Feeling Frustrated - Need Some Advice

[dreamfall887]

I bought RPG Maker two years ago (I think...) and I STILL haven't finished a project. I've made a couple of practice projects (testing scripts, gameplay ideas etc) but not a full game. I also have a problem when I will start a new project, make a couple maps, cutscenes, battles blah blah then get stuck on something or get bored and abandon the project.

I want to create a short game but I'm finding it pretty difficult so far. I'm embarrased to admit that I'm pretty terrible at maths, so trying to understand stuff like balancing game stats, formula.. it just goes completely over my head.
I have zero scripting knowledge so sometimes I struggle to understand certain scripts. I find Yanfly's scripts easy to use but some scripts like sideview or abs battle scripts I just find confusing. Also I can't draw.

I'm making this game completely by myself, no one I know IRL is interested in game development. I enjoy coming up with ideas for story, gameplay, minigames, enemy and boss fights but I feel like my bad maths skills and lack of scripting knowledge and art skill is holding me back. I wish I had someone by my side who can help me, I just feel overwhelmed by all the work I have to do alone.

So I guess what I'm asking is this:

• Is anyone else in the same situation (creator's block, lack of progress, frustation)?

• If you have completed a game or games, can you give me some advice on how you created your game(s)?

• Anyone who make games solo, how do you overcome your weaknesses? (bad at art, bad at math, no scripting knowledge)

Any advice any of you can offer would be great.

Thanks

 

[Jonforum]

To develop in solo, it is necessary to specialize like technician generalist.
I do not think that I will be launched in a project of games, without general knowing.

I study:
Photoshop for Art
After effect for animation
Javascript for for the core rmmv
Html CSS and php for The webSite
And many other thecnic ...
intel XDK for understand the publish
More study math, because is essential for JS
.......
I do not want to discourage you, but if you want make a game with rpg maker is adapting to make small games easy, however, if you want make i very awesome game, you simply need to more study.
The forum community is very pleasant and it also help me a lot.

However this remains my coder opinion.

 

[Andar]

you are not alone in that - in fact there are already several discussions of this, the previous one having been created only one or two months ago.

However, there are only two things that will allow you to overcome those blocks in the long term.

1) determination - the ability to force yourself to continue working even on the booring parts
2) one alternative to switch - another hobby project that is different in several parts at minimum and that you can switch to if you have a real content block and need timeout before you can continue, without that timeout turning into laziness or habit.

Other than that, search the forum for the previous discussions on this to learn what advice others have given in the last five years.

 

[Avery]

Hello dreamfall!
I guess most people are once in a similar situation. I mean, look at me, I use RPG Maker since 2007, and since 2011 on a regular base. I never finished a game, but I am fine with it.
If I was you I would try to have a look at my strenghts first. Maybe you suck at maths, but perhaps you are great at designing puzzles? Not every game has to be a "Kill that evil Overlord"-RPG, of course. How about something with point and click dynamics? Or a stealth game?

Now that you maybe have a rough idea, I would search for resources first. Maybe you can't make them yourself, but there are sooo many good works out there. So I would try not to plan a game where you can't find the fitting resources in the end but look what is there and see what you can make out of it. Costum heroes? Heck, there are tons of costum chars on japanese resource sites with matching faces noone ever used as hero in his/her game! On the other hand you will find so much inspiration there! Oh, a tons of horses with different colors? I could make a "The letter is in the bag on the saddle of a horse with this color sheme" puzzle! Oh, wow, nice mermaid, she could be a cursed princess... and so on!

You now know what is possible resourcewise and in your skill range! Work with it!
Try to aim small - what is easier of you aim for a small world. Maybe your heroes have to work in a single town because there is an evil king who is paranoid and lets noone but his soldieres enter or leave the town. Find the rebellion, steal the things you need and help to free the town!
Maybe you set the game on an island, or at an oasis, or a village in the middle of nowhere. You'll see, there is so much less to map and so much more time to spend on gameplay and good maps.

I had a great setting fleshed out to overcome my own weaknesses when I found my strength was resources and now I only make that. Maybe I will never finish a game, but I am having fun with RM and that's all I need!

 

[King Gerar]

If it makes you feel any better, I work with RPG Maker since 2011 and never finished a game as well.

All depends of how good you want your game. A game with default graphics, mechanics and boring story, you does in three months. However, to make own graphics and to build a good plot, takes time. Along this seven years, I learned much, then, when I finish a game, will be a good game. And it will makes me proud.

As a teacher speaks here: "delay to go, but when you go, don't come back not even to get impulse."

Anyway, while hobby, you don't have obligation finish any game. Only trial this path.

 

[JamesRyan]

I usually take a short break when i feel frustrated, and take some time to think about what i should do next. Don't force yourself too hard. Ideas will not come out that way.
I finished my last project with my friend as a partner, but 90% of the work was done by me alone, while i still had to wait for his work to be done. And now my current project is in progress, and i think i'm doing it all alone because my partner once agreed to participate (another 10% of work), but he has done nothing for more than a month, even when i gently ask him to do. This really makes me feel frustrated, but i don't think i will give up.

 

[Lantiz]

Welcome to the club :b

Now really, It's not easy... been working alone since ever, sometimes you gota stop for a while and just chill, do other stuff.
At some point you'll get new ideas and get excited about your games again.

Sometimes I think about joining other people projects (see the project recruitment threads), it does not work for me because every time I find a project that I'd like be part of, it's already filled with people. But maybe it works for you [:

 

[Faherya]

Do not worry about it. Developing a good game is not as easy as it sounds. It takes discipline, study, and a lot of time. Soon you do not have to be frustrated by STILL having not finished a game. I myself have been using RPG Maker for years (I started around 2012 ~ 2013) and I have not finished anything either. Not even a minigame.

As they said, try a team. Working alone can be difficult, you need good knowledge in all areas. I recommend that you specialize in the area you like the most. This keeps the process fun even if you can not finish it. In the end, that's what matters.

 

[KaiWeWi]

I use RPG Makers since 2013 (I own every RPG Maker so far but mostly used VX Ace and MV) and I created half a game xD
I have lots of ideas for stories and characters and like to map huge landscapes, but I didn't make complete games with those.
Instead, some time ago, I started to make my own resources. I am currently working on MV character generator parts and find that I am improving my pixeling skills a lot.
I am not sad that I never finished a game up until now. I just found creating resources to be a way more interesting hobby for me. Makes me really proud whenever I finish something difficult ^^

Don't worry and don't give up. You can do it. Don't stress yourself, take your time and just play around with the different mechanics of your Maker. Maybe watch a few tutorials. You will make progress and improve over time. There is no need to hurry. ;-)
Try a lot of different things and you will eventually find a way you can use RM to match your personal strengths and interests.


PS: Also, you shouldn't believe that you suck at creating art. Everyone "sucks" in the beginning, it takes a lot of practise (and of course the right graphics software) to draw something really good. It took me forever to figure out the correct technique to make things look less pixelated.

 

[dreamfall887]

A lot of good advice here, thank you everyone!

 

[Nutty171]

This might not help you in the long run, but challenge yourself to make a game in one hour or so. Sure, the game's going to be terrible and short, but it can be really fun to make. Plus you get the added bonus of finishing a project!

 

[ScientistWD]

I have owned RPG Maker MV for less than a full year.

Last summer, I made a game. It was a lot of work! My friend made some of the maps and I did the rest. It took two or four months, I don't remember.
Click here to check it out, I guess. It's called Sargasso.
The thing is, I went in with a few rules in mind:

1. I only allowed myself to use default assets. So no custom art or music.
2. The game was to be short. This mostly meant actors didn't level up.
3. The battles were meant to be something of a prototype for another game I would make.
4. There would be three main maps, with a few smaller ones to supplement them. And that's all.

It still took me a lot longer than I thought, but I did finish it. It's only a few hours long. It definitely isn't perfect, but I did learn a lot.
After, I started working on Esperia, which was to be like Sargasso's sequel. I was going to make it slightly bigger; a few level ups, a bigger map, a weapon crafting system, and more skills. That was all.
And I quickly realized that it was too much. Within a month, I'd lost it.
I decided to make a different game that was a few steps less than Esperia. I've been working on it since January. It still has leveling up, a map (4 areas instead of Esperia's 7~11), a crafting system that Sargasso never had, still with a bit of a complex combat system. But, it also has all my own art and music. I'm not the best at art or music. My forum icon is some of my best work.
Here's how it looks. These are old screenshots, and it looks better now. But still. Like this. And don't even get me started on the scraps of "music" I may or may not have yet.
I've worked and reworked it a dozen times, drawn and redrawn the map, designed and redesigned the skills. I learned Javascript only by interacting with RPG Maker more and more, and I've made plugins that, it turns out, I'm not even going to use. Every few months I shake the foundations of its core. But, every time I do, the picture of the game I'm making gets clearer and clearer in my head. I've got a good feeling that I'm closer than I feel. And this time, as opposed to Esperia, I feel like I can do it. The art, the music, the plugins, and the game. Even if it takes a few more months' time.

The moral of the story is to start with something small. I actually often look to Sargasso when making other games, because it turned out so well in my opinion. It doesn't have to be big to be fun and it doesn't have to be fancy to be fresh.

Just as a spitball idea: can you make a fun game that is only one battle long? All the maps and cutscenes it needs. And only one battle?

 

[Milennin]

I guess there are very few people who excel in all areas of gamemaking. Most people will have to work around their weaknesses somehow, because finding reliable people to help you is almost impossible if you're not paying them.

For my most recent game that I actually finished, I took whatever I found I'm best at and enjoy working on the most (challenging, well-balanced combat system) and focused almost purely on just that. I deliberately limited myself severely, so I could work on just the thing I liked:
-No story
-No character interactions
-No custom graphics or parallax mapping
-No items, no equipment
-RTP assets only
-Not requiring hundreds of fancy scripts, only the bare minimum.
-One town, one dungeon.
-Limited number of monsters and battle encounters.
-Only four skills per playable character.
-Game must be playable from begin to end within 30 minutes.
Holding myself to those limits made it actually somewhat easy to finish the game, because there were so little distractions apart from figuring out the combat system and lots of playtesting to make sure it's all balanced.

 

[Skunk]

I know quite a few people who use rpg maker as a means for making art, and for expression as opposed to making games for sale and what not.
I've been using rpg maker since I was 15 years old, i'm 28 now.
Ive never released a single game, yet i've only put it down for a total of a couple years in that time.
Making games alone is an interesting struggle. I come from the music industry before the gaming industry but in using rpg maker i've come to realize that its a very similar field.
You either have a hit or you don't.

But don't give up, if you are passionate about developing a game and creating a world then maybe you are taking your time because you want it to be perfect.
Cheers

 

[XIIIthHarbinger]

Is anyone else in the same situation (creator's block, lack of progress, frustation)?

Only about 99.9% of everyone who has ever used some iteration of RPG Maker. Understand I am not saying this to dismiss you, but you've essentially just described virtually every RPG Maker user ever. I sincerely doubt you can find anyone here who hasn't gone through periods of exactly what you're talking about.

& to be blunt, most advice you could be given on the subject, amounts to little more than platitudes when it comes to this sort of thing. There are only two options, either you keep going, or you quit.

If you have completed a game or games, can you give me some advice on how you created your game(s)?

If I had to put a number on the number of people who have actually completed a game with any iteration of RPG Maker, I would say it's about 1% of the total user base. & of that 1% who have made a game, I would say that 90% of those games aren't anything more than shovelware slapped together "hey look I made a video game", whose creator never made a second game because they realized how much work actually goes into making a game. There is a reason why RPG Maker games have the reputation that they do.

I am not saying this to discourage you, merely putting things into perspective. You should understand that most people pick up a Unity, a GameGuru, a GameMaker, or an RPG Maker dramatically underestimating just how much of an investment of time & energy it takes to make a game worth putting your name on. Which is why the overwhelming majority of people when they encounter what you are talking about, quit. While those who push forward, have to make a great deal of personal sacrifice, to make something worthwhile.

For example, on my project I have affectionately dubbed "the monster" (not the title), version whatever the hell I am up to at this point.

I started with VX Ace, & I am honestly not certain how much time I put in on that iteration. Then I picked up MV through Steam, & transferred the project over to MV, rebuilding the whole thing from square one. Steam tells me I've topped 3200 hours on the program this month, which is equivalent to working a full time job for a year & six months. That's also not factoring in time spent brainstorming with a notepad & pen, or time spent in secondary programs like GIMP.

If I had to guess I am sitting somewhere between 4,000 & 5,000 hours of time invested in this project grand total; & I MIGHT be at beta testing phase for it before I hit the 5,000 active hours in MV on Steam, which will probably put me over 7,000 hours total time investment.

Advice, tips, tricks? Sure between everyone here, an encyclopedia could probably be written; but at the end of the day those are about "how do I do X?" which isn't really what this is about. You're asking how do other people stay motivated when they hit the wall.

Why do I keep working year & after year, carrying around a notepad & pen brainstorming random details about stories, classes, characters, world lore, etcetera; chipping away at that monolith? Because I think it's worth it, that's it. Everything else is just superfluous details that are entirely project dependent.

Anyone who make games solo, how do you overcome your weaknesses? (bad at art, bad at math, no scripting knowledge)

Either learn to do those things, or stop being a solo. "I am bad at X" is simply an excuse.

Whether it's purchasing what you need, hiring out what you need by commission, or joining a team of people who can do what you can't, you find people who can get you what you need. Or you teach yourself to do what you need to do.

One involves greater expenditures of money, the other involves greater expenditures of time. If you aren't willing to do either, then discard whatever it is you're trying to do, & create a new plan that doesn't require what you can't produce or procure.

 

[dreamfall887]

Thank you Nutty171, ScientistWD, Milennin and Skunk!
And thank you, XIIIthHarbinger, for being honest with me.

 

[ShinGamix]

Here is some advise....

Know what your goals are! If it is to finish a game start off with small ones and grow to larger ones.
Do not go for an epic final fantasy or Zelda killer type game on your first couple tries.
Realize that you most likely will not get all the features in the project you want to.
Don't go overboard: Keep it simple.
Set goals and stick to them.
Make it fun and enjoyable for yourself and it most likely will be for others too.
When you get stuck try a fresh perspective or get advise from us in the community.
Feel free to ask me if ya need to. I have been lurking or around for a while now.

 

[dreamfall887]

Thank you ShinGamix!

 

[bgillisp]

Just remember that chances are, no one is going to be good at everything. Work on what you are good at, and try to become tolerable with what you are bad at. So if you are bad at balancing, maybe make the rest of the game but give every monster 1's in all stats until the game is done? Then, when you have a full story (or need a break from the story), go back and tweak the numbers. And understand that balancing takes many, many, many, many playthroughs, and even AAA games don't often get it right (the number of guidedangit moments that Final Fantasy has are shockingly high).

To give you an idea, I'm on iteration I lost count for my balancing run. Thankfully it seems to be mostly add 1 - 2 points here, remove 1 - 2 points there now, so it's almost there.

 

[umbralshadows]

• Is anyone else in the same situation (creator's block, lack of progress, frustation)?

i never really been there i usually finish everything i start? ? but it does take time an creative thinking ta get round tha obstacles an allso be prepared ta cut or change allot

• If you have completed a game or games, can you give me some advice on how you created your game(s)?

i had a clear idea a tha main things i wanted in tha game an whatever was to hard for me i substituted with a similar thing. i worked on it allmost every day an allso learned things in between ta use in later builds or to perfect what i put in (kept it simple)

• Anyone who make games solo, how do you overcome your weaknesses? (bad at art, bad at math, no scripting knowledge)

learn to strengthen yer weaknesses. in game desine this' easy cuzz theres free tutorials on allmost every part a game makin. an i think tha most important part- never give up. even if ya cant get tha hang a it at first use something more simple until ya learn more an then yer later builds or games can be better made