- Joined
- Mar 5, 2012
- Messages
- 2,078
- Reaction score
- 2,063
- First Language
- Spanish
- Primarily Uses
- RMMV
Hey, everyone! I’m Indrah and to date I’ve been around the RM community for something like 3-4 years. I’ve made 6 completed games and a few demos.
I’m not saying this to brag, I mean to say I’ve been around for a while and gotten some work out, so I THINK I can safely impart some pieces of advice for newcomers (or just people who’re wondering why the hell they are not famous yet).
I’ll warn you right off the bat; this is based on my perspective and personal experience, and as so will be all very opinionated. It’s totally fine if you don’t agree with me in a particular point, this isn’t personal.
So, let’s take it you’re a fresh faced young peep or peepette that arrived to the forums, itching to make your own epic game…
Community behaviour
Well, so far I’ve painted you a pretty negative picture, you could say. I’ve been very harsh, you may think.
So what? Bite me, you’re not a special little snowflake that I’d be inclined to pamper. If you want pats in the back and an assurance that everything will be okay, you’re in DA WRONG PLACE BIATCH. GAME MAKING IS SRS BIZNS!
Jokes aside, it’s time to tackle…
Game Development
Topics to come:
-How to FINISH a game.
-How to handle feedback.
-(feel free to suggest any topic broad enough, nothign step by step)
Also psss, hey! Hey you! The one who got all butthurt over this!
You know what? I don’t care
No but really, none of this is personal, and if I’m being harsh it’s because I remember MYSELF making 99% of these mistakes at some point. You’re free to not agree with what I say and all, as I stated it’s all born from personal experience.
(And if you just want to be patted and pampered I honestly don’t give much of a ****. I don’t have to care for strangers because, remember? You’re entitled to JACK SQUAT as far as I’m concerned).
I’m not saying this to brag, I mean to say I’ve been around for a while and gotten some work out, so I THINK I can safely impart some pieces of advice for newcomers (or just people who’re wondering why the hell they are not famous yet).
I’ll warn you right off the bat; this is based on my perspective and personal experience, and as so will be all very opinionated. It’s totally fine if you don’t agree with me in a particular point, this isn’t personal.
======================
So, let’s take it you’re a fresh faced young peep or peepette that arrived to the forums, itching to make your own epic game…
Community behaviour
Here is so much to say about this part I have a hard time coming to terms with it. Let’s take it one by one…
That fame you’re imagining in your head when you come in? Won’t happen.
Chances are you either lurked the forums for a bit before actually posting anything or started off with an introductory topic right off the bat. In both cases there’s a 90% chance that somewhere, in the back of your mind, you were envisioning yourself becoming a famous person on the forums, making kick-ass games and having fans.
No, don’t violently refute me there, it’s totally fine. Most of us want attention and validation, nothing wrong with it. It’s just not going to happen.
At least not the way you want it. You know what kind of newbies get famous? Asshats. And you don’t want to be that, do you?
No, to get anywhere in any community you’ll have to do stuff. Like making games, or great resources or talking a lot and very well about games. And no, being the ruler of the offtopic area is not going to make your famous.
So it’ll be quite disappointed when, a few posts in, no one is showering you with attention. Well, damn. What now?
You’re entitled to exactly jack ****.
This is so common with newbies it’s almost sad, especially younger people. You get no replies to your vague as heck request topic, or no feedback on the terrible chicken scratches you call art. You get angry and demand people respond to you. You make a post somewhere that either goes for pathetic “I’m sad, no one ever listens to me!” to angry “Why is no one answering to this?! This topic has 50 views and no replies!”
Congratulations, you just messed up. Now most users who saw your posts raging about how no one gives you a chance is going to roll their eyes at your whiny ass.
No one, ever, owes you ****. NO ONE. Not in this community, not anywhere. You are not ruler of the known universe, so get off your high chair.
Hey, know how in rpgs there’s all these npcs who you give no ****s about? That’s you. That’s ALL of us.
No one has ****s to give when it comes to total strangers, and demanding attention from them will make them response in ways that go from “exasperated” at best to “annoyed and vicious” at worst.
Hey, know this awesome idea you have? It doesn’t mean anything.
You know what I despise? The idea man. There’s always this dude or dudette who wants to make a team, and their position is supervisor and “the one who comes up with the concepts” or something equally ****ty.
You know who has ideas? FREAKING EVERYONE.
Take a look at any time at the user list. See all those active folks? At LEAST half of them are going to be working in a game with an awesome idea. Now look at the members list and try not to reel at how many friggin users the forum has. Those people, even the ones with 0 posts, at some point had an idea that made them go “Hey, you know what? I think I could make a game! I will get into this game dev forum and see how I do!”
Ideas are nearly worthless. Know why? Because execution is what matters.
You know these daydreams we all have about the most awesome things? This novel that’s perfect in your head but you never get around to writing, or that comic you keep meaning to finally put to paper?
If you’ve ever tried to do any creative work you’ll know it’s never that easy. In your mind foggy, vague concepts are perfect. When you try to give them shape in the real world they get stuck and won’t come out quite the way you want.
“But Indrah” you may say “I really want to make a game and I think this idea is really good!” That’s awesome. So…make it.
Don’t start a long planning file; don’t start amassing all the perfect resources of it. Write up yoru idea and start working on a prototype. I can assure you most of the time the idea will leave your brain and be replaced by another in a time between 2 hours after you write it down and a week. Many times you won't even GET to the actual program since you'll lose steam just putting it in paper.
I’ll talk about this during the Game Development section later, but the short version is: games that are finished are games that get worked on. Staying in the world of games that exist only inside your head means you have done nothing.
Edit: To clarify: there is nothing wrong with having a lot of ideas and writing them down for maybe using them in the future. The problem comes when they make you believe you are the best thing after chocolate just because you have them or put ideas ABOVE execution or real games.
Are you depressed about this yet? Well don’t be. Really. I mean, if even I (being an enormously terrible person, I can assure you) can get ANYWHERE with games (if not so much with community) so can you.
Don’t try to force yourself to be a community sensation.
Hey, know what did exactly nothing for me? Sucking up to the “forum idols” and trying to force myself to be the next big thing.
There’s a few things you may have gathered by now, but I’ll spell ‘em out for you: there’s a thousand people with the same ideas and even skills out there. You are not special.
This does NOT mean you should just throw your hands in the air and sulk. It means that trying to convince yourself that you’re the next big thing by virtue of being born isn’t going to get you anywhere.
Chances are when you start out (specially if you’re young or unused to the medium) you’ll mess up a few times, and will be embarrassed to remember those times when some time has passed and you’ve adapted.
Just…just try to be a decent peep/peepette. Really. Try not to do anything you’ll regret, try to not get angry, and try to understand that other people all are the centre of their own life, much like you. Do you spend your days waiting for some random forum person to post something so you can avidly read all that crap and comment? Heck no.
Don’t expect other members to do you any favours, but don’t fear them either.
Let’s throw this out there: most people in the forum want to make their own games. Everyone wants feedback on THEIR thing, but rarely have time for other’s.
There are very definite benefits to looking around you from time to time, specially when you’re starting out. When you’re still learning how to use the program, seeing what other people have made (and the terrible mistakes they also make) can be a great way to learn, maybe even inspire you.
At some point you’ll want to maybe talk to someone. If you’re anything like me (if not, lucky you) you’ll probably be nervous and think you’ll just be a bother.
A few things clear out of the way: if you liked a game, TELL THE DEV. No dev dislikes hearing that. If it carries concise feedback, all the best!
Next, don’t be scared of people. There’s nothing to fear IF you behave like a a decent human being. That means being polite and not trying to manipulate them into doing stuff for you for free (this happens depressingly often, ask anyone who makes any resource). Just be polite, make your point, and do not try to push the other party.
Don’t be impatient.
So about those PMs and their replies…calm your tits. It’s easy (as always) to forget the world does not revolve around you (happens to me all the time, I keep expecting the planets to come pay tribute to my greatness but they never do, the *******s).
When it comes to PMs, the rules are simple: BE POLITE. That’s the golden rule. If you don’t get an answer in a week, you may want to PM them again and POLITELY ask if they received your message.
It’s REALLY EASY to forget to reply to something. Many times you’ll put aside the reply because you don’t feel like it at the moment, and it’ll slip your mind. A polite reminder is not going to annoy people.
If you still get no reply, there are two options: the person doesn’t WANT to reply, or they’re inactive. Either means you can do nothing about it, and getting angry about it is the LAST thing you should do.
Remember: no one owes you nothing. They’re not forced to care or LIKE you.
And sometimes they’re just crazy busy or have nothing specific to say. Best option is to shrug it off and move on.
The rest of the things I wanted to say about Community Behaviour are pretty simple, so here they are:
-Don’t be a creep. Do not Pm people asking about real life details, demanding to see pictures, etc. Similarly do not PM random strangers to test your games or work for you.
-If you’re about to say something nasty, try not to. I know it’s hard, believe me I have trouble with it. But chances are it’s not going to go anywhere useful.
-Don’t be that guy. You know the guy, there’s a few: the troll, the deaf yeller who refuses to learn a lesson and keeps causing trouble with their messed up topics, the attention beggar, the guy who thinks he’s being hilariously random by shouting nonsense…try to behave like a rational human being. The best way to be liked is to be likeable.
-Learn the rules. It doesn’t matter if they don’t all stay blazing in your brain. Chances are you’ll get some to stick, as most boil down to: don’t be a stupid idiot or an annoying dip****.
And a few tips that may help not get disliked (or forgotten)
-Have a dayum readable name.
-Don’t change your dayum display name every day.
-Don’t change your avatar every day.
-Don’t use an avatar made from the face generator from ace (I’m sorry peeps, it just looks extremely lame and sad).
-Don’t spam the status feed with random BS no one cares about. Once in a while is ok, but don’t make it a habit. This is a game dev forum, not Facebook.
-Do not use weird ways of typing Such As Typing Like this or wEirD ****. Likewise, no l33t speak (you know what I mean).
-Format your dayum posts. Paragraphs are your friends. Just because forums are written media does not mean people will even BOTHER slogging though a massive wall of text.
-Try not to get defensive with Mods. Chances are you’re being a nuisance. If you truly have a valid complaint (and not just an indignation case of I’M NOT WRONG!) contact another Mod to talk about it (again, POLITENESS).
I think I’m done for the day. Tomorrow I’ll be back with the next part of this little guide…Game Development…!
That fame you’re imagining in your head when you come in? Won’t happen.
Chances are you either lurked the forums for a bit before actually posting anything or started off with an introductory topic right off the bat. In both cases there’s a 90% chance that somewhere, in the back of your mind, you were envisioning yourself becoming a famous person on the forums, making kick-ass games and having fans.
No, don’t violently refute me there, it’s totally fine. Most of us want attention and validation, nothing wrong with it. It’s just not going to happen.
At least not the way you want it. You know what kind of newbies get famous? Asshats. And you don’t want to be that, do you?
No, to get anywhere in any community you’ll have to do stuff. Like making games, or great resources or talking a lot and very well about games. And no, being the ruler of the offtopic area is not going to make your famous.
So it’ll be quite disappointed when, a few posts in, no one is showering you with attention. Well, damn. What now?
You’re entitled to exactly jack ****.
This is so common with newbies it’s almost sad, especially younger people. You get no replies to your vague as heck request topic, or no feedback on the terrible chicken scratches you call art. You get angry and demand people respond to you. You make a post somewhere that either goes for pathetic “I’m sad, no one ever listens to me!” to angry “Why is no one answering to this?! This topic has 50 views and no replies!”
Congratulations, you just messed up. Now most users who saw your posts raging about how no one gives you a chance is going to roll their eyes at your whiny ass.
No one, ever, owes you ****. NO ONE. Not in this community, not anywhere. You are not ruler of the known universe, so get off your high chair.
Hey, know how in rpgs there’s all these npcs who you give no ****s about? That’s you. That’s ALL of us.
No one has ****s to give when it comes to total strangers, and demanding attention from them will make them response in ways that go from “exasperated” at best to “annoyed and vicious” at worst.
Hey, know this awesome idea you have? It doesn’t mean anything.
You know what I despise? The idea man. There’s always this dude or dudette who wants to make a team, and their position is supervisor and “the one who comes up with the concepts” or something equally ****ty.
You know who has ideas? FREAKING EVERYONE.
Take a look at any time at the user list. See all those active folks? At LEAST half of them are going to be working in a game with an awesome idea. Now look at the members list and try not to reel at how many friggin users the forum has. Those people, even the ones with 0 posts, at some point had an idea that made them go “Hey, you know what? I think I could make a game! I will get into this game dev forum and see how I do!”
Ideas are nearly worthless. Know why? Because execution is what matters.
You know these daydreams we all have about the most awesome things? This novel that’s perfect in your head but you never get around to writing, or that comic you keep meaning to finally put to paper?
If you’ve ever tried to do any creative work you’ll know it’s never that easy. In your mind foggy, vague concepts are perfect. When you try to give them shape in the real world they get stuck and won’t come out quite the way you want.
“But Indrah” you may say “I really want to make a game and I think this idea is really good!” That’s awesome. So…make it.
Don’t start a long planning file; don’t start amassing all the perfect resources of it. Write up yoru idea and start working on a prototype. I can assure you most of the time the idea will leave your brain and be replaced by another in a time between 2 hours after you write it down and a week. Many times you won't even GET to the actual program since you'll lose steam just putting it in paper.
I’ll talk about this during the Game Development section later, but the short version is: games that are finished are games that get worked on. Staying in the world of games that exist only inside your head means you have done nothing.
Edit: To clarify: there is nothing wrong with having a lot of ideas and writing them down for maybe using them in the future. The problem comes when they make you believe you are the best thing after chocolate just because you have them or put ideas ABOVE execution or real games.
Are you depressed about this yet? Well don’t be. Really. I mean, if even I (being an enormously terrible person, I can assure you) can get ANYWHERE with games (if not so much with community) so can you.
Don’t try to force yourself to be a community sensation.
Hey, know what did exactly nothing for me? Sucking up to the “forum idols” and trying to force myself to be the next big thing.
There’s a few things you may have gathered by now, but I’ll spell ‘em out for you: there’s a thousand people with the same ideas and even skills out there. You are not special.
This does NOT mean you should just throw your hands in the air and sulk. It means that trying to convince yourself that you’re the next big thing by virtue of being born isn’t going to get you anywhere.
Chances are when you start out (specially if you’re young or unused to the medium) you’ll mess up a few times, and will be embarrassed to remember those times when some time has passed and you’ve adapted.
Just…just try to be a decent peep/peepette. Really. Try not to do anything you’ll regret, try to not get angry, and try to understand that other people all are the centre of their own life, much like you. Do you spend your days waiting for some random forum person to post something so you can avidly read all that crap and comment? Heck no.
Don’t expect other members to do you any favours, but don’t fear them either.
Let’s throw this out there: most people in the forum want to make their own games. Everyone wants feedback on THEIR thing, but rarely have time for other’s.
There are very definite benefits to looking around you from time to time, specially when you’re starting out. When you’re still learning how to use the program, seeing what other people have made (and the terrible mistakes they also make) can be a great way to learn, maybe even inspire you.
At some point you’ll want to maybe talk to someone. If you’re anything like me (if not, lucky you) you’ll probably be nervous and think you’ll just be a bother.
A few things clear out of the way: if you liked a game, TELL THE DEV. No dev dislikes hearing that. If it carries concise feedback, all the best!
Next, don’t be scared of people. There’s nothing to fear IF you behave like a a decent human being. That means being polite and not trying to manipulate them into doing stuff for you for free (this happens depressingly often, ask anyone who makes any resource). Just be polite, make your point, and do not try to push the other party.
Don’t be impatient.
So about those PMs and their replies…calm your tits. It’s easy (as always) to forget the world does not revolve around you (happens to me all the time, I keep expecting the planets to come pay tribute to my greatness but they never do, the *******s).
When it comes to PMs, the rules are simple: BE POLITE. That’s the golden rule. If you don’t get an answer in a week, you may want to PM them again and POLITELY ask if they received your message.
It’s REALLY EASY to forget to reply to something. Many times you’ll put aside the reply because you don’t feel like it at the moment, and it’ll slip your mind. A polite reminder is not going to annoy people.
If you still get no reply, there are two options: the person doesn’t WANT to reply, or they’re inactive. Either means you can do nothing about it, and getting angry about it is the LAST thing you should do.
Remember: no one owes you nothing. They’re not forced to care or LIKE you.
And sometimes they’re just crazy busy or have nothing specific to say. Best option is to shrug it off and move on.
The rest of the things I wanted to say about Community Behaviour are pretty simple, so here they are:
-Don’t be a creep. Do not Pm people asking about real life details, demanding to see pictures, etc. Similarly do not PM random strangers to test your games or work for you.
-If you’re about to say something nasty, try not to. I know it’s hard, believe me I have trouble with it. But chances are it’s not going to go anywhere useful.
-Don’t be that guy. You know the guy, there’s a few: the troll, the deaf yeller who refuses to learn a lesson and keeps causing trouble with their messed up topics, the attention beggar, the guy who thinks he’s being hilariously random by shouting nonsense…try to behave like a rational human being. The best way to be liked is to be likeable.
-Learn the rules. It doesn’t matter if they don’t all stay blazing in your brain. Chances are you’ll get some to stick, as most boil down to: don’t be a stupid idiot or an annoying dip****.
And a few tips that may help not get disliked (or forgotten)
-Have a dayum readable name.
-Don’t change your dayum display name every day.
-Don’t change your avatar every day.
-Don’t use an avatar made from the face generator from ace (I’m sorry peeps, it just looks extremely lame and sad).
-Don’t spam the status feed with random BS no one cares about. Once in a while is ok, but don’t make it a habit. This is a game dev forum, not Facebook.
-Do not use weird ways of typing Such As Typing Like this or wEirD ****. Likewise, no l33t speak (you know what I mean).
-Format your dayum posts. Paragraphs are your friends. Just because forums are written media does not mean people will even BOTHER slogging though a massive wall of text.
-Try not to get defensive with Mods. Chances are you’re being a nuisance. If you truly have a valid complaint (and not just an indignation case of I’M NOT WRONG!) contact another Mod to talk about it (again, POLITENESS).
I think I’m done for the day. Tomorrow I’ll be back with the next part of this little guide…Game Development…!
So what? Bite me, you’re not a special little snowflake that I’d be inclined to pamper. If you want pats in the back and an assurance that everything will be okay, you’re in DA WRONG PLACE BIATCH. GAME MAKING IS SRS BIZNS!
Jokes aside, it’s time to tackle…
Game Development
So maybe you started this before coming into the forum, or warmed up to the idea afterwards. Either option is fine, but it’s good to remember…
You’ll suck at first, and that’s okay.
No, don’t start shouting. I don’t want to hear how you’re sure you’ll have the best lucky break ever or how your vision is going to be awesome.
I do not mean to say YOU suck. I mean that when you start you’ll have no experience and won’t be very good. If you’re lucky you’ll have skills in a specific area: say art, writing, programming, music, etc. But chances are, unless you’ve actually made GAMES before, you’ll be new at it.
Have you ever picked up an instrument on the first time and be perfect at it? God no.
What I call “at first” does not necessarily equal first released game, though there’s a high chance that will still be mediocre. Some people mess around with the maker for a long time before even posting anything, some people post their first attempts, etc. Still, until you get some experience down the line, chances are you’ll be bad at it.
And hey, know what’s great about that? It’s the only time where it’s totally accepted. Newbies are EXPECTED to be shaky with the program, and we accept that.
I’ll teach you a wonderful magic spell: Just say you’re a newbie.
BAM BIM BOOM MAGIC HAPPENS WOW!
Now suddenly people won’t be as impatient with you anymore (unless you’re behaving like an idiot) and will shift their stance a bit.
This period is GREAT for messing up. We’ll go over this later in the Feedback section, but know that EVERYONE had their newbie phase, and will largely understand what you’re going through. If you’re nice and don’t get too defensive, people will either help you or just leave you be.
So, about that game you’re making. A nice way to start off is…
Rip apart your initial idea before starting
Who decided they wanted an epic 40 hour game for their first project? What? Everyone? Yeah, story of our freaking life.
Chances are you are envisioning something that will be impossible for you to do. You can start it, sure. But you’ll probably run into problems, get frustrated and abandon the game, or just burn out and trail off.
Here’s a thing about games: they ALWAYS end up bigger than what you set out to do. Wanted to make a simple story where you rescue a princess? Wait, what if we added this really cool backstory, or these features that would kick ass? And suddenly you’re inflating your workload and wondering what the heck happened.
Now, inflation happens, and sometimes it’s for the best. What you want to do is to work your idea to the bare minimum, to the absolute core where you can say “ok, this I will be able to make!”
From that start working, and be careful with new aspects that pop up. Unless you can say with absolute certainty that specific thing will improve your game and is absolutely vital, save it and put it aside. So many games get left behind because they started getting too big and sidetracking.
So, those epic projects? Never work. They rarely work for even actually experienced people, because remember…
You don’t really have a budget, and that changes everything.
And if you do, it’s never the money companies use to make the sort of games you envision.
What? You liked the Final Fantasy series or something like it? That’s nice. Know what those had? Money and a workforce. Know what you have? Yourself and what free time and motivation you can throw at it. Even if you do have some money to spend, it’s easy to lose sight of exactly how much that translates into.
For the purposes of this guide, let’s say you’re a newcomer and don’t have a budget. Start by scaling your visions DOWN.
Don’t panic, it’s okay. Know why it’s not a good idea to make those epic 40 hours games first? Because your first games will never be the best ones. In fact, you may be slightly embarrassed of those a few years down the line.
You know what making games is? A LOT OF WORK.
Anyone who thinks making their dream game won’t take any effort can get out the door RIGHT NOW because I don’t even want to talk to you.
Game making is work. A LOT of work. Like, a LOT. Why do you think so many people never end up doing anything? For most it’s just a hobby, so when the work gets too much, it just gets dropped.
If you are not ready to work hard for the game, be ready to either have a very crappy or at most mediocre game, or never get a game at all.
A lot of the work is also extremely boring and dry. It’s a bit different for everyone, but let me list a few of the usual suspects: choosing fonts and windowskins, polishing and revising, database work, fixing bugs, testing, testing, testing, etc.
Even the things that sound cool like writing or art if that’s your thing can become annoying when you’re trying to polish them, or when it’s just TOO MUCH of it.
Grinding past this work is necessary. It’s not something you can just say “Frick it!” and skip, because it’ll make your game suck. Ask anyone who’s played a clearly untested game. No one likes that crap.
Ok, so you’re willing to work then? Yes? What was that? You want a team? Ahahahaha, well…
What is a team, and why most don’t work.
I expect flames to rain down on me for this, but before anyone gets prissy at me let’s clarify something:
When I talk about a TEAM, in THIS community, I mean a group of two or more people working together with NO PAY (this bit is important) to push out a game.
Yes, the no money involved bit is important in this case. I understand some teams out there work with money, but I won’t be addressing them, and do you know why? Because money IS AN INCENTIVE, and that’s exactly what most teams here won’t have.
So let’s say you want to make a game and notice you clearly lack many of the skills necessary. Well, damn. What now? Hey, what’s this? There’s a project recruitment section!
Oh, the Project Recruitment section. It’s a riot to see. A sad riot.
Now, let’s be brutal: most of the topics you see there won’t get anywhere. They have not yet grasped the work involved in their vision and are disconnected from reality.
Do me a favour and check the Project Recruitment section. List me all the people who recruited a team there and who actually finished the game. I REALLY wanna know.
But it seems like I’m being way too harsh, yeah? Maybe. But you see, the problem with these recruit topics is that they mostly inherently asking for stuff that will never happen.
Let me list you some of the usual madness:
-They are planning for a 40 hour old epic. (we already discussed how that isn’t gonna work, less for a newbie group)
-They want 10+ people total to work with. (Oh that’s just precious)
-They have no work done yet. (so much of this)
-They are unknown people to the forum. (SO MUCH OF THIS)
-They have no experience themselves. (99% of the time)
-They are selfish fu*ks.
Woops, what was the last one? An exageration. Let me explain first how a team would work, WITHOUT MONEY:
A team is a group that will work together on a game. Now, if you remove money from the equation, you are left with nothing but enthusiasm and willpower. But here lies the problem: if the team is not enthusiastic about the game and willing to work, it won’t happen.
Quickly look at a random project recruitment thread and see how many people who agree to join seem lack any enthusiasm and are just like “lol sure I’ll help”.
You see, what recruiters forget is that (again) they are not the centre of the universe. What to you is a visionary idea that will make a great game, to other people is just YOUR idea. Most of the forum users are folks who already have their OWN ideas, and people are rarely interested in working for others for free.
Now, it is true some folks are happy just working with others or don’t have a clear grip on their own. Awesome for them! But what most “team leaders” don’t understand is that the team members are not your employees.
So many people expect to suddenly have a small army of people to magically produce content at your orders (oh, those recruitment topics that ask for 10+ people, I’m looking at you). That is not gonna happen that easily. People are, by and large, lazy. They may or may not work, but if they enthusiasm fades, especially when working for OTHERS; it’s easy to enter a state of not giving a crap.
Now, this does NOT mean you should never partner up with people. For those that are starting out I suggest trying to get as much done as you can, and maybe ask help in very specific, controlled areas that are very easy to drop in and out of. People are also more willing to work if most of the game is done and you only need some extra stuff to finish, a CONTROLLED and not large amount of “extra”.
You know what the best way to get people to help is? To have stuff already done.
It’s simple, in a community where everyone wants to make stuff and only about 5% have finished a game, having stuff done is proper street cred.
It doesn’t even matter if what you have isn’t that good, finishing games is a skill very, very few people manage. Additionally, if you’re well known for some type of resource it will help, but on the whole having actual games seems to get the most points.
Think about it: if a random stranger asked you for help, would you consider them differently if they had nothing to their name or if they already had a game out?
It’s obvious, right? Of course you’ll trust someone who already has a history to not waste your time. Leaving games unfinished is something that happens way too often even to the most skilled people, anything that ensures you won’t just end twiddling your thumbs is good.
Cooperating is great, but have some sense.
But let’s say you DO manage to get some help beyond small things. You get a member or two maybe, and you are really excited to make a game.
Working in a group is a minefield and honestly I’m not sure I’m a very good example, but here is some advice that won’t go bad for you:
Again, be careful of treating others like employees. Everyone should be treated with respect and you are not entitled to act like an impatient dork and pressing them constantly.
Keep up your own work! No one wants to work hard in a team effort only to see the others are slacking off. It kills motivation.
Communicate. This does not mean random chatting, it means keep a steady stream of reporting to each other if you’re working, if any problems have popped up, doubts, deadlines, anything. Lack of proper communication is what kills most teams, especially when the members don’t know each other very well.
Make deadlines. Especially to coordinate teams, deadlines will help push you forward. Just remember that sometimes real life will not allow all members to run along at the same pace: never try to force others to work past what they are ready to do, or they’ll just get fed up.
Lastly, if things start to go badly, always address problems. This goes for problems with specific members, problems with productions, anything. If a member is doing jack, don’t let it lie, talk about it. If someone has to leave the team, they leave. Don’t mix bad blood into it or make it a melodrama, just don’t ignore the problem and hope it’ll resolve itself.
And now we come to a bitter, nasty thing that will happen to both teams and solo developers…
Don’t make excuses or lie to yourself.
Quick, who’s the most gullible person you can lie to? Yourself.
It is SO EASY to lie to yourself about development out of guilt, to try and make excuses to frantically cover up the fact that something is going wrong.
One of the main triggers of this is a project decaying. No one wants to really abandon ship and you don’t want to just drop all that work and disappoint anyone who supported you.
Don’t. People are not blind, and anyone who’s been around for a while can see the wheels turning in your head. It’s a pity that it didn’t work, but no one really buys the excuses, not even yourself.
Now, do not misunderstand me: if you have to take a break or stuff happens, it happens. There’s nothing wrong with that. But don’t try to string excuses one after another to justify why the game production stopped and will never be revived…
Some projects will die on the vine. Accept it and move on.
It’s sad and it sucks, but it will happen. Maybe you just get pumped for a newer, better game, or you get burned out from your project and just can’t take it anymore.
You can try to take a break, but remember the longer you take the less chances you will return to it. This goes double for “side projects”, they are started as silly things meant to invigorate you, but soon become your main focus until you forget.
Chances are you’ll guiltily try to start working again a couple times only to lose interest.
There is nothing wrong with this. It’s a pity that it did not work out, but dwelling on it isn’t helping you be productive. Just close up shop and move on to the next.
It IS possible to take a break or a side project and go back. No one doubts that. Just know that it’s very hard, specially when you’re starting out and have all these cool ideas you want to make all at once.
Tell the brainstorming for side projects to go f**k itself.
This may not happen to everyone, but my main problem while working is the constant new ideas that pop up and threaten to drag me away from work.
Tell these nagging feelings to eat **** and leave you alone.
A good way to get rid of them is to just write them down. As nothing is ever as perfect as it is in your head, chances are this will stop the incessant nagging.
Let’s be clear here: working on two (never mind more than that) projects at ONCE is nearly impossible and not effective. Some people may manage it better, but in most cases you’re just alternating your focus, not actually doing both.
I’ll be frank: the more projects you have active at once the less you’ll finish. Stop wibbling and make ONE game already.
Play up your strengths but work on your weaknesses too.
How many people have you heard with arguments similar to these:
“The xxxx may not be so good, but the story is what matters!”
“It gets better later!”
“Graphics don’t matter!”
“You’re just being too harsh!”
“Some people like it!”
Can you see a theme? No? Ok.
I’ve recently started LPing games. Usually they’re pretty bad, but not in the way you expect.
It gets better later? Why should I bother sticking around if it’s bad NOW? Graphics don’t matter? F**k you, of course they do. Evertything does.
But we’re not saying every aspect should be glorious. No, the problem is that in that game you are so desperately trying to defend, the presentation or another vital aspect of the game is failing you. Many people in this site are focused on writing OR mechanics OR art…you see the point. They have THIS ONE THING they are good at.
That’s fine, play that up all you can! But don’t leave your weaknesses hanging out. So many games, for example, suffer from:
-Terrible fonts
-Terrible maps
-Terrible grammar/typos
-Terrible boringness
-Terrible combat
Similar situation in different circumstances: You defend a really cool hairstyle and makeup, but your trousers have a gigantic hole in them and your friggin’ ass is showing, IDIOT.
This is often because in game development, specially when you start, you don’t really care much about the areas you’re not directly good at. And THIS is why you do that magic spell I taught you before, and warn people of your newbie status BEFOREHAND.
People will understand: you’re a newbie and still green, and need some tips. Sure, they’ll tell you what you’re doing wrong and what parts seem promising. Without the context of it being a newbie, you will jut see OMG TERRIBLE PRESENTATION WHAT THE HECK IS THIS ****.
It’s SO EASY to destroy a game for a player with the stupidest details: the character moves too slowly, the text is a disaster, the combats happen too often, there is no guidance on what to do next, the graphics make your eyes puke…even if the actual story, or mapping, or combat or whatever you’re very good at is there, if it’s covered in crappy presentation or annoying details it’ll easily translate into a bad experience.
TEST YOUR dayum GAMES!
One of the reasons so many games seem to be so bad is because they clearly lack testing. You can’t tell me you’ve tested your game when during a cutscene vital to the game it gets stuck. Or crashes.
Now, besides obvious bugs, testers (as in OTHER PEOPLE who are not you) are necessary to pinpoint all that is off in the game that you may not notice. All those critical details I listed above? A good tester would have commented “hey, this is hard to read”.
Now, you must ALWAYS test your games YOURSELF first. ALWAYS. Never give an untested game to others: it’s just ****ty and lazy.
That aside, there are certain aspects you should look for in testers, since not everyone does the same:
1-Try to encourage them to rip into you.
Don’t be a pussy, man or woman up and accept your faults. One of the worst things your tester can be is scared of hurting your feelings.
That is also partially your fault: if you’re too easily butthurt the tester won’t have the willpower to sit through your moods and will just wave away anything.
This does NOT mean your testers should be mean bastards, it means they should be ready to tell you when something is wrong without being too skittish to hurt your feelings.
2-Try to have at least two people testing.
It’s easy for anyone to miss things. At the very least, try to always have it tested by two people, AT THE LEAST.
3-Try to find someone who knows what the heck they’re doing.
Sometimes people just aren’t good at criticising. It’s ok, it’s not really their fault. They may want to help but have no idea how.
You may want someone who’s played games (in this case RPGs) knows the tropes and basics, and if possible has messed around with RPG Maker themselves. They don’t have to be PERFECT or super skilled, but just knowing the basic commands can mean they can tell you right away “hey, you messed up the parallel process in here” or anything program related. Likewise they’ll more easily help giving suggestions.
4-You can ask them specific questions.
Does this part feel boring? What do you think of this character? You can give your tester specific things to look out for if you find they don’t usually go in depth.
As a developer sometimes you’ll have the feeling that some parts don’t feel right, and a second opinion is needed.
5-If your tester never criticises you negatively, they should not be your main feedback source.
This goes for friends or family members specially, who may be too attached to you to actually want to make you sad with negative criticism, or have a very heavy bias.
I’m not saying “DON’T LET THESE PEOPLE TEST!”, but don’t rely on them for the main testing.
So a list of some things that make a good tester:
-They can give positive and negative criticism.
-They’re not afraid to tell you every issue.
-They’re not totally biased in your favour.
-Have some knowledge of RPGs in general and RM in particular.
-Are available when needed (some people are awesome but hard to hold on because they’re so busy, so maybe you should get an additional person).
-They PAY ATTENTION to the game. Some testers fail to notice they’re TESTING, not playing normally. Your tester should be trying everything and actively trying to make the game mess up to check for issues.
Now, if you can’t find a tester like this, don’t be sad. Maybe if they stick with you they’ll get better, maybe you’ll get someone else later. The only reason you should get rid of testers is if they are utterly terrible and do not help you at all (and honestly that’s pretty hard when you’re new, since any input is better than none).
If you DO manage to find one of these wonderful testers…APPRECIATE THEM. Be thankful and actually SAY “thank you” every time; implied thanks are nice and all but everyone wants to feel appreciated. They’re giving you their time and support. Never be entitled or arrogant about what they do, even if they’re friends. Always ASK FIRST if they’re available, as even friends will have days when they’re just not up to work.
And I’ve been at this for forever oh heck why is this taking so long ><
Feel free to ask specific things about game dev advice (not super specific like how do you map this special map but more general advice darnit! This isn’t a step by step tutorial >.<).
Otherwise tomorrow I’ll tackle the might, the HORRIBLE…How to FINISH games and FEEDBACK.
DUN DUN DUN DUNNN…!
You’ll suck at first, and that’s okay.
No, don’t start shouting. I don’t want to hear how you’re sure you’ll have the best lucky break ever or how your vision is going to be awesome.
I do not mean to say YOU suck. I mean that when you start you’ll have no experience and won’t be very good. If you’re lucky you’ll have skills in a specific area: say art, writing, programming, music, etc. But chances are, unless you’ve actually made GAMES before, you’ll be new at it.
Have you ever picked up an instrument on the first time and be perfect at it? God no.
What I call “at first” does not necessarily equal first released game, though there’s a high chance that will still be mediocre. Some people mess around with the maker for a long time before even posting anything, some people post their first attempts, etc. Still, until you get some experience down the line, chances are you’ll be bad at it.
And hey, know what’s great about that? It’s the only time where it’s totally accepted. Newbies are EXPECTED to be shaky with the program, and we accept that.
I’ll teach you a wonderful magic spell: Just say you’re a newbie.
BAM BIM BOOM MAGIC HAPPENS WOW!
Now suddenly people won’t be as impatient with you anymore (unless you’re behaving like an idiot) and will shift their stance a bit.
This period is GREAT for messing up. We’ll go over this later in the Feedback section, but know that EVERYONE had their newbie phase, and will largely understand what you’re going through. If you’re nice and don’t get too defensive, people will either help you or just leave you be.
So, about that game you’re making. A nice way to start off is…
Rip apart your initial idea before starting
Who decided they wanted an epic 40 hour game for their first project? What? Everyone? Yeah, story of our freaking life.
Chances are you are envisioning something that will be impossible for you to do. You can start it, sure. But you’ll probably run into problems, get frustrated and abandon the game, or just burn out and trail off.
Here’s a thing about games: they ALWAYS end up bigger than what you set out to do. Wanted to make a simple story where you rescue a princess? Wait, what if we added this really cool backstory, or these features that would kick ass? And suddenly you’re inflating your workload and wondering what the heck happened.
Now, inflation happens, and sometimes it’s for the best. What you want to do is to work your idea to the bare minimum, to the absolute core where you can say “ok, this I will be able to make!”
From that start working, and be careful with new aspects that pop up. Unless you can say with absolute certainty that specific thing will improve your game and is absolutely vital, save it and put it aside. So many games get left behind because they started getting too big and sidetracking.
So, those epic projects? Never work. They rarely work for even actually experienced people, because remember…
You don’t really have a budget, and that changes everything.
And if you do, it’s never the money companies use to make the sort of games you envision.
What? You liked the Final Fantasy series or something like it? That’s nice. Know what those had? Money and a workforce. Know what you have? Yourself and what free time and motivation you can throw at it. Even if you do have some money to spend, it’s easy to lose sight of exactly how much that translates into.
For the purposes of this guide, let’s say you’re a newcomer and don’t have a budget. Start by scaling your visions DOWN.
Don’t panic, it’s okay. Know why it’s not a good idea to make those epic 40 hours games first? Because your first games will never be the best ones. In fact, you may be slightly embarrassed of those a few years down the line.
You know what making games is? A LOT OF WORK.
Anyone who thinks making their dream game won’t take any effort can get out the door RIGHT NOW because I don’t even want to talk to you.
Game making is work. A LOT of work. Like, a LOT. Why do you think so many people never end up doing anything? For most it’s just a hobby, so when the work gets too much, it just gets dropped.
If you are not ready to work hard for the game, be ready to either have a very crappy or at most mediocre game, or never get a game at all.
A lot of the work is also extremely boring and dry. It’s a bit different for everyone, but let me list a few of the usual suspects: choosing fonts and windowskins, polishing and revising, database work, fixing bugs, testing, testing, testing, etc.
Even the things that sound cool like writing or art if that’s your thing can become annoying when you’re trying to polish them, or when it’s just TOO MUCH of it.
Grinding past this work is necessary. It’s not something you can just say “Frick it!” and skip, because it’ll make your game suck. Ask anyone who’s played a clearly untested game. No one likes that crap.
Ok, so you’re willing to work then? Yes? What was that? You want a team? Ahahahaha, well…
What is a team, and why most don’t work.
I expect flames to rain down on me for this, but before anyone gets prissy at me let’s clarify something:
When I talk about a TEAM, in THIS community, I mean a group of two or more people working together with NO PAY (this bit is important) to push out a game.
Yes, the no money involved bit is important in this case. I understand some teams out there work with money, but I won’t be addressing them, and do you know why? Because money IS AN INCENTIVE, and that’s exactly what most teams here won’t have.
So let’s say you want to make a game and notice you clearly lack many of the skills necessary. Well, damn. What now? Hey, what’s this? There’s a project recruitment section!
Oh, the Project Recruitment section. It’s a riot to see. A sad riot.
Now, let’s be brutal: most of the topics you see there won’t get anywhere. They have not yet grasped the work involved in their vision and are disconnected from reality.
Do me a favour and check the Project Recruitment section. List me all the people who recruited a team there and who actually finished the game. I REALLY wanna know.
But it seems like I’m being way too harsh, yeah? Maybe. But you see, the problem with these recruit topics is that they mostly inherently asking for stuff that will never happen.
Let me list you some of the usual madness:
-They are planning for a 40 hour old epic. (we already discussed how that isn’t gonna work, less for a newbie group)
-They want 10+ people total to work with. (Oh that’s just precious)
-They have no work done yet. (so much of this)
-They are unknown people to the forum. (SO MUCH OF THIS)
-They have no experience themselves. (99% of the time)
-They are selfish fu*ks.
Woops, what was the last one? An exageration. Let me explain first how a team would work, WITHOUT MONEY:
A team is a group that will work together on a game. Now, if you remove money from the equation, you are left with nothing but enthusiasm and willpower. But here lies the problem: if the team is not enthusiastic about the game and willing to work, it won’t happen.
Quickly look at a random project recruitment thread and see how many people who agree to join seem lack any enthusiasm and are just like “lol sure I’ll help”.
You see, what recruiters forget is that (again) they are not the centre of the universe. What to you is a visionary idea that will make a great game, to other people is just YOUR idea. Most of the forum users are folks who already have their OWN ideas, and people are rarely interested in working for others for free.
Now, it is true some folks are happy just working with others or don’t have a clear grip on their own. Awesome for them! But what most “team leaders” don’t understand is that the team members are not your employees.
So many people expect to suddenly have a small army of people to magically produce content at your orders (oh, those recruitment topics that ask for 10+ people, I’m looking at you). That is not gonna happen that easily. People are, by and large, lazy. They may or may not work, but if they enthusiasm fades, especially when working for OTHERS; it’s easy to enter a state of not giving a crap.
Now, this does NOT mean you should never partner up with people. For those that are starting out I suggest trying to get as much done as you can, and maybe ask help in very specific, controlled areas that are very easy to drop in and out of. People are also more willing to work if most of the game is done and you only need some extra stuff to finish, a CONTROLLED and not large amount of “extra”.
You know what the best way to get people to help is? To have stuff already done.
It’s simple, in a community where everyone wants to make stuff and only about 5% have finished a game, having stuff done is proper street cred.
It doesn’t even matter if what you have isn’t that good, finishing games is a skill very, very few people manage. Additionally, if you’re well known for some type of resource it will help, but on the whole having actual games seems to get the most points.
Think about it: if a random stranger asked you for help, would you consider them differently if they had nothing to their name or if they already had a game out?
It’s obvious, right? Of course you’ll trust someone who already has a history to not waste your time. Leaving games unfinished is something that happens way too often even to the most skilled people, anything that ensures you won’t just end twiddling your thumbs is good.
Cooperating is great, but have some sense.
But let’s say you DO manage to get some help beyond small things. You get a member or two maybe, and you are really excited to make a game.
Working in a group is a minefield and honestly I’m not sure I’m a very good example, but here is some advice that won’t go bad for you:
Again, be careful of treating others like employees. Everyone should be treated with respect and you are not entitled to act like an impatient dork and pressing them constantly.
Keep up your own work! No one wants to work hard in a team effort only to see the others are slacking off. It kills motivation.
Communicate. This does not mean random chatting, it means keep a steady stream of reporting to each other if you’re working, if any problems have popped up, doubts, deadlines, anything. Lack of proper communication is what kills most teams, especially when the members don’t know each other very well.
Make deadlines. Especially to coordinate teams, deadlines will help push you forward. Just remember that sometimes real life will not allow all members to run along at the same pace: never try to force others to work past what they are ready to do, or they’ll just get fed up.
Lastly, if things start to go badly, always address problems. This goes for problems with specific members, problems with productions, anything. If a member is doing jack, don’t let it lie, talk about it. If someone has to leave the team, they leave. Don’t mix bad blood into it or make it a melodrama, just don’t ignore the problem and hope it’ll resolve itself.
And now we come to a bitter, nasty thing that will happen to both teams and solo developers…
Don’t make excuses or lie to yourself.
Quick, who’s the most gullible person you can lie to? Yourself.
It is SO EASY to lie to yourself about development out of guilt, to try and make excuses to frantically cover up the fact that something is going wrong.
One of the main triggers of this is a project decaying. No one wants to really abandon ship and you don’t want to just drop all that work and disappoint anyone who supported you.
Don’t. People are not blind, and anyone who’s been around for a while can see the wheels turning in your head. It’s a pity that it didn’t work, but no one really buys the excuses, not even yourself.
Now, do not misunderstand me: if you have to take a break or stuff happens, it happens. There’s nothing wrong with that. But don’t try to string excuses one after another to justify why the game production stopped and will never be revived…
Some projects will die on the vine. Accept it and move on.
It’s sad and it sucks, but it will happen. Maybe you just get pumped for a newer, better game, or you get burned out from your project and just can’t take it anymore.
You can try to take a break, but remember the longer you take the less chances you will return to it. This goes double for “side projects”, they are started as silly things meant to invigorate you, but soon become your main focus until you forget.
Chances are you’ll guiltily try to start working again a couple times only to lose interest.
There is nothing wrong with this. It’s a pity that it did not work out, but dwelling on it isn’t helping you be productive. Just close up shop and move on to the next.
It IS possible to take a break or a side project and go back. No one doubts that. Just know that it’s very hard, specially when you’re starting out and have all these cool ideas you want to make all at once.
Tell the brainstorming for side projects to go f**k itself.
This may not happen to everyone, but my main problem while working is the constant new ideas that pop up and threaten to drag me away from work.
Tell these nagging feelings to eat **** and leave you alone.
A good way to get rid of them is to just write them down. As nothing is ever as perfect as it is in your head, chances are this will stop the incessant nagging.
Let’s be clear here: working on two (never mind more than that) projects at ONCE is nearly impossible and not effective. Some people may manage it better, but in most cases you’re just alternating your focus, not actually doing both.
I’ll be frank: the more projects you have active at once the less you’ll finish. Stop wibbling and make ONE game already.
Play up your strengths but work on your weaknesses too.
How many people have you heard with arguments similar to these:
“The xxxx may not be so good, but the story is what matters!”
“It gets better later!”
“Graphics don’t matter!”
“You’re just being too harsh!”
“Some people like it!”
Can you see a theme? No? Ok.
I’ve recently started LPing games. Usually they’re pretty bad, but not in the way you expect.
It gets better later? Why should I bother sticking around if it’s bad NOW? Graphics don’t matter? F**k you, of course they do. Evertything does.
But we’re not saying every aspect should be glorious. No, the problem is that in that game you are so desperately trying to defend, the presentation or another vital aspect of the game is failing you. Many people in this site are focused on writing OR mechanics OR art…you see the point. They have THIS ONE THING they are good at.
That’s fine, play that up all you can! But don’t leave your weaknesses hanging out. So many games, for example, suffer from:
-Terrible fonts
-Terrible maps
-Terrible grammar/typos
-Terrible boringness
-Terrible combat
Similar situation in different circumstances: You defend a really cool hairstyle and makeup, but your trousers have a gigantic hole in them and your friggin’ ass is showing, IDIOT.
This is often because in game development, specially when you start, you don’t really care much about the areas you’re not directly good at. And THIS is why you do that magic spell I taught you before, and warn people of your newbie status BEFOREHAND.
People will understand: you’re a newbie and still green, and need some tips. Sure, they’ll tell you what you’re doing wrong and what parts seem promising. Without the context of it being a newbie, you will jut see OMG TERRIBLE PRESENTATION WHAT THE HECK IS THIS ****.
It’s SO EASY to destroy a game for a player with the stupidest details: the character moves too slowly, the text is a disaster, the combats happen too often, there is no guidance on what to do next, the graphics make your eyes puke…even if the actual story, or mapping, or combat or whatever you’re very good at is there, if it’s covered in crappy presentation or annoying details it’ll easily translate into a bad experience.
TEST YOUR dayum GAMES!
One of the reasons so many games seem to be so bad is because they clearly lack testing. You can’t tell me you’ve tested your game when during a cutscene vital to the game it gets stuck. Or crashes.
Now, besides obvious bugs, testers (as in OTHER PEOPLE who are not you) are necessary to pinpoint all that is off in the game that you may not notice. All those critical details I listed above? A good tester would have commented “hey, this is hard to read”.
Now, you must ALWAYS test your games YOURSELF first. ALWAYS. Never give an untested game to others: it’s just ****ty and lazy.
That aside, there are certain aspects you should look for in testers, since not everyone does the same:
1-Try to encourage them to rip into you.
Don’t be a pussy, man or woman up and accept your faults. One of the worst things your tester can be is scared of hurting your feelings.
That is also partially your fault: if you’re too easily butthurt the tester won’t have the willpower to sit through your moods and will just wave away anything.
This does NOT mean your testers should be mean bastards, it means they should be ready to tell you when something is wrong without being too skittish to hurt your feelings.
2-Try to have at least two people testing.
It’s easy for anyone to miss things. At the very least, try to always have it tested by two people, AT THE LEAST.
3-Try to find someone who knows what the heck they’re doing.
Sometimes people just aren’t good at criticising. It’s ok, it’s not really their fault. They may want to help but have no idea how.
You may want someone who’s played games (in this case RPGs) knows the tropes and basics, and if possible has messed around with RPG Maker themselves. They don’t have to be PERFECT or super skilled, but just knowing the basic commands can mean they can tell you right away “hey, you messed up the parallel process in here” or anything program related. Likewise they’ll more easily help giving suggestions.
4-You can ask them specific questions.
Does this part feel boring? What do you think of this character? You can give your tester specific things to look out for if you find they don’t usually go in depth.
As a developer sometimes you’ll have the feeling that some parts don’t feel right, and a second opinion is needed.
5-If your tester never criticises you negatively, they should not be your main feedback source.
This goes for friends or family members specially, who may be too attached to you to actually want to make you sad with negative criticism, or have a very heavy bias.
I’m not saying “DON’T LET THESE PEOPLE TEST!”, but don’t rely on them for the main testing.
So a list of some things that make a good tester:
-They can give positive and negative criticism.
-They’re not afraid to tell you every issue.
-They’re not totally biased in your favour.
-Have some knowledge of RPGs in general and RM in particular.
-Are available when needed (some people are awesome but hard to hold on because they’re so busy, so maybe you should get an additional person).
-They PAY ATTENTION to the game. Some testers fail to notice they’re TESTING, not playing normally. Your tester should be trying everything and actively trying to make the game mess up to check for issues.
Now, if you can’t find a tester like this, don’t be sad. Maybe if they stick with you they’ll get better, maybe you’ll get someone else later. The only reason you should get rid of testers is if they are utterly terrible and do not help you at all (and honestly that’s pretty hard when you’re new, since any input is better than none).
If you DO manage to find one of these wonderful testers…APPRECIATE THEM. Be thankful and actually SAY “thank you” every time; implied thanks are nice and all but everyone wants to feel appreciated. They’re giving you their time and support. Never be entitled or arrogant about what they do, even if they’re friends. Always ASK FIRST if they’re available, as even friends will have days when they’re just not up to work.
And I’ve been at this for forever oh heck why is this taking so long ><
Feel free to ask specific things about game dev advice (not super specific like how do you map this special map but more general advice darnit! This isn’t a step by step tutorial >.<).
Otherwise tomorrow I’ll tackle the might, the HORRIBLE…How to FINISH games and FEEDBACK.
DUN DUN DUN DUNNN…!
======================
Topics to come:
-How to FINISH a game.
-How to handle feedback.
-(feel free to suggest any topic broad enough, nothign step by step)
Also psss, hey! Hey you! The one who got all butthurt over this!
You know what? I don’t care
No but really, none of this is personal, and if I’m being harsh it’s because I remember MYSELF making 99% of these mistakes at some point. You’re free to not agree with what I say and all, as I stated it’s all born from personal experience.
(And if you just want to be patted and pampered I honestly don’t give much of a ****. I don’t have to care for strangers because, remember? You’re entitled to JACK SQUAT as far as I’m concerned).
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