Making Successful Indie Games Is Simple (But Not Easy)

[@JonasTyroller]

DO NOT SKIP MARKETING! Of course you go through the marketing checklist at 0:20. Just so we don't have any misunderstandings.

[@oleksiifisher8175]

Did you mean to say "do not skip markeing"? 🤭

[@JonasTyroller]

@@oleksiifisher8175 Are you making fun of my typo brain? :D

[@voon7820]

ok ok, i will not stop markeing

[@kouchka09]

it happens to everyone

[@JonasTyroller]

@@kouchka09 just to some it happens more often. :D

[@successor0]

Not many talk about it but I adore your chosen color palette and representation. They support what you are talking about without distracing while being easy to understand and elegant. I even took several screenshots instead of notes lol.

[@scrub_jay]

Jonas, thank you so much for always being so committed to sharing your knowledge with the rest of us. You've helped so many people in so many ways. Absolute legend

[@lucasfranke5161]

11:51 I thought he was about to hit us with a SkillShare ad lol

[@JonasTyroller]

Haha, I had the same feeling when editing. We are too conditioned.

[@hazaggi9228]

I expected brilliant xD

[@stickguy9109]

​@@hazaggi9228 lmfao same ahah

[@JesusPlsSaveMe]

​@@hazaggi9228 Where are you going after you die? What happens next? Have you ever thought about that? Repent today and give your life to Jesus Christ to obtain eternal salvation. Tomorrow may be too late my brethen😢. Hebrews 9:27 says "And as it is appointed unto man once to die, but after that the judgement

[@drillerdev4624]

You are easily fooled on the internet That's why you should get a VPN like [choose your option here, there are way too many doing the same advertising]

[@EmperorsNewWardrobe]

Man, the compressing of knowledge here is as impressive as it is eye-opening. Hats off to you, Jonas, and a big thanks too

[@uheartbeast]

Another great video Jonas.

[@clankfish]

heartbeast wooo

[@toldfable]

“Do not judge yourself by the results you are getting now. Judge yourself by how quickly those results are improving” Best advice I’ve heard all year. I’m tweeting that

[@dfunited1]

When I started a new job, and felt like an absolute failure, my boss asked for 1% improvement each week. That "low expectation" kept me through the hard noob phase. When you start struggling to reach the imaginary 1%, you might finally be half decent.

[@kunai9809]

with the number of checkboxes on the screen I feel like a companion document to this video would be useful

[@thiagosoares7414]

I will definitely make me a document from this video

[@OPTactics]

Very easy to do that. I'm already adding it to my notion.

[@kunai9809]

@@OPTactics can you make the page public and link it here? That would be nice. Maybe you have to obscure the link to be able to post it here though, I think by default you can't just post links

[@Yolwoocle]

@@kunai9809 Someone please notify me if a link is sent here!

[@absence9443]

@@thiagosoares7414 that'd be great :)

[@ThatCake]

I was scared that algorithms were the new marketing but we're good... they're just the new markeing

[@JonasTyroller]

ooof, dodged a pullet

[@Ibadullah]

Lol

[@Ibadullah]

​@@JonasTyroller thank god its a pullet! Idk what I would have done if it was a bullet 😂.

[@ultimaxkom8728]

**Wipes sweat** Yeah, that was a close call.

[@JesusPlsSaveMe]

​@@Ibadullah Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. Turn to him and repent from your sins today!

[@itzluku]

How to trigger a perfectionist: 0:59 Markeing :D Great video as always!

[@coondog7934]

10:50 He is just doing things differently instead of better. He is trying to stand out and not competing with us on the same level 😋

[@paulinaanna5]

I ctrl+f the word markeing to see if anyone else noticed 🤣

[@MrSLonoed]

I wish all learning/info video on youtube be like this. No BS, not stupid jokes, just pure awesome learning and experience. Thank you!

[@davidsanchezplaza]

fully agree, just wanted to comment the same

[@copperbeard]

I like how Jonas finally found his voice. I remember the awkward early day video's where he seemed to try too hard to be entertaining. Now he just is entertaining... and informative.

[@Yolwoocle]

I'm glad he moved away from the traditional excited youtuber voice, I really like his current videos

[@ChristopherCricketWallace]

Best comment

[@ultimaxkom8728]

Moved on from drinking *MILK.*

[@Unga_Bunga]

@@Yolwoocle Yeah the super loud super _"HAHA lol so random and funneyyy xDDDD11"_ style is so obnoxious and annoying. I guess it suits the hordes of youtubers whose target audience are literally children, here I guess it makes less sense and would probably even turn people away from watching more videos.

[@tuckvison]

such a weirdly backhanded compliment

[@moshecristel]

I can't get enough of these videos where you give your general advice on game development (like your "This Problem Changes Your Perspective on Game Dev" video). So many points instantly ring true and I've watched both multiple times!

[@Marijenburg]

I was prototyping when I got the notif for your video. I stopped so I could watch it right away! Another gold mine of clear, efficient, sensible information. Your the GOAT, thank you!!! Let's get back into prototyping :)

[@stickguy9109]

11:55 This is the realest thing I've heard in this video. Maybe just maybe some of us are not really cut out for this and it's not a big deal as long as you keep trying. In hopes of becoming good some day.

[@louisdefromont4265]

Another great video! It's clear how much effort you put into refining these ideas and thinking about the best way to present them. This video and "This Problem Changes Your Perspective On Game Dev" are now two of my favorite Game Dev videos on KZbin and I will recommend them to everyone I know!

[@Pachink0P]

I love how you are always t not only thinking out of the box but specially sharing for everyone to learn. Thank you!

[@sssaharov]

I have no words to describe how genius, beautiful and useful all your educational work is. Thank you for that, its absolutely insane

[@dasheck0876]

I do not comment often Videos like this as I am more on the lurker side but gosh this video was really awesome. No bullshit or fluff. Straight to the point. No overly complex visuals. Easy to follow and fast paced. I really enjoyed it and learned a lot. Great combo

[@hamzahgamedev]

Been making my open world game while binge watching ur old videos and suddenly Jonas dropped a new banger.! YAY! 😍

[@thegreatfluctus]

Jonas, you've got the most balanced and real perspective out of all the indie devs I watch on here. While many blame publishers, market and anything else, but not their mediocre products, you just rock! With how you're doing things and growing, I bet you'll be a Bafta winner in ten years! Keep it up! Subscribed! :)

[@alexanderkulaev541]

Thank you! I put this entire video into my Obsidian notes with screenshots and annotations, to add to my indie game production strategy. I'm just learning, starting on my game dev, and this info helps immensely. Can't put in words my gratitude to you, Jonas.

[@bunkstunkis]

Had this exact thought this week, awesome to hear you expound on it. Making a successful game is just having a strong hook and delivering on it flawlessly. Simple as that!

[@musicmikemn]

I was expecting the last point to turn into a Brilliant sponsor spot :D

[@cheepcheep2204]

Crazy good video and a much needed reality check for some people on the indieDev subreddit

[@arcticfoxstudio]

Now I'm too scared to ask w-what is preached there? 😮

[@1000_Gibibit]

@@arcticfoxstudio Last I checked it was a lot of doomerism and people sharing revenue statistics, neither really help you make better games

[@MochaRitz]

​@1000_Gibibit post mortem with entire essays written about how they failed in marketing and all these nonsense copes, only for me to glance at their game, and see an ugly 2d platformer. Like yeah, nobody is gonna stop scrolling for that lmao.

[@TheUnsupported]

Your closing statement is the best motivation! I know the game I'm working on won't be a huge hit, but the amount I've learned and the improvement in my skills over time make me confident that I can keep working my way up. 😀

[@635574]

AAA was always just a financial category. And with that comes studio size. It comes down to not having stupid leaders, their games will tank no matter the cost (concord)

[@hipunpun]

I love Islanders, such a great game. Was playing it before I started watching your channel, and was pleasantly surprised to hear you were behind it! Really speaks to what you were saying about making a really good game and letting it speak for itself :)

[@iwoMalki]

Mate you are becoming an game Dev Expert! I am learning more from you than I have been while working in the industry for 10 years.....

[@louxie6367]

I am so happy you made a video about this! It has already helped the project I am working on, so I sure it will help others as well! :D

[@denizbinay42]

Man, I've been watching these kinds of videos for months, and you've just brought everything I had to gather from dozens of hours of content into 10 minutes. Fantastic!

[@davidsanchezplaza]

i like how Jonas really share valuable insight and is not just crap content. Thanks!

[@ED-gw9rg]

Thank you so much for the advice on prototyping; downloading this vid to keep it in mind! Oh, and also: you're the best for using a slideshow of the actual main advice points instead of showing games as background footage, it helps so much that I'm not being distracted by the video itself, but instead helped through it

[@flip2dip]

What an incredible video. Agree with every single point, but could never put it into words in such a digestsble format. I hope prople understand how valuable this information is.

[@QuetschKuh]

You realise you're addicted to KZbin when you have notifications off but regularly catch videos within the first minute. Anyway, either I'm missing a genius pun or there is a typo (which may or may not be on purpose to entice comments like these) Edit: Just refreshed and he fixed it. It was "(Bot Not Easy)" before lol

[@JonasTyroller]

yeah, fixed

[@s.o.m.e.o.n.e.]

fr

[@Rospandan]

@@JonasTyroller thats not the only typo, instead of marketing it says markeing, missing a t, inside the video, not sure if thats something you can fix inside youtube

[@JonasTyroller]

@@Rospandan Oh jesus. How do I always do it. Let's just say it is comment baiting.

[@Hyperboid]

how does u become o what keyboard layout is this

[@kunai9809]

the type of video I like the most from you. Always so valuable!

[@Cooo_oooper]

How much of your games success comes from your KZbin audience you think? I know this question might have a "negative"/envious connotation but I feel like developing games after work AND marketing with KZbin would be effort that quickly leads to burnout (in my case) and not many people can pull off without an established audience.

[@JonasTyroller]

So far I have 3 data points and I don't see a lot of correlation between the size of my YT channel and the success of my games at all. I think YT can ensure a baseline of sales, but it won't turn your game into hit. Only your game itself can do that. If you're unsure, I'd recommend to invest your time into the game instead.

[@JonasTyroller]

So the data points are about: ISLANDERS: 10K Subscribers - 15K Reviews on Steam Will You Snail: 100K Subscribers - 2K Reviews on Steam Thronefall: 180K Subscribers - 12K Reviews on Steam (in the shortest amount of time) For me it looks relatively uncorrelated.

[@Cooo_oooper]

@@JonasTyroller Thanks for answering this "loaded" question! That data looks really uncorrelated for what it is. For 'Will You Snail' it seems like it helped you at least to get your game discovered in a genre that is not very popular on Steam. Thank you, gives me more motivation to 'just' make a GOOD game and stop worrying about such things.

[@stickguy9109]

​@@Cooo_oooper Making an actually good game is already plenty to worry about.

[@tymondabrowski12]

KZbinrs play an essential role, but you don't have to be one, you can just send your game to letsplayers. There are some dedicated to indie scene, even, like splattercatgaming. Same with Twitch. Your game needs to be interesting enough for them to want to cover it, though.

[@frogrammer7954]

man the video was just straight to the point, nothing else. loved it, learnt a ton from it, thanks Jonas!1!1!1!

[@darcking99]

man I thought you were just a silly game dev but you’re a genius. Really.

[@lkyuvsad]

This is great advice for building just about anything. I can't believe how focused and clear you've managed to make this. Really excellent Jonas.

[@thevedect8983]

WOW, Jonas, thank you very much! These are very important pieces of advice that I will follow for my future games for sure! Also, thank you for the very last bit🤗

[@sleve_mcdichael]

This may well have been the best video about game development that I've ever seen. Great advice!!

[@kimgss1]

Holy shit, that's so much content in just 12 minutes. You're the man!

[@CandiceMoorman-n7h]

I appreciate how simple and straightforward your videos are.

[@blakefpierson]

This video was jammed packed with insights, thank you so much.

[@dreamisover9813]

Excellent video! I'd say for the "Vision" part of the video: It can make sense to define core design pillars (that can be from the player experience perspective) and if you have new feature ideas or external feedback, it is good to evaluate those against your core design pillars and whether it actually helps or hinders the game in that regard.

[@RobertDoman]

One of the best videos for indie devs ever made!

[@batlin]

The sheer amount of insights squashed into this video is gonna take weeks to gradually filter into my brain.

[@mattcav6992]

I watched it end to end, that's rare, well done.

[@tomohle5224]

Das war super, Jonas :) Great advice, and as a fellow marketer (well, agency owner), 100% agreed with pretty much everything you said.

[@TheAmusingMe]

I can't seem to get YT to allow me to thumbs up twice, so here is a comment instead. This video, along with many of your others, have been wonderfully helpful. My mind feels like it's in this space, but your videos always add focus and clarity. I really appreciate you sharing your thoughts and experiences on these topics.

[@kainaris]

This is imo the best indie game dev guide I've ever watched. I just gotta try it now and see if it works...

[@DanteMoraes]

It is remarkable that you know how to program AND know the soft skills that the job requires, like 2 opposite ways of thinking coming together. That's rare

[@r0flcopter]

This is incredible. As someone who's worked both in AAA and shipped an indie game, thank you so much for this.

[@SunSailor]

Chappau, großartige Analyse. Da zieh ich mit 25 Jahren in der Branche neidlos meinen Hut!

[@AlansQuickSave]

That part on setting your prices either a little low or high based on niche is so simple but it makes so much sense lol. First time I came across this channel somehow, definitely watching more

[@JoseBlizard]

Amazing video! Thanks for the sum-up and words of support (or uncertainty, depending on what you think about your game and development process). Looking forward for more!)

[@badmonkey2468]

wow very content rich. theres alot of good devs that also try to make content like this but you've nailed this too, the whole video was worth my time

[@cheesepantsgaming1964]

1 billion thumbs up. I have just spent the last year and a half on 2 published titles. I am in the process of helping devs with the cost side of production. I think a lot of youtube videos, tutorials and mastercourses just help add value to your game. Knowledge is just one side of the equation.

[@roughneckmike]

Wow, what an insightful video. Really well put together. Will be saving that and referring to it probably more than once!

[@Lumii-official]

dude I love your videos SO MUCH.. It's really just hard to explain but you're really doing it right, explaining it right and presenting it right

[@Rhomita]

Amazing video Jonas, really useful data! 💪Thanks!

[@omerfarukbykl6097]

7:19 I agree with fun being equal to flow. But flow is not just difficulty matching, that is just one criteria for flow. Flow constists of 4 points, one of them is the "right difficulty".

[@omerfarukbykl6097]

Okay it does mention

[@JonasTyroller]

@@omerfarukbykl6097 I feel like difficulty matching is the most difficult condition to meet out of the bunch, but you are of course right.

[@arnoudh6203]

What would the other three be?

[@_stephenhubbard]

If there was one game dev video I wish I could implant into every game dev's brain...This would be it! *chef's kiss*

[@aneesh.videos]

Just 2 minutes into the video, and it already makes so much sense. Thank you, Jonas, for this informative video.

[@honaleri]

0:27 You forgot the T on Marketing. I ONLY tell you this little pedantic annoyance because that typo is early in the video, and anyone who is snooty and dismissive is gonna miss out on the sheer brilliance of this video if they think it's not quality information because of a small typo. This video is brilliant, and very valuable info for indie devs and marketers in general. Thank you for sharing your wisdom. ❤ You've expressed complex and often undervalued thoughts and clear and concise ways that are incredibly relevant and necessary to anyone trying to make money online. Keep up the amazing work.

[@imjust_a]

8:46 I'd like to see more discussion on prototyping. I feel like the concept is a bit nebulous. How do you determine what needs to be prototyped? How does one typically set the scope of the prototype? Does each prototype feel like a different game entirely or are you just iterating on a single mechanic? How far do you go with each prototype, and by what criteria do you decide it's good to move forward or stop working with? How many variations do you do, and how long do you typically spend on those variations? How early on in the process do you start prototyping? If you have a game design doc, how does prototyping fit in if you've already planned out how the game should work?

[@AndrzejGieraltCreative]

Great video Jonas. Here's what I've sort of realized lately... most devs, myself included, don't -really- want to do this. We want to trick the algorithm, but we can't trick players into liking our game, so we can't trick the algorithm either. I'll speak for myself - I want to make an open world RPG. Here's the thing - I absolutely CAN make it, without a doubt I can get this game done in 1-2 years. I definitely don't want to work on it for longer than that. Here's the thing - I know I absolutely CANNOT make it GOOD. I will get back reviews. I will implement systems and say "ok, there's inventory done... there's buying/selling done... there's lockpicking done... there's combat done..." and won't be able to spend time assessing and iterating to make sure every single one of those systems is good. This is why people have to be willing and humble enough to be happy to understand that game developers are just digital toymakers. If that's what you can enjoy being, you will succeed as a game dev. If you have a grand vision you want to achieve, you probably want to make something other than games.

[@jjhe3899]

digital toymakers is such a brilliant way to put it!

[@AliMurtazaGameDev]

I never comment on videos. This was so helpful and on point that I just had to appreciate it. Thanks a lot for the treasure of knowledge you drop on your channel. Keep up the good work!

[@irajmh]

I was so worried about this topic that I was nearly mentally paralyzed. Everyone says its impossible to be successful without marketing doesn't matter how good your game is . This video was a relief !

[@MochaRitz]

Keep in mind, it doesn't matter how good your game is if screenshots and videos don't paint a unique picture. I see a lot of people fail, and say things like "but everybody who tested it loved it!" as if the barrier for entry isn't a purchase for those looking at a steam page. Your game needs to LOOK fun too.

[@Break.]

wow, I've been soaking in gamedev advice for a couple years now and this pretty much condenses it all into one video. great job :)

[@paijwa]

Might be the single best game dev video I've seen

[@benyoungblade]

This video was packed full of game dev insight. Thanks Jonas!

[@realapppleC.E.O]

As always, sharing very useful information for aspiring developers in the scene. Generous man, thank u jonas

[@firimousse3676]

Honestly, what a great video. I released my very first game and well it wasn't bad but now I did release it I realize everything I could/should have done better... My game wasn't bad but it wasn't amazing either I will work a lot on he next iteration. Thanks a lot Jonas

[@Skeffles]

Fantastic video! I agree in so many ways especially when it comes to saying the algorithm is the new marketing. That said, I think pushing as many marketing things towards the algorithm gives it more opportunities to be picked up.

[@OPTactics]

Wow what an incredible video. You provided so much valuable information in such a short video. Very glad I subscribed. I'll be putting this advice to the test on my next game. Thank you!

[@kyjmo]

Incredibly valuable info, extremely well put together and to the point. 10/10. Thank you.

[@julienchevallay7448]

Great content as always, really useful to decide where to spend our time during gamedev

[@PillBugGames]

Thanks for the informative pep talk =D all we can do is try to keep improving, and info like this makes that a lot easier!

[@kepler6873]

You can combine prototyping and marketing/algorithm into one by uploading all the prototypes you like to KZbin. Make your pitch, explain roughly how they work, and then let people say what they feel has potential. From there you can do a second round on the chosen idea to find a good design concept and boom, you have a core to work on and some people interested

[@finesseandstyle]

What if all of them get

[@JoeTheis]

5 star knowledge for free from a master. Love this place!

[@Syfron1]

This is such a great video. Many great lessons, and completely true to the current market. Fantastic work!!!

[@kostaskompostas]

"you perform a search algorithm within the bounds of the scope of the game" damn, on point!

[@jweare333]

Another banger of a video. Your videos are so inspirational. Thanks! Cheers.

[@PartTimeMonkey]

Great video! I've always started from prototyping as well, and often the shipped games that are basically just beautified prototypes. Years ago, when Apple's featuring was still a strong traffic driver, it worked like a charm. These days harder on mobile.

[@hardworkingslacker7233]

A good guide by one of the best! I might try my hands on a game myself in the future.

[@IlyaInBerlin]

Thanks! Your games and videos reinspired me to start making games again. Let's hope it works this time. Will have a working prototype in some weeks now :) Thanks again Jonas!

[@MajesticMindGames]

Jonas dropping gems out here! Super solid advise! Thank you so much for sharing your valuable knowledge sir! ♥

[@digi3363]

cheers, love! can't wait to apply some of these ideas to my first game.

[@DerDilettant]

fun = flow as a studies psychologist, this was always my theory. nice to see you support it :D

[@Sivta]

Another great video!

[@bjornterlegard]

Love this video! Incredible value for indie devs :)

[@kunai9809]

8:04 I think smooth difficulty curves aren't (always) the way to go. Like a bossfight for example should be substantially more difficult than the content before AND immediately after it

[@Zizaco]

You're right! It should not be super linear. My understanding is that a "zigzag" line within the flow range is ideal. 7:18 If the zigzag surpasses flow, then the gameplay gets frustrating. If it goes too low, the game become boring.

[@vinsplayer2634]

I think that different genres have different optimal difficulty curves. In roguelikes after bosses the difficulty should go down a bit. In puzzle and platformer games it should go way down whenever a new mechanic is introduced. And in endless run-based games it should have at least almost no times when it gets easier.

[@niuage]

A lot of what you say is somewhat obvious but at the same time you know people actually forget about these things while working on their games, so really good reminder. Also I'm a really big fan of the way you explain and present things.

[@JonasTyroller]

I agree. It is obvioius, but easy to forget. Thank you.

[@ayvesstarforge]

Yoooo Amazing New Video, Very Good Stuff 🎉🎉

[@galaxygur]

when you say "you know what matters.. your skills.." I already expected that annoying ads of brilliant or something almost heard in my mind

[@jsivonenVR]

Thank you. These felt pretty solid advices for me 🙏🏻

[@ExpensivePizza]

Every so often I watch a video that I know I'll save and replay over and over. This is one of those videos.

[@spencerkerkhof8356]

This is incredible life advice. I want to show my kids this movie when I have some