game dev first steps

I have analyzed your concept for a 2D soulslike platformer. For a solo developer with your specific skill set, the priority is proving the combat feel before investing in the narrative.

Idea Snapshot

• Concept: A 2D precision-combat platformer focused on a robot protagonist.
• Priority: Dialing in the "weight" of the movement and combat timing.

Team Reality

• Team size: Solo.
• Skill mix: Basic C# coding, minimal art experience.
• Strengths: Technical logic and control over the game loop.
• Blind spots: Asset creation (animations, backgrounds) and narrative pacing.
• Assumptions: You will use an engine like Unity or Godot to leverage your C# knowledge.

Recommended Development Order

1. Define Core Action: Map out the robot's dash, attack, and parry mechanics in a grey-box environment.

Smallest Playable Version: Create one room with one enemy type to test if the "soulslike" difficulty feels fair or frustrating.
3. Prototype Fast: Use primitive shapes (squares/circles) for the player and enemies.
4. Validation: Test if the combat loop is satisfying without any story context.
5. Scope Revision: Determine if "complex story" can be told through environmental cues to save on dialogue systems.
6. Vertical Slice: Polish one 5-minute gauntlet with final art style (likely minimalist or asset-pack based).

What to Postpone

• Narrative Systems: Do not build a branching dialogue tree yet.
• Art Polish: Ignore custom animations until the hitboxes are finalized.
• Steam Integration: Achievements and cloud saves should not be touched until the game is 80% finished.

Biggest Risks

Asset Gap: "No art skills" is a major bottleneck for a 2D game; you risk spending months on mediocre art instead of gameplay.

• Feature Creep: Narrative-heavy games often require more content than a solo dev can realistically produce.

Best Next Steps

1. Download a basic 2D character controller in your engine of choice today.
2. Create a "Combat Sandbox" scene with three floating platforms and one stationary target.
3. Research 2D sprite packs on itch.io or Unity Asset Store to solve your art constraint early.

Next steps

• Build your grey-box combat prototype.
• Define the specific "hook" that makes your robot's movement different from other platformers.
• Research minimalist art styles like silhouette or low-res pixel art.