Game Dev Story

The player takes control of a start-up video game developer, with the goal of making hit titles and consoles in order to make money. The user controls a number of factors which can help or hinder the quality of the games released, including hiring staff, controlling the direction and speed of development, and using items which give boosts for workers or change their jobs. As the player progresses and earns more money, their building is improved upon and they are allowed to hire more staff, and thus create better games.

Games are assigned review scores upon completion of a game ranging from 1–10 with a comment from the associated reviewer with his score. The scores generally affect the sales that go along with the game, and as they are in real life, sales are ranked with a number according to how they sold that week.

The original Game Dev Story was released in Japan for Microsoft Windows in April 1997. It was ported in 2010 to both iOS and Android.

A Windows Phone port was released in July 2015. It was also later released on Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 on October 11, 2018 and February 11, 2021 respectively.

Game Dev Story received positive reviews, praising the addictiveness of its mechanics and its somewhat realistic treatment of video game development. It received an 86/100 on Metacritic. V. Club praised the game's freedom for the player's choice in how they choose to develop their company.

Eurogamer's Keza MacDonald described Game Dev Story as "the best thing I've ever played on the iPhone" and praised the game for its unpredictable and addictive simulation gameplay. Ron Gilbert, the original creator of the Monkey Island video game series, told Wired that he was a self-proclaimed addict to the game.