Paul

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• Announcements·13 Aug 2026Official

  Keep riding

  Some weeks ago I decided to rebuild Paul’s code from the ground up. Paul is no longer a prototype, it deserves a more solid codebase. A lot of things are working (again) already, though there are still a few things left to sort out.Hello, I’m Tobi. Every week I write about the development process of our game, Paul. Paul combines turn-based combat, dungeon crawling, and exploration in a hand-crafted world. This DevLog is a way for me to reflect on and document the different stages of development, but also for anyone interested in seeing how the world of Paul gradually takes shape.Oh yeah, I know, rebuilding Paul from scratch again sounds like insanity. But on the other hand, at least in my experience, it’s actually not that unusual to throw away 90% of what you’ve made during production and then iterate on it again from there. The nice thing about rebuilding something that already exists is that you already know where you want to go. The thinking part is done, now comes the finger work.The look and core gameplay loop are in place, and the features are clear. Now I just have to actually rebuild all of it with a improved codebase. It shouldn’t be that difficult. That’s what I tell myself every day, and I really hope that’s true. :)Right now I’m doing a bit of everything at once, a little graphics work here, some UI there, enemy behaviours over there. It definitely won’t get boring. I’m already really excited to show off the next polished gameplay build, and that’s keeping me motivated.But first, I need a short Paul break, and I’m going to hop on my bike for a few days to clear my head.So that’s it for now. Let’s see what comes next.Have a great time, everyone!TobiOh, and because every DevLog needs a photo, here’s one of my bike helmet.
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• Announcements·6 Aug 2026Official

  Keep stirring

  Ah, summer really is something special. Hello, I’m Tobi. Every week I write about the development process of our game, Paul. Paul combines turn-based combat, dungeon crawling, and exploration in a hand-crafted world. This DevLog is a way for me to reflect on and document the different stages of development, but also for anyone interested in seeing how the world of Paul gradually takes shape.I’m back in Franconia once again, and as usual, I’ve got an excellent beer sitting next to me. Everyone else is already asleep, but I’m taking a moment to look back on everything that happened over the last week. Right now I’m rewriting all of Paul’s systems from scratch. Some days it feels like Groundhog Day. A lot of the work was technically already done, but now it’s becoming… even more done. Polished, refined, rebuilt. Today I also found some time to work on the visuals a bit more and started to add lighting to some levels. Here’s a screenshot: In between all that, I’ve also managed to meet up with some great people. We cooked up a pretty juicy goulash over an open fire. It was my first time making a stew that way, and I absolutely loved it. Just like making games, it’s all about patience… and a lot of stirring. The goulash needs to simmer for about three hours, and you have to be incredibly careful not to let it burn. Keep the heat moderate by hanging the pot a little higher above the fire, and keep stirring consistently. Eventually, everything will taste just right.My beer is empty, and the DevLog is finished. Take care, and have a great time! Tobi.P.S. I’m wondering if there’s a good trick for saving goulash when it starts to burn? Is there anything you can add to get rid of that smoky, burnt taste?
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• Announcements·30 Jul 2026Official

  Smooth

  Sometimes it’s actually a good thing to just start over.Hello, I’m Tobi. Every week I write about the development process of our game, Paul. Paul combines turn-based combat, dungeon crawling, and exploration in a hand-crafted world. This DevLog is a way for me to reflect on and document the different stages of development, but also for anyone interested in seeing how the world of Paul gradually takes shape.Last week I continued working on porting Paul to Godot. I’m getting more and more comfortable with the engine, even though there are still a few features I miss. The basic architecture of Paul was already there, but over time a bit of spaghetti code had found its way into the project. My hope is that this port will help me clean all of that up. Here’s a short GIF showing the current status:All in all, I’m really happy that I’m basically being forced to rebuild everything from scratch. It’s like starting with a blank sheet of paper, except this time I already know exactly what needs to be on it. I’m curious to see how long the whole porting process will take. I’ve been working on it for about two weeks now (not full-time, unfortunately), but it’s coming along nicely. Here’s a screenshot of my recent commits, with a few annotations showing what I’ve been working on over the past couple of days. I’m having a lot of fun, and everything is moving along smoothly.Take care, Tobi
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• Announcements·23 Jul 2026Official

  Back To Square One

  I’m not sure if this was a good idea… but I’ve already started!Hello, I’m Tobi. Every week I write about the development process of our game, Paul. Paul combines turn-based combat, dungeon crawling, and exploration in a hand-crafted world. This DevLog is a way for me to reflect on and document the different stages of development, but also for anyone interested in seeing how the world of Paul gradually takes shape.Over the past few years, I’ve grown increasingly frustrated with the game engines I’ve been using, so I started looking for alternatives. Unsurprisingly, I eventually landed on Godot. It has excellent documentation, and while it’s still a bit lightweight in certain areas, that’s also part of its appeal. More importantly, there are no constantly changing licensing agreements to worry about—it’s open source. No built-in AI tools (thank goodness), and no always-online requirement. Freedom!Now I’m curious to see how long it’ll take me to move Paul over to Godot. Thankfully, I’ve still got Mr. J by my side, whose big brain usually helps me out whenever I get stuck.So, everything is in motion once again, and at this point in my life I’m learning a whole new set of skills. It’s definitely exciting, even if the first screenshot of what I’ve managed to port over in the last couple of days still leaves plenty of room for improvement.It took me about six days to get a proper grid-based system working and to implement a basic weapon system from scratch. While doing all of this, I can already see my workflow inside Godot gradually evolving, and I’m starting to feel more at home with the engine every day.That’s it for now. We’ll see where this Godot journey takes me next. Best,Tobi
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• Announcements·9 Jul 2026Official

  Eyecandy

  Look development was the main focus last week, right alongside enjoying franconian beer. Hello, I’m Tobi. Every week I write about the development process of our game “Paul”. “Paul” combines turn-based combat, dungeon crawling and exploring in a hand-designed world. The DevLog is for me to reflect on and document production stages, but of course also for all those who are interested in how Paul’s world gradually takes shape. I’m back in Franconia again, and I’ve gotten into the habit of grabbing a beer and spending my evenings with my tablet, continuing to work on Paul’s graphics. I’m slowly reaching the point where the content for the final demo includes all the planned gameplay and code features, which means it’s finally time for the next fun part: polishing the visuals. At this stage, that mainly means fine-tuning the color palette, adjusting the lighting and atmosphere, and adding more variety and detail to the world. I’m really enjoying dialing in the overall look right now. Here are a few updated sections from the levels. They’re not 100% final yet, there’s still some room for improvement, but I think they’re already heading in a really good direction. (I also posted some short clips with a speedpaint capture on Bluesky)Link to Speedpaint Link to SpeedpaintHope you like what you see.That’s it from me for now. Have a great week, and stay curious! Tobi
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