With well over 100 million Americans playing video games, it is one of the most popular pastimes on the planet. Whether you love sports games, shooters, RPGs or any other genre, there are millions and millions who like it too.
However, while most of us play games, we hardly know the amount of work that went into creating it. With that in mind, this article will give you a little look at what goes into creating a video game. Of course, this is a simplified version, as the process is much more complex than this. This is just to show just how much work and planning goes into that game you love to play.
Coming Up With the Idea and Plan for the Game
Before you ever sit down at a computer, you need to come up with what you want your game to be. Do you want to create a 3D open-world game, or a simple 2D platformer? What sorts of characters and features would you like to have? These are just some of the many questions you will need to answer.
Storyboarding is a great way to sketch out some ideas and blueprints for the game and see what works, and what doesn’t. Not only that, but it involves planning out how the game will actually progress. The amount of planning before a single software program or tool is used can be very large.
Choose the Right Software to Create the Game
Next up in the process is to choose what sort of software and/or tools that you will use to create your game. There are many different options that you can choose from, and the choice you make will depend on both your budget, as well as the type of game you are trying to make.
Of course, each piece of software or tool will come with tutorials as well as forums in which experienced users will likely be able to help you out with your problems. These will be incredibly helpful for when you are starting out, as building a game isn’t always easy and will take some practice.
Start to Build the Game
Once the plan is made and the tools are selected, it is time to start building and/or coding your website. In addition to creating characters, you will also need to ensure you are building sets and objects within the game, too. Each part of the game is as integral as the next, so don’t cut any corners.
The time it will take to build the game will depend on how labor-intensive the game you are creating is, and the learning curve of the software you are using. Be warned, however, that creating and building your game can be a long process, but it must be done, as taking shortcuts just to finish the game can often lead to bugs or the game feeling incomplete.
Test, Release and Market the Game
Once the game is built, you want to ensure to test it a lot to make sure it not only plays well and is intuitive, but also doesn’t suffer from any massive bugs or issues. Once the game has been tested (preferably by a number of different people), you will be ready to release.
If it’s just a game for you and your friends to play, that’s great. However, if you want the game to spread far and wide, you will need to market the game and/or your website. This can be done on social media, through targeted ads or simply by posting it on various forums and to various communities in the gaming niche.
