak.
@kataStatik - Developing Direct Drive.
@matthew_ej - Developing Oxy Con Brio.
@mayli - Developing Boogie Loops.
@michaelfrei10 - Developing Getting There.
@mobeenfikree - Developing HYPER METEOR.
@NicMagnier - Developing Pick Pack Pup.
@noblerobot - Developing Widget Satchel II: Return of Sprocket.
@Radstronomical - Developing Casual Birder.
@RNGParty - Developing Poly's Roly Rumble.
@Rokashi - Developing Faraway Fairway.
@SamanthaZero - Developing Echoic Memory.
@serenityforge - Developing Flipper Lifter.
@SweetBabyInc - Developing Lost Your Marbles, Recommendation Dog and Reel Steal.
@tpmcosoftworks - Developing Battleship Godios.
@uvulaLLC - Developing Crankin's Time Travel Adventure.
@veubeke - Developing Down the Oubliette.

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