Independent Game Development

A Brief History

 Although I've spent a good proportion of my life in the field of engineering of some form or another, I started my adventure in the software industry in a parallel fashion, much the same as a lot of game developers do today, way back in 1983.

Things were very different back then and to become a game developer you did need a lot of backing. No Steam, Switch or other online sign-ups. No free advertising on social media. No finding fellow artists or coders from around the world with a quick request on Twitter or Reddit. It was hard work and very, very costly.

You didn't only have to plan your game, write the code, probably do your own graphics and sounds, but you also would have to design the artwork for the box, source your blank cassette tapes, find a copying station, organise distribution, arrange all the advertising and much, much more. Just working out the price tag for your game from projected (hopeful) sales was a miracle to behold.

Because of all these reasons, most of us would sit in our bedrooms with a pen and paper and our top of the range ZX Spectrum with its impressive 128k memory, bash out a game all on our own and then go through the long and arduous journey of submitting it to a software company in the hope they would be willing to take a risk.

I sat in many an office back then, while someone told me thanks, but no thanks, and once in a while they would wheel in the lawyers who would screw you out all your rights for a chunk of cash you thought was a good deal. I could go on and on, but then I would have to change the name of this article to "The history of gaming", so I'll just shut up right now and move on.

Game development; is it really worth the risk?

There are several ways you can look at this to decide if it is worth it to you or not. The first is easy in my opinion. If you hate your current job, or simply don't have one or if you're working for someone else and it is making you unhappy. For me, this would be enough to give it a go. For you, things might be different, your financial state may force you to keep working, or you may have contracts and long term commitments to consider. 

The other way of looking at this is the way most will when daydreaming, "Will I make a million", probably not. The games industry is wild, fluctuating, and unforgiving territory, unless you can come up with something that goes viral like Fortnight or AngryBirds then you're in for a long, rough, uneasy ride.

Most developers will surely fail or at best gain a mediocre following of loyal fans, forcing them to return to their day jobs with their tail between their legs.

For the well organised and well thought out few, this can be the best move of your life. Raking in those royalties cheques from Steam every month, or better still being bought out by a big company can be a blast.

This, of course, won't happen to everyone, but the very fact that you're doing what you always wanted can be payment alone, even if it is short-lived.

What do you need?

In short, money. Forget all the books and videos that bang on about determination, patience, and hard work, if you can't eat then none of these matters. Of course, you will need all of those things, but if you can't pay your bills then what use are they?

You're going to need backing, savings, or a good source of passive income. A partner that believes in you can be a great thing, but make sure you know when it's time to give up and pay attention to their belief in you at all times. If you see it fading, it's time to rethink your dream or you could end up buying meals for one at the supermarket and seeing your kids on a Saturday.

If you're lucky enough to have saved a good amount of cash in the bank, make sure you plan the use of that cash out to the penny. Some projects can go on for years, so be prepared to take a part-time job to keep your head above water. 

Then there is passive income, a lot of game developers turn to youtube for this. Documenting your games progress can supply you with a much-needed top-up for your coffers and it is wise to do it before you need it.

Luckily, it isn't all doom and gloom. There are plenty of ways to make money online in the 21st century, and even better, get backing from the people. Crowdfunding, Kickstarters, and Patreon are just a few. Remember to do these things early, don't wait until you're desperate. The decision to go it alone can also be the worst decision of your life, and something you may regret forever. Do it right and be smart about it.

Getting noticed

This is the one thing that most people fail at the first fence. You can write the best game the world has ever seen, but if the world never gets to see it, what's the point?

Marketing is evil and you can spend more time (and money) doing it than actually developing your game/ software. 

Sadly, there is no magic solution, but this is the 21st century and with a little organisation and know how you can get the word out for free. 

Unlike the money side of things, don't advertise your idea before you've got something visible to advertise. Ideas can be stolen, and ideas are generally not that exciting to hear about. Also, ideas can change at the drop of a hat, and after drumming up support for one thing, then providing another doesn't help your credibility. See every game ever for more details on this.

Once you have something to show the masses, put some time and effort into your advertising. A short post on Twitter can look bad if your grammar and English, in general, is awful. Ask your friends (you know, the smart one, not the one in cargo shorts that says dude a lot) to check the text you intend to put with your posts.

Don't change your text for different platforms. No spur of the moment posts. Write them in word, have them checked for mistakes, then copy, paste the same text everywhere you can.

Where? Reddit, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Youtube, your blog, your website, your Patreon, your Kickstarter, crowdfunding, your Discord channel etc. Don't post on one or two platforms and then do the rest tomorrow, do them at all at once. Make sure your post has links to your blog/ website, or where they can see videos of your awesome creation.

Once you have reeled in a few unsuspecting followers you're going to need to make time each day to post new stuff, even if it is only a screenshot. If you go dark, you will stay there. It's cold and lonely in the dark...

Summary

It would take an entire book to cover just a small percentage of all the things you need as an independent game developer, and even then, that would just be my personal opinion. If you are currently attempting this, or have a future intention, I wish you all the luck in the world.

I am considering doing an article or two about specific games that I've noticed making ground on social media. If you are an independent game developer and you have something worth writing about, please, drop me a line and tell me all about it.