A little about independent game developers
It so happened that I have been engaged in full-time indie development for a long time. This means that the only source of income is games that I do not bespoke. No freelancing or remote work. At the same time, co-host of the podcast for indie developers, where guests tell what it is like to be independent developers in one or another part of the market, using a certain technology and aiming at some platforms. This article is a small FAQ for the frequent questions that come up.
Why are there indies?
')
I think that the life of an independent developer is the choice of people who understand that in the company they will not get what indie work can give them. This may be a loner, who thinks that he himself can develop stronger; release a more independent product; make more money; spend time with more benefits. Separated, he gets all the freedoms and limitations of indie.
What issues need to be concerned before starting to make a game?
First of all, unfortunately, this is time and money. You need to honestly ask yourself how much time you can spend on the game. Then this number will have to be multiplied by two. At this time, you need some kind of minimal money cushion, which will allow you to sometimes get sick (and there will not be paid medical insurance and gyms), sometimes to have fun (in a state of depression few people can be productive) and for unforeseen expenses. This amount is the "budget" of your game, which is better to beat off to make the next game. Speech of course about the full-time indie. If you are engaged in development in parallel to the main work, then time is simply impossible to calculate.
What is the difference between indie development and working in a company?
Freedom appears. The freedom to choose a convenient mode of work, the choice of tools, the freedom to choose partners. Almost immediately it becomes obvious that indie cannot compete with large companies. He must either create a studio, setting convenient rules for it or somehow cheat.
By spending a lot of time creating cool Disney animations and a huge amount of content, you are competing with studios that specialize in this, with a huge number of people who do essentially the same job. In my opinion, indies should amaze with ideas, unique styliistics and atmosphere. For large companies, it is risky to change tactics without knowing the result; their product series are minimally different from each other. The ability to look into the future - the best quality for companies, the ability to surprise - for indie.
How important is experience, can the first game be good?
Of course, the first game can be a hit (novices are lucky), and experience does not guarantee that it will become one. But experience gives a more extensive look at the development: the choice of tools, mode of operation, market sense. Experience helps to avoid mistakes that you learn only when making a game. For example, you can forget to add sound on and off buttons to some screen and stumble upon crowds of disgruntled users who will write angry reviews and put a minus where possible. Or make the active zone of the button its pallet, and not the whole button entirely. And even if you can click on it in 99 cases out of a hundred, a bunch of users will aimlessly click on the text inside the button, not understanding why the text stands out and there is no transition. And even if your game is awesome with super cool music; Part of particularly harmful players will not forgive you for this mistake. Welcome to the Internet.
But having made 10 correct buttons, the eleventh will be made on the machine, already full of hand and for that thanks to the experience. It is he who will allow the hit to avoid a stupid file by polishing your creation.
Is it possible to gain experience without making games?
I think this is possible, but for me such an attempt turned out to be a failure. A long time ago I found an excellent resource with a huge amount of articles for indie. There was an incredible number of collections of articles on game design, sales and development in general, free graphics and music, plus a bunch of everything. Almost everything was very interesting, and I read it in vain, trying to apply everything to one game. But the disadvantage of such articles is that they are intended for people with a certain experience and therefore there were not analyzed the problematic points that newbies might have, such as a problem with the active area of ​​the button. This is because layers are important in experience. Layer by layer, you need to create an understanding of the design. Reading articles about behaviorism in an IMO runs the risk of being a second-grader who was asked to read Kafka.
How important are indie?
Significance is difficult to overestimate. Now is their era. Indies have ceased to be games for hipsters and have become commonplace. Steam has introduced a section for indie games where you can buy them along with the games of big companies. Apple Store gives your games the same privileges as games of large companies. Sony is looking for indie to cooperate. Microsoft is looking for indie. The market does not reject your talent. All offer the same conditions 70 developer - 30 distributor. If someone wants to enter the market with the worst conditions, they simply will not cooperate. Entire sites appear for people looking for a direct connection with a buyer like a kickstarter. For indie they organize conferences and meetings that are cared for and cherished. For them, special OUYA consoles are produced and they are given the first to test new equipment.
Can they survive by exclusively playing their own games?
The question of earnings is always painful. Each platform has its own rules and profits. There is practically no limit, for example, minecraft earned about 100 million in 2012. But not everyone is so smooth. According to well-known statistics of mobile applications, the top 25 developers received half of all profits in 2012. 80% of developers get 3% of profits. 19% of applications earn $ 24k. 80% - $ 300. And even your mobile game will earn 100k, then you will give 30% to the eplu, 30 to your publisher and share the rest with your partner and tax. To start getting more than you would get in other jobs and at the same time doing it all the time, I would highlight three different ways. The audience of portal flash drives and mobile games is bored. They are looking for new videos on YouTube, new pictures on VKontakte and new games on Armorheims and Appstore. New ideas, mechanics, games using new features of devices is what will definitely take off. Then, according to the list, high-quality continuations of old hits with a bunch of fans and games that can lead a certain niche in the market (close niche = when reciting the words “hardcore indie platformer” everyone remembers super fight). Then there are games that close the flaws of some hits with the introduction of new features. Then clones and trash. It is necessary either to make one game from the first category (Minecraft, Journey) or to make one two games from the second category (Shank 2, successful continuation of Shank's epic) Limbo (black and white physical platformer) or to make many-many games of the third category. Some studios, surprisingly, cope with this. For example, Berzerk studio , a group of 6 people, month after month gives great games, almost always on old mechanics. In total, they have 20+ games, Berzerk ball 2 went for 100k, and their new one for 50k, so we can assume that the guys with this strategy came to success.
What should be the first game? Is it possible to do it with a zero budget?
I still think that the first game should be small and test. Even if you have a super idea for a super game. You still do not have the budget for protracted, there is no sense of the market and the audience. No experience. Therefore, you put off this idea for a while and take on a small test project.
Often there is a feeling of remaking everything from scratch, redrawing, reprogramming a piece or all of the code after we learn a new drawing technique or reread a book about the architecture of the code. Small games are good because we have time to finish the game before destructive thoughts come to us. And even if you decide to remake a part of the game or after remarks about the unprecedented inhibition of it, even on the most powerful computers you rewrite not so much.
In addition, small games do not have time to change ideologically. This is a very useful experience for a game designer, because in any, even the biggest game, it is important to keep the idea, the core. It can acquire features, change the appearance, but the idea embedded in it should remain unchanged.
Plus, everything is higher - now it’s incredibly easy to make a prototype of a game. At worst, it can take three days. Experienced igrodely seeing the prototype can assess the viability of the game.
Do I need a partner?
Improving the quality of the game and leaving the level of "small games", you will reach the level of competition with large companies and studios. If it starts to seem like you can't make a competitive game, look for an assistant. The type of this helper should depend on your confidence in the game.
If you cannot provide good art / code / sound for the game, then it is better to give it to a freelancer or to outsource.
If you have a game that is also lame or you have little idea, then it’s better to find a partner. If you want new ideas in the game - look for a partner. If you want a second head to criticize you, you need a partner. The only difference is that the partner takes part in the development of the game, and not just performs the task, but this difference is huge. Therefore, in a dispute over who is more important, the artist or programmer defeats the game designer. And partners are equal. But choosing a partner for a long project is choosing a partner for a flight into space. If something goes wrong after six months of work, it is very expensive to change it.
Which genre is best to choose?
Fortunately, it does not matter. By becoming an indie developer you can do whatever you want. Of the last games I remember, I would point out the popular indie game Paper Please. This is a simulator of an immigration officer who decides who should be allowed to enter his country.
Do I need to make the game unique?
It seems to me unique not to do everything in the game. You can be limited to the idea and style. The freedom to create game elements is at the same time a vice, an opportunity to be misunderstood. The human brain is based on past experience, so when recognizing images it is better to use recognizable patterns.
For example - vampires - creatures with fangs drinking blood, zombies - dead people. From the report of the creators of PVZ, I remember his remark about the fact that his mother thought that the zombies in the game are just old people and did not understand why they should be killed.
Choose a technique of illustration, so that it reinforces the idea of ​​the game and fits the audience. If you want to reach the maximum audience, then you need to learn from movies / cartoons with the maximum audience (Shrek, Pirates of the Caribbean, Cut the rope), use recognizable templates and be moderately predictable. In the case of niche games, the rules are dictated by the specifics of the audience. Use references for drawing, and screenshots from successful games to understand the principles of drawing, but you should not copy or glaze, because it will not bleed your skill.
What do the players remember?
Games are remembered for their distinctive features. Idea / graphics / music / easter eggs. In Alien Anarchs I made a lot of content, but almost all the comments were about Easter eggs from films. Having finished playing, players remember what they can share with others: cool situations, high scores, funny stories.
What should indie remember before ending the game?
Indies need to remember that they are waiting for the final product. Without a good product, no one is interested in how much strength and energy he has invested in his game. The game is above the developer, it is important. If you want everyone to know your story, then put it into the game. Independent developers ask themselves questions and answer them themselves, and not just complete tasks. This gives them the opportunity to show their views. But be prepared for the fact that your view is not shared by everyone, and your game will not be the second minecraft.
Before you finish the game, it is best to show it to the test group - to your friends, younger brothers and sisters, colleagues. But in any case, do not ask them what needs to be changed in the game. This is mistake number one. Never ask. We need to watch how they play. Just watch.
Ideal option to ask them to record a video or share the screen in Skype.
How are successful games different from ordinary ones?
Creating a successful game is consistently making the right decisions. From the choice of engine and platform to the last pixel.
And the secret of successful indies is to do what they like. Otherwise, why this job?
What else
If someone has an interesting video where I tell this text in a voice beyond the grave - here is a shot from the Casual Connect conference .
There is an English translation.
Of course, I will be happy to talk in the comments and if it's interesting to talk and meet in person, then a bunch of indie will be at a chic Devgamm conference for developers on December 7-8 in Kiev.
There is also a one-year-old video where I give a talk on a similar topic on Devgamma.
Why are there indies?
')
I think that the life of an independent developer is the choice of people who understand that in the company they will not get what indie work can give them. This may be a loner, who thinks that he himself can develop stronger; release a more independent product; make more money; spend time with more benefits. Separated, he gets all the freedoms and limitations of indie.
What issues need to be concerned before starting to make a game?
First of all, unfortunately, this is time and money. You need to honestly ask yourself how much time you can spend on the game. Then this number will have to be multiplied by two. At this time, you need some kind of minimal money cushion, which will allow you to sometimes get sick (and there will not be paid medical insurance and gyms), sometimes to have fun (in a state of depression few people can be productive) and for unforeseen expenses. This amount is the "budget" of your game, which is better to beat off to make the next game. Speech of course about the full-time indie. If you are engaged in development in parallel to the main work, then time is simply impossible to calculate.
What is the difference between indie development and working in a company?
Freedom appears. The freedom to choose a convenient mode of work, the choice of tools, the freedom to choose partners. Almost immediately it becomes obvious that indie cannot compete with large companies. He must either create a studio, setting convenient rules for it or somehow cheat.
By spending a lot of time creating cool Disney animations and a huge amount of content, you are competing with studios that specialize in this, with a huge number of people who do essentially the same job. In my opinion, indies should amaze with ideas, unique styliistics and atmosphere. For large companies, it is risky to change tactics without knowing the result; their product series are minimally different from each other. The ability to look into the future - the best quality for companies, the ability to surprise - for indie.
How important is experience, can the first game be good?
Of course, the first game can be a hit (novices are lucky), and experience does not guarantee that it will become one. But experience gives a more extensive look at the development: the choice of tools, mode of operation, market sense. Experience helps to avoid mistakes that you learn only when making a game. For example, you can forget to add sound on and off buttons to some screen and stumble upon crowds of disgruntled users who will write angry reviews and put a minus where possible. Or make the active zone of the button its pallet, and not the whole button entirely. And even if you can click on it in 99 cases out of a hundred, a bunch of users will aimlessly click on the text inside the button, not understanding why the text stands out and there is no transition. And even if your game is awesome with super cool music; Part of particularly harmful players will not forgive you for this mistake. Welcome to the Internet.
But having made 10 correct buttons, the eleventh will be made on the machine, already full of hand and for that thanks to the experience. It is he who will allow the hit to avoid a stupid file by polishing your creation.
Is it possible to gain experience without making games?
I think this is possible, but for me such an attempt turned out to be a failure. A long time ago I found an excellent resource with a huge amount of articles for indie. There was an incredible number of collections of articles on game design, sales and development in general, free graphics and music, plus a bunch of everything. Almost everything was very interesting, and I read it in vain, trying to apply everything to one game. But the disadvantage of such articles is that they are intended for people with a certain experience and therefore there were not analyzed the problematic points that newbies might have, such as a problem with the active area of ​​the button. This is because layers are important in experience. Layer by layer, you need to create an understanding of the design. Reading articles about behaviorism in an IMO runs the risk of being a second-grader who was asked to read Kafka.
How important are indie?
Significance is difficult to overestimate. Now is their era. Indies have ceased to be games for hipsters and have become commonplace. Steam has introduced a section for indie games where you can buy them along with the games of big companies. Apple Store gives your games the same privileges as games of large companies. Sony is looking for indie to cooperate. Microsoft is looking for indie. The market does not reject your talent. All offer the same conditions 70 developer - 30 distributor. If someone wants to enter the market with the worst conditions, they simply will not cooperate. Entire sites appear for people looking for a direct connection with a buyer like a kickstarter. For indie they organize conferences and meetings that are cared for and cherished. For them, special OUYA consoles are produced and they are given the first to test new equipment.
Can they survive by exclusively playing their own games?
The question of earnings is always painful. Each platform has its own rules and profits. There is practically no limit, for example, minecraft earned about 100 million in 2012. But not everyone is so smooth. According to well-known statistics of mobile applications, the top 25 developers received half of all profits in 2012. 80% of developers get 3% of profits. 19% of applications earn $ 24k. 80% - $ 300. And even your mobile game will earn 100k, then you will give 30% to the eplu, 30 to your publisher and share the rest with your partner and tax. To start getting more than you would get in other jobs and at the same time doing it all the time, I would highlight three different ways. The audience of portal flash drives and mobile games is bored. They are looking for new videos on YouTube, new pictures on VKontakte and new games on Armorheims and Appstore. New ideas, mechanics, games using new features of devices is what will definitely take off. Then, according to the list, high-quality continuations of old hits with a bunch of fans and games that can lead a certain niche in the market (close niche = when reciting the words “hardcore indie platformer” everyone remembers super fight). Then there are games that close the flaws of some hits with the introduction of new features. Then clones and trash. It is necessary either to make one game from the first category (Minecraft, Journey) or to make one two games from the second category (Shank 2, successful continuation of Shank's epic) Limbo (black and white physical platformer) or to make many-many games of the third category. Some studios, surprisingly, cope with this. For example, Berzerk studio , a group of 6 people, month after month gives great games, almost always on old mechanics. In total, they have 20+ games, Berzerk ball 2 went for 100k, and their new one for 50k, so we can assume that the guys with this strategy came to success.
What should be the first game? Is it possible to do it with a zero budget?
I still think that the first game should be small and test. Even if you have a super idea for a super game. You still do not have the budget for protracted, there is no sense of the market and the audience. No experience. Therefore, you put off this idea for a while and take on a small test project.
Often there is a feeling of remaking everything from scratch, redrawing, reprogramming a piece or all of the code after we learn a new drawing technique or reread a book about the architecture of the code. Small games are good because we have time to finish the game before destructive thoughts come to us. And even if you decide to remake a part of the game or after remarks about the unprecedented inhibition of it, even on the most powerful computers you rewrite not so much.
In addition, small games do not have time to change ideologically. This is a very useful experience for a game designer, because in any, even the biggest game, it is important to keep the idea, the core. It can acquire features, change the appearance, but the idea embedded in it should remain unchanged.
Plus, everything is higher - now it’s incredibly easy to make a prototype of a game. At worst, it can take three days. Experienced igrodely seeing the prototype can assess the viability of the game.
Do I need a partner?
Improving the quality of the game and leaving the level of "small games", you will reach the level of competition with large companies and studios. If it starts to seem like you can't make a competitive game, look for an assistant. The type of this helper should depend on your confidence in the game.
If you cannot provide good art / code / sound for the game, then it is better to give it to a freelancer or to outsource.
If you have a game that is also lame or you have little idea, then it’s better to find a partner. If you want new ideas in the game - look for a partner. If you want a second head to criticize you, you need a partner. The only difference is that the partner takes part in the development of the game, and not just performs the task, but this difference is huge. Therefore, in a dispute over who is more important, the artist or programmer defeats the game designer. And partners are equal. But choosing a partner for a long project is choosing a partner for a flight into space. If something goes wrong after six months of work, it is very expensive to change it.
Which genre is best to choose?
Fortunately, it does not matter. By becoming an indie developer you can do whatever you want. Of the last games I remember, I would point out the popular indie game Paper Please. This is a simulator of an immigration officer who decides who should be allowed to enter his country.
Do I need to make the game unique?
It seems to me unique not to do everything in the game. You can be limited to the idea and style. The freedom to create game elements is at the same time a vice, an opportunity to be misunderstood. The human brain is based on past experience, so when recognizing images it is better to use recognizable patterns.
For example - vampires - creatures with fangs drinking blood, zombies - dead people. From the report of the creators of PVZ, I remember his remark about the fact that his mother thought that the zombies in the game are just old people and did not understand why they should be killed.
Choose a technique of illustration, so that it reinforces the idea of ​​the game and fits the audience. If you want to reach the maximum audience, then you need to learn from movies / cartoons with the maximum audience (Shrek, Pirates of the Caribbean, Cut the rope), use recognizable templates and be moderately predictable. In the case of niche games, the rules are dictated by the specifics of the audience. Use references for drawing, and screenshots from successful games to understand the principles of drawing, but you should not copy or glaze, because it will not bleed your skill.
What do the players remember?
Games are remembered for their distinctive features. Idea / graphics / music / easter eggs. In Alien Anarchs I made a lot of content, but almost all the comments were about Easter eggs from films. Having finished playing, players remember what they can share with others: cool situations, high scores, funny stories.
What should indie remember before ending the game?
Indies need to remember that they are waiting for the final product. Without a good product, no one is interested in how much strength and energy he has invested in his game. The game is above the developer, it is important. If you want everyone to know your story, then put it into the game. Independent developers ask themselves questions and answer them themselves, and not just complete tasks. This gives them the opportunity to show their views. But be prepared for the fact that your view is not shared by everyone, and your game will not be the second minecraft.
Before you finish the game, it is best to show it to the test group - to your friends, younger brothers and sisters, colleagues. But in any case, do not ask them what needs to be changed in the game. This is mistake number one. Never ask. We need to watch how they play. Just watch.
Ideal option to ask them to record a video or share the screen in Skype.
How are successful games different from ordinary ones?
Creating a successful game is consistently making the right decisions. From the choice of engine and platform to the last pixel.
And the secret of successful indies is to do what they like. Otherwise, why this job?
What else
If someone has an interesting video where I tell this text in a voice beyond the grave - here is a shot from the Casual Connect conference .
There is an English translation.
Of course, I will be happy to talk in the comments and if it's interesting to talk and meet in person, then a bunch of indie will be at a chic Devgamm conference for developers on December 7-8 in Kiev.
There is also a one-year-old video where I give a talk on a similar topic on Devgamma.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/200980/
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