Here’s a breakdown of my year in game dev, the challenges I faced, and the key takeaways that’ll shape my 2025 projects.

TL;DR

In 2024, I didn’t finish any games, but I learned a lot about game development. I tackled three projects: a multiplayer turn-based RPG (Kinship), a puzzle simulation game (ClarityCorp), and a co-op side-scroller shooter (no name yet). The biggest challenges included managing scope, learning multiplayer mechanics, and handling art requirements.

Key lessons: start small, focus on a solid game loop, and polish later. Despite not finishing a game, I made great strides in development and am ready to continue working in 2025.

Game One: Isometric Turn-Based Multiplayer RPG (Kinship)

At the start of the year, my focus was on multiplayer—specifically, “how the hell do you make a multiplayer game?”

Kinship was designed as a 4-player, online co-op RPG. Players could choose from the classic classes—Fighter, Mage, Rogue, or Cleric—and battle through an isometric world. The combat system was simple, with basic attacks and spells, and the enemies (mostly slimes, for now) moved and attacked in turns.

Overambitious Scope

The classic advice is to start small, and I definitely ignored that here. Multiplayer games are complex, and Kinship needed a lot of content—multiple playable classes, levels, and assets. The sheer scope started to overwhelm me, and I found myself stuck in a cycle of not knowing where to begin.

Isometric Art

Isometric art is challenging, requiring multiple versions of each asset. For a programmer like me, the art was a daunting task. It became clear that collaborating with an artist was necessary, though not feasible without a budget.

Playable Classes

To make the game fun, it needed diverse playable classes, each requiring unique assets, behaviors, and balancing. This added to my workload and was demotivating. Starting with one class and perfecting it would have been wiser.

Learning New Concepts Takes Time

Multiplayer was new to me, despite my background in networking. Turn-based systems eased synchronization issues, but testing multiplayer posed challenges, slowing feedback loops.

Polishing Too Early

I focused prematurely on polish, particularly lighting and shadow effects. Instead, such features should be reserved for later stages of development.

Game Two: Puzzle Simulation Game (ClarityCorp)

This second project dropped multiplayer and art intensity, focusing on single-player tasks inspired by “Papers, Please” and “Severance.” Despite initial concepts, the absence of a solid game loop stalled progress.

No Hook

Lacking a captivating hook, development stalled. The importance of a clear, engaging game loop became evident.

Game Three: Co-op Side-Scroller Shooter (No name)

My third venture was another multiplayer game, but with a more simplified art style and structure. It drew inspiration from “Celeste” for level design, “Broforce” for combat, and “Remnant: From the Ashes” for a unique twist.

Realtime Multiplayer

This game introduced real-time multiplayer, requiring new skills in client-side prediction and lag compensation. Previous knowledge facilitated early development stages.

Level Assets

While isometric versions weren’t needed, creating tilesets and levels remained a challenge. Commissioning art and procedural generation were considered solutions.

Boss Fights

Designing bosses proved difficult, requiring balance and engaging mechanics. Despite lacking experience, I embraced this challenge for the upcoming year.

Play Testing

Effective testing of multiplayer games requires multiple players, a hurdle I anticipate overcoming by forming a dedicated testing group.

Key Takeaways from 2024

  • Multiplayer development is tough but rewarding for unique games.
  • Start small to build a fun, manageable project.
  • Be mindful of art and asset demands.
  • Establish a solid game loop early on.
  • Focus on gameplay before polish.

Looking Ahead to 2025

While I didn’t complete a game