A quick update on my plans for the Let's Build a Platformer! course in 2026.

GB Studio 4.2.0 Beta has just been released and is open for beta testing. Here is a changelog of all the added features including significant improvements to the platformer engine. The GB Studio dev team have incorporated most features previously reliant on Hauntology's Platformer+ plugin directly into the core Platformer scene type.

Because the LBaP! course relies heavily on the Platformer+ Plugin, this update requires a complete overhaul of the course content.

I am committed to rewriting the course to suit the new GB Studio 4.2.0 changes. However, as stated in the recent GB Studio Patreon post, migrating projects that heavily depend on plugins like Platformer Plus is noted as potentially difficult and suggests sticking with older GB Studio versions until starting a new project.

Given the scope of this necessary update, incorporating the new engine features and revising all affected lessons will be a substantial task that may take months to complete. My aim is to release a revised course before GB Studio 4.2.0 concludes beta testing and is available in time for the official release of GB Studio 4.2.0, but it's not clear what date that will be, so... we'll see!

My aim remains to continue expanding the course and updating it without increasing its price tag, ensuring accessibility for the community. Therefore, if you have already purchased the full Let’s Build A Platformer! course, you will receive the updated 4.2.0 version without needing to pay any additional charges. This includes all customers who purchased the Playtiles Game Development Kit, too.

While I'm on the subject of Playtiles, I'll take this opportunity to remind any one that wants to purchase the Playtiles Game Development Kit that the code GUMPY20 is active once more and will remain active. You can use it for a discount when purchasing the kit via the Playtiles website. If you already own the Let's Build a Platformer! course but are interested in picking up a Playtile and all the Season 1 games, then use the code GUMPY to get a small discount. Using this code directly supports me financially, too - so tell your friends!

In the meantime, feel free to join the Gumpy Function Games Discord Server to ask questions or share what you're working on.

Lastly, I'd like to thank Peter McDonald (Hauntology). After just over 3 years, the sun is finally setting for the Platformer+ plugin. It has helped hundreds (if not thousands) of people realize their dream of making their very first platformer. Without Platformer+, Grimace's Birthday would never have been made. There are countless other great GB Studio games produced using P+ that would never have been realized if Peter had not spent so much of his time creating and maintaining one of the best GB Studio plugins ever created.

If you have enjoyed using Platformer+, why not check out Peter's most excellent book Run and Jump: The Meaning of the 2D Platformer or donate a dollar or two as a thank you via his Platformer+ Plugin's itchio page his Adventure Plus 1.1 Plugin (he disabled the donations on P+).

I'll take this opportunity to wish you all the very best for 2026. May your game dev knowledge sky rocket and may the bugs be few and far between.

Happy coding!

Tom (Gumpy Function