Update 9 - More To Do

Hi!

This update, I’d like to talk about the creative process and something I’ve been wrestling with for a little while.

There are two conflicting attitudes I have in my head. One attitude sees all the flaws and imperfections, the incomplete things in my work, and says “you have to fix these. You have to add more here. This part needs to be redone entirely. Here’s an idea for a whole new system that would fill this gap.”

The other attitude sees the work done, and the ‘release date’ creeping into the future. It says, “Look, if you listen to that other voice, you’ll never stop. She’ll never run out of ideas. She’ll always have a new level or a new boss or a new mechanic to cram in, and you’ll go on making stuff forever and ever. Be strict! Ship the game! You’ve been working on this for over a year, it’s embarrassing, just get it done!”

I think of these as the Demon of Perfection and the Demon of Completion.

I find it difficult to mediate between these two voices.

For a while now I’ve been leaning towards the latter. I’ve spent so long and done so much, I feel like I must be getting close. But that’s how I felt on my last project, Wizards Congress, and I felt pretty disappointed with what I released when I was finished.

I think ultimately I do have to resign myself to the fact that, for all I’ve achieved, I’m a lot further from done than I thought. I’ve tried to mediate between the different attitudes and I think I’ve landed on a reasonable median: I’m going to avoid any new systems, any large system or interface overhauls, but I’m going to focus on adding and editing content. Maps, dialogue, enemies, moves, stats. I think I’ve spent a lot of time building the tools I need to create these things, and then spent comparatively little time actually using them. So, that’s my plan now.

As for what I’ve been up to the last month or so, I’ve been a bit eclectic. All the party members now have some kind of trait that gives them a passive or reactive benefit. The boss fights have a little more punch to them, and I’ve started expanding the castle town map to better fit in the NPCs that are in it. Unity UI is still the bane of my existence, but I’ve managed to squeeze in a numerical display for BP (Block Points) next to the HP.