New to the Scene – Experienced Developer Looking for Guidance (Game Models, Engines, Patreon)

[whiletrue111]

Hello everyone,
Apologies if this isn’t the ideal place for this type of post.
I'm an experienced software developer with hands-on experience in game development using Unity, Godot (primarily), and some Unreal Engine. Let’s say I’m fully capable of building a 3D game from a technical perspective.
However, I’m fairly new to the indie game development scene and would love your insight on a few things:

1. Market Research:
   How do you identify game niches or genres that actually have an audience? Is there a practical way to measure potential interest or player base size before committing to a project?
2. Game Assets (Models):
   Where do indie developers typically source 3D models?
   I know how to use Blender and can do light editing, but I don’t have the time to model from scratch. I'm fine with purchasing assets — I just don’t know where the go-to marketplaces or trusted sources are. Also, are there standard workflows or tutorials for modifying and integrating these assets into engines like Godot or Unity?
3. Starting a Project & Monetization:
   At what point in the project lifecycle does it make sense to launch something like a Patreon page? Should it be when there's a demo? A trailer? I’m looking to build a community and possibly fund development early on.

Any guidance, resources, or personal experience would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance for the help.

 

[Synx]

I think you are completely approaching this the wrong way. If your goal is to make a living of NSFW games, I would recommend to just get a job. (NSFW) indie developing should come more out of passion and as an hobby than trying to earn money. For every indie game going big there are thousands barely seeing any traffic after months or years or hard work. It's the same for NSFW games; of every single one earning a livable wage there are hundreds barely making anything a month (ignoring the hundreds that dont even see the light of day).

If you really really want to try to make a successful game (which again is a massive gamble) my only advice would be to stand out. This can be done with gameplay (actual non VN gameplay is very very rare in NSFW games), story/writing, artwork, etc. You need something that makes your game stand out. Combine that with being persistent (regular updates and working schedule), dedication and a big amount of luck and you have a slight chance you might make it big.

For assets it depends a bit what type of game you want to make. DaZ3D assets are most popular here, but I'm not sure if those are usable for actual 3D games. Their assets are aimed for rendering, and are to high poly and unoptimised for usage in 3D games. You can always give it a good college try but I wouldn't expect to much.

Non-NSFW models are plentiful to be found in unity or unreal market places. NSFW ones you could maybe check out Smutbase (Mostly models ripped or made from existing games and turned NSFW, might be a bit of a copyright problem if you use them without altering them a fair amount) or you might need to actual hire an artist to make some for you.

 

[AllNatural939]

Hello everyone,
Apologies if this isn’t the ideal place for this type of post.
I'm an experienced software developer with hands-on experience in game development using Unity, Godot (primarily), and some Unreal Engine. Let’s say I’m fully capable of building a 3D game from a technical perspective.
However, I’m fairly new to the indie game development scene and would love your insight on a few things:

1. Market Research:
   How do you identify game niches or genres that actually have an audience? Is there a practical way to measure potential interest or player base size before committing to a project?
2. Game Assets (Models):
   Where do indie developers typically source 3D models?
   I know how to use Blender and can do light editing, but I don’t have the time to model from scratch. I'm fine with purchasing assets — I just don’t know where the go-to marketplaces or trusted sources are. Also, are there standard workflows or tutorials for modifying and integrating these assets into engines like Godot or Unity?
3. Starting a Project & Monetization:
   At what point in the project lifecycle does it make sense to launch something like a Patreon page? Should it be when there's a demo? A trailer? I’m looking to build a community and possibly fund development early on.

Any guidance, resources, or personal experience would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance for the help.

Let me just comment on point one...
I don't think anyone's crazy enough to jump into this based on some serious market research. That could easily end up with you doing something you don’t even wanna do... and honestly, if you're already thinking about market research, it probably means you really have no idea what you actually want. Sorry, but you started off on the wrong foot.

Maybe you're asking yourself, why should I do something I actually like, something I want to do?
Because you’ve gotta pour your soul into this if you want results. Most people... no, scratch that, the vast majority don’t even make 100 bucks a month after a year. Oh sure, there are people making thousands and living off it—but those are the exceptions. The rule is a long, hard road with little payoff, or just straight-up failure... and that’s exactly why you need to do something you love—‘cause you don’t wanna waste your time on something you don’t feel.

 

[whiletrue111]

I really do love it I’ve seen and played a few, and I think I can give it a try myself. Not just for fun, but for profit why not?
I just wanted some kind of kickstart.

 

[AllNatural939]

I really do love it I’ve seen and played a few, and I think I can give it a try myself. Not just for fun, but for profit why not?
I just wanted some kind of kickstart.

We already know you wanna make an AVN. And the part you didn’t get is part of your problem. There are different types of AVNs. What you should do is try to make the kind YOU like, with the things YOU wanna see in an AVN—not what someone or something else tells you to.

 

[whiletrue111]

Well, I don't agree a game is still a game, but I do want to see profit from my labor.
I think Chris Zukowski's rules can apply here as well.
I just trying to learn this niche

 

[roguelyfe]

A lot of the discussion in this forum is around DAZ games and a lot of the remaining discussion is around 2D games of various types, often driven by artists rather than programmers.

But here's some potentially wrong/controversial advice to get you started.

1. MARKET RESEARCH
So just like for normal games, Steam is king, although there is a indie NSFW scene on itch.io that you might luck into, I would not aim for that at the start though. I would say try to play some of the top rated games just to familiarize yourself with the genre and what people expect. You can also click 'Latest Updates' at the top of f95 and sort by most liked games which will give you another (rather skewed) view of what's popular.

3D Games that I would recommend checking out that feature actual gameplay and aren't just visual novels that are sorta near the scope you might be able to make:
* Hypnosis Card 2 (Slay the spire clone)
* Magic Shop2 (Minigames plus a dungeon)
* Slaves of Rome (3rd Person)
* Orc Massage (Unique Premise)

In my personal opinion, Slay the Spire clones seem to have way better return for the effort you put in than any other kind of NSFW + real gameplay. I don't know what conclusion to draw from that, make more slay the spire clones? Chase popular card games? NSFW devs need to try more genres?

RPGs also seem to do okay. And then there's kinda everything else.

2. MODELS
If you want to avoid the DAZ models (and you probably do if you aren't working in DAZ), Fab and Unity stores have a ban on adult content. So if you want to purchase models, you'll need to get them from Cgtrader or Artstation or whatever your favorite 3d model site is, which are just awful storefronts. The keywords you're looking for are something like 'fully rigged genitals'.

Ryan Reos and R2 Studio are the two creators that I know make these types of models, although they're both focused on character designs 'inspired' by popular media, so you'll need to file off the distinctive markings before using Android 18 in a game. Some of their models might also be in the assets forum if you just want to get an idea of what you're working with.

3. PATREON
No clue. Good luck figuring it out.

 

[whoremonger333]

I’m going to hijack this thread for a second if I may. Basically, extremely related to OP. I’m doing my research on how to start making renders and animations. RenPy is something that will be used as an engine given prior experience in programming.

Is Daz a sort of gateway software and an amateur silver bullet compared to competing software?
If I’m looking to low/medium effort to the actual result?
Also, I assume, Daz is Win software now and there’s no alternative to run in on Apple Silicon?

Or would you rather go with something else that runs natively on new Macs. Point is, that I’d like to import all of those sweet sweet DAZ models but never mess with stapling the custom hair manually (as an example of annoying work for starters).

 

[whiletrue111]

I’m going to hijack this thread for a second if I may. Basically, extremely related to OP. I’m doing my research on how to start making renders and animations. RenPy is something that will be used as an engine given prior experience in programming.

Is Daz a sort of gateway software and an amateur silver bullet compared to competing software?
If I’m looking to low/medium effort to the actual result?
Also, I assume, Daz is Win software now and there’s no alternative to run in on Apple Silicon?

Or would you rather go with something else that runs natively on new Macs. Point is, that I’d like to import all of those sweet sweet DAZ models but never mess with stapling the custom hair manually (as an example of annoying work for starters).

Feel free to jump in on this thread—I'm learning too.
For example, I'll be using Unity since I come from a development background.
From what I understand, it's mostly about purchasing models from Daz.
But where do I actually create the animations?

 

[whoremonger333]

For example, I'll be using Unity since I come from a development background.

What's the added value of Unity beside prior dev experience? Unity games seem to be very heavy, clunky and I've experienced a ton of bugs with them.
I do believe that for a long run UE are better.
But risk vs reward is DAZ, yet no one seems to care to answer if it's viable to run the software on Apple Silicon or should I purchase a separate Win laptop.

 

[whiletrue111]

UE is a heavy and large executable that requires high specifications to run even simple 3D games.
That's why I chose Unity — it has a huge ecosystem.

 

[VirginChadDev]

For marketing research, you can search adult games on graphtreon (

You must be registered to see the links

), order by launched games and filter by patreons members:

 

[Dumdum2024]

Well, I don't agree a game is still a game, but I do want to see profit from my labor.
I think Chris Zukowski's rules can apply here as well.
I just trying to learn this niche

I agree. I'm testing the waters too. I actually have a great full time job but I do want to get something out of this. Doesn't have to be much and doesn't have to be immediate but I don't want to waste my time making something no one wants to play. Haven't decided if it's gonna NSFW or not yet though. We shall see.

 

[Dnds]

Seemed better to post here since the subject was raised than to make a new thread, apologies if its not the best place. I'm also considering trying to develop just for hobby, recently I've been playing one japanese game called Rai7PUK and decide to make a game like that, and while at it, why not also make it NSFW. What kind of engine would you guys recommend for a game like that? Also considering I have almost 0 experience in coding too. If you don't know the game, it also plays like other games as Crusader Kings (though I wanted it to also be 2D), with events popping and turns, etc, NPCs interacting. or Sengoku Rance (though SR is a VN and more scripted than I'd like).

 

[osanaiko]

Seemed better to post here since the subject was raised than to make a new thread, apologies if its not the best place. I'm also considering trying to develop just for hobby, recently I've been playing one japanese game called Rai7PUK and decide to make a game like that, and while at it, why not also make it NSFW. What kind of engine would you guys recommend for a game like that? Also considering I have almost 0 experience in coding too. If you don't know the game, it also plays like other games as Crusader Kings (though I wanted it to also be 2D), with events popping and turns, etc, NPCs interacting. or Sengoku Rance (though SR is a VN and more scripted than I'd like).

Googling the name I could find very little information for that game name. The images I saw looked like a complex turn based strategy game, perhaps with some VN-style cutscenes?

Sounds like a very challenging type of game dev project to take on, unless you are already an experienced (2d game) developer. I really wouldn't recommend it as a first solo project unless you have superhuman level of commitment and several years to learn.

As to what engines are suited to a 2d strategy game with hex gamemap - perhaps unity or godot? To be honest, there would likely be so much custom development that it doesn't really matter what language or platform you choose, although the more existing structure that must be worked around (like RPGM or Renpy) the harder it would be.

Consider what you want to make - it's rare to find any effectively implemented games that have both good strategy gameplay *and* good adult content. If you just want to make an adult game set in the "RAI7" universe, then consider making something like a VN story reusing the lore and characters