3 Gamedev Ideas (November 11, 2019)

Hello,

It’s crazy how the more I work on my game, the more I feel there are things left to do to complete it.

I start to realize that having a “finished” game is really subjective. You can always keep working on a game and improve it. 

I could have called it finished at any point during those last months. But I want to see it reach its full potential. 

I’m thinking it must be how every game developer feels and that it’s the reason why every game project always takes longer than expected.

Anyway, let’s get to this week’s ideas!

3 Gamedev Ideas

I.

If you look at games of the same genre, you can notice they all have features that are different on the surface but actually serve the same purpose.

For example, in the roguelite Slay the Spire the cards give a sense of diversity and control over your overall strategy.

This same purpose is being filled by items in The Binding of Isaac or weapons in Dead Cells.

Every roguelite punctuates their runs with mid-journey big challenges you have to prepare for, such as Elites in Slay the Spire or bosses in Ratropolis.

You should make sure your game hits all the same key ideas as successful games in your genre but in your own specific ways.

II.

Be aware of your bias towards your game as the developer. 

You spent more time than anyone else playing it so you can’t know whether the difficulty is right or if it’s actually too repetitive before you see someone else play it.

Don’t make big changes before getting the opinion of your players.

III.

Look at what people do, not what they say. 

If they tell you your game is great but they play it only for an hour and never get back into it, it means you still have work to do.

Until next week,

Thomas Gervraud,
Developer of Space Gladiators: Escaping Tartarus