I work on games as a hobby. Each game takes around 2 years or so to finish, which means I need to be able to sustain PRODUCTIVE development over a long time and

I work on games as a hobby. Each game takes around 2 years or so to finish, which means I need to be able to sustain PRODUCTIVE development over a long time and resume paused development (for when life gets in the way of the hobby or I just need a break). Here's my tips (based solely on my own experience, but maybe some of them will be useful to others): 1. Make a plan to decide what is in scope, what you want to make (at least for now). This plan can be revised, but you want to stick to it unless you have a very good reason to change. Avoid scope creep. (One way I manage this is to set goals. If I exceed my goals' deadlines, I can afford a bit of creep. Otherwise, I stick to the plan.) 1b. DESIGN your systems up front. You want to be adding modules to a well-architected system, rather than chipping away in the dark hoping a sane structure takes form by luck or genius. 2. From the outset, break the project into a series of medium-sized, high-level chunks. In my case, this is things like "create level 1", "complete weapon model 1", "create player gameplay code". Generally, I avoid moving off a chunk until it is completed, and each chunk is broken down into subtasks. 2b. Find a SIMPLE way to track these chunks and tasks. I use Trello, but don't use anything fancy lest the tool become its own side project (I speak from experience...). 3. Try to make some progress most days (unless I'm on a prolonged break). When I'm really not in the mood, I'll settle for just 25 minutes work (and often when you've done the 25, you'll find you're able to do more). 4. While you want a plan, and you want to design things before you implement them, especially architectural aspects, don't worry about being perfect. Get things done. You will be able to fix problems later. This is especially wise to remember if you're stuck – just get something that works there, and maybe tomorrow you'll figure a way to refactor or do it better, or maybe you'll even find that what you had was actually sufficiently decent. 5. Don't feel bad about taking prolonged breaks. For creative projects, this really refuels the tank, but I imagine it'll be useful for any significantly complex project. Absence makes the heart grow fond. These things work for me at least!