I've been working on my game now nearly 2 years, i don't have a great deal of time to work on it much due to my full time job and girl friend and of course my Xbox eats up alot of my spare time lol. So i create alittle bit here and there but i just can't see the finish line. Don't get me wrong i love building and creating my game and it just gets better and better the more i create, but god dam i can't wait for it to be finished lol!!!!! I just can't wait to see the finished product one day, and look back and say i made this!!! Does anyone else feel the same way?
If i was to offer a tip for someone just starting out i would recommend keeping your project small lol!!!
On another note The Daily Clicks a great site and keeps me motivated so i just want to say thanks to Rikus and all the team!!!!!
Yes! I feel your pain. I'd wager many if not most here do. Feels like I've had Splotches on the grill for eons, and it's not even that big of a project! Persevere, oh young and noble knightly... person! Ye shall triumph!
Yeah I know about long projects. I only have one really large project right now, and it's hard to see the end.
But like you said this site keeps me encouraged. I love to look at all the fairly large games that have been submitted over the years, and just dream that I might be able to finish something cool like that one day.
Been there, done that, watched it all burn up in smokelz. Big games just aren't my thing. Despite the fact they're so darn fun to make! And I agree 100%; Rikus and the community are awesome. Thanks guys!
I get a rush out of big projects. Small projects are just pointless, IMHO. What's the point of doing something that a hundred other people have done?
Personally I feel that the bigger the project, the more times you get a rush from it. Bat and ball games are boring, you just get a little joy from doing the engine, and boredom from the levels. With a big project, every small segment of the engine is a rush. Even something as simple as calculating the character's stats as they age is a lot more fun that all the joy you get from a little game.
So, yeah, the bigger the game, the more fun it is making it.
Disclaimer: Any sarcasm in my posts will not be mentioned as that would ruin the purpose. It is assumed that the reader is intelligent enough to tell the difference between what is sarcasm and what is not.
I'll agree with OMC and repeat again; small game/project doesn't mean crappy generic game or useless project. It's the small projects we do that build our confidence and give us a taste of working on a project on a small scale, to prepare us for those larger ones we take on in the future. Or maybe we just enjoy making fun little things, and the massive projects are sometimes best left to other people!
Of course, everyone wants their games to be finished! Getting there is a longer road. I mainly get back pain from it though, too much game making for me.
I don't make any money, so I can't really play many games these days - which is why I make my own.
I still haven't actually ever finished anything that could be called a complete game, although I'd really like to at some point. I get a pretty good kick out of just trying loads of little tech demo style things, just to see if I can make them work. For example recently I've been messing around with a random dungeon generator that's getting a fairly stable state. I could make a Roguelike completely from scratch, I think I could if I put my mind to it, but I probably won't. As a side not if anyone wants to see the dungeon generator I'd gladly put up what I have at the moment! It is Open Source Month after all!
There are 10 types of people in the world: Those who understand binary and those who don't.
Originally Posted by Rob Westbrook I still haven't actually ever finished anything that could be called a complete game, although I'd really like to at some point. I get a pretty good kick out of just trying loads of little tech demo style things, just to see if I can make them work. For example recently I've been messing around with a random dungeon generator that's getting a fairly stable state. I could make a Roguelike completely from scratch, I think I could if I put my mind to it, but I probably won't. As a side not if anyone wants to see the dungeon generator I'd gladly put up what I have at the moment! It is Open Source Month after all!
Why not Sounds awesome, I'm loving this open-source month.
To be honest though my games only a small game but i'm always looking to improve the engine the sprites and genrul look. I must have re-start 5 times lol.
Originally Posted by UrbanMonk hmm muz, looking over your download list you've only ever completed two games, and both were mini games!
Heh, that's what's wrong with aiming big. You get a few huge projects crawling their way up and the little ones like those "mini games" are just support pillars or experiments for the bigger ones. You just can't aim high enough without quitting your job.. and if you're too young to have a job, you don't have the XP or perseverance needed to make a epic game.
Personally, I don't really care if I don't finish a normal sized game. If you aim high enough, just getting a small section of the code done is a lot more fun than finishing a small game. But if you aim high enough, it takes years to ever accomplish anything, and impossible to finish at all unless you spend a portion of your career doing it.
If you aim low enough, you'll be able to actually finish games, but you'll get less joy from a bigger project. There is also a whole lot less pain. Less pain is good.
Best balance I've seen so far is Derek Yu, who does things one step at a time. He works on all sorts of klik games, and does it at a good pace. He scraps games that don't seem to have a future, finishes a lot of little games, but actually finishes the big games. You do have to know when to quit though... I think he mentioned Eternal Daughter sapping his soul, and people didn't really like it that much in the end. But then again, I guess he got the experience he needed to make Spelunky from that.
So, it's all up to you. The pain is part of the process. After a while, you get used to it, you learn to expect some pain and just don't let it hold you back.
And about restarting a lot of times... that's good. It shows that you're learning something new every time. If you weren't learning anything, you wouldn't have to restart.
Disclaimer: Any sarcasm in my posts will not be mentioned as that would ruin the purpose. It is assumed that the reader is intelligent enough to tell the difference between what is sarcasm and what is not.
Originally Posted by Chris Street TC: I'm in exactly the same boat as you I really want to get my games finished but too much other stuff is eating into my time
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I'd wager many if not most here do. Feels like I've had Splotches on the grill for eons, and it's not even that big of a project! Persevere, oh young and noble knightly... person! Ye shall triumph! 
Big games just aren't my thing. Despite the fact they're so darn fun to make! 
Thanks guys!
Edited by W3R3W00F
