This Illusion Keeps Game Dev Beginners Trapped In Tutorials

Release Your First Game In Only 60 Days👉 https://www.skool.com/smart-indie-6927

Are you stuck in game dev tutorial hell where you binge Unity or Godot tutorials, feel smarter every day, but still cannot build your own game from scratch? In this video I break down why beginners fall into tutorial hell in game development, how the illusion of competence tricks your brain, and what to do instead so you can finally learn real game dev skills and release your first game.

We will talk about why game development tutorials feel productive but never stick, why you forget everything after watching coding videos, and how passive learning creates fake progress. You will learn the difference between passive vs active learning, how your brain chases easy dopamine from YouTube tutorials, and why this keeps you stuck as a "forever beginner" game developer.

Then I give you a simple struggle → build → repeat framework that shows you how to escape tutorial hell, build small mechanics on your own, and actually understand your code. Whether you use Unity, Godot, Unreal, or any other engine, this applies to every beginner who wants to stop watching and start building real games.

If you want a complete step by step path from where you are right now to releasing your first game in 60 days, you can join Smart Indie, my program for beginner solo developers. You get a clear roadmap, focus on the right skills, avoid tutorial hell, and finally ship your first game.

In this video you will learn:

What game dev tutorial hell is and why beginners fall into it

The illusion of competence in game development tutorials

Why you forget everything after watching coding videos

How passive learning kills your real game dev progress

How to switch from watching tutorials to building games

The struggle → build → repeat framework for real learning

How to finally finish and release your first game as a beginner

If you are a beginner game developer who feels stuck between tutorials and unfinished projects, this video is for you.

#gamedev #gamedevelopment #indiedev #solodev
#unity3d #godotengine #tutorialhell #learncoding
#gameDevForBeginners #smartindie

0:00 Why tutorials feel productive (but don’t stick)
1:05 Passive learning vs real understanding
2:00 The cooking show analogy
2:46 Your brain loves “easy progress” (dopamine)
4:20 The fix (and SmartIndie quick mention)
5:00 Active learning: Struggle Build Repeat
6:34 Rule 1 Restrict information on purpose
7:15 The exact practice loop (guess, break, tweak, then Google)
8:05 Turn practice into prototypes (ship your first game)