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Gradual Games: a Brief History

 It all started when Derek, founder of Gradual Games, realized he wanted to finish some of the game projects he started as a teenager. Once he got a PowerPAK from RetroZone and realized he could program his beloved NES, the rest is history. He called his company Gradual Games because he believes in the idea of a self-fulfilling prophecy...if you call yourself something that indicates a positive outcome, it will come true. Gradual Games is named for the fable of the Tortoise and the Hare. Many indie game developers work too hard, become too ambitious too quickly, burn out and then never finish their games. Gradual Games instead chooses to move very slowly and cautiously, balancing game development with life. NES homebrew is perfect for this because the technology never fundamentally changes.


Derek Andrews:



Derek is the founder of Gradual Games. He programs the games themselves, tools for helping build the games, designs levels, and arranges and composes music. He enjoys playing NES games, playing his clavichord, hiking, reading fantasy novels, and watching sci-fi tv shows and movies when he is not programming NES games.

Honorary Members:



Daniel Hwozdek:




Dan was our first beta tester, providing detailed feedback on Nomolos: Storming the Catsle, including balancing out the gameplay. Derek learned a lot about fine tuning game-mechanics working with Dan on Nomolos. He was even involved in one of Derek's failed game projects from 15 years ago. Dan is an avid video game player, and a pro at Smash Bros. tournaments. He enjoys walks in parks, games with friends and general chaos and hilarity.

Past Members:
Laurie Andrews - artist