> When reading through OpenRCT2’s source, there is a common syntax that you rarely see in modern code, lines like this:

> NewValue = OldValue << 2;

I disagree with the framing of this section. Bit shifts are used all the time in low-level code. They're not just some archaic optimisation, they're also a natural way of working with binary data (aka all data on a computer). Modern low-level code continues to use lots of bit shifts, bitwise operators, etc.

Low-level programming is absolutely crucial to performant games. Even if you're not doing low-level programming yourself, you're almost certainly using an engine or library that uses it extensively. I'm surprised an article about optimisation in gaming, of all things, would take the somewhat tired "in ye olde days" angle on low-level code.

I learned these low-level bit tricks by reading TempleOS' HolyC source code. I remember feeling like a genius when I worked out what this line does:

dc->color=c++&15;

Hint: it's from this "Lines" demo program, whose source is here: https://web.archive.org/web/20180906060723/https://templeos....

And this is what it looks like when it runs (ignore the fact it's running in Minecraft): https://youtu.be/pAN_Fza6Vy8?t=38