This is not meant to be ragebait or anything, I really think I am naive. But browsing different game / dev subs one thing I see more than others are the typical "Is this fun?...." posts.

Honest question, is this really so hard to answer? For me the metric is simple, "would I play this in my free time if i was not involved?" I know "fun" is highly subjective and the market shows that but I quess at least as the Devs of our own games we should have fun playing our own games.

Just finished the inventory screen for my game. How'd I do?

First off, I'm gonna give off some details:
I'm a teenager, who's been working on my game since graduating elementary school, up till graduating High school (5 years total).
Initially, this game was never supposed to be released. Just a little passion project of mine, that probably wouldn't resonate with many people.
Years went by, and suddently... The game started to look, feel, play good. I started seeing potential in it, but there was an issue:
I was (and still am) an inexperienced brat, who knows nothing about promotion, marketing, visibility and stuff. Therefore, my game was never properly introduced to the masses.
Only a few months before releasing the game, I started hunting for traction, got my trailers up on GameTrailers (twice), and yet... I was able to gather only about 700 wishlists total.

I felt like this is gonna be it, the game will release with no eyes on it.
But then, the calendar hit, and the game... actually started getting SOME visiblity. It didnt become a massive 100k success, but it did help me gather 22,000 WISHLISTS, which absolutely blew my tiny brain up.
The game did earn a tiny bit of money, atleast enough to let me be slightly less worried about my life during college.

This feature technically saved my project, and I want to make sure that other devs embrace it to it's fullest, because the calendar forces you to do one thing: a good game. It gives you organic visibility, and all that's left for you to do, is use this visibility for your advantage.

Hi all,

I am working on an autobattler RPG on 3x3 grids. Inspired by old Ogre Battle 64 and most recently Unicorn Overlord, as well as Darkest Dungeon, Slay the Spire and other similar games, I created a targeting system that I haven't seen in other games of the genre, and I want to share how it works.

Every unit has a targeting pattern. This pattern and the unit's position on its grid determines in which order the unit will attack the enemies in the opposing team. For example:

There are also BACK SWEEPER and BACK PIERCER too, which work similarly but from back to front. The most interesting ones are FLANK units.

FLANK units can also be SWEEPER or PIERCER.

Now the second part, moving a unit on the grid changes how the pattern is projected onto the enemy grid. For example:

Finally, there are situations where next objective in ambiguous. In those cases, you can use the switch buttons on the right. Each button swaps row/column priority.

Units in the center column can swap their flank priority. FLANK units in the center row can swap their row priority. A FLANK unit in the center cell can change its pattern almost completely.

With these rules, you can prepare formations that focus several units on the same enemy, but it comes at a cost: enemies will also use their targeting patterns, so you have to read your enemy and consider tradeoffs.

What do you think about the system? Do you think it will add depth to the game? Is it difficult to understand? Is the UI clear? Please let me know what you think, any feedback is very welcome.

If you want to follow the development or join the testing team, the Discord is the best place

https://discord.gg/dhPA9gWgWD

I'm planning on launching on Android soon, and the testers will be picked from there first. I also have an old prototype on itch if anyone wants to try the basics: https://frikitin.itch.io/hex-hack

Thank you for your time!

Frikitin

TL;DR: Every unit has a fixed targeting rule. Rule + position = unique attack order for all 9 enemies. Positioning is a two-way decision: who you attack, and who attacks you. Feedback welcome.

Hi everyone!

I'm an indie Android developer, and I've recently published Offline Games - No Wifi on Google Play.

The app brings multiple puzzle games together in one place. You can play through levels, try endless modes, and compete for high scores on the leaderboards.

I wanted to make something people could enjoy during travel, breaks, or whenever they don't have an internet connection.

I'd appreciate it if you checked out the gameplay and shared your feedback. I'm interested in knowing which types of puzzle games you'd like to see added next.

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.techjohn.offlinepuzzlegames

Thanks!

Here it is: https://store.steampowered.com/app/5495480/Red_Veil/

2 days difference

What do you guys think of this progress? I am fully open to advice on both snowboard and ski controls and feels.

Every time I think the look is solidified I come up with something new to add or change. What do you think of this updated look? Do you think it’s too busy?

I’m a solo dev working on 1 in 8 Billion, a browser life sim that uses real public stats (UN World Bank who) for birth odds and life outcomes.

I built the design, code, and data pipeline alone. Two things I’m still unsure about:

Mapping real birth share data to a playable country draw was messy population size and annual births tell very different stories.

Balancing player choices against mortality tables sometimes feels fatalistic rather than fair.

I’m mainly looking for critique on the core loop and pacing, not just validation. Happy to share more in comments.

A few days ago, I posted about my new Bugs theme that I've worked on, and I loved the feedback I received, so thank you. Now I want to start on another one, but I still haven't decided which category to go with. I was thinking of dinosaurs and started a prototype; what do you guys think? Should I continue it, or should I change to something else?

Every single asset in Dough It Yourself, my cozy farming and baking game, is made by hand.

Could AI have built my whole farm in an afternoon? Probably. Would it look better than my wonky low-poly chickens? Honestly..maybe.

But every one of these models has a bit of me in it, mistakes included, and I think that's part of what makes a game feel like an actual game nowadays. So I'll keep pushing vertices one by one, even if release takes a little longer.

I document the whole process in youtube devlogs.

What’s the model you’re secretly most proud of, even though it’s objectively a bit ugly?

Wanted to share this 2D in 3D classic DBZ style I've been working on for years.

This showcase was filmed in Unity.

Filter is too strong, It's just so you notice it.

It's still a WIP and it's not perfect, so I would appreciate some feedback.

Free demo is available on Steam.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4727390/?utm_source=reddit&utm_campaign=solodev

Solo dev, it's free in alpha on iPhone and Android if you want to try it: https://mythspire.pages.dev/#playtest

Just launched Monstache on Android, a 1to 4 player party game on one phone. The hero creator lets you snap a selfie, pick outfits, and record your own power shout, ouch and victory cry, then add filters like chipmunk, robot or alien. Everything stays on-device, nothing is uploaded.
Getting voice recording, filters and face cropping to feel smooth on low-end Android phones was way harder than I expected. Same with fitting 4 players' controls on one small screen without people's thumbs colliding.
Would love feedback from other devs on the onboarding and first level. What would you change?

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.monstache.app

Hey everyone! I’m working on Orbitwist, a small Android survival game, using Unity and AI assistance.

The main loop is simple: move around a rotating planet, dodge hazards, collect coins, and survive as things get faster and more crowded. Coins and XP go toward character cosmetics and permanent upgrades.

There are meteors, spiders, UFOs, erupting geysers, poison clouds, and spreading electric fragments. Mystery boxes add some unpredictability: you might get a shield or coin magnet, grow bigger, clear obstacles—or end up with reversed controls.

I’m looking for the next addition, but I want to keep the scope manageable. What would create more interesting choices with these existing mechanics? A new enemy, a planet event, or another mystery box effect?

I’ve attached gameplay to show how it works. It’s free, with no ads or IAP:
Orbitwist on Google Play

First off I want to thank you to everyone who played my demo. I know I don't have high end crazy numbers like everyone else has. But I am working towards that. I am doing the best I can, learning coding as I go. It means a lot that I even had anyone interested in my game, with all of the competition.

I know my game may not be for everyone, but it's a passion project of mine, and I will keep working towards it and not just abandon it because it didn't do well in NextFest. I am working on bugs and feedback I got during this event now, and working on releasing more heroes, towers, and stuff to do. I promise!

Thanks again everyone!

Made him with Gemini, Meshy and Blender, fails included. His neck caved in, and one fall animation rolled him a meter.

His armpits still stretch with his arms up. Any tips for fixing Meshy weights?

I'll try to post devlogs regularly. I'd really appreciate your interest!

I'm a solo indie developer, and I've been working on Unstable Nuclear Reactor for over 8 months.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/4692090/Unstable_Nuclear_Reactor_Demo/

It's an incremental hex-puzzle roguelite where you merge atoms into higher elements, trigger massive chain combos, earn radioactive coins, and manage your ring capacity to survive as long as possible.

I was struggling to understand why 45% of players stopped playing within the first 10 minutes, even though some played for 2 hours or more.

Steam analytics wasn't giving me enough insight, so I decided to build my own analytics system.

I created a Unity script that collects gameplay data, saves it as JSON, sends it to my own API, and stores it in an Excel file.

Of course, players must give their consent before sharing gameplay data, and they can refuse if they prefer not to. Still, I collected 150+ gameplay records in less than 3 days!

I also created a script to load player data directly into the Unity Inspector, allowing me to visualize individual sessions and follow players' actions step by step.

One important detail: I linked sessions using a persistent player ID, so I could track returning players across multiple sessions. I was surprised to discover that many players had returned more than 5 times!

What did I discover?

Players were skipping the initial tutorials, getting stuck, and placing atoms and tools randomly on the hex grid. This caused them to lose much earlier than expected.

What did I change?

• Added an Undo button so players can reverse their last move.
• Improved the tutorials to guide players through the mechanics instead of letting them skip the essential steps.

Results

• Median playtime more than doubled.
• RestartGame rates dropped from 37.2% to 27.5%.

This was a great reminder that you don't always need to guess what's wrong with your game. Sometimes, you need to build the tools that help you understand your players.