3 ms·

ConcernedApe is a gem. I can't tell if it's heartening or depressing to see how easily one guy with passion and a clear vision can utterly humiliate multi-billi

by kibwen 3y ago

ConcernedApe is a gem. I can't tell if it's heartening or depressing to see how easily one guy with passion and a clear vision can utterly humiliate multi-billion dollar studios when it comes to producing games that are genuinely worth playing.

whalesalad 3y ago
Despite what you hear on HN, 10x engineers are real.
- kibwen 3y ago
  The software engineering isn't the impressive part of Stardew Valley. Aside from the multiplayer code (which is the only part he had outside help with), an average developer could cobble together a functionally similar engine in a weekend. What's impressive about Stardew Valley is that one guy did all the coding and all the writing, all the art, all the music, and all the game design, while also managing to produce an instant classic that also happens to be his first game ever. The continued development pushed as free updates almost a decade after release is the icing on the cake; there is no explanation other than that he's making this game because he loves doing it and he takes pride in his work, rather than trying to follow mainstream game dev dogma and try to produce a platform for soon-parting fools from their money.
  - hipadev23 3y ago
    Imo “10x engineer” is generally is referring a tenacious individual being adept at all skills, including soft-skills, relevant to shipping a product. Just like ConcernedApe.
    - Aeolun 3y ago
      I associate it with just doing things because they need doing. When I was young I’d always wonder how all these amazing things came to be. As I get older I realize it’s because someone just got started and has been plugging away at it for years.
    - akdev1l 3y ago
      I mean no shade to ConcernedApe but shipping a product that you built yourself entirely does not really showcase “soft skills” tbh. If anything it showcases his hard skills because he did everything.
- seoulmetro 3y ago
  Making a game like stardew valley isn't a 10x engineer feat. Unless I'm missing something complex about the game? It seems like it's just a basic game with decent old-world storytelling and game mechanics.
  - pests 3y ago
    Why don't we have more of them?
    - whalesalad 3y ago
      Same reason we don’t have a lot of professional athletes, billionaires, or unicorn startups. It’s not easy and not everyone is capable of doing it. Takes luck, hard work and probably a bit of genetic lottery.
      - pests 3y ago
        I meant games like Stardew Valley. I was implying no one else has made this game so maybe ConcernedApe is in fact 10x
        seoulmetro 3y ago
        Harvest Moon came out in 1996 and is basically the same game.
        pests 3y ago
        So two in 28 years...
        seoulmetro 3y ago
        No. That's just the first one I know. It was done back in 1996. It just reduces your implication that he is a 10x developer. He may or may not be, but this game doesn't reflect that.
fancy_pantser 3y ago
I think he's mainly been working on Haunted Chocolatier now. Very excited to see how that comes out! The releases starting with Stardew 1.3 in 2018 have had others involved, including: > Arthur Lee, “Mr. Podunkian” (1.4 & 1.5 updates), Tom Coxon (Multiplayer net code in 1.3), Alex Erlandson, “Zillix” (1.4 update), Sickhead Games (Console ports), The Secret Police (Mobile ports) (full credits can be found in the game’s title screen)
II2II 3y ago
Definitely heartening. Games like Stardew Valley demonstrate that an individual (or small team) can make worthy games and be recognized for it. As for multi-billion dollar studios, why would they be humiliated by such games? They have completely different objectives.
- toofy 3y ago
  > They have different completely different objectives. they sure do. and one of those really makes me wonder how incredible things would be if we restructured what we incentivize. i’ll echo what so many others in this thread have already said, stardew valley blew me away once my gf finally convinced me to play. it would be hard to overstate what a fantastic fun little world he built. i went into a little local computer shop the other day and they had the stardew music playing—i hadn’t played in like 3 years but that music immediately glazed over me like i was there in the game. what an absolute gem. corp studios and stardew developers definitely have different objectives and holy shit what a stark difference in outcomes.
kevinventullo 3y ago
I have a ton of respect for ConernedApe, but I think it’s worth pointing out that Stardew Valley, especially the original 1.0 version, is almost completely cribbed from Harvest Moon.

by kibwen 3y ago

whalesalad 3y ago

Despite what you hear on HN, 10x engineers are real.

kibwen 3y ago
The software engineering isn't the impressive part of Stardew Valley. Aside from the multiplayer code (which is the only part he had outside help with), an average developer could cobble together a functionally similar engine in a weekend. What's impressive about Stardew Valley is that one guy did all the coding and all the writing, all the art, all the music, and all the game design, while also managing to produce an instant classic that also happens to be his first game ever. The continued development pushed as free updates almost a decade after release is the icing on the cake; there is no explanation other than that he's making this game because he loves doing it and he takes pride in his work, rather than trying to follow mainstream game dev dogma and try to produce a platform for soon-parting fools from their money.
- hipadev23 3y ago
  Imo “10x engineer” is generally is referring a tenacious individual being adept at all skills, including soft-skills, relevant to shipping a product. Just like ConcernedApe.
  - Aeolun 3y ago
    I associate it with just doing things because they need doing. When I was young I’d always wonder how all these amazing things came to be. As I get older I realize it’s because someone just got started and has been plugging away at it for years.
  - akdev1l 3y ago
    I mean no shade to ConcernedApe but shipping a product that you built yourself entirely does not really showcase “soft skills” tbh. If anything it showcases his hard skills because he did everything.
seoulmetro 3y ago
Making a game like stardew valley isn't a 10x engineer feat. Unless I'm missing something complex about the game? It seems like it's just a basic game with decent old-world storytelling and game mechanics.
- pests 3y ago
  Why don't we have more of them?
  - whalesalad 3y ago
    Same reason we don’t have a lot of professional athletes, billionaires, or unicorn startups. It’s not easy and not everyone is capable of doing it. Takes luck, hard work and probably a bit of genetic lottery.
    - pests 3y ago
      I meant games like Stardew Valley. I was implying no one else has made this game so maybe ConcernedApe is in fact 10x
      - seoulmetro 3y ago
        Harvest Moon came out in 1996 and is basically the same game.
        pests 3y ago
        So two in 28 years...
        seoulmetro 3y ago
        No. That's just the first one I know. It was done back in 1996. It just reduces your implication that he is a 10x developer. He may or may not be, but this game doesn't reflect that.

fancy_pantser 3y ago

I think he's mainly been working on Haunted Chocolatier now. Very excited to see how that comes out! The releases starting with Stardew 1.3 in 2018 have had others involved, including: > Arthur Lee, “Mr. Podunkian” (1.4 & 1.5 updates), Tom Coxon (Multiplayer net code in 1.3), Alex Erlandson, “Zillix” (1.4 update), Sickhead Games (Console ports), The Secret Police (Mobile ports) (full credits can be found in the game’s title screen)

II2II 3y ago

Definitely heartening. Games like Stardew Valley demonstrate that an individual (or small team) can make worthy games and be recognized for it. As for multi-billion dollar studios, why would they be humiliated by such games? They have completely different objectives.

toofy 3y ago
> They have different completely different objectives. they sure do. and one of those really makes me wonder how incredible things would be if we restructured what we incentivize. i’ll echo what so many others in this thread have already said, stardew valley blew me away once my gf finally convinced me to play. it would be hard to overstate what a fantastic fun little world he built. i went into a little local computer shop the other day and they had the stardew music playing—i hadn’t played in like 3 years but that music immediately glazed over me like i was there in the game. what an absolute gem. corp studios and stardew developers definitely have different objectives and holy shit what a stark difference in outcomes.

kevinventullo 3y ago

I have a ton of respect for ConernedApe, but I think it’s worth pointing out that Stardew Valley, especially the original 1.0 version, is almost completely cribbed from Harvest Moon.