Ethical hacking group

Ruben was a good friend of mine. We met for the first time in a class that I was co-coordinating with a friend of ours, it was about ethical hacking. For the first few months lessons were in a garage and there were fewer than 10 people in this room with tables and chairs from a dump that we cleaned and restored somehow.

There we were peers at the same level, both of us learning about cybersecurity and hacking. We had such a fun time back there. Then we moved to a much better location with better equipment, the MakeIt structure where I participated in the Game Jam a few months ago. There we had whiteboards, normal chairs and tables, and even a large TV to share the screen of the PC.

At the time we were starting to become actual friends sharing jokes and memes about hacking and programming, all the shyness was gone.

Then at MakeIt, I started to teach a few lessons about REST API, CRUD operations and some other tech-related subjects. After that something changed and we started to talk more, via messages or Instagram sharing knowledge and plans for the future.

Even if we were of the same age he was starting the first year at the University and I was still in high school. Due to some fractures and people who moved to other cities, we quit the ethical hacking group, but we kept in touch, sharing memes and opinions about one common technology we were studying VueJs. You should know that I'm a pretty prickly person, and he loved to make jokes about my beloved Javascript language.

Different paths

At the end of my last high school year, things started to change. I was intoxicated from a bad relationship and also pretty stressed from work, so we started to get in touch less and less. Then I quit my relationship and jumped on another while I was starting university. So due to lessons and exams, I neglected my friendship with Ruben. Then COVID and two years pass like they never arrived.

Last meeting

Our Last meeting was just by chance at the local bowling alley, and we talked a lot about work, technologies, opportunities and plans for the future.

Two years after that event, Ruben was conquering the world, taking any chance he got, starting projects, and participating in events. He was going to start an Erasmus trip to one of the top 10 universities in Europe.

One month after our last talk on WhatsApp, it was all gone. Ruben died of a heart attack during a festival in the Netherlands.

Like sucks.

Things I learned from Ruben

Always stay connected with your friends, whether it's through memes, words of encouragement, or just a genuine interest in their lives.

Let your passion be your driving force. During a conversation with him, I rediscovered my deep love for discussing the intricacies of computer science and technology. The thrill of engaging in captivating discussions in this field sent shivers down my spine.

But perhaps the most valuable lesson I gleaned from Ruben is this: You'll never succeed if you don't take a chance. Ruben never turned down a new opportunity or experience, and that's something worth emulating.

...

Thanks, my dear friend, for everything you taught me and everything you meant to me. I wish you a good rest.

The best part, also the goal of the event, was the opportunity to get in touch with people that work or would like to work in the game development world. I could work and talk with many members of all the different teams. All kinds of artists like 2d, 3d, and sound designers and also with some level designers and story writers for games. Few teams were trying to publish their game as Indie developers.

How it all began

Well as you know I'm in the CuculoGames Team and the other fellows asked me to participate in the event. It was all brand new to me since I had never heard of it before, and as they described to me a little about the event I decided to jump on board.

You should know that yes the event is global but the problem is that the coordinators can't coordinate all the different teams around the world so they gave us the possibility to split into small groups.

Event mentors & location

The group in which I participated was located in Modena in a municipal building called MakeIt and coordinated by their collaborators, who brought us food, snacks and energy drinks to always keep us productive.

Our mentors were some guys from Orbital Games Company with a registered office in Modena. These guys told us how they started a game dev company and what are the most needed careers in the game world right now. They also helped us while we were stuck in development situations and with feedback.

The Team

So let's say that in our small CuculoGames group, we're 2 unity developers and one unreal. Due to this difference in our engines, we decided to split into two different groups.

Roberto and I never really cooperated on a big project like this, so this was the right time to challenge ourselves to do it, but without any artists, there would have been a bad ending.

The first step was to join the Discord channel and so, ice braking time!!

I started to keep an eye on one particular channel called "Matching" where people could tell a little about themselves and ask to join a team. Doing so I started to write to sound designers and 2d artists to create a bigger team. In the end, we were 9 participants in the group and my face was like that 😱.

The team was composed of an Indie group called Newbix, that's currently working on a wonderful project, of 3 people: one unity dev and two 2d artists.

Furthermore, I also reached out to bring in two amazing sound designers, another 2d artist and one dear friend of mine, Gianmario, that's currently studying how to work within the game development world.

The Theme

In each edition, the theme changed and this year it was "ROOTS", here is the short video of the revealing if you want to see it.

The Idea

As the theme was published we started to brainstorm about it and everyone came out with a few ideas. The theme was really large, we could talk about actual root or family trees, root directories or everything related to it.

In the end, we decided to mix it in a double way. Roots as the location of the game, walking up from the roots up to the top of the tree and also with the meaning of the past of the main character.

The story is not too complicated and also not too directly explained, we decided to leave most of it to the imagination of the player.

But the main idea was something like that: one little girl with her bunny cuddly toy is struggling to reach the top of the tree, asking herself if she was a burden for his father, and the only way to be free was to reach the top and doing so running away from her roots.

The game is 2d and the way to play it was done in two phases: a platform where the little girl can jump and dash all along the levels and the fighting base in one arena where her little companion jumps up to defend her from all the monsters.

The title of the game: Don't Look Down.

My Role

Let's jump into the juicy part!!

So we were nine in total: five artists and four developers. Roberto took the role of the game designer (I am really proud of the efforts he put into that role) and I worked on the level designer with Gianmario.

It was the first time that I had that role and the possibility to design the platform levels and I was enthusiastic. Taking care of the abilities of the character, create levels long enough to be played, good to see and play.

The little girl always played only in the platform zones so we had to find a way to intrigue the player to keep playing and have fun. Our goal was to create 3 platform levels and in each of them the character would have a new skill: in the first only a jump, in the second a double jump and in the last a useful dash.

I did the first level, with the revision of Gianmario for the first part, using the tileset done by one amazing, and also really patient, 2d artist Daniele and with that, I had the opportunity to learn more about the usage of tile palettes in unity, something that I will use a lot in my future projects.

The second level was up to Gianmario and we also introduced one tiny enemy, a small worm that periodically pops out from a wall. The best part of this level is a tiny easter egg, but don't worry I will not spoil you what it is, so go and play!

The third level was done by me, but I have to warn you that it can be frustrating and may make you want to rage-quit. So please try not to blame me too much if you find it challenging ☠️.

Difficulties

Since the group was not too cohesive, because we come from different backgrounds and we never worked together, someone found really hard to call for help and this delayed our work. The timing was also crucial because 48 hours are not enough and for sure not sufficient for a game with 3 levels and two different characters and mechanics, so also the choices made from all at the beginning should have been bridged better.

Despite that, the whole team was made up of very stubborn people who gave their best until the last minute.

Mistakes memorized

The first lesson learned is that I will make sure to take some extra time and ask everyone, including myself, "how long do you think a feature, music, or art will take to complete in the worst-case scenario?". This is not to assess the ability of the team members but rather to determine whether a task is essential or not.

The second lesson is even more important, about team building - it's a must-have for any team to function at its best. When everyone works well together, that's when the real magic happens. So, investing in team building is totally worth it if you want to achieve great results.

In my past experiences at work, I feel really bad for not being able to complete a task and my calling for help was always in a bad way. In those moments I felt like I was wasting not only my time but also the time of others. So now I can match those two events in my life and I learned that team building is essential when you work with others.

Final Thoughts

The projects gave me new lessons and a lot of new competencies using unity but as I started this article saying that people are what game jam is meant by is again indeed true. The networking that is possible to do here has no comparisons to me.

Here you can find young people winning last year's event (two really smart guys at the time they were 17), artists looking for projects to shine, designers of all kinds, and indie developers looking for more members willing to bring to life their ideas.

The game jam was crazy, but I found a place in Modena where like-minded individuals could come together and share their vision for the future of the gaming industry. The reason is that, nowadays, many people feel that the industry is too focused on making money and not enough on what truly makes a game great - creating immersive worlds and captivating stories that spark the imagination and bring joy to players.

Special Thanks

I want to thank one sound designer in particular, Giorgio, who was able to give a soul to our project with his wonderful OST songs.

Last but not least I'd like to thank the whole team, for the passion they put into it.

Here is the original exe from itch.io

Here is a mine version with some fixes in the platform levels.

. . .

What about you? Would you like to participate in a game jam event?

Leave a comment and tell me your opinion about it.

When I studied in high school approximately from 2013 to 2018 the only tech city that I heard about was The Silicon Valley in San Francisco of course due to the big tech companies there were in the city.

I remained in that situation since a few weeks ago I started a conversation with a new friend that told me about his girlfriend who lives in Dublin. I should say that at the time I didn't know much about the capital of Ireland the only thing I knew is that they have a good beer (my dear Guinness) and some good whiskey down there.

He told me that some big tech companies started building also, because of the cheap taxes, and the city got a big enhancement in tech resources and innovation. He was shocked that a nerd/tech guy like me didn't know about that pearl in Europe so once I turn back home I started my research.

Let's deep into it

By the way, in recent years, we have seen a rise in the number of cities that are becoming known as "tech cities" or "tech hubs." These are cities that have a high concentration of technology companies and startups, as well as a thriving tech culture and a strong talent pool of skilled professionals.

USA

One of the most well-known tech cities in Silicon Valley is located in the San Francisco Bay Area. Silicon Valley is home to some of the world's most iconic tech companies, including Apple, Google, and Facebook, as well as thousands of smaller startups. The region is known for its innovation and risk-taking culture, which has led to the development of many groundbreaking technologies and products.

Other major tech cities include Seattle, home to tech giants like Microsoft and Amazon, and Austin, Texas, which has a thriving tech scene and a growing number of startups. Other cities that are known for their tech industries include Boston, San Diego, and Raleigh-Durham.

Europe

Talking about Europe one of the most well-known tech cities is London, which is home to a thriving tech scene and a large number of startups. The city is known for its innovation and risk-taking culture and is home to a number of well-known tech companies, such as Google, Amazon, and Facebook.

Other major tech cities in Europe include Berlin, which has a thriving startup scene and a strong culture of innovation, and Paris, which is home to a number of major tech companies and a growing number of startups. Other cities that are known for their tech industries include Barcelona, Madrid, and Amsterdam.

Conclusion

One of the key factors that make a city a tech hub is the presence of strong research institutions and universities. These institutions often conduct research in cutting-edge technologies and provide a pipeline of skilled workers to the tech industry. In addition, tech cities often have a supportive business environment, with policies that encourage entrepreneurship and investment in technology.

Tech cities also tend to have a vibrant culture and lifestyle, which attracts young professionals and entrepreneurs. Many tech cities have a reputation for being hip, trendy, and culturally diverse, with a variety of restaurants, bars, and cultural attractions.

In recent years, we have also seen the rise of "emerging tech cities," which are smaller cities that are quickly becoming known for their tech industries. These cities often have a lower cost of living than major tech hubs, which can be attractive to tech companies looking to expand or relocate. Examples of emerging tech cities include Salt Lake City, Utah; Portland, Oregon; and Nashville, Tennessee.

As the tech industry continues to grow and evolve, it is likely that we will see more cities emerge as tech hubs. These cities will be key drivers of innovation and economic growth and will continue to attract top talent from around the world.

I focused a lot on working as well as on my studying carrier, so I couldn't be very active. But here we are with another 🎊

Today we will talk about something that many tech guys may have in common, gaming.

But WHY do many of us share this particular background? Because it's the first engagement with technology that we ever had.

In most cases, it has been with Atari cabins, Nintendo, or Sony consoles. Indeed it depends on the year of your birth, but the most common names could be Mario, Zelda, or Pokemon.

Where did my journey start?

I started it with PlayStation 2. That's because my father used to play some scary games, like resident evil 4, and I'd like to watch him play behind his shoulders. Then the first gift, the Gameboy Color, with pokemon games, and after that, the Nintendo DS with professor Layton's riddles and many more.

I grew up, and I said goodbye to Nintendo's house. I moved to Sony with PlayStation 3. I played some of the biggest names like The elder of scrolls V: Skyrim and Call of Duty black ops I and II. Soner I moved to the pc, one of the lucky born when computers were relatively cheap and with a father that had a passion for new films if you know what I mean 🏴‍☠️

With the computer and the power of the internet, everything changed. I found that the age of browser games was rising. By doing so, I discovered the site flashgames.it, a website which was overflowing with browser games. With that new weapon in my young and nerd hands, I started to use all my spare time as a kid on this site. I also found some games for two players with the same keyboard, and with that, I played a lot with my friends. In those years I found out also Facebook. The platform was released at the beginning of 2004 and in the range of years between 2009 to 2011 I started to use Facebook for browser games. With the power of social, I was sharing power-ups and lives, reducing construction time or inviting to games to all my friends. There was a war about who had the best town in Millionaire City💸💸.

Finally, I arrived at real games, with at least an installer for windows. Metin 2 was the first MMO I'd never played and like everyone, at that time, I played for many years to come at Minecraft and there I was finding new friends over skype groups and chats or TeamSpeak channels. Then I finally moved into the indie world.

I could continue, but the more I write, the more I smile at myself and how nerd I am. I should say it, I'm proud of my background.

In conclusion

With all this experience with computers, installers, browser usage...I started to get in touch with directories, files, different extensions, photos, internet problems, torrents, and so on. Making experience and building my skills, but I didn't know that.

So now it's your turn. Share your experience in the comment below and like the post if you've ever had a similar background.%[Link]

Today we did the first foot in that direction, I developed a portfolio for our team with VueJs, you can see it here, with the fancy name of CuculoGames.

Well, the real first one was a few weeks ago creating the WhatsApp group…but we’re going on every day.

Two of us are studying the Unity engine and the last one Unreal engine.

Personally, I never touched engines, I started my carrier a few years ago as a web developer. I studied HTML, CSS (and some sass), fell in love with javascript, and soon became a full stack developer (still junior but here I am).

Now, this new path is open to me: engines, videogames, simulators... We also have this crazy idea to study some of VR and AR, the problem is that the necessary tools are not so cheap. So for now we're just taking confidence with the engines.

Roberto Menna, one who study Unity with me, recently developed an android application that you can download here: WeedArcade. Is just for fun but he's keeping always up to date with new functionalities.

For example, recently I helped him to introduce a ranking system and a version checker system, a simple Nodejs server that serves data with few APIs, and also the c# controller to do the in-game requests.

With those, we officially created the service for all our games, so in the future, we will easily add those two functionalities (and even more) in our games.

Now we're thinking about a few more games not only mobile but web too, with the WebGL technology, and with some brainstorming maybe some small desktop games too. So all this is to do experience and also portfolio purposes, but who knows maybe one day we really became famous.

Anyways I'll keep you up to date. Share with me your opinion about that in a comment below.

A few days ago I was deciding what to do after graduation in Computer Science and came in my mind this (crazy) idea to do an MIT master, every kind, as I already wrote in my last article I'm having some difficulties to decide what must be the correct path for me. After reading few articles about how expensive could be university in the USA and I read something like half a million I was like :worried:. So I tried to go further and I ask myself :

Are you really deciding to do a master after all this struggling?

The answer was like:

Is possible (maybe) that you're trying to procrastinate?

I can hear all of you thinking:

Well learning is never procrastinating is hard work every day!!

And I know this I promise but seriously we're Tech guys!! We studied every day since we started that carrier this is passion isn't hard work for all of us is like the air we love to do that, new technologies are our drugs!!

Well, this is the answer but I think it's still the same question as to the last article, with few more paths...

I live in Modena, Italy. I really think this is the perfect city to live in and to grow up your sons but there are no big tech companies or at least not so interesting.

So I imagined myself in one small office with two colleagues building unity/unreal engine small games, simulators, and android or web apps. Simple and fun with different projects every time.

It could be an idea. What do you think?

Today began my blogging life.

All because I meet this amazing site hasnode and in few clicks, I was approaching this world for the first time as a writer.

Here a little background about me. I'm a developer, 22 years old. I'm studying at the university of computer science in Modena and still looking for my own path.

I think you all know how the tech world is full of paths. I tried and studied a few: mobile apps, websites, office programs, IoT and I did some projects with the raspberry pi family. I approached with different languages: c/c++, java, javascript (I'm in love I think), python, and c#. Of course, all those are only small points in this epic tech world but I still can't figure out which one is for me.

I did some other stuff unrelated to programming like social media marketing, investing in crypto, 3d printing, and few other things.

I think the main problem is my fear to pick a path and lose all the others or at least have less time to study or approaching those I already know. I'm also always excited to teach new things so I think those are the reasons.

But what about you. Did you found this problem too? If yes, how did you approach it?

Ps. I'm still looking for a mentor, to help me grow as a man and as a developer.