These past two weeks were interesting in the Godot world, particularly all that buzz about a “Godot virus.” As we will see later, there is nothing to worry about if you limit yourself to official sources.
Also, this edition is packed with community content. It feels like every creator is trying to have a strong end of the year.
But, before all that and more, let’s check some game dev news.
Game Dev News
Valve is starting to work its way to season passes now. Updated guidelines for season passes in Steam have been published, and as usual, they are in the player's best interests. Season pass listings must now include a complete list of what will be bundled in, a basic description of each DLC, and the expected release date for each piece of content. Any break of these guidelines could result in refunds. Check the full article here
The best tool for project management has received funds to continue its development. If you don’t know, Codecks is a project management tool developed specifically for game development. This new grant will provide the platform with the funds needed to improve the software, add new features, and increase the team size. You can read more about it here
https://www.gamesindustry.biz/codecks-secures-1m-in-funding
Another platform with changes is itch.io. This time is to provide clarity about the assets by adding a new field that specifies if the content was created using generative AI or not. Everyone with a page in the platform for offering assets will have to update this information.
https://itch.io/t/4309690/generative-ai-disclosure-tagging
Official News
A new Dev snapshot for Godot 4.4 has been released. This is Dev 5, and it mainly consists of bug fixes. There are a couple of new things, but nothing too crazy. Check the blog post
https://godotengine.org/article/dev-snapshot-godot-4-4-dev-5/
These past weeks, the most prominent news in the Godot world was the article about malware created and distributed with Godot. The article was promoted and written in a way that makes you believe that Godot has some kind of malware that destroys the world. That’s not even close to the real issue, and an official post was created to inform people about the problem. TLDR: there is a malware that has been built in Godot that was distributed in cracks for paid software. This is unsurprising because malware and viruses are part of the cracks and pirated software ecosystem. It does say something about the versatility of Godot :D Check the official post to get more information about it.
https://godotengine.org/article/statement-on-godloader-malware-loader/
If you prefer his format, there is also a video from Mike (Gamefromscratch).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DYAaHToYOP4
From the Community
Here are some of the latest tutorials and resources from the Godot community.
Liquid ribbon shader — FencerDevLog
Every Monday, we get a new shader tutorial from FencerDev. This time, it is a shader that creates plasma-like materials.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Rcxr76-3Ms
Top 10 horror games — StayAtHomeDev
Another top 10 video about games made in Godot. This time, the category is for horror games.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PW1QfaINrP8
Brick break game — FinePointCGI
In the previous edition, Mitch gave us a tutorial on creating the classic snake in Godot. This time is another classic game, brick break.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUo0V5Vha_A
6 Tips for New Game Developers —Chap. C Creates
After 6 months of developing in Godot, Chap shares insights on that journey and tips for newcomers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0cMiilMdCPA
Boss HP GUI —Michael Games
In the last edition, Michael shared the process of creating the boss fight. Now is the time to expand the encounter and add the boss HP. Some of the topics in this video include TextureProgressBar, NinePatchRect, and atlas texture.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7zogNPnWgY
Complete Guide to Y-SORTING —DevWorm
Excellent tutorial on Y-Sorting, from the definition to how to implement it properly in every scenario.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lvuLjMAr_BE
How To Copy And Paste Text And Image —FinePointCGI
This tutorial explains how to access the clipboard with Godot to copy and paste texts and images. Complete tutorial, code included.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7HRhf0lvpw
Easy texture overlay shader for tilemaps —jess::codes
Excellent quick tutorial on how to apply textures of any size to tilemaps using shaders. The most important part is that it preserves the tile edges.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYlBociPwdw
Improve your new projects with Script Templates —Octodemy
Script templates are one of those features that we should use more. In this tutorial, we will learn all about script templates and how to create a repository for all your common code.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jHYxn_kkojE
Adding Drag and Drop to Your Game —FinePointCGI
The title says it all: add drag and drop to your game for text, images, video, and sound.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNb1n7r9_18
8 and 4 directional movement —Coding Quests
We have a couple of tutorials on the same topic by Coding Quests. How to implement directional movement in 8 and 4 directions.
8 Directional movement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCH51VOilnY
4 Directional movement
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61kJNJqAyvo
Advanced Enemy Movement & Pathfinding —Michael Games
Continue with the tutorial series. Michel now digs into improving enemies' movement by introducing a pathfinding technique. The start of the video is so game dev.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUeDTrvOAKc
There was a bug in the code from the previous video, so Michale created a second one with the fix.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9amSSWmwW8
Texture filters —FencerDevLog
It's not precisely a shader tutorial, but it's still related to the topic. “The video will cover working with images in shaders, particularly different types of filtering”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyqoB4sZkLs
Interact with objects —Queble
How to create an interaction system. The good thing about this one is that it is modular so you can include it in your game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQINWFKc9_k
Inventory Tutorial —Gwizz
Step-by-step tutorial on how to create an inventory system. We already have a few of these, but this is 100% from scratch, so it is an excellent tutorial for every level.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ZauOcB_jBw
Heart Fractions —Maker Tech
How to create complete, empty, and fraction hearts to represent the player's health.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4dqDWYC6Rk
How to use Array.filter() —Heartbeast
This is a beginner-friendly tutorial on how the filter function for arrays works in Godot.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FixCu2xx83Y
Godot Input —DeveloperEzra
Part tutorial and part deep dive regarding how input works in Godot. It's a really interesting tutorial, following the research process over a specific feature. Recommended for all levels.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfX00eQIRCU
Combining States and Components —Maker Tech
Continuing the previous tutorial from Maker Tech regarding components, she now talks about combining states and communicating between components.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UE57vir0gPY
How to create a functional 3D portal —Coding Quests
Create portals for your game with this tutorial. This part is for the player's teleport. The functionality to see through, like the Portal game will be part of another tutorial.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MA5G7MDXh_E
Techniques to create tools with Godot —MrElipteach
There are not many tutorials regarding tool creation with Godot. In this tutorial, you will learn the different types of tools you can create and how useful these tools could be.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gnozJ7KPK4