I need to make another game but I don't have any motivation

BigDaveBigDave Member Posts: 2,239
edited February 2017 in Working with GS (Mac)

luxury problems right. But hey I have to continue making games for living but I have no motivation the market seems so full.
There are so many mobile games and about most of them so few or no one cares. Months of work can end in a heartbreaking result with no pay off for all the hard work.

What keeps you guys going?

«1

Comments

  • kianziackkianziack Member, PRO Posts: 28

    Create a game or watch a movie every day and die without accomplishment. :s

  • hybridhybrid Member Posts: 183

    i lost my motivation last year about my daily job (brand design) and i focus on games instead, then i came back to brand design with a fresh mind and ideas. i think doing different stuff its whats keep the mind running. i got ideas for games while im doing another stuff, like a sudden Epiphany XD

    or make someone give you a theme and work around that, while i was in architecture school (lol, i graduate from architecture, work as a brand designer and want to be a game developer, i live a existential crisis) they gave us a word/theme/artist/movie whatever random thing the professor want. And we have to design something around that. It supposed to make us out of our confort zone and explore other things (styles) we naturally will never think, that could be better for us. Like a mini jam with a theme. (also we have to do it overnight or in a short time). im very proud of my "tron" inspired theater XD.

    Maybe i go too far with the examples. but its normal, it will pass.

    if it help, i think you have a very good taste to selecting themes for your games, things that i will never think about. That motivate me.

  • IceboxIcebox Member Posts: 1,485
    edited February 2017

    I think your motivating some of us when you share your experience and revenue , and I believe you will reach your goal in time. Maybe you expected alot more so thats why you feel down. Your lucky your making a living out of your games.( No job here and 16 $ after 1.5 years and 500 total apps downloads :) ). So when I see you , you motivate me to continue , that there is a small chance i can make a living out of my games in the future. Months of work was not a waste of time , you gain experience , you work faster , you learn from your mistakes to avoid them on your next games. Instead of looking forward to what you didn't achieve yet , look into what you achieved , its really great! That should push you forward and motivate you even more.

  • Bowhill GamesBowhill Games Member Posts: 191

    True the market is crowded however the wearable's market is virtually empty, be it useful apps or games. I'm not sure if it would be possible in GS to but might consider that.
    Also iv found that games with a central character do quite well.

    (site currently under construction)
  • frdfrd Member Posts: 191
    edited February 2017

    For me, it's about having a solid practice. The best way to be motivated is to be inspired. Inspiration comes from research, creativity comes when you make things your own and satisfaction comes from completing things. Having a strong practice is more important than the individual pieces you make. Making work is about enjoying the process, not the results.

    The best way to make more money is to spend less time being creative and more time and money on marketing.

  • jamie_cjamie_c ImagineLabs.rocks Member, PRO Posts: 5,772

    What about freelancing and consulting for awhile, then you can work on other peoples ideas and just worry about the production aspect. Keep a notebook during that time and build up a new group of your own ideas you can tackle at a later date.

  • BazookaTimeBazookaTime Member Posts: 1,274

    I struggle with this as I am sure a lot of people do, at least you keep cranking stuff out. I have completed art for a number of projects that I never bothered to make a game out of.

    Sometimes working with another person helps with creativity and motivation.

  • pHghostpHghost London, UKMember Posts: 2,342

    I absolutely second what @BazookaTime said.

    All of us struggle and go through self-doubt -- even the really successful people out there.

    Personally, I found that working with another person really helps. You need to find someone whose vision is aimed in a similar direction (near impossible to find someone with the exact same vision as you). And it needs to be someone you can meet face to face, at least once a week or every two weeks minimum, if you each work in your own space and time. This really helps with motivation, seeing another person's input and sharing the responsibility.

    Keep going!

    As @hybrid said, stepping out of your comfort zone with the style or type of game can also be refreshing and experimenting can lead to exciting new ideas!

    The marketplace is a tough one, sure, but there is still plenty of space for smaller fish!

    Another thing could be to do a small passion project, where you forget about the money, just do something you yourself would love and have fun with -- even if it seems unmarketable at the outset. Hey, sometimes things like that become sleeper hits! (I still remember your game Sha Man -- loved the style and had a lot of fun playing it.)

  • ToqueToque Member Posts: 1,187

    @The_Gamesalad_Guru said:
    I have a day job...lol

    A part time job might not be crazy. Help with finances and take a bit of pressure off Game Dev side of things. New experiences new inspiration? Try some different games that maybe you want to do but couldn't afford to do??

  • SocksSocks London, UK.Member Posts: 12,822

    When I feel motivation fading and enthusiasm ebbing away on a project I usually turn to the bottle, I'll pay a visit to my well stocked cellar and pick out a pair of late 70's Pinot Noirs, and after hurrying them down my neck (two straws, three if the clock is against me) I'm then usually gifted with a mentally unbalanced self-confidence only drunkenness offers. Then, naked, I will take to the local woods in an attempt to rediscover my natural connection with the earth by communing with the woodland creatures, once I've formed a bond with the squirrels and foxes and the owl folk, I will live amongst them as one of their own, scurrying around stealing nuts with the squirrels, scavenging with the foxes and shitting on cars from the sky with the owl folk, my fleshy hulk kept aloft by wings fashioned from bracken and wax. It's this total escape from the push and pull of modern human life that allowed me to make that Flappy Bird clone (total sales $9).

  • quinn221quinn221 Member Posts: 280

    Here is my problem...I am super motivated and I use Gamesalad everyday, but I start building a game and never finish... I have game building ADHD. I have about 5 half built games....

  • SocksSocks London, UK.Member Posts: 12,822

    @quinn221 said:
    Here is my problem...I am super motivated and I use Gamesalad everyday, but I start building a game and never finish... I have game building ADHD. I have about 5 half built games....

    Are you able to frame this as a good thing ?

  • quinn221quinn221 Member Posts: 280

    Good and Bad... Good that I am motivated bad that I can not finish a game

    @Socks said:

    @quinn221 said:
    Here is my problem...I am super motivated and I use Gamesalad everyday, but I start building a game and never finish... I have game building ADHD. I have about 5 half built games....

    Are you able to frame this as a good thing ?

  • SocksSocks London, UK.Member Posts: 12,822

    @quinn221 said:
    Good and Bad... Good that I am motivated bad that I can not finish a game

    Yeah, it can be easy to start a project, take it so far, and then come up with another idea !

  • BigDaveBigDave Member Posts: 2,239

    thanks guys a lot of view points here. That was very insightful.

    I thought about freelancing here and there.. Would be something totally new to me.
    But than its also kind of driving of the road I so struggled to get and stay in.

    In total i think I did around 52 launched apps and deleted all except 10.
    Since they were the once making money or/and represented my state of art.
    This process as fun for me because I improved my portfolio but it also made me more critical in the creation process, which is a big factor to hinder me creating something new.
    I thought about some core values like what my games should have ein common etc.
    But this also could be a big limitation in the face of opportunity.
    Some stuff I actually want to have but and myself breaking in the last couple games are:
    -App Icons white with a centered character
    -One word app title (Orcs, Creepy, Pewdiepug..)

    Maybe getting the most successful apps republished by a major publisher could be another option. Or figuring out some nice marketing model and cheap User Acquisition is another. In the back of the head still the irrational hope that some youtuber may pick up one of the games.

    I started painting a couple of new art graphics, I am happy with them for a couple of days and then realise again hm maybe its to nerdy, for me funny games worked out the best.
    I guess people like to laugh..

    The original motivation which I executed with my first app "The Shaman" was kind of containing the quick gameplay of mmorpg pvp or mobs into a 2d version vs AI.
    Maybe I re-start there but than idle games/ clickers have paid my rent not these skill based games, actually the total opposite.

  • hybridhybrid Member Posts: 183

    I like the characters. What i enjoy the most about the process of creating a game its the images, create the art for the game.

    Then i read and watch a lot about app marketing and all that stuff, and i found that a lot of people said the same. App sometimes come in a bad moment, a bad time for release, it have the wrong theme, etc. and what could be a success, for a single reason fails.

    So many of them suggest the practice of reskinning our own failed apps, to give them a new change with a new theme and name (no updating, a new different app).

    So if you enjoy creating art, maybe you should try reskining that app you know its good but wasn't successful. You wont have to deal with new mechanics or new play concept, maybe meanwhile you have inspiration for a total new game.

    Also i being thinking into create an app like lifeline, because i feel it would be cool to focus on tell a good story rather than if the play style its addicting. that would be a really different process and could be very inspiring. Imagine creating the new slenderman legend or something like that XD

    or you could try to make an non game app, thats also something that i being looking to.

    Also when im frustrated because i cant create anything, i go and research keywords and update my apps XD with new keywords, i recently got some dead apps with 1-30 impressions a day in the appstore up to 4000 - 8000 impressions per day. believe me, that thing really motivates me!

    hope something of this help you or anyone to get inspired, i like to see how each of us think different, take different routes and came up with different styles and games.

  • pHghostpHghost London, UKMember Posts: 2,342

    @quinn221 said:
    I have about 5 half built games....

    Only five? Man, I envy you...

  • mhedgesmhedges Raised on VCS Member Posts: 634

    @Socks said:
    When I feel motivation fading and enthusiasm ebbing away on a project I usually turn to the bottle, I'll pay a visit to my well stocked cellar and pick out a pair of late 70's Pinot Noirs,

    You lost me at Pinot Noir, buddy. I thought you would reach for a scotch or something. :D

  • mhedgesmhedges Raised on VCS Member Posts: 634

    It would've been nice to port to tvOS. That could have helped out a lot of people in terms of motivation, production, and downloads.

  • mhedgesmhedges Raised on VCS Member Posts: 634

    @Bowhill Games said:
    True the market is crowded however the wearable's market is virtually empty, be it useful apps or games. I'm not sure if it would be possible in GS to but might consider that.

    @gingagaming made a template for use on Apple Watch some time ago. Look that up, or let's see if he can comment here.

  • jamie_cjamie_c ImagineLabs.rocks Member, PRO Posts: 5,772
  • pHghostpHghost London, UKMember Posts: 2,342
    edited February 2017

    @jamie_c said:
    I'm pretty sure @gingagaming s template is using Swift, not GS.

    Would think so as well, I think Apple Watch doesn't use OpenGL for displaying graphics, which the GS engine uses.

    Apple TV should be a lot more doable.

  • LumpAppsLumpApps Member Posts: 2,880

    @Socks You can always fall back on your writing skills. I would buy your books :)

  • SocksSocks London, UK.Member Posts: 12,822

    @LumpApps said:
    @Socks You can always fall back on your writing skills. I would buy your books :)

    Frank you wery mutch.

  • gingagaminggingagaming FREELANCE GS DEV Member Posts: 1,685

    Unfortunately you are correct, my Apple Watch App and my Apple TV templates are not made in Gamesalad. They come with a Gamesalad version of each template (for deployment to other stores outside of the Watch and TV stores) but the templates are written in swift 2. I can modify these to each developers needs but its not like Gamesalad and a little more work is involved.

    Back to the original post, I hope you keep up momentum Dave, you have been a great inspiration to many here on the forums. Don't lose track of your goals. My advice would be to promote what you have rather than develop more. You have a great profile of games already, you just need to get these noticed. Maybe turn your hand to promotions because if you can promote these games to a success, you could even turn your hand to publishing. This is what we all need, a gateway to success. Keep it fellow developer.

  • jay2dxjay2dx Member Posts: 611

    I would advise you to get a part time job just so you interact with people more and let your mind have subconscious thought, ideas will come when your pre occupied with something else, just a few days a week maybe in a coffee shop etc,

    Also you need to progress to a game engine that have more deployment options just as PC and consoles! If you want to earn more money your games need to be on more platforms unless you have proper money backing for mobile development!

    I do all my games as well as a full time job

    Good luck man

  • KevinCrossKevinCross London, UKMember Posts: 1,894

    If you've lost the motivation for game dev or have a lack of inspiration for your next one have you considered creating a non-game app or utility in GameSalad until you get that motivation back?

    Creating a simple app that you yourself might find useful (I think that's important) would reach a smaller niche, but that smaller niche might pay more and give you more feedback then the 1000's of flyby downloaders downloading a game just because the screenshots look good. I've found it quite rewarding and motivating talking to my users.

  • ToqueToque Member Posts: 1,187

    Just some other thoughts.

    1)make a game that is different than you usually do. (I tried this with Mouth of Zitis) It didn't really work as a great game but it was fun to do.

    2)I made a game for me. A game I wanted to play and see in the store. The heck with the critiques. (I made cannonball pop) Love it and my favourite game, still play it.

    3)i made a game with a partner. (not for everyone)

    4) Joined a indie game developer group( but unfortunately it isn't in my community.)

    5) Trying to organize a indie dev group in community or in the local school.

    Just some things that I have thought about and trying. Its a hobby for me so not the same.

  • BigDaveBigDave Member Posts: 2,239

    i decided to focus on marketing a bit more I love setting up campaigns and test what works and what not.

    One of the strongest methods to get a lot of initial downloads got nerfed by google recently..

    You could join google circles of android gamers have like 1000 to 500000 members in it and post your game video trailer through like 10 such groups.

    But google does now remove all recently posted post by you if you write more of them in a row even tough you only post it once a google community/circle

Sign In or Register to comment.