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    Home Unlabelled After 6 months of eating rice and beans, and working for 12 hours a day. I have released my alpha demo on steam. Here's what I have learnt as a solo dev.

    After 6 months of eating rice and beans, and working for 12 hours a day. I have released my alpha demo on steam. Here's what I have learnt as a solo dev.

    March 24, 2021

    After 6 months of eating rice and beans, and working for 12 hours a day. I have released my alpha demo on steam. Here's what I have learnt as a solo dev.

    After 6 months of eating rice and beans, and working for 12 hours a day. I have released my alpha demo on steam. Here's what I have learnt as a solo dev.

    Posted: 23 Mar 2021 04:46 PM PDT

    In no particular order:

    Number 1:

    Take care of your mind!
    Like all things you find fun, gamedev can be addicting. Don't treat it as an escape from reality that you can hide yourself within. Treat it as a part of your life, and don't let it take over. You are far more preductive working on a game for years than working on something for six months and burning out on it.

    Take breaks, see friends and family, get some sleep.

    Number 2:

    Get a decent chair.

    You're going to need it. Having a good chair is not enough though, it doesn't matter how good your chair is if you sit like a crab.

    Number 3:

    Marketing can be fun!

    This will take up so much of your time. And if you are taking this journey alone then you are going to need all the help you can get. Marketing doesn't have to be an evil and manipulative. Did you have a fun chat on twitter with another dev about their game? That's technically marketing. Did you just release your Steam demo and want to help other devs by posting on /gamedev? That's marketing. Did you spend 12 hours making your character dance just to post an amazing gif showing off your game? You guessed it, marketing.

    This type of marketing is good because it's fun, and it's also mutually beneficial to the person you are "advertising" to. If they are genuinley interested in the the content you are posting then everyone is a winner.

    Number 4:

    Make Connections early:

    Reach out to other devs/steamers/youtubers/publishers etc. If you love their stuff, chances are they will like yours too. If your game completely fails, then you still have a solid group of connections that have your back for your next project. It's also really nice to make friends with creative people, it makes you even more creative.

    Number 5:
    Don't be a perfectionist. Finish the thing:

    This one I struggled with in my previous projects.

    So many developers make amazing pieces of art to post on their social media, or spend days making the perfect custom particle system. Remember your time has value and don't be afraid to cut corners. Your goal is to release something so others can enjoy it, not so it can sit pretty on your harddrive for eternity.

    Number 6:

    Play to your strengths to hide your weaknesses.

    If you are bad at art but good at programming then make a game that isn't very art heavy, stick to low polly models, or develop a pocedural art system made put of cubes.

    If you are good at art, but bad at programming. Don't make an RPG, make a gorgeous point and click adventure. Or a interactive kids story. If you are taking this adventure alone then it is important to design the game around your own skillset.

    Number 7:

    Don't be ashamed to post your links whenever you can.

    It might annoy a few people, but if you get a few clicks then it is worth it. You aren't a AAA company that can throw a load of money at a marketing campagn the last minute. you need to build your own community over time. Here look I'll do it now:

    Steam Demo: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1489110/Zapling_Bygone/

    Discord: https://discord.gg/Uvnk4rmeqA

    Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/9fingergames/zapling-bygone

    Easy, right?

    submitted by /u/oatskeepyouregular
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    A redditor sent me a game to give design feedback! Anyone else want the same treatment?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 06:45 AM PDT

    I made a procedural grass lawn material in Unity's shader graph! No textures required. Tutorial in the comments!

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:06 AM PDT

    Someone has stolen my game "Stay Out Of The Halls".

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 11:28 AM PDT

    How upsetting. someone has reuploaded my game "Stay Out The Halls" and are using it for their own benefit. I have contacted Itch.io I am waiting for a reply. I can't believe someone would do such a thing smh.

    submitted by /u/SuppliedCootR
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    How to improve as a Game Dev Lead?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 07:45 AM PDT

    Hello all.

    Recently I've become a lead of a project in a indie studio.

    I can deal with the decisions and responsibilities but I have some trouble talking the base same language as the rest of the team. My full background is in programming, so I have no knowledge of 3D, Music, Art, etc.

    What I would love help with is how can I improve this? What are some good resources (books, videos, articles, ...) that can help me improve a bit of every area. So for example when someone asks me my opinion in a piece of music I can answer with something more than I like it or not.

    Basically looking for basic concepts of the areas as I want to continue as game programmer.

    Thanks in advance

    submitted by /u/daweasel27
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    Target Switching For Lock On | Unreal Engine Action RPG Tutorial

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:06 AM PDT

    My first ever game gets released in 2 days. I'm a solo developer. Here's what I would do the same, and do differently for my next game.

    Posted: 23 Mar 2021 05:22 PM PDT

    My game, Cassidy, is a small-ish indie horror game, inspired by games such as visage and Phasomophobia, and is just shy of 600 wishlists since writing. It's my first ever game, made in Unreal Engine 4, and though not everyone will love it I know, I'm super proud of it. That being said, I do not for one minute think I am a pro at creating games or anything, just everyone has their own experiences, this is mine, so take from it what you will! If anything, hopefully, the links provided can help.

    A lot of starting indie developers will be in the same situation as me. Preparing their game, being ready to start to show it off, and have no idea what they're doing. To an extent, a big extent, I still don't! But there's a few things that I feel really worked for me and I hope these tips can work for you!

    ​

    Creating Your Game.

    I'm not going into depth about the do's and don'ts of your game, as that is all up to you. A few things I picked up while creating my game are these:

    • If you're stuck, do NOT be afraid to ask for help. This can include literally anything. Creating a story, development, marketing. I used Reddit a few times for help, and it always came through. Use discord as well. The Unreal Slackers discord was amazing for helping with any technical issues. You will be insanely surprised by how happy people are to spend the time to help you, give you their opinions, and more.
    • Dream big, but dream realistic. If you're a new developer like me and are starting to prepare your first ever game, be wary of the size of your scope. If you think your game is going to take 3-4 years to make, on your own, then I would suggest creating a smaller game, use that money to create a team, and go from there. Spending a large amount of time on one game can cause you to lose motivation, and lost sight of what you wanted your game to be when you started.
      • A fantastic Reddit post I found by u/V4nKw15h really broke down how to achieve this well. I suggest taking a look.
    • Release a demo if you can. Not everyone will agree with this, but releasing a demo practically doubled my wishlists, and allow your audience to get a good idea of what your game is, as well as getting feedback from your followers.
    • Don't get disheartened, and make sure you enjoy what you're doing. Be careful not to hit that block and not want to move on. Take a break if needed, too many times I was close to giving up because I either thought my game wasn't good enough or wasn't worth it. It is. Even if your game doesn't sell well, the feeling to see your game on Steam and see people play it is amazing.
    • Don't fear criticism. It's hard to see someone complain about your game or moan about something that's wrong. Try to fix it and use it to improve your game.

    ​

    Social Media

    When I started my game, I created my social media quite late on. Do the opposite. Create an Instagram account and a Twitter account. You don't have to post every day, but posting and using hashtags such as #indiedev, #gamedev, and #screenshotsaturday really helped start to build my accounts.

    • Follow people to start. Not everyone will agree with this also, but finding accounts similar to your own, and following their followers, or finding accounts similar and following them will start to build your audience. I found people happy to help with beta testing and more through this method. You can always unfollow in the future.
    • A good website I found was sproutsocial for little tips on how to improve my Twitter feed and build up hype.
    • Something I never did but wish I had created a weekly dev log. Over and over I see people create these, and your audience tends to be interested in seeing how their game is created. Multiple people recommend dev logs, but if you're not into recording yourself you can always learn how to write good dev logs.

    ​

    Marketing

    Marketing was my biggest issue with my game. Like a lot of solo developers, there's not much of a budget for this. I tried many different methods and here are some do's and do not's from my experience.

    Do's:

    • Use websites available to you and find tips. Great tips such as posting your game without being flagged, by u/chalcidfly, and finding good Twitter handles, by u/AimeeSmithVA, massively help when preparing to release. Reddit is an absolute gold mine for stuff like that.
    • Create a Steam page early on. Once you have enough for some good screenshots, create that Steam page. This video is packed with fantastic ideas and explains how to create a really enticing Steam page.
    • Follow similar developers on Twitter. I specify Twitter because of retweets. Retweets are such a powerful tool as one retweet expands who is seeing your tweet by so much. Retweeting each other's work helps both of you.
    • E-Mail Youtubers. I wasn't sure about this at first, thinking it was going to be a waste of time as no one would reply, but spending an extra 5 minutes on each E-Mail to research the Youtuber works. I followed this Reddit page by u/welsknight, and I highly suggest taking a read.

    Don'ts:

    • I would suggest staying away from Instagram promotions, these never really worked for me and seemed to be a waste of money. You may find it different!
    • Don't aim for any old YouTuber. Specify them for your game, you're more likely to get a response.
    • Spend time on your Steam page and not just 5 minutes. There are so many games on Steam now, you need yours to jump out at the player and scream this is the game you're looking for.

    ​

    I hope this was able to help at least a couple of you! If you have any more tips comment them and I'll add them on! Especially if you have more experience, I'd love to hear it!

    ​

    Edit: Removed saying links at the bottom as I posted them through. Also, thank you kind stranger for my first ever award!

    submitted by /u/jjobson98
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    It's pitching season! AMA on pitching publishers

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:27 AM PDT

    I don't want this to be about me, but I always feel like I have to share a little bit of my background for the sake of credibility: My game dev career began about 14 years ago with a Nintendo DS RPG (I was one of the writers on the team). I've been in and out of the industry since and have spent the last several years helping developers and publishers launch and promote indie games as well as helping game-related brands connect with gamers. My work has meant that I've been on both sides of the table--in the corner with devs pitching projects and talking with publisher clients about market fit for potential titles.

    Several potential pitch opportunities are coming up this spring and summer (like XP Summit), so I thought it might be helpful to talk about how to make the most of a meeting with a publisher.

    Here is some advice:

    • Have your elevator pitch down. What is your game? What makes it unique? Communicate these ideas succinctly and in a way that separates your game from everything else available.
    • Who is the target audience for your game, and why? What is the market potential? Have these points handy.
    • Know the budget you need for your game as well as what you have invested to date. Base this budget on real numbers because publishers will know when your numbers are totally made up.
    • Know the development schedule for your game. If you had the funding you needed, when would the game be complete?
    • Know your strengths and weaknesses as a dev team. Good publisher fit is a union of resources, so have a clear understanding of where your team could use outside help to get over the finish line.
    • Ask thoughtful questions. Even if a meeting looks like it won't end in a deal, use the time to understand what a specific publisher looks for you so that you can pitch them more effectively on your next game.
    • Do your homework. Research a publisher before taking a meeting so that you can have a more productive conversation and better position your game as a fit for their portfolio.

    Do you have questions about pitching your game to publishers? I don't know everything, but I am happy to share I know and point you in the right direction if I can.

    submitted by /u/Zenphobia
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    Hand Painted Button in Photoshop (1/2)

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 12:20 AM PDT

    Do games outside web browsers use WebSockets?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:54 AM PDT

    What does a game such as Overwatch (an FPS game that requires super quick two way communication) use? What about a game that could run in browser or download from a backend?

    submitted by /u/User68645
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    Open-source game server for fast-paced games

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 04:42 AM PDT

    I'm developing a free and open-source game server for fast-paced games. Feedback is always welcome. https://hicore.dev/

    submitted by /u/farzad_fm
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    Can I run unreal engine on these specs?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 11:42 AM PDT

    I want to try working on unreal engine, so I just wanted to confirm from anyone who uses it that are these enough to work on that software easily or not ?

    • OS: WIN 10 Pro x64
    • Processor: i7-8550U
    • RAM: 24 GB
    • SSD+HDD: 2.5 TB
    • Dual GPU: Intel UHD Graphics 620 and AMD Radeon 530
    submitted by /u/Marn786
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    How to get more YouTubers to play your game?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:43 AM PDT

    Good morning my friends, (Unless you're reading this later in the day of course)

    I, like many here (I would imagine?) am working on a game and pushing closer to releasing it (Well it's on itchio but the Steam release is the big one working towards). One thing I've found is that when I find a new YouTube video of the current build of the game, I get a lot of satisfaction from watching it. These videos tend to spread awareness of the game to more people, and also help me find issues that need to be improved upon.

    TLDR; Youtubers playing your game is generally a very good thing.

    That being said, I only have found a few videos of my game and want to encourage more to be made without spamming youtube comments begging these people to use their time to play my mostly unknown game.

    What advice would you give me to be able to get ahold of and properly ask YouTubers to try out my game - and are there any other methods to help them discover it organically?

    Probably seems obvious to some, but really do appreciate your thoughts.

    submitted by /u/Genetix_307
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    Game studio startup stories?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 08:00 AM PDT

    Where can I find some startup stories on game studios? I'm interested in reading how a few studios big or small got started to learn about funding, hiring, management, conception etc. I think a lot of people want to start their own business and the advancements in technology makes this a lot easier than the old days. The problem most people have is where to start so I figured reading, listening or watching videos on how successful people got started would be a good place to look. Any recommendations?

    submitted by /u/jupyter2
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    Can a game where you cannot rotate the perspective and only see in a specific point be called a 3D game? You can see from here an example: https://ibb.co/JQSRqYm

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:11 AM PDT

    Can a game where you cannot rotate the perspective and only see in a specific point be called a 3D game? You can see from here an example: https://ibb.co/JQSRqYm

    submitted by /u/boomark78
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    Dear Level Designers, is it common to use standard Animation for level design obstacle/objects patterns ? for example a moving platform or a saw-blade ? or is it always done with scripts ?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 09:38 AM PDT

    Hi,

    Programming is my background, and i've always made games as a Programmer, even though more often than not am doing game and level design, this made me approach games with a procedural/non-destructive method. DoTweenPro has been my best friend for years now, and i almost use it for everything that is not a character.

    I always treated Animation (in Unity) as merely a "media player" that can read skeleton animations made in an exterior software, i don't ever recall myself making an Animation to create a fade effect for example, or make an object move in a circle, for that i just use DoTween, create an infinite rotation animation, assign an object to be the child of that, move it along the local X to whatever radius i want.

    Now doing that is pretty fast and can be adjusted procedurally, but it only work for basic movements such a "come and go" animation like the Saw Blade in Zelda Link's Awakening but if i try to make more complicated patterns, i find myself stacking DoTween animations on top of each other and using different delay and easing which is not optimal nor fast.

     

    So my TL;DR question to Level Designers (and solo developers):

    How often do you "right click -> create a new animation" and start playing with its Transform property frames ?

    Because for me its always "right click -> Create new C# script"

    I just wonder if having a pile of Animations for level design object is something "normal"

     

    PS:

    Any ressources for this are appreciated, articles, devlogs, tutorials, etc...

     

    Thanks!

    submitted by /u/alaslipknot
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    Create a character creator like the sims 4?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 06:49 AM PDT

    HI, i was thinking how the sims 4 character creator work? i mean is not the common slider, is like sculpting, you can morph the face dragging your mouse, anyone know a guide/tutorial to create something similar? use blend shapes? how hard can be made something like this?

    ​

    ps: i asking for the character creator as standalone not implement this on a game or something

    submitted by /u/dennypool2
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    Should I look for a publisher?

    Posted: 23 Mar 2021 11:10 PM PDT

    I am developing a tabletop roleplaying app, a re-write of one I have published already and is mildly successful (some 20k daily active users).

    For the re-write, I am creating much more support for lots of features and adding a ton of content. It's A LOT of work.

    I''m also a dad with a full-time job, so I have very little time to work on it, so development is slow. Real slow.

    I considered crowdfunding, but I'm just terrible at engaging with users and marketing (think one of those cave-dwelling engineers). I have a patreon, but it's not happening (3$ per month, yey).

    So, I'm wondering: should I try to contact a publisher? I would love to get enough funds to halt my day job and finish my project already, but I'm concerned about all the strings a publisher may come with - and my total lack of experience in negotiating a good deal.

    What would your advice be? Anyone had experience with publishers and can recommend or advice against them?

    submitted by /u/Andreim43
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    Anyone release an early access game before?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 11:58 AM PDT

    We're approaching early access but wanted to make sure we're taking the right steps up until release.

    Was hoping you could share data/insights or lessons learned from your own experience. If you already documented or created a post-mortem, would love you to share that! Thanks much!

    submitted by /u/BRWArts
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    Any tips on how to improove these rocks?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 07:13 AM PDT

    which one of these rocks do you like best? the soft or sharp ones? i'm just blocking them out for now, trying to get a feel how to make the primary shapes correct, but something looks off. any rock experts here xD. any ideas how to make them better before i spend time detailing them? sorry for discord links, but i cant upload pics on this sub

    https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/594821786668105748/824282159862906900/unknown.png https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/594821786668105748/824282393509756978/unknown.png https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/594821786668105748/824282553174720563/unknown.png https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/594821786668105748/824282692962222090/unknown.png

    submitted by /u/zigastrmsek
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    If you don’t mind me asking, how old is everyone on this subreddit?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:53 AM PDT

    I'm 15 and still learning the basics of game development and I see some really awesome stuff on here that inspires me to want to learn more. Are the things I'm seeing in this subreddit made my other teens like myself or by adults who have had years of practice? How do you guys find time to code all this stuff along with your jobs, your kids, college, etc? This question is kinda pointless I guess but I really am curious. Thanks!

    submitted by /u/Yopped
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    Previewing your UI animations in real time without a single line of code? Check out this Unity UI tutorial!

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 04:39 AM PDT

    My passion is restrictive art forms and games, is it foolish to pursue this? Will this trendy die out?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:35 AM PDT

    I love restrictive art, specifically: pixel art, low-poly, cubic, voxel, LP stylized. I'm good at all of them and improving pretty consistently. I've really been trying to get into high poly modeling and texturing, I like it I guess, but the same passion just isn't there for realistic models/art. And, working on it for AAA companies as a career sounds soul sucking frankly.

    Would it be foolish to pursue just restrictive art and becoming very good? I mean the best selling game in history is pixel art/voxel (Minecraft), and I already work on their Marketplace making decent money. Also games like Valheim, Terraria, Deep Rock Galactic, Hytale, TABS, Roblox, ect. Is this trend bubble going to pop or is it here to stay? It really *seems* stable, but I don't have the experience or gamedev veteran insight to really know. Can I get some opinions here? Thanks!

    submitted by /u/MidnitePixelated
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    How did 2d first person dungeon crawlers work?

    Posted: 24 Mar 2021 10:30 AM PDT

    I'm talking about games like Wizardry or the SNES Shin Megami Tensei games. You moved in first person from grid square to grid square with a first person perspective made out of sprites. I know it has something to do with splitting the screen into thirds and having different sprites for doors, halls, walls, etc, but I don't know how they determined what to draw and what sprites they needed. Are there any resources online you know of that get into specifics because I couldn't find any.

    submitted by /u/KlutzyDesign
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