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About a decade ago, I was working on a mobile RPG game. I invested six industrious months, building it up to the brink of completion—just 3% short of its final

by guzik 3y ago

About a decade ago, I was working on a mobile RPG game. I invested six industrious months, building it up to the brink of completion—just 3% short of its final version. The unpredictability of life, however, has its own plans. An unforeseen circumstance led the company I was collaborating with to dissolve, and simultaneously, a tech startup I had founded began to show the sprouts of success. Faced with this duality, I found myself contemplating the choice between my creation and an entrepreneurial opportunity. With a heavy heart, I paused the game project to build my startup, which turned out to be an arduous, albeit rewarding journey. Yet, that unfinished 3% kept lingering on the edges of my consciousness. So, I set aside three months to complete the remaining portion of the game (1% takes the same amount of time as 99% of development?) and finally released it on Steam. The joy I felt was amazing, not because the game was extraordinary, but because I had finished what I started. From this experience, I took away two key lessons: - We only have the bandwidth to complete a few significant projects in our lives (2 or 3 on average). It's crucial to know when to say 'no' and choose our commitments wisely. - Leaving a project incomplete can lead to long-term regret, more so than the effort it would take to finish it.

plewd 3y ago
I'm curious, does the 3% number for how (relatively) close you were to finishing the game come from hindsight, or did you know that number while in the process of making the game (and if so, how?)
- guzik 3y ago
  The 3% completion figure initially came from my estimate that only the outro was left to be done, which could feasibly be considered as around 3% of the overall game. However, I hadn't taken several factors into account: - Releasing on platforms and setting up a Steam account. - Marketing and creating promotional graphics. - Bug fixes that were discovered by hardcore gamers, who we didn't have access to for testing a decade ago. - After 10 years, some Unity plugins needed to be updated and adapted. - Also important to consider is that I ultimately decided against a mobile version and had to rework the game for desktops. These factors ended up extending the process much more than I initially thought, but the figure of 3% had stuck with me from the beginning, illustrating how finishing touches often require a lot more time and effort than we might initially anticipate.
  - Gunnerhead 3y ago
    Number 1 and 2 are _so_ time consuming. The number of apps I’ve code completed, but not released, is too damn high. I hate creating screenshots (and then get an error that I didn’t mean the exact size/ratio required), banner/store/promo graphics, icons, a short/long description, title/subtitle/promo title, and filling out all the questions the App Store/Play Store ask. I become so extremely lazy at that point.
Etheryte 3y ago
I definitely agree on the regret front. I can't pinpoint the source of the regret, after all I still learned a lot along the way and spent my time working on something interesting, but somehow it's there. Just recently I picked up a project I had almost finished and then put aside for a year — mostly just to close that chapter up.
037 3y ago
Ever since I can recall, I've wanted to write a novel. After a few unsuccessful attempts, about a decade ago I started one and it turned out to be a very long process, especially the editing phase. At one point, I was on the verge of giving up because I was unsure of myself and naturally started having doubts, amidst my solitude. However, I couldn't bear the thought of the lingering regret of not finishing it and the cycle of starting new ones just to complete one. So I persisted, did everything, saw it through to the end, even though I've never really had the courage to show it to others (except a couple of friends and I published the first few pages) - I'm delighted that I did: I know I've written a novel; I no longer have to start another just to prove to myself that I can finish one. My writing has tremendously improved and I believe if I decided to write another, it would be significantly better than the first one. So, in a way, I agree: if you're almost done, persisting to the end could be a good idea, even if it's just to free yourself from obsession.
silcoon 3y ago
A bit late, but what's the title of the game?
- guzik 3y ago
  Hellway (https://store.steampowered.com/app/2053250/Hellway/ https://store.steampowered.com/app/2053250/Hellway/)

by guzik 3y ago

plewd 3y ago

I'm curious, does the 3% number for how (relatively) close you were to finishing the game come from hindsight, or did you know that number while in the process of making the game (and if so, how?)

guzik 3y ago
The 3% completion figure initially came from my estimate that only the outro was left to be done, which could feasibly be considered as around 3% of the overall game. However, I hadn't taken several factors into account: - Releasing on platforms and setting up a Steam account. - Marketing and creating promotional graphics. - Bug fixes that were discovered by hardcore gamers, who we didn't have access to for testing a decade ago. - After 10 years, some Unity plugins needed to be updated and adapted. - Also important to consider is that I ultimately decided against a mobile version and had to rework the game for desktops. These factors ended up extending the process much more than I initially thought, but the figure of 3% had stuck with me from the beginning, illustrating how finishing touches often require a lot more time and effort than we might initially anticipate.
- Gunnerhead 3y ago
  Number 1 and 2 are _so_ time consuming. The number of apps I’ve code completed, but not released, is too damn high. I hate creating screenshots (and then get an error that I didn’t mean the exact size/ratio required), banner/store/promo graphics, icons, a short/long description, title/subtitle/promo title, and filling out all the questions the App Store/Play Store ask. I become so extremely lazy at that point.

Etheryte 3y ago

I definitely agree on the regret front. I can't pinpoint the source of the regret, after all I still learned a lot along the way and spent my time working on something interesting, but somehow it's there. Just recently I picked up a project I had almost finished and then put aside for a year — mostly just to close that chapter up.

037 3y ago

Ever since I can recall, I've wanted to write a novel. After a few unsuccessful attempts, about a decade ago I started one and it turned out to be a very long process, especially the editing phase. At one point, I was on the verge of giving up because I was unsure of myself and naturally started having doubts, amidst my solitude. However, I couldn't bear the thought of the lingering regret of not finishing it and the cycle of starting new ones just to complete one. So I persisted, did everything, saw it through to the end, even though I've never really had the courage to show it to others (except a couple of friends and I published the first few pages) - I'm delighted that I did: I know I've written a novel; I no longer have to start another just to prove to myself that I can finish one. My writing has tremendously improved and I believe if I decided to write another, it would be significantly better than the first one. So, in a way, I agree: if you're almost done, persisting to the end could be a good idea, even if it's just to free yourself from obsession.

silcoon 3y ago

A bit late, but what's the title of the game?

guzik 3y ago
Hellway (https://store.steampowered.com/app/2053250/Hellway/ https://store.steampowered.com/app/2053250/Hellway/)