Questioning My Game's Worth

[Ethanicus]

Hey all.

I've been working on my project, Dreamer, for a long time now; nearly a year at this point. Only, one thing has never sat well with me about it: I have no clue what Dreamer is.
I mean, I know a few things. It's going to be artistic, have a deep story, etc. It's about, obviously, dreams. Being pretty is great and all, but "pretty" isn't enough to make people want to do more than look at pictures of it. There's lots of pretty games out there already.
I've got some game mechanics down, such as a hookshot, dodging, shooting weird magic bolts...but that's it.
I've heard a lot of people say you need to make people understand your game in fifteen seconds in advertisements. Well that's just my problem: what's so good about fifteen seconds of my game to make people want to play it? I'm really starting to think my game isn't worth it, in a fashion bordering on the titular.
I guess my question is, has anyone else felt this way about their projects? And what did you do to get through it?

Thanks for any input.

 

[JHarris]

Really, the only person you can make your game for is you. It's not a situation like a big-name studio, which has to court the largest possible audience to break even. The whole reason to be an indie developer is to work on what you want to. That allows for a much greater variety of game, and player.

There are so many things that can make a game do badly, or well, that are beyond your control, or at least are independent of its objective quality. All you can do is work, and hope, and not take it too personally if it does badly, or by that token not let your head get too swollen if it does well.

Either way, good luck to you!

 

[JHarris]

Oh, as for people saying your game "needs" to do something, phooey on that. Your game "needs" absolutely nothing except to be playable. There are no rules. THERE ARE NO RULES.

 

[GhostlyFeline]

You've been working on this thing for a year. Clearly it's something you care about if you're willing to put that kind of time into it. Not all games are be flashy and easy to market. That's perfectly fine. If you don't believe in the project, it's not going to turn out well regardless. I'd say follow through. Even if your game doesn't do well, you can learn from your mistakes and move forward.

By the way, is there some place where we can see the game in action? I'm kind of curious now.

 

[Roa]

Hey all.

I've been working on my project, Dreamer, for a long time now; nearly a year at this point. Only, one thing has never sat well with me about it: I have no clue what Dreamer is.
I mean, I know a few things. It's going to be artistic, have a deep story, etc. It's about, obviously, dreams. Being pretty is great and all, but "pretty" isn't enough to make people want to do more than look at pictures of it. There's lots of pretty games out there already.
I've got some game mechanics down, such as a hookshot, dodging, shooting weird magic bolts...but that's it.
I've heard a lot of people say you need to make people understand your game in fifteen seconds in advertisements. Well that's just my problem: what's so good about fifteen seconds of my game to make people want to play it? I'm really starting to think my game isn't worth it, in a fashion bordering on the titular.
I guess my question is, has anyone else felt this way about their projects? And what did you do to get through it?

Thanks for any input.

I think you misunderstood the "15 seconds". You generally have the first few seconds to make the biggest impact and catch people's attention. It doesn't have to be explaining your game though. In fact, some people opt not to entirely. What really matters is tone and delivery. What do you want the player to feel while watching it? What are your best mediums to get to that feeling? Those are the two questions you need to answer for your audience.

If you;re going artsy fartsy, just show the environments, have some tones that bring out the mood of those environments. Then leave the player with some questions to jog curiosity or something. Just dont get pretensions about it lol.
If you think players need to see gameplay, maybe show the player moving through an impressive view, or demonstrating a small slice of the main things they will be doing, exploring, fighting, collecting stuff.

 

[Jabbers]

I've been working on my project, Dreamer, for a long time now; nearly a year at this point.

You've been working on this thing for a year. Clearly it's something you care about if you're willing to put that kind of time into it.

A year isn't a long time to work on a project. If you plan to release a commercial game, you should expect it to take a minimum of year if you work alone (perhaps with the exception of simple HTML5 games). The game I am working on has taken almost three years, and I expect to continue development after it has been released.

I mention this because you shouldn't feel worried about spending a number of years on a project. That shows commitment, and you'll need to be able to stick to your game for it to get anywhere, especially if you are working alone.

Only, one thing has never sat well with me about it: I have no clue what Dreamer is.
I mean, I know a few things. It's going to be artistic, have a deep story, etc. It's about, obviously, dreams. Being pretty is great and all, but "pretty" isn't enough to make people want to do more than look at pictures of it. There's lots of pretty games out there already.
I've got some game mechanics down, such as a hookshot, dodging, shooting weird magic bolts...but that's it.

My only concern about your situation is that it is unclear if you have any sense of direction. To almost reach a year and to still not know what you are trying to do is very alarming. "It's going to be artistic and deep" means nothing. Unless you have an art style or have written a story, you have nothing. You need to know what you want to do and act upon it, because you don't get any credit for having creative intentions but never following through.

I've heard a lot of people say you need to make people understand your game in fifteen seconds in advertisements. Well that's just my problem: what's so good about fifteen seconds of my game to make people want to play it?

Woah, woah. Slow down. You are jumping ahead. You have made a logo for your signature, you're talking about advertising... none of this matters. You don't have a product yet, so don't waste energy on things that don't matter right now. You aren't even sure what your game is about yet and you are thinking about how to pitch it in 15 seconds?

This is not an organised process. A lot of GameMaker users fall foul of romanticizing the development process, focusing their energy on the wrong things, and oversharing their game when they have very little to share. If you are serious about your project, you need a plan.

I guess my question is, has anyone else felt this way about their projects? And what did you do to get through it?

Create games that you enjoy and try to get satisfaction from the process and the journey. I am never confident about my work, and my current 3 year project is no exception. I won't be disappointed if it is a flop, because I made it for me. I hope other people like it, but I can only ever be sure that I enjoy it... thankfully I do.

 

[Ethanicus]

You've been working on this thing for a year. Clearly it's something you care about if you're willing to put that kind of time into it.

That's a good point, yes. I am very devoted to this project. Up until this, I'd been starting and failing game after game. This was the one that I said to myself, "You are GOING to finish this."

I think you misunderstood the "15 seconds". You generally have the first few seconds to make the biggest impact and catch people's attention. It doesn't have to be explaining your game though.

It seems I have. I kinda realized that after rereading my post.

My only concern about your situation is that it is unclear if you have any sense of direction. To almost reach a year and to still not know what you are trying to do is very alarming. "It's going to be artistic and deep" means nothing.

If you are serious about your project, you need a plan.

That's exactly it. I've worked on this so long and don't even know what "this" is really.

You are jumping ahead. You have made a logo for your signature, you're talking about advertising... none of this matters.

Funny story about the logo actually. I like to try and make some completed, pretty stuff early in a project so I can look at it and keep focus on the ultimate product.

By the way, is there some place where we can see the game in action? I'm kind of curious now.

I'll post some GIFs when I get the chance! I'm glad it's interesting at least.

 

[Ethanicus]

@GhostlyFeline Since you asked...
Some basic gameplay mechanics:
http://i.imgur.com/eECqgtd.gifv
Example of enviroments:
http://i.imgur.com/9GmrBc3.png

 

[Phoebe Klim]

http://i.imgur.com/eECqgtd.gifv
http://i.imgur.com/9GmrBc3.png

It's good, work on it.

 

[fxokz]

Hey all.

I've been working on my project, Dreamer, for a long time now; nearly a year at this point. Only, one thing has never sat well with me about it: I have no clue what Dreamer is.
I mean, I know a few things. It's going to be artistic, have a deep story, etc. It's about, obviously, dreams. Being pretty is great and all, but "pretty" isn't enough to make people want to do more than look at pictures of it. There's lots of pretty games out there already.
I've got some game mechanics down, such as a hookshot, dodging, shooting weird magic bolts...but that's it.
I've heard a lot of people say you need to make people understand your game in fifteen seconds in advertisements. Well that's just my problem: what's so good about fifteen seconds of my game to make people want to play it? I'm really starting to think my game isn't worth it, in a fashion bordering on the titular.
I guess my question is, has anyone else felt this way about their projects? And what did you do to get through it?

Thanks for any input.

Oh man. I also get this feeling sometimes..

 

[Galladhan]

The hookshot mechanics gave me a nostalgic vibe (i'm talking about Bionic Commando, of course) which is a good thing for me.
I also dig the artstyle (especially the use of colors in the second screen you linked), and the theme/title sounds very interesting and suggestive (evocative?) to me.
The only games about dreams i can recall, right off the bat, are Weird Dreams and NiGHTS (Into Dreams).



2 games i loved (even if i have to admit that Weird Dreams was all about nice visuals), so i'm pretty curious to see how you will shape your game

 

[Ethanicus]

It's good, work on it.

Glad to hear it. X)

The hookshot mechanics gave me a nostalgic vibe (i'm talking about Bionic Commando, of course) which is a good thing for me.
I also dig the artstyle (especially the use of colors in the second screen you linked), and the theme/title sounds very interesting and suggestive (evocative?) to me.
The only games about dreams i can recall, right off the bat, are Weird Dreams and NiGHTS (Into Dreams).

View attachment 3553 View attachment 3554

2 games i loved (even if i have to admit that Weird Dreams was all about nice visuals), so i'm pretty curious to see how you will shape your game

Hey, nostalgia is just what I was aiming for, so mission accomplished! I've been basing the levels off of places in dreams I've had myself, along with classics like Mario 64's theme of self-contained worlds and plots.
As for what I'm doing with it, I realized a while ago that...these are dreams. I can do literally ANYTHING.

 

[Blackened]

The hookshot mechanics gave me a nostalgic vibe (i'm talking about Bionic Commando, of course) which is a good thing for me.

Yes, yes YES! I'm exactly on the same page as you on this. I might also add that once I seen the hook shot come out I was, well, immediately hooked (pun completely intended) and thus I was immediately sold on the whole idea. Yes, impact can happen that quickly and you did it in just a tiny gif. I would encourage you to keep fleshing it out @Ethanicus.

 

[Ethanicus]

Yes, yes YES! I'm exactly on the same page as you on this. I might also add that once I seen the hook shot come out I was, well, immediately hooked (pun completely intended) and thus I was immediately sold on the whole idea. Yes, impact can happen that quickly and you did it in just a tiny gif. I would encourage you to keep fleshing it out @Ethanicus.

Aw, I'm flattered!
I'm really glad to hear that!

And thanks to all of you for the feedback! You've really motivated me to press on.

 

[Yal]

Yeah, looks pretty cool :3

Asking deep questions in trailers can also be effective - make the player think about something after it ends. Like, in your case, you could have a bunch of words show up at different points in the trailer to 'warm the viewer up' and then end in some cool question. (like "explore your subconscious" <exploration sequence> "fight your fears" <battle sequence> <concept art fades in> "what is your worst nightmare?" <player runs away from something unseen that chases them> <trailer cuts out right before the thing comes into view> <logo fades in>)

 

[Ethanicus]

Yeah, looks pretty cool :3

Asking deep questions in trailers can also be effective - make the player think about something after it ends. Like, in your case, you could have a bunch of words show up at different points in the trailer to 'warm the viewer up' and then end in some cool question. (like "explore your subconscious" <exploration sequence> "fight your fears" <battle sequence> <concept art fades in> "what is your worst nightmare?" <player runs away from something unseen that chases them> <trailer cuts out right before the thing comes into view> <logo fades in>)

That would be pretty sweet. X)

 

[makas]

I have the same feeling a lot of times, specially after working a lot in something, and then I ask myself if is worth it... I have myself a project, that Im dont feel comfortable t share... because of this feeling... Watching your game I can see there are a lot of work and love in it... and just for that I suggest you to keep going... it looks neat