From dream to real Flutter game: How our team participated in the Global Gamers Challenge

Our colleagues Raitis and Igor participated in the Global Gamers Challenge by Google to test their skills in this technical and creative competition.

What was their mission? To create a sustainable game that allows users to have fun while learning more about ecology and inspiring positive changes for the environment.

Clean Scoop: A Journey to a Greener Future Game by Raitis

Raitis suddenly discovered his interest in game development. Initially uninterested in making games, Raitis found inspiration when he attended the Flutter Heroes conference in Turin and met Lukas Klingsbo, who inspired him with his speech "Introduction to Building Games with Flame". Raitis wasn't sure if he could join the competition because he didn't have much time. But then, at the last moment, he decided to try.

Despite feeling worried about missing out, winning the top prize motivated him (a free trip to NYC to hang out with the Flutter team and VIP treatment at the next Global Citizen Festival). It gave him a chance to learn new things, particularly the framework used for game development - Flame, and to showcase his work to the Flutter community.

He faced the challenge of creating a game that could educate people about environmental care while being fun and engaging. Raitis drew inspiration from simple yet popular games like Fruit Ninja. He integrated fun facts about recycling into the game to help players learn while playing, although balancing fun and education proved challenging.

Raitis worked tirelessly on the game during his free time on evenings and weekends, completing the project in less than two weeks.

His advice for beginners: Start with something easy and simple, and don't worry about changing ideas, even if you've already done some work. This way, you won't get stuck, and you'll have room to improve in the future. It was tough for him to accept criticism, but it's important to learn how to do so. As a developer, you understand the process, but others might not, so it's valuable to see how they interact with the game. Don't hesitate to begin.

For more information about the game development process, visit: https://devpost.com/software/clean-scoop

And don’t forget to vote and like for his great work!

Sir Sort-a-Lot Game by Igor

Igor's decision to join the Global Gamers Challenge was fueled by his love for Flutter, game development, and a strong commitment to environmental projects.

Balancing his work with the project, Igor spent about two hours every day plus extra time on weekends working on his game idea. The biggest challenge was learning to use the Flame engine, something new for him, and attempting to add Google Wallet, a feature he couldn't finish due to time limits.

Igor started his game development with extensive research about recycling, aiming to focus on the main topic of the challenge. Then, he took a hands-on approach to design, initially sketching ideas on paper. The game’s designs were generated using DALL·E and refined with the help of PROCREATE by his wife.

Excited to continue his game-making journey, Igor encourages others to start small and not be afraid to begin. His confidence in Flutter and the gaming community as tools for achieving game-making dreams shines through his work and future plans.

Igor shares that he would participate in similar challenges in the future. This challenge gave him something tangible to show for his hard work and got him excited about keeping up with what's new in game development.

For more information, voting, and liking, visit: https://devpost.com/software/sir-sort-a-lot

If you're interested in seeing what others created, check out the Top 20 games here: https://medium.com/flutter/global-gamers-challenge-top-20-revealed-1982879b48d0

As Flutter continues to gain popularity, it's opening up new possibilities for game developers to create unique experiences. The Global Gamers Challenge is just the beginning of our journey.

Raitis and Igor's stories show how powerful it can be when you're passionate about something and have a clear goal in mind. And their games? They're more than just entertainment—they're a way to inspire people to care about the environment, demonstrating our dedication to making the world a better place.