Why you shouldn't be an Indie Dev

[NightsoftInteractive]

What you failed to mention is that it also highly depends on where you live.
Your advise might be good if you live in the US, but if you live in a country that doesn't have a gaming industry to begin with, it's impossible to apply for a job that doesn't exist.
In that case going indie is the only option left, if you want to start a career as a game dev.

[occupationalhazard]

I've been trying to get a job in AAA/AA for the past 6 years, with a dozen interviews, but not one offer. With the popularity of mass layoffs recently, I don't see getting a job in AAA anytime soon. I'm not sure AAA is even an option anymore. It looks like I'll be continuing my Indie Dev journey. I'll keep shipping my own games until someone notices me or one of them is a financial success.

[savionthomas]

I started in AAA myself and now work for a small company. If I were to go indie, I would say working at the smaller company has prepared me more. AAA felt like I was always doing the same thing everyday, and it got to a point where I was not learning anything new on the job. Either way, both were great learning experiences!

[beardedlinuxgeek]

What is up with the second floating head in the circle?

[chrisp]

Some (of us) devs simply care more for/about creative freedom(s) ... whatever makes a dev happy, I guess.

[AlanZucconi]

I do miss the times when I was a "full-time indie". But at the same time, there was a constant stream of anxiety about what to do next, and how to get funding, etc. I still work in games, but in a more "traditional" position. And while I sometimes lack that (near) absolute freedom, I think my mental health is much better know that the financial worry has been taken out of the equation.

[AyyoNevNev]

Awesome video. As a 33 year old who is in college for programming. The reality is I’m getting older so I need to prioritize my time and money for my family.

Trying to become an indie dev for the experience and possible flexibility seems like the way but at the same time, joining any triple A studio to possibly move up in the company and have health care seems like the way for someone my age.

[B_Carri]

If you wanna be a worker, go work. If your creative and have drive, be a game dev. Let the world experience your craft, it's worth it

[mandisaw]

I think the myth of the solo/micro indie, with barely enough skills & zero-exp just dovetails with the myth of the millionaire techbro, and the idea that everyone should be an entrepreneur. At best it's misleading, at worst it drains your time, money, and motivation.

Being an indie for fun/hobby is great, and should be encouraged. Working in games can be great, and should be encouraged.

But if you want to make & sell games, that is a business, and needs to be treated as such. You need skills, capital, time, and the maturity and grit to see each project through to the end, despite the ups & downs. I think a lot of folks love the myth, but live the reality, and most of game-dev YT feeds that. It's not all that healthy, I think, so glad you dropped a little truth.

[thenightmanager]

I think from a general standpoint it depends on the person that is creating. To me, it's not just about having the creative freedom of being an indie dev. It's about the strife and struggle you have to go through to earn the right to call yourself a dev. It's about a love of the art. It should not be about the money. I do understand if you want to get into if for the money. But for me it's about those moments when I'm combing through internet looking for that one post or video that gets me to that eureka moment where I figure it out. Whatever that may be. I live and die for the puzzle combined with seeing my art come to life. Granted, I do have a day job that pays decently. But I am willing to take that risk just to see my art out in the world. Even if I am the only one that appreciates it. It's like watching your child grow and stand on its own. From that first line of code or asset download all the way through people giving the nitpicky negative comments about that one test asset you left in by mistake. 🙂
If you do want to go for the money, I would also recommend a AA studio. I work in an enterprise environment and you usually don't mean anything to the people that run it. It can be soulless and apathetic. AA seems like it would be with people that actually care. That means a more healthy mindset when actually developing. I'll shut up now.

[vakuzar]

Hot take, your all wrong.

Start AA, it gives you tons of opportunities and lots of chances to get far more responsibility and impact earlier. From AA you can easily move whatever direction you want since now you have experience and published work.

[average-arch-enjoyer]

There are many low effort Mobile games that are terrible but still make more money than most of the triple A game titles. The mobile game market doesn't care how much production value a game has. This can be an advantage for indie.

[gendokar]

Hi from the bay area. Glad to see that you are still active making games.

[potato]

You're not wrong, but I think it's being understated how difficult it is to land a game dev job in AA and AAA companies. Shipping an indie game even when it fails financially demonstrates ability and persistence to AA and AAA companies.

[timurradman]

I don't need this kind of topics at the current phase of my work. This is the second title from this channel that discouraged me from doing what I'm doing...

[Banaaani]

I think the indie route is high risk high reward. You can do far better than on AAA companies if you are really good and/or lucky. However most should realise that they are not top 10% and AAA developers are probably a much safer route. I studied game development and love working on my projects, but I got programming job on another field.

[SanyaBane]

Era of dismorale videos from Jason has begun 😂

[migcreatesgames]

What if you want to keep Indie game Dev as a hobby or a side job along side a full time? There is always time on the weekend or after work

[RudolfsLab]

I totally agree with the arguments in the video, but videos with these kind of clickbait titles have been getting on my nerve lately. It goes without saying that starting your own business will always be more riskier than getting a stable 9-5, especially in games industry, but most of the games I love the most started out as solo developed projects. I just personally think that if you really love game development, you should always strive towards working on something you love. Maybe get a stable job in a bigger company, and if you feel adventurous, save some money and work on your own stuff.

[KindSparkdev]

I just wish I had the opportunity. I don't have the experience the remote jobs want, and I don't have the money/skill (I assume) to move where the AAAs are.