Independent Game Development William Monks

What is an “Indie” Game??? An indie game is a game made without the financial support of a video game publisher. Typically made by a small team.

Who Can Make Indie Games??? You! Anyone with the desire Programming skills not necessary! Solo or team

Good Reasons For Development Looks great on the résumé! To Learn Personal Satisfaction You have a great idea!

Unrealistic Notions: I'll be rich! I'll be famous! I'll be able to support myself!

Strategies Program everything from scratch Use existing tools and libraries to aid you Use a game engine Use a game creation program

Program Everything From Scratch Pros Maximum flexibility Looks best on the résumé Turns boys into men and girls into women Free

Program Everything From Scratch Cons Takes a lot of time Requires programming skills

Program Everything From Scratch Example: rRootage by Kenta Cho Vertical shooter, made in C++ Awesome Available for Windows, Mac, Linux, and iPhone Open source

Libraries and Tools Some popular ones: Microsoft XNA OGRE

Microsoft XNA What is XNA? XNA's Not Acronymed A set of tools with a managed runtime environment Encapsulates low-level technological details Frees the programmer from writing boilerplate code Cross-platform: Windows, Xbox 360, Zune and Windows Phone 7 Supported Language: C#

Microsoft XNA Pros C# is easier than C++ Lots of libraries available Removes many mundane elements from game programming Windows code runs on 360 with minimal modification Xbox Live Indie Games Free

Microsoft XNA Cons Only available on Microsoft platforms Slower performance than pure C++ Requires programming experience

Microsoft XNA Example Fez, by Polytron Corporation Puzzle / Platformer Awesome Won “Excellence In Visual Art” award at IGF 2008 Available on Xbox Live Arcade in 2010

OGRE What is OGRE? Open Source 3D Graphics Engine A flexible 3D rendering engine for OpenGL and/or Direct3D Not a game engine, only handles graphics rendering Provides state of the art graphics rendering Written for C++, many ports and wrappers exist for other languages

OGRE Pros Provides professional quality graphics rendering High flexibility

OGRE Cons Only a graphics engine Can be difficult to get set up

OGRE Example Torchlight by Runic Games RPG Awesome Best Debut Game Award at the 2010 Game Developers Choice Awards Available on Windows and Mac via digital distribution Picked up by publisher for retail

Game Engines Provide many aspects of the game development for you Cost ranges from free to more than you can afford

Example Game Engines Unreal Engine 3 – Free for indie developers (in exchange for a cut) – I like it DarkGDK – Free – I don't like it

Game Engines Pros Provide many aspects of the game development for you – Graphics, sound, input, scripting, etc... Less programming needed Can help you quickly create something of professional quality

Game Engines Cons Can be difficult to make something of a different genre than expected by the engine. It can be difficult to make the engine do anything it wasn't expected to do. Your engine's weaknesses can limit your game.

Game Creation Programs Flash RPG Maker Multimedia Fusion Game Maker

Flash Pros Easy to distribute, most people have the Flash browser plugin. Great for prototyping ideas Cons ActionScript programming knowledge required Limiting Costs money you are unlikely to earn back

RPG Maker Lets the user create their own traditional RPG Easy to use No programming required Very limiting Nearly impossible to make anything that is not an RPG or adventure game Some brilliant results $60

Multimedia Fusion / Game Maker Lets the user create their own 2D or 3D game Easy to use No programming required, user applies conditions and logic to objects Somewhat limiting Many very impressive games have been made with these tools. – Spelunky – Noitu Love 2

That's all fantastic, but I can't draw! Don't panic!!! There are many resources for programmers in need of assets Make the game with temporary crude graphics, and replace them later Many artists can be found on the internet If all else fails, you can purchase assets

A few concluding tips Start small! Do something you know you can accomplish. Follow through! It can be tempting to start over when you're in the middle of development...but don't! Make a FINISHED game, not several unfinished games

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