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[vivaladav]

I started to make dev log videos for my game a couple of months ago, so I am pretty new at this and I am still trying to find the best way to do it.

Initially I tried to record myself while talking freely with no script, but that was a disaster as the result was a long, boring video full of pauses and mumbling and even my best editing couldn't save it.

Then I realized I needed a script, but recording while reading sounded a bit "fake" and that also introduced the problem of synchronizing the audio with what I wanted to show. I had to play the game AFTER recording the audio and that isn't easy!

Now I think I am getting a bit better at it and my process is something like this:

• write an initial script and divide it in small sections
• read it out loud few times until everything sounds smooth enough (edit where needed)
• record the audio one section at a time
• record the game while listening to the audio I just recorder for better sync
• repeat for all the small sections
• Edit everything together in a video editor (I use KDenlive)

I would love to know what's your process for recording dev videos and what are your tips.

[ThemsAllTook]

My process is to write myself a few sentences of notes, usually based on svn commit logs since the last video, and use those as a basic outline for what I want to cover. For the very first video, I tried to give a quick summary of the basic systems in the game without going too deep into any one thing. They usually end up running anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes, though I try to keep it more toward the shorter side when I can.

I'd consider it essential to be playing the game at the same time as speaking about it. The flow and timing of everything won't feel right without it. By the same token, reading the exact words of a script has a distinctly different sound than speaking naturally, so I make sure to keep my notes short and improvise the words I use to describe them while recording.

The devlog style I use is pretty casual, with minimal editing. I do occasionally have to pause or retake things, but it goes best if I can avoid that and just use one continuous take. I'd had a lot of speaking practice from having done regular let's plays for a few years beforehand...it's a skill that improves continuously the more you do it, but if you can approach it with confidence, your first real try can be totally OK.

On the technical side, I have OBS and Audacity hidden away on a secondary display, recording video and voice audio respectively. I use Vegas Pro for editing, though any basic video editor would probably do the trick - all I really do is trim the start and end of the audio and video tracks, align them, add a short fade at the both ends of the video, and duck the voice audio in places where I have to clear my throat or something.

It might be worth thinking about who the intended audience of your devlogs is going to be. The style I use is geared primarily toward other developers or people who want to see my process. If I were trying to use the videos as promotional material, I'd probably keep them shorter, edit more heavily, and stay away from technical topics...or maybe I wouldn't bother doing devlogs at all, and would do something different entirely. The value I get from watching other people devlogs is to get a peek inside their thought process, and see how they use their tools to get work done.

[vivaladav]

The devlog style I use is pretty casual, with minimal editing. I do occasionally have to pause or retake things, but it goes best if I can avoid that and just use one continuous take. I'd had a lot of speaking practice from having done regular let's plays for a few years beforehand...it's a skill that improves continuously the more you do it, but if you can approach it with confidence, your first real try can be totally OK.

Yes, I guess that's the kind of experience I am missing right now and I do agree that everything would be much better (and probably easier) if I could just speak while I show things/play.

On the technical side, I have OBS and Audacity hidden away on a secondary display, recording video and voice audio respectively. I use Vegas Pro for editing, though any basic video editor would probably do the trick

Any reason for not using OBS for audio too?
That's what I do, also because in my video editor (Kdenlive), I can always separate audio and video tracks and work on them independently.

It might be worth thinking about who the intended audience of your devlogs is going to be. The style I use is geared primarily toward other developers or people who want to see my process.

Good point.
Right now my videos are dedicated to people who want to know more about my game, so mostly gamers.
Because of that I try to keep them short (max 5 minutes) and to not include technical details.
I do talk about game design choices though.

It could be interesting to make videos for game developers with a more technical background, but there's 24 hrs in a day and right now I can't afford to do more than what I am already doing 

[ThemsAllTook]

Any reason for not using OBS for audio too?

Yup. It's fairly minor, but I've noticed that during recording, OBS occasionally does some kind of resync operation where it drops a couple of video frames and the corresponding amount of audio along with them. Like, in 30 minutes of recording, I'd usually be able to detect 1 or 2 of these events. It's usually not very noticeable for game footage, but when it happens mid-sentence, it can be pretty jarring. Recording with Audacity ensures that my audio is intact. I'm certainly giving up some convenience by not having the audio tracks automatically aligned, but it bothers me enough to have little bits of my voice cut out occasionally that I bother to do the work of realigning it manually.

[AriLawrence]

[spam post and account deleted]

[Golds]

Jot down some highlights to hit, record and commentate through OBS with or without a little face cam, and do any necessary editing in DaVinci Resolve. Resolve is a great, Premiere-quality video editor that can be used for free. Highly recommend it.

[michaelplzno]

+1 on davinci resolve, its not perfect, I wish there was a way to do effects on multiple segments at once rather than just one clip and copy and paste, but its great for free software. I used to use hitfilm express but that software removed a bunch of options from their free tier and it was too buggy to pay for.

[eblomquist]

I remember when I first started, I tried a similar freeform approach and ended up with a lot of "uhhs" and "umms".

What I've found works best for me is a hybrid method. I outline major points I want to hit, then sorta freestyle within those boundaries. Gives it a structured yet natural feel.

I've been on Movavi video editor lately. Super easy interface, and I seriously appreciate the in-built effects. Makes my life so much easier when editing.