Game development insights, tutorials, and updates from the Egmatic team.
You can build a playable prototype of a 2D game's core loop in hours, not months. Scope to one mechanic, use a live-preview editor, and follow this plan.
Console publishing ships games to Switch, PlayStation and Xbox. They are closed platforms: you need approval and certification, and the store keeps 30%.
An indie game reaches consoles through developer registration, a devkit, a port, certification, and a store page. Plan for months, not weeks.
Steam Direct ships your game: sign, pay a $100 recoupable fee, build a store page, upload a build and pass review. Valve takes 30%; allow 4-6 weeks.
Steam has the audience and takes 30% with a $100 fee. itch.io is open with a cut as low as 0% but far less traffic. Epic takes 12% and is more curated.
8 sprite animation tools compared by technique and price: Aseprite $19.99, Spine from $69, plus free picks for pixel art and skeletal rigs.
Sprite animation has three techniques by art style: frame-by-frame for pixel art, skeletal rigs for smooth motion, pre-rendered 3D-to-2D for tight budgets.
Godot is the best free 2D mobile engine for coders. Unity leads for ads, IAP, and ecosystem. Defold is mobile-native; GDevelop and Construct for no-code.
Mobile 2D games fail on fill rate, memory and heat. Compress textures to ETC2 or ASTC, cut overdraw and draw calls, and budget sustained, not peak, FPS.
LibreSprite is the best fully-free pixel art editor; Krita leads for hand-painted art and animation; Inkscape is the free vector standard.
Pixel art vs vector for 2D games: pixel = hand-placed grid, retro feel, harder to scale; vector = math paths, sharp at any size. How to pick.
2D game physics uses three primitives: rigid bodies carry mass and motion, colliders detect contact and block, and triggers sense overlap without blocking.