Gimp Glory: Story From The Guy Who Made a Video Game With Gimp

07/07/2015

View the original archived: https://web.archive.org/web/20150709102132/http://www.lucasthegame.com/lucas-the-game/gimp-glory-story-from-the-guy-who-made-a-video-game-with-gimp/

Hey everyone. If you don’t know, I’m Timothy Courtney. I’m an independent game developer in Houston. I made Lucas the Game, which was published July 1, 2015. I get questions sometimes about how I did it, or what tools I used. First, the whole process is technical, and that’s not including video game programming. Even once you understand, there’s just mountains of work to be done, and will-power is a major factor. Also, I’m still learning each day, but it made me start thinking about one of my favorite tools. I started using Gimp many years ago, because I was a Linux user, and that’s what was available. I don’t use Linux everyday, the way I used to, but my love for the Gimp is still alive. Trust me, you can’t talk me into using Photoshop.

I’ve made a lot of art with Gimp, and I’ve been there as Gimp has grown into what it is now, which is a quite capable and powerful program. I worked on many projects using it, but today I want to focus on how Gimp helped me make a video game. I didn’t talk to anyone at the Gimp organization about this article, and nobody told me to talk about it. This is just the story of how it happened, and I think people should know. You’ll be hard-pressed to find another story of a substantial professional use of Gimp. I don’t think it will stay that way forever though.

First, let me go back. Back in the day, when I started with it, Gimp wasn’t yet the beast it is today. It was strong, but not like now. It has greatly improved over the last ten years. The first time I opened Gimp, I remember thinking OMG! I am never going to learn this, and I don’t think the people who made this made it user-friendly at all. After a short time of discouragement, I decided I’m not going out like that. I’m going to make this program my go-to. So, I set out to learn one section at a time. I just messed around with it over time. Whenever I had some art I needed to complete, I would make it my personal goal to master one or two more features. First, I mainly focused on the toolbox tools. Over time, I made my way through all the menu options.

At this point, I wanted to see if any other professionals were using Gimp. Back then, it didn’t seem like it. If there were, I don’t think anyone wanted anybody to know. Actually, it still seems that way, which is why I think a review like this will be a new point-of-view for somebody. I’ve never gravitated toward mainstream anything, so that wasn’t a deterrent for me. I mean I don’t decide things that way. I only care If I like it, my experience and determination of what it can do. Eventually, I became familiar with 99% of its functionality, and started looking to extend it. Remember, it couldn’t do everything it can now. Eventually, I came to meet the Gimp plug-ins available across the internet; A whole new discovery started, and I wanted to experience all of it, and I tried to. This is how I came to meet the Gimp and become its master.

Fast-forward to early 2014, I started making a video game. It wasn’t concrete yet what it would become, but I knew I was going to make a full-size PC / Mac platformer game, based around an adventurous character. I already knew I was in for tons of work, and that 99% of the people who even started something like this, never finished. I wasn’t about to go changing up the tools I liked to use at a time like this. I was going with what I knew the best, my go-to graphics program, Gimp. I knew the style of art and animation I was going for, and wanted to make it in Gimp 2.6. I ended up using it in some way or other for all the art in Lucas the Game, and I published the game in July 2015.

To be fair, Gimp is only a tool; Imagination, craft, and the workload for a game or any other large project relies on the artist. They say a poor craftsman blames his tools, and I never wanted to be that guy. I always like to do new things and to do things in a different way. Maybe, Gimp fit into that philosophy somehow. Knowing I was in a fine minority using Gimp almost exclusively for video game art, created one more guarantee my work would stand apart from the crowd. I hope Gimp will grow to be recognized for its advantages, and I hope this story helps.

Timothy Courtney