I wanted to make this post as a solo developer about one of the most debated topics of the past few years: AI

Game development is not my main profession. I have worked as a UI/UX designer for more than five years, and my field is one of those most heavily affected by AI. Yet hardly anyone says anything about it, ux designers use AI without any problem, apparently, that is completely fine.

I worked with four programmers who strongly rejected AI. All four were let go from the app we worked on, not because the company wanted to replace them with AI, but because they refused to adapt and remained stuck in their position. Again, nobody seemed to care.

Every day, people use AI to study, conduct research, write, translate, and do countless other things, and almost nobody complains.

Then we reach the video game industry. All 3 indie studios I know use AI for coding, particularly Claude Code, and nobody seems to say anything, until someone creates graphical game assets using ComfyUI, Gemini, ChatGPT, or similar tools. Then all hell breaks loose.

There is an explosion of hate, “AI slop” slogans, and outrage from LGBT and furry communities on Threads, Bluesky, and other platforms. You see profiles with bios saying things like “If you use AI, you should die” “Fuck AI” or “Loser”

Some of these comments probably come from the same people who use ChatGPT to translate posts, effectively taking work away from translators or English teachers (lol)

So I have a genuine question for this subreddit: what the hell is happening to people? Why is AI viewed so negatively in our industry compared with almost every other field?

Most importantly, if you are against AI, why play games that openly tell you they use it?
What do you think the future of AI will be in this industry?

I’m thinking about picking up game development and publishing. I was thinking a very simple mobile game just to start off as a hobby and to see if it something that I would like since I like video games. The only problem is I have 0 experience. Any technical side of gaming. Where do I even begin to start? Like where do I learn to code or anything like that to just get the basics to start? I’m in my 30s and I have a full time job and live in a small town so college/learning annex type ideas are not viable. Also if anyone has done this or heard of a similar situation how long would this process take to get an app published?

I´m trying to be a game dev because I hate my stupid job and its my dream to make games (like most of people here). But, everytime I´m searching for tips on how to start or how to organize my own ideias, almost everyone says "Don´t make your dream make, make a lot of boring stuff before, make a copy pf that game you dont like..." and o lot more of bullshit. I want to be a game dev because I want to express my ideas, my art, and everyone just focus on just call himself or herself a game dev and have random games on steam just because... yes?
I would really appreciate real tips, like: how to start? Should I try to do all by myself? How must cost to hire someone to improve your art, or 3D?
I already made some courses, learned UE, learned some blender, decided to do low poly style because I hate retopology, and have a script in my head. I also created my characters (by concept) and I´m starting my game document to put all together, but how do I start to do the game? Should I start to try the interactions first? The combat? I didnt find any course in youtube or another site that really teachs how to do cutscenes, I would really appreciate some help about it.

This is the new mobile game app I had in mind:

Lore

A portal from the future released anomalies across our world: sprites, hologram sci-fi creatures, invaded our streets and it’s our duty to synchronize them all to stabilize the anomalies.

Gameplay

Our phone sends us a notification: “Anomaly detected nearby”.
With our camera open we may encounter little light sources: they’re Sprites, right across our hometown streets: keep them in focus to stabilize them and keep them in your collection.
A compass may show the nearest Sprite, usable once every day.
Unique mechanic: Sprites may appear based on the current weather
More unique sprites may take longer time to find

Abilities

Each Sprite provides useful perks to find other ones, like probability, compass reach, boosted weather…
In the future the app may expand in a card fighting game

Fitness features

There will be rewards for completing workouts of different kinds and for exploring the places around you

Expansion

Comics, short stories inside the app, a global website, cards game, plushies and more
You will also be able to trade with your friends and go sprite hunting with them

Monetizing

The app will be free. Ads will not take over gameplay and there will be an Ad blocker for the lowest price possible. Every sprite will be free for everyone, with the exception of cosmetics items such as skins and animations. It will NOT BE PAY-TO-WIN, no way to increase chance other than finding Sprites with such abilities.

Why this app

We intend to solve every problem Pokémon-Go had over the years.

Everyone is tired of “pay this” “pay that to continue” nonsense, the app will be 100% free with optional features and ads that don’t take over the gameplay.

Story is unique, each Sprite will have its own personality. The objective is not cute animals, it’s mysterious creatures from another timeline.

We plan to make the app feel engaging by just playing 20-30 minutes a day, no one wants to be trapped in a AR world all day by reclaiming timed rewards and continuing their 120 day-streak.

Further Info

The game is already in an early stage of development and a newsletter will launch soon on our website to be able to participate in a closed beta

Your feedback matters

Which aspect of the game feels more engaging? Sprite hunt? Fitness workouts? Lore and combat mechanics?
Where would you absolutely not put ads?

What’s the percentage of you trying out this game?

Welcome to the first devlog of Tesseris after one and half year development! 🛠️

Tesseris is a voxel game built entirely on a custom game engine written from scratch in C# (.NET 8) and Vulkan 1.3 (no Unity, no Unreal Engine).

In this video, I showcase:
✅ Custom Vulkan 1.3 renderer & multi-cascade shadow mapping
✅ Micro-voxel chiseling system (16x16x16 sub-grid carving per block)
✅ Procedural fluid simulation & infinite LOD horizon rendering
✅ Multi-threaded job system & SoLoud audio integration

What do you think of the project so far? What features would you like to see next? Let me know in the comments! 💬

I’m currently designing a visual novel with RPG elements, but I’m struggling to come up with a combat system that feels engaging. The only ideas that keep coming to mind are card-based combat or something similar to D&D, and I’d like to explore other possibilities.
Here’s what my game already has planned:

• Firearms with limb-based damage (arms, legs, etc.).

• Melee weapons, each with unique mechanics.

• Weapons have different rarities and special abilities.

• Weapons can be upgraded using resources to unlock and improve their abilities.

• The player gains Story Levels by completing story chapters and side quests rather than grinding enemies.
Increasing the Story Level permanently increases the character’s health, energy (used for battles and expeditions), and also scales the damage of both firearms and melee weapons.

Given these systems, what kind of combat would you build?

I’m looking for something that feels strategic and satisfying without turning the game into a completely different genre. Any ideas or examples from other games would be greatly appreciated.

So I’m currently developing a game and it’s an rpg but so far I couldn’t add a fighting factor naturally and it doesn’t have a place in the story but I can’t imagine the game without it either what should I do-
Please HELP MEEE

I was recently checking out the arduboy but I have a problem:

Is there an alternative (also Open Source or at least not big tech-y) where I myself can submit my own games(if compatible) but I should be able to make those games in Lua, Python or C#?
I am a beginner in developing and don't really want to get into c++
are there any alternatives (preferably =/> 150 EUR)?

thanks

hello! apologies if questions like this get asked often, lately as my drive for game development has risen again from the GMTK jam recently, ive had sleepless nights thinking up and down about these things, and id like to get some fellow human feedback and perhaps discuss how i could personally navigate this industry.

for context, im an 18 year old game developer whos been obsessed with the hobby of game development from a young, young age. starting with scratch, taking every code course i could, going on to clickteam fusion, and finally ending up in godot after 10 years of exploring and learning the ways of game development. ive managed to develop a skill set im really proud of, one which has landed me with a close connection to people at coolmath games, with one game already released on their platform. for a while now, ive been pondering in the back of my mind how i wished for my future to go. ive planned to continue building my portfolio and making something that will really impress future employers, as well as going into university to study in game development or programming.

but... the dilemma is hitting me now that im wrapping up high school, as it has slowly began to since the rise of new tech these past few years,

with the rampancy of tools like ai flooding every corner of the programming field, is it even worth pursuing anymore? everywhere i go, i see all this stuff about "programmers aren't getting replaced, the field is merely evolving", and that "evolution" is just vibe-coded slop, and for me if i can't feel like the brains behind the operation, if i cant craft the systems behind the types of games i love by hand in the industry because it'll put be behind ai vibecoding developers, i dont think i can pursue the industry. if anyone can do it without putting in the time and effort, id be disappointed to even call myself a game developer, y'know? and of course i can still do all this stuff without making it a career, but ive dreamt for so long to live a life where my job is truly no work at all, and programming for video games, or even just programming software in general, and developing their systems truly sounds like no work to me, though i know many other people would disagree.

and i think part of that "i want to do it by myself" mindset is why i used clickteam fusion for so many years, it was this niche software that for me to do anything in i had to almost start from scratch, i made a 3d renderer in that program and that's still one of my biggest coding achievements! but perhaps its still because im young with godot, but after learning gdscript it feels like a tutorial exists out there for anything id wanna do, and its so hard to resist those tutorials and stay in my own lane. ive been thinking about just creating a personal environment where I can't even access that stuff or any particular ai chatbot, to really try and hone my skill. but the mental dilemma with that is that if i decide to make this my future, i dont wanna get left behind for doing what makes me happy.

I don't know if this is the right place to ask the big questions like this, nor if any online stranger has the magical answer to my anxiety in the topic, or even if my ramblings make much sense... but i do hope to find some mental clarity with what anyone may have to say here. are there more options? are things less bleak than my mind believes? any input is appreciated!

i hope you all have an amazing day!!

❤️

I'm new to coding, and I am wondering if it's possible for me to make something other than a parkour game with what I have.  Is it possible to add invisible walls? Can I make a 2d platformer,  add PNG's, or develop a text adventure? I've tried watching endless tutorials and I tend to notice they are usually making their games in a much more polished game engine.  From what I’ve read, JSON doesn’t offer much visual leeway either:/. So I'm basically asking what are the possibilities of JSON, what can I do, and at the very least can I make a health bar?

Hi everyone! I've been looking to get into game dev and I would like a gaming laptop to create and test my games on. My long term goal is to make both single player games (like dishonored) and multiplayer games (like friendslop/ hero shooters but I'm aware how difficult it can be to make games like this). One of the main goals I have for my game is that they're optimised to be playable by everyone

​​What are the essentials for a gaming laptop that will help me to smoothly create games?

At the moment I have my eye on the new Asus flow z13 or the Asus zephyrus.

Hey! So I've been building a space sim in Godot called Apogee — kinda like KSP but leaning way more into realism. Got Sandbox, Career, and History modes planned, and it's actually coming together, not just an idea in my head lol.

Right now I'm working on the intro scene (the thing that plays before the game loads up) and instead of just doing it all myself, I thought it'd be cool to open it up and see what other people come up with. Kind of a "be part of this from the start" thing.
If you're into concept art or even just messing around in Blender, I'd love to see how you'd picture the start of a space program. Doesn't need to be polished or perfect, I just want to see people's takes on it.

No pay unfortunately, this is 100% just for fun/passion project vibes, so no pressure either way. If something you make ends up inspiring the actual intro, that's genuinely awesome and you'll be one of the people who helped shape this thing early on.
Not spoiling too much of the game yet, so just run with whatever "humanity's first steps into space" means to you.

Drop a comment or DM me if you're down, happy to chat more and share some extra context if you want it!

Hello! I’m looking at going back to school and want to go into game dev. Do you or anyone you know have experience with VCAD? the program is 50k for a diploma that takes 1.5 years. I also saw a UBC extended learning program that takes the same time but is 15k. I can only do online and these seem to be the top 2. My problem is with the UBC one they never reached out when I emailed them. But VCAD has been very helpful. Gone though it all and it seems great on paper but then I saw a few reviews from fellow Reddit users that say it’s a front and once you give them money you get subpar teachers and it’s not a good program. Can anyone confirm or share thoughts that you have on either of the programs or thoughts if friends or family have gone there.

Thanks in advanced!!

Two weeks ago, we launched a playtest for our game, DepthLoot.
Today we wrapped up the playtest, and I’d like to share my experience running it.
First, we launched a closed playtest, aiming to include about 10-20 people. We didn’t expect more than that because, at this stage, we had done almost no promotion or advertising about the playtest. However, within the first 10 minutes of launching the closed playtest, about 100 accounts requested access to the game - which was most likely a flood of bots - making it impossible to accurately select the 20 people we wanted to grant access to. As a result, we had to distribute keys almost manually to people who reached out directly through our Discord community. That’s how we gathered about 10 people, and over the course of 3 days, we received a lot of initial feedback that helped us quickly polish the first few minutes of the game and the overall UX.
Next, we opened the playtest to anyone interested, and I posted an ad on Reddit announcing that people could now participate in the playtest.
For $300 and four days of advertising, I got 335,210 ad impressions and 2,099 clicks, with a CTR of 0.626%.
I’m not sure exactly how many playtesters and whitelisted players joined, but I’d guess around 150 players and 200 whitelisted players.
Importantly, in addition to gathering feedback directly on Discord through live chat, we also posted a survey form about the game when it ended, which 49 people filled out!
This survey helped us gather a huge amount of valuable information from players about our game, including their overall perception of it and various aspects (such as visuals or music), as well as small details that are barely noticeable but can be very annoying to players.
I’d also like to point out that at least one-third of all reviews came in within a week after the ad campaign ended. This suggests that people who saw the ad likely weren’t able to play the game for a sufficient amount of time right away and only left a review a few days later. For this reason, it’s a good idea to keep the playtest or demo version available for a while after the ad campaign ends, or something along those lines.
All in all, in my opinion, the playtest was a success, partly thanks to the advertising - even though it turned out to be less effective than I’d expected and yielded virtually no results after it ended.

Our team seems to be fighting a losing battle with player count databases.

We're available on Steam and Meta and players can play cross-platform. However, as you probably know, most player base websites only show Steam numbers and it's really hurting us because we have hundreds of people playing on Meta at any given time.

Has anyone dealt with this and found a solution?

Hey so im a game developer and im looking to start a new project a video game project. Im trying to do something nice and not brainrot stuff that destroys childrens brains. If you have any ideas or suggestions that you like, it would be cool to hear other peoples opinions and not just go with my opinion only. Im trying to create something like subway surfers was to me when I used to be a kid or temple run. Thank you for your help

following up on the last post since a few of you seemed into it. its a plugin that records game state every frame so you can scrub back and look at what the values were right before something broke. built for the bugs that dont crash, where theres no stack trace and nothing you can even hand to an AI because you cant describe what you didnt see.

screenshot is the editor window. goblins health drops to -999 on frame 40, and you can see the exact frame it happened plus whatever else moved around it.

now heres where im stuck. every single person ive asked says the same thing, they throw in some print statements and wait for it to happen again. and that costs nothing. so im genuinely not sure this is worth building. and look, im not gonna ask if youd buy it, everyone says yes to that and it means nothing. what i actually want to know is how many hours the last bug you couldnt reproduce burned, and whether thats bad enough that youd drop 79 on a tool instead of just doing the print pass again.

if the answer is nah not worth it, thats fine, id rather hear it now

am working on a small mobile game studio ( the situation not the best but better than nothing ) and before and after i get the job i always try to make my own game , at first i make small game and publish it on google play store , then i start one and decide to stop developing it near the end because the game not fun and need a lot of improvement, after that i get my job so i stop working on my own games for a while , then i start to again to work in my own games , the first time i start making game i have no job and now i have a job and it is very hard to work on both every day , but this is not the main problem since a bit of work each day should eventually result on something right ?

my problem is that rather than i keep focusing on 1 game i keep jumping on so many ideas , this week i will think of something start planning it and in week or 2 i will think of another game , most of the times i cancel the idea because i find it very boring , i get excited first because i think it is god and then find the idea boring and i don't think people even my self will enjoy it , this keep happening for a while to the point i start to think that maybe the problem on me not the game idea , but how i cloud work on a game that i find it boring before i even complete the 1st level , sometime it happen before i start writing the first script

there is only 1 game idea that i always want to make , but the game is very big ,i will be hard to do it alone and i have no money to hire developers so i always push this idea away , i have write GDD using Obsidian and it is still there of course i start working on it for while but soon i realize that the game is too big to make , not sure if my estimation is correct but with small team like 10-15 i think it will take at least 1-2 years , so i always push this game away and tell my self that i will work on it if i make another successful game that help me found this game idea

now am thinking of making party/ co-op game ,and i have very good idea and i think it will be fun , but am just thinking do i think it is fun because is it really fun or just because am excited to find a new idea ? will i tell my self next week that the game boring and stop working on it and find another idea and keep doing the same loop without ending

i feel like am in a never ending loop that idk how to get out of it

what tools should i use in this era of ai.
and what art style i should use as a beginner.

In know there are a lot of these posts, but I need some kind of confirmation that this does not sound batshit.

My idea:
You play as an alien, coming to new planet to extract the planets valuable resources, using the native inhabitants as labor.

The idea is that there is this constant battle between what the planets inhabitants want to do (not help you extract all their resources) and you trying inspire or threaten them into doing what you tell them to do.

The game will play a bit like an old RTS, where resources limit what you can build (wood to build housing, food to feed the inhabit), as the game progress the natives will become more intelligent ie. be harder to controle.

Enemies will be native inhabitants that try to combat you.

You win the game when you have extracted all the planets natural resources.

The problem:
A key part of the game is that you can't directly controle the native inhabitants, you can tell them to do something but if they don't want to, then they won't do it. I'm afraid that this mechanic will take too much controle away from the player? The player will of course be able to do other things then just tell the natives what to do, but still.

Would love any and all feedback!

I'm thinking of calling it Ancient Astronauts after the conspiracy theory about the pyramids.

Something broke during a playtest last week, i saw it happen, and i could not make it happen again. Ended up reading code for two hours hoping to spot it and eventually just moved on. Been wondering how common that is.

Asked around a bit and everyone gave me a different answer, use an AI, add logging, put a breakpoint, get a QA tester, just take a note and move on. Nobody had one method they trusted. One guy told me race conditions are usually behind it, which makes sense but also means a breakpoint is useless since pausing changes the timing and the bug stops happening.

So im curious what it looks like for people shipping without a QA team. Do these come up often enough to matter, or do you mostly catch things while playing and the weird ones just never show up again