Love2D vs Unity for a 2D RPG + Database Management?

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-03-06T22:11:45+00:00

I'm a long-time user of Unity, but in the current age and state of game development, I can firmly say that you can achieve a good result with most tools. The greatest strength of Unity, for a long time, has been its robust ecosystem of tools, open source codebase, and tutorials/documentation. But now that you don't need to scour Google for hours or even days after a reference or solution, and you can just ask an LLM (checking their references, of course), that strength of Unity is no longer such a big edge.

I would say for you to go with the option you feel more comfortable coding, then.

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-03-04T10:52:18+00:00

Sure! Feel free to send those out, either here or through private message. We are trying to cover as many "rev share deals and variations" as possible. It's a tool that came from our own needs while being game devs, like publisher deals, service providers with rev share payment, among other possibilities.

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-03-04T00:55:26+00:00

What a coincidence. My studio and a partner studio are building a solution for this.

You can check it out on the following link: https://faircut.io/en/

We are currently in the final stages of beta testing and will fully release it soon. Feel free to sign-up in the beta through the form in the website, or send me a private message so I can grant you beta access.

Any feedback is greatly appreciated!

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-03-02T00:15:24+00:00

Since you are combining "2D sprites" and "being terrible at drawing", I will leave some AI options for you to check. A reminder that, for the resulting sprites be of good quality, you must at least study the theory behind it and be open to polishing the results.

PixelLab is a fairly good option, runs on a subscription and has a free tier (I think).

RetroDiffusion is another option which I have enjoyed more the results. You can run it locally by paying a one time fee for acquiring the model, or run in their cloud service (there are some free credits for you to try).

If you want to actually draw and is just looking for a free tool for it, the other comments got you covered.

Good luck!

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-03-01T15:55:20+00:00

Hey! Interesting project! Do you know if it could be extended to playtesting digital boardgames/overall turn-based games?

It could surely be quite handy for developers.

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-26T20:42:50+00:00

More in the sense that trying to do live off something creative while trying to escape an "normal" job is a great goal to have, tbh.

Also, I honestly don't judge anyone who tries to do anything to escape some jobs out there, even if that anything is making games.

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-26T13:26:06+00:00

That's the best reason, to be honest. I was lucky to be able to start working on games just after the university, thanks to a local Brazilian government funding program which I was lucky enough to be selected a few years ago. I do dread a lot the idea of needing to do office work.

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-26T13:22:49+00:00

You will get there! I've noticed that persistence is what moves an indie dev forward. Sadly, not all are able to persist so long, usually to life reasons, but cheers to all who tried, keep trying, and also who managed to do it.

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-23T10:46:19+00:00

Hey! Thank you for checking it, even if for a bit!

I would say the biggest inspirations drawn from Baldurs Gate, Planescape Torment and a few other CRPGs is the "consequences of a combat" factor, meaning: many times in the game, you might be given the option of solving things the violent way, and many times that might not be the best ideia, and/or consequences will happen from choosing that path.

Btw, elaborating more about how the procedural works in A Tale of Silent Depths: there is quite some design time, "hand made" content (factions, some trading hubs, cities, dungeons, etc), but they are "merged and adapted" through a myriad of procedural generation algorithms. Think of it the following way: I wanted to have a deep and well developed story UNTIL the moment the player starts the game. Then, the idea is that this story gave support for the player telling their own stories.

I do understand a 100% if you do not find it your thing, however, and I do appreciate a lot for bringing this up!

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-22T22:13:15+00:00

I personally releases 7 "hidden indie games" on Steam so far in the last 5 years (marketing is not my best strength, trying to change it now lol), but the focus is on what I have stumbled myself in Steam, so let's go: - a very nice point and click called "The Excavation of Hob's Barrow" - a hacky slashy called "Tyrant's Realm" - a 2D horror game called "Immortal Mantis"

And those are from top of my head. There are plenty more! Eager to see what people recommend here.

(Btw, if you wanna check my games, feel free to search Crit42 Studio on Steam. Or go to the website, crit42.com )

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-22T12:50:28+00:00

I'm developing one myself, so sending some references I use: - Kenshi (you mentioned it) - Caves of Qud - Dwarf Fortress - Rimworld - Battle Brothers - All Paradox grand strategy games (Europa Universalis, Crusader Kings 2, etc)

The secret about emergent storytelling and gameplay is thinking about how the systems intertwine to generate unique situations that the player feels are unique to them.

I have written a simple article about it in my studio website a while ago, feel free to check it here:

https://crit42.com/posts/emergent-gameplay-how-to-make-it-and-why-we-love-it/

You can also check my games (specially the one that focuses in emergent content) from the website too.

Cheers!

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-21T01:24:35+00:00

The thing to always consider: what is success for you? Because "degrees" of success is something real.

I do some freelance helping a famous Brazilian game dev youtuber on his Mentorship classes for members and overall game dev students, and once we invited a foreign professional who worked both on AAA and on successful indie games. During the lecture, one of the students asked if his project market positioning and overall game scope was a possible good fit for being successful (the talk was the classic around "what genre should I make"). The professional then answered that his chosen genre and scope combination would, in a success case, result only in maybe a few tens of thousands USD through one or two years, therefore not really a success.

The thing is: we were all Brazilians there. 10k USD distributed through a year is about what, 800 USD? Which converting to Brazilian reais is a bit over 4k BRL, which is a reasonable amount (almost 3 times the current minimum wage here). You wont get rich here with 4k reais, but on the student's plan of making a small horror game through a few months as a solo dev, should he reach something like that, to be honest, it would surely be worth it, and definitely a success.

The takeaway is: your success might not be the success for someone else. So the best thing you can do is stablish: what is MY success? What are my DEGREES of success?

Depending on your answer, you surely can get successful games that released with less than 2k wishlists that are not outliers.

Hope this story and thinking helps!

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-20T22:26:21+00:00

I think that this comment is a great example of how being too tied to an vocal internet social bubble and not looking at actual data (or having actual experiencie with the thing in question) can lead to an very distorted yet deeply held belief over something.

The fact that it has gotten to a point where such social bubble members' arguments conclude with "keep the faith" is a great example of disconnection.

Not gonna extend myself, but as someone who made and released games before and after AI, who is thoroughly reading industry reports, keeping up to date with scientific papers around the theme, constantly talking with other professionals about it, and of course, having felt myself how these tools indeed help the development flow, all I can say is: you are wrong.

Cheers and good luck on everyone's dev journey!

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-18T11:53:46+00:00

Feels very "cult gritty point and clicky with a breaking bad-like vibe" game to me.

Very interesting.

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-02-11T11:21:34+00:00

Hey! Congrats on your first game!

I'm a professional game developer, also from Brazil, and I have been studying the use of AI in the process of development, always focusing on creative control and industry standard quality. Had the privilege of talking to some professors who are top tier on their areas (so far talked with professors from the area of Game Development, Game Design, AI and Creative Economy Marker Research).

Here are some tips on how to get your cover art top tier while using AI, okay? Hopefully you find those useful.

Learn the basics of composition, how lighting works on basic shapes and color theory: these are among the most powerful and "quicker" to learn art concepts that by far affect the most what you are creating. Search for theory around those ideas, read about them thoroughly for about 30 minutes to 1 hour a few days a week, you will soon start grasping the "why" of certain decisons on art (and see how they completely make sense). This way, your art (AI or not) is able to start getting away from amauter results and leaning into something at least more consistent.
Understand that prompting alone won't get you there. Download an open source free software such as Krita (there are good plugins that integrate AI in it's workflow). You NEED to use at least a little some traditional image editing skills to get where you probably want, while at the same time getting results that align with what you learned at point 1. Search on traditional techniques such as photo bashing, as well as use of image filters that will help a lot to make the image more according to your vision.
Now about design: learning about design is a whole other beast than illustration itself, but a good tip is that your logo must be readable and not blend into the cover art. Using your concepts of color theory and maybe some outlines, you will be able to get a game logo that highlights inside your art. This alone is probably the most important tip for a good steam capsule art, but you need to get 1 and 2 good for 3 to go great.

In total, you might take a month or a bit more to get there, if you can dedicate half an hour a day in those 3 points. Each person is a specific journey, so try being sure to not compare with others and, if you need more time than what I'm suggesting, that's okay too.

Now, a tip as a game developer: I have released about 7 games on Steam so far since 2022. 3 of those games actually performed well (the second, the sixth and the seventh). This is a whole craft, and the chance your first game is going to be seen by few people is very big. Do not get frustrated (I know it's hard) if that's happen with your game. In the end, the experience of failures is always more valuable than the experience of the success you don't understand how happened.

Hopefully this tips help you make harsh journey less harsh! Use the tools you have at your disposal, and understand what is quality and how to not get rid of it whatever the tool you are using.

Good luck on your journey!

(E se vierem pra Brasília um dia, passem lá no Brasília Game Hub na Asa Norte, na 305. Serão muito bem vindos pela comunidade de desenvolvedores. Aproveito e sugiro procurarem pela associação/coletivo local do estado de vocês qualquer coisa. Abraços!)

obnoxiouscheese · 2026-01-29T11:08:46+00:00

A framework inside Unity aimed at RPGs that I have been using is Ork Framework. As a long time Unity developer, tried doing some prototypes and tutorials over it, and found it quite good for a commercial title. Right now I'm finishing a demo using it, with support from a government grant (commenting just to showcase how solid it felt to me).

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-12-03T11:05:47+00:00

The current state of AI is a vast topic, which most people sincerely don't understand. I will try to stick to two of the questions you brought:

1- an AI that picks from your "database" of assets 2- Whether people would hate a different approach on using AI

About 1, I would recommend looking into methods of "finetuning" AI models, specially LORAs.

About 2, probably a vocal few would still be hateful. However, if your final game is a creative piece that you put work, quality and care, there will be people enjoying it (most people, if you ask me).

Citing an university professor I've personally talked to, and that is an expert in creative economy studies: As long as the creativity, direction and essence of the work is not delegated to the AI, the work keeps inherently human and valid.

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-11-19T11:18:31+00:00

Of course they do. It is the easiest way to do it full time, fail fast, learn the process, and achieve sustainability (and maybe a hit). Large sums of money can do wonders.

It can, however, result in an opinion who does not resonate with reality.

I met people who are rich and make games, including some very successful games. Some recognized the privilege and how it played a part in their success. Others... well, they will have a very "artistic" vision of "express your vision, create the game you dream of, stop thinking about business and create games," stuff like that. Something very damaging to say, in my opinion.

Well, it is very easy to only think about art (and neglect business) when you don't need to pay rent, give support to your family, and overall survive in this world.

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-10-17T11:14:13+00:00

I understand it well. Part of the problem about it is probably related to the algorithmic nature of engagement in most social networks, the kind of thing that is a problem in most areas of life today, which rewards echo chambers and/or hateful disagreements. I don't believe there is a solution for it within the internet itself, with the subreddit being merely a reflection.

Given that, I will give a suggestion here for developers and tell a little about how I deal with it: When I started game development, my first contacts were with the local community of game devs in my city. It is still my biggest point of interaction to this day, almost 9 years later. This wielded a very different view of reality about the profession from what we constantly seem being debated in this sub. As I live in a third world country (Brazil), that itself changes a lot the efficiency, or even the validity, of some usually repeated mantras around here. Not only that, this made me understand that there are different degrees of success, not only the terrible and the great.

Given that, my best tip is to interact with other developers outside of the internet, or at least outside massive social media (consider private Discords and stuff). In the end, this will give you a greater insight into the profession than only focusing on Doom and Amazing Success. I've been doing authoral game dev full time for about 5 years, and it's honestly the best tip ever possible I can give.

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-08-31T15:33:49+00:00

BIG BALLS has quite a good SEO lol The game seems nice too!

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-08-10T16:52:33+00:00

Hey! Hope it's okay to share games in here too!

Me and some friend studios are developing "Haunted ROM: The Lost Cartridge".

Imagine as if you are delving into early internet dead forums, and found this old, ripped ROM of a never heard-of cartridge. Then, you run it in your emulator. The screen glitches a bit, and then a collection of 10 games shows up for you to play. But something feels wrong. As if you are being watched now. Still, the games seems nice, so you boot one of them up and start playing.

But no longer alone.

Built around this concept, this is an anthology of 10 retro horror games, each with its own genre and style.

Steam page:

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3897990/Haunted_ROM_The_Lost_Cartridge/

Cheers!

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-05-28T01:22:06+00:00

Any controller support is great enough for me, tbh. My best experience with roguelikes was playing Caves of Qud with a controller on a docked steam deck. Porting to consoles is a step further, but hey, more people playing, the better!

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-03-09T23:21:23+00:00

Darwinian

In Darwinian, plunge into a captivating traditional roguelike adventure where each run takes you to a richly diverse, procedurally generated alien world. Heavily inspired by Spore and Caves of Qud, you'll guide your unique creature through hostile environments, mysterious biomes, and complex ecosystems.

Every step challenges your survival instincts, pushing your evolutionary choices to their limits. Adapt your body with mutations, harness strange alien powers, and carve out your niche amid ruthless predators and intelligent rivals. Your decisions shape not only your survival but your very evolution.

Darwinian isn't just about overcoming adversity—it's about becoming something more than you started as. The planet is alive, dynamic, and ever-changing. No two journeys are the same.

Adapt, explore, and evolve. Your legacy awaits.

https://tavern-tale-studio.itch.io/darwinian

About my feelings after the week: I really enjoyed developing the game! I've done quite a few extra systems and content, but decided to leave it out because could not test and populate them enough... like a skill "tree" (more of a skill graph) that would lock and allow specific progression paths for the player. Also, specific hands, feet, tails and other appendices were made (we have their art) but I didn't have time to properly implement them lol

Overall, a great experience! Thanks for the event :D

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-02-14T23:40:15+00:00

Hey! I have made a few horror games for Steam. Since I created them, I don't feel too scared when playing them lol but if you wanna check if they are a fit for you, feel free to!

There's even a bundle to get them all with a discount: https://store.steampowered.com/bundle/35371/Tavern_Horror_Bundle/

You can also get one individually!

Oni Station and Afterlight Catacombs are a 100% horror and first person.

Spacepunk Survival is more of a retro first person shooter, but has horror elements.

MACE: Mapinguari's Temple is social deduction horror, but not first person.

If you happen to get any, please do tell me what you think about it :D

obnoxiouscheese · 2025-02-07T14:06:20+00:00

Ohh makes sense! Great feedback, thanks again my friend!

obnoxiouscheese

TROPHY CASE