A step-by-step recipe distilled from a real project: a humanities-background, non-technical founder building and shipping an ad-monetized (IAA) WeChat mini-game with AI tools (Claude, ChatGPT). Reusable β anyone can follow this to build their own.
π§ How to use this handbook
Two records work together. Don't confuse them:
π Learning Journal = a diary
What happened today β dated, with the story and the feelings. One entry per work day.
π Playbook = a recipe
What to do next time β timeless, de-personalized steps, organized by stage. This page.
You don't read the playbook daily. You add to it whenever you crack a repeatable step, and you use it when: β building a second game, β‘ showing your method to an employer, β’ teaching someone else.
πͺ The 6 Stages (Pick β Operate)
π Launch Roadmap β from build to published & earning
The 8-step path to getting a mini-game live on WeChat (ad-only / individual entity).
Policy
No game license needed
That gate is mainly for in-app-purchase games. Ad-only IAA keeps the launch path much lighter, so this model is structurally easier to ship as an individual builder.
Cost
Β₯30
Annual verification renewal
WeChat verification is a 30 RMB annual renewal fee for individual mini-program entities. Government filing is free, so the fixed cost at launch still stays relatively controlled.
Architecture
No backend at first
Local progress + WeChat login + friend leaderboard data is enough for a simple casual game. Add CloudBase or your own backend only when the product actually needs global state.
π§° Reusable Systems Built From This Project
This project did not end as a single isolated experiment. It produced reusable systems I can apply to future AI-built products, making the next project faster, cleaner, and easier to manage.
