Free project review
Twenty minutes on your idea, your engine and your available hours.
Online · Solo devs and tiny teams
Finish the
Finish the
small game first.
Nearly every first project is too big. Scope it down until it's embarrassing, ship it, and you'll have learned more than three years on the ambitious one that never came out.
- 8–12weeks per program
- 48 hfor a build review
- 8 maxin a live session
- $0project review
The programs
Four programs, each ending with something playable
No engine wars, no ten-hour tutorials. You build, people play it, and we work on what they did.
First playable
Choosing an engine and sticking with it, building one mechanic properly, and getting to a build that runs.
See the programDesign & playtesting
Core loops, difficulty and feedback, and running playtests that tell you something you didn't want to hear.
See the programArt & audio for solo devs
Choosing a style you can actually produce, building a pipeline, and using sound and juice to raise the feel.
See the programShipping
Cutting scope to a finishable game, store pages and builds, and releasing without disappearing for a year.
See the program
How it works
Build weekly, playtest monthly
A build every Friday keeps a project honest. Watching someone else play it keeps the design honest.
Scope it down
Usually by more than you'd like. This is most of the value.
Build every week
Something playable, however rough, every single week.
Written review
Within 48 hours: the build, the code structure, and what to cut or fix.
Plans
Pick your level of support
Month to month, cancel anytime. The 20-minute project review is free.
Dev group
A weekly session where members show builds and get them played and critiqued.
$39/ month
- One 90-minute live session each week
- Groups of 8 developers maximum
- Builds played and critiqued live
- Scope and milestone templates
- Replays for 30 days
Coaching essentials
A coach on your build, your scope and your weekly progress.
$109/ month
- Personal 8 to 12 week plan
- Build reviewed within 48 hours
- One 45-min session every two weeks
- Milestones set and held to
- Access to all dev groups
Ship it
For a game that needs to be finished and released this year.
$199/ month
- One 45-min session each week
- Replies within 24 hours
- Scope cut and release plan built with you
- Store page and build process reviewed
- Access to all dev groups
Prices in USD. Cancel anytime, no contract.
How we work
Not a publisher, no rights taken
Creative Ground is coaching only. We take no equity, no revenue share and no rights in your project, and we're not a studio or funding body.
We also don't do legal or business advice. Engine licenses, asset licenses, contracts and store agreements matter and they belong with a lawyer, not with a coach who can only tell you what's typical.
Frequently asked
The questions we get most
Which engine should I use?
Whichever you'll stop evaluating and start building in. Engine switching is the most popular form of procrastination in this hobby.
I can't do art.
Then pick a style that works with that, or use licensed assets and check the licenses. Plenty of successful games look deliberately simple.
How long should my first game take?
Weeks, not years. Something tiny and finished teaches more than something ambitious and abandoned.
Will my game sell?
We don't know, and neither does anyone promising otherwise. We coach making and shipping; the market is its own thing.
Do you help with publishing contracts?
We'll tell you what's commonly in them and then send you to a lawyer. Signing one on coaching advice would be a bad idea.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. No contract, no minimum term. Access stays open until the end of the month you already paid for.
Got a project that's stalled?
Twenty minutes on the scope, the build and what to cut. Free.