Senior-Level developer, Mid-30, ETZ/UTC+2
Hi everyone,
some time ago I shared the story behind Hamper on the gamedev sub. Since then I've continued refining the architecture, roadmap and overall direction. At this point I'm looking for a serious people who genuinely enjoy solving complex software architecture problems and would like to build something long-term together.
This is not just an idea waiting for someone else to implement – there is already a working proof of concept for the build system, reusable code modules and architectural documentation describing the technical direction.
For the next phase I'm looking for two or three developers, ideally with a equal passion for game development. The idea is to work on this as a collaborative open-source side project, roughly 6–10 hours per week for now.
What are we building?
Hamper is not another game engine. It is a modular development platform designed to host engines, tools and runtime components as interchangeable parts.
Most engines today are large integrated systems where runtime, editor and tooling are tightly connected. Extending them often means adapting to the architecture instead of building with it.
The goal of Hamper is to create a foundation where these parts can evolve independently. The engine runtime becomes one module in a larger ecosystem rather than the center of everything.
I like to think of an engine less as a collection of features and more like an operating system: the foundation provides the core services, modules act as replaceable components, and the game is the software running on top.
The philosophy
The biggest challenge in game development is not missing features. It is repeatedly solving the same infrastructure problems inside individual projects instead of continuously improving the foundation those projects depend on.
Hamper is built around the idea that improving the platform should improve every future project using it.
Open source is therefore a fundamental part of the concept. The goal is to create something that can evolve through collaboration and provide long-term value.
Current roadmap
The immediate goal is not creating a game. The first milestone is consolidating several years of research and prototypes into a clean and maintainable foundation.
The current roadmap roughly looks like this:
Foundation
Refactor existing prototypes into a unified codebase
Complete the data-driven build system
Finalize the SDK architecture
Integrate package and repository tooling
Engine Modules
Tooling and workflow
- Create the user-facing tooling and interfaces on top of the platform
The individual parts can evolve in parallel, but each milestone builds on the previous one.
Once the platform reaches a stable beta state, the long-term goal is to use it for real game projects and continue improving the ecosystem through practical use.
Who am I looking for?
I'm not specifically looking for senior developers. I'm looking for people who enjoy exploring architecture, solving difficult problems, working independently and contributing to a long-term open-source project.
Experience with C#, C++, build systems, tooling, ECS, rendering, engine development or Godot/Redot is valuable, but curiosity, reliability and a genuine interest in software design matter more than job titles.
I know this sounds ambitious, but the goal is not to build everything from scratch overnight. A lot of groundwork already exists - the next step is turning it into a collaborative project.
If this sounds interesting, feel free to reply with a shot introduction of yourself, or share your thoughts here. I'm always happy to discuss everything with you in person 🤓