Ash Blue
@ashbluex.bsky.social
Open source game tool creator of the Unity Fluid suite https://github.com/ashblue. Indie game dev currently working on "Burn The Hive." Sign up for the beta here: sendfox.com/burn_the_hive
Pinned
Ash Blue
@ashbluex.bsky.social
· Aug 8
Ready to dive into a dark future? 🔥 Sign up for Burn The Hive's closed beta now! A tactical card game that mixes Slay The Spire's strategy with Plants vs Zombies' chaos. 🧠💥
🔗 Join here: sendfox.com/burn_the_hive
#gamedev #cardgames #indiegames #slaythespire #plantsvszombies #videogames
🔗 Join here: sendfox.com/burn_the_hive
#gamedev #cardgames #indiegames #slaythespire #plantsvszombies #videogames
Combat previews before a battle weren't displaying much relevant information. So I reworked the UI to crawl the combat data and create a combat preview.
#screenshotsaturday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #scifi #retrofuture
#screenshotsaturday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #scifi #retrofuture
August 29, 2026 at 5:36 PM
Combat previews before a battle weren't displaying much relevant information. So I reworked the UI to crawl the combat data and create a combat preview.
#screenshotsaturday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #scifi #retrofuture
#screenshotsaturday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #scifi #retrofuture
Some rough flats for a new enemy. I like to do a flat model pass before I do final models / textures. A few extra hours in the modeling process, but it avoids major pitfalls like shader/transparency issues.
#screenshotsunday #gamedev #indiegames #blender3d #substancepainter #scifi
#screenshotsunday #gamedev #indiegames #blender3d #substancepainter #scifi
August 24, 2026 at 4:03 AM
Some rough flats for a new enemy. I like to do a flat model pass before I do final models / textures. A few extra hours in the modeling process, but it avoids major pitfalls like shader/transparency issues.
#screenshotsunday #gamedev #indiegames #blender3d #substancepainter #scifi
#screenshotsunday #gamedev #indiegames #blender3d #substancepainter #scifi
Bosses in my game were kinda boring since they all have the same shape. I've created a grouping system with knockback handling that allows me to group a boss into multiple parts that can be destroyed or moved.
#screenshotsaturday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #roguelike #prototyping
#screenshotsaturday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #roguelike #prototyping
August 1, 2026 at 8:26 PM
Bosses in my game were kinda boring since they all have the same shape. I've created a grouping system with knockback handling that allows me to group a boss into multiple parts that can be destroyed or moved.
#screenshotsaturday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #roguelike #prototyping
#screenshotsaturday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #roguelike #prototyping
After many struggles with wireframe baking, I think I've finally nailed a full toolset for rapidly creating new wireframe models. This latest area was done in under 2 weeks
#screenshotsunday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart #virtualboy
#screenshotsunday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart #virtualboy
July 26, 2026 at 6:56 PM
After many struggles with wireframe baking, I think I've finally nailed a full toolset for rapidly creating new wireframe models. This latest area was done in under 2 weeks
#screenshotsunday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart #virtualboy
#screenshotsunday #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart #virtualboy
A friend was recently asking how I concept a lot of units. Sometimes I just freehand model units in Blender. Other times I draw sketches like this boss that has multiple states. Helps prove out the general silhouette.
#gamedev #indiegames #sketches #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart
#gamedev #indiegames #sketches #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart
July 21, 2026 at 5:12 AM
A friend was recently asking how I concept a lot of units. Sometimes I just freehand model units in Blender. Other times I draw sketches like this boss that has multiple states. Helps prove out the general silhouette.
#gamedev #indiegames #sketches #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart
#gamedev #indiegames #sketches #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart
Reposted by Ash Blue
Proud to announce the next game
Vampirium: 1997
Dracula is king of the United British Empire. Kill his enemies and find your own path through a minimalist immersive sim sandbox.
Wishlists and retweets massively appreciated (and, you know, massively helpful)
store.steampowered.com/app/4035190/...
Vampirium: 1997
Dracula is king of the United British Empire. Kill his enemies and find your own path through a minimalist immersive sim sandbox.
Wishlists and retweets massively appreciated (and, you know, massively helpful)
store.steampowered.com/app/4035190/...
Vampirium: 1997 on Steam
1997. Dracula is King of England. At his command, master your dark gifts to assassinate his enemies and secure his vampiric empire. Infiltrate locked-down locations, adapt and survive in living enviro...
store.steampowered.com
July 8, 2026 at 1:30 PM
Proud to announce the next game
Vampirium: 1997
Dracula is king of the United British Empire. Kill his enemies and find your own path through a minimalist immersive sim sandbox.
Wishlists and retweets massively appreciated (and, you know, massively helpful)
store.steampowered.com/app/4035190/...
Vampirium: 1997
Dracula is king of the United British Empire. Kill his enemies and find your own path through a minimalist immersive sim sandbox.
Wishlists and retweets massively appreciated (and, you know, massively helpful)
store.steampowered.com/app/4035190/...
Finished an event sample location mockup. For this I tried blending multiple models with Z depth shaders to create a supernatural glowing effect. Would love feedback on this if you're feeling up to it.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart
July 8, 2026 at 8:14 PM
Finished an event sample location mockup. For this I tried blending multiple models with Z depth shaders to create a supernatural glowing effect. Would love feedback on this if you're feeling up to it.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #roguelike #blender #blender3d #gamedesign #gameart
Finished a huge batch of new cards. Here are just a few of the new ones. Game is roughly 50 cards at this point. Also huge props to game-icons.net which I use to rapidly prototype a lot of my card art.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
June 30, 2026 at 6:43 PM
Finished a huge batch of new cards. Here are just a few of the new ones. Game is roughly 50 cards at this point. Also huge props to game-icons.net which I use to rapidly prototype a lot of my card art.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
Rolling out new unit abilities with colored tiles that give a quick visual snapshot of what's going on. The colors of friendly (blue), heal (green), and attack (red) make first time plays with new cards much easier too.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
June 29, 2026 at 12:11 AM
Rolling out new unit abilities with colored tiles that give a quick visual snapshot of what's going on. The colors of friendly (blue), heal (green), and attack (red) make first time plays with new cards much easier too.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
Finished up equipment cards to help break up the game's complexity. This lets you weaponize deployed walls, change how units attack, and even apply special debuffs to enemies.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
June 6, 2026 at 4:37 PM
Finished up equipment cards to help break up the game's complexity. This lets you weaponize deployed walls, change how units attack, and even apply special debuffs to enemies.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike #deckbuilder
How soon should you create a tutorial for your game? IMO you should do it last right before a public demo or launch in early access. It's really painful to watch people struggle in live play tests. But solving their struggles with intuitive UI/mechanics will make your game much better long term.
May 26, 2026 at 6:32 PM
How soon should you create a tutorial for your game? IMO you should do it last right before a public demo or launch in early access. It's really painful to watch people struggle in live play tests. But solving their struggles with intuitive UI/mechanics will make your game much better long term.
Putting the finishing touches on a new card based trap system you can use to defend lanes.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
May 18, 2026 at 7:59 PM
Putting the finishing touches on a new card based trap system you can use to defend lanes.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
Reposted by Ash Blue
What does “art direction” actually mean on a small game team?
I put together a breakdown of my work on Reclaim! Azhegiiwewining—covering visual language, color scripting, and building a production pipeline from scratch.
🔗 www.artstation.com/artwork/5WAwk1
#gamedev #artdirection #gameart
I put together a breakdown of my work on Reclaim! Azhegiiwewining—covering visual language, color scripting, and building a production pipeline from scratch.
🔗 www.artstation.com/artwork/5WAwk1
#gamedev #artdirection #gameart
Reclaim! Azhegiiwewining — Art Direction for a Narrative Exploration Game, Renee Nejo
I served as Art Director on Reclaim! Azhegiiwewining, a narrative exploration game centered on cultural storytelling and environmental discovery. I led visual development across the project, defining ...
www.artstation.com
May 4, 2026 at 11:29 PM
What does “art direction” actually mean on a small game team?
I put together a breakdown of my work on Reclaim! Azhegiiwewining—covering visual language, color scripting, and building a production pipeline from scratch.
🔗 www.artstation.com/artwork/5WAwk1
#gamedev #artdirection #gameart
I put together a breakdown of my work on Reclaim! Azhegiiwewining—covering visual language, color scripting, and building a production pipeline from scratch.
🔗 www.artstation.com/artwork/5WAwk1
#gamedev #artdirection #gameart
Every time I create a rough model pass and flats for a character it really helps significantly. Can't stress how important it is to do this before final textures in #gamedev #3dModeling and #characterDesign. Especially if you do shape discovery / concept exploration while 3D modeling #indiegames
May 6, 2026 at 12:22 AM
Every time I create a rough model pass and flats for a character it really helps significantly. Can't stress how important it is to do this before final textures in #gamedev #3dModeling and #characterDesign. Especially if you do shape discovery / concept exploration while 3D modeling #indiegames
Finished a new 1 HP enemy that explodes on death. Granting block/armor to nearby allies and spreading tile grime. The extra block forces you to strategically think about your kill order.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
April 26, 2026 at 11:37 PM
Finished a new 1 HP enemy that explodes on death. Granting block/armor to nearby allies and spreading tile grime. The extra block forces you to strategically think about your kill order.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
Working on a new level with units that create terrain when attacked. You'll have to cleverly play cards to work around their defense mechanism.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
April 20, 2026 at 1:41 AM
Working on a new level with units that create terrain when attacked. You'll have to cleverly play cards to work around their defense mechanism.
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
#gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #cardgame #roguelike
I wasn't sure why my game's builds were pumping out 200FPS+ and causing my GPU to scream. I thought it was just a badly optimized scene. But it looks like the default Unity setup had vsync shut off for whatever reason in settings... Game builds barely make any GPU noise now #unity3D #gamedev
March 30, 2026 at 4:22 AM
Struggling to store wave data in a visual format for my card game. I created a simple grid editing system to store wave data in a ScriptableObject. Now I rapidly prototype levels by painting onto the map. More details in the comments. #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #screenshotsaturday
March 28, 2026 at 6:47 PM
Struggling to store wave data in a visual format for my card game. I created a simple grid editing system to store wave data in a ScriptableObject. Now I rapidly prototype levels by painting onto the map. More details in the comments. #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity #unity3d #screenshotsaturday
The game that heavily inspired my card game Burn The Hive is deeply discounted for less than $3 right now. An absolute must play if you like games like Into The Breach, FTL, and tower defense. store.steampowered.com/app/1105670/...
Save 90% on The Last Spell on Steam
Defend the last bastion of humanity with your squad of heroes! Exterminate fiendish monsters with magic and brute force by night and re-build your battered city defenses by day in this tactical RPG wi...
store.steampowered.com
March 21, 2026 at 5:46 PM
The game that heavily inspired my card game Burn The Hive is deeply discounted for less than $3 right now. An absolute must play if you like games like Into The Breach, FTL, and tower defense. store.steampowered.com/app/1105670/...
Reposted by Ash Blue
Slay the Spire 2 has sold 3 million copies in 1 week store.steampowered.com/news/app/286...
March 13, 2026 at 10:27 PM
Slay the Spire 2 has sold 3 million copies in 1 week store.steampowered.com/news/app/286...
Was really unhappy with the old rewards menu at the end of combat so I rewrote it. Players now get credits and a reward card from each deck. #gamedev #madewithunity #indiegames #scifi #unity3d #gameui #roguelike #cardgame
March 12, 2026 at 5:31 AM
Was really unhappy with the old rewards menu at the end of combat so I rewrote it. Players now get credits and a reward card from each deck. #gamedev #madewithunity #indiegames #scifi #unity3d #gameui #roguelike #cardgame
Added a new "Flare Gun" like card that allows you to debuff a target and scatter neighboring units. It can also be used to make your own units reposition if you're clever when playing it. #gamedev #indiegames #cardgame #madewithunity #unity3d
March 4, 2026 at 9:47 PM
Added a new "Flare Gun" like card that allows you to debuff a target and scatter neighboring units. It can also be used to make your own units reposition if you're clever when playing it. #gamedev #indiegames #cardgame #madewithunity #unity3d
A cyberpunk JRPG game prototype I made back in 2023. Ultimately dropped the game due to scoping issues. But I still love the concept and my modeling/animation skills have improved significantly since this was made (a lot of mixamo animations in here).
#jrpg #gamedev #indiegames #videogames
#jrpg #gamedev #indiegames #videogames
February 16, 2026 at 12:22 AM
A cyberpunk JRPG game prototype I made back in 2023. Ultimately dropped the game due to scoping issues. But I still love the concept and my modeling/animation skills have improved significantly since this was made (a lot of mixamo animations in here).
#jrpg #gamedev #indiegames #videogames
#jrpg #gamedev #indiegames #videogames
Finished up a pass on the shop system and started playing with light bleed effects to create a more retro-future feeling interface.
#gamedev #madewithunity #indiegames #retrofuture #scifi #shaders #unity3d #screenshotsaturday
#gamedev #madewithunity #indiegames #retrofuture #scifi #shaders #unity3d #screenshotsaturday
February 9, 2026 at 12:12 AM
Finished up a pass on the shop system and started playing with light bleed effects to create a more retro-future feeling interface.
#gamedev #madewithunity #indiegames #retrofuture #scifi #shaders #unity3d #screenshotsaturday
#gamedev #madewithunity #indiegames #retrofuture #scifi #shaders #unity3d #screenshotsaturday
I made the art for Tavern Trickster with my partner in just 2 days this weekend for Global Game Jam 2026. An inscription / shotgun roulette inspired shell game. #screenshotsaturday #ggj2026 #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity
February 2, 2026 at 1:16 AM
I made the art for Tavern Trickster with my partner in just 2 days this weekend for Global Game Jam 2026. An inscription / shotgun roulette inspired shell game. #screenshotsaturday #ggj2026 #gamedev #indiegames #madewithunity