powstik
Prove
Growth Paths / Game Maker Path
IntermediateFREECreative

Game Maker Path

Ship a game jam entry. Then ship the next one.

A creative game development path that starts with the hardest constraint: shipping something complete in 48–72 hours. A game jam is the required first step because it forces you to finish — the most common failure mode in game development is never shipping. Every game after benefits from having shipped under time pressure at least once. The remaining milestones are elective: creative coding, mobile release, and commercial sales.

1 required outcomes36 weeksCredential on completion

Path outcomes

Creative

Complete a Game Jam

Required. Complete and submit a game during a public game jam (itch.io, Global Game Jam, Ludum Dare). The submitted game jam entry is the proof. Games that are not submitted do not count — scope management under time pressure is the skill being built.

Take this Challenge →

3 milestones

  1. 1Game jam registered and concept chosen
  2. 2Core gameplay loop complete
  3. 3Game submitted on time
CreativeOptional

Build a Creative Coding Project

Elective. Creative coding branch — generative art, music visualizer, or interactive experience built with code. Proof: published, working project at a public URL (GitHub Pages, Glitch, p5.js editor).

Take this Challenge →

3 milestones

  1. 1Define the tool's purpose and build the core interaction
  2. 2Add one meaningful feature and share the tool publicly
  3. 3Document the tool and reflect on what you built
CreativeOptional

Release a Mobile Game (App Store / Play Store)

Elective. Mobile game milestone — a complete game published on the App Store or Google Play. The store listing URL is the proof.

Take this Challenge →

3 milestones

  1. 1Prototype a Core Game Loop with External Playtesters
  2. 2Build the Complete Game with Polish
  3. 3Release on a Platform and Reach 100 Plays
CreativeOptional

Build and Sell a Complete Game

Elective. Commercial milestone — 10 or more real purchases on itch.io, Steam, or another storefront. Proof: screenshot of sales dashboard showing 10+ paid units.

Take this Challenge →

3 milestones

  1. 1Build and Release a Complete Paid Game
  2. 2Reach 50 Paid Sales and Collect Reviews
  3. 3Write and Publish a Public Post-Mortem

Free resources for this path

Every resource listed here is free. No affiliate links. No sponsored placements.

The largest listing of active game jams — hundreds running at any time across every genre, engine, and theme. This is where you find your first required milestone. Filter by 'upcoming' and pick any jam with a 48h+ window.

The Game Developers Conference archives hundreds of free talks from professional game designers. The 'postmortems' (what went wrong and why) are the most useful for first-time game makers.

Free, open-source game engine used by professional indie studios. 2D and 3D. No royalties. The official documentation and community tutorials are comprehensive enough to ship your first game jam entry without buying any courses.

We use analytics to improve Powstik. No ads, ever.