Hi,

I would like to start as an indie dev with business in mind. Objective would be to generate enough income for a living in mid term and later become a more professional business.

I have a web dev background, using mostly javascript lately. I don't mind to switch to c++ or java later (did some projects long time ago) but for now have anough new things to learn

I want to start with mobile casual games (puzzles, basic arcade)

I consider Unreal Engine as my choice at the moment because:

pros:

-Learn Industry Standard

-with Unreal.js I can code with javascript

-can add impressive graphics to basic atari-style arcade games

cons:

-much to learn

-heavy (might be an overkill for basic games)

-unity might be better for mobile but es6 javascript is not usable and unity script (old javascript) not well supported

I considered cocos2d-x as well, but it seems to have less tutorials and for future projects (for me) it seems to be better to know ue4

Now I need advise from people who do business with basic mobile games:

- is it realistic to make considerable income from this kind of games (as indie with low budget)?

- which resources would you generally recommend for business, fast development and learning

- which pitfalls to avoid?

- how to find good local or remote people for cofounding and contracting work

- anything else?

I am a developer with basic gimp/photoshop skills and don't have experience in game design - what kind of people should I find for the rest of core team and which tasks would be easyer to outsource?

I want of course be creative and have fun at work - that's why I don't think it would make sense for me just coding on my own and outsourcing to contructors -I need at least one co-founder to relate to and the budget is really limited

is it realistic to make considerable income from this kind of games? - On balance, no. It's possible. But you're competing in a market against people with a lot of experience and people with more marketing budget than you.

which pitfalls to avoid? - I'd avoid doing this full-time until you've seen the amount of income you can expect.

how to find good local or remote people for cofounding and contracting work - you don't need a cofounder to make basic apps. You probably don't really want one, considering you'll halve your income without doubling your output. You will probably want to outsource artwork however, and maybe audio. These forums offer one way to find such people.

is it realistic to make considerable income from this kind of games? - On balance, no. It's possible. But you're competing in a market against people with a lot of experience and people with more marketing budget than you.

which pitfalls to avoid? - I'd avoid doing this full-time until you've seen the amount of income you can expect.

how to find good local or remote people for cofounding and contracting work - you don't need a cofounder to make basic apps. You probably don't really want one, considering you'll halve your income without doubling your output. You will probably want to outsource artwork however, and maybe audio. These forums offer one way to find such people.

Thx for your answer. The cofounder would be valuable for me to catalyze the creativity, make me more motivated and accountable and for having more fun at the project

What would be your advise for having better business success in given situation?

For better business success I would identify an un-exploited or underexploited market, rather than joining in the puzzles and arcade melee.

I would also stop and wonder whether I'm really ready for this,if I'm thinking that I might need a partner in order for me to be sufficiently motivated and accountable to finish a project.