Hello, my name is Jordon Lavelle McClain, and welcome to my blog. In these blogs, I share updates on the development of my game engine projects, from the original Cyclone Game Engine to its modern successor, the Steel Cyclone Engine.
The Cyclone Game Engine is a project I have been working on in my spare time for quite a while now. In the beginning, it was just a hobby project I started working on in my parents' basement when I was younger. I always wanted to create a game engine—essentially, a game creation tool that I could call my own. For me, this was my way of educating myself about game development and understanding each of the different aspects that come together to make a game.
I am a self-taught game developer, and over the years I have been able to devote more time to further developing the engine as well as my games. The engine has evolved gradually, especially considering the increasing difficulty and complexity that comes with each new iteration. So... no rush.
Studio Grind
Gradually, I started to enjoy and love working on the project so much that I decided I needed to take it a step further. I later started a small indie company called Steel Cyclone Studios LLC. Ultimately, I plan to develop indie games using the technology and tools I have built through the Cyclone Game Engine and now the Steel Cyclone Engine. However, not all of my game projects will necessarily be created with my own engine.
Along my journey, I hope to find talented, professional artists and developers to work with me. In the meantime, I am continuing to hone my skills and learn as much as possible about game design and development, as well as this wonderful and constantly evolving industry.
I've built much of this project from the ground up with the help of the many online blogs, tutorials, examples, documentation, and development resources I've come across over the years. It has been challenging; however, each accomplishment has taken the project to new heights and helped me see its full potential. My mission is to continue polishing the engine, expanding its capabilities, and most importantly, finishing games.
From Cyclone Game Engine to Steel Cyclone Engine
The original Cyclone Game Engine began as an XNA-based project and became the foundation of my journey into game engine and game development. It taught me about graphics, gameplay systems, animation, physics, tools, and many of the underlying systems required to bring a game to life.
Today, that journey continues with the Steel Cyclone Engine, a modern evolution of the ideas and experience behind the original Cyclone Game Engine. Rather than simply leaving the old engine behind, I am taking what I learned from years of working with XNA and applying those lessons to a new engine designed around modern web technologies.
The Steel Cyclone Engine is being developed as a web-based 2D/3D game engine, with the goal of making my games and development tools more accessible across desktop, mobile devices, and web browsers. It represents a new chapter for the project while carrying forward the same philosophy that started it all: learning how games work by building the technology myself.
The engine continues to grow with features such as a browser-based editor, character controllers, physics and collision systems, first- and third-person gameplay, animation systems, environmental tools, visual effects, and other technology needed to support future Steel Cyclone Studios projects.
The technology has changed considerably since I first started experimenting with XNA in my parents' basement, but the goal behind it hasn't.
Build. Learn. Improve. Create.
Jordon McClain — Studio Grind
I am working on the most important features and fixing the most important bugs first in order to make the engine as consistent as possible and create more playable content. That way, I can establish a solid foundation that other game projects can be built upon.
I invite you to follow my blog and join me on my journey from code to controller. I am committed to sharing updates on my progress and providing a behind-the-scenes look at the challenges, experiments, breakthroughs, and lessons involved in creating my own game engine.
I cover everything from fixing bugs and improving performance to implementing crucial gameplay features, graphics technology, physics, animation, tools, and other systems that help make games built with the engine possible.
- The Cyclone Game Engine represents where this journey began.
- The Steel Cyclone Engine represents where that journey is going next.
Feel free to browse the blog and follow the development of the engine as it continues to evolve. If you like what I do, please consider supporting Steel Cyclone Studios by following and subscribing to my social media.
Many thanks to everyone who has followed, supported, encouraged, or simply taken an interest in this project over the years. There is still a long way to go, and I'm looking forward to seeing how far I can take it.
There are tons of useful dev blogs out there. I have learned and still continue to learn from them, as well as from comments and discussions on their websites. Initially, I created this blog to use as an addition to my portfolio to help me get into the college I wanted to attend and later, a job in the industry. That didn't work out unfortunately. Now I am an independent developer and the purpose of this blog is to document and highlight some of the problems and hurdles I encounter during my game development efforts. I cover things I found particularly challenging, potential solutions to these issues; some in which I was proud of figuring out, and provide a general discussion. Along with the newly added features, I also provide some basic examples and source code to work on yourself. My hope is that with many of my efforts, my findings, and what I have accomplished thus far; will perhaps serve of use to others in their game development as well. I hope you will enjoy reading this blog and if you have any questions or comments, just add them below on posts or click on the Contact page.
Further Reading
Affiliate Disclaimer: We may receive a commission if a purchase is made through the links on this blog at no additional cost to you. This helps support my blog. I only recommend products that I personally use.
