The software and game developer market is a competitive one. As an independent game developer that is just starting out, gaining some traction and building a great reputation in the gaming community is not an easy thing. For many, a dream scenario would be either to get a quality job or to start making great connections in the developer community.
Because of the competition, making any of those two scenarios mentioned above, become reality is not easy. However, for many independent developers, releasing a quality game could represent a great entry point into this market, allowing you to build a reputation and connections.
In this article, we are showcasing a handful of gaming niches that could be perfect for developing games as an early programmer. These niches have a proven record of taking unknown developers and propelling their reputation.
Puzzle is a gaming category well-known for making beginner developers famous. The amount of people that have launched their careers by creating a quality puzzle game is huge.
These games work so great when it comes to building a reputation early in your career because they are easier to create. Being able to build a game quickly, and release it to the market will allow new developers to gain a lot of experience and reputation.
Starting out with puzzle games is a perfect strategy since it allows you to try and fail for countless times. Since these games are less complex, they can allow you to build more of them, and experiment with a lot of new ideas until one becomes popular.
The best part about puzzles is that the market for such games is quite substantial. This will not only allow you to get a large user base quickly but, maybe even to make the headlines and propel your career in the world of software and game development.
Even if at first glance it might not be that obvious, the casino gaming niche is representing a perfect entry point for beginner developers, especially for those that have a gambling passion.
The casino games are rather similar to the puzzle ones, being less complex than some of the other kind of gaming categories. Even building one of the highest-quality casino games might require fewer resources and time than an average game from a more complex niche like the first-person shooter one.
When it comes to casino games, you have a lot of options at hand, perfect for all skill levels. Less experienced developers could easily enter this niche by creating casino games that are focused on single gaming variations. They could easily develop online slots, poker, blackjack, or any other singular casino game.
For more experienced developers, building a whole online casino that is consisted of multiple variations of games could constitute a great challenge. Such a game could either be focused on a single casino gaming niche, like slot machines, or it could include multiple ones.
When it comes to the development of adventure games, the skill requirements and complexity of the games are starting to get higher. This kind of games, either if simpler in appearance, have multiple dynamic parts that the developer must take into account before embarking on this journey.
If you have the right amount of knowledge and skill, this might represent a perfect starting point for you. If you’re already an experienced developer that wants to go independent, to get your name out there and build something on your own, this could be the perfect niche.
However, you must take into account that developing such a game on your own is going to require more of your time and attention. Even if the investment of time is higher, if you create a quality game, your reputation can go through the roof easily.
As an independent or beginner developer that just wants to get his name out there and build some connections, the three gaming categories mentioned above are representing perfect entry points. Building such a game early in your career, even if not highly successful can still represent a validation of your skills. Such a project will not only get you a quality job but also the possibility of building connections and creating something on your own.