Build Roadmaps
Each roadmap is a progressive build series — starting simple and layering on complexity. Every step is a playable game with a blog post that explains the game dev concept and what the AI got right or wrong. Built for beginners.
1970s — The Birth of Arcade
Pong
Sports
Paddle collision, ball physics, scoring, AI opponent. The absolute starting point — every game dev should build Pong first.
Breakout
Arcade
Brick grids, angle-based collision, power-ups, progressive difficulty. Natural next step after Pong.
Space Invaders
Shooter
Arrays, wave management, collision grids, difficulty curves. The simplest entry point for absolute beginners.
Asteroids
Arcade
Rotation-based movement, inertia, wrap-around screens, splitting objects, vector-style rendering.
1980s — The Golden Age
Pac-Man
Maze / Chase
Maze navigation, pathfinding, ghost AI with distinct personalities, power pellets, state machines.
Donkey Kong
Platformer
Multi-level scaffolding, ladder mechanics, barrel physics, hammer power-up, the original damsel-in-distress story.
Frogger
Action / Puzzle
Lane-based grid movement, timed traffic patterns, river riding hazards, risk-reward scoring.
Galaga
Fixed Shooter
Formation patterns, dive-bomb AI, tractor beam capture mechanic, dual-ship bonus, challenging stages.
Tetris
Puzzle
Grid-based logic, piece rotation (SRS wall kicks), line clearing, gravity, hold/preview. The ultimate grid math teacher.
Mega Man
Action
Stage select, boss AI with distinct attack patterns, weapon stealing system, weakness chains.
Contra
Run & Gun
8-directional shooting, weapon pickups, co-op, enemy wave patterns, multi-phase bosses, Konami Code.
Mario Clone
Platformer
Tilemaps, enemy AI, power-up state machines, level design. From scrolling platformer to SMB 1-1.
1990s — The Console Wars
Street Fighter II
Fighting
Frame-based input, hitbox/hurtbox collision, combo systems, input buffering, AI opponent behavior trees.
DOOM-Like
FPS
Raycasting engine, 3D projection from 2D maps, sprite-based enemies, weapon systems, keycard doors.
2000s+ coming next: Rhythm games (Guitar Hero), open-world (GTA top-down), tower defense (Plants vs Zombies), battle royale lite. Each decade adds new genres and systems.