How to Make Games When You're Bad at Everything

Main ideas / lessons

• Game development is massive and multi-disciplinary

  • Real game studios may take years and involve hundreds of people.
  • A complete game typically requires many skill areas (e.g., fun mechanics, strong art direction, music, story).

• Starting with “no experience” is possible

  • The speaker began with only some coding experience (school), but no experience with:
    • a game engine
    • art
    • composing music
    • writing a story
  • After ~8 months, they conclude it’s definitely possible to start—even when you’re “bad at everything.”

• Time and dopamine-based distraction are major obstacles

  • The speaker argues you usually must work on your hobby in free time.
  • People often spend that free time watching videos (YouTube/TikTok) instead of building.
  • Their “theory”: the brain uses excuses to chase more dopamine from media consumption.

• Common “excuses” are reframed in a motivational “lightning round”

  • Mastery timing: The famous “10,000 hours” idea is dismissed as not the full story.
  • Enjoyment matters: If you’re not having fun, the result won’t justify the effort.
  • You can’t expect a masterpiece immediately:
    • Trying to build a “magnum opus” first often leads to quitting or getting stuck in endless rework.
    • The speaker describes their own cycle: changing code, remaking art repeatedly, improving slightly, but ultimately going nowhere.
  • Start small anyway, because it will look bad at first—and that changes with time.

• Keep going without confidence by building it

  • Confidence can be built by showing your work to other people.
  • Two contrasting sharing experiences:
    • Art: shared early work immediately to friends/mom → got support → felt more confident (even if they likely didn’t love the earliest drawings).
    • Music: shared an early song to a more critical friend → received harsh feedback → stopped sharing and became isolating for months (they later regret this and describe it as discouraging).

• Use tools and learn efficiently

  • Pick an engine/tool to learn first (it doesn’t matter which one too much, because learning one helps you learn others).
  • Recommended starting steps:
    • Game engine: try GDevelop (the speaker says the exact engine doesn’t matter much).
    • Art: use pixel art and learn sprite/asset creation; buying assets can be more time-efficient than repeatedly trying to compile a sprite.
    • Music production tools: use FL Studio (paid) or LMMS (free, though they didn’t like it); they mention Reaper with a free 60-day trial.

• Motivation vs. willpower (and how to sustain progress)

  • Motivation: comes from inspiration (e.g., watching great content and feeling “Woo, I’ll do it”).
  • Willpower: doing the work even after failing, especially when you keep going.
  • The speaker says they struggled with willpower, especially with music, because they compared themselves to amazing OSTs (which represent years of skill).
  • Their fix: connect the work to why they enjoy it, focusing on:
    • the fun of making silly/bouncy songs
    • making adorable characters
    • coding interesting mechanics
  • Core message: the process/journey is better than the destination, because hating every step kills willpower.

• The practical “how to make games” conclusion

  • The “answer” they emphasize isn’t instant mastery—it’s:
    • learn everything (even if that’s not the desired answer)
    • try different things to discover what you like/dislike
    • collaborate or find people who like what you like
    • then build the game you’ve been dreaming of
  • They note a niche strategy exists: some games succeed by emphasizing one skill (story vs art, etc.), but the speaker personally feels driven to do a lot themselves.
  • If you start after the video:
    • keep going even when you fail
    • spend small pieces of free time learning (tutorial code, new art concepts)
    • don’t quit at the first signs of failure

Method / instructions (detailed steps)

1. Accept the reality of starting small

   • Don’t aim for a “masterpiece/magnum opus” on your first attempt.
   • Expect early work (code/art/music) to look terrible.
   • Use a smaller scope to avoid:
     • quitting due to disappointment
     • getting stuck in endless rewrites (code changes + art remakes)

2. Schedule work during free time

   • Recognize that game creation will likely happen in your limited free time.
   • Reduce the tendency to spend that time purely consuming more content.

3. Build confidence by sharing your work

   • Show progress to others—especially early drafts.
   • If you only rely on self-criticism, you may lose perspective on where you’re headed.
   • Choose feedback carefully (they learned this the hard way with music after harsh criticism).

4. Choose starting tools

   • Game engine: pick one (example: GDevelop) and learn it so skills transfer to other engines.
   • Art: try pixel art and figure out workflows for sprites/assets; avoid wasting too much time on low-value compilation struggles when alternatives exist.
   • Music: use a music production tool:
     • FL Studio (paid)
     • LMMS (free; not their favorite)
     • Reaper (mention of a free 60-day trial)

5. Do the work even when motivation fades

   • Motivation is temporary; it will not be there tomorrow.
   • Use willpower by remembering why you’re doing it:
     • enjoy the process (creating and experimenting)
     • treat failures as part of learning

6. Learn broadly, then narrow

   • Learn multiple areas rather than waiting to become “good at everything” first.
   • Experiment to discover:
     • what you enjoy
     • what you don’t enjoy
   • Optionally pursue a niche:
     • some games succeed by emphasizing one strength (e.g., story over art)

7. Keep iterating after failure

   • Failure is expected when trying new things.
   • Don’t quit—keep the next small attempt going.
   • Small consistent learning blocks (tutorial code, art concepts) compound over time.

Speakers / sources featured

• Speaker (primary, unnamed): The YouTube narrator who shares their personal experience starting game development with no experience.

• Referenced sources / concepts

  • “10,000 hours” mastery idea (attributed to “once a guy said…”; no name given in subtitles).
  • YouTube and TikTok (as platforms associated with dopamine/distraction).
  • Music/OST examples (the speaker references “amazing OSTs” they looked up to; no specific OSTs named).

• Tools mentioned (not necessarily speakers)

  • GDevelop (game engine example)
  • FL Studio
  • LMMS
  • Reaper (including “free 60-day trial”)
  • Pixel art / sprite compilation (as a technique/workflow area)