The game bird species I set out to simulate in the prototype of Small Game Seasons —starting with the Ruffed Grouse—were chosen through a mix of deliberate design rationale and personal inspiration. Just like the grouse, every other featured bird and its corresponding destination grew from either a real hunting experience I’ve lived or a scene I’ve long imagined. In this article, I will summarize the reasoning and logic behind each of the destinations that I chose as habitat

Bird hunting simulation without a bird dog feels incomplete. From the moment I confirmed that the flushed bird mechanics—for Ruffed Grouse and American Woodcock—were working as intended in the prototype, I naturally turned to the next essential element on my backlog: the pointer. Later, when the prototype expanded to include other species and destinations—like driven pheasants—the Labrador Retriever became an obvious addition to support that classic hunt scenario. In the Smal

In developing Small Game Seasons , the creative process followed a clear and intentional path: I began by selecting a wing-shooting style to simulate, identified a suitable game bird for that style, then established a fictional hunting destination that mirrored its real-world habitat. The Ruffed Grouse , the first species I simulated, was a natural choice—both technically and personally. Drawing from years of upland bird hunting in Eastern Canada, and Quebec , I knew that the

The Small Game Seasons Prototype features a selection of game bird species chosen to demonstrate specific hunting styles and simulation mechanics. While a separate blog post is dedicated to the bird that started it all—the Ruffed Grouse—this article introduces the other birds that took shape after I was satisfied with the grouse’s behavior and realism in the prototype. Before diving into each species, it’s important to note that all birds featured in the prototype are third-p

Yes, I’m an upland bird hunter—and Small Game Seasons began (before it even had a name) as a personal attempt to simulate one of my favorite outdoor pursuits: hunting the Ruffed Grouse. Back then, I was still learning Unreal Engine, testing plugins, and trying anything I could to bring this iconic bird to virtual life. It wasn’t a game yet—it was a way to recreate a specific feeling I knew intimately from the field. The Ruffed Grouse: A Quick Primer for the Unfamiliar For tho

If you’ve landed on this article, chances are you already know the basics: a shotgun shell is nothing like a rifle bullet. But for context—and for anyone newer to bird hunting—bird shot contains hundreds of lead or steel pellets that spread outward in a widening pattern after leaving the muzzle. They don’t travel as far as a bullet and lose energy over distance. Generally, we say that beyond 50 meters (around 55 yards) , a bird shot becomes ineffective—though that can vary d

Wing-shooting with a shotgun is radically different from aiming a rifle in big-game hunting. To summarize the difference in one line: We don’t aim with a shotgun—we point . And ideally, we learn to shoot with both eyes open. That’s when real skill starts to develop. Once I had the bird flight mechanics dialed in, I turned my attention to the other core of the experience: the shotgun itself—how it handles, how it feels, and how to simulate that instinctive shooting style usin

As I mentioned in the About section of this website, I’m not a game developer by trade—I’m a digital designer, and an upland bird hunter. For years, I waited for a simulator or PC game that could bring the thrill and challenge of wing-shooting to life during the off-season. Not an arcade-style game. Not a generic shooting experience. Something that actually felt right to someone who’s flushed a Ruffed Grouse through the woods. And I still wanted it to be a PC game—not a comp