Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
1–10 of 258 posts
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#2I've always loved playing video games. From the moment I realized there were places called arcades with wonderful machines that ate your coins, I was hooked. Game and Watch? Nagged my mom for every single one. Nintendo Famicom? We had ALL the bootleg cartridges. Gameboy? Couldn't afford it so I burned with envy. Original Xbox? I have 4 of 'em stashed away somewhere. Playstation 1-5? Heck, yeah. Mobile? My husband bought our first iPad because we saw someone playing Angry Birds on it. PC? I'm playing The Ascent with my whole family right now.
More than playing video games, though, what I wanted to do as a kid was to MAKE games. I still remember punching in a borrowed Mario Bros cartridge for the first time, pressing START and having a freaking epiphany. How cool was it that someone MADE this?? To heck with being an astronaut, when I grew up, I was going to do THIS. I knew it with all the certainty of 8-year-old me. But you know how it goes: like most childhood dreams, I put this one on a shelf and gradually left it behind. I didn't become an astronaut either (in case you were wondering).
What I did was drop out of university in my third year. And since then, I've been a copywriter, graphic designer, business owner, immigrant, stay-at-home spouse, and for a long time, the stay-at-home parent. And it's been great. Life with all its up-up-down-down-left-right-left-right-B-A's...it's all been wonderful.
"Hold up," you might say, if you're still reading this. "Why are you telling us all this? Boring."
Right. Let me get to it. I'm 48 and if there's a lesson that has been inescapable these past two years is that we may not see tomorrow. So, I've decided to focus on happiness in the here and now. Carpet diem, as my kid used to say when he was little. And you know one thing that has added to my happiness? Dusting off my dream, sitting my ass down and finally learning how to be a game developer. And happier still? I've done this with my husband.
So we've published our first mobile game. It's called "Slingshot Effect" and it's available on App Store or on Google Play. It's an infinite jumper that's easy to just pick up and play. Perfect for commutes or if you're stuck in a waiting room somewhere. It's a paid app because we feel strongly that the level of monetization in the casual game space is just...ugh...it's bad. Thanks for listening, I really appreciate it.
TLDR: When I was a kid, I wanted to make video games. And now that I'm kind of old, my husband and I made one.
App Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/slingshot-effect/id1537916631?...
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.thirteenba...
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#3great story and the game looks cool from the screen shots and videos in the app store. wonder if you have plans to introduce a free version with in-app purchases. bet you will get more users.
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#4Looks great man, keep it up!
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#5Here, take my Google Survey money. Best of luck!
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#6great story and the game looks cool from the screen shots and videos in the app store. wonder if you have plans to introduce a free version with in-app purchases. bet you will get more users.
I'm not the author, but personally, I'm hostile to freemium games.
This is especially the case in multiplayer games. Making it free removes a check on "low quality users" - e.g., hackers, griefers, etc.
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#7My son wants to learn how to make games but I have no game development experience.
What path did you take to start learning game development?
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#8Congratulations on working in your childhood dream and seeing it to completion!
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#9great story and the game looks cool from the screen shots and videos in the app store. wonder if you have plans to introduce a free version with in-app purchases. bet you will get more users.
You know, we've considered it and we've been approached by a couple of publishers in the "hyper casual" space to go the route of free-but-with-IAPs. First the terms of industry-standard contracts are onerous. And second...well, I personally love casual games. And I never minded paying a reasonable amount for games I play. And then there are games like Two Dots that I really, really liked but the endless monetization just gets to be too much.
This is just our preference. We don't have anything against ad-supported or IAP-supported games. We just feel that there is still a pool of mobile players out there who don't mind purchasing a casual game outright.
And who knows, we might decide to collaborate with a publisher on a future game. We'll see what the future brings.
Re: Show HN: I'm 48 and finally learning how to be a game developer
#10I love it! I'm finding it really hard to find the time, motivation, and focus to sit down and learn the prerequisites required to accomplish something truly challenging later in life (I'm in my late 40's too). Congratulations on shipping your first game! That is a tremendous accomplishment and you should be very proud!