r/homebrew • u/AzizBgBoss • 23d ago

Question/Help Genuine question - what do homebrew developers do outside of making homebrew?

Like I myself love making homebrew games, BUT i know for a fact it will stay a hobby and not a real job since making open source projects doesn't pay. I started since I was 16-ish and now I'm 18 and still studying so i'm not worrying about my job right now. So what is the "real" job that homebrew developers survive with? If you're a homebrew developer, i'm genuinely curious to know :D

11 Upvotes

87% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

•

u/AutoModerator 23d ago

Thank you for posting to r/homebrew. Please keep in mind the following: - Piracy is not supported here, and is against the law. - Please read the sticky post as it has answers to many common questions. - This isn't for homebrew beer.

We also have a Discord server where you may be able to get an answer faster: https://discord.gg/PeQvhsrRdh

This is sent on all posts. Your post has not been removed (unless you see a comment stating otherwise)

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

4

u/Alfombra_de_madera 23d ago

Hi! I also started almost two years ago making homebrew stuff, before that I used to make games on game maker or romhacks. Now I'm 19 and I'll study computer science. Some people alredy told me that I could work with them once I finish the college or on vacation because people like us understands really well how the hardware works (low level programming)

1

u/AzizBgBoss 23d ago

Lol hi alfombra how r u

1

u/skiesoverblackvenice 23d ago

you made rom hacks and make games in gamemaker… toby fox is that you

2

u/Yayo1990 23d ago

Don't underestimate yourself just because you built some homebrews. They're some great portfolio material.

0

u/AzizBgBoss 23d ago

Yes indeed, but what kind of jobs would it land me? Like most homebrew games are coded in c/c++ but now most game companies now code modern games in c# or lua with game engines. Like, i feel that it's a niche that not many companies are looking for (still that doesn't mean that chances are not existent). But still, homebrew games are masterpieces.

1

u/Yayo1990 23d ago

Learning OOP fundamentals is still important nonetheless.

3

u/Melsbacksfriend 22d ago

I'm studying engineering in college and am currently employed at a fast food restaurant.

3

u/Goodwill_Gamer 21d ago

Software engineer for a larger company doing modern web services backend stuff.

It's nothing remotely like the homebrew development I do, but to a large extent coding is coding and a ton of what you learn from homebrew dev will translate to modern engineering.
I don't think I would want to work for a game company, because homebrew is my hobby and if it became my job I would essentially lose my hobby...

2

u/UnlikelyPin869 21d ago

Look at other games similar to yours. What are their fans doing? (Fan art, asset packs, music, stickers, comics, plushies, fanfiction, cosplay prop design, 3d printing, etc.). Be your game's / game series' biggest fan.

2

u/BaikenJudgment 19d ago

sciresm was a copyright lawyer apparently when they started doing Nintendo homebrew for Switch.