Well, I guess I don't know how to vote, let me try conducting a bit of an "Exit Interview" with you even though I have exactly zero qualifications or aptitude for such. And despite the fact that it doesn't sound like you are really leaving leaving. I don't think you are alone in this plan/idea so I think this list of questions will be good for most people on the site to keep in the back of their head.
1. How old are you? Specifically are you 18 or older? Why because you are unlikely to be able to sell your dream product (I am assuming it is a computer game) if you are under 18 years of age. At least not without some sort of parental involvement. If you are still in school do you even have time to do this outside of school, homework, and activities?
2. Do you intend to make game programming your job? I remember the EA spouse letter back in the day, and it doesn't seem like things have gotten any better. I hear that "Bethesda Magic" is working people to the point of psychological breakdown and even well liked companies like CD Projekt Red routinely push for grotesque amounts of overtime. In fact the life of a game developer may have gotten worse, and back in the N64 days people found Jesus in their texture maps. That is for major game studios you might say. If you plan to go it on your own, most business do fail within a year. You could easily spend a life savings and just end up with a failed business and an incomplete project you couldn't finish before the funding ran out. I guess what I am getting to is .... you need a backup plan.
3. Do you plan to go to (or have you already graduated from) college to get a programming related degree? (Or any job related degree actually.) Like I hinted to before, you need a backup plan. If you don't have a degree it will be much harder to get a job in programming. Right now I am suggesting you prepare for a web programmer job (simply because it is currently the most abundant job). Learn some SQL, JavaScript, and Java/C#. A lot of times it is better to let your dreams be a hobby instead of a job so you don't end up hating them.
I am going back to assuming you are making this your job and doing it sort of lone wolf single employee company setup.
4. How do you intend to fund the development of your project. Are you going to live at home with your parents? Do you have a Patreon/Kickstarter? Part time McJob? Full time job and work on it after hours (better check that employee agreement first, the company may lay claim to any work you do in off hours)?
5. Do you have a lawyer. You may not need one just yet, but for a solo company my limited knowledge says you want to start up an LLC (Limited Liability Corporation). It would be nice to have someone when customers threaten to sue as well.
6. Do you have an accountant. I just looked it up and it sounds like Epic gets 3% of gross after the first $3,000. $3,000 is not enough to live off by the way (a part time McJob is better than that and easier). Expect to spend a lot of time on accounting.
7. Do you have an artist/musician/etc or can you draw/3D model/play music/generate sound effects, etc. If you can't make the art expect to pay people to do this for you, and they will want payment. A lawyer will also be handy here so that when you pay you actually have the rights to use the art like you think you do. Just paying someone for a picture doesn't automatically mean you have the rights to redistribute or make derivative works from the art. Look up the story about the Yahoo yodel, they had to go back and pay the yodeler a big fat check for all rights after they made it their trademark jingle because they didn't get it done right the first time.
8. Do you have a compelling elevator pitch for your game? Is there something that makes it stand out from the crowd? Making a Tetris clone in a sea of Tetris clones won't do you any good. If you can't make a compelling argument for why someone would want to buy your game in a paragraph, then people probably won't even if it is magnificent.
9. Where do you plan to sell your game. Itch.io, Steam, somewhere else? Do you have a backup plan if Steam rejects you? What about Origin, uPlay, and the Epic store? Do you have a web site of your own to sell it from. Will you be selling physical copies, how will you do fulfillment of physical copies or Patreon extras? What about after-sale support like say driver issues, odd hardware, or just questions. Will you have support staff to deal with those, or will you do it yourself? How many hours a day? How will you handle refunds? Etcetera etc etc.
10. Do you have a business plan? How much are you selling the game for? Will that be enough to cover expenses? Would you have made more money at a part-time McJob? What if it doesn't sell well? No big deal if flappy bird doesn't sell well because it took a week to make, much bigger deal if it is your Magnum Opus and took three or more years. Servers, Artists, Accountants, Laywers, you should be figuring out all of it and have a plan. Oh and you will need to change the plan as you go, account for that too.
11. How much time will your project take? Is this something you actually can finish? Do you have the necessary skills? Unfortunately, looking through your project pages I see a lot of incomplete notifications you added. Will you be doing something different to make sure you finish your dream project? Do you need more practice before you begin your dream project? Do you need a team to keep you motivated?
Anyway, best of luck, and I will look forward to giving Smiley Engine a spin.
