I have something to say... Harsh truths and Honesty | Indie Game Dev

You can check out our follow up to this video here: https://youtu.be/Ic9qvlx7fg0

Dont do what this man here done. Game dev is a learning journey, until you know what you are doing and are confident in your skills dont throw your day job(or house) away, doing so will only set you up for failure.

I'm sure someone else has told you this, but I'm watching this video 8 months later. Y'all currently have 10.6K subscribers and this video has 28K views. Huge shout out to y'all for sticking with this and channel and with Veil of Maia! I'm wishlisted and I'm hoping for all the best!

Iv been working on my game for more than 2 years and Iv never showed it to anyone. this video is great and you nailed the way I feel every day.

I have been working in game development for 12 years as a game designer. The coolest game design book I've ever read starts with "your first games are gonna suck and there's no way to change that except make more games". And I felt it in my own skin. I hope you know what you're doing when you bet so much on your first project. Do you really need 15-20 hours of playing time? Even big titles don't always do it. I wish you luck anyway!

Game development videos have an evergreen kind of quality to them. I have only made about 18 videos and from those its clear to me which 4-5 just keep on bringing in steady views. I released 1 video this past year (2022) and netted +136 subscribers over the course of the year mainly from all the other videos. So first thing is to keep producing content, and then to limit the time investment in the content production - I really dont think at this stage that 40 hours on one video is anywhere near worth it. i've spent less than that on all my videos combined. Then, people like Thomas Brush it must be said are not (in my opinion) deriving a primary income from selling games. He's super talented and think about it, when you watch any of his videos he ALWAYS has just a few more spots or an extra day or two of discount on his COURSES. How many times have you seen him punt Neversong? Never? Hardly ever? So his business is not games - he likes that - but his business is largely education with a sprinkling of games on the side - still good cash, but there is less competition and way higher value in selling courses to his audience who are people like you and me - game developers. Who is your audience? And how are you getting THEM to Wishlist your game? It's not game devs Im sure. I would definitely consider doing a Kickstarter once you have built your audience more, which I reckon you will succeed in doing over this year. Wishing you both all the very best on this adventure.

Not a game dev or in the space at all, this just popped up in my feed and I am not disappointed. The genuine yet almost stern take was refreshing and amazing to hear. I wish you and your family the most success. I will definitely play your game once it releases as well! Good luck👍

I finish my career last year i just have some couple of final exams left to get my degree. I was lucky my teacher was a younger boy than me who succeed in the game industry and he is the one that made Madison the horror game. He explained to us a lot of the problems he faced through the years. Madison was developed by 2 people and it took 5 years. Between those years he explained to us he got copyright claims from different companies and countries, he has to re edit so many times the game trailer, to met platforms standards and the part that made him develop depression was the games that were trying to imitate his game style. He also told us when you are working everyday with other person the relationship becomes like a married couple is "very complex" there will be moments that are going to be really tense and rough. He also told us there was a moment he hated his game so much he couldn't even turn on the pc and work a few minutes on it. But one day he calmly analyzed (what does my game bring compared to the other ones out there?), (what do i offer to the player that make me different than the rest) and he found the answer he was literally putting his heart on the line where these dudes were just releasing trailers copying his camera style and such then from there he started to change things. He fired his first programmer and hired a new one in a few days so much was done he couldn't believe it how much time he was wasting due to being friend with his first programmer but sometimes if it doesn't IT DOESNT WORK u have to cut ties and move forward being friends doesnt mean u can pursue the same things in a working environment. Long history short i asked him Alexis how much did u earn with Madison? and he told me -by contract i cant tell u how much but i can tell u something if i want to live my life in a humble way without working anymore i can. He got into Da vinci university as a teacher because it was the time where Madison was getting ready to being ported in other platforms and he told us if he hasn't his mind working on something else he would go crazy. He also explained to us the risk when ur about to make a deal with a publisher read the fucking contract read it READ IT AND RE READ IT over and over because sometimes they want to help u financially but at the exchange of getting ur IP rights and if u accept u cant pretty much take any decision anymore u can keep working but under someone else lead. So an amazing history, he also helped us make our seminary game way better than it was. Great person and he was like if i could do it u guys can too. Now he told me he has a lot of offers from companies that want to work with him. But now hes in that place where since his dream became true "making an horror game" he declined so much offers he feels like the weight that were on his shoulder fade out and that now hes a bit more relaxed and that he can choose who he want to work with, is like a privilege after so much years of stress and work. So yea man everyone goes through what u are going through is up to u what u wanna do but hard work usually doesnt betray the only difference is that u have a family behind you so the stress must be even greater than a normal game developer. Sorry for the potato english i learnt the basics playing video games.

Watching this in August 2023 and you have thousands of subscribers and this video has over 20k views. Congratulations! Keep going!

I respect your courage and I really wish your studio will take off! Good Luck !

I really appreciate the vulnerability. I recently took a bit of a gamble move to try to pivot into the game industry & it definitely helps to know I'm not alone in trying to tackle this crazy dream. Thank you Sasquatch B Studios! 💚

Here's what I've done. I got a job as a school bus driver where I work 3 hours in the morning and 3 hours in the evening. So, in between 9:40 am to about 2:40 pm I got 5 hours to work on game development or pretty much anything I want. And then when I finish my bus route (after 3 hours in the evening), I could come home and work on game dev (or whatever I want) for the rest of the night. And thus, I earn good income and get to work on my dream. Well, I explain this in a video on my own channel. But, this is just food for thought with me trying to achieve my dreams while staying afloat too.

Instead of selling the house, couldn’t you just rent it out indefinitely forever?

Almost at the 1k guys, your are smashing it even if the numbers dont feel right to you. Much love headed your way.

What you are describing is literally everything I feel right now as an aspiring artist and musician. I have very little confidence in myself that I actually am capable of achieving what I’m aiming for and I can’t even excuse myself for simple things like ignorance or not being perfect immediately. Honestly this video deserves way more attention because it really does highlight the unbelievable and incomprehensible struggles of chasing a dream. Thank you

You doubled subs in 3 months vs the last 8 month peiod! Lets go! Thanks for the shoutout, I appreicate it Brandon. Here's what I'll say on the topic... I feel this way too, and I don't think it just goes away. I was making videos for months getting a few hundred views and then my first devlog for Mana Valley took off for whatever reason. Then not too long after a video I had posted 6 months prior took off and that momentum carried through my next 3 videos. I started getting approached by sponsors and then the views tanked. Sponsors were upset I wasn't hitting the average numbers they were paying me for. But from a youtuber perspective every metric other than views was above videos with way more views. I guess all this to say that... it's easy to always feel discouraged no matter what your size is. Getting in the right state mentally is the only way to combat against it. I've started looking for ways to monetize other things in the space because of this. Sponsors are a great way to make money, but they don't understand youtube and often put requirements on the creator that aren't best for the audience, so I figured I'll make some of my own things (assets, courses, etc) I can promote in a way that fits more naturally with my content than a sponsor segment. One of my goals for last year was to hit the monetization threshold for youtube. I was able to surpass that in a crazy way but I wouldn't put any eggs in the youtube revenu basket for game dev. In the last 28 days my channel has received 134,000 views and the estimated ad revenue for that amount of views is $120.22 USD (which is obv also before taxes). Unfortunately to make a living from YT ad revenue alone a channel needs to be bringing in millions of views per month. Unfortunately only the largest creators in the space are bringing in those kind of numbers. For the last 28 days... Blackthornprod (1.4M views), Dani (1.47M views), Brackeyes (1.3M) and well.. that's the only people I closely follow that have passed 1M views per month. Granted Brackeyes hasn't uploaded in years and Dani hasn't uploaded in months so... it is a testimate to a passive income stream if you do hit those numbers. Hopefully this isn't discouraging, I don't mean it to be. I want to see you succeed. I think building a platform on youtube still has immense value. I just think for most creators that value comes in using the platform as a marketing tool to promote the creator's other products/services.

Another quote that I love that fits the theme of the video is; Every defeat is psychological, except death. A year and a half after the video: 35k subscribers.

Thanks for this video, it hits home for me. I started game development 3 years ago and have finally released a demo for my game after 2 years of work. All done on on the side while working a full time job and taking care of a family. After my demo was released I expected a least a mild reception and average wishlists, but it's been mostly crickets. I think I have 6 wishlists in 4 weeks. I can't describe how discouraging that is. However, like you said it's important to keep at it. We only have this one life to live and if you really want it, don't quit. No successful person ever made it by giving up, whether gamedev or any other endeavor. I wish you the best on your gamedev studio!

(Sorry if I used bad English, I'm still improving my language.) Hello my friend. This is the first video I watched on your channel, I met you today and I felt very similar feelings. It was interesting getting to know someone who lived a similar life to me, miles away. I've been living what you said for exactly 2.5 years :) I have to deal with everything myself, from their music, to their drawings, to the design, to their coding. I quit my full-time job, gave my life to a game while people were traveling and having fun, basically I focused on "achievement". I continue to live and improve my game on my own by financing myself with small jobs. There is a saying: "If your path in life is clear, you are probably living someone else's life." In other words, those who choose the difficult and bumpy road are those who prefer to live their own lives.. I appreciate you. Your wife must be proud of you. I'm sure. And one day your child will be proud too. I don't have a family :) Fortunately you have that. I wish you success. I've already added Samurado and Veil of Maia to my wishlist. 🤩

Aaaaand bam! I'm one of the 5.33k subscribers 5 months in of the upload of this video! Best wishes + luck, and I'll be keepin' an eye out for your game!