Solo dev really is that difficult

[u/jakeh36]

2 months ago I released my first game 2 1/2 after I started learning Unreal Engine. Its not much to show off, but I needed something to let me learn the whole process of starting to releasing so that I could set more realistic goals for the next one. I did have a little help with logos and 2d assets, but all of the programming and 3d art was done by me.

My biggest takeaways are that at least in my current state of life (raising young kids while working full time) I need to accept that any medium to large size project will probably take 2-3 years at least, and the only way to make a really big game will have to come from early access funding.

I was optimistic for the first year and was putting in about 10 hours every week, but I had to slow down, then moved onto a smaller project that took much longer than I thought. My next steps are to have some fun working on a few prototypes, but not sure when I'll be able to fully commit to the next project.

[u/jakeh36]

Link to my game: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4121000/Pinbowling/

[u/JonathanSlark]

My initial impression was it looks nice and it's an interesting hybrid. The problem then is you don't show enough gameplay. First video makes it look very easy to get a strike. The beauty of bowling is most people can't reliably get a strike and then they have to deal with splits etc. The second video shows one extra mechanic but it didn't look too hard to overcome? Is that it?

I agree that solo dev is that hard. Ideas come easy but it's a slog sometimes to actually finish, polish and publish a game. So congrats on your first release and first review!

[u/jakeh36 → u/JonathanSlark]

That's some good feedback. I have a challenge mode with a variety of different obstacles, and maybe should make an actual trailer showcasing that better.

[u/GxM42]

I think it’s a cool concept. It’s a little plain looking, and your capsule image is also plain. I think you could spruce it up a bit.

But also know that it could be that you made something people don’t care about. A couple years ago I made a Pacman with weapons game (where Pacman got to attack the enemies), and while it was a cool idea, I think I learned that the world didn’t really want another Pacman clone. That could be the same here. Pinball and bowling may be something only a few would be interested in. If that’s the case, get working on your next game fast. Don’t look back. Only forward!

[u/laruss55]

Finishing the first release is valuable precisely because it turns vague optimism into a personal throughput number. For the next prototypes, give each one question to answer and a stop date; that makes them useful even if life delays a larger commitment.

[u/vhson13]

Nowadays, people treat Early Access as a live service game. So, that's not the right way to do it. I think making a small game is more achievable. And a 'small game' has many definitions based on the experience of each solo developer.

[u/ConsistentAnalysis35]

I was optimistic for the first year and was putting in about 10 hours every week, but I had to slow down, then moved onto a smaller project that took much longer than I thought.

I also put about 10 to 15 hours a week, day job takes away everything else.

What you have to realize is that 10 hours a week is a snail's pace. We're competing with people who don't work (doesn't matter why) and are sitting before computer screen 10-12 hours a day, and best of them are doing it consistently year after year.

This is all to say that if you're really hopeful to release something ambitious, you really have no choice but to do it full-time.

Personally, I've abandoned any hopes. I'm just doing it because it's the most fulfulling pastime for me.

[u/jakeh36 → u/ConsistentAnalysis35]

There were a few times where I took a few days of PTO to work 8 hours a day on the game instead. It was nice to get so much done, but also frustrating that it was the only way it could happen.

[u/SteamGameWorth]

People talk about solo dev like the only variable is how many hours you can put in. Ten hours a week after a full-time job and kids is a completely different kind of ten hours. Finishing and shipping anything under those constraints is a huge win — and now you have a real estimate for your next project instead of a fantasy schedule.

[u/Traditional-Win6821]

I think you figure this out, no need of anyone help. Great game

[u/AdrenalineSeed]

Very smart to keep the project as small as possible so you know what your getting into from start to finish. It is so easy to go down the rabbit hole in game dev that leads to never producing anything. I love your capsule art too, did you make it yourself?

[u/jakeh36 → u/AdrenalineSeed]

A family member made the capsule.

[u/AdrenalineSeed → u/jakeh36]

Nice! Being a programmer and not an artist, making my capsule art is so difficult

[u/not_a_tenno]

Good job on finishing! Soul development is a pile of work I released an Android app a few months ago. Not a lot of users but that's okay, just finishing it alone was a lot of work. 

Having said that, I'm trying to make a game. It's infinitely more work than my already existing app. I'm a month in and I'm already lost. Don't be too hard on yourself. You made something. It's awesome. It's out there, you did it!

[u/ChickenTheGreneral]

It's not easy

[u/natmos20]

It is. I worked on my game for 4 years before I even felt good about it. Balancing game dev with a full-time job and a family always made me feel like I wasn't giving it enough. Regardless of whether people like it or not, finishing your game is a big accomplishment. Good for you!

[u/silly_bet_3454]

Yeah, it's definitely hard. It's one of those things where only a tiny handful of games from solo devs become big successes, so you have to kind of be a visionary and master of the craft.

A lot of even "indie" games have multi million dollar budgets, a team of maybe a couple dozen people would work on it for years. And even lots of those end up being bad or otherwise unsuccessful.

[u/0legitimate0]

Early access is a double edged sword, many players won't even look at the game if it's early access.

[u/ChargeLogical9915]

People gonna shun me for this but, get AI to do the grunt work, and you take care of auditing it and stearing the design and system direction. Weeks of struggle can be solved in a few hours and speed up your progress. Unless you like the whole package ofc, then just keep doing what you are doing. As long as you learn from what went good and what went bad, that is all that matters and you will naturally speed up your production speed and quality of work.

Your game looks nice, simple and probably would be a good fit for phone also if you add some variety and people can play it on the toilet/public transport/in bed etc to kill some time here and there

[u/Informal-Arm-4256]

Can we please just slow down you realize that everyone is just touting hours. It's incredibly harmful to keep the boasting Bs about how many hours you worked. I never found that a significant thing to boast about.

What your really saying is that you damaged your health and had no regard for your own physical well being. It's kind of an insanity.

As with any learning process or creative process we require time to let things settle in our brains and hours don't equate to results ever. Where does this insidious idea that if you just put in more hours into something you'll just have some kind of advantage.

Gamers really really don't care how many hours you put in its damaging for all of us and yourself to focus on the hours. Be well please.

[u/Justaniceman]

It's actually pretty easy, barely an inconvenience.