How To Never Ship A Game | Devlog #0

First devlog in a series chronicling the development of Project Gilgamesh, a cyberpunk rhythm-parkour game where you Kill God With Parkour.
This video covers the 5 years I spent (2017 - 2022) figuring out the kind of game Gilgamesh needed to be in order for me to ship it.
It also covers the 5 lessons I learned in what NOT to do as an indie dev.
I wanted to make something in between a traditional devlog and a ‪@NakeyJakey‬ video.
Download the demo on itch.io for free: sainarayan.itc...
My twitter: / sainarayan_
#gamedev #devlog #unrealengine #parkour #cyberpunk #rhythmgame

[@FormerlyDuck2]

Almost feels like my future self is giving me some guiding words. This was very encouraging to listen to after a long and frustrating afternoon of working on my own game.

[@SaiNarayan_]

I'm very glad to hear this! You've got this and I believe in you!!

[@I-OMusic]

"In short, i'm a delusional idiot" We've all been there homie

[@SaiNarayan_]

haha this is comforting, at least I'm not alone

[@kitastro]

Thanks for talking about this I love how positive you are regardless of the struggles. I feel you brother, I've also done similar things

[@SaiNarayan_]

You're incredibly welcome!! Thank so much for the kind words!!

[@I-OMusic]

yo this is a REALLY good video, beautifully crafted vibe on top of a great looking game

[@SaiNarayan_]

If KZbin videos had blurbs like the back of a book this would 100% be the comment I'd put on it!! 🙌 thank you so much!!

[@brmawe]

Dude I know how you feel! It's been 7 years since I've been working on a game and it's been though MANY versions & only last year I found the perfect vision! Wish u the best!

[@SaiNarayan_]

@brmawe hell yeah thanks so much friend!! And good luck to you as well on your journey!!

[@The8thOpening]

Thanks for the interesting video and the good advice.

[@SaiNarayan_]

You're welcome!!

[@slBrelaz]

Very well said! I've been working on my own game for 5 years now, and I'm careful to allow myself to go off on a tangent and do stuff that isn't super critical because it's fun. And having fun is what inspires me to finish the game.

[@SaiNarayan_]

Indeed!! It's a very different model of thinking to when you're developing a game on a schedule with a release date, and I think transitioning from one to the other is typically the model of most "bedroom" devs . Good luck and thank you!!

[@davidchartrand1033]

Great video! Good job! Your journey is what truly matters. You learned so much. Very well explained, thanks for sharing

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you so much for the kind words!! ☺

[@kqisuru9760]

bro i look up to your content! Awesome work on Gilgamesh!

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you so much for the kind words!! ☺️

[@AecelotGrimmWyrdStudios]

One of the best indie dev logs and tips ever

[@SaiNarayan_]

Wow gosh thanks so much for the kind words!!

[@VGameD99]

I am 5 years, 3 project restarts down the rabbit hole! Only to end up with a ultra-generic Vampire Survivors clone in CYBERSPACE that's too late to the market. Oh well, worst is first! Just gotta finish it and make something good next.......... Oh...

[@SaiNarayan_]

I feel this pain but also it's something to celebrate that you were able to finish making a game at all!! That alone sets you apart in resolve and ability from maybe 95% of the population, honestly at this point all you gotta go is just keep going one step at a time brother!! Success of some sort, in either monetary or creative satisfaction, whichever is more important to you, will find you eventually I am convinced, it's just a matter of staying on your feet so you can keep taking shots! ❤

[@simonvandenbroek6384]

Starts talking about wasted skills, But when watching the video it seems like nothing was wasted? You just learned what you needed for what you wanted. Thanks for making this video. It was a lot of fun watching this.

[@SaiNarayan_]

You are incredibly right, and thank you so much for the kind words!!

[@Smabverse]

It felt like a lil too long video, but overall it was amazing 🤩 Thanks for the tips and advices too 😎

[@SaiNarayan_]

You're very welcome!! 😊

[@mathieubouvier4338]

those pieces of knowledge are true treasures to who can grasp them, thanks for your time and advice good sir, I wish you the best for your endeavors as I'm going to pursue my game development aswell !

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you so much!! 😊

[@swisspunker94]

really good video, enjoyed every second of it! I love hearing from people who speak from a place of experience, I can tell the advice you give is the result of your own journey and not something you have heard someone else say on the internet!

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you so much for the kind words!! ☺️

[@PixelKnight93]

I'm so glad that you covered burnout. I've been struggling with motivation and burn out for a little bit now now don't get me wrong I certainly haven't dropped my project and there is some consistency but I often find I need to take one or two weeks break between coding sessions because I've hyper focused on one given problem for too long neglected my basic need for rest

[@Malice16]

1 second in and I'm already more invested than I originally was knowing that you watch RLM.

[@SaiNarayan_]

haha hell yeah thank you!!

[@MrSidhantbhasin]

The visuals are so cool! looking forward to ur game :) gd luck !

[@romainparizot1054]

Man I spent 1.5 year around 2023 trying to make this game XD non-conventional parkour games are so hard to make, yours looks FIIIIIRE. Wish you the best ! (Also lots of great advice, making games is hard so just find a way of working where you can do it almost everyday, at some point you will have a finished game

[@SaiNarayan_]

haha gosh its good to hear from someone else who has tried it and can confirm, this is indeed hard!! Thank you so much for the kind words!! ☺

[@Asonc1]

Same, I had an idea of a parkour game, few days in and ended up crying hahaha

[@NitratEntertainment]

Hey man, I was actually afraid of that also happening to me when I started gamedev and thats why I put my first ever game on steam. It might not be the best but it helped me much more than making a lot of prototypes and not releasing them. Your game looks fire. Keep it up man ❤

[@sainarayannatarajan6915]

I am so thankful for the kind words!! 🙏

[@benjaminherzig6959]

Thanks for sharing your story :) I like your anecdote about the movement system: It shows that you first have to understand the problem space in order to structure your code appropriately, instead of abstracting it "neatly" according to all the rules by the books before hand. That is the most valuable lesson from your journey.

[@eruttt]

good points brother. however this mentality just require so much willpower, and so much spare money. imo, doing small projects, becoming progressively complicated will net u more sustainability. thankyou for appearing in my recommendations

[@SaiNarayan_]

Indeed this is probably worth addressing in a separate video as the background to a lot of these pieces of advice was the fact that I had another job and sustained myself via this and worked on the game on the side, which is maybe the only way to do it if you want to take a swing at a higher risk game concept? Looking at some of the big stories over the years it does seem like there's people who took both approaches and ended up successful regardless which is nice 🙏

[@ChinchillaDave]

the honesty is valuable, thank you for sharing

[@SaiNarayan_]

You're very welcome!!

[@ayotaye3244]

Nice Video. Well Paced and Balanced in terms of Perspectives. Well Done

[@SaiNarayan_]

@@ayotaye3244 thank you so much! 😊

[@fahimjaowad8717]

Thank you! What a well made video!!

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you in turn for the kind words!! 😊

[@tabsterg]

Awesome video I was hooked every second you summerized and explained the herculian years of effort you pulled through in a very engrosing way, instant sub It's interesting seeing your journey amd where it's going!

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you so much for the incredibly kind words!! 😭❤

[@Good_Username]

The last footage looks like a rhythm game like audiosurf, great work!

[@SaiNarayan_]

@Good_Username heck yeah Audiosurf was one of the key Inspirations for the direction I ended up going with finally, glad that comes through!! 🤩

[@otsukareboku]

3:02 the switch here is too relatable

[@SaiNarayan_]

Haha I'm glad that feeling is relatable

[@jedyzichterman358]

You radiate a certain positivity that innately makes people want to root for you. Subbed and very interested in keeping tabs on your progress.

[@SaiNarayan_]

This might be the nicest comment I've ever received 😭thank you so much!! It means the world to me that you are interested in the game and its progress!! ❤

[@EmeraldStudioSweden]

Haha it feels like every solo developer has a cat, an orange one specificly. Nice video to say the least :)

[@SaiNarayan_]

Haha yes gamedevs need a familiar to help with the arcane rituals 🤣, thanks so much!!

[@Good_Username]

Great Dev vlog! Thanks!

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you!! 😊

[@Notsalmon547]

As someone getting into coding, this is very helpful (although I will probably still be a delusional idiot sometimes, it’s all part of the process lol) and this video was great!

[@crcruz3]

Great video, brother. Looking forward to seeing your game finished, I'll be one of the first to buy it!

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you so much for the kind words!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it and we're working hard on getting the next demo done!! 🙏

[@jinenjipeke]

i came here for advice and found art philosophy, splendid ❤

[@SaiNarayan_]

You're incredibly welcome!! ❤🙏

[@Desmond-Dark]

The point about actually doing things by yourself for 15 minutes (Or whatever amount) and tweaking values is so true. Btw the music is kinda loud relative to your voice audio which also happens to be a bit echoey. I wish you the best of luck Sai!

[@SaiNarayan_]

Yes my audio setup is sub-optimal here but will be much better in the next devlog, thanks for the feedback!! 😊

[@RolyPolyGames]

Going through this a lot myself. Tutorials are a godsend, I feel a bit touchy that following them makes me "not doing it myself." But I often remind myself a line a brilliant programmer once told me, "Why waste time reinventing the wheel?" I haven't bit the bullet on plugins yet though. E: The best piece of advice they ever gave me is. "Treat work like going to the gym. Sit there and just do it even if its only 30 minutes. Because that's still 30 minutes more than nothing. And maybe you'll find yourself doing even more when you're there." Which I see you covering at the end too.

[@SaiNarayan_]

Indeed, I know what you mean, it's an odd hump to get over and I think in part also requires trusting your own skills enough to feel like you don't need to prove anything, even to yourself? Starts getting into weird psychology territory haha And yeah an hour a day is my baseline, and a good day for me is a focused 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours in the afternoon, anything else is an extra ☺

[@Visigoth_]

Loved this!

[@SaiNarayan_]

@@Visigoth_ Thank you so much!! 😊

[@awiseauthor3456]

5:04 I feel another factor is how the online (at least on YT) gameDev community reacts to people using store assets. For the most part, especially if it's models, people treat your game like an "asset flip" even if all the code is your own

[@SaiNarayan_]

Very true! And the line is fuzzy, but it does feel a bit harsh as a game is much more than the sum of the models in it

[@warpingrealities]

Looking at the game I'm getting Asura's Wrath vibes, and I'll definitely be checking it out. I'm sure 5+ years and no games is about the median for solo devs. I myself started my VR game project in fall 2017, and I don't it matters how good of a programmer you are when starting out, because game development involves a vast number of disciplines that all take time to learn. Even buying assets or frameworks requires a certain level of insight, if they are to be properly integrated into a game, so count a lot of the time as the learning process.

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thank you for the kind words! And indeed Asuras Wrath is a good comparison I think, we want to have lots of over the top crazy cinematic moments 🤩 And thanks for sharing your experience as a solo dev! It'd be interesting to get some concrete data on this and see what the median is for some larger sample size, I wouldn't be surprised at all if it was around 5 years as well, especially if you're starting from an amateur level (which I was) as opposed to an already experienced dev in the industry?

[@dennisjungbauer4467]

Now, I don't have much game dev experience, but I'd agree that it takes a lot of time to get into; there's a steep learning curve. I dabbled in game development as a teen and although my first project was very basic - a small island where you could walk on (+ other movement, and _walk_ underwater), a day and night _switch_ and a flashlight - it took about 6 months to reach a point where all the things where working that I had planned to. Ok, that includes refinements of animations and other things IIRC, but still. I think a lot of time was spent in the beginning understanding how to work with the editor (Unity) and what capabilities it has - it's a complex/loaded piece of software. :)

[@benrex7775]

Anti-Lesson 1: Check. In my gamedev I do build everything myself from scratch myself. Anti-Lesson 2: I spend considerably more time looking up stuff than working on stuff. But my looking up stuff is usually not goal oriented either. My strategy is that if I know everything about everything, I will be faster when working on it, as my problem is simple in comparison. Anti-Lesson 3: I completely failed at this one. Technically not, because I make little enough progress so that the throwing away is not really an issue yet. Anti-Lesson 4: Pretty much the same response as lesson 3. Anti-Lesson 5: I completely fail on anti lesson 5. The only customer of my game is myself. Anti-Lesson 6: I also completely fail at anti lesson 6. Although here I would like to add something to your lesson. I think listening to advice is helpful. Because your instincts have to be trained too. Advice from other people can give new options and can point out those places where the instincts are counterproductive. I think you make a contradiction out of something which isn't a contradiction. Taking risks and spending time are not two ends of a single spectrum. You can make a very short game and take risks in game design and you can take a huge amount of time and stay so safe, that you basically reinvent the wheel for the n'th time. Here is my lesson 7: If you intend on creating a game, make a clearly defined goal with a reasonable scope. Or my Anti-Lesson 7: Just start making a game with the first idea that comes to mind. The grander it is and the more emotional you feel about it, the better. Just to give background on my game. I have a gamedev on my second channel. My goal when starting it was to learn python and to recreate a browsergame that doesn't really work anymore. And I intended to make everything from scratch because I like to learn how things work. But the scope of the game is somewhat reasonable, although large enough that it may never see the light of day. Also I have to battle my constant temptation of being distracted and loosing motivation. So it can't be anything that requires too much research. And to finish off my list of problems, Once I roughly understand how things work, I don't care on giving it the polish. So chances of me finishing the game would be low anyways. But ever since I started my masters I took a break with working on it. So the current progress is basically zero. edit: I wanted to write down antilesson before posting the comment but forgot: Lesson 8: Start with the essential aspects of the game which creates the core gameloop. Anti-Lesson 8: In the beginning invest a lot of time into something that appears flashy. That lesson 8 may depend a bit on the game. For example Prismadev says that te artstyle may inspire you to get the direction going, while others say you should just greybox your way through the early stages of developpment, until you have a working prototype running. But I think in either case it is detrimental to start by spending a year in creating 100 iterations of high detailed character designs of your main character. If you do that you should perhaps work on selling character skins or gameengine-plugins instead of creating games.

[@MatthewRumble]

Ive been trying to make a game and its been 5 yrs. Ive been scammed, ghosted, and have switched up things so many times rewriting the story and everything

[@SaiNarayan_]

You can do it homie, one step at a time ❤

[@siddharthsawhney5861]

I had hard enough time learning lessons now I have to cope with anti lessons

[@SaiNarayan_]

hahaha thanks so much Sid!! The anti-lessons are honestly worth more IMO, learning what not to do and how to not fuck up is under-rated vs just how to succeed

[@siddharthsawhney5861]

@@SaiNarayan_ survivorship bias

[@m8subject996]

3:25 this part reminds me alot of gravity rush, i don't know if you know that game exists

[@SaiNarayan_]

Oh for sure, I think that Unreal plugin by Elhoussine was inspired directly by Gravity Rushs gameplay, not played it myself but watched streams of it and it looks super fun!!

[@ScorpyX]

Thank you

[@SaiNarayan_]

@@ScorpyX you are welcome 😊

[@nextos]

Great video thank you

[@SaiNarayan_]

@@nextos You're very welcome!! 😊

[@SleepyE_xx]

I'm learning goldsrc modding before I jump into unreal. I feel like it will give me a good foundation. I'm almost finished coding the ai for a monster npc with a shotgun and shield. I'm exciting to start making my own models and making custom animation sequences and NPC logic. I have lots of experience modeling and mapping for counter strike and I'm a color realism artist also so I think im bringing a good amount of value to this :P By the looks of it unreal looks a bit more complicated lol

[@neolynxer]

"In short, i'm a delusional idiot" I don't see how this concept is idiotic or delusional. Apparently i am.

[@SaiNarayan_]

haha well that was slightly exaggerated for humor, but the line between ambition and delusion can be very thin! I think early on I was on the wrong side of the line, but experience has taught me how to find the balance 😊

[@Eu_Sunt_Dracul]

very well done video. hope u increase the volume of your own voice next time. And definitely look forward to the next log

[@SaiNarayan_]

Thanks so much!! And yes the recording setup for this video wasn't great, wasn't very happy with the audio quality but have already got my mic setup for a much better voice recording next time!

[@iratemusic4575]

Oh forgot tell beginner... you need to live grandma or grandpa house in order to make a game. Just do their groceries, shopping, etc. Start making game. Don't get distracted by stupid KZbin video(pranks, waste of time videos, mr beast, etc). finish your game project.

[@SaiNarayan_]

TRUTH!

[@richardtoth7240]

how did you rotate your character at 3:08 to the surface? I couldn't figure it out on a Character Class, so I had to use a pawn and write my own movement system to achive the same result.

[@SaiNarayan_]

That is more or less exactly what I had to do as well, I don't think its straightforward to implement a non Z-up oriented controller using the CharacterMovementComponent that UE ships with because a lot of the gravity stuff is also hardcoded 🙃

[@SaiNarayan_]

Here's the relevant bit in Elhoussine Mehniks plugin which I mentioned: github.com/HoussineMehnik/UE4-CustomGravityPlugin/blob/master/Plugins/CustomGravityPlugin/Source/CustomGravityPlugin/Private/Pawns/ThirdPersonCharacter.cpp

[@dennisjungbauer4467]

4:48 So, I agree that you shouldn't feel like you _need_ to do things yourself, but even if there are things available to use, I think it's still valuable to build things yourself if you feel like it, even if you end up throwing it away - it's not necessarily wasted time. Now, that comes from someone who does like to reinvent the wheel, but I think one gains a lot of insight/understanding of that thing and makes it easier to work with then and one can potentially gain knowledge that can be applied elsewhere. So, I'd actually recommend doing it for some things, especially if you are new to it. :) But maybe don't start with building your own (3D) engine. 😅 It depends on your end goal though; if you have a deadline or want to get into market ASAP, it will be a hindrance, but if you want to get good at what you're doing I think it's a good idea. BTW: Congrats on getting 2,9K more subs in just the last 12 days! :D

[@sainarayannatarajan6915]

haha thank you so much!! 😊

[@FutureBoyWonder]

Seeing the clip on lugaru or whatever that rabbit fighting game was great, I was wondering if you were familiar

[@SaiNarayan_]

Oh yeah that games called Overgrowth I think, the dev is a legend IMO, he was doing crazy animation and parkour stuff way ahead of the curve

[@lecoursaire666]

based algorithm

[@Ally2_]

6:31 😀

[@ilucasz]

Your accent almost made me think you're Brazilian... It's so close...

[@SaiNarayan_]

Really?? That's so neat to know! I am Indian for reference, though Ive lived outside India most of my life and in the US for the past 9 years so my accent has changed a lot I'm sure :D

[@ilucasz]

@@SaiNarayan_ It's that it sounded really close to the Brazilian accent of english. Guess you wouldn't have a problem speaking portuguese too.

[@mkd0x]

I've learned UE5 a month ago, and I can already telll i'm delusional idiot :D But for some reason, I just like being an idiot, and I like you being an idiot. It made this video, and this great parkour system

[@SaiNarayan_]

haha aww that's amazing, I am very touched by this

[@screenapple1660]

Finish Game project first than have kids.

[@SaiNarayan_]

Real talk

[@MetalGearMk3]

wow UDK...

[@opelfrost]

in digipen the first thing they tell you is NOT to build such a huge game and to keep iterating your POC. you dont care about art asset too, just you cube, sphere and planes to test your game logic and get your single slice up and running. and also to not do feature creep did all of that change since then? I'll be really disappointed in the school if it did

[@SaiNarayan_]

Oh that was and is what they continue to teach at DigiPen, I am just terrible at listening to people's advice when it comes to telling me how ambitious I should be 😅

[@opelfrost]

@@SaiNarayan_ lol, we have all been there, once bitten twice shy 😂 keep up at it and make your game!

[@WhiteBossGamerYT]

Hey can we do work together?? and Yes You are doing Amazing Keep it up

[@SaiNarayan_]

@WhiteBossGamerYT Thanks so much for the kind words!! And yeah I saw that you're working on a flash fan game? That's a dope idea! Please never hesitate to hit me up on Twitter if you wanna chat more!

[@AINightmare537]

Your cat is a cutie

[@SaiNarayan_]

Haha it's true 😊