Hello, first of all, I’d like to introduce myself briefly. I’m Atilla, and I’m a junior game designer. Perhaps it’s a bold decision to write here as a fresh game designer, but I’d like to share what it feels like, how my journey in the hypercasual world is progressing, and so on. Another reason why I’m writing this blog post is that I always read or watch “what is a game designer” from industry experts, but I never saw it from the perspective of a junior game designer just starting their journey.
I always thought that hypercasual games were so easy to design because they are not complicated and, therefore, so simple. But I was wrong. When I somehow managed to secure my job as a junior game designer, I realized that the world of hypercasual games is cruel. It’s cruel because the hypercasual market moves incredibly fast. As a designer, I have to think, design, and act quickly. What I learned from my experiences is that if you are or want to be a game designer in the hypercasual market, you always have to check your competitors daily (maybe even hourly). Because when you find a mechanic, a feeling, or a pleasure that you can give to your players, someone might have already done that.
And what I’ve observed is that when someone has success with something, simply copying it doesn’t bring the same level of success to you. If you don’t have a really good marketing budget, then it’s mostly hard to succeed. As a game designer in the hypercasual world (and in other genres), one of the first things a designer must be capable of is “letting it go.” Because when you get attached to an idea and say, “I’m sure that it will be groundbreaking, it will smash the charts,” most of the time, it isn’t that good. I don’t mean your idea is bad; I don’t mean your design is useless. Please don’t get me wrong, but what’s “amazing” to us can be “mediocre” for others. Accepting this possibility is one of the greatest maturities a game designer could have. Also, accepting the possibility of making a mistake is one of the first things you should immediately have in your toolkit.
Probably one of the hardest things I’ve ever encountered was establishing clear, healthy communication with others. Believe me, it’s not an easy thing to do. As a game designer, you have to communicate with game artists, game developers, management, and sometimes with the publisher. You have to express yourself clearly every time, but also without discouraging others. There can be conflict from time to time, which is fine. You have to listen to others. Every idea is important and could change a lot.
As Ram Dass said,
“When you know how to listen, everybody is the guru.”
By the way, give yourself some space. Because no one, literally no one, could think of everything at once. When you try to think of everything at once, it will collapse. To me, going step by step is always better than trying to cover everything simultaneously.
Back to hypercasual, as I said, this genre is fast. One day, rolling a ball on your nose is popular, but after a week, no one wants to roll a ball on their nose. There are no “secret formulas” for success. Of course, the power of advertising gives you a really good boost. But when you have a good game, you can always market it on social media for free (or for a really small fee).
Sorry to say, but you will fail. A lot. I’m not saying this to discourage you. Having a failure is not the end of the world, because you will learn from your mistakes. As I said previously, maybe the game that you designed recently is a chart-smasher for you, but other people could have other plans.
One of the biggest misconceptions I’ve seen is: don’t be a game designer just because you can’t code and just want to be in the game industry. The reason why I’m saying this is simple: designing games from scratch isn’t an easy business. Most of the time, it can be nerve-wracking and could overwhelm you. Because being a game designer is a 24/7 job. After a while, when you play games, watch a movie, or meet with your friends, everything becomes a mechanic, a system, a feeling that you can use in your games. Your brain starts to work differently, and you start analyzing every encounter in your life.
Accepting criticism is crucial. When you propose an idea, design a system, or just make a small change in the game, some people might not like that. So, when they tell you they didn’t like what you made, don’t be upset or angry. This is normal; not everything you create will make everyone happy. Not everyone looks at the world from your perspective, so they may not feel your creative work in the same way.
When you start in game design, always improve yourself. Learning game engines, having basic code knowledge, and knowing how a level can be designed can help you a lot. Maybe designing levels is a level designer’s job, and a game developer should code, and you are right to think like that. But game design is at the center of all of those things. When you know these kinds of things, you’ll start to know your limits. Knowing game engines, level design, art, psychology, and code makes your designs much more consistent and stable. Also, when you have basic knowledge in these fields, you can communicate with your co-workers much more easily. You can understand where they’re stuck or what their problem is, so you can solve it together.
As I said, I never intend to discourage anyone. Game design is a beautiful thing to do. But beauty comes with a price. I know most of my writings are like a rulebook or guideline, but I just wanted to share my experiences and perspective with you.
If this article caught your attention or helped you in any way, let’s connect on https://www.linkedin.com/in/atilla-kabakcioglu/ and grow our network together!
