Showing posts with label indie developers. Show all posts

Sunday, May 11, 2025

New Features, New Speed, New Quests!

Finally, a new post to show you the latest updates on indiexpo!

So many things to say — I’ll try to keep it short!

For the Gamers:

The website is faster!
New design for User Pages, with your ranking shown bigger in the top-right corner!
New language added: Czech
New events and quests every month to earn more Gems
On the blog, you can find more posts about the latest games uploaded to the site

For the Developers:

On the home page (if no followed games have been recently uploaded), you’ll now see your own games! It’s incredible how many developers are using it in so few time!
If your game supports the leaderboard, you can now click on "Create a new Quest" to make a quest linked to it
In the stats area on your game page, you can now see the global ranking of your game, along with the games ranked directly above and below it

Coming soon...

For the gamers:

a new area to continue to play your favourite games

For the developers:

a new way to upload the screenshots and select the cover of your game

Wednesday, July 3, 2024

Is it a good idea to start a game using Rpg Maker?

RPG Maker is a popular game development software that allows users to easily create their own role-playing games (RPGs). It is popular among game developers, particularly those who are new to game development or who want to create games without having to code. There are several reasons why you might want to use RPG Maker to make your own game.

Ease of use: One of the biggest benefits of RPG Maker is that it is very easy to use. The software includes a visual interface that allows you to drag and drop elements onto a grid to create maps and environments. This makes it simple to design levels and create custom assets, such as characters and items. The software also includes a variety of pre-made assets, such as characters, music, and sound effects, which can be used in your game.
Customization: While RPG Maker includes a variety of pre-made assets, it also allows you to create your own custom assets. This means you can create unique characters, items, and environments that fit the specific theme and style of your game.
Community support: RPG Maker has a large and active community of users who share resources and offer support to each other. This means you can find help and advice on how to use the software, as well as resources such as graphics and music to use in your game.
Cross-platform compatibility: RPG Maker allows you to create games that can be played on a variety of platforms, including Windows, Mac, and mobile devices. This means you can reach a wider audience with your game.

Overall, RPG Maker is a great tool for anyone looking to create their own RPG. It is user-friendly, customizable, and has a strong community of users who can offer support and resources.

There are several versions of Rpg Maker. It has a very long story! But we suggest to use the latest versions: MV and/or MZ.

Whether you are a seasoned game developer or just starting out, RPG Maker is a great tool to consider for creating your own game.

3 Suggested Games made using Rpg Maker:

Wild Rage New Generation

- Purgatory -

Pocket Quest!

Thursday, March 23, 2023

Unreal Engine vs Unity: The Ultimate Showdown for Game Development!

Developing a game can be a complex and time-consuming process, and choosing the right game engine can make a big difference in the success of your project. Two of the most popular game engines are Unity and Unreal Engine, both of which offer a range of features and tools for game development.

Unity is a cross-platform game engine that is widely used for both 2D and 3D game development. It is popular among indie developers due to its user-friendly interface, wide range of features, and low learning curve. Unity also has a strong community of developers and a wealth of resources, including tutorials and documentation, which makes it easier for new developers to get started.

Unreal Engine, on the other hand, is a more powerful and feature-rich game engine that is primarily used for 3D game development. It is known for its cutting-edge graphics and advanced rendering capabilities, which make it a popular choice for AAA game development studios. Unreal Engine has a steeper learning curve than Unity, and it may take longer for new developers to become proficient with the engine.

Ultimately, the decision of which game engine to use will depend on your specific needs and goals for your project. If you are a beginner or working on a smaller project, Unity may be the better choice due to its ease of use and wide range of features. If you are an experienced developer or working on a larger, more complex project, Unreal Engine may be the better choice due to its advanced capabilities and powerful tools.

In conclusion, both Unity and Unreal Engine are excellent choices for game development, and the right choice for your project will depend on your specific needs and goals. Both engines offer a range of features and tools that can help you create high-quality games, and it is worth taking the time to research and evaluate each one to determine which is the best fit for your project.

2 Suggested Games Made using Unity3D

Path of Shadows

Knock Knock Soulsman

2 Suggested Games Made using Unreal Engine

0R8

Aviano

Sunday, November 28, 2021

3 interesting games now on Kickstarter & indiexpo

Recently a lot of new Indie Games were uploaded on indiexpo website!

A lot a small teams or solo devs use this platform to upload also their free demos to reach feedbacks and improve their game to prepare a good crowfounding campaign!

During November there are three interesting crowfounding campaigns started on Kickstarter of games already released on indiexpo!

The first one is Heat Fragments!

It already passed Kickstarter, reaching over 12.000 $!

It is a very professional visual novel, with a small team but with amazing skills! We love anime and manga and here the level is very high!

Heart Fragment is a psychological otome game where your choices play an important role not just in the route you're on, but in the game as a whole.

The result is hundreds of player choices to make, more than 100 CGs, two art styles to choose between, 6 routes, a highly customizable finale where you choose the "true ending", and an estimated total of 40 hours of content!

Make your way through 40+ endings - romantic, platonic, even a mix of the two for "the hope of romance to come". Stay on guard for bad endings... or dive headfirst into them and learn what information they can reveal to further advance the plot!

Kickstarter Page | Game Page

The second one is River Tails!

We noted and loved this game from the first time that it was uploaded on indiexpo!

The cartoon style is great and the animations are perfect!

Now it is live on Kickstarter and just passed the 50%!

River Tails: Stronger Together is a 3D co-op adventure platformer with a colourful cartoon aesthetic. Teammates must work together to defeat end-of-level bosses and solve puzzles across a range of natural-world environments. River Tails is perfect for all sorts of gaming partnerships: friends, couples, siblings, and even parents with their kids.

The main characters aren’t the most obvious partnership. In fact, these animals are often cast as enemies. Meet myth-busting mates Furple the cat and Finn the fish!

Play either as Furple, the curious and excitable purple kitten, or Finn, the independent fish with a bit of an attitude problem. You’ll embark upstream with these unexpected allies, towards the icy mountain where Furple’s family are in mortal danger. Can you save them in time? To make progress up the river, you’ll need to master just two core actions: jumping and grabbing.

Good luck guys!

Kickstarter Page | Game Page

The last one is ONA.

Never seen a game like this. It is an exploration game about the Indian culture.

An allegorical story mixing different visions and interpretations. Every visit will be different, everybody will see unique content. Explore all continents, visit lost temples and mystic places. Meet sages from different civilizations and discover ancient revelations. Solve puzzles and visual paintings to unfold hidden messages. Find special keys in the game and access deeper thought.

ONA allows you to travel around the world in a meaningful and immersive journey.

Reveal the meaning of your quest. Wander through a universal and timeless adventure that will lead you into the unexpected depths of the world and of yourself.

Kickstarter Page | Game Page

Are you preparing a Kickstarter campaign for your indie game?
Contact us! We will try to help you to share it!

Sunday, June 21, 2020

20 Tips for your Indie Game Launch!

Hi indiexpors and game developers! A lot of time we received emails about how to prepare the Game Launch. We prepered 20 tips inspired by a very famous books for Startups, "The $100 Startup" by Chris Guillebeau!

Be sure that your game has something that makes it different from other games.
Choose a prize for the first players, however small.
Is the game launch going to be interesting?
Did you record a Video about it?
Are potential players excited for the launch of this game?
Share the release date (day and hour) in advance.
Check the description of your game, the selected images and the video over and over.
If you add External Links, check them out as well.
Try to download and start your game, multiple times, on multiple devices.
Share the description and images with your friends. Ask them for feedbacks.
Did you create banners, artworks and extra images to promote it (if you could have)?
Choose a goal to reach (number of players, followers, comments, etc.).
Reply to all of your emails before the day of the launch.
That same day, write a short and incisive message and send it to your friends, as well as to magazines, blogs, YouTubers and streamers.
The day before your game launches, prepare a post to write on your Social Networks.
Write to the first 5 players that play your game, thank them, and ask them for feedbacks.
When the game is up, write once again to your friends, as well as to magazines, blogs, YouTubers and streamers.
As soon as the game is up, make a post about it on your Social Networks
Write a message to thank your players.
Have fun, and prepare yourself for the next game!

Good luck!

Friday, March 13, 2020

From Dev to Dev. Baptiste Miny, from Ars Goetia, for Mutropolis!

Another post from the serie "From Dev to Dev"! This time the artist behind The Blind Prophet left us several tech-tips about a recent adventure game released on indiexpo, Mutropolis!

The Blind Prophet

The Blind Prophet is a very interesting project, developed by Ars Goetia (from France), a dark, bloody and stylish narrative driven point and click adventure where you take on the role of an apostle, sent on a mission by God to protect humans from the corruption of demons., that passed a Kickstarter Campaign during the January 2019.

Check out the tech-tips of its artist about Mutropolis! Let's go!

This game already looks good, and is very well written. It was hard to choose any specific tips, but here are a couple of little improvements that could be made to the game.

First of all, I’d love to have some context for the plot, even if it’s nice to discover the lore through the characters’ conversations. Any presentation of the plot, even a short one or mysterious one, would help lead us into the adventure more smoothly. There might be some easy question that are easy to answer, and that would help the player understand what they later see. For example, introducing the location, and the time period the game takes place in.

Some parts of the illustrations are still too rough in my opinion. I know how it is, as an artist: you always wonder whether or not you’re going to ruin the illustration, if it loses the energy it had while a sketch. My advice would be to add some precision and stiffness where the gaze of the players will focus (and where there are objects to interact with), and let the rest of the picture be a little but rougher.

I love the work of artists like Richard Schmid, for instance, in which you instantly know where to look at, and the rest of the picture helps you focus on those elements. Also, a general tip would be to never hesitate to go for particles and special effects in your environments!

The characters have some good animations, timing and are well written and designed. I hope you’ll be able to put in some voice acting, even if it’s expensive (don’t worry if you can’t though, I can’t do it in The Blind Prophet either). An in-between solution is to go for a couple of intonations and expressions, and re-use them. It’s cheap, but effective!

As I said, I couldn’t really tell more from the demo, but it’s already a good quality production. Good luck to you.

P.S. Please, put a clear a tutorial for the inventory, I really struggled to find out how to open it!

- Baptiste Miny from Ars Goetia

text checked and reviewed by DarknessAwaits

Wednesday, December 11, 2019

indiegames Rewind: The Best of 2019

Rewind 2019 video with the Best Indie Games of this year!

Celebrating the games, developers, players and gamers that made 2019. #indiegames

Discover the best indie games and free games uploaded during the 2019.

The games showed are all free on indiexpo!

in order of appearance:

Super co-op Adventure

Justin Wack and The Big Time Hack

PlanetRealm

Zoe and the Magic Escape

Le Ruban Ecarlate

Keychain

Rainbows, Toilets & Unicorns

Jazz Lightning

Inmortis

Endless Combat Dungeon

Sunday, November 24, 2019

Tips and tricks to new developers from expert indie devs

Hi indiexpors!

Few days ago we contacted several developers to share an idea. And they liked it.

In the next weeks we will publish here, several tech-reviews with tip and tricks (and also what it's working or not, and why), about interesting indie games recently uploaded on indiexpo.

In the last period we released a new feature on indiexpo that is like the "trendings" on YouTube.

It shows the hottest games uploaded.

The tech-reviews will be written by other indie devs/3d artists/pixel artists/game designers/composers/etc. of other games uploaded on the website that had positive feedbacks and a lot of players.

Just one review from each indiedev.

It will be a nice reading to learn something new and to know new games and ideas.

From dev to dev.

The first posts will be released from the artist of The Blind Prophet, the developer of Knightin'+, the pixel artist of Fantastico Studio and others.

Stay updated and follow the blog!

Wednesday, August 8, 2018

Saying NO

It's hard to imagine certain situation until meeting those.
Designers who create might encounter different request - which won’t fit with their values.

What if you’ll be asked to design an anonymous ad against a figure.
If you’ll be asked to work at the expense of your family time.
If you’ll be ordered to sabotage files before sending them to the customer.

What if someone will try to use your access to a database with personal details of subscribers from a minisite.
What if someone will use you to know how to take advantage of a young designer starting out.

When working with people we encounter bizarre realities.
Sometimes it’s hard to stick to principles
Becuase it might cause us out job or hurt it.
We need to know how to say no.

Wednesday, April 18, 2018

User Stories: LostTrainDude at Codemotion Rome 2018

or: How I went to give a talk about puzzle design in adventure games and came back with an interest in hardware programming.

On April, 18 you could find me in Rome, among over 2000 people attending Codemotion tech conference.

The event was held at the engineering department of Roma Tre University, a place I know very well, because that’s where I first attended a Global Game Jam in 2012.

I was there to give a talk about puzzle design in point-and-click adventure games!

Here is a handy YouTube video. You can find the presentation slides here.

Thanks to both my brother Syd and TheTMO for recording the video!

That said, let’s talk about the conference!

It was exciting to see my name there, but turns out there were a lot of things to be excited about.

First of all, I was going to meet some old friends from the indie gamedev scene.

Andrea Ferlito (who made all of this possible in the first place), TheTMO, Ciro Continisio (now Technical Evangelist at Unity in Brighton), Giuseppe and Francesca from Yonder (now working on Circle of Sumo), Giorgio Pomettini (who gave a great talk about Rust programming language in videogames), Augusto “KyserByte” from Motorsport Gaming, Tommaso from Caracal Games, and more!

From left to right: Andrea Ferlito, my brother Syd, me, Jeff and Giles

It all started here, end of Day 1, when we met Jeff Minter and Ivan Zorzin (Giles) from Llamasoft!

Needless to say: meeting Jeff and Giles was a blast. We laughed over a couple of drinks and chatted about stuff we love, in and out of the gamedev subject.

Yet again, it’s always nice to feel like part of a huge family.

In the back you can spot Ivan Preziosi (wearing a baseball cap), whom I met on this occasion and found out he’s developing Hard Times, a game about homeless survival in the big metropolis of indifference. A really interesting and deep game that sends out an important message, without compromising entertainment.

Also it reminded me of one of my favourite games of all time which is Rags To Riches from C64, but this takes everything of a whole new other, and higher, level.

Ivan discussing the game with Giles (Llamasoft) and Andrea Ferlito

Another thing this event may be responsible of is my taking my first step into hardware programming. Something I would NEVER expect to happen.

Amie DD was one of the speakers and when I attended her keynote, I couldn’t help but be inspired and curious.

I really like this picture, because it seems like she’s just out of a cyberpunk movie, her lines being: “Hey, fancy some hardware?”.

I asked for advice and she provided me some, also advising me not to fear hardware and offering to help me start, something I accepted with extreme gratitude!

Being mostly among the gamedevs I didn’t manage to be around many other speakers, who all came from different backgrounds.

Still, it was nice to meet them and share a few laughs at the Speakers Dinner. I’m very curious about the “Anxiety Driven Development” talk by Nicole Bartolini, which I could not attend to because I was giving my own talk at the same time.

Thanks, Codemotion Rome 2018, I won’t forget you and your excellent team easily, if ever.

- LostTrainDude/Christopher Sacchi

Wednesday, February 28, 2018

Are you an Hobbyist Game Developer? Read the Manifesto!

Hobbyist Game Developer Manifesto

Edmund McMillen's recent manifesto for independent game developers

1. Make a small game
Don't aim to make the next World of WarCraft. At least complete some small games before moving on to some of your grand ideas.

2. Be open about your game
Don't be shy about developing games as a hobby. Upload your game to a website as soon as the first playable version is ready and share the link with friends. If you have concept art then share that even earlier in the process. Create videos, take screenshots and release early demos for the world to see.

3. Let your game evolve
Your game will never end up quite as you expected. If something does not work or feels annoying then change or remove it and maybe add something else to the game if it needs to be improved.

4. It is YOUR game
While input from friends can be useful don't forget that it is your time being spent developing it. If you love space themed games then set it in space. The target audience is probably you and it is really just a bonus if other people happen to like it.

5. Find help when you are stuck
Join communities and forums to find people who can help you when things get over your head. This can also lead you to a possible collaboration with someone who is talented in areas you are not.

6. Learn when creating your game
Game development allows you to learn a lot of things. Improve your skills in design, programming, graphics, sound, music and even creativity. Game development will naturally make you more creative.

7. Learn from other games
Play games that are comparable to what you are creating and draw inspiration from them without simply copying them. Even board games can be an inspiration. Improve their formula if possible or create something entirely new the world has never seen before.

8. Finish your game
Ten unfinished games will not make you half as proud as actually completing one game. Always strive to finish the game you are working on.

9. Give your game away
Free is the keyword here. Don't charge people for wanting to play your game and make it easy for them to share the game with their friends.

10. Have fun
Do it because you love it, you want to do it and because you have fun doing it.

Monday, February 5, 2018

News & 2018 Goals

We were born in small forums like this, we made a website with no money, no support by huge company and no superskills. We trained day by day and the website attracted several developers and players. There are still big Goliath to fight.

So, the 2017 was a great year for the indie games! So many cool games!

Those are the recently new features (and improvements) and the goals of the 2018!

first of all... The News!

improved the view of the website for mobile (easy to read and to navigate)
new area Challenges opened! It's in Events. It's still in beta but it's working good! The games showed are uploaded by few beta-devs
improved the Console area
improved the SEO of the Comments and News Pages

The Goals

it's coming new games in exclusive for indiexpo. If you love the TV series, you have to play the first one! It's very cool!

Landflix - the demo in exclusive for indiexpo
increase the visibility of the website in Russia, China, Corea and Japan
to improve the Suggestions Area with the best games to play for each gamer
we want to add a very transparent and good system to left the developers earn money. Also with a partnership program with few Devs!
to add a Virtual Memory Card to start to play your game on Desktop... And continue to play it on Mobile
to improve the indiepad feature, so the users can play those games automatically also on their phones.

indiepad on mobile?

Saturday, January 20, 2018

How to describe your own videogame? It's easy, use this free Game Design Document (GDD Template)

Hi game devs that are reading this blog!

We want to share here a very good and useful document! It's the template of a Game design document (GDD) used by Devs to show their Games and their features. It is a highly descriptive living design document of the design for a video game.

A game design document may be made of text, images, diagrams, concept art, or any applicable media to better illustrate design decisions. Some design documents may include functional prototypes or a chosen game engine for some sections of the game.

Here it's an example or better, a template, to use to describe your own game. It's made and share by Benjamin “HeadClot” Stanley.

Revision: 0.0.0

Overview

Theme / Setting / Genre

Core Gameplay Mechanics Brief

Targeted platforms

Monetization model (Brief/Document)

Project Description (Brief):

Project Description (Detailed)

What sets this project apart?

Core Gameplay Mechanics (Detailed)

- <Core Gameplay Mechanic #1>

- <Core Gameplay Mechanic #2>

- <Core Gameplay Mechanic #3>

- <Core Gameplay Mechanic #4>

Overview

Theme / Setting / Genre

- <Insert Theme here>

Core Gameplay Mechanics Brief

- <Gameplay Mechanic #1>

- <Gameplay Mechanic #2>

- <Gameplay Mechanic #3>

- <Gameplay Mechanic #4>

Targeted platforms

- <Example Platform #1 Here>

- <Example Platform #2 Here>

- <Example Platform #3 Here>

Monetization model (Brief/Document)

- <Monetization Type> (Premium, Paid Alpha/Beta/Final, Ad Driven, Micro-transactions, Subscription, etc.)

- <Link to Monetization Document>

(How do you plan to monetize the game?)

Project Scope

- <Game Time Scale>

- Cost? (How much will it cost?)

- Time Scale (How long will it take to make this game?)

- <Team Size>

- <Core Team>

- Team Member name?

- What does he/she do?

- <Cost to employ them full time or part time>

- etc.

(List as many core team members as you need to)

- <Marketing Team>

- Team Member name?

- What does he/she do?

- <Cost to employ them full time or part time>

- Etc.

(List as many marketing team members as you need to)

- <Licenses / Hardware / Other Costs>

- <Total Costs with breakdown>

Influences (Brief)

- <Influence #1>

- <Medium> (Television, Games, Literature, Movies, etc.)

- /Explain why this is an influence in 1 Paragraph or less/

- <Influence #2>

- <Medium> (Television, Games, Literature, Movies, etc.)

- /Explain Why in 1 Paragraph or less/

- /Explain why this is an influence in 1 Paragraph or less/

- <Influence #3>

- <Medium> (Television, Games, Literature, Movies, etc.)

- /Explain why this is an influence in 1 Paragraph or less/

- <Influence #4>

- <Medium> (Television, Games, Literature, Movies, etc.)

- /Explain Why in 1 Paragraph or less/

- /Explain why this is an influence in 1 Paragraph or less/

The elevator Pitch

Pretend that your were pitching your game to a executive going to the elevator. You have less than 60 Seconds.

Project Description (Brief):

Project Description (Detailed)

What sets this project apart?

- <Reason #1>

- <Reason #2>

Story (Brief)

Story (Detailed)

Gameplay (Brief)

Gameplay (Detailed)

Assets Needed

- 2D

- Textures

- Environment Textures

- Heightmap data (If applicable)

- List required data required - Example: DEM data of the entire UK.

- Etc.

- 3D

- Characters List

- Character #1

- Character #2

- Character #3

- etc.

- Environmental Art Lists

- Example #1

- Example #2

- Example #3

- etc.

- Sound

- Sound List (Ambient)

- Outside

- Level 1

- Level 2

- Level 3

- etc.

- Inside

- Level 1

- Level 2

- Level 3

- etc.

- Sound List (Player)

- Character Movement Sound List

- Example 1

- Example 2

- etc.

- Character Hit / Collision Sound list

- Example 1

- Example 2

- etc.

- Character on Injured / Death sound list

- Example 1

- Example 2

- etc.

- Code

- Character Scripts (Player Pawn/Player Controller)

- Ambient Scripts (Runs in the background)

- Example

- NPC Scripts

- Example

- etc.

- Animation

- Environment Animations

- Example

- etc.

- Character Animations

- Player

- Example

- etc.

- NPC

- Example

- etc.

Schedule

- <Object #1>

- Time Scale

- Milestone 1

- Milestone 2

- Etc.

- <Object #2>

- Time Scale

- Milestone 1

- Milestone 2

- Etc.

- <Object #3>

- Time Scale

- Milestone 1

- Milestone 2

- Etc.

- <Object #4>

- Time Scale

- Milestone 1

- Milestone 2

- Etc.