🎮 5 Mistakes Every New Indie Developer Makes (and How to Avoid Them)
If you’ve ever tried to make your first indie game, you already know — it’s not easy. You start with excitement, ideas, and dreams… and then reality hits: deadlines, bugs, burnout, and that feeling that no one’s playing your game (yet). At RespawnPoint, we’ve seen this story a hundred times... and lived it too. So here are five of the most common mistakes we consider new indie devs make, and how to dodge them.
DEVTIPS
CheviDev
10/2/20252 min read
1. Starting Too Big, Too Soon
Almost every dev begins their journey dreaming of making the next Hollow Knight or Stardew Valley.
The problem? Those masterpieces were built after years of experience... not on the first try.
The mistake: You bite off more than you can chew. You start designing a full RPG, then realize you can’t finish even the combat system.
How to avoid it:
Start small. Focus on one mechanic, one idea that works and polish it until it feels amazing.
Make something you can finish, not something you can imagine. Your first game’s goal isn’t to be a hit; it’s to teach you the process of finishing.
2. Forgetting That Marketing Is Part of Development
You can have the best game in the world but if nobody knows it exists, it doesn’t matter.
Many new developers wait until launch day to post their first trailer, and by then… it’s too late.
The mistake: Treating marketing as something optional, or worse, “for later.”
How to avoid it:
Start building awareness from day one. Post your progress on Reddit, Twitter (X), or Discord.
Share devlogs, small GIFs, or even fails, players love authenticity.
Every post is not just marketing; it’s connection.
3. Working in Isolation
Indie development can get lonely. You might think, “I’ll do it all myself — coding, art, music, marketing…”
And then three months later, you’re exhausted and the fun is gone.
The mistake: Believing that being indie means being alone.
How to avoid it:
Connect. Collaborate.
Find communities like RespawnPoint, where you can share builds, get feedback, and meet other creators.
You don’t need a studio to have a team — sometimes, a single message from another dev can save your project.
4. Avoiding Feedback Until the End
We get it. You want your game to be perfect before anyone sees it.
But if you wait until the end, you’ll spend months polishing something that might not even work as intended.
The mistake: Fear of showing your unfinished work.
How to avoid it:
Share early. Post prototypes. Let people playtest your mess.
At RespawnPoint, we believe feedback isn’t a threat — it’s your best tool.
The sooner you get honest opinions, the faster you’ll improve.
5. Giving Up Too Soon
Game dev is hard. There will be bugs that make no sense, features that break right before launch, and days when you wonder if it’s even worth it.
It’s easy to stop — but every dev who made it big almost quit at some point.
The mistake: Measuring success only by numbers or instant results.
How to avoid it:
Define your own success. Every prototype finished is a level up. Every failed project teaches something the next one needs.
As long as you keep pressing Respawn, you’re still in the game.
The Real Secret: Keep Respawning
Every developer, beginner or veteran... hits walls. The difference is that some stop, and others respawn.
That’s what RespawnPoint is about a community where indie devs restart stronger, share lessons, and grow together.
So if you’ve made any of these mistakes (or all five 😅), congratulations — you’re officially part of the indie dev journey.
Now press Start, keep building, and we’ll see you on Friday for our next Indie Pick.
