What’s The Hardest Step?

So, you’re a game developer. You’ve developed your game and weathered the myriad challenges that have come your way. You’ve even overcome the last minute issues and come out as a better person as a result.

But then, you have to release it.

Thrilling Music Playing

Release is such a simple word, but what does it mean.

The dictionary definition says:

• allow or enable to escape from confinement; set free.
• allow (something) to move, act, or flow freely.
• the action or process of releasing or being released.
• the action of making a film, recording, or other product available to the public

But for me personally, it means:

• You’re putting your heart out there to get judged by the world.
• You’re risking it all for this one moment to see a result

I don’t know, but I’ve found this part of the project a huge challenge. I keep finding myself procrastinating to find other work to do instead of releasing.

For example, I will play DotA2 (Video Game), Or, start a different IT project. Or, go for a walk outside Or, clean the house as I am obliged to do. Or, watch a movie. Or…

You get the point. There’s countless distractions to lead you away from the tasks you have at hand. But the root cause for me primarily is being nervous. Like anyone else, I’m afraid of being judged.

How to overcome this

At the end of the day, this game is a journey, whether I spent 1 week, or one year on it, the time spent should be irrelevant. The production of this game has been a wonderful journey where I have learned about new tools to use, and not use, New ideas and concepts to implement, and what’s easy to do, and what’s not so easy to do.

Perhaps most importantly, I have learned how to manage my time more efficiently.
If a new concept comes out, I am able to calculate the time required to create it, and judge if it is doable or not.

And when you look at the game as a business product, it makes you look at things objectively. Calculating the man hours put into the creation of the game versus the profit afterwards. It’s an investment.

So, we are currently undergoing testing with a few close alpha testers, and with their feedback, we will fix the game a little, rebrand it, and graduate it from our arms, and send it out to face the big world alone…

So what?

I think it’s a mental journey as much as a technical one to make a game. Of course you need the technical skills, and vision to create a game, but probably more importantly, you need the determination, and consistency to create a product while you see no reward, and work in solitude most of the time.

It’s tough, but in the end it’s worth it.