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20 Hours of Game Dev Per Week with Fulltime Job?
- Thread starter 11clock
- Start date
11clock
Member
Not productive enough for me, and I don’t have a relationship nor kids to worry about currently, so I can afford 20 hours per week. I am just trying to figure out how to schedule it. I am currently doing 16 hours per week, 2 hours right after work Monday to Thursday and 4 hours Saturday and Sunday. But I am not finding mere 2 hour sessions long enough, yet I still want my free time. Also my co-workers want to do Saturday outings and that is messing with my schedule a bit (I usually prefer to not have a social life as an extreme introvert).Not doing 20 hours of gamedev a week next to a fulltime job is a good way to schedule for not wanting to kill yourself...
I have a fulltime job, a relationship and 3,5 year old twins to take care of, and I usually do gamedev on 4 nights a week for about 1-2 hours per night.
T
Timze
Guest
Make a list of all your daily activities then prioritize them from 1 to [end].
1 being the most important last being not so important.
Start seeing which things you can cut out and replace with game dev time.
You could also do things while you do other things. Say your on your lunch break on work. All your doing is eating... so think about the things you want to implement in your game or code you are having trouble with. get out a pen and pad start writing out some rough code. You might solve the problem then it's just a matter of putting it into GMS2 when you get home. As opposed to sitting at the computer bangin your head lol
Could also do this while working out and so on.
You could also write out code while on your breaks at work or if it's a slow day.
1 being the most important last being not so important.
Start seeing which things you can cut out and replace with game dev time.
You could also do things while you do other things. Say your on your lunch break on work. All your doing is eating... so think about the things you want to implement in your game or code you are having trouble with. get out a pen and pad start writing out some rough code. You might solve the problem then it's just a matter of putting it into GMS2 when you get home. As opposed to sitting at the computer bangin your head lol
Could also do this while working out and so on.
You could also write out code while on your breaks at work or if it's a slow day.
M
MishMash
Guest
Considering just last week you made a topic on not having enough energy for gamedev, I think its worth reframing the problem. One big thing I noticed at my time at university is that hours could become ultimately meaningless. Obviously, the more time you can put into something, the more likely you are to get results, however it can also fast-track you to a quick burn out if you are not careful. Equally, not hitting an hour "quota" can make you feel bad and reduce motivation further. Often this comes associated with imposter syndrome, and once you start having thoughts like that, the whole work ethic will collapse.
Instead, one thing I often say to people when talking about this subject is that being efficient is by far more important than the amount of raw work you put in. Often times, I was able to get far more done than my course mates by simply taking a more efficient approach and being smarter with my time. This meant doing things like:
So yeah, I think the best course of action isn't to think about this in terms of "hours", but rather to think about how you can make efficient use of your time. You can make one hour into two hours if you are really efficient. No need to beat yourself up if you only manage an hour or two in an evening, those could end up being really productive hours and ultimately, that's more beneficial for both your project and your mental state than forcing yourself to sit there for x number of hours just to tick some imaginary box. You can also apply this line of thinking to your every day life. Naturally, it doesn't bode too well with the conventional attitude of working in terms of hours. In jobs, I often find myself getting mugged off because I work hard to get the work done, but ultimately, that just means more work for no extra pay
I'd also chip in and say depending on what kind of job you have, sometimes you can squeeze in time for planning and problem solving there. I used to work as an IT support technician at the University. Whilst it was busy most of the time, i'd get days where barely any problems cropped up and I could spend that time getting a head-start on planning so that when I got back, I was ready to go
Instead, one thing I often say to people when talking about this subject is that being efficient is by far more important than the amount of raw work you put in. Often times, I was able to get far more done than my course mates by simply taking a more efficient approach and being smarter with my time. This meant doing things like:
- - Not testing every micro-change you make, doing a few things at once and testing all of those things independently when you run the app. In the case of gamedev, this means not doing something like changing the colour of text, or moving some sprite on the HUD and running just to verify the new position.
- - Good initial planning. You should have a good idea of what your code is going to do before you start writing it. If you have a plan, then it can be quick just to write functions all in one go, adhering to a specification. This often means you can write loads of small functions that make up a system and be confident in the overall behaviour. This both increases efficiency and reduces the need for testing.
This could also mean dedicating one entire days worth of time to planning, which would mean that a smaller block of time would end up being suitable for implementation tasks.
- - Make time count. Sometimes, when setting aside large blocks of time for work, this can ultimately lead to people faffing around, doing micro-procrastination such as browsing the forums. My personal approach tends to be more along the lines of setting aside tasks, and completing a task in full but then having a break after that.
- - Be more pragmatic in your approach to complex problems. Sometimes it is okay to solve problems emperically, by creating a simple solution and randomly testing values. Sometimes this can be okay, but sometimes, it is more time efficient to spend a little bit of extra time working out the maths, reasoning about any problems your system has and finding the correct values/equations that better model your problem. A good example of this is something like getting AI to shoot projectiles and land their targets correctly.
- - Identify when things are slowing you down, try and work out why (Whether its because you are conflicted on the game design behind a mechanic, or whether it's harder than anticipated and bringing up technical challenges). Try and avoid wasting time when you are mentally blocked, and perhaps either do something else (unrelated to programming), have a break or move onto a different task. Ultimately, banging your head against a wall won't solve the problem. Normally with these things, approaching the problem again on a different day can bring you in with a fresh perspective. Sometimes you also need to sleep on a problem.
- - Identify when you are becoming burnt out/becoming less efficient. It's all too easy to feel the pressure of gamedev and try and power through, but sometimes this just results in a loss of productivity. Generally, when the motivation dips, the ability to execute sound development practices goes down the toilet aswell, meaning slower development and ultimately no opportunity to recharge. Taking time off in the short term can often result in increased productivity down the line. Forcing yourself to try and do too much is a recipe for disaster and will ultimately lead to bad things down the road. I had an awful month in March, getting into a bit of a rut and not achieving much, but equally, not allowing myself to recharge properly.
- - On really busy days, sometimes just chipping in a small 30 minute feature can make you feel really good, as you are then doing work that otherwise wouldn't have made it in. Whilst I prefer to work in big chunks, I tend to use small windows of time to get my motivation rolling, setting myself a challenge of trying to finish something in 20-30 minutes. I rarely do finish a task that quickly, but it often motivates me, making me want to get back to it asap. Meaning whilst I am out, I am constantly thinking about it and often doing a bit of subconcious problem solving/planning in my head
So yeah, I think the best course of action isn't to think about this in terms of "hours", but rather to think about how you can make efficient use of your time. You can make one hour into two hours if you are really efficient. No need to beat yourself up if you only manage an hour or two in an evening, those could end up being really productive hours and ultimately, that's more beneficial for both your project and your mental state than forcing yourself to sit there for x number of hours just to tick some imaginary box. You can also apply this line of thinking to your every day life. Naturally, it doesn't bode too well with the conventional attitude of working in terms of hours. In jobs, I often find myself getting mugged off because I work hard to get the work done, but ultimately, that just means more work for no extra pay
I'd also chip in and say depending on what kind of job you have, sometimes you can squeeze in time for planning and problem solving there. I used to work as an IT support technician at the University. Whilst it was busy most of the time, i'd get days where barely any problems cropped up and I could spend that time getting a head-start on planning so that when I got back, I was ready to go
Niels
Member
But you made a thread about not having the energy for gamedev in the evenngs... sounds like you are burning yourself out.
If your projects are so big that you need 20h gamedev a week to get anywhere, why don't you team up?
11clock
Member
That topic is dated, I quickly fixed that by reducing coffee intake and starting game dev as soon as I get home from work. So far it has been working well, although it is hard to commit to it sometimes when I need to do other things like go grocery shopping. Also I am already in a team.
At the moment I am at 16 hours a week, although it gets interrupted at times by IRL things. I am trying to figure out how to make it 20 hours with less interruptions.
BaBiA Game Studio
Member
16 hours sounds pretty good. Why is 20 hours such a magical/specific number of hours for you? Is that additional 4 hours a week (perhaps 1 hour extra per night) really going to make that much difference to what you are working on?
You will always get interruptions: the phone rings - interruption even if you don't pick it up; family members talk to you - interruption; pets deciding they want attention - interruption; toilet breaks - interruption.
There's just no way to get around it, you will be interrupted no matter what you do - unless you lock yourself away with zero ways for people to bother you.
I would just take that 16 hours and roll with it. If you find that in one evening you suddenly find that there is nothing else happening and you can cram another 1-2 hours in then good for you. As has already been mentioned, you should probably not focus on the hours and instead focus on the tasks that need to be done. If you have a series of bugs, then target that you will quash those by the end of the night. If you have some specific object and related code that you want to get done, then focus on that for as long as it takes to do it (even if it means spreading it over a couple of nights). Progress should be measured on tasks achieved, not the number of hours that you are working.
sitebender
Member
Its possible. I don't get much sleep.
If you feel you want to kill yourself... stop doing what you're doing. Go do something else. Being chained to a computer isn't for everyone.
If you feel you want to kill yourself... stop doing what you're doing. Go do something else. Being chained to a computer isn't for everyone.
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Famine
Guest
Not sure what you mean by this question? Do you not feel just working on your game during that 20 hours is enough until the game is done? Or are you looking for specifics on what parts of the game you should be working on during that 20 hours?
I mean, I've worked in gaming as my full-time job for like 7 years. I wake up, go into work knowing that all day, I'm working on the project. This is often greater than 40 hours a week where I'm doing something on said project. What specifically just depends on whats on the plate for the current project and plan accordingly.
If you're just looking for ideas to plan out your week then obviously sink some investment into some type of task tracker or project management tool that allows you to once a week to plan out that entire week with tasks. Then just bang them out during that 20 hours. Next week comes, revisit, rinse and repeat until project is ready to ship. Agile/SCRUM is a good practice if you want to plan out 2-week sprints and tackle it that way.
As to not trying to kill yourself. Well, if you feel that doing this even part-time is not for you, maybe you should consider not doing this. I don't know about you, but I actually liked waking up and working on video games for a living. If I felt that doing work on the project full-time was going to kill me, then it sounds like this is a job not for me.
I mean, I've worked in gaming as my full-time job for like 7 years. I wake up, go into work knowing that all day, I'm working on the project. This is often greater than 40 hours a week where I'm doing something on said project. What specifically just depends on whats on the plate for the current project and plan accordingly.
If you're just looking for ideas to plan out your week then obviously sink some investment into some type of task tracker or project management tool that allows you to once a week to plan out that entire week with tasks. Then just bang them out during that 20 hours. Next week comes, revisit, rinse and repeat until project is ready to ship. Agile/SCRUM is a good practice if you want to plan out 2-week sprints and tackle it that way.
As to not trying to kill yourself. Well, if you feel that doing this even part-time is not for you, maybe you should consider not doing this. I don't know about you, but I actually liked waking up and working on video games for a living. If I felt that doing work on the project full-time was going to kill me, then it sounds like this is a job not for me.
11clock
Member
I like the idea of trying to implement agile development. My team has done partial implementations of it in the past.
When I am talking about a schedule that would not make me want to kill myself, I am talking about a good balance between work, free time, and life duties. It is not a matter of me not enjoying game dev, it is just trying to get it in a steady rhythm on top of a full-time IT job. I have been setting up my life around the end-goal of becoming full-time indie for the past several years.
Genetix
Member
The problem with this question is that there is not perfect or objective answer. We all have different situations. I have a full time job, a fiancee, and a baby daughter. If I can squeeze a few hours of game dev in a week I'm happy. That being said, I still release a new game almost every month or two and while not a living have managed to earn $10,000 or more a year doing so. The quality of time spent developing matters a lot more then the quantity. I don't make myself work in long chunks anymore, rather whenever I have 5-10 minutes free I'll go to my computer with a few small tasks to accomplish and try to get them done. Sometimes I'll get into it and spend a full hour doing solid work. For myself, I would lose focus trying to sit there and develop for hours at a time. Of course - it's different for everyone.
Good luck!
Good luck!
T
teamrocketboyz
Guest
im new to game development and i have a full time job 8.00 to 5.30 monday to thursday and 8.00-12.00 on a friday. i have a wife and im currently spending 2 hours per night in GMS monday to thursday and about 5 hours on a friday and 6 each saturday and sunday. thats around 25 hours a week and im not even working on a project yet, just testing how GMS works.
20 hours a week is fairly easy but be prepared to feel burnt out. its a killer.
20 hours a week is fairly easy but be prepared to feel burnt out. its a killer.
Kezarus
Endless Game Maker
Well, I'm pretty spartan with my time. I work from 7h00 to 17h00 from Monday to Friday. I am a drummer on rock band too, so I train Tuesday & Thursday at home from 18h00 to 20h00 and program from 20h00 to 22h00 (or 23h... past mid-night...). Also workout at the gym from 17h20 to 19h00 on Wednesdays and Fridays. I program mostly on Saturday and Sundays from 9h00 to 18h00 (some times even more) and do bugbashing on Mondays. On the other days I get small features or corrections to implement. I'm married too with an amazing woman. =]
What helps me the most is that I have ALL written down on a backlog and a dev diary. So, when I sit to program I barely think about what to do. I just do. I release a new .exe almost every night and my brother test it overnight. On 20/Jan/2018 I started to make a turn based combat system, Battle Brothers style with magic. I had nothing. Now I have a robust combat, graphics, animation driven minigames, dynamic generated terrain, weather system and, last Saturday, I program my AI. In a day. It's just me for (not good) graphics, programming and game-design. My brother test it and do game-design too.
I am not that young anymore, I'm almost 40. It really depends on your motivation. =]
Cheers!
What helps me the most is that I have ALL written down on a backlog and a dev diary. So, when I sit to program I barely think about what to do. I just do. I release a new .exe almost every night and my brother test it overnight. On 20/Jan/2018 I started to make a turn based combat system, Battle Brothers style with magic. I had nothing. Now I have a robust combat, graphics, animation driven minigames, dynamic generated terrain, weather system and, last Saturday, I program my AI. In a day. It's just me for (not good) graphics, programming and game-design. My brother test it and do game-design too.
I am not that young anymore, I'm almost 40. It really depends on your motivation. =]
Cheers!
Distronaut
Member
I hold down a day job & other responsibilities around my 'hobby' of game development. I usually find about 1-2 hours in the evenings and sometimes I get a Saturday to myself to get really stuck in. I think this can be more beneficial for more ambitious projects as the slower development allows more time to reflect on what may need changing before release. I also find the passion remains alive as I'm always looking forward to the next opportunity to get back to work on a game project, rather than feeling chained to it.
P
poinl
Guest
I think you should set goals to complete for the week instead of just putting in an amount of hours.