I shipped my first commercial game called Immunica a few months ago after 3 months of solo dev. It's a small Nodebuster style incremental game.

I did almost zero marketing during development (literally 3 shorts and a few tweets) and was sitting at 82 wishlists a month before Next Fest.

Here is how the numbers ended up looking:

• Tiny Roguelikes event: +474 wishlists in 2 weeks
• Steam Next Fest: +160 wishlists
• Wishlists at launch: ~700
• Sales: 147 in the first 3 days, 234 first week, 895 total so far
• Revenue: $2,123 gross (~$1,100 net after Steam cut, taxes, refunds)
• Outstanding Wishlist: 1,081

Biggest surprise for me was Next Fest vs smaller festivals. If you go into Next Fest with ~500 wishlists, you just get buried. Niche genre events convert way better when you're small.

Also a random tip: manually check your Polish pricing on Steam. Steam's default PLN conversion is super high right now. There's a PolishOurPrices movement in Poland and they pointed it out to me on Twitter during launch week, I lowered it, and some posts about it just went viral there. Poland ended up being my #1 market (201 copies sold).

Anyway, I teamed up with an artist friend for my next incremental game Feed The Pond so it doesn't have my programmer art this time, and we put the Steam page up early instead of waiting until the last minute.

Made a quick 5 min video breaking down the launch graphs and showing the new game if anyone wants to check it out: Video

Feed The Pond on Steam: Steam

Trying to improve my artstyle, backgrounds, atmosphere - was hoping this community had tips too!

We're looking for private play testers to help improve our game and leave feedback, if you are up for it - join our community discord!

https://discord.gg/cyzU4VysY

Demo comes out Nov 4th !!

My name is Vincent Pogo

Orisuji is a turn-based paper maze I designed for iPhone Duo. Each level has two pages: a maze on the right, and a second page with holes in it on the left. Fold the phone and the left page lands on the maze: its paths bridge the holes, and whoever is underneath is pinned flat. Unfold it and the page lifts away, carrying whoever stood on it.

It plays on every iPhone and iPad too, where you "fold" with a tap or a pinch. Out October 23rd, $4.99, no ads, no in-app purchases: https://apps.apple.com/app/id6817092898

Happy to answer anything about designing a game for a hinge!

Hey all,

I’m looking for a discussion here. I’m a full-time worker, husband, father, and even work a second job part-time. However, I’ve always wanted to make a certain game, and I believe that time has come where I’m able to. I especially wanted to make a zombie game that I could play with my kids. One that isn’t gory or frightening, but does have cool guns and explosions. Something you can show your 7-year-old that is still somewhat appropriate.

However, due to time and my life, and my existing Claude Code subscription, I had it do basically 99% of the coding of the game. The design, systems, artwork, direction, and mapping is done by me, but I feel like people have very strong opinions on the use of Claude for coding games.

Is it so severe that I should reconsider publishing it on Steam? Is there ramifications or issues it could cause me personally (people trying to dox me or something crazy) over the use of Gen AI? I’m just worried about the implications, as I have a family to take care of, and they’re my first priority.

Hi, I'm a professional video editor from Cuba with more than 10 years of experience. I'm currently unemployed looking for some projects to work. I'm okay with small budget. I can do game trailers, short content, YouTube videos, all you want :) pls feel free to reach out. I will let you here my resume, portfolio and a game trailer demo reel.

Resume: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QkGRX9AmZ5C18ehJDO2Qnelb0XRYRYlC/view?usp=sharing

Portfolio: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1gadHaZJTof7INB-XmmHRrVRO6dVjkm50NHhmD4xWYGE/edit?usp=sharing

Game Trailer Demo Reel: https://youtu.be/lcrqTwaqvTQ

Have nice day!! 

Oh man ive been waiting for this update. Achievements were so mundane to set up 1 by 1, then the images 1 by 1. Ty Steam 🙏

Wild how much a bit of water changes the whole mood, and the tilt-shift blur turns the sparkles into little bokeh dots. Even the road and grass look better now.

How do you approach water in your games? Do you use custom shaders or your own unique approach to simulate bodies of water.

This is for a static loop at an expo showcase in November. My original trailers were much worse - they opened with the studio logo and a long lead-in, essentially wasting time and an invitation to keep scrolling. Though it's not professional yet, this is still my best work so far!

Thanks for letting me lurk & learn

I recently did some research on game balance for my company, QAping, and wanted to share something I found useful. When players struggle, it’s worth checking whether they understand and remember the tools available to them before changing the difficulty. Here's what I found:

1. Players might be taking on a harder challenge than you intended.

When you design an encounter, you know players can dodge, interrupt attacks or retreat. But someone who remembers only attacking and healing has fewer ways to get through it. The same goes for rotating puzzle pieces (like in the video), switching equipment or converting resources.

During a playtest, pay attention to which options people actually use. You might have given them a useful tool that never enters their decision-making.

2. Try to understand why a mechanic isn’t being used.

Did they forget it exists? Did they miss a good opportunity? Were the controls difficult? Or did they understand it perfectly and decide it wasn’t worth the cost?

Those explanations lead to different changes. A reminder could help someone who forgot. A clearer cue could help someone recognize the right moment. If they understand an ability but keep passing it up, its usefulness or cost might need another look.

Let them try first, then ask what they considered. It’s tempting to help during the attempt, but that can hide where they needed guidance.

3. Getting through the tutorial is only the beginning.

A player might follow an instruction successfully, then struggle to recognize when that action would help later. Look for whether they can perform the mechanic, remember it and choose it in a new situation.

The attached Lumen clip is a small example. The player remembers they can rotate pieces and says they had forgotten the tutorial instruction. That gives us a useful question: what would help that mechanic stick once they’re playing on their own?

4. Keep the next test focused.

If you suspect a learning gap, try a short practice opportunity or a contextual cue while keeping the challenge unchanged. Then watch a later situation without prompting.

If you also lower enemy health or extend the timer, it gets harder to tell what helped. Once players understand their options and can use them, you’re in a better position to judge whether the challenge itself needs adjusting.

My takeaway is to spend a little time understanding why something feels difficult before deciding how to make it easier. Sometimes an encounter needs more room for mistakes. Sometimes players need help seeing a useful choice they already have.

Hope this is useful to anyone building their own game! Happy to chat and hear how other creators approach combat balance and figure out what needs changing.

About the video: Earlier Lumen playtest footage, shared with developer consent through QAping.

It's probably a little too late to be asking this now since next fest is next week, but I'm so curious how other devs go about reaching out to creators. I find the process so laborious and have been looking for ways to improve it. We had an outfit called Cloutboost reach out to us and demo their tools which seem pretty good for finding creators who have played comparable games.
Are other people rocking the hand created google sheet full of names and emails like us, or is there some better, easy way that everyone knows about that I somehow missed? Just curious what others are doing for outreach, if anyone cares to comment.

7 years ago, I decided to make my dream game.

The idea was pretty simple: A cozy little hometown filled with interesting characters and merchants, surrounded by a dangerous world full of monsters, haunted dungeons, and exciting loot. You'd venture out, fight your way through dangerous areas, and (hopefully) make it back alive with a backpack full of treasures.

I've always loved Halloween, ghosts, and pretty much everything spooky, so naturally I wanted the entire world to revolve around that theme.

There was just one tiny problem: I had absolutely no idea how to make a game. 😅

But I started learning, and after a few months, i had actually made something playable. It was super simple, barely had any content, and definitely had its fair share of issues. But it was my game, and I genuinely enjoyed playing it.

I called it Ghostworld and decided to publish it on the Google Play Store to see if anyone else would enjoy it.

It got 3 downloads. Me and my two brothers. 😂

Still, I was incredibly proud. i'd gone from knowing absolutely nothing about game development to actually finishing and publishing a game.

Eventually, I moved on, but the idea of Ghostworld never really left my head.

Fast forward 7 years.

I stumbled across my old project and thought: What if i gave this another shot?

Opening the old code was... an experience. Let's just say there was absolutely no saving that spaghetti. So i decided to rebuild Ghostworld completely from scratch.

I'm still far from being an amazing programmer or artist, but i've learned a lot since then, and tools like Claude have been a huge help along the way.

And after quite a bit of work, I finally have something that feels like the game I originally imagined.

The gameplay is basically a mix of extraction games, roguelites, and Diablo-style character building, all wrapped up in a cozy, spooky fantasy world.

The core loop is:

• Raid haunted dungeons filled with monsters, secrets, and treasures.
• Escape with your loot before things go horribly wrong.
• Upgrade your gear and become stronger with every successful run.
• Create unique builds with crazy synergies, abilities, and effects.
• Fight powerful bosses that put your builds to the test.
• Team up with friends and take on the dangers together.

I absolutely love games where you find an item, realize it interacts with another item in some completely broken way, and suddenly your entire build comes together.

I want that feeling of "Wait... does this actually work?!" followed by absolute chaos.

And I think I'm finally getting there.

The other day, i was supposed to be testing some mechanics, but i found a hammer and ended up spending hours just running around smashing everything in sight because it felt satisfying.

At some point I realized i'd completely forgotten I was supposed to be developing the game. 😂

That was probably the moment I felt like I was onto something.

There's still plenty of work ahead, but for the first time, Ghostworld really feels like the game I dreamed about 7 years ago. Oh and i named it Escape From Darkon i thought i would be a fitting name😅

And honestly, even if it ends up getting just 3 downloads again, I'm already pretty happy I decided to bring it back. The game is currently in the review process for the App Store and the Play Store so it will be published very soon, you can already get notified once it's live here: https://escapefromdarkon.com/

Although this time, I'm hoping to convince at least one person outside my family to play it. 😅

I'd love to hear what you think!

We’re continuing to develop Crossroads, our next map for Paper Strike, and wanted to share a closer look at its evolving concept art.

Amélie created the original concept, with Aymeric handling the game design. This video follows the artwork from its sketch lines to a more developed colour pass, giving a glimpse into the visual direction we’re exploring.

Also, a quick correction to our previous update: we mistakenly called this map Base Defense. Its actual name is Crossroads!

It’s still a work in progress, and we’d love to hear your impressions. What stands out to you in the design?

Caldra: Monster Pals is out on Google Play, free. It is a monster tamer I have been building solo in Godot.

• 100 original pals to befriend. You win the fight, then win them over with a bracelet instead of catching them
• Eight relics and their leaders, TEAM MANTLE, and the Champions League at the end
• Five save slots, no account needed, plays offline

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.caldra.monsterpals

Android only for now. Free with one ad when you open the game; a single purchase removes it. Feedback and bug reports are very welcome.

Game's been out for almost a year now and I've sent it to various youtubers, review sites, Steam Curators and subreddits. Everytime someone takes it up there's a small boost in activities and I'd like more of that. However I think I've exhausted my list of places to send this game to.

So I was wondering if anyone here might be able to throw in a couple of subreddits, youtubers and such who might be interested in a weird, cryptic, experimental and surreal puzzle game.

I've already sent it out to most puzzle and videogame subreddits; Metroidbrainia being one of the most notable ones and I wanted more along those lines. I've also sent it to the Outer Wilds, Sennaar and Witness subs because people have compared the game to it.

Not looking for any marketing gigs to hire or work with because I prefer to do this alone(sorry to anyone who might've been thinking of that).

Thanks.

We are making a colony game that you can dig,craft and defend your queen. https://store.steampowered.com/app/5187130/Hiveheart/

Just watched this video on how an indie dev's game was stolen via their demo on Steam. With Steam Next Fest coming up, I'm betting that's scum's favorite time to "shop around" and steal any games they can through demos. What are you doing to avoid this?