Adrian Sandoval

@adriansandoval

He/him. Game dev professor @ Drexel U/UArts, IGDA Philly Chair, Lead designer for Little Nemo & the Nightmare Fiends, Cake enthusiast. Opinions my own.

451 Following523 Followers530 Posts

YouTube Bluesky

Is this your profile?Claim it and adriansandoval.dirty.social is yours.Claim profile

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· 12d

@rainknight.bsky.social has truly waited all week for this.

Karen at the Strong Museum sitting down in front of a coloring page with markers, getting ready to color an angelfish

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· 12d

Thanks to everyone who came up and were interested in phillymakesgames.com or just enjoyed the talk! We'll have more updates on the site and other updates soon! (Photo credit: @philsalv.bsky.social )

Me at the podium of the Paychex theater of the Strong Museum. My slide says 'I didn't know they made games in Philadelphia! - Badically Everyone Not in Philadelphia '

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· 15d

On the train to Rochester. See all you other game history eggheads soon for Save the Games!

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jun 30

Finally started messing around with decompiled N64 games and it's changing my life.

Zelda: Ocarina of Time Gohma fight at 4K60, with the traditional HUD elements replaced with fan HD mods.

Link looking at a kokiri girl on a balcony with Z Targeting in 4K

Link and Saria talking in 4K. The dialogue is patched to be 8x scaled resolution from a custom fan mod.

Super Mario 64 Bob-omb Battlefield in 4K. Draw distance is off, so elements that are far away that would normally not be visible on hardware can be seen clearly in the sky

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· May 10

I agree with the thesis, though not sure where the idea Pikmin was inspired by Bosch is coming from. However, I found out that the game's art was inspired by Tim Burton's style, and now I desperately want a Pikmin game that looks like this. (source: www.nintendoworldreport.com/news/64323/6...)

A pencil sketch of a pikmin chilling in front of a hill with a twisty tree. It's a sketchy drawing.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· May 9

Tim Schafer, 2019 GDC Awards, wearing a union shirt and hat for the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 16.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Apr 25

QuickShot focused on alternative form factor controllers, such as flight yolks, as well as the auto-fire feature. I had their normal-looking controller as a kid (bottom of the ad). So, not really a big surprise, but I didn't know about the handlebar & seeing it in a TV show threw us for a second.

A magazine ad for quickshot controllers. They all are some combination of black, red and blue.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Apr 25

No one talking about the episode mentions the controller, just the sound effects of Donkey Kong that can be heard (the game, console and TV are never shown). Thankfully looking into the controller didn't take long; it's a QuickShot NES Handlebar controller. Note the blue strip at the top.

An NES handlebar controller from QuickShot. There's a blue strip style button for start and select on top toward the back, with a toggle switch for auto fire just under it. On the front of the controller are two, big, red plastic buttons for the directional pad and one button. They have blue trim around the buttons.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Apr 25

Last night I watched one of my favorite Are You Afraid of the Dark episodes with @rainknight.bsky.social, the Tale of the Dark Music. Good episode, still holds up, but one thing really shook us up... What the hell is that controller she's using?

A girl around 9-10 years old with a very 90s haircut is playing a video game that can't be seen off to the side. She is holding a game controller that has handlebars similar to a bike, and its difficult to see where the buttons are. There is a visible blue strip along the top of the controller

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Mar 9

Hey friends at GDC: @totter87.bsky.social and my book is at the book store! Go take a look if you're there. Or get it here if you're not at GDC: www.routledge.com/Level-Design...

World Design for 2D Action Adventures from Chris W. Totten and Adrian Sandoval on a table at the GDC book store inches away from Steve Swink's excellent book Game Feel

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Mar 6

And also nine favorites of mine from my9games.com.

9 games
Chrono Trigger
Mother 2
Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening
Super Mario World
Portal
Metal Gear Solid
Silent Hill 2
Rockin Kats
Half-Life

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Feb 21

Got on a train and suddenly want to play Final Fantasy VIII.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Feb 4

Blade Runner (1982)

(A screenshot of the skyline from Snatcher, I believe the Sega CD version)

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Feb 3

I'm extremely excited for this month's IGDA Philly meeting featuring @hthrflwrs.bsky.social of Unfair Flips and Fish Fear Me fame! We won't be recording this one, so if you can't make it in-person check the link below for details on joining the livestream. igda.org/news-archive...

The Design Philosophy of Heather Flowers
Tuesday, February 10th @ 7PM
Hybrid Event: In-person and Webinar
Drexel URBN Center
3501 Market St, Philadelphia, PA
Open to the public

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jan 20

Lol

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jan 11

omg twinsies

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Dec 20

Proud to have the back of my head make a cameo appearance in the new @katewillaert.bsky.social video.

A screencap of GDC 14 with game developer Koji Igarashi on stage. A red circle is placed around the approximately 1/4 corner of the back of my head that is in view, showcasing a tuft of messy orange hair.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Dec 16

I understand the siren song of AI for mock ups as a game designer who sometimes has difficulty articulating the exact thing in my head. But in reality, I've never had an issue using mocks, pseudo-code, prototypes, etc. that can be whipped up quickly (and having a good time doing it!).

A finished Little Nemo idle pose standing in front of a mock-up stick figure face consisting of a big circle, and simple lines for the eyes and mouth. A single line sits atop its head. The simple mock is meant to demo a guy with a big head and a bit of the floor strapped to the top of his head

An in-progress digital ink of the enemy; A big guy with a beard chewing on something, with a big square plank on his head. Art by Chris Totten

A stick figure representing Peony from when we started discussing her bomb throwing mechanic. This mock shows an example of her arc, with text explaining how it will work:
"Hold attack longer, longer throw! No control over height/angle, just distance based on held
Visualizer to see where bomb will land
Alternatively: Continue holding will bring distance lower, an then higher again until release

Peony in the ice palace, poised to throw a bomb off a ledge. The visual indicator has not been implemented as of this time

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Dec 12

I could watch the game awards, OR I could make meatloaf and watch Pluribus

A glazed meatloaf in a baking dish on tinfoil.

The cut up meatloaf on a plate with potatoes and green beans

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Nov 27

Ok American followers, what's everyone making for dinner today? I just pulled out my hassleback potato gratin! (Recipe is Kenji-Lopez Alt)

Casserole dish full of creamy, crispy potatoes on their sides

Close up of the corner of the dish, showcasing the thinly sliced potatoes

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Oct 18

Guess I'm waiting, then.

A playbill for Waiting for Godot at the Hudson theater. Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter are on the front.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Oct 13

Hey folks, @totter87.bsky.social and I will be going over some of the topics we cover in our 2D level design book for the Philly IGDA meeting tomorrow tonight! The event will be hosted via Zoom (and I'll be live at Drexel for in-area people) and you can pre-reg here: bit.ly/IGDAPhillyMo...

Hybrid event: In-person and Webinar
Drexel Excite Center
3401 Market St., Philadelphia PA
Open to the public

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Sep 5

You ever just decide to do a deep dive into the Falcom RPGs? Y'know, just to see what the fuss is all about?

A black Analogue Pocket that I'm holding. Ys Book 1&2 for the PC Engine CD is on screen.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Sep 1

I did a labor today and gave my Mister a facelift.

Dynamic 3/4th view of a Mister with a custom 3D printed, console-esque case.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jul 28

Making good use of @rainknight.bsky.social's garden bounty.

Fresh tomato sauce with garden fresh peppers (and store bought onions and garlic)

A finished pasta dish using said sauce, with fussilli pasta, fresh basil, and shredded parmesan cheese.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jul 25

If there's one thing I'm good at, it's having opinions about video games.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jun 21

My first #RandomGameSaturday in a while is not so random. I'm just excited for Swery's keynote at @narrascope.org this morning.

My hand holding a copy of Spy Fiction for the PS2 against a dark grey backdrop

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jun 12

I can relate.

Little Nemo & The Nightmare Fiends - a giant stick figure head spits a clip art of a water droplet at Nemo. It has a straight, 1 pixel thick black line on its head. Under Nemo's feet is a 'ground' made of 1 pixel thick black lines, with the tops of circles appearing just under them. (mock by Adrian)

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jun 12

Thank you! I'm absolutely going to make that tomorrow for I think. The final texture came out perfect for dipping.

Adrian Sandoval@adriansandoval· Jun 12

Also, read this while making tomato soup, funny enough