How to make an Android game? - RK store

In this article, you'll learn how to develop an Android game from scratch. Learn how to begin planning your project, which tools to utilize, which programming languages to learn, and how to obtain the materials you'll require.

Want to make an Android game?

The Google Play Store is currently crammed with pay-to-win nonsense, whereas iOS has a plethora of good indie games. We urgently require aspiring developers like you!

• It's difficult to know where to begin if you've never built a game before.

• What equipment do you require? What is the best programming language to learn? Is it going to be difficult?

Continue reading to learn how to develop an Android game.

Where to start – coming up with your game idea

The greatest place to start when making an Android game is with a vision of what you want to make. It may seem self-evident, but the ideal tools and workflow may vary depending on the type of game you're working on, whether it's a puzzle game, a 2D platformer, or a VR experience.

• Starting with a vision for what you want to produce is the greatest place to start.

My recommendation is, to begin with, something easy. Indie game developers prefer game designs that require the least amount of time and effort. Consider Limbo, which uses shadows rather than realistic sprites and a creepy, music-free soundtrack.

• This type of decision not only helps to distinguish a game but also allows the developers to save time.

This notion is taken even further in puzzle games and endless runners, which allow you to create a simple game loop that may be played indefinitely.

• If you want to produce the next Minecraft, you'll need a massive crew and years of development time.

• Begin with a tiny project to learn the ropes, and you'll soon be able to establish a fan base and get experience.

• Once you've built some momentum, you can try a larger job in the future!

Make a list of ideas:

1. What genre is this going to be?
2. What is the hook that makes it stand out?
3. What is your one-sentence elevator pitch?
4. What graphic style will be used?
5. What program are you going to use to create the graphics?
6. What about the audio? What method will you use to create/acquire music and sound effects?

Check out this post on level design in Android games for some helpful hints. Alternatively, you may look for inspiration by browsing other games in the Play Store.

How to make an Android game with Android Studio – and why you shouldn’t try

After you've decided what you want to make, you'll need to figure out how to make it. Depending on your skill level and the nature of the project, you have a few possibilities.

Making an Android game with Android Studio is the "conventional path," as it were. Android Studio is the official tool for Android development from Google, and it supports a wide range of projects.

To utilize Android Studio, you'll need to master one of the two officially supported languages: Java or Kotlin. In either case, you'll need to get the JDK (Java Development Kit) and familiarize yourself with the Android SDK (software development kit), as well as possibly some XML.

The SDK is a collection of Google libraries and tools that allow Java to interact with the Android operating system, and it aids Android Studio in converting your code into a functional APK file.

Android Studio, often known as an IDE or "integrated development environment," will give the interface where you'll type all of this.

The SDK is a suite of Google libraries and tools that allow Java to interact with the Android operating system.

It's a lot to learn, and if you want to design a platform game or something else with a lot of graphics, you'll have to start from scratch.

• This article will show you how to build up a canvas and a thread to handle the graphics as a starting point.

This method may theoretically be used to create a 3D game as well. To get hardware-accelerated graphics, you'd use the OpenGL or Vulkan APIs in this situation.

Android Studio is a viable option for a simple puzzle game. There are considerably simpler methods for anything more complex.

Even "expert" developers don't use Android Studio for game creation, and even simple games have a steep learning curve for complete newbies.

Unity and Unreal – the smarter choices!

When it comes to game development, experienced developers often choose Unity or Unreal for the reasons indicated above.

An IDE and a game engine are combined in these tools. In other words, they give you a graphical interface to work with code and a lot of ready-made physics and behavior to play with.

Instead of having to design how anything falls through the air, Unreal or Unity will just ask you to check a box labeled "gravity" and the rest will be taken care of.

• For the great majority of projects, Unity is the way to go.

• It's also as simple as dragging and dropping graphics into your scene to add graphics to these tools!

These technologies make it so simple that you could theoretically create an Android game in as little as seven minutes. It's even possible to make VR apps.

In both circumstances, you'll need a little code. Unity employs C#, which is similar to Java but requires very little knowledge. Unreal employs C++, but it also offers the option of using a flow chart instead of a script.

Despite the fact that Unity and Unreal need the Android SDK (which means you'll have to download it), they do it in the background.

Both of these tools are free, and they're flexible enough that you can make pretty much anything with them.

They’re also cross-platform, meaning you can easily port your game to other platforms like iOS, PC, or even Xbox One and PS4! Most professional devs on the Play Store prefer Unity, thus the sky's the limit in terms of what you can accomplish.

• Unity is a little easier to use and is better suited to mobile and 2D games.

Which is better, Unity or Unreal is a question that depends on who you ask. Unity is slightly easier to use and better suited to mobile and 2D games, in particular, to cut a long story short.

Unreal has significantly better 3D visuals than Unity, however, this is more likely to affect PC and platform development.

Game builders – the easy way out

You might prefer a game "builder" if you truly want to minimize your coding to a bare minimum when making an Android game.

These tools allow you to create games by dragging and dropping various parts into place, with only the tiniest amount of coding required.

GameMaker: Studio is one such program, and it's far easier to use than Unity or Unreal 4, relying on a watered-down version of the GML (GameMaker Language) for basic scripts.

• While it isn't free, a basic license won't set you back much.

While GameMaker: Studio has been used to create several commercially successful games, developers may run into performance issues and limitations in terms of what can be done.

Other game makers will further restrict your possibilities, forcing you to use templates or generic prepackaged visuals.

For most Android game projects, I believe it is preferable to use Unity. Only if you want to explore Android Studio with a simple puzzle game project or if you want to create something cross-platform with top-tier visuals using Unreal 4 are their exceptions.

Getting started with your project

The next stage is to begin your new project after you've familiarized yourself with the tools you'll be utilizing.

It can be intimidating to stare at a blank screen for the first time, but if you keep things basic, you can see results quickly.

Most games will need to start with a basic set of mechanics and rules.

Most games start with a basic set of mechanics and rules, so start by thinking about how you want your game to feel (how quickly does the main character move, what skills does he or she have?).

During this stage, you will likely use placeholder graphics and probably a kind of “sandbox” level for experimentation.

The next steps will be to construct levels and implement your graphics and resources once you have a working game.

• Level design is a lot of fun, but make sure you playtest everything with your friends and family.

• Keep in mind that difficulty does not always imply enjoyment!

• Early on, make sure there are some simple levels to help your players master the mechanics.

• Creating visuals and sound can be a lot of fun, but it can also be time-consuming and difficult.

• If you have artistic or graphic design talents, you may want to take care of this yourself and devote some time to it. If not, you're generally better off hiring someone else.

• You may enlist the help of a friend or even outsource the process to sites like 99Designs or Fiverr.

• This is also an excellent source of graphics for your store's listing and promotion.

• Creating images and sound can be a lot of fun, but it also takes a lot of time.

• All that's required is to design an interface once the graphics and levels are in place.

• A title screen, a menu, a means to save your progress, and so on are all required.

The beautiful thing about making an Android game is that you can keep improving it even after it goes live. Don't be a perfectionist and postpone the game's release.

• Get it out the door as soon as possible, and if it finds an audience, improve it.

Let us know what you're planning to construct down below!