The Tools I Use for Indie Game Dev

In this video I give a brief overview of all the tools I use as a hobbyist game developer! Links below.
Pixaki: rizer.co/pixaki/
Aseprite: www.aseprite.org/
Audacity: www.audacityteam.org/
Garageband: www.apple.com/mac/garageband/
Trello: trello.com/
Visual Studio Code: code.visualstudio.com/
Unity: unity.com/
MortMort: / @mortmort
#indiedev #toolkit #unity
Play Snow Pounce!
iOS: apps.apple.com/us/app/snow-po...
Android: play.google.com/store/apps/de...
Play Blink!
iOS: apps.apple.com/us/app/blink-a...
Android: play.google.com/store/apps/de...
Follow me on Twitter!
/ _devduck
MY PC / DESK SETUP!
Apple iPad Pro: amzn.to/31Qq7xt
Apple Pencil: amzn.to/342QQbx
Monitor - Alienware 34" Ultrawide 3440x1440 @ 120hz GSYNC: amzn.to/2MtlbZx
Keyboard - MASSDROP CTRL: amzn.to/2LZkjwO
Mouse - Logitech G502: amzn.to/317L06Y
Microphone - Blue Yeti: amzn.to/2MrC9rh
Webcam - Razer Kiyo: amzn.to/2IDUAIh
Custom Built PC
CASE - Corsair AIR 540 ATX Mid Tower: amzn.to/2OAJiIq
CPU - i7 9700K: amzn.to/2Ow4r6F
FAN - Noctua NH-D15: amzn.to/311Xk8L
MOBO - Gigabyte Z390 AORUS Ultra: amzn.to/3116K47
GPU - Gigabyte RTX 2080: amzn.to/2M04s0Q
RAM - Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB DDR4 @3200: amzn.to/2p6UZvM
STORAGE - Samsung 970 Evo 1TB M.2: amzn.to/2VpE7fY
PSU - EVGA SuperNOVA 850 G3: amzn.to/2B0h9m1
DISCLAIMER: The above links are affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I’ll receive a small commission. Thanks for your support!
Music Credits:
► Artist Attribution
Music By: "EVOL"
Track Name: "SLEEP AWAY"
• Instagram - / 1nlove.mp3
• SoundCloud - / inlove-sad-boy-780987
• KZbin - / channel
• DOWNLOAD @ www.chilloutmedia.com/
Licence: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
- Full licence here: creativecommons.org/licenses/
• Music released by: Chill Out Records @ goo.gl/fh3rEJ &

[@DevDuck]

Timestamps! Art: 0:56 Sound: 2:27 Code: 3:38 Planning: 5:20 Engine: 6:26 Hope this helps!

[@angelex2483]

The art and sounds help heaps for me thanks man 👍

[@jas2890]

You should look into bosca ceoil

[@yahiaghadiry9885]

You should do one on hardware

[@spxur]

what chair do you have?

[@stevelitt]

Great vid. Can you talk more about your computer(s), keyboard, and monitor next?

[@Danidev]

It's pretty impressive your total toolkit cost came in at 15$ bucks, what a time to be alive bois

[@VasileC12]

Hello 🥛🥛

[@ivanvoirol7639]

Plus the entire Apple Ecosystem...

[@linussommersel4272]

Het dani!!!

[@bread8507]

@@Kibinai_ what where you on when you wrote that comment?!?!

[@sophieosu]

@@ivanvoirol7639 yep... so basically $15 + a few grand for a room heater

[@MortMort]

Thanks for the shutout pal

[@goombagoob]

there he is

[@polarisation]

The man,the myth,the legend

[@SamHogan]

If anyone wants to do non-pixel art game art, affinity photo (like photoshop) and affinity designer (like illustrator) are on sale for $25 right now. I use designer, and it's the best vector-based art/design software I've ever used, would recommend!

[@tehseal]

EYY SAM!!!!!!

[@choongfetti2685]

EYY SAM!!!!!!

[@marianateixeira9251]

I'd like to see how you manage your games with Trello. Or the different ways you've used Trello for games.

[@sydneyarrowood3632]

Mariana Teixeira you can see what it looks like in some of his development vlogs. i also use trello, and i usually split the groups up into different days and use the labels to know how important they are and when i've completed each task

[@marianateixeira9251]

@@sydneyarrowood3632 ill rewatch some of his dev vlogs; i often struggle with organisation, but ill be trying your method as well; thank you very much!

[@nucleo_virtual]

@@marianateixeira9251 i started using trello a few days ago and the way i organize my project is (like he pointed out in the video) having 4 lists: backlog, to-do, in progress and done, i separate my cards with labels like, animation, artwork, programming, bugs etc..... since i have a bug label i added another list called "fixed" exclusive for the bug cards

[@pablofreitasmachado8076]

Yes,please!

[@nobytes2]

trello is just a bunch of cards with more details on the task at hand, everyone uses slightly different.

[@CobnutVTS]

You seem like a really genuine guy, i'll be sticking around

[@reisujhalaren6729]

I'd love to see more detail on how you use Trello for planning out your game. One of my problems is organization and planning and I think a dedicated video could be extremely helpful.

[@vmrocha]

Free/open source software running on a very expensive hardware.

[@leonardo9259]

As it should

[@moozdoomz7573]

^^^

[@ninja_tony]

Ok? I feel like you're trying to make some grand point here, but if you are going to take game development seriously, a reliable computer is the one absolute necessity. You don't have to have a Macbook or a $1000 gaming pc, but you definitely need something more than the bare minimum. Especially if you're working in 3D, because most budget PCs won't run Unity smoothly.

[@nobytes2]

What's your point, people can buy whatever they want. At the end of the day it doesn't matter what computer you use to make games. Even so DevDuck probably got the laptop from his job.

[@MythicLegionDev]

It was really cool to see what you use and some of your suggestions! I had actually never even heard of visual studio code! I would definitely like to see how you utilize trello for game development, the way I'm using trello right now is like virtual sticky tabs so I don't have to keep everything on my mind all the time.

[@arshadsayyad8748]

When will part two come🤔😀

[@alexandrgarlock4075]

Much needed in times like these. Thank you.

[@iconicstudios7750]

I love seeing how much progress you're making in each episode. It's really inspiring and motivational. Keep em' coming!

[@josephsk9397]

I am also a sw engineer and was looking into developing games on the side. Your videos are of sooo much help and encouragement. Your games look great too!

[@mitchellhoward3209]

I'm working more on my own games given world events, so your channel has been super awesome, thanks!

[@ImaginaryComposer]

Loved the tip for VSCode! Thanks for sharing the tools, Ben!

[@coolnamesTV]

After seeing you use Trello in earlier videos, I tried it out, and have been really liking it. Thanks! Really enjoy your videos, keep it up!

[@nullvalu_studios6025]

I would love to see a video talking about your Trello organization! I've been using Trello for a long time and I love it, but I have a hard time organizing my projects. Thanks Ducky!

[@jeffpino3894]

Such a nice and lovely workplace ! Nice video, thanks.

[@dataecto6135]

I'd love to see more trello stuff! I currently use spreadsheets to track my progress, and I used trello in the past, but it's nice to always learn more

[@TheRuiPires]

0:40 You have a freakin' Majora's Mask?! +100 respect

[@greenishspacedude577]

Thank you for that visual code tip ! Didn’t know we could do that. Definitely going to try it out

[@Errox358]

Yes, please, more about your approach to Trello!

[@Talk378]

Great video man. I’ve always been more into full stack/back end dev but this video makes game dev seem approachable.

[@williamstenberg5212]

Awesome video! I just bought aseprite a week ago so now I'm all set! :)

[@Asiliea]

Three cheers for Trello! It really is a fantastic tool since it's highly configurable to however you want to use it, and thus can be used for multiple things, such as task tracking (like shown here), in-depth character/plot/feature boards with their own card/list structure, trip planning in different stages, even speech or event planning. If you're the planning type and starting to get the hang of using it, I recommend creating "template" boards with their list, example cards, labels etc all set up to copy and rename for different purposes when you need them. I've planned out three small games, eight novels, and countless iOS apps and Rails sites this way. Highly recommended to anyone else who works at/with a digital device regularly and needs a good planning tool.

[@TheJPprojects]

I would love to see an in depth trellis guide with how you plan and separate what you're doing and honestly just your thought process in the structure of your game design journey!

[@michealwaldrup4357]

Yes, Trello dev workflow guide would be awesome!

[@StuffJ]

Really informative video, thank you! I feel it's quite important to mention that the cross-platform applications brought up in the video (Aseprite, Audacity, VS Code, Unity), are not only great because they're available on Windows and macOS, but also because they're supported on Linux!

[@chozomonkey]

Love seeing the development side of things. I'd love to make a game at some point, so it's cool seeing how you do things. Side note, as a musician and producer, I'd love to offer tips on the music side if you need. First one that comes to mind is that you can record straight into Garageband with your mic. Just eliminates an extra step - streamlines things a bit. Other great free DAWs out there for PC as well.

[@pixaki7138]

Thanks for sharing about Pixaki! It’s great to see it as part of your process. - Luke

[@gualdim]

I would love to see a Trello tutorial. Thank you. Keep up the good work!!!

[@JGrayBKK]

I love this video, it was a huge help. A good follow up to this would be a here's what you need to learn to develop a game

[@Roman-ve3sg]

Love the chop sticks, very creative

[@amythestwarrior]

What a tease as your video thumbnail! I was really hoping to see a breakdown of your hardware setup... your keyboard looks awesome!

[@Jalecko]

that keyboard looks nice AF

[@guillaumeretureau482]

Thanks a lot, you're doing a fantastic job! Your devlogs are so inspiring! I would really be interested in knowing how you break up your tasks in a roadmap, that's one big issue I'm facing atm

[@cantalas3874]

extreeeeemly useful video, great job and thank you very much!!

[@DevDennis]

great video my man!

[@harsht4345]

this man has everything that starts with "i" - an entire apple ecosystem

[@epion33]

Harsht except the keyboard, but it’s the same one I use in my Apple eco system. Mechanical switches are more rewarding in the long run

[@harsht4345]

@@epion33 i am just too poor for that uwu

[@ibra.h]

HHOOW ARE YOU TOP COMMENT IN EVERYTHING I SEE.

[@harsht4345]

@@ibra.h 😂😂😂

[@boratsagdiyev1586]

I do all my pixelart on a 300 dollar n5000 laptop. Godot runs like a beast, dont need a macbook pro. A drawtablet doesnt have to be expensive either.

[@urgalten6203]

Awesome setup. I also use Aseprite, it's amazing.

[@benjaminlacey]

Please do a Trello tutorial! Especially how you plan out your milestones. Thanks! Great vid as always!

[@cloudyOso]

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!! THIS VIDEO WAS A BEACON OF LIGHT AMD HOPE!! AGGHHHHHHHHH

[@BruceOnder]

This was great! :) Maybe a similar one about the tools and workflows you use to produce your devlog. :)

[@bernhardwerner8095]

Yes, please explain your Trello setup and workflow!

[@ObscurityIsBest]

Great video! Thanks!

[@lukeferguson80]

It would be awesome to see how you approach Trello!

[@hosamorfali3444]

You are an amazing person, thank you :)

[@mfawtut3308]

Thanks DevDuck. You really help me. really really thank you very much

[@nathanfrancis5649]

Hi, cool video, I love your dev vlogs.

[@neevir3229]

thanks for the video!

[@Isabellulla]

Ohhh I was looking for the name of those key caps in the description. Those are gorge.

[@stvs9722]

That keyboard... I'm jealous...

[@JPVersus_]

A couple great sound tools I use for game jams are Bosca Ceoil and famitracker. The latter takes a while to get used to, but it also covers sound effects really well and they're both free

[@infernumex]

If you're writing a lot of code for Unity, or just C# in general, I strongly recommend you try JetBrains Rider. It's a full featured IDE with native Unity integration, meaning it understands the Unity ecosystem, features JetBrains award winning intellisense/autocomplete, and still manages to feel dramatically more lightweight than VS. It's only $10/mo. and there is a trial. Everyone I've ever heard of who has tried Rider for Unity has been blown away and never gone back to VS or VS Code.

[@iamstruck]

Gerald Christie also, if you’re a student, you can sign up for Github’s Student Developer Pack thingy (i don’t know what it’s actually called). It gives you free access to i think all (if not, most) of JetBrains programs. it’s super awesome and helpful for students trying to get into programming.

[@kimmokissa]

@@iamstruck You dont even need the github student thingy, if I remember right, I made my student account directly in JetBrains web page. (couple months after that i enrolled in the github)

[@GendaijinBlog]

My man, you're so organized. You make me feel messy.

[@DanishZaryab]

We would love to see a full guide on how to use Trello!

[@robko5711]

Nice! I was looking for that animation software. I used piksel for my game which is on the web for free, but it's kinda slow to use. Thanks man! And I love the new game you are making. Mine is also on the coast. Cheers

[@Th3Nick3X]

I have the hardest time planning or making a workflow to follow, i would love some in depth looks into how you use trello! think that would help. its the bigger projects im most intrested in! love your videos and keep up the good work!

[@reptiliannoizezz.413]

I am quite intrigued by this "Trello", good sir 👀

[@CodemasterJamal]

I always used a virtual machine for garageband. I wrote a lot of my first songs with it. Truth be told, I wish I still had it but, Ive gotten use to using LMMS. The interface is similar so I feel at ease using the software.

[@carlisle6831]

Quickly approaching 100K subs 💪

[@wryukeng]

I really like your game your developing. I'm a game dev myself. So I really like things you do here. Its quite an inspiration.

[@MissCodeBunny]

Thanks for the content you're producing! Informative and insightful.

[@alexroot6049]

Hey Ben! Binging your videos currently, keep up the good work! Wondering what keyboard you use with your mac? Would really like to get one!

[@RagePeanut]

Oh man, I had no clue you could configure Unity to use VSC as an editor. I've been trying to make Visual Studio 2019 feel like VSC these last few weeks but it just isn't the same. Thanks a lot for this video !

[@AnirudhIsOnline]

Nice quality video 😀

[@MichaelGarcia-cg9on]

As a side note your one of the buffest computer dudes I've seen.

[@RhoTrepaan]

Thanks for the heads-up on Aseprite o/

[@NadineCallan]

I subbed just because of what you said during the first min.

[@kickatorch9151]

I think everyone would agree that a video on trello would be great, because its an all around great app for everyone

[@linktrifloyd1731]

Would definitely like to see your system for Trello!

[@itstiagopereira]

Yes it was helpful. Thank you

[@LordChicken1]

Hi Devduck ! I really appreciate watching all of your videos as a "Future" game dev. I was wondering if you had a discord for your youtube chanel ? It could be great to have a place where discussions could happen about game dev. Thanks again for your videos and see you next week !

[@jul8803]

I loooove Asesprite!

[@derekmardian518]

VSCode is definitely the way to go for me too. The extension on it are limitless.

[@tenminutetokyo2643]

Awesome dood

[@oceanowls-indiegamedevcrea214]

Hi! Thank you for sharing your tools! I also use Audacity. I don't have Mac computer but using Garageband on iPad is a good idea :)

[@pixelmachine]

Great list of free tools! If you are on Windows and are looking for a good alternative to GarageBand, look no further than Sonar's Cakewalk. Cakewalk is probably the most fully-fledged free to use DAW I have ever used! Not only can you use midi, but you can also record audio too, this is something even the lowest price FL Studio doesn't even allow you to do. For pixel art, please remember that you can also do pixel art in Illustrator. If you don't have Illustrator, you can download Inkscape for free, which is a very good alternative!

[@epion33]

A video on Trello and task management would get you another like from me!

[@jacques-dev]

Hey, I know it's been a while since you posted this, but I think it would be really cool to see a video on staying organized and how you use trello / other tools to do that, thanks!

[@ameliabuns4058]

That mav is making me drool. Plus your other stuff

[@diogoantonio7855]

Hi DevDuck i am your fan from brazil, i like your games a lot and i will also be a dev like you. Your aquarium is very beautiful! ☺

[@TheShelfman]

Really nice video! I don't use garage band (android and windows user haha) but for the rest it's all the same for me!

[@janbakiewicz4266]

Happy easter owocnych swiat

[@KingLiakos]

Respect my friend i am 20 years old from greece and i want to be a gamedev i know its a little bit late but i will start! Thank you!

[@rajyalakshmisworld7628]

Hey make a game from Greece history all the Greece iconic locations

[@Seigneur101]

Hi @DevDuck, I really love your videos and your channel. I've been watching them for a few months now. I keep wondering, how do you edit your videos for KZbin? Like what software do you use? Cheers on the channel, excellent content, excellent videos all around, it's great to live my passion vicariously.

[@melomaniakjm]

Love your shirt.

[@zachhackedit7462]

You are my inspiration for creating games! I made my KZbin channel inspired by you. Keep up the great work!

[@twelvematic]

Thank you for sharing all of this with us. I am going to buy a new monitor mainly for productivity and dev stuff. Currently I have a 27" 1080p monitor but pixel density is starting to bother me, specially with text. Do you think 2K is enough at that screen size to see noticeable differences when I upgrade or should I go for a 4K monitor ?

[@chuka4901]

Amazing Vid!!!...what extensions are you using for VS Code??

[@taylorpendleton5345]

would love to see how you plan in trello!!

[@lewisgads6432]

Is all the art you put in your game pixel art? For example in UI or text is that all pixel art too? Also thank you for the great video :) your channel is super helpful for a game development student like me

[@philippesylvestre3716]

I want to hear more about trello and how to plan my next project !

[@gamedevel22]

Aseprite is the real thing when it comes to Pixel-Art! Definitely an investment thats worth it.

[@ariashark]

I'd love a Trello rundown

[@Jan-vw5cg]

Only clicked because of the keyboard, it looks sick 👌👌

[@mrbale1815]

great mechs there

[@tryptex]

+1 For a more in depth view on how you utilize Trello

[@GavinLon]

Great video! I just subbed. My channel is focussing on C# tutorials at the moment (currently developing an advanced course). I love Unity and hope to do more vids on Unity in the future myself. I didn't know about Trello or Pixaki. I'm looking forward to checking out those tools. Thanks!

[@khaledtribes]

Please please make a trello video! I'd love to see your workflow!

[@damianrogers4585]

Awesome, thanks for sharing. I do think owning a graphics tablet of some sort is a huge boost to productivity for art. I see you use your iPad for most of this. What do you use on pc? Btw pixel art wise there is website called pixelation.org that is great for getting feedback in how to improve your pixel art. You've got a good base it seems and Mort Mort is definitely fantastic with his content, but I really think you'd benefit from getting a bit of critique as there are some minor changes you could make to what you currently have that could go a long way.