Birdie Blues & the Jazz Cats

Devlog

• Behind the Design
  May 09, 2026 by Orange Heart Creative#indiegame, #pixelart, #gamedev, #indiegamedev, #platformer, #arcadegame, #retrogaming, #NESinspired, #pixelartgames, #indiegaming, #indiedev

  Today I want to talk about the design decisions — specifically why three NES games, and how each one contributed something the others couldn’t. Donkey Kong — Structure DK gave me the structure... Continue reading

  
• The Sound of a Jazz Club
  May 07, 2026 by Orange Heart Creative

  Today: audio. What the game sounds like, why it sounds that way, and how sound is wired to gameplay. The Rule: Musical, Not Harsh Everything in this game lives inside a jazz club. That’s not just a... Continue reading

  
• "Birdie Blues" Post-Mortem
  May 06, 2026 by Orange Heart Creative

  This one is a retrospective — an honest look back now that the game is out. Birdie Blues is my eighth game. I’ve been through this process enough times that I should have a reliable sense of where... Continue reading

  
• Birdie Blues is Live!
  May 06, 2026 by Orange Heart Creative

  It’s live. Birdie Blues and the Jazz Cats is a free, browser-playable NES-style arcade platformer. No install. No account. You can play it right now. The concept started as a question: what happens... Continue reading

  
• The Look of "Birdie Blues and the Jazz Cats"
  May 05, 2026 by Orange Heart Creative

  This is the fourth devlog for Birdie Blues and the Jazz Cats — and the last one before the game goes live. Today I want to talk about the art: what the visual style is, why, and a few of the specifi... Continue reading

  
• How the Game Works
  May 04, 2026 by Orange Heart Creative#gamdev, #html5gamedev, #indiedev, #indiegame, #javascript, #madewithphaser, #phaserjs, #solodev

  This is the third devlog for Birdie Blues and the Jazz Cats. If you missed the intro post, read that first — it covers the premise and inspirations. Today I want to walk through the mechanics in mor... Continue reading

  
• Patch Notes: v2.1.1
  May 04, 2026 by Orange Heart Creative#gamdev, #html5gamedev, #indiedev, #indiegame, #javascript, #madewithphaser, #phaserjs, #solodev

  Small patch out today. Two bugs, both related to lives — one obvious, one sneaky. The Extra Life Was Awarding Itself Every Stage The game awards a bonus life at 5,000 points. One time, per run. That... Continue reading

  
• What is Birdie Blues and the Jazz Cats?
  May 03, 2026 by Orange Heart Creative#gamdev, #indiedev, #indiegame, #solodev, #madewithphaser, #phaserjs, #javascript, #html5gamedev

  Hey! I’m launching Birdie Blues and the Jazz Cats — a free, browser-playable NES-style single-screen arcade platformer — and wanted to write a bit about what it is and where it came from before... Continue reading