Hey, I'm planning on at some point in the near future releasing and title to steam under a new solo LLC and don't have a super solid marketing plan at the moment. I've read a lot on X about how its essentially "get lucky" but I know that's only part of it. I would be willing to allocate some kind of budget but don't want to waste it on simply promoting a YouTube trailer or what not.

So the question as it stands is: What has worked for you, and more importantly, what DIDN'T work for you when marketing your game?

This is primarily directed at guys who have actually released a game and gone through this process. My education background contains no "Marketing" at all so I'm really trying to do my research. Please assume the game content as "open-ended" so other may also apply the responses to this post.

To reiterate, I'm NOT looking for individuals or businesses on here to promote my content.

Besides that, I have noticed a trend in my YouTube content where older games with somewhat of a content drought (Team Fortress 2 in my case) are WAY easier to get views on. While MY game is not in the vein of TF2, there are other relevant titles that have niche player bases. Just a thought.

Edit: I just saw there is a reddit for purely "Video Game Marketing" while posting this but it's already up so I'll leave it.

Hey everyone!

About a month ago, I released my first game on Steam! And with that, of course, comes learning that there’s still plenty of room for improvement. Looking back, there are bugs to fix, things to polish, and areas where the game could be better overall.

Still, receiving negative reviews (and seeing new ones come in) can be tough, especially when you’ve poured so much passion and effort into something you’ve created. I’m working on improving the game, but you can imagine keeping passionate/motivated is a bit difficult at this time.

I imagine this is something most game developers struggle with at some point in their journey, so I wanted to ask: How do you deal with negative reviews and learn to not take them too personally?

I’d love to hear your experiences and any advice you might have! 🙏

i am currentlyy try to make a roguelike game using godot for the first time and i am unable to find any resources such as toutorial courses etc it will be a huge help if any body could share any

Hey reddit,

I've been working for a few months now on my own game engine to escape from the Roblox matrix, but I've been stuck on one question: what scripting language do I use?

I couldn't help myself but to use LuaU when I first started making the engine as I've been used to it for the past decade and I had hope that if I ever wanted to make it public (which I am doing after all) it would be easier for my friends and fellow Roblox developers to transition to it.

Fast forward months of development and I've added C# and a 2D engine but I still don't know what the best scripting language is after all this time. I've been thinking about adding C++ and maybe python, making it a multi-language game engine to make it easy for everyone to try it out.

What are your thoughts? Do you have better suggestions?

Thanks

Hey guys..anybody from the UAE? I have thought of a new permadeath game concept with new fun mechanics. It's my first time pitching my idea and i believe this could be a groundbreaking fresh take in RPG world. I just wanna know who wants to build on my idea and profit?

guys !
how can i add BOX2D to my game i have no idea how to integrate it!
as my game relies a lot on physics and shapes and i really need BOX2D for better performance THANKS A LOT

For context, I am an electronic musician who recently got hired in their first game (very fun). I am supposed to create a soundtrack that fits a certain vibe, but no hard and fast instructions were given.

When you guys outsource music, how often do you want the composer to update you? Is it customary to show off their process? How many revisions is too many, ect?

Also I’ve noticed a buncha bugs in the test version of the game and was gonna point them out in the interest of making the game better, but idk if that’s offensive.

Hi, i made open world and want to fill it with foliage tool. I think the best foliage ican use is from quixel megascan but every of their gras chunks has at least 2k tris... Kikuyu Gras even has 17k per Chunk.... Even with nanite, am i allowed to use that?

What 1 or 2 things would you have done differently on your first project that you have learned by this point to have a more successful game or launch?

Like many other newer devs, I feel like I did many things right, but my game still isn't getting traction. I know there isn't 1 answer, but I'm curious about the few things I could do better.

Thanks,

Simant2020

I've been doing UE5 environment art, lighting and level design for about 6 years, and I always wanted to make games for a living. My plan is to do a bachelor's degree in 3D (no i won't do a game specific degree) a master's in Europe and get into the industry after that, so I'm still 5-6 years from working.

But I've read so many layoff stories, studio closures and posts about experienced devs who can't find work, and now I can't even open Blender without my brain going "what's the point, it's a sinking ship." I haven't done real work since July and I'm sick of it. I feel like all the passion I had just got buried under dread. Everything I look at (games, adjacent fields, tech in general) feels doomed, and I can't tell if I'm seeing reality or just panicking.

I don't want fake positivity and I don't want more doom either. I want honest takes from people actually working in the field:

*Is it still realistic to aim for games with a 5-6 year runway, or would you build toward something broader?

*Do environment art / lighting / level design skills actually transfer to other fields in practice?

*What are hiring managers looking for in juniors right now?

*If you've been through layoffs or a long rough patch, how did you come back from it?

Any perspective helps. Thanks for reading my rant 😅

I wanted to start to make games, but i dont know anything about programing, i would like to learn how to make an rpg like undertale. but idk if its too hard to start with, so i want some tips (like the best free engine for new persons, how to learn programing, etc) thanks a lot!!!

Future game designer here, I hate generative AI in creative works for consumers. However as someone who doesn’t have to learn to code what do developers think of putting my GDDs into AI (claude code) to get a playable prototype so I can finetune the GDD and show developers what I want them to make? I would never publish a work with gen AI but the allure of it for this reason is strong. But as a developer would you be offended if a designer showed you an AI prototype and asked you to make it? And do you think using AI even for something non marketable will have serious future ramifications for my career as a creative? Interested to see what devs think!

https://store.steampowered.com/news/group/4145017/view/677385962174549063

I love the new achievement sets, that way, you can avoid losing the 100% completion due to an update that hasn't been released yet or a DLC you don't own.

However, another QOL for developers is the automated grayscale generation for locked achievements, you can still upload a custom one, but when I added mine, it was a surprise that there was no feature to create these default grayscale icons

Hey all,

I'm very new to the dev journey, currently taking a class that is helping me learn the very basics. But I have a few questions that I'm hoping can be answered (most about etiquette). I am using Unity and have almost no assets so far (also to be clear I have no interest in creating assets and am way more focused on the design and gameplay side).

Question 1: If I download assets from the unity store, is it acceptable to modify them in any way or are there dos and don'ts that I should be following. (my questions mainly comes from if I download a character pack from one person but I add scripts to it and change the way it functions is that seen as ok or a bad thing?).

Question 2: I have done some programming in the past, but never really gotten into it. I am currently using AI to write scripts for me, then I modify them as needed. I know the general sentiment towards AI is seen as negative, and I get it from a art creation aspect, but is it seen the same way if I have it write my scripts for me, or is that even something that people care about?

Hi everyone,

I’ve been thinking a lot about the state of game mechanics recently, and there is one specific element that feels like it’s completely stagnated—if not entirely regressed. I’m talking about in-game physics models.

Modern games, as a general rule, no longer feature complex or interesting physical models. It feels like physics is gradually losing its significance in the eyes of big developers. Decades ago, physics engines were treated as a core selling point and a primary tool for emergent gameplay. Today, they are often reduced to minor cosmetic effects or completely ignored.

In contrast, older games were characterized by much more thoughtful, robust, and engaging physics. If we look back at the mid-2000s, games like Half-Life 2, F.E.A.R., Crysis, or the early Red Faction titles used physics as an essential part of the core gameplay loop. You could destroy environments, use objects as weapons, and solve puzzles that required actual spatial logic. It made the worlds feel tangible, reactive, and incredibly fun to interact with.

Currently, the number of new games with a high-quality physics implementation is extremely small. Most modern titles opt for static environments where almost nothing can be moved, broken, or altered. Even in massive AAA budgets, we rarely see advanced ragdoll systems, realistic weight simulation, or fully destructible structures. It seems like the industry has shifted all its resources toward graphical fidelity—like ray tracing and ultra-high textures—while leaving environmental interactivity behind.

I understand that synchronized physics in modern multiplayer games can be a technical nightmare, and destructible environments require immense CPU power. However, it’s disappointing to see single-player experiences suffer from this lack of ambition.

It is worth exploring whether the industry will ever return to physics-driven design, or if technical hurdles and a preference for visual polish have permanently shifted developer priorities. The contrast between rare modern exceptions and the golden era of interactive physics provides a lot of room for analyzing where game design is heading next.