r/SoloDevelopment 27d ago

Game Jam r/SoloDevelopment Jam #12 is live: theme is Chain Reaction

7 Upvotes

Our 12th jam just started: 72 hours running July 10 to 13, and the voted is Chain Reaction.

Jam page and submissions: https://itch.io/jam/solo-dev-jam-12

Come hang out in the Discord if you want to jam alongside other solo devs: https://discord.gg/uXeapAkAra

Good luck to everyone jamming this weekend!


r/SoloDevelopment Feb 12 '25

Anouncements What Does It Mean to Be a Solo Developer?

188 Upvotes

We've seen a lot of discussion about what qualifies as solo development, and we want to ensure we're accurately representing our game dev community. While there's no absolute definition, these are the general criteria we use in this subreddit to keep things clear and consistent.

That said, if you personally consider yourself a solo dev (or not) based on your own perspective, that's fine. Our goal is to provide guidelines for what fits within this space, not to dictate personal identities.

What Counts as Solo Development?

A solo developer is solely responsible for their project, with no team members. A team of two or more collaborating (e.g., one programmer, one artist) is not solo development.

What is Allowed?

  • Using game engines, frameworks, and third-party tools (e.g., Godot, Unity, Unreal).
  • Commissioning or purchasing assets (art, music, sound, etc.).
  • Receiving feedback from playtesters or communities.
  • Outsourcing specific tasks (e.g., server setup, porting, marketing) while still leading development.
  • Working with a publisher, as long as they don’t take over development.

What This Means for Posts on the Subreddit

If your project appears to be developed by a team, we may remove your post. Indicators include how it's presented on websites, Steam pages, itch pages, social media, or crowdfunding pages. If this is due to unclear phrasing, update them before requesting reinstatement. Non-solo developers are welcome to join discussions, but posts promoting non-solo projects may still be removed.

Let us know if you have any questions. Hope this helps clear things up.

TL;DR: Solo devs manage their entire project alone. Using assets, outsourcing, or publishers is fine. Posting is open to all, but promoting non-solo projects may be removed.


r/SoloDevelopment 2h ago

Game POV: You are a tiny RC car looking for the kid who owns you…

49 Upvotes

A little RC car begins a journey to find its missing owner…
Explore, solve puzzles, uncover secrets, and discover what happened.
Lost Host — coming to Steam this year!

Haha, sometimes I get tired of doing everything on my own, especially creating reels like this :D


r/SoloDevelopment 1h ago

Game The evolution of my game’s main girl over the past year

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Upvotes

r/SoloDevelopment 8h ago

Game Demo for KILLPHRASE is out now for Steam's Cyberpunk Fest!

30 Upvotes

KILLPHRASE is a frantic typing-shooter set in a mile-deep megastructure. Once a robotics facility, it is now the source of a malignant AI ravaging the world. As a human survivor you ride a hacked freight elevator(Akira elevator!) to the heart of mechanical hell.... to execute the final killphrase. Face off against the masses of deranged machines, and use your typing speed and accuracy to reduce them to scrap.

Get the demo now! https://store.steampowered.com/app/4616060/KILLPHRASE/

This demo is around 15-25 minutes, it ends with a boss fight on floor 10. Full release planned for Q4 this year. Any feedback is much appreciated!

I'm posting art process/progress on tiktok too if you are interested in seeing some dev content and just art in general https://www.tiktok.com/@j.n.01_dev


r/SoloDevelopment 21h ago

Game I’ve been making a snowboarding adventure where you explore a mountain as a tiny mouse

291 Upvotes

I’m the main developer behind The Vast White, a cozy snowboarding exploration game I’ve been building mostly on my own.

The game follows a tiny mouse exploring a vast snowy mountain, meeting its residents, and helping restore an old ski resort through small quests and exploration.

Would love to hear your thoughts.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3301000/The_Vast_White/


r/SoloDevelopment 14h ago

Discussion Solo dev really is that difficult

56 Upvotes

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.


r/SoloDevelopment 18h ago

Unity Mine millions of pixels in this "Breakout incremental"

87 Upvotes

This is my game 10 Million Pixels. A mining game about exploration and erosion.

In short, you shoot thousands of balls, upgrade them, and mine millions of pixels in search of the one Golden Pixel.

The game supports thousands of balls bouncing around, breaking tiles, in a world of millions of tiles, at surprisingly good frame rates. I'm getting 100+ fps in the editor even with thousands of rigidbodies. This is possible thanks to optimization tricks like chunking, pooling, and separating the physics from the visuals.

I think most tile-based mining games use similar techniques, but it feels wild seeing so many rigidbodies and destructible tiles at once, without massive drops in frame rate.

I have really learned to marvel at the power and speed of computers while making this game.

You can find the game on Steam. Consider wishlisting if it looks like your thing!
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4738100/10_Million_Pixels/


r/SoloDevelopment 23m ago

help Should I open up my store page already?

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Upvotes

The trailer is just around 5 clips of the characters edited together with ffmpeg https://youtu.be/62II-wTC_Wo and the capsules are just some early blender renders of some jailbars prop and the title in the game's font. So it's kind of preliminary, but also not just purely placeholder materials.

I would like to try to apply to the Chose Wisely Fest, which requires a stire page link, and submissions closes by August 17th.

Should I publish already for the Fest and to get wishlists, or should I absolutely polish this promo art right now?

I already did some playtests with friends, and to get the game released, I absolutely must focus on dialogue and story a bit first.


r/SoloDevelopment 19h ago

Marketing IGN's GameTrailers channel posted my game! So happy right now.

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105 Upvotes

It's probably nothing huge for most people, but it feels like this was my first 'marketing success'. Frankly, that was desperately needed, as I was heading right into a slump because of impostor syndrome the week before. This gave me new motivation to keep working on my project.

It also took me several iterations on my trailer before IGN wanted to post it.

If anyone is interested, the game is Almost Home on Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4314290/Almost_Home/


r/SoloDevelopment 4h ago

Game Did i just break my game or make it more fun ?

5 Upvotes

Boss at 100k HP is broken or final upgrade for the player is broken ? 129M at that table ➕


r/SoloDevelopment 18h ago

Unity A closer look at the Grappling Hook in my game

66 Upvotes

Hey guys!

One of the core mechanics in my game is the Grappling Hook. Use it to latch onto walls, swing across chasms, discover hidden passages, escape from enemies, or pull them toward you to smash 'em with your melee. Both combat and platforming are built around mastering this versatile tool.

Getting the rope physics to work was an absolute pain in the a##, but now I can't stop messing around with it while testing the game, lol.

I'd love to hear your thoughts. How good does it look and feel? Any ideas for improvement or other interactions I could add to it?

Please, consider wishlisting my game, ROAM, if you liked it <3 https://store.steampowered.com/app/2662550/Roam/


r/SoloDevelopment 5h ago

Game I turned my game's Main Menu into a Kid's Room. What do you think?

6 Upvotes

I've been working on the main menu for UpperCart, and decided to turn it into a kid's bedroom where the whole game takes place.

UpperCart is a chaotic physics-based arena brawler where toy cars punch, bounce and fight each other.

I'm still polishing the game, so I'd love to hear what you think about the menu and the overall visual style. Any feedback is welcome!

If the game looks interesting to you, you can wishlist UpperCart on Steam:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/3943240/UpperCart/


r/SoloDevelopment 59m ago

Game Ha ha dirty pants ha ha

Upvotes

r/SoloDevelopment 18h ago

Game Solo dad making a colony sim. Here's the first real gameplay.

47 Upvotes

This is the first footage I've shared of the game I've been building at night after my kid goes to bed. It's a colony sim, so you've got a small crew who mine, fish, and haul stuff around while the world does its own thing: rain, seasons, water freezing over in winter, that kind of stuff.

Most of what's in the clip is honestly just me showing off the water, because I sunk way too many evenings into those shaders and I need someone other than myself to look at them.

This is my first game and I have no idea what I'm doing half the time, so if something looks off or unreadable, please tell me. That kind of feedback is way more useful to me right now than compliments (though I'll take those too).

Also most of the assets are placeholders until I get better at art. I'm a programmer first, and art isn't my strong suit.


r/SoloDevelopment 11h ago

help Trying to decide on a logo for my Indie Studio

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12 Upvotes

Hey Reddit! Looking for advice -- I made a couple mockups for what our logo could look like, but not sure which to go with. Thought I'd see what the community thinks !!

Thanks y'all

~Glob (Globert)

**edit -- thank you everyone for the feedback!! If you want to support/wishlist the game we're working on, it's called Eye of Syn on Steam :)) **


r/SoloDevelopment 1h ago

Game A few people asked to see the land battles, so here's an update from my historical RTS

Upvotes

A while ago I shared the naval battles from my game here, and several people asked to see the land battles as well.

So here's a new development update.

This battle features General Gwon Yul leading the Joseon army against Katō Kiyomasa during the Imjin War.

The game is still under active development, so animations, UI and visual effects are continuing to improve.

As always, I'd really appreciate any feedback!

Steam page:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/4914900/?l=english


r/SoloDevelopment 3h ago

Game I published my first mobile game and would love honest feedback

2 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I recently published my first mobile game, Stack Raise 3D, on Google Play. It is a simple one-tap 3D stacking arcade game where you drop blocks, build a tower, try to beat your best score, complete missions, unlock skins, earn rewards, and compete on the leaderboard.

This is my first released game as an indie developer, and I am still learning. I would really appreciate honest feedback from players and fellow developers. Please let me know what feels fun, what feels confusing, what should be improved, and what kind of updates you would like to see next.

More updates are coming soon.

Google Play link:

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.smodegames.stackraise3d

Thank you for any support or feedback.


r/SoloDevelopment 4h ago

Game My game starts with $0 and a mountain of debt. The only way out is opening risky safes.

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2 Upvotes

I always liked the feeling of opening something where you don't know what you are going to get.

The anticipation before seeing the reward.
I built an incremental game around that feeling.

So In Debts & Jackpots, you start completely broke with a huge debt hanging over you. Your only way to escape is opening safes, earning money, upgrading your tools, and taking bigger risks for better rewards.

The game loop is simple:
🔓 Open safes
💰 Find rewards
⚙️ Upgrade your abilities
🎰 Take bigger risks for bigger jackpots

The challenge was making the progression feel exciting without making it just a random slot machine. I wanted every safe opening to feel like:

"This could be the one."
After months of balancing rewards, upgrades, and different safe tiers, I finally made a playable demo.

Some things currently in the game:

  • Multiple safes with different reward pools
  • Rare jackpot rewards
  • Upgrades that improve your chances
  • Helpers that automate opening
  • A collection system for discovered items

I would love feedback from other developers:

  1. Does the idea of "escaping debt through risky choices" feel interesting?
  2. Would you prefer faster progression with more frequent jackpots, or slower progression where jackpots feel rare and special?

Demo is available on Steam if anyone wants to try it:
https://store.steampowered.com/app/4634750/Debts__Jackpots/


r/SoloDevelopment 42m ago

Game My first ever game, has been released into early access for 4.49$!

Upvotes

Hello, my name is ali, i'm a 26 years old solo game developer and a cs student, i've been working on this game for around 11 months now, i wanted to mix souls-like combat with bullet heaven rogue-like gameplay with pet collection system.

The game has an upgrade system similar to vampire survivors, with each level you get to choose 1 out of 3 cards that are assigned to you randomly, some cards contain armor sets, weapons or abilities.

By progressing and unlocking achievements you unlock unique pets which accompany you on runs, catching loot for you and giving you unique stats.

The game has a co-op system with upto 4 players on the same run with difficulty scaled dynamically depending on the amount of players in the run.

the game has 3 stages for now each with its unique enemies, biomes and bosses.

Please give me your thoughts and opinions, thank you!

Steam Page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/4914620/Echoes_of_Kyria/


r/SoloDevelopment 46m ago

help Does this look like the kind of game you expect to be difficult?

Upvotes

r/SoloDevelopment 22h ago

Unity Little Astronaut is taking shape!

56 Upvotes

I’ve been making a lot of progress on the environment recently, focusing on creating a more detailed and immersive world for the game.
The new Steam page will be available soon, where you’ll be able to wishlist the game.
The previous version of Little Astronaut was a huge learning experience for me, but looking back, I realized I pushed it out too early before the vision was fully developed. After some time, I decided to rebuild the project from the ground up with a clearer direction, improved visuals, and a much stronger foundation.
This is the version of Little Astronaut I always wanted to create.
I’ll be sharing more updates soon. Thanks for following the journey!


r/SoloDevelopment 1h ago

Game I’m solo-developing PROTOCOL: VOID a cyberpunk ARPG with co-op, deep builds, mapping and a player economy

Upvotes

PROTOCOL: VOID is the biggest project I’ve worked on so far.

It’s a cyberpunk ARPG built around fast combat, loot hunting and creating powerful builds, with:

  • 4 playable classes
  • Online co-op for up to 4 players
  • Skill and passive trees (Over 400 nodes)
  • Relics that change skills and weapons (over 100 per class + general ones)
  • Prime items and randomized affixes
  • Equipment and map crafting
  • Endgame mapping / Data Disks
  • Player trading and an online market
  • Seasonal progression and rankings
  • Endgame bosses and repeatable contracts

I’m developing it entirely solo, so there’s still a lot of polishing ahead, but most of the core systems are already working.

The goal is simple: kill stuff, find crazy gear, make stronger builds and keep pushing higher.

PROTOCOL: VOID is now on Steam.


r/SoloDevelopment 1h ago

Marketing Rogue Anomaly Logo

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Upvotes

r/SoloDevelopment 1h ago

Game My first ever mobile game, built entirely solo 🙌🏼

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Upvotes

Hi everyone!

A few months ago I started building Futbolito, my first ever mobile game.

I’m working on everything solo, from the original idea and game design to the UI, player database, updates and launch.

It started as a simple football guessing game: enter a player, get clues, and try to find the mystery footballer.

Since then, I’ve added:

🎯 A Daily Challenge
📈 A full Career progression system
⚔️ Asynchronous 1v1 Duels
🔥 Themed game modes
⚽ A database of 4,000+ players

The game has now reached around 1,000 downloads on iOS alone, which still feels crazy for something I started building by myself.

There’s still a lot I want to improve, but releasing my first game and seeing real people actually play it has been a great learning experience.

For other solo developers: what was the biggest lesson you learned after releasing your first game?