itch.io

I will check it out later, but at the first sight looks impressive!

I sent you invite in discord

What role can you handle? I've walked through your profile and it seems like you are a developer. 

Hello there, everyone!

The current job market is tough, and many talented developers are currently sitting without commercial projects. If you are a middle+ specialist looking to put your skills into a real, manageable commercial game instead of waiting indefinitely for something - this is for you.

About me: I am a game designer and associate producer with 6 year experience in industry. Mostly work with Unreal Engine and have there also 6 year of experience. More information is at the end in my portfolio link.

About the Project: The game is a compact, high-replayability roguelite tactical RPG with a unique spatial puzzle progression system.

• The concept: A group of futuristic blue-collar robots walk into a medieval fantasy world. To avoid panic and blend in with the locals, they construct makeshift gear to completely mimic the appearance of fantasy characters (knights, mages, etc.). The main rule? Nobody must find out they are machines under those helmets.
• The gameplay: Lane-based 3v3 tactical turn-based combat combined with deep inventory/body grid management. Instead of standard skill trees, players insert geometric parts (L-shapes, T-shapes, rectangles) into the robots' bodies or ability grids to gain stats, unlock skills, and trigger mathematical adjacency synergy bonuses.
• The tech stack: Unreal Engine 5 (using Paper2D / Paper ZD plugin for 2D gameplay).

Current status and my role: I am a Game Designer, Producer, and Technical Developer. I've been navigating the hiring freeze for 5 months, so I am fully committed to driving this project to a commercial release.

• My responsibilities: I handle the entire technical architecture and Blueprint programming in UE5, complete UI mathematical logic (including the grid system and adjacency calculations), UI integration, design, balancing, production, and publisher pitching.
• What is ready: The core technical foundation of the game is already up and running in Unreal Engine 5, and I am continuously working on it. I also have a basic text/code browser prototype (built in React) purely to demonstrate how the mechanics work conceptually so you can test it in one click. 

Open positions, scope and split: I am looking for independent international developers (Middle+) to form a core team of 5 people and build a polished vertical slice demo within 6 months to secure a publisher deal (target budget: $50k) or launch independently on Steam.

Since this is an equity/RevShare project before funding, the splits are based strictly on the volume of work and role weight. I take 40% for covering the entire engineering, design, and management. The remaining shares are:

1. 2D Artist Generalist (25% Split) - Visual Identity and UI Assets
   • Scope: Creating the visual identity, character/enemy visual designs (sliced for 2D animation), UI layouts (grid systems, item shapes, combat HUD), arena/hangar backgrounds, and Steam capsule art.
2. Narrative Designer / Writer (15% Split)
   • Scope: Writing the core narrative, situational dialogue, combat barks, and item descriptions with a good sense of light comedy and dry humor. Setting up branching events directly inside the Ink/Inky editor for seamless import into UE5. The tech stack here can be discussed and changed if ink/inky editor doesn't work for you.
3. 2D Animator (10% Split) — Paper2D/Paper ZD Workflow
   • Scope: Rigging and animating character frames, creating smooth Flipbook animations for basic combat states (Idle, Prepare, Strike, Impact, Death), and setting up 2D combat visual effects (VFX).
4. Composer / Sound Designer (10% Split)
   • Scope: Composing a catchy, lighthearted, comedic indie soundtrack. Creating satisfying SFX for combat actions and UI grid interactions (part placement, errors, clangs).  

UPDATE: I got a lot of composers' entries, and almost everyone is good enough to fit, so no need for more applications for composer role, thanks.

Our Terms & Commitment: We are aiming for a successful commercial release, so structure and predictability are key.

• 1 Month cliff: The first month is a trial period to evaluate your skills, workload, and commitment. Joining for just a couple of weeks is not compensated - leaving before Day 30 results in a 0% share, and your assets will not be used.
• 6-Month vesting: Shares accumulate proportionally every month. If you complete 3 months of solid work but have to step down due to a full-time job offer, you legally retain half of your split (e.g., 12.5% for the Artist). Your time spent is fully respected and protected.
• Time Commitment: Minimum 10 hours per week. I want to keep a steady pace and avoid dragging the development out for years.
• Post-Funding: Once we secure a publisher advance or funding, these percentages remain locked regarding long-term Net Revenue, and the major part of budget will immediately cover fixed milestone payouts for the work completed (we will cover left part of development expenses first, then share funds between teammates).

How to Apply: Please write me an email with a brief summary of your professional experience, your skillset, and a link to your portfolio/showreel. 

Email: gamedevhm@gmail.com

Please DO NOT apply if:

• You are looking for an immediate paid freelance gig (this is RevShare until we secure funding).
• You do not have a portfolio or professional experience to showcase.
• You cannot guarantee a consistent weekly commitment of 10+ hours. We enforce a strict 1 month cliff period to protect the team from ghosting.

 Link to my portfolio: GrimOne's portfolio

Link to the conceptual text prototype: Prototype link, click here

(note that text prototype requires any jsx file viewer, for example, you can use browser extension just like me).

Hi everyone!

I just released my comedy visual novel Dropkick Rick on Itch.

It’s a short, chaotic interactive story about a wrestler whose life spirals into ridiculous situations depending on the choices you make. Every decision leads to a different absurd outcome - from becoming a movie star to ending up jobless on a street corner.

The game is fully voiced and designed to be played in a single evening, with multiple endings to discover.

If you enjoy humorous branching stories and weird comedy, you might like it.

You can check it out here:
https://grimoneofficial.itch.io/dropkick-rick

I have written email

I did a research, MST is -11 from my timezone, so the best time in given circumstances is 11 PM MST, it will be 10 AM for me which is fine.

Hmm, that's 2 AM for me, but I can attend

Yeah, sure. What is your time zone? Mine is +4 UTC.  Discrod: grimone_official

I am not good at C++, but otherwise I am advanced UE dev on blueprints. If that is fine, I want to also know what project it is, do you have website or any material about it? 

Hello, can you share details about position, requirements, potential payment range (at least) and what your project looks like?

Oh, I am not currently interested in horror games. Good luck anyway.

Hello there. If you are looking for publisher, you can check out this list of all publishers. There are many publishers that you can try to pitch. This is not my list, but the list was shared by publishers themselves.  

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11g8MCMFNrBM0CXIWrT8bej5vqR1fCJGMhoFfbS5p...

Hello there. As experienced game developer and producer I should warn you that as beginner game developer you need to start with small projects before trying in big, because scope can be really challenging and overwhelming for inexperienced developer. If you need game design or production planning we can talk. I am from Armenia, so remote talk is fine.

Hello. I can help, but I need at least some information about the project. Generally it is always a good idea to include information about your project since unpaid job will be interesting only if it is quite impressive on its own.