Homebrew Game Development and the Extra Lives of Consoles by Robin Wilde - Book Review

What, you may ask, does it mean when someone describes a video game as a homebrew development? Well, here is the perfect volume for you as Robin Wilde provides not only the answer to that question, but also an in-depth history to that little talked about corner of the video games industry where, officially, these titles don't exist.

Throughout the 170 pages or so of yet another top quality White Owl publication, Wilde takes the reader by the hand and explains exactly what homebrew games are, where they come from and why they are an important part of video games culture. He breaks their history up into four periods, a pre-history (1950's to about 1980), the First Open Period (roughly 1980-91), the Closed Period (1991 to 2004) and the Second Open Period (2004 onwards), each period defined by the technology that was released to market, it's accessibility and its complexity. 

And there is some complexity, evidenced by the introduction that takes up the first twenty or so pages. This is a subject that requires explanation with subtlety and nuance, and demands the reader pay attention. Sure, the later chapters featuring specific titles for the various platforms do feel like your usual games round up, but don't let the format of this tome fool you - there are some very hefty points of discussion included. 

Where specific titles are covered, there is a balance to the criticism provided, as these games are unofficial in nature. That talented developers, both professional and amateur, have managed to achieve so much with many an older console format is to be applauded, and Wilde does that very well indeed. The added benefit here is that the reader can check out these games themselves, and so judge whether the author's points are valid with their own experience. 

When it comes to the consoles, there is little left uncovered, as not only do the familiar favourites of the NES, SNES, Mega Drive, PC Engine and others of similar vintage warrant inclusion, but handhelds and less successful home machines (Jaguar, 3DO and Neo Geo) also make an appearance. Indeed, the homebrew scene around the various models of Game Boy is huge, pushing the technical boundaries of the hardware in a way very similar to the manner in which demoscene coders pushed the 16-bit home computers. 

There's a focus on the tools used within the scene, as well as the hardware that really failed yet still garnered some attention - the Tiger Game.com, the Bandai Wonderswan and the Gizmondo all appear. The inclusion of the Cybiko was a blast from the past - Phones 4u tried to sell these some twenty years ago and they were as popular as you'd expect - plus the profit margin on them was terrible. 

The author discusses the changes to the scene as the years have passed, as machines became more powerful and the use of 3D graphics hit the mainstream market. This culminates in the chapter detailing the PS3, Xbox 360 and Wii, and the potential decline in homebrew efforts for later consoles. 

Fortunately, this book doesn't end on a low, as the final two chapters look at what the steps you can take if you want to make your own homebrew games, as well as the possible future of the scene. Some useful footnotes and bibliography add to the resources for potential 'brewers.

Once again, White Owl have published a well written and timely tome on a niche but very interesting subject within the wider scope of video games. If your interests lie in Indie/Homebrew development, there is much to interest you here. If you're a complete novice on the subject, I can think of no better place to start. As always, you can pick up a copy of this excellent guide at most physical bookshops (or get them to order it in), as well as the usual online sources and direct from the publisher here. You can follow the author on Twitter here.