14 Game Genres Explained

14 game genres explained with indie video game examples. This guide will introduce you to popular video-game genres that you need to know.

Chapters & Game Examples 👾
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00:00 Video Game Genres

00:21 Adventure

00:54 Visual Novel

01:36 Role-Playing Game (RPG)

02:23 Rhythm

03:08 Sports:

03:48 Action

04:29 Fighting

05:08 Bullet Hell:

05:56 Turn-Based:

06:42 Multiplayer

07:33 Rouguelike

08:19 Metroidvania

09:08 Platformer

09:52 Idle

10:59 Mysterious Secret

What is GameMaker? 👀
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GameMaker is the industry’s premier 2D game engine, used by thousands of developers every day to create indie gaming classics like Undertale, Hyper Light Drifter, and Chicory: A Colorful Tale.

It’s completely free to download and keep forever, with dozens of written guides and video tutorials to help you bring your games to life.

When your project is complete, you can publish your creations to all major platforms, including PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and Nintendo Switch.

[paulvictor]

The most important thing people need to remember is that a genre is just a way to easily convey something, it's not set in stone. A lot of games share genres, and sub genres.
Bullet hell rogue likes, platformer rpgs, multiplayer fighting games, visual novel jrpgs, action rogue likes, and so on, if you're new to game maker and you feel like your idea does not fit in one genre, remember, a good complex game rearely does.

[LaukkuPaukku]

Right off the bat we have a misunderstanding of the adventure genre. Adventure games don't feature "intense heart-pounding battles" or any other action gameplay (if one does then it's a hybrid), they're closer to visual novels but with more puzzles and free-er character control. "Adventure" in this context is not about adventurousness, it's about games that are like the 1976 computer game Adventure.

[richmondsamuel]

Hi I don't see you have any card building deck games. Do you have Gamemaker tutorials on that genre? Also I wanted to know if you have a Ludo like tutorials as well. I want to make a ludo like game as well thanks.

[GameMakerEngine]

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The games and genres featured:

00:00 Video Game Genres

00:21 Adventure

00:54 Visual Novel

01:36 Role-Playing Game (RPG)

02:23 Rhythm

03:08 Sports:

03:48 Action

04:29 Fighting

05:08 Bullet Hell:

05:56 Turn-Based:

06:42 Multiplayer

07:33 Rouguelike

08:19 Metroidvania

09:08 Platformer

09:52 Idle

10:59 Mysterious Secret

[qasderfful]

I'm convinced this is a subtle troll video.
I survived through calling a Zelda-like an "Adventure" and a JRPG an RPG, as these are at least on a surface level understandable, but when you called Beat'em Up a "Fighting game" I lost it.
EDIT: Oh, "Turn-based" is apparently a genre. Wow. WOW
Don't make AI write scripts for you anymore.

[jugibur]

Great overview! I wonder if "Cozy" is missing or if it's something like "Idle"

[mikayelalikhanyan]

you know I consider a person who says Metroidvania offensive, only one game which is Symphony of the Night and metroid 1 can be considered Metroidvania, after that we have a million other games that encompass this category but don't even look or play what they entail, one being Castlevania 1, I honestly think the mechanics should be the description of the game like a text adventure, tunnel game, or hack and slasher, no need to bring up a decade long game and say this is 1 to 1

[BrunoSilva-qxes]

Awesome content!!!
There are more types like racing and FPS (Post Void) made with Game Maker

[tdg_dev]

Isn't Rivals of Aether made by DAN Fornace not DON Fornance?

[gamergate.andbooks]

Sorry but hyperlight drifter is not a Adventure game it also has action in it as well

[rowlandhelms]

I have problem the move and collide isn’t there

[danielstatler]

Bro how this guy's toolkit got his own channel???

[gamergate.andbooks]

Rival of aether is a platformer fighting game withe online capability

[gamergate.andbooks]

Card games can be turn based in nate think of the game slay the Spire

[francofortachon]

actually i think graphics are more important than mecanics... especially in novel games action games and adventures... first learn to draw and then how to create the game