Game Developer Networking and Socializing

[DuskyLW]

G'day everyone!

I've been here for quite some time, starting my game dev journey making Flash games with AS2 (which I am still actively doing). I am super privy to socializing with other people with similar interests, and in this case, game programming and development. Is there any place I can be that is currently active for discussion and collaboration with other like minded people?

I am currently in the Newgrounds Game Portal, Ruffle, and Newgrounds.io discord servers. But unfortunately even with multiple attempts to get some banter going, there doesn't seem to be quite the active community of people also in or getting started off in game development.

If anybody could point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated! Many thanks ^-^

[MSGhero]

At 4/6/23 04:45 PM, DuskyLW wrote: If anybody could point me in the right direction it would be greatly appreciated! Many thanks ^-^

AS2 is a bit hard because there's probably not a community around it outside of NG. Twitter is/was kinda good once you find your people, Reddit is terrible, Cohost seems like it might be good one day. You can also just join a language/platform's community and stick to the #gamedev channels, like the Haxe discord or whatever Godot has.

[DuskyLW]

At 4/6/23 05:31 PM, MSGhero wrote: AS2 is a bit hard because there's probably not a community around it outside of NG. Twitter is/was kinda good once you find your people, Reddit is terrible, Cohost seems like it might be good one day. You can also just join a language/platform's community and stick to the #gamedev channels, like the Haxe discord or whatever Godot has.

I plan on making the switch from AS2 to something more mainstream like Godot or Unity once I get a good grasp on basic game development cycle and structure, so like probably start of 2024. I'm mostly sticking with AS2 because of Flash 8, which I've had experience with since like 2010. Learning the layout of other programs has been a daunting thought so I've just wanted to stick around with Flash until I feel more comfortable with game dev and programming.

I've seen a lot more activity in the circles of the bigger game engines, so I think if I can stick things out a bit more here and make the switch life will get easier. I think I'm also just looking for pals in game development too just in general who share the passion I do.

[Gimmick]

Maybe contributing to open source games/tools might help? Granted, not too sure how useful such connections would be because I'm old-fashioned in that online connections always appear more tenuous than offline ones...

[DuskyLW]

At 4/6/23 08:23 PM, Gimmick wrote: Maybe contributing to open source games/tools might help? Granted, not too sure how useful such connections would be because I'm old-fashioned in that online connections always appear more tenuous than offline ones...

This sounds like a cool idea. I don't think I'm experienced enough to be helping with tools but I could see myself helping out with a game. I'm in school right now and having a tough time meeting people, especially that are close in interest with game development so real life connections as of now aren't too great.

[MSGhero]

At 4/6/23 05:38 PM, DuskyLW wrote: I plan on making the switch from AS2 to something more mainstream like Godot or Unity once I get a good grasp on basic game development cycle and structure, so like probably start of 2024. I'm mostly sticking with AS2 because of Flash 8, which I've had experience with since like 2010. Learning the layout of other programs has been a daunting thought so I've just wanted to stick around with Flash until I feel more comfortable with game dev and programming.

A good number of AS3 devs made the transition to Haxe, which has very similar syntax but lets you do web, native Win/Mac/Lin, mobile, consoles, etc. I would add HaxeFlixel to your list, which is the easiest to get into. Maybe it's not for you which is fine, but a good number of FNF modders found it nice and stuck around.

[DuskyLW]

At 4/6/23 09:58 PM, MSGhero wrote: A good number of AS3 devs made the transition to Haxe, which has very similar syntax but lets you do web, native Win/Mac/Lin, mobile, consoles, etc. I would add HaxeFlixel to your list, which is the easiest to get into. Maybe it's not for you which is fine, but a good number of FNF modders found it nice and stuck around.

I've heard of HaxeFlixel but never actually checked it out. Yeah if it has similar syntax and that's where people headed then absolutely I'll check this out! Thank you mate, this is next on my list after my current project.

I am genuinely curious about using it from a workflow perspective as well. I'm using Flash less for ActionScript more for the interface and layout of things, since it's comfortable for me and I understand it well. If HaxeFlixel is anything similar (and I hope so) then I think it'll work out just fine.

[DuskyLW]

I went ahead I poked around with it for a bit. I'm hoping there's a way for me to get a setup something akin to Flash as part of the appeal for me using Flash is not just staring at an IDE the entire time. I did the intro coding demo and poked around the other demos so there's a chance there might be something out there for that.

[Madmazel]

These are the largest servers I'm in. Each of these servers has (one or more) general chat channels as well as channels for finding/posting job opportunities, game dev resources, networking, or streamer outreach, as well as a decent amount of activity, but the size, vibe and focus of each of these servers is slightly different from the last.

Indie Dev and Creators: https://discord.gg/gGDAyt9tNW - This server was created by several game developers on Twitter who are uncertain about the future of that platform. The server is not that strict on who is allowed in - there are roles for streamers, content creators, reviewers and fans of indie games as well, but most people and most activity is from developers.

D3v Central Station: https://discord.gg/d3vcentralstation - This server is more industry-oriented, there's more variety in which roles you can select and a huge list of channels sorted by topic, but none for people who don't work in or with indie games in some capacity.

How To Market A Game (HTMAG): https://discord.gg/ePJ2u3XhTM - Conversations here are more focused on, well, getting eyeballs on your game, or how other people managed to get eyeballs on theirs.

There's also a decent amount of communities on Reddit aimed at game developers or game development, of which https://www.reddit.com/r/gamedev/ is the biggest one, and with a decent variety of contributors at various skill levels (from AAA to indie to student). Though if you want to start a discussion that is more technical in nature (like a topic about developing a game in a certain engine or language), you will likely be told to post it in a subreddit for that particular engine/language instead.

[DuskyLW]

At 4/7/23 11:18 AM, Madmazel wrote: These are the largest servers I'm in....

Thank you so much! I've been a long time lurker in that reddit community but haven't posted there (maybe I should). I'm more readily wanting to post here instead since the NG community is more tight knit and niche, so it's easier I find to meet cool people. I joined up on some of those discord though and see what's up. Much appreciated!

[MSGhero]

At 4/7/23 12:23 AM, DuskyLW wrote: I went ahead I poked around with it for a bit. I'm hoping there's a way for me to get a setup something akin to Flash as part of the appeal for me using Flash is not just staring at an IDE the entire time. I did the intro coding demo and poked around the other demos so there's a chance there might be something out there for that.

Flash Pro does export to formats that Haxe can use (that's how FNF works), but yeah I understand what you mean. If it's a deciding factor for you, then Unity or Godot would be better.

[DuskyLW]

At 4/7/23 06:40 PM, MSGhero wrote: Flash Pro does export to formats that Haxe can use (that's how FNF works), but yeah I understand what you mean. If it's a deciding factor for you, then Unity or Godot would be better.

Oh! I had no clue that's how that worked, super fascinating. I'd love to dig into the minds of some of the guys still making workflows like this work like Tom Fulp or the FNF team and try to get some insight there.

[DuskyLW]

Well, after about a month of starting and trying to use HaxeFlixel, this is where I'm at... (you just skip to the pros and cons section or near that if you'd want to)

[aapiarts]

I myself found some like minded people from a small but decently active indie game Discord server (Alien Xenoblaster and Alien Xenocide by Tallglass Discord server). To me it's easier to talk in a small server than in an overly huge and active server. Easier to get my voice heard