Is it possible to create a game completely free and make money?
TLDR: Yes it is. This article is just exploring how to get started with actually making a game
Where to start?
If like me you find yourself in a position where you want to make games but your not super liquid and can not afford to spend a heap of money on programs, plugin and assets, how do you make your game?
Spoilers the answer is with a lot of effort and time. There are some many free resources available to you that there is no reason why you cannot create a game for free.
Your first steps are going to be to determine how you are going to create your game. You will need to answer these questions:
What programs are you going to use?
What kind of game am I going to make?
Do I want to develop for Android, IOS or Desktop?
Do I know how to code?
Do I know how to create art?
Do I know how to design a game?
These are all the first questions that you are going to need to answer. Your answer to these questions will give you a good place to start in your quest to create your game.
We are going to break down your first game into waypoints because let's face it waypoints are way cooler than checkpoints and were talking about making games here.
WAYPOINT 1 – The Beginner Rule
Thou shall not give a shit if your game is not optimized or perfectly created
This is a very important rule and I place this at waypoint 1 because this is something that I cannot stress enough. It is very easy to get bogged down in the nitty-gritty and obsess that your game is using extra battery power or resources when it might not necessarily need to.
What you should care most about when you are beginning, if you are beginning is that you have a playable game that can be played by other people on their own devices. When you feel more comfortable that your game creating skills are getting better and simply creating a game does not seem like a monstrous task. Then you can start to worry about optimization and finding better patterns and was to make your game run smoother.
Once you have firmly got it in your mind that the real thing about game development that matter is having a product (not even finished product) that other people can play, you can move on to waypoint 2
WayPoint 2 – Programs
There are a ton of programs out there that you can use to create games but I do not want to overload you with options and have you face the choice of what to chose. You will see a ton of comparison videos on youtube and you can look through those to see the pros and cons of the software because all software has PROS and CONS and don’t let anyone tell you differently.
Game EngineUnityUnrealArtKritaInkscape (Vector)BlenderCodeVisual studio 2019 (or whatever year your in) communitySoundAudacityLMMSProject ManagementTrello
These programs are all free to download and use. Using just 5 programs you can create a game.
WayPoint 2.5 – But I don’t want to learn Art, Programming or Sound
Well, that is unfortunate because each one is useful to know, but I do understand. It can take quite some time to even get proficient in each of these to be able to develop a game. I would suggest if you are actually interested to learn. Learn them in this order:
ProgrammingArtSound
We first start with programming because you are going to need to program if you want to create a game. Now in saying that you can use what they call visual scripting. This is essentially an easier way to understand coding and doesn’t take as much time to learn. You will be able to use this for the vast majority of your games.
Out of the two-game engines, only Unreal has a visual scripting component to it out of the box. I believe unity is working on it but the only visual scripting that I am aware of is a paid plugin from the asset store. Unreal engine visual scripting is called blueprint and it's Unreal so it's pretty awesome.
If you are interested in learning how to code because you know its only one of the most useful skills to have in a day and age when everything is run from computers. You can visit this awesome site called Codecademy which is free.
You can learn all you need to know about coding in a vast majority of languages. For game development though I would recommend taking the c# course.
ART
Art in your game can be as complex as WOW or as simple as squares and circles. You do not need to be a fantastic artist to have a fantastic looking game. There are 2 spots that I would recommend searching for free game assets.
Unity asset store (If you are using unity)Open Game Art for 2d and 3d art.
Otherwise for your first game or really any game I would recommend keeping your art simple, especially if you are making a mobile app.
Just FYI you can always download free assets from unity asset store to your computer and then use them in unreal.
SOUND
Audacity and LMMS are great places to just mix and mash sound and see what you come up with. I recommend going to youtube and looking up tutorials and how other people come up with their game sound effects.
Creating sound effects can be a very fun experience. Just know that most game sound effects as multiple sounds mixed into each other to make a new sound that is just right for your game.
If you are looking for sound assets simply type free sound effects into the old google and you will get a plethora of choices to choose from.
WayPoint 3 – Get to it
There really is not much else than to get started. You have picked your game engine, you have chosen your assets or how you are going to make them. Now you just have to make your game.
If you are just starting out then I recommend trying to make pong. Start small, I mean really small and work your way up.
Good luck and I hope to hear and see your results.
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