Is this a fit?
Design, build, and ship your own game as a solo or small-team indie studio
Skills to bring or develop
- Game Design
- Programming
- Pixel/3D Art
- Sound Design
The starting sequence
- Scope a small, finishable game concept
- Build a playable prototype
- Playtest and polish
- Build a wishlist audience during development
- Launch with a demo, then the full release
Find your first customers
Treat this customer profile as a starting hypothesis. Talk to people in this role and find out what they already do, what it costs them, and whether they want help.
Role
Genre enthusiast who follows indie releases
Problems to investigate
- Overwhelmed by AAA games that all feel the same
- Wants something with a distinct art style or mechanic
- Distrustful of early access games that never finish
Channels to test
- YouTube
- Twitter/X
- Communities
- Product Hunt
First launch approach
Build a wishlist audience during development (devlogs, gifs), launch with a demo, lean on streamers/YouTubers for discovery
Ways to find your first customer
- Post devlogs and progress gifs weekly
- Release a free demo before the paid launch
- Reach out to small streamers/YouTubers in your genre
- Launch on itch.io first to gather feedback and reviews
Shape the offer & delivery
These are example packages to adapt, not current market rates or promises of sales. Choose one deliverable, set a revision limit, and test the scope with a real buyer before expanding.
Premium (Steam/console)
$5-$25 one-time example price
- Full game
- DLC potential
- Wishlist-driven launch spike
Free-to-play + IAP
$0.99-$9.99 per item example price
- Mobile-friendly
- Cosmetics/boosts
- Ads as fallback revenue
Itch.io / Pay-what-you-want
$0-$10 example price
- Lowest barrier to first players
- Great for feedback + community building
Build and deliver the offer
Digital product
File deliverables
File name
Playable build
Format
Windows/Mac/Web export from Godot or Unity
Description
The finished, shippable game build
File name
Store assets
Format
PNG/JPG (capsule art, screenshots, trailer)
Description
Everything Steam/itch.io requires for a store page
Production steps
- Scope a genuinely finishable game — cut features until the core loop is fun in a 5-minute vertical slice
- Build the vertical slice and playtest it with strangers, not just friends, before committing months to full production
- Lock scope after the slice validates the core loop; resist adding new systems mid-production
- Budget real time for polish (juice, sound, UI) — it is a large fraction of what makes a small game feel finished
Platform listing checklist
Platform
Steam
Requirements
- Capsule images (multiple sizes)
- Trailer video
- Store description
- Age rating questionnaire
- Build uploaded via SteamPipe
Platform
itch.io
Requirements
- Cover image
- Description
- Pricing/pay-what-you-want settings
- Build uploaded per platform
Your launch roadmap
Work through the phases at your own pace. Durations and task hours are estimates; client conversations, sales, and other outcomes depend on the response you receive. Growth and exit steps are optional later decisions.
0 of 11 tasks checked
01 · Prototype 14 days · suggested pace
Define the one mechanic that has to feel good — cut everything else
Tool examples: Notion
Planning allowance: 8 hours
One level/area that demonstrates the full experience end to end
Tool examples: Godot, Unity
Planning allowance: 40 hours
02 · Playtest & Polish 21 days · suggested pace
Watch them play without helping — note where they get stuck or bored
Tool examples: Discord, itch.io
Planning allowance: 10 hours
Sound effects, screen shake, particles — the polish that sells a demo
Tool examples: Aseprite, Freesound
Planning allowance: 30 hours
03 · Launch 14 days · suggested pace
Get the game in front of players before asking for money
Tool examples: Steam, itch.io
Planning allowance: 12 hours
Send keys with a short, specific pitch — not a mass blast
Tool examples: Twitter/X, Email
Planning allowance: 8 hours
04 · Exit 60 days · suggested pace
Prepare your indie game studio for sale, acquisition, or hands-off operation
Create comprehensive standard operating procedures covering every repeatable process in your indie game studio — client onboarding, delivery workflows, billing, and support. A buyer needs to run this without you.
Target deliverable: Complete SOP handbook with video walkthroughs
Tool examples: Notion, Loom, Google Docs
Planning allowance: 12 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Record the questions this step raises for your business, location, and circumstances. Confirm requirements and assumptions with current official sources and a qualified professional before acting.
Target deliverable: Valuation estimate with supporting financials
Tool examples: Google Sheets, ChatGPT
Planning allowance: 6 hours · AI can assist; review the output
Organize all financial records, contracts, customer data, IP documentation, and legal documents into a virtual data room that a buyer or their advisor can review.
Target deliverable: Organized virtual data room
Tool examples: Google Drive, Google Sheets
Planning allowance: 10 hours
Identify every area where the business depends on you personally. Delegate, automate, or document each one. Test by taking 2 weeks off and measuring impact.
Target deliverable: Owner dependency scorecard (before/after)
Tool examples: Notion, Zapier, Slack
Planning allowance: 20 hours
Create a teaser document (blind profile) for your indie game studio and either list on marketplaces (Acquire.com, Flippa, Quiet Light) or reach out directly to 5-10 potential acquirers.
Target deliverable: Teaser document + 5-10 buyer conversations started
Tool examples: Acquire.com, Google Docs, Email
Planning allowance: 8 hours · AI can assist; review the output
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Tools, budget & effort
These are tools named in the original playbook, offered as examples to evaluate. Check current capabilities, pricing, licensing, and data handling with the provider before subscribing. Start with the tools you already have.
- Godot
- Unity
- Aseprite
- Steam
Tools to evaluate
Item
Godot (free) or Unity (free tier)
Why consider it
Named directly as the export source for the playable build deliverable
Make the numbers your own
Include setup, subscriptions, selling, fulfillment, revisions, support, and your time. Use your actual inputs and compare a cautious case with a better case.
Open the experiment calculator →AI roles & prompt templates
Assign a clear job, provide approved inputs, and review the result. These are role and prompt ideas; this page does not run AI or connect your accounts.
Test Engineer
Draft a playtest feedback form for this vertical slice
Ui Designer
Suggest a capsule art concept for this game's store page
Use the first task above as your opening prompt. Include your audience, desired output, constraints, and how you will judge quality.
Your first small test
- Choose one customer. Find five people who have the problem described in this guide.
- Show one useful sample. Ask about their current process, priorities, and objections.
- Offer a clearly scoped pilot. Agree on deliverables, a price to test, and what success means.
- Record the evidence. Track responses, costs, hours, and what the buyer actually used. Decide whether to continue, change, or pause.
Explore related ideas
Adapted from Ashley’s Waymaker side-hustle playbooks, imported October 15, 2026. This is a published snapshot, not a live connection to your Waymaker account. Source examples are planning material, not verified customer outcomes. Explore Waymaker.