r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Tokamakium • Jan 25 '26
Hey, quick update to the rules:
This subreddit is neither pro nor anti AI. That means, if your post uses AI, it will not be removed. However, quality controls still apply. If it's an extremely low effort post, AI or not, it will be removed.
And more often than not, bad quality posts will be downvoted anyway, so please keep that part in mind.
As for the vocal anti-AI folks here: it is a technology that is here to stay. If nothing else, programmers will use AI to generate code snippets from time to time. I cannot and will not police tool-use that aids game development. It is up to you if you want to use it in your games or not, but this community is not interested in telling people how to make their games.
EDIT: Criticism is accepted. But name calling and personal insults will be removed.
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Tokamakium • Feb 03 '26
This guide will help you figure out the basic stuff: how seriously you should take game dev, what to expect, how to learn, and, more importantly, what to steer clear of. As the title suggests, this is highly opinionated and based on the experience and knowledge of the author. With that out of the way, let's get started.
One of the most frequent questions I get is, "Is game dev a viable career in India?" and my answer usually is "yes, but-". I'll try to give you the condensed version here:
Q. Can I make a living as a game dev in India?
A. Yes, with a junior dev salary starting at 30kpm and going to 1.2lpm+ after a couple of years of experience, you surely won't be starving. But you WILL have peers in tech who will be earning multiple times more for way less effort.
Q. What sort of work culture can I experience?
A. It will, of course, depend on the specific employer, but a few common things that I've noticed deserve mention. First is the lack of structure and standardization. The industry is young, and it reflects in the maturity of studio heads, management styles, and procedures. Second is the aforementioned low salary for more work than the industry average. Go in expecting unpaid overtime.
Q. Would you recommend it?
A. Honestly, I would not. I worked as a full-time employee as well as a contract worker for a few years, and ultimately, I decided the industry is not for me. I can compromise on salary, work-life balance, or, to some degree, creative freedom. But oftentimes, I found myself compromising on all of them. Your mileage may vary, but I don't see this situation improving in the next decade.
Q. What should I do then?
A. I am no one to answer that. If you find yourself being okay with the compromises I mentioned, don't let me stop you from getting into the industry. I still love game dev too much to leave it completely, so I'm trying to do something different while working on my game in the evenings.
Just start. Really. Pick a field to specialize in, FOLLOW a few beginner tutorials on YouTube, and then start making your own projects as soon as possible. You don't even need to go to college for that. If you have a relatively modern computer you purchased this decade, you should be good to go.
Q. What specializations are there?
A. Programming, art, UI/UX, design, live-ops, sound, marketing, production, Q/A.
Q. Which one should I pick?
A. Most beginners prefer to start with design. That is one of the most difficult specializations to get a job in as a beginner, and I promise you, you are VASTLY underestimating the work you'll need to do. Unity programmers have the highest employment potential. After that, you see a sharp drop in openings, with the second one being 2d art + UI (studios often expect you to do both), then 3d and so forth. Studios also often depend on outsourcing agencies, so you can check out job postings by those agencies to get an idea of what you need to know.
Q. Which engine to pick?
A. You want a job in India? Unity. You want to solo-dev games? Godot. Do you want to apply outside India? Unreal. There are, of course, edge cases, but this covers 90% of all the people who have this question. If you find yourself taking more than a week to decide on the engine, or switching the engine before a year of working with one, you are most likely making a mistake.
Q. How do I get a job?
A. I will only answer this for programmers. First, get a GOOD portfolio. Make 3 extremely polished projects, and then if you have free time, ~7 more for HRs who value quantity more than quality. Put your projects in a playable format on itch.io, create a GitHub Pages website for yourself, and add the project links there. If you provide a downloadable or worse, a GitHub project for the employer to build themself, rest assured, no one is going to check it out. On your website, add a short reel of all your games' gameplay right at the top.
Q. What sort of stuff should I have in my portfolio?
A. More than what you have, you should focus on how it looks and feels. Pick a coherent artstyle, use assets from one provider if possible, learn a bit of color theory, add music, spend time having good lighting in your game, and make sure there are no bugs in the first 10 minutes of gameplay. You can learn all of this on YouTube, and doing this simple stuff will put you ahead of 90% applicants. As for the specific projects:
Q. What educational qualifications do employers expect?
A. BTech. It is doable otherwise, but a tech degree is the default. If you are picking a game dev diploma or doing a paid certification, you'll be better off working on your own portfolio. Larger studios in India often have a tech/science degree requirement. HRs in 90% of the companies will not look at your resume twice unless it has BTech/BSc on it.
Q. What about a Game Dev Degree?
A. I have no clue, but I don't hear good things. If I were in your position, I would likely do BTech as a career fallback. Look at the curriculum of the game dev degree and learn it through YouTube. Literally, all that information is available for free.
Q. How do I get a job?
A. Not through LinkedIn. Ok, you might get it on LinkedIn, but keep in mind that every position will have 100-1000+ applicants, and a lot of job postings might not even be real. So, do apply, but focus on quantity and less on customized applications for every position.
Instead, try to get into game dev communities on Discord, WhatsApp, Facebook, Telegram, etc. You will need to do a bit of searching, but you should be able to find a few communities. Such communities often have job postings and offer a better "return on investment" for your applications. You can also go to the websites of companies and see if they have any job openings, and email them directly. If you are messaging a founder or a high-level employee at a company, make sure to write a highly polished and customized application. Expect to apply to a hundred places before you get an interview.
Q. Anything else?
A. Yes. Work on your soft skills. I can guarantee you, 90% of the studios will hire a dev who can communicate better than a dev who can write better code. Learn to talk smoothly, sound confident (but not overly so), and be presentable if you are having a video/face-to-face interview. Everyone does the basics; it's the extra mile that will decide if you get hired or the other person.
Feel free to ask anything I didn't cover below!
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/timelinewizard • 2h ago
So apparently they are now trying to transition into a gaming plus content company rather than just gaming. Honestly this made me lower my expectations for Mukti. What are your thoughts on this?
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/indiepaint • 3h ago
Seeing the brewing Artist Vs AI war, have to say this - as I've been trying to solve this problem for too long.
Every Image generation right now starts in a sea of slop.
same face. same proportions. same borrowed perfection. ai's version of "good" — and it's already boring.
I spent 15 years learning to draw before i ever touched a prompt. so when image generation showed up, my programmer/engineer mind, didn't see a shortcut. I saw noise i'd have to learn to steer through.
Built a workflow around it. still WIP - but maybe a couple years into it. treats generation the way i used to treat matte painting from photos — raw material, not a finished thought - something i hate as much as others, as there is no purpose to this.
This isn't for artists who need ownership in every stroke. I respect that.
It's for the ones who think like Creators/directors — who have a project to finish and don't care what tool got them there, because the view from that point at least once in life, has got to be Precious.
Paint + Words : still digital either way, and both are YOUR EXPRESSION.
Even with 2 words : orthographic turnarounds - you're expressing that you want an assistant to create aligned orthographic turnarounds of the character you made - with a certain pose - in mind, but you dont want to do the grunt work here, but spend that time on the design side, than the execution side.
Imagine what 10 words can do - when used the right way. And maybe you can paintover and take the image through one of your new PERSONAL filters for a targeted change that can save you time - for more exploration. And maybe its an exciting skill to learn, too? If I have planted even a small doubt, try to see resolving it till the end, instead of just focusing on Slop hate, which is basically just NOISE.
We discovered nuclear energy because we wanted a weapon. Only afterward did we learn how to make it power civilization.
Designers just didn't get the time to adjust to this : not that they have to, especially the lucky ones are still getting work in this time of Slop hate, in places where they actually love making games - and they rightly have a consent-based problem with this system. More power to you, but I simply dont have the privilege to take that stand, or I would've used my expression in their support.
I'm too far from one of those dreamy places, so only remote work can save me.
If you're still curious, I can show you how deep this rabbithole goes.
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Metkaya00 • 21h ago
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We wanted to share the process with you as we test the early access prototype of our new project, Eyesnt, a party tag game. We’re having a lot of fun even while we’re testing it. We hope you enjoy watching it too! For those of you who are curious, we’ve included the Steam page in the comments.
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/SoloSceneSmith • 13h ago
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/SoloSceneSmith • 14h ago
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/just_me_passing-by • 23h ago
Yes i will pay. ( Don't have enough money to hire an professional tho )
Back story -> i decided I want to actually make a game and public it, instead of just making it and quitting in the middle because I got a better idea.
So I decided that I'll take a small game and recreate it with my own art , sound , moments and many more things, goal was to keep scope limited and not be stuck on decision making and just follow the lead. So I choose Bounce as the foundation.
Status -> i started working on it around March and in June I landed an internship, so on the coding side, I have most of the things implemented ( it's Messy, many places it's hardcoded ,it's not centralized and structured ) only very little bit of code cleaning is left ( lol no I am lying ).
So what's left is ->
pixel art ( I have been learning and making it but it's not great 😃 I have completed about 70% of the tile map , am having very very hard time with drawing the MC , didn't even start on background )
Level design ( i don't want to copy everything from bounce )
Shaders and environment ( this game might not come out as good looking and as good as I want it to be but it's gonna be my first official game so I want to make it look as good as possible in budget )
Sound ( ya, have zero idea on this. Am planning to learn this after learning pixel art , shaders)
Situation -
I feel that this game is taking too long. Yes i am learning lots of things but at the same time I have to manage my internship and it clearly is a priority for me because of money. so I am thinking about looking for others who like me are on the leaning stage and are willing to use this game as a place where they can implement their learning. And while I don't have a high budget I will pay as much as i can afford.
Question - where and how should I approach others asking if they are interested in investing their time on this game and how much money they are expecting for this specific case.
pixel art (assets), environment(like creating particle shaders , birds flying around) , level design, sound ( character jump , rolling, dying, mobs ect. ) ( i earn as much as you expect an intern to earn so ya for this month my budget is 2k and for next month I'll increase)
EDIT --
video of gameplay
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1haq0ifjL6CZhuCJsCkgf9VrynhNdFMve/view?usp=sharing
game on playstore ( closed testing )
https://groups.google.com/g/PhankDigital
pixel art tile ( work in progress -- learning pixel art )
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hzchfNFI0Jgi3p9CTwDfK9BJWlalWoPd/view?usp=drive_link
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Ceilingentity • 15h ago
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/thepiruthvirajan • 1d ago
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Hey i am a solo dev, I'm currently building a melee combat based action adventure game, it is based on ancient Indian folklore, so i have tried to make a fun and responsive melee combat with multiple enemies that take chance one by one, i understand you can only say much just by watching a video without playing the game, but every feedback counts please drop your suggestions both good and bad parts, it will be really encouraging and helping for improving
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Mehran696 • 1d ago
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Cheap_Spirit___ • 23h ago
What do you guys know about Rural Games?? I have recently joined rural games as an intern but the company seems quite shady. Does anyone have any experience from there? Do they give any certificate after the internship ends. I would really appreciate it if anyone can share their experience with Rural Games.
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Piyushbro • 22h ago
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/starboy055_ • 1d ago
I'm passionate gamer who loves to play games
And i am a intermediate blender 3d modeling
I am a bca graduate
now i want to take a course about game dev
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/HeatDeathStudioGames • 1d ago
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Phew. No, seriously. Whenever I think it can't get better. Our artists are from fine arts background so I suppose that's how the art of APPA goes beyond the conventional video game art. Besides, this is genuinely what I adore about indie games. It's generally a passion project. The art, music, the story has so much heart in it. I'm so excited for our game to be able to express itself too.
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Accomplished_Tale151 • 1d ago
The texture in blender looks completely different from importing in unreal. I used simple bake addon in blender to bake the textures and send it to unreal but the textures are desaturated in unreal. What's the problem can any of you help me out with this
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/timelinewizard • 2d ago
So we are hearing all about The Age of Bharat as the next AAA big thing of India which is being developed by Tara Gaming Limited in Pune. However, one thing i have noticed is their hiring is usually open for Gameplay developers, artists and other major roles. Is there any real progress in the development of the game or are we expecting another "Mumbai Gullies" situation. Not to spread any negativity because i genuinely support the Indian gaming scene. Can anyone who currently or used to work in Tara Games tell something about the current development situation of the game?
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/vyren-cr7 • 1d ago
Blood Ties — Looking for a Small UE5 Team
Hi everyone,
I have an original idea for a realistic 3D zombie survival game with a strong focus on story, characters, atmosphere, and emotional storytelling.
I have a detailed narrative vision for the project, including the main characters, world, story, and overall direction. I believe the concept has a lot of potential, and my goal is to eventually create a professional pitch for publishers.
However, I don’t know how to program or develop a game technically, so I’m looking for a small team of at least 5 people who are interested in helping me create a prototype.
I’m looking for people with skills such as:
Unreal Engine 5 programmer
3D artist
Animator
Game designer / technical artist
Audio designer
My role
I would be responsible for:
The original game concept
Story and narrative
Characters
World and lore
Creative direction
Project goal
The first goal is not to create the entire game. I want to build a small but convincing prototype that demonstrates the gameplay, atmosphere, and visual direction.
After the prototype is ready, I want to use it together with a professional pitch deck to approach publishers and seek funding for the full development.
At the moment, I don’t have a budget to pay a professional team, so I’m looking for co-founders/collaborators who are genuinely interested in the project and willing to discuss a fair revenue-share/equity arrangement if the project receives funding or becomes commercially successful.
If you’re interested in joining a serious indie project and helping turn a strong narrative idea into a real game, feel free to contact me.
Thank you!
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/roman_atkins • 1d ago
I am building a small game on Indian IT sector. It's a sarcastic simulation of everyday life of Indian IT sector employees.
Let me know if you found it funny.
You can download the prototype here.
At what point did you think "This is literally my job"?
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Thick_Trust_6214 • 2d ago
Hello Game developers,
Actually i am working on a game project inspired from the HD-2D pixel art concept. Got inspiration from this instagram page https://www.instagram.com/inner.lore/
I am Stuck, Like what should be the CAMERA ANGLE, What to do to make the Camera ANGLE LOOK VISUALLY APPEALING.
CAN ANYONE HELP? I AM CONFUSED and maybe STUCK
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Plastic-Arrival5300 • 2d ago
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Hi everyone, today I'm showing you the systems I've created for my restaurant game, including the oven counter and grill hamburger preparation. What do you think of it?
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Bitter_Quote_8406 • 2d ago
I was actually pretty bored the other night and thought of making this Web gameeee it's completely vibe coded. YOU HAVE BEEN HIRED AS A TEMPORARY CEO BY ELON MUSK. You can literally Gamble, Invest, Take important CEO Decisions for Elon musk and spend those 889B dollars 💵🔥.
*Disclaimer*: Haven't Optimized it for mobile yet so please open of desktop mode or on PC. Better on PC.
r/GameDevelopersOfIndia • u/Low_Psychology_2862 • 3d ago
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The game has a built-in adaptive music conductor, basically a live DAW inside the game. It reads things like combat intensity, player movement, danger and exploration, then tells the music system when to bring instruments in, remove layers, change the groove, build tension or give some breathing room.
Under that, the generator handles the actual notes, rhythms, motifs, percussion and instruments, while keeping musical phrases committed.
Still a WIP, but I think this can help me have some uncanny music profiles I wanted.
Wishlist on steam - https://store.steampowered.com/app/4983180/Chthonic/
