How can you learn game development faster online?

Your future goals should also play a factor into which engine(s) you learn. Most universities and game dev boot camps teach Unity since it's relatively straightforward. Which is perfect if you want to strike it out on your own as an indie developer. But should you want to work in the AAA gaming sector, most if not all studios use Unreal Engine or their own in-house engine. Overall, learn as many engines as possible. Then when your career goals become apparent, pivot towards the engine that best suits your goals.

Don't focus so much on learning an engine, learn the basic programming skills instead. Engine changes over the time but the core skill never changes. Example: Instead of learning how to use Unity, learn scripting skill. That skills are transferable to any engines. Working in game devs are all about adapting to any situations, focusing on an engine won't help you get far.

Firstly, you need a clear goal. Why are you getting into game development? Do you want to be a solo developer that makes games? Do you want to work in the game development industry - If you want to, what type of game developer do you want to be? A mobile game developer? A web game developer? A game developer that uses and builds pre-existing frameworks (i.e., UEFN, Roblox, Sandbox etc) to craft out games? A console/PC game developer? You need to first ask yourself these questions then you'll be able to make your choice off your decision. In the various sectors of the game development industry, they have their criterias in terms of skills, and its a rule of thumb to meet such criterias.

Don't get too hung up on figuring what Game Engine you should use. Start with a simple project, using tutorials online can be very helpful. But be careful not to become dependent on tutorials to complete things. More so use them as general guide for what you need to do

Do not overanalyze picking your game engine as you are learning. Which engine is best and why is the most common discussion for game developers looking to start or learn something new. Just pick whatever seems to fit your current game and learning needs, without pitting one engine against another, learn by doing, not reading people's differing opinions on why "Unity is the best" [or Unreal Engine]. Dive in, learn, create - that's what will matter.

Videos represent a valuable resource offering illuminating perspectives on various aspects. Nonetheless, I strongly advise aspiring game developers to harness the ideas and concepts presented in these videos as a foundation for their own creative pursuits. Dedicate substantial effort to honing your troubleshooting acumen, for your capacity to adeptly seek solutions to emerging challenges will undoubtedly elevate your standing in this dynamic industry. In essence, the ability to synthesize knowledge and problem-solve effectively will be instrumental in your journey toward becoming a valued and irreplaceable asset in the realm of game development.

In this day and age, especially when it comes to hands-on tech skills, there are a lot of free resources out there to help anyone gain the necessary skills to become a game developer. However, the problem is that there are just way too many resources! One could get lost in tutorial/learning hell. That's why it's best to seek communities and the counsel of experienced folks in the industry for a roadmap. Guidance is very crucial when learning and venturing into a field like game development, so don't be shy about reaching out to experts for help.

Online courses are fantastic, but I strongly advise against falling in a "tutorial loop" where you are just following along whatever the videos show. You want to try things out in order to build on that knowledge and fully memorize it. The videos should be a tool in your favor, but not the only/main source of learning.

Online courses are great way to get some quick insights and early learning on how to work with new modules in a new tech piece. While these cover general cases one should always find ways to build more samples trying to cater different situations to get more hands on experience on the tech and language.

Put in your time finding tutorials with a lot of positive reviews. You will want to learn as much about the tools as you can before really diving into making something yourself. The more you know early on the better your set up will be. YouTube, Udemy, and your communities are great places to start looking.

Networking is key - connect and engage with new people through platforms like 80 Level, ArtStation, LinkedIn, and other platforms. Remember that everyone started with trials and errors, so they will be happy to assist you in taking your first steps in the industry.

I just know the programming side of joining a community and I think most important benefit of this is you can get feedback about your code from other developers. If you are newly started to learn you are probably working solo. And you will never know if you did the right thing. You can see the problems and possible improvements if someone reviews your code. But don't forget to ask a few people at least to get the right feedback.

Join game development communities on platforms like Reddit, Discord, and Stack Overflow. Follow local or online meetups, Twitter accounts, and YouTube channels related to game development. Participate in game jams and consider enrolling in online courses. Actively engage, ask questions, and showcase your work to learn effectively.

You can combine joining an online community with getting practical experience by joining an online game jam, like the ones at itch.io or GameJolt.

Finding your niche, articulating your story and your development might be a struggle in the very beginning of our journey on game industry. It was a day-to-day quest for me to go between, 'I'm not going to be welcomed' and 'Oh,I'm so into it!' until I've met with my people and get involved with the communities with regardless of the very idea about: 'How can I add a value for everyone in here and myself?' Day by day,I had only acknowledged more and more the importance of the communities on gaming industry and how it impacts the way of making games. So now, as a person who understands the high importance of communities on games industry, I'm letting myself navigated by the question: 'What kind of a community would I like to create?'

This is most important part of the entire learning process, unless you implement the learnings they never really cement into your head. You need to build the muscle memory to come up with solutions or implementation approach quickly and with clarity. Follow along option offered during online course are good but I think lot of time gets wasted in trying to follow the steps shown; I would rather encourage folks to do some problem solving post the session and go back to the session if you get stuck.

Solo projects are a really good supplement (not substitute ????♀?) to game jams for putting game dev knowledge into practice. Game jams will give you the opportunity to work in a team setting which is the standard in the game dev industry. Rather than make a complete game, my solo projects are made specifically with the intent to further develop my game dev skills. Solo projects have allowed me to become familiar with a specific game engine, workflow or specialization at my own pace. I’ve also found this approach to be very cathartic in expressing my creativity ????? With solo projects in the mix, you can have creative control and hone your game dev skills at your own pace. A win-win! ??

Prospective employers within the game development industry place a premium on your demonstrated capacity for project completion, showcasing your ability to shepherd a concept from its inception to full-scale publication. This practice not only enriches your skillset but also serves as a compelling testament to your commitment and competence. Begin your journey by conceiving and executing modest game concepts, subsequently releasing them on prominent app stores such as iOS, Android, itch.io, Steam, and the Microsoft Store.

This is the most important bit! Apply what you learn in game development by starting with small projects, working on personal and open-source projects, participating in game jams, seeking feedback, collaborating with others, and solving real-world problems. Follow best practices, stay updated on industry trends, and continuously challenge yourself to build practical experience and a strong portfolio. It's a simple rule, spend more time creating than consuming ??

It's crucial to apply what you learn. This step is essential for fully understanding the concepts, rather than just blindly watching tutorials.

Embrace mistakes in game development as valuable learning opportunities. Use errors to iteratively improve your skills, enhance problem-solving abilities, and build resilience. Seek feedback from the community, understand system intricacies, and prevent future errors by reflecting on each mistake. Mistakes contribute to creative solutions and, when navigated successfully, boost confidence in your abilities as a game developer.

Celebrate your mistakes. But don't give the "it's an iterative process" adage too much credit, either. It easily becomes something to hide behind. If your project genuinely doesn't show promise, abandon it and move on. This may go against the "finish things" tip previously, but sometimes no amount of polish or "it'll be fun later" or "it's an iterative process" will be able to help you.

Mistakes are not failures unless you keep repeating them. Learn from them. Be vigilant when you are in a similar situation again. I learned game development at an early age, had to go through deployment crisis with every client during my freelancing years. That helped me polish my skills and know possible issues beforehand. Experience comes from solving issues. That is why problem solving is the first thing that everyone learns during their computer science education.

Aside from debugging, get into the habit of using source control. This will arguably be the most important tool in your arsenal. Correcting mistakes is so much easier when you can easily review your changes. It makes experimenting a breeze, too, as you can easily create a "copy" of your project and then revert the changes with a few commands.

Making mistakes is a blessing, because it makes you learn through the process. So don't worry about it, it happened to everyone. Try using it for your own gain.

Most important thing is that it's never too late to start in the game dev industry. I am at my 44 years of my life, even if I'm going through rough time finding an entrance point. I am creating myself one. So, keep reading, the following is the core of achieving you game dev dream. 1. When you hit a wall or fail, don't give up. This is your moment to look from the experience and start up again. 2.Keep learning even if you have achieved your first goals. 3. Network much, because it can help you learn something new, meet interesting people, share knowledge etc. Good luck :)

There are no shortcuts to learning. You will learn the most by doing, that means building your own games, tools, shaders, art, design, whichever aspect of game development you are most interested in. Picking courses that are focused on either game genres, gameplay styles or tools you are most interested is essential to keep you on track wrt your learning goals. The more you practice, the more you will learn, the more feedback you get, will teach you more perspectives & most importantly, the ability to handle criticism, improve on feedback and sift through useful vs inconsequential feedback. Learning more about video games overall & deep interaction with the community are key to a bright your future in game development.

Make a game. Regardless of what your goals are with learning game development, you need to build your first basic prototypes. You will underestimate the effort it will take to build a simple pong game if it's your first time. Watch out for scope creep, start small, and focus on functionality over fancy features that you may never have even done before, yet. Your goal is to practice step by step.

Have what I call a "game dev learning pipeline". What is that? Basically: 1. Choose a subject you want to learn. 2. Find well-recommended material about the subject. It could be videos, courses, books, articles, whatever works. 3. Summarization: Write down in your own words what you learned as if you were trying to teach someone. You don't need to share that. 4. Analysis: Use what you learned to analyze a piece that exists. Try to figure out how a game uses the concept you learned 5. Synthesis: Write down your conclusions from the analysis. 6. Deliberate practice: Use what you learned in a game or concept that you?have.?Build.

Being mostly self taught myself, I can humbly say my coding was crap until I read up on design patterns and data structures. Find a good ebook on those topics. The videos and stackoverflow can be a great resource too.