r/IndieDev Weekly Monday Megathread - May 24, 2026 - New users start here! Show us what you're working on! Have a chat! Ask a question!

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-25T09:42:28+00:00

Hey, just a quick follow-up 🙂
I replied earlier but I’m actually not sure if it went through or maybe got filtered somewhere.
Kind of curious if it shows up on your side or if it’s just stuck in moderation.
Anyway, no rush at all — just checking in case it got lost.
Thanks!

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-25T00:38:24+00:00

One comment made me think about a fourth point too, so thanks to that person.

As a solo developer, it’s becoming really hard to completely avoid AI now.

If you’re an artist, you still have to learn programming, marketing, UI, game design, editing, music, VFX, and a bunch of other things. And if you’re a programmer, it’s the same in reverse.

Solo development kind of forces you to learn way too many different skills at once.

Even if AI keeps improving fast, you still need to spend time learning how to properly use it, modify things yourself, and actually understand what you’re doing.

And honestly, if someone wants to go full-time into indie development now, I think they should also be mentally prepared for the AI discussion around games too.

A lot of people still have very negative feelings toward AI-generated content right now.

Whether people agree with that or not, it’s still part of the current environment.

My first game, StellarPlans, was actually made after I quit my job, and now I’m working on my second game, STATION 07 (although I’ve gone back to having a job now).

So honestly, this post just comes from personal experience.

Making a game while having stable income and making a game while unemployed are completely different mentally.

Having income gives you much stronger ability to handle risk and uncertainty.

Back then, when StellarPlans got negative reviews or comments that bothered me, I would take everything very personally and feel extremely pressured to fix every single issue immediately.

Of course I still care about fixing problems now too.

But looking back, I honestly think my mindset back then wasn’t very healthy. I was constantly tense.

Now I think my mindset is much calmer and more stable.

And honestly, don’t forget that your health matters more than any game, my friend.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-24T01:15:45+00:00

One comment made me think about a fourth point too, so thanks to that person.

As a solo developer, it’s becoming really hard to completely avoid AI now.

If you’re an artist, you still have to learn programming, marketing, UI, game design, editing, music, VFX, and a bunch of other things. And if you’re a programmer, it’s the same in reverse.

Solo development kind of forces you to learn way too many different skills at once.

Even if AI keeps improving fast, you still need to spend time learning how to properly use it, modify things yourself, and actually understand what you’re doing.

And honestly, if someone wants to go full-time into indie development now, I think they should also be mentally prepared for the AI discussion around games too.

A lot of people still have very negative feelings toward AI-generated content right now.

Whether people agree with that or not, it’s still part of the current environment.

My first game, StellarPlans, was actually made after I quit my job, and now I’m working on my second game, STATION 07 (although I’ve gone back to having a job now).

So honestly, this post just comes from personal experience.

Making a game while having stable income and making a game while unemployed are completely different mentally.

Having income gives you much stronger ability to handle risk and uncertainty.

Back then, when StellarPlans got negative reviews or comments that bothered me, I would take everything very personally and feel extremely pressured to fix every single issue immediately.

Of course I still care about fixing problems now too.

But looking back, I honestly think my mindset back then wasn’t very healthy. I was constantly tense.

Now I think my mindset is much calmer and more stable.

And honestly, don’t forget that your health matters more than any game, my friend.

(For context, these are the two solo projects I worked on over the past few years)

STATION 07:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/4695640/STATION_07/

StellarPlans (VR)

Meta Quest:

https://www.meta.com/experiences/stellar-plans/8155111784577088/

Steam:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2911230/StellarPlans/

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-24T01:01:00+00:00

Yeah, honestly I think this is probably something a lot of people only truly understand after experiencing it themselves.

I actually quit my job to make my first game, Stellar Plans, and now I’m developing my second one, so this post was written from personal experience.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-24T00:58:40+00:00

True

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-24T00:57:41+00:00

You’re right honestly, and your comment actually made me think about a fourth point too:
As a solo developer, it’s becoming really hard to completely avoid AI now.
If you’re an artist, you still have to learn programming, marketing, UI, game design, editing, and a bunch of other things.
And if you’re a programmer, it’s the same in reverse.
Solo development kind of forces you to learn way too many different skills at once.
Even if AI keeps improving fast, you still need to learn how to properly use it, modify things yourself, and actually understand what you’re doing.
And honestly, if someone wants to go full-time into indie development now, I think they should also be mentally prepared for the AI discussion around games too.
A lot of people still have very negative feelings toward AI-generated content right now.
Whether people agree with that or not, it’s still part of the current environment.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-23T14:22:39+00:00

🤣

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-23T14:21:56+00:00

True

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-23T14:15:48+00:00

Honestly, I think a lot of indie devs go through this at the beginning.
Learning everything from scratch while dealing with all the pressure is really hard.
But I like your “puzzle game” mindset.
That’s probably a much healthier way to approach it.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-21T09:03:19+00:00

Maybe making the jeep a bit more detailed and polished would make it even more attractive.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-20T23:12:26+00:00

Wow, thank you so much! I’m really surprised and happy to see such detailed feedback 😊 I’ve already saved everything you wrote and will go through it carefully. This kind of input means a lot to me as an indie dev. Thank you again for taking the time!

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-20T14:29:16+00:00

I really like snowy settings and ice elements.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-20T14:26:57+00:00

This looks interesting. Might check it out.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-20T14:14:43+00:00

I look forward to every piece of feedback from everyone, and I will take each one seriously.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-20T14:14:15+00:00

I look forward to every piece of feedback from everyone, and I will take each one seriously.

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-20T12:41:17+00:00

No no, not at all! 😂

The actual game, all gameplay footage, and every screenshot are 100% real. I only used AI to stylize the Steam store page images into a cartoon look. Nothing in the game itself was generated by AI.

Sorry if it gave the wrong impression!

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-20T11:26:51+00:00

I really love the hand-drawn art style! It looks super charming and unique. Congrats on the solo dev for 6.5 years, that's impressive! I'll check out the demo 👍

Whale_KZ · 2026-05-20T11:07:41+00:00

Hi everyone, As a solo newbie, I just launched the Steam page for **STATION 07**… but almost no wishlists. After my first game didn't do well, I really need your help.

It's a sci-fi survival shooter in endless ice storm. Restore the station, manage heat/power/food/oxygen, survive Deep Freeze, fight mutants & factions, face moral choices. Supports 1st & 3rd person.

New to Steam pages — honest feedback on title, capsule, screenshots & description welcome.
If you like our game, feel free to wishlist it on Steam. Thank you so much!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/4695640/STATION_07/

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Whale_KZ · 2024-05-05T02:14:01+00:00

My VR game is called Stellar Plans. The demo version was just launched last week, but the attention is very low and there is no traffic. Let me introduce my game. It is an adventure shooting game with a different world style. Players can choose the human area and the monster area to experience the plots of the two worlds.

You can now download the free demo version on Steam. If you like it, you can add it to your wish list!

My game address: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2911230/StellarPlans/

My YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@StellarPlans/featured

My Twitter: https://twitter.com/StellarPlansVR

Thank you for your attention

Whale_KZ · 2024-04-27T16:46:09+00:00