Okay, so you’ve been doing tutorial after tutorial after tutorial. Yep, you’re probably stuck in tutorial hell. And honestly, I think a lot of indie game devs have been here or are still here. I know I certainly was. And to a point, even today, I’m probably doing more tutorials than I should, even after years of experience.
But here’s the thing: tutorials are great for getting an understanding of the basics. My journey started with Unity tutorials, official courses, YouTube, Udemy… I was lost in a sea of content. Then I moved over to Unreal Engine, and it was the same story — tons of tutorials, trying to learn everything.
Eventually, I started moving away from tutorials. And let me tell you, that was hard. You think, “I need to learn it, I need to know,” but here’s the catch: most of the stuff you learn in tutorials, you’re just going to forget. Why? Because you never really put it into practice, and it’s rarely exactly applicable to what you’re trying to build.
For example, let’s say you’re watching a tutorial on shooting a gun. Sure, it works in that isolated example, but then you add a head bob or weapon sway — suddenly it all breaks. You watch another tutorial on that, then something else goes wrong. Game dev is dynamic. Everything — blueprints, code, art — is interconnected. You need to troubleshoot, adapt, and problem-solve.
Following tutorials too closely can trap you in a pattern of copy-pasting without thinking. Pausing the video, copying nodes, watching someone else solve the problem — it’s easy, but it doesn’t stick. And honestly, from speaking to people in communities and Discord, it’s a common trap. You’ll forget most of what you’ve learned.
The Way Out: Build Something Yourself
The best way out of tutorial hell? Commit to building something yourself. I know it’s scary, it’s hard. You think, “I can’t do it.” You might have to look things up, but that’s problem-solving, not following a tutorial step by step.
For instance, let’s say you want to make a blueprint for a ball moving. Play around with nodes, test impulses, try to make the ball roll. Get stuck? Look up a specific solution. Then experiment again. Every struggle is a breakthrough, and the learning is so much faster.
When I built my first small game solo, I realised how many mistakes I had been making following tutorials. But I also realised I could actually make a game on my own getting stuck, solving problems, thinking logically, trial and error. My knowledge and confidence skyrocketed. That one game taught me more than years of tutorials ever could.
Things crop up in game dev that no tutorial will prepare you for. Bugs, unexpected conflicts, design decisions it’s all part of the process. And it will happen 100%.
Start Small, Build Confidence
The advice I give to people and what the community agrees on is to start tiny. Make a small game. Really small. A ball bouncing, a simple Flappy Bird-style mechanic, Pong, literally the simplest thing. Build confidence through troubleshooting and simplicity.
Once you start solving problems yourself, everything starts falling into place. Tutorials are fine for an overview or understanding tools, maybe getting used to nodes. But heavy tutorial-following? It rarely works in the long term.
You’ve got to take the training wheels off at some point. Dive in, make mistakes, and figure things out yourself. That’s how you truly learn and get better and it will stick.
The Takeaway
Tutorials are fantastic, I’m 100% for education. They give you the basics, an overview, a foundation. But you can’t depend on them. There comes a time when you have to step out of tutorial hell and just build.
It’s scary, it’s messy, and you will make mistakes. But those mistakes are learning moments. They stick. They make you better. Not only that, but they give you confidence.
So yeah, try it. Stop over-relying on tutorials. Build something yourself. Start small. Embrace problem-solving. You’ll be amazed at how much faster you learn and how satisfying it feels.
