Who is this book for?

If you know nothing about game development, you're basically me before I started working on my first game DARQ. This book is for beginners and assumes no knowledge of game development on the reader's part.

As a first-time developer with no prior experience in coding, modeling, texturing, animation, game design, etc., I managed to launch DARQ to both commercial success and critical acclaim. With $0 spent on marketing, it was featured in major media outlets, such as IGN, Kotaku, PC Gamer, GameSpot, Forbes, and hundreds of others. DARQ won numerous awards, such as The Best Game of the MIX / PAX, and received a user rating of 9 out of 10. DARQ was in the TOP 50 of the most wishlisted games on Steam before launch. It made it to the "Top Selling," "New and Popular," and "Featured and Recommended" tabs on Steam. Ultimately, DARQ became #42 Most Shared PC Video Game of 2019 (Metacritic). In this book, I describe how I did it. If you're an aspiring developer wanting to make a living from making games, this book is for you.

What is the book about?

The book guides you through a step-by-step process of making a commercial game. It teaches you how to learn all the necessary skills and covers various aspects of game development: mindset, preproduction, funding, business, law, development, marketing, PR, publishing, distribution, as well as pre-launch, launch, and post-launch strategies.

Endorsements

"Reading this book is the shortest route toward a solid understanding of how to make indie games, both from creative and business perspectives."

-Quentin De Beukelaer - Game Designer of Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, Assassin's Creed Unity, Ghost Recon Breakpoint
"There are many books on game development, but none of them address the mindset you need for success. Wlad's philosophy very much reminds me of what it was like in the early days of making games for Blizzard."

-Mark Kern - Former Team Lead for World of Warcraft, Producer of Diablo II and Starcraft.
"This book is a comprehensive guide to the business of game development."

-Bj rn Jacobsen - Sound Designer of Cyberpunk 2077, Hitman
"This book captures the process and creates a valuable resource for upcoming developers and creators alike."

-Piotr Babieno - CEO of Bloober Team, Layers of Fear, Blair Witch, Observer, The Medium
"This book is bursting with wisdom that will move you closer to realizing your dream."

-Richard Gale - 3-time Emmy-winning director

The foreword is written by Oscar, Pulitzer Prize, and 5-time Grammy Award-winning composer John Corigliano.

Collaborators

The book features advice by a number of industry professionals, including:

Mark Kern (former lead for World of Warcraft, producer of Diablo II and Starcraft)
Quentin De Beukelaer (Game Designer of Assassin's Creed Unity and Ghost Recon Breakpoint)
Bj rn Jacobsen (Sound Designer of Cyberpunk 2077 and Divinity: Fallen Heroes)
Austin Wintory (Grammy-nominated composer of "Journey")
Wojciech Piejko (Lead Designer of "Observer" and "The Medium")
Barbara Kciuk (Narrative Designer of Blair Witch)
Rami Ismail (Developer of Nuclear Throne and Super Crate Box)
Dan Adelman (Biz Dev of "Chasm" and "Axiom Verge")
Scott Millard (Publisher, Managing Director at Feardemic, Former Managing Director at Bandai Namco)
Stephen McArthur (Video Game Attorney)
Toms Martin (Video Game Investor)