finishing things

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“I’m obsessed with finishing as a skill. Over the years, I’ve realized that so many of the good things that have come my way are because I was able to finish what I started.”

― Derek Yu, Spelunky

It turns out that making games isn't the only hard part; finishing projects is just as important, and just as difficult.

I started really focusing on games in February of last year, 2024. That's almost two years ago as of this writing. I have (on a quick mental tally that may or not be accurate) had 8 false start projects since then -- and only one single game jam release (with only 3 levels).

That's a piss poor track record, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel pretty bad about it. I want to finish things, I want to see my ideas come to fruition, but often times my ideas hold too much weight for my experience to bear. It's as if I have a tea cup's capacity for development and my ideas always seem to swell to the volume of an Olympic-sized swimming pool.

Now, if this resonates at all with you reading this: take heart -- it is not a bad thing. Indeed, to be overflowing with ideas that inspire you to no end is perhaps one of the most valuable traits you can have when making games. The more experience you gain, the more of these ideas you can breathe life into. However, I know all too well how difficult it is to reign in this beast of inspiration; it can just as easily be a curse to meaningful, forward progress.

So, how do we finish things?

I believe I've made it abundantly clear that I'm still figuring this out. I hope that in reading these devlogs you may pick up some useful tips and tricks to help you finish games.

1. Starting small

I was always so annoyed hearing this, and it was easy to keep scrolling to the next piece of advice -- but it is ubiquitous for a reason. It is the antithesis of Olympic-sized swimming pool ideas; a very affront to my huge, genius game plans. But that's precisely the point.

Easier said than done

How do we find small ideas, and keep the scope small throughout the project? Game Maker's Tool Kit has a great article on how to find great game ideas. The reason I bring up this article is because Mark discusses finding the core idea, and ruthlessly trimming the fat until you get there. I think, furthermore, that great ideas are rarely made on paper first.

Starting small means taking what may be a grand, huge project, and cutting it down to bare metal. What are the core mechanics? What makes it fun? What is the interaction the player would be doing?

Starting small does not mean "be less ambitious", but instead "find the heart of the idea before you get swept away in fantasy".

Once you have the core idea, that's when you can go crazy through iteration and testing. It's easy to hand-wave features in your head; it's another thing to implement, adjust, and pivot. That is the substrate where games are made -- not in your brain!

Join in for the next devlog where we talk about finishing as a skill