Well, you are thoughtful about your decisions.  You have reasonable goals which progress orderly, based on what you wrote at top.  Fundamentals seem to be important to you. The variety that comes with building a broad foundational knowledge is obvious.  Goals are clear. The simple games that you make are the right choice.

My only suggestion is to find ways of remaining enthusiastic, really enjoying the learning process.  A constructive criticism is that if you were really enjoying it then you probably would be less prone to ask how you are doing in game dev in general, since you are learning as a hobbyist.  If I were making games as a hobby like you, then I would want to share my experiences with others. Games are social things by nature, so don't aim low instead getting involved in game making circles for the fun of it.  Make friends!

Asking how you are doing on technical aspects perhaps implies that you hope for more in your future. If you aspire to eventually make an income in game development, then it is a good idea to subject your coding to critique among your friends.   There are some gaming communities where this coding critique is very common and encouraged.

All is food for thought, so take what you may.  

Clinton

Well, you are thoughtful about your decisions.  You have reasonable goals which progress orderly, based on what you wrote at top.  Fundamentals seem to be important to you. The variety that comes with building a broad foundational knowledge is obvious.  Goals are clear. The simple games that you make are the right choice.

My only suggestion is to find ways of remaining enthusiastic, really enjoying the learning process.  A constructive criticism is that if you were really enjoying it then you probably would be less prone to ask how you are doing in game dev in general, since you are learning as a hobbyist.  If I were make games as a hobby like you, then I would want to share my experiences with others. Games are social things by nature, so don't aim low instead getting involved in game making circles for the fun of it.  Make friends!

Asking how you are doing on technical aspects perhaps implies that you hope for more in your future. If you aspire to eventually make an income in game development, then it is a good idea to subject your coding to critique among your friends.   There are some gaming communities where this coding critique is very common and encouraged.

All is food for thought, so take what you may.  

Clinton