I was thinking it would be useful to dedicate a post on the tools and resources I’m using during my trip to create Rolly Bear World. From all the tools I use I can group them into developer tools, graphical programs, books and other learning resources and finally apps.
We are currently still in Pokhara, Nepal. We are planning to leave monday for Bhaktapur which is near Kathmandu. We decided to stay longer in Pokhara, mainly because it is so peaceful and beautiful. Yesterday morning we hiked at 4:00 AM to a small village in the mountains called Sarangkot to see the sunrise.
Developer tools
As IDE I decided to use Sublime Text 2. Why? It has some great plugins for Corona SDK like the autocomplete, the great integration with the simulator and SDK information. You can download Sublime here.
For version control and sharing the code with you and others I use GitHub. Why? Because its great! :). If you are using a Mac, I recommend also to download the Git Application.
Finally I used the Corona SDK as SDK Framework to develop Rolly Bear World.
Graphical tools
Although I bought a larger part of Rolly Bears world Art Assets, you always end up making some of the assets yourself or editing some of the existing ones. In addition, in one of my previous posts I explained that I had decided to create Rolly Bear myself. I created Rolly Bear in the Vector program Inkscape. This program is open source and can be downloaded for free. For some other resizing, touches etc I used GIMP, which is also open source. So no need to buy expensive programs.
Books and other Resources
The following books and resources I used or have at arms-length to learn LUA, Corona SDK or design patterns for developing games. Have a look at these, they might be very useful.
Youtube
CoronaLabs provides short video’s explaining different parts of the Corona SDK Framework. They add new video’s on a regular basis. Follow them on Youtube.
Visit YouTube channel of CoronaLabs
CoronaGeek has every week a Google Hangout and discussing many different interesting topics on Corona SDK.
Visit YouTube channel of CoronaGeek
Books
I read in preparation all three books below. You probably won’t need to read all three books. If any, I recommend the first book the Beginners Guide by Fernandez, Michelle. It gives you really a jump start in Corona SDK development.
Corona SDK Mobile Game Development: A beginners Guide
Corona SDK HotShot
Corona SDK Application Design
UDEMY
Udemy is a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course site). I really love this site. I used it before for learning new stuff, ranging from Corona SDK, Android development or getting more out of my SLR camera. But anyway, they have a free Corona SDK course. Its a Crash course in Game Development with Corona SDK. Click here to go to the course.
Apps
The two apps I use for my “code and travel” project is Evernote and Paper. The latter one is a very handy app to create sketches like the levels. Evernote is a productivity app which I pretty much use for everything. Its a great app to keep track of all the stuff I need to do, create snapshots from resources on the web or to give my brainstorms a place. As I’m travelling in Asia I use the premium version which allows me to use Evernote also off line, which is ideal when travelling through Asia where WiFi is often very slow or not even available. Absolutely one of the best 39 EUR I spend.