How to Make Video Games from Scratch

If you’re a beginner, wondering how to make video games from scratch and want to see the details of developing a game, this guide is for you. In this post on creating video games; we’re going to go into specific details that will help both beginners and those with some development experience looking to learn game development on a deeper level. Whether you’re aiming to build 2D indie games or AAA-style 3D games, this guide aims to get you started into the industry. Later, you’ll figure out the details and will be able to choose your own path.

I want to make a video game… but where do I start?

There are two approaches you can follow:

Creating it yourself. This requires learning tools & programming along with your creativity.
Hiring a professional game developer to make a game for you. You can find one on Fiverr, Upwork or you can contact me.

The rest of the post is for those who are willing to create the game themselves.

Why Making a Video Game?

You have either of two reasons:

You just love the idea of making games & taking it as a hobby.
You want to earn money by publishing games & taking it as a business.

Understanding the Basics of Game Development

Before diving into the technical side, it’s crucial to understand what game development entails. The entire process can be broken down into these core components:

Game Design – Conceptualizing the game’s mechanics, story, characters, and environments.
Programming – Writing the code that powers the game. This includes game physics, player controls, AI behavior, and more.
Art and Assets – Creating 2D or 3D models, textures, animations, sound effects, and music.
Testing and Debugging – Ensuring the game is free of bugs and runs smoothly across different platforms.
Publishing and Marketing – Releasing the game and ensuring it reaches the right audience.

If you want to learn game development comprehensively, it’s important to recognize that all these stages need careful attention.

In AAA studios, all of these aspects are handled by separate teams. Artists, for example, have a whole career entirely dedicated to creating game objects such as characters, items and so on. Programmers, like me, are dedicated to coding the game mechanics. Game publishers or marketers are business people who invest into the creation of a game to earn profit from it.

In many cases, developers are separate from publishers. They get funding from the publishers, develop a game and let the publishers market it & generate revenue. Since publishers have done investment, they usually take large profits.

But for small scale game development, called indie game development, a single person or a small team handles all the aspects; usually without financial investment. Some indie games succeed & generate profits, while others don’t. But the percentage of successful games is low; even probability of completing a game project is not so optimistic.

Choosing the Right Game Engine

Choosing a game engine is one of the first things you’ll encounter when figuring out how to make computer games. The engine you select will directly impact your development process and workflow. Here are a few top engines to consider, along with their niches:

Unreal Engine: This engine is advanced and suited for high-fidelity 3D games. If your goal is to make realistic AAA-style games, Unreal Engine offers cutting-edge graphics. However, its steep learning curve might not be ideal for beginners. As AAA studios use this engine, learning it is good for job market.
- Best For: High-end 3D games, AAA titles, and realistic graphics.
- Languages: C++, Blueprints (visual scripting)
- Why Popular: Industry standard for photorealistic games, free to start, huge community.
Unity: One of the most popular engines, Unity is perfect for developing a wide variety of games. It offers extensive documentation and has a huge online community, making it an excellent choice if you want to learn game development through community interaction and shared resources. Learning it is great as it is used by many medium-sized companies and is thus good for getting a job.
- Best For: 2D & 3D games, mobile, indie, and AAA.
- Languages: C#
- Why Popular: Massive asset store, cross-platform, beginner-friendly, and widely used for mobile games.
Godot Engine: If you’re learning to make video games and prefer something that’s beginner-friendly yet powerful, Godot is a fantastic option. It’s lightweight, completely open-source, and supports both 2D and 3D game development. The scripting language (GDScript) is easy to learn for beginners. It is open-source and thus provides 100% of the control to the developer. I have tons of game development tutorials in Godot Engine.
- Best For: 2D and 3D indie games, open-source projects.
- Languages: GDScript (Python-like), C#, C++
- Why Popular: Open-source, lightweight, flexible, and growing fast.
CryEngine
- Best For: High-end graphics, FPS, and open-world games.
- Languages: C++
- Why Popular: Incredible visuals and free to use with revenue sharing.
GameMaker Studio 2
- Best For: 2D games, beginner-friendly indie games.
- Languages: GML (GameMaker Language)
- Why Popular: Simple drag-and-drop interface, easy to learn, great for pixel art games.
RPG Maker
- Best For: 2D RPGs and narrative games.
- Languages: Ruby, JavaScript
- Why Popular: Very easy to use, focused on RPG development.
Construct 3
- Best For: 2D games, HTML5 games.
- Languages: JavaScript
- Why Popular: Browser-based, drag-and-drop, great for quick prototypes.
Flax Engine
- Best For: 3D games, performance-focused development.
- Languages: C++
- Why Popular: Lightweight, modern, and offers high performance with minimal overhead.
Panda3D
- Best For: 3D games, simulations.
- Languages: Python, C++
- Why Popular: Open-source, easy to script in Python.
Lumberyard (Now Open 3D Engine – O3DE)
- Best For: 3D games, open-world, AAA titles.
- Languages: C++
- Why Popular: Built on CryEngine, fully open-source, supported by AWS.
There are some low-level libraries as well such as LibGDX, LWJGL, PyGame, SDL, etc.

Make sure you select an engine that aligns with your long-term goals, as the skills you acquire in one engine can influence your future gamedev career.

Learning to Code for Game Development

Even with the best tools, understanding programming is extremely important to learn making games. Having a strong foundation in coding is critically important for game development. Here are some niche yet coding languages you can focus on, depending on your game engine:

GDScript (Godot): A Python-like language that’s specific to Godot. It’s intuitive for beginners but also robust enough for larger projects.
C# (Unity): Unity uses C# for scripting, which is a versatile language that can be applied in many fields beyond just game development. There are numerous gamedev courses focused on C# scripting within Unity.
C++ (Unreal Engine): Unreal Engine’s core programming language. C++ is powerful but complex, and learning it can open doors for more advanced game development, especially for systems like physics, AI, or custom game engines.
Python: Python isn’t traditionally a game development language, but it’s great for learning algorithms, game logic, and prototyping. Once comfortable, you can switch to more specialized languages.

Making Small Video Games for Learning

After you have learned some portions of the tools such as game engines, your next step is to use them in making of small games yourself. This will give you the solid foundations in your gamedev journey.

Here are some game ideas:

Pong game: It is similar to table tennis and one of the easiest game to develop. You can develop it using PyGame or other small-scale library, or you can make it using a game engine like Godot as well. See my post on making a Pong game in Godot.
T-Rex Runner likes: Games as simple as chrome’s popular t-rex runner. You dont have to copy the exact graphics, but something in which your character infinitely runs to right side of the screen. See my post on creating side-scrolling shooter.
Simple 3D Racing Game: You can try making a racing game, as I made it in my racing game tutorial.

Developing Niche Game Mechanics

While many tutorials on learning to make video games focus on broad topics (as I told above), creating unique mechanics is often overlooked. in a bigger game, you will likely be spending time creating things such as:

Procedural Generation: Procedural content generation can be used to create massive, randomized game worlds (think No Man’s Sky). It involves algorithms that generate levels, landscapes, or even characters dynamically. Tools like Perlin Noise or Simplex Noise algorithms can be used for procedural terrain generation.
AI Pathfinding: Creating smart enemies and NPCs is crucial for immersive games. A* Pathfinding is a common algorithm, but for more complex behaviors, you might want to explore steering behaviors or decision trees. For example, in Godot, you can use its Navigation system to develop custom AI movements based on the game world. See how I did this in Godot navigation tutorial.
Game Physics: Understanding how to simulate gravity, collision detection, or rigid body dynamics is vital. Engines like Unity and Godot come with built-in physics, but sometimes you’ll need to tweak these systems or even write your own. Learning rigid body physics, collision layers, and raycasting can give you more control over how objects interact in your game world.

Creating Game Art and Assets

Good art can make or break a game. Depending on the type of game you’re making, you might need to create 2D sprites, 3D models, textures, animations, or visual effects. Here’s how you can specialize in niche asset creation:

2D Games: Tools like Aseprite, Photoshop or GIMP are great for creating pixel art. For vector-based 2D games, consider learning Inkscape. You’ll also need to learn about texture atlases, sprite sheets, and how to optimize 2D assets for performance.
3D Games: If you’re venturing into 3D, Blender is the go-to free software for modeling, rigging, and animating characters. Learning to use shaders (like PBR shaders for realistic materials) can significantly improve your game’s visual quality.

Using Art Available on Internet

This approach is often used by small scale developers. There are tons of websites online that provide free assets. Depending on the license, sometimes you just have to credit them in your game, and you are fine with it. Here are some of those platforms:

OpenGameArt.org – Free sprites, 3D models, sounds, and more for game development.
Itch.io – A treasure trove of free (and paid) assets uploaded by indie creators.
Unity Asset Store – Free section offers models, environments, and tools for Unity projects.
CC0Textures (now ambientCG) – High-quality, free PBR textures with CC0 licensing.
CGAmbient – Free game-ready environments, models, and textures.
Blendswap – Community-driven platform for free Blender models and scenes.

More:

Kenney.nl – Massive collection of free 2D/3D assets with CC0 licensing.
Poly Haven – Free HDRIs, textures, and 3D models with no strings attached.
Sketchfab (Free Section) – Thousands of downloadable 3D models (CC0 or attribution).
Quixel Bridge (Megascans Free) – Free Megascans assets for Unreal Engine.
Mixamo – Free rigged character models and animations by Adobe.
Turbosquid (Free Section) – Variety of free 3D models.
ShareTextures – Free, high-quality PBR textures.
Texture Haven – 8K resolution textures under CC0.
SoundBible – Free sound effects and audio clips.
HDRI Haven – Free HDR images for lighting and environment maps.
Pixabay – Free stock photos, videos, and 3D renders.
GameTextures.com (Free Section) – A few free textures every month.
Freesound.org – Community-driven library of free sound effects.
CraftPix.net – Free 2D game assets, sprites, and icons.
Lospec – Pixel art, low-spec assets, and tools.
DeviantArt (Resources Section) – Free textures, brushes, and models from artists.
Glitch Assets – Free game assets from Glitch.com projects.
LDraw – Free LEGO 3D models and parts.
CGTrader (Free Section) – Free 3D models and assets from the community.

Testing and Debugging Your Game

Testing is one of the most crucial yet often rushed stages in learning how to make computer games. Here are some deep niche details about debugging in game development:

Automated Testing: Setting up automated tests for your game can save a lot of time, especially as your project scales. You can write scripts to test game mechanics, ensuring that certain conditions work correctly without manually playing the game each time.
Memory and Performance Optimization: As your game grows, you’ll encounter performance bottlenecks. Learning how to use profiling tools in your engine (such as Unity’s Profiler or Godot’s Performance Monitors) helps you identify memory leaks or CPU spikes. Optimizing texture sizes, reducing draw calls, and using efficient algorithms for AI can drastically improve performance.
Bug Tracking Systems: For larger projects, consider using bug tracking software like Jira, ClickUp, Trello or GitHub Issues to keep track of issues. This is especially useful when collaborating with a team.

Publishing and Marketing Your Game

Once you’ve finished your game, you’ll need to figure out how to publish and market it. This is a crucial step that many developers don’t plan for when they start learning how to make video games. Here are a few detailed pointers on this:

Platform Choices: You can publish your game on platforms like Steam, itch.io, or the App Store. Each has its own set of requirements, so ensure that you optimize your game for the platform you’re targeting. Steamworks SDK, for example, provides features like achievements and cloud saves.
SEO for Game Pages: Optimize your game’s page for search engines. Use keywords like “best indie game” or more specific keywords such as “racing game”, “mario like game” etc to ensure it ranks well in search results. Write a compelling description and include high-quality images and trailers.
Community Building: To build an audience, start early by creating dev logs, posting on forums, and sharing progress on social media. Reddit communities like r/gamedev are great for feedback and marketing.

A great way to market your games as an indie developer is to go for YouTube streams who are willing to stream your game for free; they get content & you get marketing. This is one of the options worth exploring.

Marketing of the games usually start before the game is even published.

In Nutshell

Making computer games is a complex yet rewarding journey. Whether you’re just starting to learn game development or have some experience under your belt, looking into niche areas like procedural generation, AI pathfinding, and performance optimization can set your game apart. If you’re serious about creating games, I recommend looking into advanced gamedev courses or tutorials that specialize in your areas of interest.

By focusing on the right game engine, mastering coding skills, learning about niche mechanics, and ensuring proper testing and marketing, you can transform your ideas into a polished, playable reality.