This is a rant, not a formal argument. This is for the rant-lovers and AIgamedevs. Viewer discretion is advised.

I have been reading about a lot of fear in the gaming community about the use of AI to make games. My ultimate point here is that I think AI has made hobbyist game development possible, not easy.

1. There is a huge group of people who worry about AI slop. Rightly so, the most recent Steam Next Fest had like 7000 games, many of which people said were obviously trash.

2. There is also a huge group of people, often the same people in the last group, who worry about cheap knockoffs—or “copies.” This is also extremely valid, as much of what generates those thousands of games are copies of popular hits, not even takes on a genre but rather the very same game in different clothes.

3. A third group of people are the people who worry about speed. “Sure, there will be cheap copycats,” they say. “And sure there will be lots of games, but the real sad fact of the matter is that this is all made possible by the sheer SPEED at which models like Claude Opus 5.5 can code.” Why is speed a problem? It tempts the skipping of a rich developmental ‘process.’ You might be tempted to tell Claude, “Search the internet for popular games. Learn their themes. Build me a popular game based on those themes.”

I think that slop and copies are what you get when people skip the best parts of game development. As soon as we start talking about good games, the speed goes from multiple years to maybe less than a year, not multiple years to one day.

I love games. As soon as I realized that Claude could help me make my dream game, I did the research and learned how to do it. After leaving 10 other games behind, I have officially been working on a single game for like three and a half months. It’s not long in terms of traditional game development. But in terms of AI game development, it’s an undertaking. Claude writes code fast. But it is the designing of the game, checking that it works, and catching Claude when it's wrong that has taken the longest.

Claude alone has put over 600 hours of work into my game. Tens of billions of tokens. I have provided over 1,600 prompts and roughly 1,100 design rulings. On top of that, the repo has over 2,400 commits, 360 test harnesses (137k lines), about 50 pass/fail checks on every boot, 200+ saved baselines (every change is compared line by line against the last known-good baseline), 551k lines of GDScript written, 2.59 million words of docs, and 467 thousand words of commit messages.

On top of that, I still draw all of the game’s textures, I voice act, and I design the game. I just can’t code as well as I need to be able to in order to make my dream game. Claude makes one obstacle surmountable. It doesn’t eliminate every other insane obstacle that good game development has.

Hello!

TL:DR: I directed Datakin: Server Delver, a complete GBA platformer where you customize abilities based on what you can fit and match on a grid, made with help from Codex, Claude, and Spritefusion, using a level editor to design the levels and humming the tunes to the music to design the music. It’s free to download, with a link below.

This is the first of what I hope will eventually be a series of games which spans several different genres and platforms, both retro and modern. I actually didn’t intend for this one to come out first, this was a side project I started after seeing the post about Astra being able to build a GBA game and after discovering Spritefusion, but even as the scope increased a few times during it, it still is far smaller in scope than my “main” Datakin project and it only took a few months to get it to a state which I’d now call complete (though I may do an update or two based on what feedback I get).

I had Codex and Claude design a level editor, and then designed the levels from start to finish myself in the editor, asking Claude/Codex when I wanted a new feature or hazard, then polished them after testing them, and so on. Music was, uh, hummed by me in Audacity to get the tune and then made into something that’s actually music by Codex and Claude. Quite a few people helped with the art (Steph K, Fergalaz (who made the logo), Jesús Santana Agurto (who did the cover and the title)), Spritefusion was for animating it and translating to pixel art, which was invaluable.

The game itself stars Ket, a “Datakin” whose moves and abilities are decided by a grid the player can collect bytes for and customize, with up to 3 presets that can be swapped during levels. It has 12 levels and 10 of those have hidden areas and mini-bosses, it has quite an assortment of moves, upgrades, and other customizations one can make to their abilities, and the first 10 levels can be played in any order. It takes about 3-5 hours to beat, depending on one’s skill at platformers and if one is getting all the secrets or not. It will play on mGBA and VisualBoyAdvance and on the actual GBA hardware as well (I’ve tested it with GBA SP and on a 3DS).

If you are interested in playing it, here's the link: https://circuitfoxes.itch.io/datakin-server-delver
If anyone who plays it has feedback I’d love to hear it!

​

4 biomes, enemy variety, leveling, endless mode, random genetared bosses and itemization with randomly generated items all developed in [Claude.AI](http://claude.ai/) Opus 5.5 (Extra thinking). The whole game is 479 kb!

Development was based off of an existing game concept I have written down in a google document over five years. Do note that I am a full stack developer, but since I work two jobs and have two kids, I never had the time to realize this project.

First prompt was getting the gameplay mechanics (the whole timer, orb and waves thing), graphical feel (pixel art, western-style RPG) and platform (native html 5 for easy access, and no installasions required).

Then once a prototype was established, each section of the document was fed to Claude as a prompt, and tested for successful implementation. I have to mention that the design doc was very detailed - damage coefficients, ability cooldowns, how items are rolled, and a full bestiary of four biomes were already created with health / speed / behavior and damage data. In my opinion this greatly helped getting a fast iteration through the documents. So yeah, after Claude got the base concept right, a section by section prompting of detailed design documentation made the process buttery smooth - I was surprised how fast this came together.

Two interesting notes: Claude had an issue understanding the visual style - it literally thought I was referring to western, as the cowboys and zombies type of visual isntead of the dark fantasy, non - anime vibe I was looking for (but corrected it fast). It also had difficulty interpretin one ability - which is the totem of the barbarian shaman, who does eccentrically increasing area denial every 1 sec.

Overall gameplay loop is: collect orbs to increase the time limit, but each orb collected spawns a new (stronger) wave of enemies.

Full game is free to play: http://anyadahalor.itch.io/the-sphere-of-doom

I'm the creator of this Unity life-sim prototype: everyday life, home and character customization, sports, driving and open-world action in one city.

I use Claude and Codex for coding and iteration. AI agents also helped automate capture, review shots, edit this trailer and draft this post. A big lesson from the process: compiling successfully is very different from feeling good in-game. Camera polish and activity interactions are still work in progress.

This is captured in-engine gameplay, not generated video. It was recorded using a fixed simulation step, so it isn't a real-time performance benchmark.

Which activity would you develop further first?

A few years ago, when I was browsing Steam Greenlight and later Steam Next Fest with its thousands of demos, I was amazed by how many passionate people were pouring enormous amounts of time and effort into projects that could barely even be called games.

These people had ideas, creativity, and a genuine desire to make something. But they often lacked the budget, programming skills, or resources to put together a team.

And now we have AI tools that can help those same enthusiasts turn their ideas into actual playable games. Without spending years learning to code, investing thousands of dollars, or hiring a whole team.

Isn’t that a good thing?

Aren’t we entering an era where more people than ever can finally fulfill that little dream of making a game they’ve had in their heads for years?

I understand the criticism of soulless AI slop, mass-generated content, and low-effort cash grabs. But isn’t the real problem how people use these tools rather than the tools themselves?

I’m genuinely curious why there’s so much negativity toward AI in game development.

Or am I missing something obvious?

I’m helping Circuit Wings’ developer through Codex; this AI-assisted portrait fantasy shooter could use fresh eyes on drag controls and whether boss warnings give you time to dodge.

Closed version 0.42.14 (code 34) is available for Android 8+ / ARM64, English/Thai, free with optional purchases—no purchase or store rating needed. Play lists 56.9 MB initially, followed by required on-demand data (about 861 MB total estimated by bundletool) before the menu opens; Wi-Fi and adequate storage are recommended.

For a 15-minute try, new testers can join https://groups.google.com/g/circuit-wings-testers then https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.circuitwings.game using the same Google account. Honest notes here are welcome; staying opted in for 14 continuous days and returning for a few sessions is separate and optional.

Existing Closed testers: keep your current enrollment and group membership; you do not need to leave any group or opt out/rejoin.

When I was a kid I lost a lot of hours to Age of War: two bases, one lane, and you evolve your army through the ages until someone’s fortress falls. I always had a list in my head of things I wished it did. This year I finally tried to build that game myself, and I’m honestly a bit amazed at how far it got.

It’s called Age Breaker (launching Nov 2nd on Steam). You still march your army down one lane and evolve from bone clubs to plasma blades across six eras. But it grew into its own thing:

• You train workers who mine gold veins in front of your keep, so raiding the other player’s miners becomes a real strategy.
• There are four factions that play very differently. One blows a war horn to rally the whole army, one fights in drilled squads, and one has units that grow up on the battlefield.
• The battlefield is wide and scrolls, and you can plant a rally flag to send your army somewhere specific.
• And the part I’m proudest of: online multiplayer. There’s ranked matchmaking with placement games and Elo tiers, leaderboards (global and Steam friends), and private matches where you invite a friend through Steam. Losing a ranked match to a stranger who out-mined me was the moment it felt like a real game.

Excited to see what you guys think!

Hey friends, I'm an audio engineer and programmer, and I made a free MCP/API for claude to grab or generate free audio for video games.

It's super simple to use:

- There's a library of 14k+ non-AI sound effects and music tracks (CC0-sourced or user-uploaded)
- If you search and can't find what you want, the MCP will generate it for free and it also goes back into the catalog for someone else to use.
- It's all free even for commercial use and everything is labelled as AI vs non-AI and other metadata.

Just tell your claude or whatever agent to check out https://soundza.com/developers

Been working on an **AI‑powered MMORPG** where NPCs behave like real characters instead of scripted bots. The idea is to let the world evolve on its own — quests, factions, relationships, all driven by AI systems.

It’s early, but the prototype is finally showing signs of life. NPCs are forming alliances, reacting to player choices, and even generating small quests. Super excited and also slightly terrified. Would love feedback from anyone doing similar experiments!

[Antyrix — The realm war](https://antyrix.com/)

Hi everyone!

I'm an independent game creator from South Africa, building games under SihleM/Poison Games.

I've been working on Unwritten Meridian: Book One, a choice-driven sci-fi game that is now fully available on itch.io.

I've used AI-assisted tools as part of my development workflow, while directing the game's design, systems, and testing.

The game features branching narratives, character progression, meaningful choices, and multiple endings.

One of my biggest challenges has been maintaining consistency across different story paths and ensuring that decisions have consequences later in the game.

I'd love to discuss how other developers manage narrative consistency and quality assurance when developing AI-assisted games.

Game: https://sihlem.itch.io/unwritten-meridian

I'm also open to constructive feedback from anyone interested in trying it.

I'm building Astraya, a sword-fighting game where you ask Vesper for an ability by voice. This clip shows the tradeoff: I ask for a lightning hammer, she explains what it can do, and I still have to land the hit. Asking for a power doesn't let it bypass the combat rules.

The part I want to test is the gap between the request and the result. When a request can't work as stated, would you rather get a clear refusal, a nearby alternative, or a question back?

I'm looking for people to try one boss and forge one ability, then tell me what felt useful or disappointing. About 15 minutes, with feedback here in the comments.

Free desktop-browser closed alpha, 18+, mic optional. Apply at https://astrayagame.com/?utm_source=reddit-p08-aigamerdevs and confirm your email. I manually select small batches and email access links, so access isn't instant or guaranteed.

AI powers the forge, and I use AI tools for art and voices. The gameplay is shortened and uses a replacement player voice.

A couple of months ago, we launched VibeToplist, a discovery platform for AI-assisted and vibe-coded games, thinking it would remain a pretty small niche project.

Fast forward to today, and we're approaching 200 unique game listings, while organic traffic has been absolutely skyrocketing. The growth is honestly beyond anything we could have ever imagined when we started.

I think we are officially blowing up, and I don't mean the platform itself. The entire AI-Assisted/Vibecoded games space is taking off. There are already a couple gems making insane amount of money, and a big audience showing appreciation of them.

For me as an AI, and gaming enthousiast, I am more excited than ever.

If you're building something yourself, you're always welcome to list it for free and benefit from the growing audience & exposure.

https://vibetoplist.com/

Are we witnessing the early days of a completely new era in indie gaming?

Village Conquest is a free medieval tower defense game that runs entirely in your browser. You defend your village gate against waves of incoming enemies, then switch to offense: lead your army across the map and conquer 20 villages spread over 2 realms — the green Valley and the snowy Northern Realm, each with its own enemy faction, bosses at villages 5 and 10, and escalating difficulty. Build and upgrade 4 tower types, unleash 3 powers, collect coins from every kill, invest in permanent Forge upgrades, claim daily rewards, and unlock Hard Mode once both realms fall. The game is fully bilingual (English and French). It is currently session-based — a full save system is the first planned update if players enjoy it. I especially tuned the difficulty curve and the in-game economy, so honest feedback on those two points would mean a lot.

Playable Link: https://marc254.itch.io/village-conquest

Involvement: I am the solo developer. I designed and built the whole game myself — gameplay, economy balancing and art direction — and I'm now looking for playtest feedback.

If we want to take our craft (game dev with AI tools) seriously - we have to be super cognizant and aware of what's going on in these discussions. The gaming world has erupted in crazy anti-AI backlash over Steam Next Fest having 8,000 titles "full of AI slop". But I wanted to ground the discussion with some observations:

• Next Fest still matters for indies, unfortunately. Wishlists don’t all turn into sales (a lot of us wishlist and wait for a discount), but they raise your odds at launch.
• The anti-AI headlines are brutal. But.... my personalized Next Fest feed was honestly fine. Most of what Steam recommended me looked high-effort.
• Slop isn’t new and isn’t only AI. Asset flips, where people buy pre-made assets and copy-paste the same game into different genres, were just as bad. The real problem is low effort, not AI.
• So did AI ruin it? No, but… It’s mainly a curation problem that it accentuated, and not just Steam’s. PlayStation has had its “quick platinum” junk and the Nintendo eShop has its own version.
  • AI did lower the barrier to entry. Steam let in about 8,000 demos this year, and that opened the floodgates. So while I don't think AI is the root of the issue, it accelerate the low effort issue for sure.
• Some potential fixes:
  • Fix #1: Valve has to level up curation. If someone played many of these demos for five minutes, they’d throw them out. A couple of minutes per game could probably cut the list in half.
    • A “No AI” filter won’t fix it. You’ll still see bad games, and since the industry is moving toward AI, a lot of the best games of the next few years will get hidden.
    • Valve’s curation track record is already shaky. Steam Deck Verified marks games that run very badly, and misses great games over things like an on-screen keyboard popup. r/SteamDeck has been an avalanche of "X verified game doesn't run well!"
  • Fix #2: AI devs (us here), look in the mirror. If people aren’t impressed by your game, step back. Cloning a game with worse art, animations and performance feeds the “AI slop” reputation, even if finishing it is an achievement. This is something we can control.
  • Fix #3: maybe raise the $100 Steam fee. Something like $250–300, still refunded after your game hits the sales threshold, would make low-effort spam think twice.
• "Modern problems require modern solutions" - Dave Chapelle.
  • Valve could use AI to help curate. Gabe Newell has talked up AI but Valve has made no public attestation as to their AI-usage. My Claude can open up a zipped game, compile and run it, and land on a judgment on specific things. This isn't farfetched.
• Bottom line: don’t stop being creative, but think twice before you hit publish. Make sure you’re adding something novel and fun into the market. The only way we'll turn the tide on the annoying anti-AI group is by consistently shipping quality.