My first computer game

“Now, let me ask you a question.
12 × 13?
151.
No—13 × 15?
175.
No—129 × 16?
1500.
Hmm... no.”

This wasn’t an exam or anything serious. These were some math questions that a friend casually asked during a conversation.. But something about it stuck with me. I couldn't do basic math. We think we know them but struggle when forced to use them.

Basic arithmetic isn’t just for “nerds.” It’s one of those things you assume you’ll never need… until you do.

“It's better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.”

The void

I've always had this dream of making a video game, but I never had the resources or knowledge to do it. The closest I got was using the built-in level editor in SuperTux. When I finally got my first laptop, I had no idea what to create with it. The screen was blank just like my mind
But after being hit with math questions I couldn’t answer, I was inspired to turn that experience into a game.

Discovering Godot

I'd heard that making games can be easier with Godot, an open-source game engine that's only about 30–40 MB in size. Its scripting language, GDScript, is pretty similar to Python. Everything felt just right. Some developers will always create tools and software for bare minimum metal. Respect for them!!

I watched some YouTube tutorials and started building the game. I had to rewatch parts when I got stuck, but I kept going.

On a side note i hate Math

Building Mathshuttle

I was never held back by getting average marks in my calculus exams. I didn't need to use calculus to build this game, ha ha! What really helped was to keep going. And, to be honest, the internet.

The Reddit and Discord Godot communities were a great source of motivation for my game. I learned about the Agile methodology and how to apply it to my development phase. None other than myself became the Scrum master! However, the daily scrum was distracted by social media and procrastination.

I didn't want to make something heavy. The graphics are not complicated. There are no loud, aggressive sounds. There are already enough games that do that. I wanted something simple. Calm. Something that won't stress you out while playing.

I named it MathShuttle because it is zen space themed