A solopreneur makes a game with AI and shows indies how it's done...
So people are talking about Elon's gaming business.
I find it funny that, during layoffs in game-making companies, a guy thinks that video game companies are bloated and that he will make a small successful company.
What is wrong with this picture? Everything!
First of all, you can tell that Elon is a businessman. He knows he needs to limit expenses and earn money by selling something.
And he's not entirely wrong. He’s right.
The problem with video games is that they're art, unlike cars, rockets, and freedom of speech (and yes, all three can be designed). They are not utilities you need in life. Everybody wants a game, but they don't really need them. Boredom is a problem that can be solved by almost anything, not by something specific.
This is where artists come in to make the games more and more interesting by introducing their talent, point of view, and so on. So far, we don't know the artists Elon is hiring. As far as I can tell, he is the artist 😉
Speaking of which...
I wonder what kind of game Elon will make? My bet (but not my money) is on online multiplayer games, as single-player games don't promise fast returns (which, I think, will be important for him as a businessman).
But with multiplayer games, buffering seems very important.
What if people won't be interested at first?
Is Elon willing to play the long game like Hello games with No Man’s Sky?
Or will he land quickly like a Concorde plane? (pun intended)
Given his current reputation...
But let’s keep to our friendly neighborhood of aspiring solopreneurs making games.
Let me tell you about Levelsio.
You know… Levelsio! The Legendary Entrepreneur!
So, to give you some context!
Cursor is an AI-powered code editor, which helps you write code. According to Levelsio, the prototype took 30 minutes… (click the image to see a short clip of how it looks)
First thing he did? Put it for everyone to play, in the browser! (it’s made with three.js) You can tell, he’s not a typical game developer. This guy is a solid entrepreneur!
A few days later - he monetizes it.
buy an F16 for $29.99
Not sure who’s paying, but a few days ago - 5000 people were playing the free version.
And after a few days, he earned… $1,270 (some guy bought an ad for… $1000).
Earlier today… $17,360…
It’s fun to read his progress on Twitter. Top AI-usage humor 😁 Especially some of the results he got when experimenting with a propeller. And he’s documenting on X.COM as he does. Like a proper build-in-public person.
He does get his share of hate, sure. So much so that his businesses got targeted some days after his game went viral. Wow…
But he’s doing many things really well.
He shows his game often and early
He makes a free option and adds an optional paid version. And people are paying.
Make your game playable through a browser. No need to install your game anywhere and you can test things immediately. He's not on Steam, not on Itch.io, nowhere.
Of course, it’s hard to look at it from a gamer bubble.
Because - let’s face it - who are his customers? Are they Levelsio's followers? Are they people curious about AI in gaming or just AI? Maybe casual gamers? Or maybe people who need flight simulators?
I can understand people testing it for a few minutes and then going full meh, back to my Switch/Steam Deck. But this is the perspective of a gamer from the gamer bubble. I live between a few platforms. Browser games are just passable for me.
But it’s a mistake to avoid seeing it.
Even games on Itch can be played in the browser (not all of them, this has to be implemented).
AI will make your work faster.
You are not a solo game developer. You are a solopreneur, and it’s worth it to get a solopreneur’s skill stack and mindset!
Gamers exist in a bubble, but outside that bubble are fascinating, green fields of profit.
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To borrow a phrase if I may; interesting.
So awesome! Thank you for the mention!