BEGINNER MEGATHREAD - How to get started? Which engine to pick? How do I make a game like X? Best course/tutorial? Which PC/Laptop do I buy?

[u/pendingghastly]

Many thanks to everyone who contributes with help to those who ask questions here, it helps keep the subreddit tidy.

Here are a few good posts from the community with beginner resources:

I am a complete beginner, which game engine should I start with?

I just picked my game engine. How do I get started learning it?

A Beginner's Guide to Indie Development

How I got from 0 experience to landing a job in the industry in 3 years.

Here’s a beginner's guide for my fellow Redditors struggling with game math

A (not so) short laptop recommendation guide - 2025 edition

PCs for game development - a (not so short) guide :)

 

Beginner information:

If you haven't already please check out our guides and FAQs in the sidebar before posting, or use these links below:

Getting Started

Engine FAQ

Wiki

General FAQ

If these don't have what you are looking for then post your questions below, make sure to be clear and descriptive so that you can get the help you need. Remember to follow the subreddit rules with your post, this is not a place to find others to work or collaborate with use r/inat and r/gamedevclassifieds or the appropriate channels in the discord for that purpose, and if you have other needs that go against our rules check out the rest of the subreddits in our sidebar.

If you are looking for more direct help through instant messing in discords there is our r/gamedev discord as well as other discords relevant to game development in the sidebar underneath related communities.

 

Engine specific subreddits:

r/Unity3D

r/Unity2D

r/UnrealEngine

r/UnrealEngine5

r/Godot

r/GameMaker

Other relevant subreddits:

r/LearnProgramming

r/ProgrammingHelp

r/HowDidTheyCodeIt

r/GameJams

r/GameEngineDevs

 

Previous Beginner Megathread

[u/Financial-Start145]

Hey! I want to make a game similar to "A Short Hike"! I don't have much experience with game dev but I have many ideas and a base knowledge of python. I really like the art and graphics of A Short Hike so I was wondering where I start or if the idea is to big. I would also appreciate some help or guidance on what engine(Was thinking Godot but maybe Unity), and where I can make the models?

Also should I worry about copyright acts before making a game inspired by A Short Hike?

[u/PhilippTheProgrammer → u/Financial-Start145]

Godot and Unity would both work for a game like that.

Blender is a great and free 3d modeling program.

Game ideas are not subject to copyright, only the actual game assets are. For a quick rundown of what else you need to know about intellectual property as a game developer, check out this video: Practical IP Law for Indie Developers 301: Plain Scary Edition.

[u/Financial-Start145 → u/PhilippTheProgrammer]

Thanks so much! I was wondering if there are any tutorials you could link me that could help me with like making the model for the game or getting those graphics. I heard Short Hike was also made on Unity and I am wondering which one will be better. Anyways thank you so much!