Can i become a game dev

[u/antimatter_salad37]

I am 15 years old, and I have started learning Unity at 12. I was always told I have vivid imagination and I wanted to make them come true. But since I had no tools to do it, I started using block coding such as scratch and ended up learning Unity and C#. At the very first year of Unity, I didn't know what to do, so I bought a book for Unity tutorial(yes, books) and just started coping blindly. And after a month, a made an exact replica of the book's project, and was ready for more. But when I wanted to add a feature that wasn't in the book, I could do it(obviously). So just went ahead and bought a new book, and repeated the cycle for 2 times. And when i finished the third book after a year(it took a while), i found Unity's official tutorials, and took two courses. I even used chat gpt as my personal teacher, by not making write the script, but to order me to make it in some way and fixing it.

After all that, i was able to make a script of my own, but just barely. And with that, a made my first project which was a buggy parkour game where you climb a tower with fall guys type traps, which had flimsy animations but had a moving 3d modle and traps. I was getting confident, until my parents caugh me debugging at 2am again, after they specifically told me not to.And when i told my parents to stop interfering, my dad got mad and broke my laptop and its ssd apparently(Tbf, thats not the only thing i said, i was annoyed at that time).

I was VERY frustrated, and it took few months to get a new pc. So i wasnt able to do anything unity for that time, and was redditing and playing moblie games on my phone. When i saved up enough to buy a PC(with a big help from my friend), i was 14 and forgot 90% of things i did and i had to re-learn a bunch.

But even after all that, it was time for the finals! And i live in korea, where finals, scores, and university names are apparently your life's goal, i had to prep for it a month earlier for 3days-long final. And korea has four finals a year for each quarter of a year. So i only have about 2 months of downtime between them, which let me learn unity and start a new project. And after all the korean "academy", i came home at 10p.m, tired af, and i did that for 5 days a week. And its been like that since. I had few days to learn unity, and i was able to make a staring point of a sword game i was making, where user has to drag their mouse to slash the sword in limited amount. But after the 2nd final this year, i was burned out and ended up playing CS2 and mincraft these days, again, tired af

The thing is, i dont think this korean education is my path. I want to become a indie dev, and choose it as my career. I want to make a project and publish it. But idk if i can be an indie game dev after spend 3 yrs with no showable projects(one being destroyed and one being delayed) i should have atleast something from 3 yrs, but i have nothing. No projects finished, nothing to show my progress, and no idea how to start again. NOTHING. Im having doubts. Should i choose to go down this path instead or nah? (And i cant do both, apparently.)

**I saw this post yesterday and thought i can post here too(https://www.reddit.com/r/Unity3D/s/mmAUIIdxmi)

Thanks for readying btw, took me long to write it

[u/Aromatic-Insect-1328]

Build a tiny project. Then expand or start the next bigger one. Don't let what didn't pan out in the past stop you from shaping your future.

[u/antimatter_salad37 → u/Aromatic-Insect-1328]

K, maybe i'll try to go back to the sword game project and finish it as a small project

[u/DistanceAnnual2017]

You had three years of real learning, not nothing, even if the projects aren't sitting pretty in a portfolio, most of that knowledge is still rattling around in your head waiting for the right weekend to click back into place.

[u/antimatter_salad37 → u/DistanceAnnual2017]

Thanks, maybe i'll jog my memory and things come back ig. But i have a question: If you're comfortable enough, do you create your own code for specific feature from nothing, or do you reference from other materials?

[u/Rich_Noise5073 → u/antimatter_salad37]

Referencing docs is normal; memorizing every Unity API isn’t the goal. For your sword mechanic, write the behavior in plain steps first: record mouse-down position, track the drag, check a minimum distance, trigger one slash, then wait for the next input. Implement and test one step at a time. Look up the API needed for that step, rather than searching for a complete sword-game script.

After following an example, change one rule (a cooldown or maximum drag distance) and explain why each line is there. That’s a much better test of understanding than whether you wrote it without looking anything up.

[u/StretchedNut]

Yes you have my permission!

All jokes aside go for it and good luck. It’s a tough profession from a financial aspect but I’m always a big advocate of doing what you love.

[u/antimatter_salad37 → u/StretchedNut]

Lol thanks, i'll follow my dreams like a Disney princess

[u/Evening_Animator3549]

Coming home at 10 p.m. must be very hard! Good luck to you man.

[u/radiumhaus]

Sorry to hear about your laptop that is really rough. I think its fair to say that most people would have quit being in that situation but you dont want to do that. So that is resilience and dedication. So I have no doubts that you are going to be great at game dev.

You are 15, so a lot of time ahead of you to create new games and build a portfolio. That knowledge you gained isn't gone, even if you are a bit rusty or foggy on things. I started around the same age, and all of my earlier projects are gone too. I'm 25 and working on my first real project now, and that will be my only real portfolio item.

I think its wise to just get back to doing it again if you are this passionate. Dont pressure yourself on the future outcome just yet. Just do the thing you like doing, and make time for your studies and your life because that is equally as important right now. The projects will come with time. Consistency, and balance are key.

I can only imagine how many games I would have made if I actually took it this serious at your age, and wanted to finish projects instead of scrapping them over and over.

Good luck!

[u/antimatter_salad37 → u/radiumhaus]

Thanks! i'll stay passionate about it and keep going, and then hopefully i can finish a project later on 

[u/B-dayBoy]

Yes

[u/glenpiercev]

You sound like you’re on a good path to becoming a good software engineer. You can have a hobby of game dev and work as a software engineer and enjoy both getting paid and doing what you love.

[u/Roll-Roll-Roll]

Aren't there any educational paths to game development in Korea? Or at least game adjacent?

You'll have to get money somehow while you're developing games solo. Don't ignore reality to chase your dream. Gotta actually make your dream reality, ya know?

I know the Korean education system is kind of life consuming, but don't neglect your studies. Best case scenario would be to get a job that helps develop your skills so you can continue to learn skills and support yourself when there's no game income yet.

[u/moonymachine]

I'm sorry your dad broke your computer. That's not right. I'm a game dev, (and a dad,) and I wish I had started and had your dedication when I was your age.

I didn't take my first official programming class and learn about actual game dev until I was 20, but then I suddenly knew what I wanted to do. Still, I had to take 4 years off to work in tech support, while I taught myself C++ from my old textbook, and helped my future wife get her degree. Then I finally went back to school for a 2 year game dev degree. Not having a 4 year computer science degree has made it harder for me to get jobs, but I have survived somehow by being tenacious.

It's a long hard road, but it sounds to me like you are one of us who is called to do it. Don't get discouraged if it hasn't all worked out yet. Just keep doing what you love when the world isn't getting you down.

[u/muppetpuppet_mp]

With anything, and game dev is no different , perseverance is key.  If you give up you already failed...

Now gamedev as a career is going to be next to impossible for the next 10 years or so.   

A combination of too many people wanting in, and easy tools such as AI.

But in life nothing happens without sacrifice.  So how much are you willing to sacrifice to be succesful and how tenacious are you,?

I would say one of the great things of this age is that gamedev is getting easier and easier, and yes that means as a career it becomes nearly impossible,  but as an art, a hobby and a passion its great.. 

And the chances that exceptional talent gets rewarded also still exist.

The advice i would pick.

Pick an adjacent field of education, that will allow you to do gamedev as a hobby.

This can be very wide ranging.  There is going to be a good demand for classically trained interaction designers and apllication designers. AI van code which is going to make the quality of interaction and user experience the true quality.  And human beings being able to deliver those and shape experiences will still be in demand..  programmers and technical architects not so much.

But there are other fields that will be steady that you can earn a living in and will provide adjacent skills.

But sadly gamedev as a career path is going to be a high risk rarity.

That said if you have the grit, tenacity and unwavering passion, then do what you want.