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For me it was Sky children of the light. Super wholesome game but it kinda bought be back to childhood wonder and spark. It reminds me that there are ao many stuff to experience so many things to learn from people about their lives and stuff like that. Its an amazing game and I'd recommend playing with randoms rather than people you know irl cause then you can really experience the cool people in the community

I went to school and got a BS in Audio Production thinking I was going to work in/start my own studio. Had one game audio class, loved it, and decided I wanted to pursue game audio. Couldn't find anything to work on after college, saw that UE4 had blueprints (cuz I didn't know or want to know anything about programming) so I followed a small tutorial to make a zelda game so I could make and implement my own audio stuff and build a portfolio that way. I had way more fun making the game that I never even did the audio part which was the original goal. Amd I've been learning game dev ever since

I was abused growing up and games were an escape for me. They made me feel happy. I want other people to feel happy and have an escape.

My moment was when I was 13 years old and played Quake III with my brother and he told me you can make mods with it. Then he showed me the level editor (GTK Radiant) and a few written tutorials, he found on the web. This was the spark and then I knew I had to make games. :)

That’s crazy! Part of my wake up moment was the fact that cave story was made by 1 person too 😭😭. I like recently played that game like several months ago. But yeah, I’ve been trying my hand at gamedev for the past year but none of it really stuck to me. Recently tried again like a couple days after I played cave story and that reminded me that if 1 guy could make that, with enough practice ofc, I could do the same. Another part of my wake up call is the fact that I have a good PC, stable living conditions, a good amount of free time, and when I think of all of those things that I have, I think of the fact that other people across the world might not have what I have if they wanted to do gamedev (if that makes any sense). But yeah now I can say I’ve been consistently practicing my gamedev skills for the past 2 months I wanna say.

My moment is so broad and unclear that I'm convinced that I decided to make games while being high.

Switching to this account entirely because we both have "soul" for the same reasons. It's the passion for it! ;) A lot of my decision to get into game dev is based around a quote. Or rather, the message behind it. "The best time you could have done it was 5 years ago, the second-best time is now." I knew that, truthfully, I would never be happy if I never tried. That if I never tried, I would be sitting there, 5 years down the line, saying: "I wish I could make games..." That would never go away. I enjoy games too much, I want to tell stories, I want to one day create the things I want to see and play. No passage of time would change that unless I tried. That would be the moment that spurred me to do it, I'd say. I don't think I have a singular moment that lead me to *wanting*, though. Rather, every amazing story, every bad AAA title that makes me want to see better, every game I have a blast playing, was a puzzle piece being slotted into a larger whole. I did make and publish my first game, and while it was admittedly hardly successful, I'm proud of how far I've come and what I've learned. One thing is certain, come hell or high water, I won't be giving up any time soon. My learning process is also a puzzle slowly being filled out, but despite how much more I need to go... What that final image looks like is already clear as day. All I need to do is persevere.

Cant even remember a time i didnt want to make games, honestly. Now I make business software though, and not only is it better for my family but i get the same satisfaction I got showing people games i made

Honstly ... My Click moment that tolds me that i'm gonna make games , is that I enjoyd the feelings that it deliverd to me as a person when playing games! even when I tried Game dev for the first time , the excitment of making stuff happen or move in the screen was Amaizing ! I loved it ❤ I just hope My dream come true some day , and I will finish the nightmare of reality with a good story to tell my self before I pass Away...

I'd always wanted to make games ever since I was 6. One of my favorite video games of all time was Jazz Jackrabbit 2. Then i played Zelda(Majora's Mask). One of my goals back then was to create the best game studio in Africa, and I still have that dream now. Growing up, I liked telling stories, just like you. I drew comics, even though my art was terrible and everyone around me told me that. As time went by I tried my hand at writing novels and people liked it. Later, I got back to making comics(my art had improved a little) but i felt I could do more and still chase that dream of making games since I had my very own computer. I had been a huge fan of platformers, especially metroidvanias like Metroid Fusion and any game with a deep story. After a bunch of smaller games, both manageable and bad, I felt i had enough experience to start working on my latest undertale-metroidvania project; The InBetween. It's not easy, I still do not know everything and still learn on the go with a lot of trial and error since I didn't really grow up with any talent. But whenever things get tough, I always look back at what 6 year old me said. That I am going to be one of the best game studios in Africa. I also remembered the fun things that made me want to make games; the stories I want to tell, the level design(my favorite part) and the animation inspired by awesome cartoon shows I watched growing up like Courage the cowardly dog, Ben 10. And that keeps me going along with these three words. These 3 words that I love using when people keep asking me why i still want to make games: "Because it's fun" Thank you all for reading my TedEx talk, I'll see myself out.😅✌🏾

We had a strict house rules when it came to the computer we could only play games on the weekend for 2 hours each, but we could be on it even if there was nothing to do except us Ms paint, so 18 years ago I Was going through files for fun and curiosity when I came across game files I looked through sprites an saw compressed files with the names of units or npc this was the spark as I saw the fingerprints of the developers . After I started using blender which had a now defunct game engine and that’s when I stared to make games I learned a few tricks in code and made a character move, years later I got steam and was invited to a group where I became friends with my current best friend he needed an artist for mods, after completing a few mods and a few failed ones I picked up Unity and learned c# I’m currently making a fps shooter.

I want to start so badly. I have an idea for a game. A metal geal or Siphon Filter or Tom Clancy type sneak around game , maybe do it isometric at first but the game would be about ANXIETY. Your anxiety meter would fill up around people, you try to avoid them doing totally normal things. Stage one would be you going to the store and trying to ignore all human contact until you get there. I would have it set up, to where when your anxiety meter gets full literall nothing inconsequential happens. Just a bonus score for not seeing anyone. The game would utilize physics by allowing you to throw cans and stuff. And then, as a kid I really wanted to make this game called WHY two K, where you are defending your home after the y2k bug and have to deal with different people at the door. Like some people would come by asking for help and it would be up to you to determine if theyre real or not. Kinda like the game Wheres your papers .

I vividly remember the moment that made me want to make games, and it was from when I first played Super Mario Galaxy when I was little. I was always fascinated with space, I think watching Wall-E became part of my weekly schedule after it came out. But Mario Galaxy gave me a feeling that was so incredibly different to watching or hearing about space, I was actually flying through it and exploring it for myself. At some point, I had asked my dad about how this was possible (how the game itself was made). When he answered with "computer programming", I asked him about what else could be made with it. The moment he responded with "anything", I immediately knew that this is what I wanted to do. From that point on, dreaming about game new ideas that I could make has always been on the forefront of my mind. I don't have a singular moment that made me realize that I could actually do this. Having games like Cave Story, Minecraft, Terraria, and Stardew Valley made it so I never doubted that making a game by myself was possible. It wasn't a matter of if I could do it was a matter of when. I think now the game that reminded me why I wanted to make games in the first place is Final Fantasy 9. I first finished it a little over a year ago now and I have never had a game resonate with me quite like that before. Being able to create an immersive world that I can get lost in for hours, and have a compelling story that stays in your mind for years to come like ff9 is what I want to achieve. While I know doing that will be incredibly difficult, life and a lack of motivation isn't helping, it's still just a matter of when. It may take a while, but that just gives me more time to do what I love doing. Thanks for making this video by the way, it means a lot.

Soul Engine Heart Machine?

This Zelda light in the background is mesmerizing! Really cool video :D

oh my god! the moment I read the title, then see the thumbnail, I felt amazing, I mean 4 years before I got into game dev for the game you used for the thumbnail! yeah, Hyper Light Drifter is the game that made me feel I can make games too, and it always felt great.

I've wanted to make video games ever since I played Castlevania Symphony of the Night when I was 7. Before that, I played Zelda ALTTP a lot and Mario, Zelda 2, OOT and I loved them, I became a Zelda fan but SOTN left a mark on me, it's the game that made me start questioning how games work, I had admittedly very stupid answers to my own question, like "Oh it must be pictures of the screens for every possible movement in the game" the idea was that it was like those game and watch type keychain game but on a bigger scale... I was so dead wrong but this lead me to RPG Maker XP from scouring the internet to find a way to make games. Though I never finished any project... Still haven't... But It's my Passion and to this day, I'm still trying to learn because I want to do more than JRPGs, so I've been working on learning UE4 and now 5. Sadly, regular scripting never stuck so I'm trying to learn visual scripting. My PC can barely handle UE so now I'm trying Godot with visual scripting plugin, but above all that, I'm happy I have a best friend that I've met which we work together to try and make a game, it's not easy but we've known each other for 10 years now and we're still trying, It feels hopeless but I keep hope anyway. One day we'll have a game out.

I’ve wanted to make games since I was little but gave up on that dream after seeing for myself how much time and dedication it took. I decided to give it another shot after getting burnt out on gaming in general so I could stay connected to the hobby and this video is kinda reassuring to see. It’s gonna be a long, painful journey, but I know in the end it’ll be worth it.

Coincidentally, my first moment also happened with HLD. I didn't just inspire me to make games, but to become an artist in the first place. My second moment was probably playing Dark Souls I, specifically right at when the credits theme started playing.

I remember when I got Game Maker and an image I drew started responding to my inputs. It was magical. Still is. As a kid, I used to sketch out ideas for games. Now, tools exist that can make that childhood dream a reality. *And yes, to telling stories! I've ALWAYS been about telling stories!

Mine was when i played The Last of Us Part 1 not long ago, For the first time it made me realize that games can have really fun gameplay and tell a deep enriched story with awesome characters at the same time, From then on everything i’ve done has been motivated from that experience

I don't know, I've been trying for the past 6 (or 5 can't remember) years on/off, always interested never too invested. I can't bring myself to either stop or continue on. Thinking about stopping trying is terrifying. But clearly I think I could be quite good at this, I already made a game in pygame which I was proud of somewhat. I'm stuck in this limbo between beginner and intermediate where I have the basics but can't cobble anything up. I clearly remember the great games I played, that shaped my view of a "perfect" game. Maybe that's my problem as I'm typing it out: I can't create something if I don't find it perfect on the first try. I feel really embarrassed by this, I'm 17yo now. Probably trying for too long.

I always wanted to, because I play games since 3yo, its what I love haha. I already did a few projects when I was younger, but nothing really complex. Recently, being 17 years old, I was almost giving up on this career, thinking about moving on to another part of programming, until I played Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart, and I absolutely loved the game. The art, the story, the graphic beauty, the beauty of the story, everything is very beautiful, and it encouraged me to think about continuing, to think about how good people can feel about spending time playing. Currently I'm in a solo project, and its physics based. Being an High School studend that has a job and trying to dev a whole game alone is really hard. But not thinking on giving up. We all can do this guys 👐🔥

at that time I didnt even know what it was called, but I changed the texture of Tomy Verceti in GTA Vice City, and then I fell in love playing need for speed Underground, but I didnt like how late in the game you unlocked things, and how few mods there were, so If I were to do a game with racing cars, I knew Id make it with tunner culture in mind, larger more colorful city, and by 90% of game completion you'd have unlocked all the parts for the cars, so you could enjoy the last bit with a fully customized car.... and that was game design, making a game that you want inspired by games you like, little did I know how much work was involved. But I still havent given up on my dream. Cheers to all developers that still have the burning flame of desire driving them! 🤟

Met my wife playing reach, any maps/game modes you made that I might recognize?

im spending 10-15 years of my life to make a game like bandersnatch. i started this to make a game to help people realize how much their choices matter in life, and now i quietly and slowly toil away at it every chance i get.

Great insights. Thanks for sharing.

Ive been making games longer than i can remember sadly.

My mum was a teacher. And she wanted story dice for her special needs class but the school wouldn't pay. So I made a program she could put up on the board that did the same. When I heard how much of a difference that made I knew I wanted to make more games. Like you said, not for me, but for others

This is awesome! I first knew I wanted to work on games because of the art. Being raised on TH-cam, I found tons of videos of concept artists for games and when I realized you could paint art for a team to fall back on for inspiration and even asset development, I was like “WHOA! That’s what I’m going to do!” Fast forward through angsty high school, perfectionism, wanting to start a family as a young man, and now having that family - the feeling never left. However now, I would love to make amazing 3D games. I was ENAMORED with Hyper Light Drifter, Chained Echoes, and Darkest Dungeon. The art style, the storytelling, the gameplay. I just really want to do something like that too.

The moment that really really made me want to be a game dev was when i was in deep depression and really was giving up on everything , I did code things around and miss around in Godot engine but never really committed , at a random night my friend approached me and give me a copy of Elden ring and told me to download the multiplayer , I did so thinking i have nothing to lose , it will be just few days and just another game , for my shock the first night we played , we spent 13 straight hours , i nearly forgot to go to my classes , the amount of joy and excitement i felt while playing that game , it give me a reason to wake up everyday , to look forward to another time , and I whole heartedly felt alive again , i played a total of 140-148 hours in one week , finished the game 4-5 times with different builds and different styles , at one point while we were in discord after killing the Elden beast with my friend , I started crying and I told him thank you for recommending the game and for playing with me , from that moment i felt that holy moly do games can breath in life to people , inspire and push them further and since i have been wanting to reach people and help out , and i love gaming so much , It just felt natural to me to want to do my best in it and create games that brings joy to people and push them forward , I dont know how far i will be able to make it , but I truly pray that i can do it for until i die and not suffer , I pray i would make enough money to keep working on it and make more and more amazing things that would push people and bring them joy in this harsh world ! Thank you for this amazing question <3.

You just sold me Cave Story

I still feel like I can't do this, but I try anyway

For me it was when I launched Forza Horizon 4 for the first time, the 8 minute intro/initial drive of that game made me teary for reasons I can't describe and that was the moment I knew that this is what I want to do for the rest of my life.

The moment I wanted to become gamedev was back in the 90s. Playing PS1 and N64 games in my teenage years. I would draw up strategy guides for myself. Sometimes based off all other strategy segments in magazines like Nintendo Power. I would also write my own inspired (okay, copy!) of my favorite games like Twisted Metal and FF7. However, game development was never that accessible in the 90s in Montreal and not having a lot of money kept that dream away. I eventually ended going back to college in 2007 to do just that but still was too afraid to fully jump in. When I was nearing my 40s, i felt regret so I decided "oh what the hell, I'll never know if I can if I dont do it". A year and a half into game dev, im loving it and joping to one day to do this full time. Now as for why Im doing other than that? Used to be to replicate the games I loved back then. And with the gaming as evolved now, Id say its still to replicate how games were back then! 😅

this videos speaks to me and i love how you gone through every steps of when realised you can do this and why you want to make games is just awesome. for me my wake up moment is when revisited the old school games from the nes to ps1 and arcade games, where games we're truly games, where there's no dlc, no microtransaction...you have a full fledge game that is in the disk or cartridge, plus the actual feel of playing the games, with lovely pixel art, wonderful chiptune music, and the simplicity of controls. it just speaks to and that's when i realised i want to make games. but like you stated: I had no clue of how to make games, no programming, pixel, and music knowledge. i had to go to collage to learn the basics. but the moment when i realised that i know i could do this, was when i've played cross cade, an awesome retro inspired rpg game. I was just drawn by the awesome visualisation of pixel art the colour pallet for the players, npc, environment, and ui. the peaceful melody when traversing different zones, and the story was in depth and it keeps playing wanting to know the main hero's story and how she's different to the game. that was that moment when i think to myself: "I know i can do this, and i know i want to make games" as for why i want to make game. i want make games where it's just games, like i stated in my wake up moment, where games we're made as a whole, no dlc, no microtransaction or season pass, just the whole game, that's what i love about games and that's why i want to make them. plus making fun game with awesome stories, though i'm learning to write stories, it would be awesome to just make awesome stories.

The reason I wanted to make games is I grew up during the original NES days. And I used to stay glued to the TV playing game after game after game and for me, it was solace. It was like being emersed in a world away from our world for a while and going on an adventure. And yes, the stories, the graphics, the fun was inspiring and all just made me say that one day, I'm going to make games. As was said in the video above, making games is the ULTIMATE way to tell stories and and let people EXPERIENCE them too. Plus, when I was a kid, I used to create game ideas. I had the game ideas well thought out and I used to send my game ideas to Nintendo LOL. They never made any of my games. So thus, I decided that I was eventually going to make those games myself. As a kid, I too used to draw, write stories. In fact, I used to sit in the back of the classroom again drawing game ideas. I'm also a musician. In fact, my major in college was Music Education. I could attribute my interest in music going back to the Super Nintendo playing games like Zelda and Contra Wars on the Super Nintendo with the symphonic sounds. Plus, I enjoy learning. So, I decided to take all of those talents that I garnered over they years and put them together and learned game dev. Plus, interestingly, it was fun learning how programming too. So, as I learned game dev, from then on it has been the ultimate way I tell stories. If I had a job I didn't like? LOL I'd make a game about it. If there was a story that I wanted to tell about ANYTHING, I'd put it in a game. I also remember in one of my college courses, we had a group project. And instead of turning in a paper like my professor originally asked, I made a game about the subject that answered all of my professor's questions. We played the game in class, and everybody including my professor thought it was awesome and I got my entire group a BIG A + on the assignment. And I enjoyed the whole process of creating that. So, making games is just what I truly enjoy; it's one of my ultimate mediums of expressions. Plus, it's SUPER fun and these are reasons that I pursued game dev. For me, it's not about the money; even though it would be AWESOME if I did make money. But, it's always been about me having fun and the fact that I simply just love videos games thanks to all of the games that I played when I was a kid and even some games I play TODAY too!

Lots of questions and even more answers... The moment I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I was destined for game development was the first time I experienced the Missingno glitch in pokémon red in '98. Seeing the 'seams' of game development and peeking past what was then a polished and respectable game, and getting but a glimpse into a nightmarish world of corrupt sprites, infinite item glitches and all the crazy game breaking aspects that is Missingno... that's the moment I knew I was going to be a game developer... I had to understand and control such power, and I would not rest until I did. As far as knowing when I knew I could make games - I would say in the early 2000s with macromedia flash. Flash (RIP) had an amazingly low threshold to get started - it was pretty much mspaint with notepad - so you can make your doodles then make them do things with a few lines of code. It was a renaissance for computer independent art. Because the bar for entry was so low and because free trials exist, anyone could give it a try and actually make something - even if it was just doodles. The reason I wake up every morning to game dev is because I want to make experiences - I can't really describe it, but I'll try my best- I want to make people feel that moment that can only be described as being unique and special - I don't care about mobile games and connect 3 garbage - I want to encapsulate that "oh crap, was it supposed to do that" moment you escape from the test chambers in portal 1... or that feeling of brotherhood you feel playing with strangers in an mmo and become friends (in game and irl). I want to make experiences, that people look back on fondly, and say "damn... I can't describe it, but you just had to be there"... that is why I've been in game development for decades and why I kick my ass out of bed each and every day and work until exhaustion. I am in a constant state of striving to be faster - at everything - so I can test more ideas, so I can find and implement those things that can't really easily be described.

Cheering for you buddy! i'll be following your channel, good luck!

Guys, I can't wait to read all your comments about the moment you knew you wanted to and COULD do game dev. Was it a game that made you realize this? Lets hear it!

Another good indie series to look at for exploration is Starcom (Either Nexus or Unknown Space). Its pretty much a Starflight or Star Control clone. But just seeing what things are in the next star system keeps you hooked. I also thing the unlocking of a new branch of a tech tree is a very good way to encourage the "one more turn" aspect of a game.

As an opinionated loud mouth I have some things to add. GIMP is fine for super basic stuff but will kinda drive you mad. Things like layer area not automatically expanding when painting outside or cropping, no smart objects or non destructive editing and a lot more. I've used it ever since it became to much of a hassle to pirate Photoshop and I've never gotten fully used to it. If you use it you need the "content aware fill" plugin (can't remember the name), bulk image manipulator and G'mic. They are the absolute best plug-ins. Right now affinity have a 6 month free trial and a sale on their products (no strings attached trial and one time purchase) so I'm trying it out right now. Two art programs that are great are Krita and Inkscape. Krita is focused of painting and does all the things Photoshop can do in that area. Inkscape is a vector program like illustrator. I've used it for years and love it. A great pixel art program is Pixelorama. It's oen source and made in Godot I think. Audacity is fine for simple editing but I come from a music recording background and kinda despise it. If you want to make chip tune music there is a lot of good trackers. There's also a free program called famistudio. It's made for nes compatible music but can export to other formats like midi or wav. Tiled is a great tile based level editor. I think it's made by a semi famous indie studio but I'm not sure. Armor paint is another new program for mesh painting. It's open source. A compiled version costs like 20 bucks but you can compile it yourself for free. Gamesfromscratch have a great tutorial on how to do it.

For visual variety I would recommend adding in some 2x2 tiles rather than all floors tiles being 1x1. It'll go a very long way to feeling like the place is more varied and would help with any maze-like feel it has because there'd be more unique patterns of tiles in different rooms.

Nice game, makes me remember Gauntlet, an amazing game that I loved in NES era.

One thing about Minecraft that, for me, makes it "fine" to not have a map, is how easy it is to make your own navigation system. By that I mean, you can use Torches to mark a path, you can build big "towers" or structures to serve as points of interest, the game generates some random unique features too, so they're easy to recognize. I don't think it's so much about "being fun to get lost", but more about being fun to actually find yourself. The game gives you a ton of solutions to the navigation problem, and they're all up to you to create and use. Sure, you can use the map, or you can build roads, or you can mark your path with torches, or you can stack 50 blocks uphigh and use that as some kind of localization device. The possibilities (of what you can find) are endless when you get lost, but so are the possibilities to actually find yourself. Not disagreeing with you (I agree), just adding my opinion to it too! I think the journey to find things randomly on the map is as rewarding as the journey to find your way back in Minecraft, and that's important.

This popped up in my TH-cam recommendations, and I got curious and decided to try it out on a whim. Though there’s a good possibility that some of these criticisms have been addressed in the update discussed in this video, and I only played about 30 minutes (it’s 3 AM lmao) I figured I’d put together some quick thoughts in the hopes that these will be useful for you (skipping criticisms that were already addressed in the video). In no particular order: - The sprite artwork is nice! It’s all very cute and whimsical and has a lot of personality. The single pixel dot eyes on the first playable character are very goofy and charming. - The music is good, albeit kind of repetitive. - I liked the companion feature. I think it was probably the most interesting and enjoyable mechanic I encountered. Slime Boi is my son now and I love him with all my heart. - Attacks being mapped to eight directions feels awkward, especially since shots often go in the complete wrong direction. It seems like the game is sometimes storing the last direction that an attack was fired in, then defaulting to that the next time it receives an input, regardless of the intended direction of the new attack. - Combat was unfortunately very simplistic, essentially boiling down to “hold the right analog stick towards enemies until they die”, which gets tiresome quickly. More interesting combat mechanics and upgrades with more variety than just stat boosts and basic projectiles of different sizes and speeds would go a long way. How about a spread shot, or a wave beam? A temporary Air Man-style bullet shield? A swappable second reserve weapon? AOE spells? There are all kinds of directions you could take it. - Similarly, enemy AI had little variety, with every enemy I encountered having a single behavior: move towards the player in a straight line continuously while firing projectiles or attacking with a melee weapon at fixed intervals. Game Endeavor made a great video on this, and while their solution is a little advanced and I don’t necessarily suggest using the exact same system, I think it could at least provide some ideas: th-cam.com/video/6BrZryMz-ac/w-d-xo.htmlsi=jH2mO18gx0Cddapb That’s all I’ve got for now. Good luck with the rest of the game’s development! Cheers!

Something l think could help people not get lost is adding more visual variety in how rooms. For instance, if a room inside your dungeon has say a giant fountain, then players think to themselves: "Ok, I came from the left of the fountain, I've explored the right of the fountain, so now I have to go down". I guess what I'm trying to say it, in the real world, I prevent my self from getting lost by keeping track of notable landmarks. So, maybe you should add some "notable landmarks" to your levels.

locked doors that require keys

Great video, looking forward to see more!

Some other possibilities for navigation could be to change the rooms appearances, other textures on floors walls and/or decorations that stands out, thus knowing which section you been inside and currently inside. To me this feels like a thing that has helped me guide myself back and recognize where I am and were i been in games such as Core Keeper, Terraria and many more. Might be something to look into. Happy deving keep up the great work :) Also it might make it more interesting to explore.