Before You Make a Steam Game… Build This First

Everyone wants to jump straight to Steam. I get it. A Steam release feels like the destination. It feels like the moment everything becomes real.

But most people who rush to Steam without a foundation don't make it. Not because they aren't capable. Because they skipped the steps that make success possible.

This post is about what to build before you ever touch a Steam page.

The Foundation Argument Nobody Wants to Hear

I've seen people online claim that years of game dev experience won't give you a head start over someone who jumps straight into a Steam game. That the learning you get from launching on Steam is so unique that nothing else compares.

Think about that for a second.

You genuinely believe someone with three years of game dev experience, who has shipped games, learned to code, worked with assets, handled animations, and understands the full development process from start to finish, won't be ahead of someone who has never opened an engine?

The person with three years in doesn't need to figure out which engine to use. They don't need to learn basic programming. They've already hit the roadblocks that destroy beginners and they know how to get past them. They've published things. They know what a finished game feels like.

The person jumping straight to Steam is trying to learn all of that AND market a game AND polish a game AND manage scope all at the same time. That's not an advantage. That's a recipe for burning out and quitting.

What a Game Dev Foundation Actually Looks Like

A foundation isn't some abstract concept. It's a specific set of skills and experiences you build up before taking on something larger.

Start with understanding the game dev process. Not the code, not the art, not the design theory. The process. How do you start a project? How do you fill it with content? How do you polish it and get it published? If you can take something from nothing to finished and in front of players, that is the foundation everything else gets built on.

From there you build out your skills layer by layer. Basic programming. Getting comfortable in your engine. Importing and working with assets. Building simple levels. None of this has to be advanced. It just has to exist.

Think of it like building a house. You don't start with the roof. You lay a small foundation, build something on it, learn what works and what doesn't, then lay a bigger foundation and build something better. Game after game, each one expanding what you're capable of. Eventually you have the foundation to support something the size of a Steam release without it collapsing under its own weight.

Your first few games are going to be bad. That's not a problem, that's the point. Bad games built with effort teach you more than tutorials ever will.

Things to Skip When You're Just Starting Out

There's a lot of noise in game dev. A lot of things people tell you that you need to do right away. Most of it can wait.

Polish. Don't chase polish on your first few projects. Learn to write code before you worry about writing good code. Learn to build levels before you worry about building great ones. Polish is a layer you add on top of skills you've already developed. You can't polish something you don't know how to build yet.

Game design documents. I talk about these a lot but I'll say it plainly: for your first several projects they are a waste of time. The ROI isn't there. You don't need a game design bible to build a small game. Write a short to-do list, build the thing, move on.

Hook and story. These matter later. When you're starting out your only job is to make the game work and make it fun in the most basic sense. If the inputs feel good and something happens when you press buttons, you're on the right track. Hook and story come after you can actually finish a game.

Game jams. They're great for some people. They're not required for anyone. If you enjoy them, do them. If they stress you out or don't fit how you work, skip them. You can become a solid developer without ever entering a single jam.

Scope: Cut It Down Further Than You Think

Scope kills more game dev dreams than anything else. And the tricky part is that scope isn't just about how much time you have. It's also about your skill level.

A senior developer can complete in a week what takes a beginner a month. So when you're planning your first few games, don't just think about time. Think honestly about where your skills are right now and what you can realistically pull off.

Here's a practical approach. Write down everything you want in your game. All of it. Then cut it. Then cut it again. Then when you think it's small enough, cut it in half.

Flappy Bird had one mechanic. Tap the screen, bird goes up. That's it. It went viral.

The original Mario had two buttons. Run and jump. That's the whole game. One of the most beloved franchises in history.

Small scope doesn't mean small impact. It means you can actually finish the thing.

Break Everything Into Systems

Once you have a few projects under your belt this becomes one of the most useful habits you can build.

Instead of thinking about your game as one giant thing you need to build, break it into individual systems. Character controller. Health system. Attack logic. UI. Menu flow. Enemy behavior. Each one is its own contained thing that you build and get working before connecting it to everything else.

Building a house works the same way. You don't frame walls, run electrical, install plumbing, and finish the exterior all at the same time. There's an order. There's structure. Some systems depend on others. Some can be built in parallel. But nobody just throws all the pieces at the house and hopes it works out.

Game dev is no different. Systems thinking keeps you sane, keeps you on track, and makes your projects actually manageable.

Self-Doubt Is Part of It. Don't Let It Stop You.

Game dev is complex. There are a million decisions to make and plenty of moments where you'll wonder if you're making the wrong ones. That doesn't go away. It just gets easier to push through.

You will make poorly optimized games. You will make games with bad art, weak stories, and mechanics that don't feel right. Years from now you will look back at your early work and cringe. That's the sign you grew. That's a good thing.

Don't compare your timeline to other developers. Everyone has different schedules, responsibilities, and starting points. The only thing that matters is that you keep moving.

Focus on Fun Before Anything Else

Build games you actually find fun. You are your own best test player at the start. If you're building something in hopes that some unknown player might enjoy it, you're already disconnected from the work.

If you think it's fun there's a real chance other people will too. That's a better starting point than designing around what you think the market wants before you know how to build anything.

Hook, story, art. They all matter eventually. They're just not where you start. You start with fun. Everything else gets layered on top.

One More Thing: Watch Out for Bad Advice

I make content. This video, this blog post, it's content. You should look at everything including what I put out with some critical thinking.

A lot of game dev content online is built around clicks, not around actually helping you. Titles like "How to make money on Steam as a beginner" get clicks. "Build a foundation before you touch Steam" doesn't. So guess which one gets made more.

When you see content pushing you toward Steam from day one, treat that as a flag. There is a real and significant gap between starting game dev and being ready for a Steam release. Any content that glosses over that gap or pretends it doesn't exist is not looking out for you.

The more games you build and the more experience you develop, the easier it becomes to spot when someone is telling you what you want to hear versus what you actually need to hear.

The Short Version

Build small games first. Learn the process. Develop your foundation layer by layer. Don't skip steps because someone online made it sound like shortcuts exist.

The developers who succeed on Steam are almost always the ones who put in serious time before they ever created a Steam page. Not because they got lucky. Because they built something strong enough to hold up.

When you're ready to start building that foundation with a community behind you, come join us at Tenth Legion Games. It's where developers at every stage are doing exactly this, building skill, shipping games, and helping each other push further than they could alone.

Join Tenth Legion Games on Skool

Want to watch the full breakdown? Check out the original video on my YouTube channel.