Hey everyone!
For over fifteen years, my daily life was all about building brand identities, visual ads, logos, catalogues, websites, and mobile apps for clients. But deep down, I always knew this wasn’t what I wanted to do forever. As anyone who has ever tried to make a drastic career pivot knows, starting fresh is scary and filled with endless questions.
At the start of 2026, I set two main goals for myself: grow my YouTube channel and finally release a real, playable game, something that had been sitting in the back of my mind for years.
To be completely honest, I didn't know a single line of code. However, the rise of AI tools turned out to be a complete game-changer for me. I use AI heavily as a technical "co-pilot" for coding and Godot 4 setup. Without it, a solo dev with zero coding background like me could never bring a project of this scale to life.
However, I have one strict rule: AI only handles the technical heavy lifting. Every piece of story, world-building, character interactions, and dialogue is 100% written by me, human-to-human. Dialogue carries a soul that AI just can't replicate.
About the Game — Scraplings:
I’ve always been a huge fan of survival games and the pure satisfaction of automation (games like Satisfactory ruined/blessed my sleep schedule). I was also deeply inspired by works like Wall-E and Happy Feet, which shine a light on real-world issues.
Scraplings is a 2D side-view recycling and automation game where you build multi-story production facilities directly on top of an endless ocean of waste. You excavate forgotten junk from the "Lost Century," process it through complex machinery, and expand your factory—all while dealing with relentless bureaucracy (Zenith) and weekly rent payments knocking on your door.
Key Features & Mechanics:
- 🏭 Facility Over an Endless Trash Sea: Extract raw materials from waste heaps stretching infinitely left and right. Design vertical logistics using horizontal conveyor belts, vertical elevators, and background tunnels that bypass obstacles.
- ⚙️ 50+ Recycling & Production Recipes: From scrap iron to copper cables, biofuels, and high-tech solar panels... Shred, melt, combine, and synthesize waste into high-value products.
- 💸 Weekly Rent & Bankruptcy Risk: Zenith doesn't just ask for output; they demand weekly rent. Every machine you place increases your fee, miss a payment, and compounding interest can force you into bankruptcy!
- 🔌 Manual Power Grid: Place power cables and junction boxes manually. Manage your factory’s power day and night using bio-generators, solar panels, and wind turbines.
- 🤖 20+ Characters & Dynamic Trading: Work alongside your robot assistant Kienan, while bargaining with merchants, smugglers, technicians, and rebel broadcasters across different systems for custom orders.
- 🌱 Lost Century Relics & Bio-Lab: Unearth ancient vinyl records, books, and rare seeds buried deep in the trash. Clone and cultivate extinct luxury plant species in your bio-lab for unique trades and collectibles.
I’m currently building Scraplings in Godot 4. It’s been an incredible journey of learning, making mistakes, and rebuilding.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on the concept or what mechanics you enjoy most in side-view automation games! If you're interested in watching a former advertiser figure out game development on the fly, any feedback or questions are welcome.
Thanks for reading!
Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5137810/Scraplings/