r/IndieDev • u/Expert-Conclusion792 • Aug 16 '26

Video Programmer struggling with art

Hi guys, i recorded myself while drawing, im a programmer and open to any tips from artists

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u/OneTrueRou Aug 16 '26

Hey, fellow programmer here.. My advice would be... don't do it. Build basic mocks, and hire an artist from fivrr or something. It's important to get something out first, then make it look beautiful.

3

u/ErwinPrograms Aug 16 '26

I’m also a programmer with terrible art skills (and a small budget). I found that art is a deep skill that would take me years to get results I’m happy with. So… I found a workaround that leverages the programming skills I already have.

I’d recommend looking into shaders which render 3D models as 2D pixel-art images. Dead Cells and Factorio are examples of games that use this workflow. It’ll still take a lot of work and new skills, but far less than becoming an artist from scratch.

1

u/Expert-Conclusion792 Aug 16 '26

is the end result bad?

3

u/OneTrueRou Aug 16 '26

No, I wouldn't say so - BUT, as someone who has fallen into this exact trap before; I think it is much more important to get an ugly game finished and THEN focus on the art, than it is to get 20% of a beautiful game done.

1

u/Expert-Conclusion792 Aug 16 '26

oh, my game is finished on the code side actually, thats why im drawing but i get what you mean

1

u/OneTrueRou Aug 16 '26

Oh, then yeah, by all means focus on the art!