@@KanjiCoder_NinjaCoderI think the general sentiment is to design the mechanics of a multiplayer game directly for multiplayer, but it's probably possible have a good enough single player game design that can translate to multiplayer
@@KanjiCoder_NinjaCoder I dont know if there is a right or wrong way, so much is dependent on the stye of game intended in my head. Top down/ scrolling/ First Person shooter...so many ways to play. NPC's may have limited range of actions, directions... another player will do stuff you may not have imagined or intended...are you accounting for those actions in your code? Can they jump off each other and get to areas that you didnt think would be possible to reach as a single player? Much to ponder.
As a seasoned game designer, I don't recommend starting with detailed GDD before the prototyping stage because you have a high risk of doing useless work. But having a short concept from the beginning is good.
I think the best advice I can give (which I honestly regret not following enough myself) is MAKE MORE SMALLER GAMES. Don't start on your big magnum opus, make a game that takes you like... a week, or a month. Then do it again, and do it again. Get better and better and polish them up into short satisfying games. Then when you're ready... just do everything you just did but bigger and better
Aaahh yes. BUT, I think right now I am now back at the "which game engine" fork in the road due to the Unity debacle that CEO created. I had started in Unity, now as of last week, I am at a standstill once again. I've been exploring Roblox Studio to get used to Lua but that is C++. I've messed with C++ in Operation Flashpoint and ArmA back in those days. Its very tedious.
Great Advice . I am trying this with _GAME_ENGINE_ development . If you are building a __CAR__ and it isn't done yet, you can still sell the __WHEELS__ if those are done .
what is a game that can possibly take a week or a month? tetris?? xD I think every game is going to take a very long time... if it is made well, anyway.
I just watched a guy create an original game where a cute skeleton gardener watered and sold and pruned plants. He had a shop and a timed based system. Took him 5 days to be polished product but he had it working in 3. It’s because he’s been making games for 12 years. This is the purpose of this exercise. When you make small game after small game, it’s going to make your big game quicker.
When you said creating a 15 minute demo that's as polished as the real game, that really struck a cord with me. That's almost exactly how I've been approaching my project. I've been building the first "level" of the game, making critical changes, polishing things that need it, and now I have a foundation that I can confidently build upon moving forward. I at least know the level of quality I'm going for, good or bad ;-)
Just in case, I think you'll need to make a bunch of alpha-quality levels before you go about polishing them. That is, I don't think you should go one level at a time, perfecting each one, but instead you should be doing "outline" versions of your levels until you basically have an entire game in wireframe, so to speak.
This marks month 19 from having installed Unity and started my first major game. I constantly feel like I'm a child with a box of crayons trying to compete with highly talented/experienced artists. It's extremely discouraging, but I plan to forage ahead. Good luck everyone.
I find that discouraging, but even having finally surpassed that part, only for Gog to tell me my game isn't good enough. Gog, have you looked at your own library? wtf.
good luck to u as well! i really can relate, struggling with comparing to all the amazing gamedevs out there. sounds like you did the right thing tho, starting your own game. Just move on. You can do it!
I've seen a someone describe developing games as "combining everything that's hard about building a bridge with everything that's hard about composing an opera" and... yes
I think it's not only a gamedev problem, as a fullstack developer I had the same problem, I always tried to make the perfect product, I worked nights, generally I did it out of passion for programming. Over time, I started to slow down, I began to get irritated with the progress of work, and finally I stopped in one place, because I had no plan for further development of the application, a million things were messed up. Only then did I realize how important sleep, work time planning and work planning are. You gave great advice! Thanks and good luck!
Yeah, I think the overlap between planning and execution for web dev and for game dev is massive. Especially that everything takes 2x as long as you think....
When i'm in stasi, or i'm having a nervous breakdown. i came to places like these and watch videos like these to get re-motivated and re-inspired. Thank you for the recharge
I like your suggested process and it mirrors the way software is usually built. Make it work. Make it right. Make it fast. With the first two being the prototype to demo. That’s also how I started my game, made a prototype and polished demo. Got some feedback, made a second demo, now I’m on my third polished test and I’ve gotten half the content done in the polished state.
Can't stress enough how important it is to have a project manager on a game to keep everything organised. This should have been the discussion he had with himself on day one, You can start any game you want but when the money runs out so does the time. If I was him and I was betting the house on my project's success I'd raise more money and get some help to finish it. Better to release a two hour game now than a ten hour one in two year's time. There's no way a project manager would have let him start a second game before the first one was finished and released. Hopefully he'll get it all sorted out.
Agreed on the project manager part. I've seen teams of 10x devs piddle to nothing simply because there was no one directing their efforts. And no I don't mean a micro-manager. A good project manager simply keeps everyone moving in the same direction. Can it be another hat that a solo/small team wear as well? Sure, but that role needs to be primary or all the others fall apart.
I myself am a one man band. I have full creative control over all.my.inhiuse made assets. Yes it's taken me years to polish up my skills. However. It I need to do something change something or something or such. I can do it the way, I know the job gets done. Sure my skills have there limits. It's real hard sometimes. However, I am getting there. What's important is to write down ideas and put into practice.
@@Mirror-of-Darknesslook up kevin siembieda. Dude is like that and it has ruined his reputation and his work. Don't let it creep into a control issue.
0:01 - Core idea: Game development is easy 0:20 - Realization: No, it's not easy and makes people go through a long emotional roller coaster 0:29 - Hook: Learned that all the problems relate to one core idea = Games take forever to make 0:40 - Solution: Save you time and emotions with a simple order in developing games, but will still take 2x the estimated time 3:55 - Step 1 - Pick a time & budget 4:04 - Step 2 - Be willing to commit double the time 4:34 - Step 3 - Plan around the time & budget (character's personality, game's genre, target audience, color palette, mood, & etc.) 5:00 - Step 4 - Build Prototype (Build core of game, the heart & soul of the game) 5:25 - Step 5 - Polish the prototype into a Demo (Demo -> Marketing -> Feedback | The demo should be 15 minutes of game play that is just as polished as your final product is going to be) 6:06 - Step 6 - Now expand the game (Optionally, get funding for game)
This is something which I've had to deal with quite a bit working in the arts field in general. It's full of passion and that passion can often rear its beautiful head back at you and bite your head off before you get to finish anything. Time is a terrible mistress that you can't divorce, you can't shortcut the conversation, and you just have to work, and work, until it is done. KNOW that it will be hard, KNOW that it will be terrible at times. Never say you're wrong for attempting something. Instead, say that you are wrong for believing its too much for you.
That list of things to do reflected a more visual side. If you are a coder your game development time will grow exponentially with each "feature". Just a PLAY button can have several features tied to it that will impact development time (Game save, Scene loading & switching).
remember: if you just want to make money buy the code and plugins from the marketplace of your engine, no need to learn how to code, just learn how to follow tutorials to glue the entire thing together, it'll save you years... if you're doing this as a form of self-expression then you got nothing to lose
I'm in the process of creating my first game. This video gave me a lot of pointers. You listed out quite a few things that I didn't even think of like mechanics and color palette. Thank you for this advice!
This is so insightful and we appreciate you sharing this advice! We have only been developing our game for 4 months as a team, and have brought together a variety of different skills, including project management, architecture, social media expertise and then good development skills. However, we couldn't agree more that it does take longer than planned (and I would say even 2-3x) and more MONEY than planned (time is money), but we love what we are building. The 15 minute polished demo is one thing I will certainly be taking back to the team for discussion. Liked and subscribed!!
My first game was text based back in 2000ish took me a few days with a friend. Played it with my friend a few times. My second game was made in unity 2015ish took me 2 weeks. Was a platformer with bad graphics and like 15 levels and a final boss. Sent it out to some of my friends. That game was crazy hard. My third game. I thought it would take like 4 months to complete. 2 years later I can say not all ideas that seem good on paper are actually good. Mid journey I had to scrap most of the stuff I made and restart. Sometimes I got stuck for ages and still couldn't figure it out. Sometimes I had to take some breaks as well and counting in months just to get my balance back. Yet the thing is still in progress.
Regularity, it's great that you continue to release videos in addition to game development. You inspire me a lot, keep going and don't you dare stop. Good luck!
The part that hurts most is that people don’t care about game ideas. This means I gotta learn and create something I’ve never done. Thanks for the information
See I don't think that this is the main problem. I think the main problem is that people put way too much pressure on themself. When I made my first game I did it for my daughter and it was a simple endless runner (at least that was my plan). Talked to her from the first day and let her decide where to go. Three months later the game was ready with a complete storyline with 4 cutscenes, full voice acting, music, sound effects, an achievement system, 2 acts (2nd one had to be unlocked), a leaderboard, and more. I never felt any stress during the making. She loved it and even her friends from school liked it. BUT if you have never done anything like that before and force yourself to make a commercial product to earn money YES I'm pretty sure that would be overwhelming. TLDR: Don't try to run until you at least know how to walk! And by the way, you are way better at coding than I am. I learned a lot from watching your tutorials. ^^
That's awesome that you made a game for your daughter! I bet that was an awesome motivator. I agree, though. I was disappointed with the idea that a "must-do order to make games" list didn't include "make many smaller games before you attempt to make a large one".
This was very well put- hi, professional gamedev here and all of this is exceptionally accurate. Also, in the first 20 seconds you basically described Me and like a bunch of other devs I know so it must be a "game dev" thing. Good job putting it realistically- not that we want to scare people away from making a game but people need to know the reality of exactly what the work looks like.
Hadn't occurred to me to make a prototype that simple, it makes sense! My brain is pretty detail oriented and tends towards perfectionism, a simpler prototype seems like a great way to combat that and actually get things done.
The estimate problem isn't just game devs, it's all programmers, always. My mom was a COBOL programmer in the 60s, running a team. She would take the estimates from her team, double it, then give it to her boss who would double that !
Awesome advice! 🙌 For all you new game developers, I can say from experience - start with smaller projects, learn something new every step of the way, and don’t be afraid to fail. It’s all part of the process to creating something incredible! 🚀
I'm a software developer who's looking to make the jump from office job to indie game dev. I came across your channel and it's really inspiring. I am doing as much research as I can before I make the decision. Thanks for the great content
Another tip I learnt a while back, and my very successful friend lives by, is to keep your game in a finished state. So have a demo fully polished like he said, then as you expand, keep it in that polished state with each expansion. That way at any point if you feel you’ve had enough, you can back out and release the game as it is.
Started working on my game 3 years ago. Went into it not knowing how long it would take, and I still don't know. What I do know is that for most people it's probably highly unlikely that you'll be able to work on the game as much as you'd like. There will be extended periods of time where you are simply unable for life reasons, or because you're burned out and need a long break. Working on a game is fun, but it can also be incredibly frustrating and really make you question yourself. For me, that means I have 2 or 3 months of intense work followed by 4 to 6 months of break. Not ideal, I know. The point I want to make is that you can't possibly know how long it will take you. So this statement of doubling the estimate is true. And most likely it's going to be even more.
I heard my sister get this advice but it’s about photography but I think it could work here, don’t fall out of it, keep doing it, just not to the point of burnout.
I think the biggest thing to remember is you need something to help drive you forward. Whether it is showing it to family, whether it is watching friends play it, if it is just to see what you created move in an interactive way, having a means to keep you motivated throughout the development is something many overlook.
Thank you so much for being open with your emotional struggles right off the bat. Ive been going through the same as a beginner artist just to do my first art festival and showing my art in public for the first time. The stress from self doubt and overwhelm and feelings of inadequacy are real deal some of the hardest things I've ever faced. The negative thoughts and feelings can be overcome, and must be overcome, because we are fighting the good fight, to make our dreams our reality. We can do it!
One time I learned from a manager who came in and gave us training in managing our time at the studio where I work. And he taught us some important lessons, even though most of the things he taught us were useless in my opinion because he wanted to apply the same techniques he does with his team at pharmacies and factories and apply those for game development, which most of them wouldn't work on this industry. However, there are some things that are transferable and I think it might apply to many industries. Knowing what you will have to implement for your game, which mechanics, and which features you will have to put in your game is a first step to being able to manage your time properly, plan beforehand, take a day or two, to brainstorm about this. Trying to guess how many hours you will have to apply in each step and in each feature is quite hard, but you yourself, are at least aware of what you are capable of doing, having some thought of like "I will put a whole day for this 1 or 2 features, I will have like half a day for this mechanic" and so on and so forth. After you apply how many hours you will have to put there, you have to sum up all the hours you decided that you will have to invest per feature and mechanics in question, and from the result of the sum of those hours, you will have a better understanding of how many days it might take and from there try to optimize it. Also, you need to be consistent, since in a studio, you will have like a job for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, as an indie developer you need to be consistent and have a big sense of discipline since you're your own boss, you don't have anyone nagging at you if you procrastinate or if you come late to work and stuff. I say this because I also want to become an indie developer, but at least I bring some important concepts and I felt the need to share those, because it might be a problem of knowing how to manage the time and to be organized. Maybe I am wrong, and perhaps might be easy for me to say these kinds of things, but if this can help someone, then I would be glad.
2x as long is honestly optimistic. For video tutorials, I estimate 8x the video's runtime to finish the tutuorial. Of course, I usually don't finish tutorials, I grab a few pieces of knowledge and run with those, rather than slog through 2 hours of video to get to a game that I don't actually like very much. And for my own development, I'm more interested in getting videos for this channel out than in developing the exact game I want to make in a certain timeframe, which leaves me free to explore, and find games that I can make by taking stuff I already know how to do and either combining them or learning just a little bit more. The first indie game you make is going to suck, so get it out of the way and start cracking on your second one, which might even be kind of decent.
I notice all indie games look indie and feel indie. Hollow knight is used as the standard of the field, for instance. So I wonder if going the opposite direction can be rewarded as a solo indie dev looking to fund his project through kickstarter. Meaning, creating a game that captures the feel of AAA games without having the functionalities that come with having a 300-person team of devs and artists.
I'll be honest, this video fills the missing gaps when working on a game. Consistency and documentation were something I tried to do, yet it was quite challenging when working as a team while it being all volunteer work. Lack of motivation and time were some of the struggles I can remember.
I agree 100% with you! A super polished demo makes ALL the difference! I’m on the 7th year on my game right now. Which is crazy long. But let’s not talk about that 😁 This is a great video. Thank you ✊
Thank you so much for this video. I have taken about a 1 year break from learning and trying to make a video game after losing my project. I didn't go to school for any of this. They didn't teach computer coding when I was in school or at my poor school. I got so far in my little project in godot and it was destroyed. I really want to go back in and try again from scratch. Idk if I'll ever get anything that other would like or be seen as worth anything by other people, but it's something I want to do.
Thank you for the tips. When I got RPG maker, i thought I could make a game in a year as I decided to use only built-in assets for graphics. I was able to do that for half a year with the document that has the plot and key points, describing each world in general and some quests. I only needed to make a map of the levels. Then I got stock because of some repetitive actions and because I tried to justify how everything works. Also, I switch to different things, not only to game dev, so I don't get emotional pain, but as you may guess, the game is far from being complete. One of the tips I would share is that you need to want to play this game, not only make it. My latest "make a new game" attempt is different. Now, I need to get the correct sprites even before starting making a game. But at least, I have a motivation for that as I want to play this game. And also, if I finish it (and didn't matter how long it takes), I will be able to make other similar games. All of that makes game modding way easier!
10 years and I'm no closer to finishing that first game. I know so much now, I could direct every aspect of a team probably, but still so much to handle all on my own.
Finishing stuff is hard. I tried to make a game 10 years ago. We got so close... But then flash died , I got a corporate job... And then time flew by .
I find the worst issue is the lack of support from anyone, not that I expect others to give up their free time to contribute to my pet project, but it's nobody taking an interest in your hobby and asking questions about your goals. It doesn't help that I had to move to a remote rural region for work and don't know anyone my age or with my interests.
@@djdomainoooo I know that pain with rural regions. Rural small town America stinks 😅. People around these parts don't really care about tech unless it's an iPhone, the newest console with the new sports Ball game and CoD, or if it means you're making money from tech somehow. Otherwise, nobody cares and thinks you're odd UNLESS it means making big money from it
@@djdomainmy man. You posted a reply stating people don’t take any interest in your hobby. You also said you’re in a new area and don’t know anyone who shares your hobbies. The OP posted a reply directly to you as well as someone else. Both of them doing exactly what you said you wish people would do. Maybe you missed it? With the absolute GARBAGE that large studios are just releasing unfinished and selling for $70 we are about to see a gaming crash like we saw in the late 70s and early 80s. The video game crash of the past happened because too many people were putting out terrible games in an attempt to take in as much money as they could. Sound familiar? It’s going to crash again. I think it already has started. Nintendo saved the video game industry then. They did so by proving to consumers their games were reliable and fun. Someone will save it now. Not sure who, but hopefully we all recognize it when we see it.
Great video. I have some tactics that help people not take 5 years. My main advice is to split the project into prototypes. This separates the mechanics and allows you to not be married to the idea. You can focus on the prototype and feel accomplished for that. The prototype doesn't have to be THE game. Build a prototype for every new skill you need.
Very True! It probably not only takes twice as long but costs 4 x more than you expect! People give up before they start and perhaps that is because they did not have a basic foundation of what it involves. My goal is to change that...
Great job communicating exactly what’s needed bro. No guesswork, just reality checks and easy path to follow for those getting started. Thanks for the video bro, love your style
Been studying UX design recently which I think can be applied in game dev: you can never achieve perfection, and sprints are encouraged (e.g. game jams). Making a workable game that's good enough as a start is fine! You can add iterations and updates later on.
It might even take 3x the time, but what I learned from this video was prototyping is purely mechanics and no art, not polished. Then create a 15 minute demo with polish and handle that kind of polish through the whole game. Sounds very interesting because that's kind of what I did with video making and editing.
All of this feel very spot on, great video. Time management and assessment is probably the hardest thing for me to manage, so i'm glad you touched on that with more than just the normal stuff people say.
It's interesting to talk about such prepared time planning and overcompensating on time budget. What are you thoughts on Jeff Vogel, the guy who runs Spiderweb Software since the 1990s, who has said in his GDC talk ("Failing to fail the spiderweb software way") that he basically averages 12-18 months on a game and just wraps up when it feels done. After all he's kept that business style going for basically 30 years almost completely solo.
Awesome video, I just want to say that I've found that GDDs are really counterproductive for me. Just as you mentioned, game design is similar to writing a novel and writers to tend to fall either in the Architects or Gardeners camp. The GDD approach is similar to an Architect (Brandon Sanderson) writer outlining their novel, and the Design By Play approach is similar to the Gardener's approach to writing a novel by creating interesting characters and letting them roam around the world (George R.R. Martin). All this to say, there's more than one way to skin a cat xd Merry Christmas!
Here is how to calculate your time estimate (this is not a professional formula) but something I have experienced as a project manager: 1. The amount of time you think it will take to complete this project including the time everyone inform you about. eg. You think it will take one year, but everyone is suggesting twice as much so your time is 2 years. 2 year is the amount of time you are thinking. 2. Add 20 % more time to your time for uncertainty (sick, power issues, hardware issues) (and yes, this is on top of the one year you just added). So 2 year + 20% = 2 year and 73 days (2 year, 2 months, 13 days) 3. Add 30% more time for risk to the project/changes (user feedback changes, design changes, request that you thought you will never accept but now accepting) = 2 year + 73 + 109 = 2 years and 6 months. 4. 10% more burn out, bored, vacation, breaks = 2 year + 73 + 109 + 36 = 2 year, and 7 - 8 months. so, if you thought 1 year initially, it would take 2 year and 8 months. If this number feels like there is a chance that this might be true then you add 4 more months so now, 3 years
I personally plan on making a few small version that I can do devlogs for and publish for free and then do my giant project that I know will take me at least over three decades (using the everything times two method). But dont worry, I already know that this'll test everything from patience to the amount of work I can do consistently, but I've worked on the same thing for half a decade already and with that I can estimate what one decade of work will look like. My dream game is pokemon like with a more complex combat system that heavily story focused. I've had this idea for years but only now started working on the creature designs. I plan doing 20 creatures a month for the next decade or two for all the different installments and I already have a story for the first instalment in mind. The first one will have 5-6 regions and each region will have at least 5 (I think) areas, but there's around 40 areas in total so my math isn't exactly mathing in this area. But either way, I'm excited to start writing down my story and to continue the prototype, for which I'm currently using free assets (and not even correct ones, like my tall grass is literally just chickens, but I plan on cutting out that feature in the future regardless).
I made a Goku/Pikachu game. It was FUN making a video for it and enjoying creating the game! Its like a endless runner. Im still learning, but its a fin expérience so far
Time management is absolutely where I have gone wrong with y first game. I’ve been working on it for 5 years now (crazy to say) but I truly have spent maybe a week of actual progress per year so that makes sense hahaha. Most of my time spent has been learning stuff on the internet and figuring out what I don’t know. Basically it’s a massive learning experience and I am ready to finish this shit first game to move onto actual projects haha
Beginning of this video isn't about gamedev, but mental health. Working on a solo project can be difficult even for healtiest people with loving families and support. I'd suggest addressing real issues here and gamedev being hard isn't one of them.
Love the gif with Richardson from Deadwood! Great video, will take the "Polished the demo" to heart and focus on that. Recently shared a prototype and got very little to no respons on the core loop. But probably a lack of tutorial or interest.
I think the time * 2 is a bit low and optimistic. I have worked as a software dev for many years now and we always tend to say, "take your time expectations and multiply with Pi". And in those cases we are experienced people that have clear understanding of what we need to do from a to z (more or less). So if you are getting in to game dev for the first time with out experience in all the different areas that a game needs to cover multiplying your expected time with 2 sounds way to low.
I’m gonna make a big game someday but I’m currently just spending 2 weeks on a new game at a time until I’ve made a prototype of every game type that I love. I’ll dig deeper after I get the hang of it.
Very good video. Very true. I am now in 85% of the game completion and these last steps feel like forever. Also, creative block is every creator's arch nemesis.
Great video! Thanks for the helpful tips! :) I'd like to share my thoughts as well: If you're a solo game developer, I suggest avoiding starting a massive, long-term "dream" project that spans several years. Instead, consider tweaking your game idea to make it more manageable and simpler to create. For instance, you can explore the low poly style, where UV mapping, texturing, and complex visuals are minimized, and solid colors are used. Now, you might say, "But I don't really like that style!" Here's the reality: Your personal preferences don't matter as much as practicality! When embarking on a building project, you have to consider your available tools. If all you have is a hammer and basic tools, you simply can't construct a grand palace. You need to start with a humble hut. Once you have the hut, you have a place to call home and a foundation to support larger projects. Time is a crucial factor to consider. By opting for a low poly style, you can save a significant amount of time by avoiding intricate UV mapping and texturing. This advantage is invaluable. Similarly, if you incorporate procedural level generation into your game, you eliminate the time-consuming process of manual level design. These time-saving measures are game-changers. As a solo game developer, it's important to find ways to streamline your project's development time. It's better to create ten amazing, small-scale games than to pour all your resources into a single, ambitious five-year dream project. By saving time and simplifying your approach, you'll have the opportunity to bring more games to life and unleash your creativity on a variety of projects. Keep up the great work!
1:10 I don't really plan out making games or estimate the time it will take me, but if you've got a way to render graphics already done then it should only take a few days assuming you don't want sound, so it mainly depends on the length of time it takes to the get the rendering down. Though it also can vary based on the programming language, both machine code and BrainF take quite some time, your base is still just a few days so you're probably fine regardless. It may also change somewhat depending on game complexity and Tic Tac Toe can be done in just one day, Minesweeper took two to three if I recall correctly largely due to Excel's heavy performance limitations and small stack size requiring some extra optimization on the zero flood fill. I planned to include another example but it's seeming like I may be short on time.
i started to become an indie dev with only the experience of beeing a very creative human that likes problemsolving and creating fun ideas. thus i felt like a fraud alot of the times aswell but i know to well to fake it till you make it especially to yourself without becoming delusional of your acutal state. i just did the work because i wanted to and i loved to and now i have gained alot of experienc through failing alot. in the end just do it. legit.... it does get things done even if not how you invisioned it but you become better at the whole process little by little.
"It takes two times as long as you think you are going to" . This is literally what every engeineer learns first years of career. Honest project managers often assign to projects a x2 or x3 multiplication of what the engineer says. I usually say "it should take X time but to be safe let's say it'll take 3X days", because I know well I'm BSing myself.
Great content as usual and very usefull advice. I feel the same, when every day life problems are more than usually my productivity goes down, I think it is normal, we are not machines. the important thing is to remember to get some rest and free time, because it also helps the creative part.
I think that the main takeway from all of this is : don't take on that journey alone. Do it with people. Not only fans, but really, develop the game with multiple people. Else it's so hard, daunting to even get all of the skills require to even make a game that runs ; and then supposing that you manage to acquire the skills, you're still alone ; you have no objectivity on your own work, become too sensible to the opinion of others when you ask for feedback ; you can easily run around in circles regarding features and concept. It's honestly too hard, wether you're getting out from school or from a AAA job (even worse in this last case sometimes, since you're going from being a cog in a gigantic machine to the machine that has to do every single thing).
Thanks for making this video. I've been making video games for over 4 decades - whatever you WANT to make (your big idea) - start with some really simple little games (GameJams) and after a few dozen of those then you might have the sense and skills to actually work on your magnum opus... your reason to want to make Indie Games in the first place. Just don't start with that end goal - start MUCH simpler. PAC-MAN, Flappy Bird, etc. games you can finish in a weekend or a week or 2. Don't do this phase while you are also trying to fund yourself with IndieDev. Unless you are independently rich and don't need money - plan to finish at least 2 or 3 Indie Games a year to sustain yourself.
There is a lot here that is applicable to writing & publishing (fiction, music, etc). Brace for the unexpected, don't get locked into analysis paralysis, and most important, _be persistent_ about your work. It's mostly one-sided, and the reward is doing what you love; the rest is a crap shoot. Best.
I’m a failed indie. Spin wheels for about 3 years. And I am transitioning careers to be a game UI designer which means less time to work on my game. My new goal is to write my game script just like if I were to write a novel. From the script I will wireframe design my levels while research on how to texture and color in my levels. After I have my levels all designed, I would research creatures, NPCs, and bosses. Then find a way to design them. The very last thing for me would be to learn Unity and put things together. Basically I will divide and conquer in stages and concentrate on one phase at a time much like the highway construction crew near where I live. They’re building a huge bypass and they’re doing it in stages. Each stages will have their own phases. I think make a tracker and a journal for the stages, phases and challenges will help and do the things that you can do easily first and do the next harder thing and finally save the hardest for last.
Try to keep the code simple. Do not Repeat Yourself(DRY) Separate your game code into different files and name your functions with names that tell what they are doing! Write comments everywhere. Use final Float values for things such as gravity, distance, duration of animations and so on. If you need to tweak those variables you just have to do it in one place instead of everywhere.
Hey everyone! If you enjoyed this, check out our follow-up video here:
ua-cam.com/video/NFRq_5IxdnU/v-deo.html
I wish to build something like a publisher for games, how would you evaluate a game project?
Added tip: if you choose multiplayer, everything takes 3 times as long.
What do you think of the strategy of "make a single player game" with the same mechanics first.
Then release the multi-player version later ?
@@KanjiCoder_NinjaCoderI think the general sentiment is to design the mechanics of a multiplayer game directly for multiplayer, but it's probably possible have a good enough single player game design that can translate to multiplayer
@@KanjiCoder_NinjaCoder I dont know if there is a right or wrong way, so much is dependent on the stye of game intended in my head. Top down/ scrolling/ First Person shooter...so many ways to play. NPC's may have limited range of actions, directions... another player will do stuff you may not have imagined or intended...are you accounting for those actions in your code? Can they jump off each other and get to areas that you didnt think would be possible to reach as a single player? Much to ponder.
😂 😅
@@KanjiCoder_NinjaCoderNo Man's Sky tried this and it backfired lmao
As a seasoned game designer, I don't recommend starting with detailed GDD before the prototyping stage because you have a high risk of doing useless work.
But having a short concept from the beginning is good.
Yeah I totally agree. I see so many new game developers spend weeks on the document and no meaningful time executing anything in it.
what is GDD?
@@miruz3519 game design document
@@miruz3519game design document.
@@miruz3519 Game Design Document
1:00 so it will take me 200 years to make.
I think the best advice I can give (which I honestly regret not following enough myself) is MAKE MORE SMALLER GAMES. Don't start on your big magnum opus, make a game that takes you like... a week, or a month. Then do it again, and do it again. Get better and better and polish them up into short satisfying games. Then when you're ready... just do everything you just did but bigger and better
Aaahh yes. BUT, I think right now I am now back at the "which game engine" fork in the road due to the Unity debacle that CEO created. I had started in Unity, now as of last week, I am at a standstill once again. I've been exploring Roblox Studio to get used to Lua but that is C++. I've messed with C++ in Operation Flashpoint and ArmA back in those days. Its very tedious.
Great Advice . I am trying this with _GAME_ENGINE_ development .
If you are building a __CAR__ and it isn't done yet, you can still sell the __WHEELS__ if those are done .
what is a game that can possibly take a week or a month? tetris?? xD I think every game is going to take a very long time... if it is made well, anyway.
Some games take longer than others to make. Tetris does not take long to make even if you make it incredibly polished@@artistabigailmarie
I just watched a guy create an original game where a cute skeleton gardener watered and sold and pruned plants. He had a shop and a timed based system. Took him 5 days to be polished product but he had it working in 3. It’s because he’s been making games for 12 years. This is the purpose of this exercise. When you make small game after small game, it’s going to make your big game quicker.
When you said creating a 15 minute demo that's as polished as the real game, that really struck a cord with me. That's almost exactly how I've been approaching my project. I've been building the first "level" of the game, making critical changes, polishing things that need it, and now I have a foundation that I can confidently build upon moving forward. I at least know the level of quality I'm going for, good or bad ;-)
Just in case, I think you'll need to make a bunch of alpha-quality levels before you go about polishing them. That is, I don't think you should go one level at a time, perfecting each one, but instead you should be doing "outline" versions of your levels until you basically have an entire game in wireframe, so to speak.
Then you know the kind of quality you can achieve
The industry term is a "vertical slice"
This marks month 19 from having installed Unity and started my first major game. I constantly feel like I'm a child with a box of crayons trying to compete with highly talented/experienced artists. It's extremely discouraging, but I plan to forage ahead. Good luck everyone.
I find that discouraging, but even having finally surpassed that part, only for Gog to tell me my game isn't good enough.
Gog, have you looked at your own library? wtf.
good luck to u as well! i really can relate, struggling with comparing to all the amazing gamedevs out there. sounds like you did the right thing tho, starting your own game. Just move on. You can do it!
Forge ahead.*
I'm already 4 years into this game. Wish me luck 😅
So about that...
I've seen a someone describe developing games as "combining everything that's hard about building a bridge with everything that's hard about composing an opera" and... yes
Oh my 😭
Off topic but i hate your profile pic with a burning passion
I think it's not only a gamedev problem, as a fullstack developer I had the same problem, I always tried to make the perfect product, I worked nights, generally I did it out of passion for programming. Over time, I started to slow down, I began to get irritated with the progress of work, and finally I stopped in one place, because I had no plan for further development of the application, a million things were messed up. Only then did I realize how important sleep, work time planning and work planning are. You gave great advice! Thanks and good luck!
Yeah, I think the overlap between planning and execution for web dev and for game dev is massive. Especially that everything takes 2x as long as you think....
When i'm in stasi, or i'm having a nervous breakdown. i came to places like these and watch videos like these to get re-motivated and re-inspired. Thank you for the recharge
I like your suggested process and it mirrors the way software is usually built.
Make it work. Make it right. Make it fast. With the first two being the prototype to demo.
That’s also how I started my game, made a prototype and polished demo. Got some feedback, made a second demo, now I’m on my third polished test and I’ve gotten half the content done in the polished state.
Can't stress enough how important it is to have a project manager on a game to keep everything organised. This should have been the discussion he had with himself on day one, You can start any game you want but when the money runs out so does the time. If I was him and I was betting the house on my project's success I'd raise more money and get some help to finish it. Better to release a two hour game now than a ten hour one in two year's time. There's no way a project manager would have let him start a second game before the first one was finished and released. Hopefully he'll get it all sorted out.
I told him under the video where he said he'd make a second game that he is violating his own advice by doing so. I got no response.
Agreed on the project manager part. I've seen teams of 10x devs piddle to nothing simply because there was no one directing their efforts. And no I don't mean a micro-manager. A good project manager simply keeps everyone moving in the same direction. Can it be another hat that a solo/small team wear as well? Sure, but that role needs to be primary or all the others fall apart.
Who are you talking about?
I myself am a one man band.
I have full creative control over all.my.inhiuse made assets. Yes it's taken me years to polish up my skills.
However. It I need to do something change something or something or such. I can do it the way, I know the job gets done. Sure my skills have there limits.
It's real hard sometimes. However, I am getting there. What's important is to write down ideas and put into practice.
@@Mirror-of-Darknesslook up kevin siembieda. Dude is like that and it has ruined his reputation and his work. Don't let it creep into a control issue.
0:01 - Core idea: Game development is easy
0:20 - Realization: No, it's not easy and makes people go through a long emotional roller coaster
0:29 - Hook: Learned that all the problems relate to one core idea = Games take forever to make
0:40 - Solution: Save you time and emotions with a simple order in developing games, but will still take 2x the estimated time
3:55 - Step 1 - Pick a time & budget
4:04 - Step 2 - Be willing to commit double the time
4:34 - Step 3 - Plan around the time & budget (character's personality, game's genre, target audience, color palette, mood, & etc.)
5:00 - Step 4 - Build Prototype (Build core of game, the heart & soul of the game)
5:25 - Step 5 - Polish the prototype into a Demo (Demo -> Marketing -> Feedback | The demo should be 15 minutes of game play that is just as polished as your final product is going to be)
6:06 - Step 6 - Now expand the game (Optionally, get funding for game)
This is something which I've had to deal with quite a bit working in the arts field in general.
It's full of passion and that passion can often rear its beautiful head back at you and bite your head off before you get to finish anything.
Time is a terrible mistress that you can't divorce, you can't shortcut the conversation, and you just have to work, and work, until it is done.
KNOW that it will be hard, KNOW that it will be terrible at times. Never say you're wrong for attempting something. Instead, say that you are wrong for believing its too much for you.
That list of things to do reflected a more visual side. If you are a coder your game development time will grow exponentially with each "feature".
Just a PLAY button can have several features tied to it that will impact development time (Game save, Scene loading & switching).
remember: if you just want to make money buy the code and plugins from the marketplace of your engine, no need to learn how to code, just learn how to follow tutorials to glue the entire thing together, it'll save you years... if you're doing this as a form of self-expression then you got nothing to lose
_Hofstadter's Law: It always takes longer than you expect, even when you take into account Hofstadter's Law._
I agree with 100% of what you said ! I once thought adding a feature to my game inventory would take 2 hour of game dev time , it took me 2 month !
I'm in the process of creating my first game. This video gave me a lot of pointers. You listed out quite a few things that I didn't even think of like mechanics and color palette. Thank you for this advice!
You didn't think of mechanics??? That's what a game is
@@Jay-og4yb nope. Never made a game before. Only played em.
This is so insightful and we appreciate you sharing this advice! We have only been developing our game for 4 months as a team, and have brought together a variety of different skills, including project management, architecture, social media expertise and then good development skills. However, we couldn't agree more that it does take longer than planned (and I would say even 2-3x) and more MONEY than planned (time is money), but we love what we are building. The 15 minute polished demo is one thing I will certainly be taking back to the team for discussion. Liked and subscribed!!
My first game was text based back in 2000ish took me a few days with a friend. Played it with my friend a few times.
My second game was made in unity 2015ish took me 2 weeks. Was a platformer with bad graphics and like 15 levels and a final boss. Sent it out to some of my friends. That game was crazy hard.
My third game. I thought it would take like 4 months to complete. 2 years later I can say not all ideas that seem good on paper are actually good. Mid journey I had to scrap most of the stuff I made and restart. Sometimes I got stuck for ages and still couldn't figure it out. Sometimes I had to take some breaks as well and counting in months just to get my balance back. Yet the thing is still in progress.
Regularity, it's great that you continue to release videos in addition to game development. You inspire me a lot, keep going and don't you dare stop. Good luck!
Been studying game dev stuff for years now. All of what you said was true and good solid advice.
The part that hurts most is that people don’t care about game ideas. This means I gotta learn and create something I’ve never done. Thanks for the information
See I don't think that this is the main problem. I think the main problem is that people put way too much pressure on themself. When I made my first game I did it for my daughter and it was a simple endless runner (at least that was my plan). Talked to her from the first day and let her decide where to go. Three months later the game was ready with a complete storyline with 4 cutscenes, full voice acting, music, sound effects, an achievement system, 2 acts (2nd one had to be unlocked), a leaderboard, and more. I never felt any stress during the making. She loved it and even her friends from school liked it. BUT if you have never done anything like that before and force yourself to make a commercial product to earn money YES I'm pretty sure that would be overwhelming.
TLDR: Don't try to run until you at least know how to walk!
And by the way, you are way better at coding than I am. I learned a lot from watching your tutorials. ^^
That's awesome that you made a game for your daughter! I bet that was an awesome motivator.
I agree, though. I was disappointed with the idea that a "must-do order to make games" list didn't include "make many smaller games before you attempt to make a large one".
This was very well put- hi, professional gamedev here and all of this is exceptionally accurate. Also, in the first 20 seconds you basically described Me and like a bunch of other devs I know so it must be a "game dev" thing. Good job putting it realistically- not that we want to scare people away from making a game but people need to know the reality of exactly what the work looks like.
Hadn't occurred to me to make a prototype that simple, it makes sense! My brain is pretty detail oriented and tends towards perfectionism, a simpler prototype seems like a great way to combat that and actually get things done.
I wish I had this Video when I startet my game developement journey. I'll definitly show this to all beginner developers I know, thank you!
The estimate problem isn't just game devs, it's all programmers, always. My mom was a COBOL programmer in the 60s, running a team. She would take the estimates from her team, double it, then give it to her boss who would double that !
Awesome advice! 🙌 For all you new game developers, I can say from experience - start with smaller projects, learn something new every step of the way, and don’t be afraid to fail. It’s all part of the process to creating something incredible! 🚀
I'm a software developer who's looking to make the jump from office job to indie game dev. I came across your channel and it's really inspiring. I am doing as much research as I can before I make the decision. Thanks for the great content
Another tip I learnt a while back, and my very successful friend lives by, is to keep your game in a finished state.
So have a demo fully polished like he said, then as you expand, keep it in that polished state with each expansion. That way at any point if you feel you’ve had enough, you can back out and release the game as it is.
Started working on my game 3 years ago. Went into it not knowing how long it would take, and I still don't know. What I do know is that for most people it's probably highly unlikely that you'll be able to work on the game as much as you'd like. There will be extended periods of time where you are simply unable for life reasons, or because you're burned out and need a long break. Working on a game is fun, but it can also be incredibly frustrating and really make you question yourself. For me, that means I have 2 or 3 months of intense work followed by 4 to 6 months of break. Not ideal, I know. The point I want to make is that you can't possibly know how long it will take you. So this statement of doubling the estimate is true. And most likely it's going to be even more.
This was motivating, especially when you mention how humbling it was for you. Making a game is such a daunting task.
I heard my sister get this advice but it’s about photography but I think it could work here, don’t fall out of it, keep doing it, just not to the point of burnout.
I think the biggest thing to remember is you need something to help drive you forward. Whether it is showing it to family, whether it is watching friends play it, if it is just to see what you created move in an interactive way, having a means to keep you motivated throughout the development is something many overlook.
Thank you so much for being open with your emotional struggles right off the bat. Ive been going through the same as a beginner artist just to do my first art festival and showing my art in public for the first time. The stress from self doubt and overwhelm and feelings of inadequacy are real deal some of the hardest things I've ever faced. The negative thoughts and feelings can be overcome, and must be overcome, because we are fighting the good fight, to make our dreams our reality. We can do it!
One time I learned from a manager who came in and gave us training in managing our time at the studio where I work. And he taught us some important lessons, even though most of the things he taught us were useless in my opinion because he wanted to apply the same techniques he does with his team at pharmacies and factories and apply those for game development, which most of them wouldn't work on this industry.
However, there are some things that are transferable and I think it might apply to many industries. Knowing what you will have to implement for your game, which mechanics, and which features you will have to put in your game is a first step to being able to manage your time properly, plan beforehand, take a day or two, to brainstorm about this.
Trying to guess how many hours you will have to apply in each step and in each feature is quite hard, but you yourself, are at least aware of what you are capable of doing, having some thought of like "I will put a whole day for this 1 or 2 features, I will have like half a day for this mechanic" and so on and so forth.
After you apply how many hours you will have to put there, you have to sum up all the hours you decided that you will have to invest per feature and mechanics in question, and from the result of the sum of those hours, you will have a better understanding of how many days it might take and from there try to optimize it.
Also, you need to be consistent, since in a studio, you will have like a job for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, as an indie developer you need to be consistent and have a big sense of discipline since you're your own boss, you don't have anyone nagging at you if you procrastinate or if you come late to work and stuff. I say this because I also want to become an indie developer, but at least I bring some important concepts and I felt the need to share those, because it might be a problem of knowing how to manage the time and to be organized. Maybe I am wrong, and perhaps might be easy for me to say these kinds of things, but if this can help someone, then I would be glad.
2x as long is honestly optimistic. For video tutorials, I estimate 8x the video's runtime to finish the tutuorial. Of course, I usually don't finish tutorials, I grab a few pieces of knowledge and run with those, rather than slog through 2 hours of video to get to a game that I don't actually like very much. And for my own development, I'm more interested in getting videos for this channel out than in developing the exact game I want to make in a certain timeframe, which leaves me free to explore, and find games that I can make by taking stuff I already know how to do and either combining them or learning just a little bit more.
The first indie game you make is going to suck, so get it out of the way and start cracking on your second one, which might even be kind of decent.
I notice all indie games look indie and feel indie. Hollow knight is used as the standard of the field, for instance.
So I wonder if going the opposite direction can be rewarded as a solo indie dev looking to fund his project through kickstarter.
Meaning, creating a game that captures the feel of AAA games without having the functionalities that come with having a 300-person team of devs and artists.
I'll be honest, this video fills the missing gaps when working on a game. Consistency and documentation were something I tried to do, yet it was quite challenging when working as a team while it being all volunteer work. Lack of motivation and time were some of the struggles I can remember.
I would say twice the time is a very generous approach for experienced game devs, i always count x4 the estimated time 😅
Decided to watch this despite already being in the gamedev hobby. Was bot expecting to hear so many things I agree with.
I agree 100% with you! A super polished demo makes ALL the difference!
I’m on the 7th year on my game right now. Which is crazy long. But let’s not talk about that 😁
This is a great video. Thank you ✊
Thank you so much for this video. I have taken about a 1 year break from learning and trying to make a video game after losing my project. I didn't go to school for any of this. They didn't teach computer coding when I was in school or at my poor school. I got so far in my little project in godot and it was destroyed. I really want to go back in and try again from scratch. Idk if I'll ever get anything that other would like or be seen as worth anything by other people, but it's something I want to do.
The CTO told me it's usually x3 what we think so ... there is hope, yet! :D
This is the best video ever for any indie gamedev its just perfect for getting a framework in our minds and start doing work on our game
Thank you for the tips. When I got RPG maker, i thought I could make a game in a year as I decided to use only built-in assets for graphics. I was able to do that for half a year with the document that has the plot and key points, describing each world in general and some quests. I only needed to make a map of the levels. Then I got stock because of some repetitive actions and because I tried to justify how everything works.
Also, I switch to different things, not only to game dev, so I don't get emotional pain, but as you may guess, the game is far from being complete. One of the tips I would share is that you need to want to play this game, not only make it.
My latest "make a new game" attempt is different. Now, I need to get the correct sprites even before starting making a game. But at least, I have a motivation for that as I want to play this game. And also, if I finish it (and didn't matter how long it takes), I will be able to make other similar games.
All of that makes game modding way easier!
10 years and I'm no closer to finishing that first game. I know so much now, I could direct every aspect of a team probably, but still so much to handle all on my own.
Finishing stuff is hard. I tried to make a game 10 years ago. We got so close...
But then flash died , I got a corporate job... And then time flew by .
I find the worst issue is the lack of support from anyone, not that I expect others to give up their free time to contribute to my pet project, but it's nobody taking an interest in your hobby and asking questions about your goals. It doesn't help that I had to move to a remote rural region for work and don't know anyone my age or with my interests.
@@djdomain I understand that feeling pretty well my dude. I'd be happy to hear your ideas. We can swap sometime.
@@djdomainoooo I know that pain with rural regions. Rural small town America stinks 😅. People around these parts don't really care about tech unless it's an iPhone, the newest console with the new sports Ball game and CoD, or if it means you're making money from tech somehow. Otherwise, nobody cares and thinks you're odd UNLESS it means making big money from it
@@djdomainmy man. You posted a reply stating people don’t take any interest in your hobby. You also said you’re in a new area and don’t know anyone who shares your hobbies.
The OP posted a reply directly to you as well as someone else. Both of them doing exactly what you said you wish people would do.
Maybe you missed it?
With the absolute GARBAGE that large studios are just releasing unfinished and selling for $70 we are about to see a gaming crash like we saw in the late 70s and early 80s.
The video game crash of the past happened because too many people were putting out terrible games in an attempt to take in as much money as they could. Sound familiar?
It’s going to crash again. I think it already has started. Nintendo saved the video game industry then. They did so by proving to consumers their games were reliable and fun.
Someone will save it now. Not sure who, but hopefully we all recognize it when we see it.
Great video. I have some tactics that help people not take 5 years. My main advice is to split the project into prototypes. This separates the mechanics and allows you to not be married to the idea. You can focus on the prototype and feel accomplished for that. The prototype doesn't have to be THE game. Build a prototype for every new skill you need.
This is great advice!
Yessss @ the part about the time budget factoring in on how long you are realistically able to work on one project.
Very True! It probably not only takes twice as long but costs 4 x more than you expect! People give up before they start and perhaps that is because they did not have a basic foundation of what it involves. My goal is to change that...
Great job communicating exactly what’s needed bro. No guesswork, just reality checks and easy path to follow for those getting started. Thanks for the video bro, love your style
Been studying UX design recently which I think can be applied in game dev: you can never achieve perfection, and sprints are encouraged (e.g. game jams). Making a workable game that's good enough as a start is fine! You can add iterations and updates later on.
I've never related to a video this much in my life haha. Well said & summarized! :)
"The order matters", man, such a simple but true statement. Thank you for all your useful advice, I hope to be as good as you one day. Cheers bro! 😁
You are right! I've been making the game for 6 years. And I hope this is 70%
It might even take 3x the time, but what I learned from this video was prototyping is purely mechanics and no art, not polished.
Then create a 15 minute demo with polish and handle that kind of polish through the whole game.
Sounds very interesting because that's kind of what I did with video making and editing.
All of this feel very spot on, great video. Time management and assessment is probably the hardest thing for me to manage, so i'm glad you touched on that with more than just the normal stuff people say.
It's interesting to talk about such prepared time planning and overcompensating on time budget. What are you thoughts on Jeff Vogel, the guy who runs Spiderweb Software since the 1990s, who has said in his GDC talk ("Failing to fail the spiderweb software way") that he basically averages 12-18 months on a game and just wraps up when it feels done. After all he's kept that business style going for basically 30 years almost completely solo.
Awesome video, I just want to say that I've found that GDDs are really counterproductive for me.
Just as you mentioned, game design is similar to writing a novel and writers to tend to fall either in the Architects or Gardeners camp. The GDD approach is similar to an Architect (Brandon Sanderson) writer outlining their novel, and the Design By Play approach is similar to the Gardener's approach to writing a novel by creating interesting characters and letting them roam around the world (George R.R. Martin).
All this to say, there's more than one way to skin a cat xd
Merry Christmas!
wow this really hits the guts for most game developer, only starting right now
Great advice, thank you ! Just finished today my first small game.
Thanks for the advice. So plan. Polish a Protype mechanics, polished demo. Get a fan base, Then add width and depth before release.
I'm not necessarily saying I don't agree, but at the same time it's hard to take advice from a studio that has yet to release a game..
I was searching for this comment, like how do i know hes actually right
Here is how to calculate your time estimate (this is not a professional formula) but something I have experienced as a project manager:
1. The amount of time you think it will take to complete this project including the time everyone inform you about. eg. You think it will take one year, but everyone is suggesting twice as much so your time is 2 years. 2 year is the amount of time you are thinking.
2. Add 20 % more time to your time for uncertainty (sick, power issues, hardware issues) (and yes, this is on top of the one year you just added). So 2 year + 20% = 2 year and 73 days (2 year, 2 months, 13 days)
3. Add 30% more time for risk to the project/changes (user feedback changes, design changes, request that you thought you will never accept but now accepting) = 2 year + 73 + 109 = 2 years and 6 months.
4. 10% more burn out, bored, vacation, breaks = 2 year + 73 + 109 + 36 = 2 year, and 7 - 8 months.
so, if you thought 1 year initially, it would take 2 year and 8 months. If this number feels like there is a chance that this might be true then you add 4 more months so now, 3 years
I personally plan on making a few small version that I can do devlogs for and publish for free and then do my giant project that I know will take me at least over three decades (using the everything times two method). But dont worry, I already know that this'll test everything from patience to the amount of work I can do consistently, but I've worked on the same thing for half a decade already and with that I can estimate what one decade of work will look like. My dream game is pokemon like with a more complex combat system that heavily story focused. I've had this idea for years but only now started working on the creature designs. I plan doing 20 creatures a month for the next decade or two for all the different installments and I already have a story for the first instalment in mind. The first one will have 5-6 regions and each region will have at least 5 (I think) areas, but there's around 40 areas in total so my math isn't exactly mathing in this area. But either way, I'm excited to start writing down my story and to continue the prototype, for which I'm currently using free assets (and not even correct ones, like my tall grass is literally just chickens, but I plan on cutting out that feature in the future regardless).
I made a Goku/Pikachu game. It was FUN making a video for it and enjoying creating the game! Its like a endless runner. Im still learning, but its a fin expérience so far
Time management is absolutely where I have gone wrong with y first game. I’ve been working on it for 5 years now (crazy to say) but I truly have spent maybe a week of actual progress per year so that makes sense hahaha. Most of my time spent has been learning stuff on the internet and figuring out what I don’t know.
Basically it’s a massive learning experience and I am ready to finish this shit first game to move onto actual projects haha
Beginning of this video isn't about gamedev, but mental health. Working on a solo project can be difficult even for healtiest people with loving families and support. I'd suggest addressing real issues here and gamedev being hard isn't one of them.
the demo advice is REALLY good.
Love the gif with Richardson from Deadwood! Great video, will take the "Polished the demo" to heart and focus on that. Recently shared a prototype and got very little to no respons on the core loop. But probably a lack of tutorial or interest.
In software development we typically multiply our estimations by Pi
I think the time * 2 is a bit low and optimistic.
I have worked as a software dev for many years now and we always tend to say, "take your time expectations and multiply with Pi". And in those cases we are experienced people that have clear understanding of what we need to do from a to z (more or less). So if you are getting in to game dev for the first time with out experience in all the different areas that a game needs to cover multiplying your expected time with 2 sounds way to low.
I believe this is fantastic advice. I'm beginning my first game and I feel I took a lot from this! Thank you
This was such an inspiring and thorough video. Thank you so much for creating this.
This advice isn't just gold, it's platinum. Thank you!
1,000 decades, is the time this video has saved for gamedev newbies, at least, thank you
I’m gonna make a big game someday but I’m currently just spending 2 weeks on a new game at a time until I’ve made a prototype of every game type that I love. I’ll dig deeper after I get the hang of it.
This is just good advice for doing ANYTHING creative!
It took me and a buddy 5 years to release. We thought it would take 2.
Very good video. Very true. I am now in 85% of the game completion and these last steps feel like forever. Also, creative block is every creator's arch nemesis.
Great video! Thanks for the helpful tips! :)
I'd like to share my thoughts as well:
If you're a solo game developer, I suggest avoiding starting a massive, long-term "dream" project that spans several years. Instead, consider tweaking your game idea to make it more manageable and simpler to create. For instance, you can explore the low poly style, where UV mapping, texturing, and complex visuals are minimized, and solid colors are used.
Now, you might say, "But I don't really like that style!"
Here's the reality: Your personal preferences don't matter as much as practicality!
When embarking on a building project, you have to consider your available tools. If all you have is a hammer and basic tools, you simply can't construct a grand palace. You need to start with a humble hut. Once you have the hut, you have a place to call home and a foundation to support larger projects.
Time is a crucial factor to consider. By opting for a low poly style, you can save a significant amount of time by avoiding intricate UV mapping and texturing. This advantage is invaluable. Similarly, if you incorporate procedural level generation into your game, you eliminate the time-consuming process of manual level design. These time-saving measures are game-changers.
As a solo game developer, it's important to find ways to streamline your project's development time. It's better to create ten amazing, small-scale games than to pour all your resources into a single, ambitious five-year dream project.
By saving time and simplifying your approach, you'll have the opportunity to bring more games to life and unleash your creativity on a variety of projects. Keep up the great work!
this is basically how I started working on my project I have no damn idea on making unlockable abilities but I don't NEED to make them now
This made me think from a different prospective on a few things that really helped me out thank you good video !!
1:10 I don't really plan out making games or estimate the time it will take me, but if you've got a way to render graphics already done then it should only take a few days assuming you don't want sound, so it mainly depends on the length of time it takes to the get the rendering down. Though it also can vary based on the programming language, both machine code and BrainF take quite some time, your base is still just a few days so you're probably fine regardless. It may also change somewhat depending on game complexity and Tic Tac Toe can be done in just one day, Minesweeper took two to three if I recall correctly largely due to Excel's heavy performance limitations and small stack size requiring some extra optimization on the zero flood fill. I planned to include another example but it's seeming like I may be short on time.
0:57 so accurate 🤣 i planned to finish my game in 3 months and it took six months to make the first chapter.
i started to become an indie dev with only the experience of beeing a very creative human that likes problemsolving and creating fun ideas. thus i felt like a fraud alot of the times aswell but i know to well to fake it till you make it especially to yourself without becoming delusional of your acutal state. i just did the work because i wanted to and i loved to and now i have gained alot of experienc through failing alot. in the end just do it. legit.... it does get things done even if not how you invisioned it but you become better at the whole process little by little.
"It takes two times as long as you think you are going to" . This is literally what every engeineer learns first years of career. Honest project managers often assign to projects a x2 or x3 multiplication of what the engineer says. I usually say "it should take X time but to be safe let's say it'll take 3X days", because I know well I'm BSing myself.
Real Life Scenarios is a Double-edged Sword for Indie Game Developers.
This all reminds me so much about being a cartoonist and doing everything yourself.
Great content as usual and very usefull advice. I feel the same, when every day life problems are more than usually my productivity goes down, I think it is normal, we are not machines. the important thing is to remember to get some rest and free time, because it also helps the creative part.
I think that the main takeway from all of this is : don't take on that journey alone. Do it with people. Not only fans, but really, develop the game with multiple people. Else it's so hard, daunting to even get all of the skills require to even make a game that runs ; and then supposing that you manage to acquire the skills, you're still alone ; you have no objectivity on your own work, become too sensible to the opinion of others when you ask for feedback ; you can easily run around in circles regarding features and concept. It's honestly too hard, wether you're getting out from school or from a AAA job (even worse in this last case sometimes, since you're going from being a cog in a gigantic machine to the machine that has to do every single thing).
Thanks for making this video.
I've been making video games for over 4 decades - whatever you WANT to make (your big idea) - start with some really simple little games (GameJams) and after a few dozen of those then you might have the sense and skills to actually work on your magnum opus... your reason to want to make Indie Games in the first place. Just don't start with that end goal - start MUCH simpler. PAC-MAN, Flappy Bird, etc. games you can finish in a weekend or a week or 2. Don't do this phase while you are also trying to fund yourself with IndieDev. Unless you are independently rich and don't need money - plan to finish at least 2 or 3 Indie Games a year to sustain yourself.
3.5 for Remote Life as a solo dev...that was soooo long...but hey...i finished it❤
This is gold right here. Great video
There is a lot here that is applicable to writing & publishing (fiction, music, etc). Brace for the unexpected, don't get locked into analysis paralysis, and most important, _be persistent_ about your work. It's mostly one-sided, and the reward is doing what you love; the rest is a crap shoot.
Best.
I’m a failed indie. Spin wheels for about 3 years. And I am transitioning careers to be a game UI designer which means less time to work on my game.
My new goal is to write my game script just like if I were to write a novel. From the script I will wireframe design my levels while research on how to texture and color in my levels. After I have my levels all designed, I would research creatures, NPCs, and bosses. Then find a way to design them. The very last thing for me would be to learn Unity and put things together. Basically I will divide and conquer in stages and concentrate on one phase at a time much like the highway construction crew near where I live. They’re building a huge bypass and they’re doing it in stages.
Each stages will have their own phases. I think make a tracker and a journal for the stages, phases and challenges will help and do the things that you can do easily first and do the next harder thing and finally save the hardest for last.
"Always multiply your estimate by 2 and add a week" - one of the best pieces of advice I got when I was a younger software developer 😂
Try to keep the code simple. Do not Repeat Yourself(DRY) Separate your game code into different files and name your functions with names that tell what they are doing! Write comments everywhere. Use final Float values for things such as gravity, distance, duration of animations and so on. If you need to tweak those variables you just have to do it in one place instead of everywhere.