Ever since I was little, I wanted to make games. I remember playing princess peach on my original DS and thinking, "I wish I could make something as cool as this!" I'd use paper and make "video games," which were essentially just old-fashioned cell animations that used up all my parent's printer paper.
There's a lot of people who want to make games, but only a few end up actually doing it. The only reason I didn't start sooner was because I was kinda afraid of code. That might sound weird, but I know at least one person will understand this. It just seemed so overwhelming, with so much you have to take in and understand just to make a simple game run. Once you start to look into it, even just a little bit, you start to understand why it can take years to develop a big game. But, if you start small and run with these tips, it will be so much easier to start.
Tip 1:
Use a cookie-cutter engine.
Personally, I started with OG RPG Maker. I think if you can get done what you need to within the free trial window, go for that. But, if I could turn back time, I'd go with Scratch. Ya know, that website made for teaching kids basic coding? Yeah. It doesn't matter if you're 6 or 60, scratch is the best place to start. it's almost entirely visual, which is the best way to learn coding. If you try to make your first ever game in something like Unity or Godot, it will be so much hard as you can't put a real visual to what you're doing. You can't watch how things work or see how things connect. Plus, it's made for kids, so everything is set up and explained in the most simple and easily understandable way possible. Start with scratch.
Tip 2:
Make something easy! Now, do that again. And again.
Make at least 3 extremely simple games to start. It can help if you just make clones of something existing, too. Like pong or Mario. And don't make it huge, stay pretty easy on yourself. You shouldn't be expecting posting your first games anyway, so copying someone else can help you quickly figure out stuff like movement, physics, and timing in games.
Downloading free game assets online is a big help too, instead of having to draw them out yourself. Make sure you practice drawing assets at some point, though, especially if you are planning on being the only person working on your games in the future. For that matter, you might want to practice making very, very simple 8-bit music with a free website sometime down the line, too.
Tip 3:
Don't expect your first games to be good.
Practice is what makes games good. The more you make, the better you get.
Tip 4:
Now, you're done with scratch? How do you choose what engine to go with from here?
Personally, I chose my engine, Godot, because it's free. But, if I could choose any in the world, this is what I'd do… Still, start with free. Try out Godot and see how you feel about it.
Figure out what your gamedev needs are. Want to make super high quality 3D games? Unreal and Unity would work best for you. Do you just want to make RPGs? RPG Maker, I mean, it's in the title! Want to make visual novels? Ren'py is the (also free) engine for you. Need a little bit of everything? Godot has decent 3D, great 2D, and all for the cost of $0. Perfect for beginners.
Tip 5:
Ah, tutorials.
Code to a beginner looks like nothing without tutorials. But, if you rely too heavily on them, you can hit something many people call "tutorial hell." This basically means you can't do anything without a tutorial, and this causes many people to quit when they hit something that a tutorial can't help them with. Tutorials are great to a point. With your first game in your engine of choice, you kinda need them to get somewhere. Just make sure you're really learning. If they say you have to repeat something, pause the video or look away from the article and try to do it yourself.
When making your second game, avoid using tutorials as much as possible. Only use them if you really tried and still cant figure it out, and only look up that one specific thing. If there isn't a tutorial for it, nobody will judge you (no matter how "simple"), if you ask for help on forums or discords.
Tip 6:
Don't be too hard on yourself.
Everyone's first games suck. Game development is an art that takes practice. Keep working hard and you'll get there. Just have fun, and make games you would play yourself.
I hope these few tips can help those new to coding, actually get started!
- Mio Nozomi <3
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