I butcher and process all of my own game. It takes a little while to learn what to do but it's not that hard to learn. I also make my own fresh sausage (italian, breakfast, brats), cured and smoked sausage (summer sausage, landjaeger, snack sticks), and jerky.
I have used kits but this year I have branched into my own recipes. You can practice during the off season by using store bought beef and pork. Make small batches and experiment a little. You don't have to stuff casings to try a recipe. Make a patty adn fry it up. If it tastes good, make a big batch. If you don't like it feed it to the dog, usually they don't mind. Start a log book and keep track of recipes and methods. It makes repeatability much easier than remembering next year how much of what spice you used.
There are some very good sausage making forums on the net. Most folks are more than helpful to share info and recipes.