Motivation

ID:97763
 
Jun 29 2010, 9:21 pm

(Pssst. Did you quit the production of a game because you just can't find the reason to complete it? If so, continue reading.)


Fantasize

Right now, I want you to think of what your game could look like. Picture the scenery, the NPC's dialogue, the features, the interface, and so on. Imagine other people playing your game. Imagine them playing the world you created. Now, picture the mapworld. Picture where you want everything to be. Okay, back to reality. Now that you've got some sort of starting point, let's stress it a little.


Set Goals

Let's get back to reality. Now that you've had a glimpse of what can be done, let's start to mold it. It's time for you to list your goals! The goals you list should be top priority. If you don't finish one goal in the time allotted, you should punish yourself(no soda, junk food, etc). Doing this should help discipline you until you finally create a draft of your soon-to-be game. The goal system should be similar to..
(Generic example)
Goal Time
Create system draft 2 weeks
Make placeholder graphics 2 days
If you want, you may add when you started the goal to make sure you meet your goal.

Music

While creating a game, you can get rather bored some times. Listening to some of your favorite tunes can give you that little burst of energy you need to go further.

Activities

Take breaks every now and then. Go see a movie, hang out with friends, participate in a sport, or just play a game. Activities can get your mind off the frustration of the project, until you're ready to go back to it.

This article may be edited over time to get more detailed as I come across more ways to achieve motivation.

-Theironx
Jun 29 2010, 10:21 pm
+1
Music always gets me going when on pixeling a sprite requiring long stressful hours.everything in this post is what Ive been doing for the past few years as a developer.

another way for me to keep motivated is seeing my animated sprites in action.
Jul 3 2010, 2:34 pm
Jogging helps. Although I find that sometimes I end up jogging too far and then I am so tired when I get home I want to take a shower and a nap.

Music is great. I like to listen to music while I work on something.

Looking at creations in the Byond forums often influences me to work on my own creations. You get that feeling, you know, "I could probably do better than that, if I put in the effort!". At least that's how it is for me.

Sitting down with Pen and Paper, your two best friends when coming up with ideas is useful. Draft out everything that you are going to do. Try to imagine, "Ok, so I will most likely have
X amount of hours to do what I am going to do. What is my usual capacity?" If I can't get inspiration, I try to picture what I want to do in my head and do some sketching on paper of what it would be like that I wanted to do (you don't even have to be good at drawing, I'm not).

You might have unsuspecting days that come up where you end up not being able to work. Compensate for these days, DO NOT make excuses such as, "Oh, I had to do this for a few hours, I shouldn't try to make my 2 week deadline." Your deadlines should include at least a few hours of time that could be make-up time.

Also, you don't HAVE to stop just because you met your deadline early! =D