The global gaming market is one of the largest virtual industries and prides itself on being the most profitable game app, generating millions of dollars in revenue if all goes well. In 2020, the global gaming market was valued at over $174 billion and is expected to reach $314.40 billion by 2026, growing at a CAGR of 9.64% during the forecast period (2021-2026).
The consistently optimistic forecasts have encouraged startups and individual developers to try their luck. However, in most cases, the motivation is money and creating something for friends or family to have fun or simply leaving a piece of digital art online. The advancement of technology has made this process much more manageable. All you need is a stable machine, your laptop or desktop, a high-speed internet connection such as one of the Xfinity Internet offers, and two mobile phones to test the cipher, and you are ready to go.
The tools you need Game App
Game design is fun if you know what tools you need to get started. Beginner game creators often gravitate towards app makers, but as convenient as they may seem, they are not ideal for creating quality games like the Fruit Merge game. You can trust a game engine or a full-fledged game creation software to control your creation fully. Here is a short list of the tools you need:
- A computer. You will need to install a game engine on your PC or Mac. Check this earlier: some game engines do not work on both devices and may only work on PC or Mac. Be careful before choosing one.
- A smartphone or two. You must constantly test the game on a smartphone to see if it runs smoothly or freezes at some point. For this to happen effectively, you must test it on Android and iPhone devices to reach a larger market game app.
- A developer account. You need an active developer account to submit a game or app to the Play Store. Unlike app creators, you must monitor changes and release updates several times yearly game app. An individual account costs $19, while a business account costs $99 as a lifetime registration fee.
- Gift for creating art. Whether you make money from it or not, the game will be your work of art and remain your signature online. No matter what your game engine is, you will need game assets, whether 2D or 3D. Some game companies have created their marketplaces where you can purchase these assets.
Game Engine
A game engine is software for game developers and contains relevant assets and supporting programs. Game engines vary, from very simple to highly complex, to developing high-end games. They can be classified (in order of complexity) by the following characteristics:
- Game Templates: These are the most straightforward but limited customization options. These game engines offer the most basic level of game development features, as you can only customize the music, characters, and backgrounds, while the game mechanics will remain the same. AppyPie and ChupaMobile are well-known players in this space, but they are online-only platforms and unavailable for download. Esports is another similar platform with features such as matches, unlimited gameplay,
- Drag and Drop: Slog and Drop is the perfect tool for beginners, as it offers a variety of actions that can be achieved on objects. For example, you can design a shape and decide how it will behave when you trace the screen.
- Visual Scripting: This is a reasonably advanced approach, but it is easier to code without having to write code. In this game engine, you create nodes that determine what happens in your game window at any given time.
- Coding. All professional developers rely on this because they consider it the only profound way to create a game and have the most control over what happens. Also, learning a programming language can be very helpful. To make things easier, some game engines offer simpler programming languages that can be a good starting point in your programming journey game app.
Here are some of the famous game engines:
Game Salad Game App
Game Salad is an additional drag-and-drop game train. Some of its main features include excellent and user-friendly documentation, a local store, ready-to-use game templates, and game physics. You can use the ad monetization feature in the pro version. The rudimentary version costs $17 monthly, while the pro version costs only $8. However, if you are a teacher, student, or veteran, you can get a 50% discount on the pro version.
Game Creation Studio
This is a visual scripting-type game engine with essential features like a visual editor, several how-to guides, the ability to create 2D animations, ad monetization, and some other advanced features included in the pro version game app.
BuildBox Game App
It is a drag-and-drop game engine with all the essential features, an excellent user interface, a 2D animator, and an editor. The only downside is the monthly cost, which is $99 per month and goes down to $84 per calendar month if you choose the annual payment plan.
Stencil Game App
This started as an MIT project to teach students how to code. The elements work like a puzzle, helping you better understand how the code works. It offers visual scripting functionality and works on a subscription model. You must pay $199 annually to put your creation on mobile or desktop platforms.
Unity Game App
Unity uses the C# programming language, and the cherry on top is that Unity is the game engine used by the predecessors of games like Assassin’s Creed and Temple Run. Another fantastic feature of Unity is that it is free until the game makes $100,000 and has a diverse asset store.
Conclusion
In short, game development starts with pre-made game app templates and ends with entirely written code. It all depends on your preferences, the time you are willing to spend, and the result you hope to achieve.