How Indie Developers Build and Launch a First Game: A Step-by-Step Guide

There is no single required path to making and releasing a first game, but the process that recurs across official platform documentation and developer-marketing data follows a similar shape: choose a tool, build something small and finishable, set up distribution accounts early, and treat visibility as part of development rather than an afterthought.

Step 1: Choose an engine and start small

According to the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2026 State of the Game Industry survey, Unreal Engine is the primary engine for 42% of developers who responded and Unity for 30%, though the split changes by studio type: a majority (54%) of developers at older indie studios still use Unity, while newer indie developers are more likely to experiment with Godot, which reached 11% adoption in that group.

A common entry point for first-time developers is a game jam — a short, time-boxed challenge to build a complete game. The GMTK (Game Maker's Toolkit) Game Jam 2025, run on itch.io, drew 9,514 entries submitted over roughly four days, and 197,073 ratings were given to 9,378 of those entries during the following rating period, according to the official results page.

Step 2: Finish a build and publish it somewhere low-friction

itch.io is a common first distribution channel because it has no submission fee. Its own documentation describes the process: create a free account, select "Create new game," fill in a title, short description and cover image, then upload one zip file per platform. New project pages are private by default so creators can adjust the page before release; publishing means switching the page's visibility setting to "Public." Pricing can be set as free, pay-what-you-want, or a fixed price through the account's seller settings.

Step 3: Set up a Steamworks account if targeting Steam

For developers aiming at Steam, Valve's own Steamworks documentation lays out the process: sign up as a Steamworks partner, then complete bank, tax and company verification before setting up a product. Steam charges what it calls the Steam Direct fee — $100 USD per product — which is recoupable once a game's lifetime revenue on Steam reaches at least $1,000 USD in adjusted gross revenue, according to the Steamworks partner site. The same page notes a mandatory 30-day waiting period after paying the fee before a first product can be released, to allow Valve time to verify business information.

Step 4: Build the store page early and keep it in "coming soon" for at least two weeks

Steam's release-process documentation states that a store page submitted for review needs at least 7 days before the desired launch date, since Valve's review of store presence "typically takes 3-5 business days to complete." A store page must also stay in "coming soon" status for a minimum of two weeks before a developer can trigger release, and release itself is never automatic — Valve's documentation specifies that "approved titles will not release themselves," so a developer must manually click the release control at the intended launch moment.

Step 5: Collect wishlists before release

Chris Zukowski, who runs the indie-marketing site How To Market A Game and analyzes Steam launch data, recommends roughly 7,000 wishlists as a minimum threshold for a first-time developer seeking visibility on Steam's "Popular Upcoming" list, based on his tier analysis of games that achieved placement there. Zukowski's guidance for developers who fall short of their wishlist goal differs by how far off they are: those within about 1,000 wishlists of target are advised to delay launch and run a targeted push, while those still around 3,000 after six months of effort are advised to release anyway rather than spend heavily on paid promotion for a title without organic interest.

Step 6: Prepare the store page, trailer and pricing

Steam's own checklist system requires separate "ready for review" submissions for store presence and for the build itself, each needing Valve approval before launch, per the Steamworks release-process documentation.

Using AI tools during development

The GDC 2026 State of the Game Industry survey found that about 36% of game-industry professionals overall use generative AI tools, but adoption is lower among people who work directly at game studios (30%) than at publishing or marketing companies (58%). Among developers who do use AI tools, the most common uses reported were research or brainstorming (81%), followed by routine tasks like writing emails and code assistance (47% each) and prototyping (35%). The same survey found a majority of respondents, 52%, now view AI's impact on the industry as harmful, a shift from more positive sentiment in earlier years of the survey.