Ask HN: Best way to develop games for beginners

2•Jean-Philipe•1h ago

Hi *,

My daughter is 14 and wants to get into developing games. What's your go-to framework/engine to recommend? I feel like she's old enough to start with something "real" and not a game engine specifically targeted towards kids. Still, it should be fun and easy to approach. I was thinking gbstudio, godot or even some javascript/html based engine.

She likes Stardew Valley and Minecraft, so I guess we'll go for something pixel artsy. I can be there to support, but I don't want her to be blocked by waiting for me to solve a problem.

Comments

LazVerry•1h ago

I’ve dabbled with a few game engines myself, but I feel like Unity and Unreal Engine have too many features, which actually makes them less beginner-friendly. It’s hard to know where to even start.

For pixel art games, I personally recommend GameMaker. It specializes in 2D, and since hits like Undertale were built with it, you can definitely create "serious" games. GML (GameMaker Language) is also quite easy to write, so I think it’s great for learning algorithms.

jdw64•1h ago

I recommend Unity.

Unity is not that difficult if you clearly understand the Template Method pattern. The difficult part is that students often struggle at a different point than expected.

That said, if not Unity, GameMaker is also a good option.

LazVerry•50m ago

That’s spot on.

However, it’s been a while since I really dug into Unity, so things might be different now with tools like Codex or Claude Code (without suggesting we just resort to "Vibe Coding," of course). If you have a way to consult someone—or something—about the hurdles you can't clear on your own, Unity remains useful in terms of the sheer breadth of what you can achieve.

markx2•54m ago

Have you considered Pulp?

https://play.date/dev/

beardyw•50m ago

You don't say if she can code.

I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

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