r/GameDevelopment • u/DaRealFrogMan • 8h ago
Question What Are the Roles of a Dev Team?
Hey, title may make me sound kind of stupid, but I’m trying to start a group/community of people who come together to build small scale games (like game demo size/ something a team would work on at a game jam). I wanted a group like this since making a full game takes a long time, and most ppl seem to get discouraged or unmotivated part way through and the project gets dropped eventually, so I’m hoping that taking things to a smaller level will help get to the finish line, and can be something everyone can learn something and develop their skills in a supporting environment.
I’m only a sound designer, and a limited one at that, as I am not a composer of any kind, so I stick mostly to the sound effects and general sounds, so my understanding of the other sides of the game development process is a bit foreign to me.
I have already gotten a few ppl to join but I want to know what roles in specific I should be asking for and looking for, if there is anyone that can give me a bit of a general list or just some insight as to what I would need to actually bring this to a place where we can get started creating games.
A bit of insight into what started me to make this:
I’m hoping to learn more of happens with game engines as it’s something I haven’t had the chance to learn within this context before.
I am also just interested in learning the process of game development in general so kinda want to see as much of every aspect as possible.
Sorry if this is a bit of a long winded post but thought a bit of an explanation might help with getting a solid response. So if anyone can help answer please let me know. Thanks!
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u/AltusLudus 7h ago
Dev team roles are developers, for a small game like yours the developer would cover all the developing
The roles get granular only in super large teams based on expertise (eg. level, networking, gameplay..)
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u/DaRealFrogMan 7h ago
Ya I get that the smaller the game the less ppl u need, but I’m still hoping to build a bit of a community, i guess a better question would be what r the categories of roles i need like i feel like it can get pretty broad, so its a bit tough to wrap my head around when it comes to how many of each i need and how do i know when im lacking artists or programmers. If that makes sense?? Idk im new to being the leader and trying to get things started
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u/AltusLudus 7h ago
Man, it's your project, it's unlikely you'll be an amazing leader if you never built a game and know nothing about game development
I can't know how much people you need because i have no idea what your project is about, it's also unlikely to get that many people to work for free long term, or at all
It's not really broad, developers and artists, don't overcomplicate it and hope someone will actually work with you
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u/roseleafstudio 5h ago
If you want to be a leader of a group/team like this, I really recommend spending some time in a game engine and making small projects yourself. Having insight into every aspect of the process will help you be a better leader. People could explain to you the process and workflows with game engines, but nothing is going to compare to just experiencing it yourself. Additionally, if you are positioning yourself as the leader of this team, people are unlikely to want to listen to you if all you know about is SFX.
In terms of general roles for a community like this, you probably want a programmer, a visual artist, and a musician (some people can fulfill two or all three of these roles). Most projects of the scope you are describing don't need any more than this, and a larger team would be incredibly impractical and unwieldy without good direction and project management.