The Oak: Cookout

Oakland's Apprentices Build Software

Last years mini-game introduced a match-3 feature of our project. Let us introduce you to the next phase: the Spades mini-game that we're calling The Cookout.

Software Development at the Guild

As our apprentices finish their training, we transition them onto a project for on-the-job training. Our plan for 2026 was to add the new candidates to our team to help us build this project! And despite the state of the world, we plan to continue on down that path.

Progress

We've also decided to switch to Godot for our game engine. It aligns much more closely with our in-house tooling, being Pythonista friendly in addition to open source. Currently, we're working on the Spades feature and getting new artwork into the game! We expect to publish the next update soon ...

Dev Log for 2026

We've been hard at work training the current cohort of apprentices. During training periods, development slows down. And as we near the end of the Novice Training period, we'll be ramping back up! This year we're publishing a dev log to keep everyone updated on our progress through development. We want your feedback! That's how we measure success. By supporting our efforts, you're making sure the current generation of aspiring Software Developers can build their own path to success. It's never been more important for young developers to focus on the kind of work they want to do.

This project is also our thank you to everyone who's shown their support the past year. We hope you like what you see, that you'll be proud of the work of our apprentices, and that the game is an enjoyable experience. To learn more about this project, call or visit.