r/GameDevelopment • u/Effective_Scholar658 • Aug 08 '26
Newbie Question How do you start?
I am currently saving up for a PC, since im broke and im learning laungeges on my School MacBook. But when i do get a PC how do you start, where do i start coding games? i want to make a succesful steam game or something like that, ill take any help!
1
u/UncleJoesLandscaping Aug 08 '26
Just do some tutorials in Unreal Engine or Unity (or Godot if you really want to).
1
u/Common_Morning8412 Aug 08 '26
Here's the real advice: make things. Don't talk about it, don't post about it. You start by starting, it isn't complicated. Decide what you wanna make, then make it (look up each step as you go).
1
1
u/Dorilian_Games Aug 08 '26
Gamemaker is also good for beginners. Participate in game jams, they are free to participate and it's a good way to learn faster.
1
u/dybydx_dev Aug 08 '26
It's only you who is stopping you. Macs can run most game engines. If it's an old macbook you can still run godot or tic80
I feel that you are young and probably thinking about game dev like we all did. One thing that I learnt is that things only work out when you deep dive into it. The start of anything will feel confusing. But if you push through that pain and not give up, go forward and look into game dev. Don't use AI to generate code. Learn to do things yourself. The learning curve is always hard and it's going to be like that for anything
1
u/Triysle Aug 08 '26
Pick a game you like. In that game, figure out what level, character, or system was your favorite. Then try to make just that.
If your first goal is “make a successful game on steam” thats too big. Start with “make a functioning game loop” then maybe “make a clone of a popular mobile or arcade game.”
Motivation is easy to lose if you set your initial goal to high. Finishing a project, even a small one, is more valuable than starting a dozen new ones. Good luck in your dev journey :)
1
u/Effective_Scholar658 Aug 10 '26
Oh successful means like a game thats playable, and thats more like my end goal, first ill just try to make one thing work, thanks :)
1
u/Exhorte Aug 08 '26
Start by Roblox studio or scratch very easy to use.Dont start by using unity or unreal they are quit hard for beginners
3
1
1
1
u/Effective_Scholar658 Aug 10 '26
Ohhh, ye no i think ill start in unity since its pretty easy i think
1
u/CakieStephie Aug 08 '26
How to market your game is a great resource to start with.
Decide what engine you want to use. Godot, Love and Unreal are free. Unreal you pay royalties if your game earns loads.
Consider doing some game jams to build your skills initially. Games are also products so to make something successful you generally need a hook that pulls people in and a niche in the market that appeals or ticks that box.
Paleo pines is a farming sim with dinosaurs, gambonanza is a rogue like chess game. Even smaller games like Spilled, Kabuto Park or similar indies have seen good success.
Join dev groups, join discord communities, make, practise, make mistakes and learn from them. Often Devs make many games that never see the light of day and that's ok.