Hi, I'm René "Havoc" Nicolaus.

Senior Software Engineer • Indie Game Developer

I build and tinker with engines, editors, tools, libraries, web applications, and games - from a Half-Life mod to a Doom-style engine and various utilities.

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Projects

A selection of my projects is showcased below, with more available on my GitHub account.

Downloads

The Pushing Point

A 3D take on Sokoban puzzle gameplay.

February 20, 2025 <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 0.1.0</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Havoc 3D

A beatable demo of my discontinued ray casting engine.

November 02, 2024 <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 0.3.1</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Dangerous Adventure in Space

My side-scrolling run-and-gun game, originally made for the <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20130916234139/http://ludumdare.com/compo/">Ludum Dare competition #27</a>.

Updated: February 05, 2024 (SDL 2.0 Version) <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 0.1.4</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Escape Made Easy (E.M.E.)

My rougelike game with a dynamic music system.

November 19, 2024 <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 0.3</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Dark Tide

A small single-player map I originally created for <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/2229830/Command__Conquer_and_The_Covert_Operations">Command & Conquer: Tiberian Dawn</a> on September 4, 2005, now updated to work with the <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/1213210/Command__Conquer_Remastered_Collection">Remastered edition</a>. Installation instructions can be found on the project page.

Updated: September 16, 2025 (CnC TDRA Map Editor - Remastered Version) <span><svg class="bi bi-file-earmark icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Command & Conquer: Tiberian Dawn Map" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-file-earmark"></use></svg> C&C TD Map</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Wild Aim

A simple <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/10/CounterStrike">Counter-Strike</a> aim map I created for my old clan. Installation instructions can be found on the project page.

September 07, 2004 <span><svg class="bi bi-file-earmark icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Counter-Strike 1.6 Map" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-file-earmark"></use></svg> CS 1.6 Map</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Times of Darkness

A single-player mod for <a href="https://store.steampowered.com/app/70/HalfLife">Half-Life</a>. Installation instructions can be found on the project page.

September 27, 2003 <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 1.0</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Times of Darkness 2 - Intro Song

Intro song from the canceled sequel: Times of Darkness 2.

February 15, 2004 <span><svg class="bi bi-filetype-mp3 icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="128 kbps MP3" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-filetype-mp3"></use></svg> MP3</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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havCurCtr

A WinForms-based background app that registers a global hotkey to center the mouse cursor on the primary monitor.

August 24, 2025 <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 1.0</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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IntAltGr

A <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QWERTY">QWERTY</a>-based Windows keyboard layout that enables direct input of international characters (e.g., German <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Umlaut_(diacritic)">umlauts</a> and the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%9F">sharp S</a>) via <code>Alt Gr</code> (or <code>Ctrl</code> + <code>Alt</code>) modifier, without the "dead key" behavior of US-International.

Updated: October 10, 2025 (rebuilt) <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 1.0.3.40</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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havGSD

A task list plugin for <a href="https://codelite.org">CodeLite</a>.

September 13, 2025 <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 0.2</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Havoc Startup Minimizer

A lightweight, efficient, and permission-free extension for <a href="https://www.thunderbird.net">Mozilla Thunderbird</a> that minimizes the main Thunderbird window immediately after startup. Installation instructions can be found on the project page.

November 16, 2025 <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg>, <svg class="bi bi-apple icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="macOS Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-apple"></use></svg>, <svg class="bi bi-tux icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Linux Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-tux"></use></svg> Version 1.0</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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Havoc's Screen Saver

My very first Windows screen saver.

February 07, 2024 <span><svg class="bi bi-windows icon-underline version-cursor" data-tooltip="Windows Version" aria-hidden="true" focusable="false"><use href="/libs/bootstrap-icons/bootstrap-icons.svg#bi-windows"></use></svg> Version 0.2</span> [DOWNLOAD_SIZE]

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About

My name is René "Havoc" Nicolaus, and I'm a Senior Software Engineer and Indie Game Developer. I enjoy building things from the ground up: custom engines, editors, plugins, libraries, web applications, and the occasional full game or mod.

Over the years I've worked on everything from Half-Life and Command & Conquer maps to a Doom-style engine, along with tools and utilities that make my own workflow more pleasant. Some of that work lives on GitHub - other parts are shared here as downloads or articles.

If you're interested in games, engines, editors, or tools, feel free to follow along via GitHub, YouTube, LinkedIn, or other feeds linked above.