Funnily enough, I always tried really hard to prototype and plan my projects really clean from the start. It was about 2 years ago i made a project just for myself, a kind of "sandbox project", that at the time I didn't even plan to ever release. Anything was allowed; no worries about scope creep, randomly polishing parts, final artworks here or there, coding parts of still vague feature ideas, whatever is fine, this project only existed for me to have fun and try things out. Turns out this is a perfect way for me to start a project. After about 3 months i put this horrendous mess to the side, as it grew into an unsalvageable pile of trash. But after that, I had a really good idea of what features I actually wanted to put in, how to structure the whole project from scratch, and how long it would take to do the whole thing. It might seem "wasteful", since i did end up throwing out some code and art, but I think on the larger scale it was 100% worth it. This was the first project I didn't burnt out on after a month or two, 2 years later i still wake up fired up to work on it. I'm sure this wouldn't work for everyone, (it sounds especially nightmarish in a team project), but I'm glad I let myself break away from the expected "plan - prototype - plan more" beginning formula. I got to that part too later still, but I just don't frontload the "boring parts" with this workflow anymore.
...omg i'm now hoping you would actually release this project, those are the most fun kinds of games for me personally even if it isn't a very coherent experience lol
Bonus tip from me: Make sure to have a lot of vagueness to your project. Come up with exciting and fun ideas without getting into detail of how they would work. This technique will allow you to lose any motivation you have had for the game, because when it is time to work on those ideas you will realise that you have no idea how they will work, fit in the game or if they will be fun in the first place. Anyway I must say I enjoy this series very much. The artstyle is charming and video is hilarious. Thanks for making me laugh, Artindi!
Thanks for watching! Let me know what you think... or don't... whatever.... I don't care... it's not going to hurt my... my... feelings.... my emotions aren't effected by validation from anyone.... I swear...
Yeah I realized the similarities to that channel after I started working on these, hopefully I can be inspired by that guy, but still be unique enough that mine can be it's own thing. :)
Thoose How to Fail video series are so amazing for begginers that it can let them to understand the basics of creating your project very quikly without watching over 10 videos on some random channels on how can it fail your project and how can it not. Thanks for doing this videos bro we appreciate it!
Yeah you're right, if I want to fail I should keep doing what I'm doing and try to make the assets as I go before I've tested the gameplay . . . thanks for the advice!
I think it varies from person to person. Short throwaway games don't hold my attention, but I've learned a LOT from working on a longer-term game and treating it like a daily task. I have no idea if I'll ever finish this game, but I learn something new every time I add a feature to it. A lot of times I've had to go back and rewrite code I wrote early on, only to find that it takes a fraction of the lines.
Yeah but that's why this video was about making your first game, and if you've never even done a simple game then throwing yourself into a big project is likely to end up as a big mess.
I’m laughing so hard at this video cause like Perfectly describes Several games this year Gollum Kong That walking dead game All of em feel like there was 0 playtesting lol
that section about prototyping reminded me of a failed modpack idea I had. so,, I make Minecraft modpacks as one of my hobbies (have for almost a decade now), but since I work alone I tend to playtest fairly often to ensure I don't waste time on something not even I would enjoy playing. and awhile ago now, I had an idea for a modpack that reduces the power generation of the dynamos from Thermal Expansion. This is basically the same as taking a levelling system (just pick your favourite), but now each level needs 2 or 3 times as much XP - and that's the only change. Rewards and such are the exact same. I quickly realized that it was a dreadfully awful idea because it didn't change the game at all. It was the same progression and systems, but now stuff takes longer to process. and I try to be at least somewhat innovative/original with my modpacks, so I scrapped the entire project. Had only invested 3 or 4 hours of work into it though, so thankfully I didn't lose much. so yeah, you reminded me of that time I pulled a homer.
the more videos I see that mention "simple startup game ideas", the more I realize that even my "simple game" ideas are too complicated and need to strive for something even simpler 😭
Thanks! That was one of the easier ones because it was so descriptive, the harder ones to come up with are the more conceptual ones, sometimes I'm just staring at the screen... "How do I represent this idea with art?"
This made me re-think about starting my game... The thing that keeps me from starting is, to have a core idea which I want to implement and test on, but while thinking about it I get all sorts of different ideas, which I shouldn't focus on right now. But when I can't figure out the core basics, then where do I even start? Man the struggle is real. Just as the graphic about conceptualizing shows, the second step feels like is missing.
Your first game should be something unique and complex like combining rts, moba and mmorpg together, and add a talent tree bigger than PoE, after all if it's too easy anyone can create it and players figure it out too quickly. You're no ordinary developer, you can easily create a game like that on your own, just have faith in yourself and never ask for feedback on anything, because your idea is so genious no one would understand your great idea anyways. Permadeath is also something you should put into every game, because having people start over from scratch adds a lot of playtime to your game. And always keep adding more shit, the more flashy lights on the screen the better and the more features the better. Btw don't waste time adding a tutorial, let the player have fun figuring out everything for himself.
It's a bit frightening for me that i find some of those relatable... Yet, good thing that im different and also the main character, therefore do good unlike the video said!
Is it bad that I have so many ideas for my first real game that I've written down a good chunk of stuff that I want, but I haven't fully fleshed out the story and don't even have a name for it yet? I havent started making anything yet, but I've got an immense amount of ideas I would like to slowly implement.
Nah, that's pretty common with creatives. Keep a notebook (or digital "notes") of all these ideas, start off with one that is truly simple/good-for-learning. Important thing is to take at least one idea to completion and get that set of skills/exp down. Then afterwards, you can go back to your idea-book, and pick the next idea to work on. What appeals to you then, and is within your new skillset, will definitely be different that what you'd pick today.
Good tutorial, sadly, I failed way before watching it. But now I know the formula to failure, I can waste my time watching this to procrastinate further and fail bigger.
"Something small and easy like brick breaker and mario" (I would love to know in what world he lives where making platformers like mario is "easy" lol.)
Making a full length game of ANY kind is hard. The easy part of making a platformer is referring more to setting up a single room or level to run and jump around in. The physics in these games can be made very simple if you just need to learn how to do it, and the level design process is simple enough at its core for Mario Maker to exist as a game Some platformers are more complex than others to put together, of course: I’ve kinda shoehorned myself into platformer development hard mode by trying to make a game with Genesis Sonic styled physics. That means I need to spend time figuring out slope interactions, a reliable way to handle collisions, how the character gains and loses speed, jumping, all of those things. The bread that you build your platformer sandwich on is pretty simple compared to the number of complex systems you might need in other games, like Roguelikes or RPGs, but depending on what you add, that can be a spicy meatball sub Again, making Super Mario Bros for the NES? That’s really hard. But making a Super Mario Bros 1-1? That’s a lot more doable.
Not having a religion is not a religion. Your logic assumes that not stamp collecting is as much of a hobby as stamp collecting. Not an atheist necessarily, but the illogic gives my brain a bad tickle
that's fair, the comparison is only supposed to go as far as belief and opinion, Everyone has an opinion on which game engine is the best just as much as everyone has an opinion on what they believe religiously, and not believing in a religion is just as active a choice as choosing to believe in one. But perhaps my wording wasn't planned out well, so your point is still valid. :)
This is a great series! Thanks to you, I've already failed at 21 titles and counting.
Wow, maybe you should be making this series then. :D
lol you're so quick at not making games
Do you work at EA?
Ah yes, the Yanderedev method. Minus the unhinged behavior and gaslighting.
Oh yeah, bonus tip: Waste whatever money people spent to fund your game to instead fund…. Uh….. “things”
Exactly what i was thinking! YandereDev has all these traits
Sometimes, the YT algorithm throws you a bone and gives you this gem of a TH-cam channel
aw, shucks, thanks! :D
Funnily enough, I always tried really hard to prototype and plan my projects really clean from the start. It was about 2 years ago i made a project just for myself, a kind of "sandbox project", that at the time I didn't even plan to ever release. Anything was allowed; no worries about scope creep, randomly polishing parts, final artworks here or there, coding parts of still vague feature ideas, whatever is fine, this project only existed for me to have fun and try things out.
Turns out this is a perfect way for me to start a project. After about 3 months i put this horrendous mess to the side, as it grew into an unsalvageable pile of trash. But after that, I had a really good idea of what features I actually wanted to put in, how to structure the whole project from scratch, and how long it would take to do the whole thing. It might seem "wasteful", since i did end up throwing out some code and art, but I think on the larger scale it was 100% worth it.
This was the first project I didn't burnt out on after a month or two, 2 years later i still wake up fired up to work on it.
I'm sure this wouldn't work for everyone, (it sounds especially nightmarish in a team project), but I'm glad I let myself break away from the expected "plan - prototype - plan more" beginning formula. I got to that part too later still, but I just don't frontload the "boring parts" with this workflow anymore.
kinda cool what works for different people, glad you could figure something out! :D
...omg i'm now hoping you would actually release this project, those are the most fun kinds of games for me personally even if it isn't a very coherent experience lol
Bonus tip from me: Make sure to have a lot of vagueness to your project. Come up with exciting and fun ideas without getting into detail of how they would work. This technique will allow you to lose any motivation you have had for the game, because when it is time to work on those ideas you will realise that you have no idea how they will work, fit in the game or if they will be fun in the first place.
Anyway I must say I enjoy this series very much. The artstyle is charming and video is hilarious. Thanks for making me laugh, Artindi!
2:14 that is genuinely more appealing as a game art style xD probably conveys the hitboxes more accurately too
things that I have learned:
I was much better at failure then I expected.
I have started many games and finished none of them. None of that would have been possible without these crucial tips. Thanks so much!
Thanks for watching! Let me know what you think... or don't... whatever.... I don't care... it's not going to hurt my... my... feelings.... my emotions aren't effected by validation from anyone.... I swear...
I.. i'm not worried about you.. i really dont say this out of shame.. i- i enjoyed the video.. please believe me.. why does nobody believe me..
Weakling
Watching this 2 years later so I can start learning development, thanks for the tips... or dont, you know... who cares...
ACCESSIBILITY OPTIONS ARE NECESSARY!
pretty original.
Reminds me of the terrible writing advice channel. This is sure to become popular
Yeah I realized the similarities to that channel after I started working on these, hopefully I can be inspired by that guy, but still be unique enough that mine can be it's own thing. :)
Thoose How to Fail video series are so amazing for begginers that it can let them to understand the basics of creating your project very quikly without watching over 10 videos on some random channels on how can it fail your project and how can it not. Thanks for doing this videos bro we appreciate it!
Glad to hear their helpful! :)
Really like the pixel art style of this!
oh shucks, thanks! :D
2:13
A M O G U S
damn, your channel is criminally underrated.
Yeah you're right, if I want to fail I should keep doing what I'm doing and try to make the assets as I go before I've tested the gameplay . . . thanks for the advice!
I was wondering how to fail at my first game, luckily I found this video.
I'm here for you mate. Happy to help! :D
If your dream game is brick breaker I would say you succeeded Diogenes style
I think it varies from person to person. Short throwaway games don't hold my attention, but I've learned a LOT from working on a longer-term game and treating it like a daily task. I have no idea if I'll ever finish this game, but I learn something new every time I add a feature to it. A lot of times I've had to go back and rewrite code I wrote early on, only to find that it takes a fraction of the lines.
Yeah but that's why this video was about making your first game, and if you've never even done a simple game then throwing yourself into a big project is likely to end up as a big mess.
I’m laughing so hard at this video cause like
Perfectly describes Several games this year
Gollum
Kong
That walking dead game
All of em feel like there was 0 playtesting lol
Aka GameMill in general
that section about prototyping reminded me of a failed modpack idea I had.
so,, I make Minecraft modpacks as one of my hobbies (have for almost a decade now), but since I work alone I tend to playtest fairly often to ensure I don't waste time on something not even I would enjoy playing.
and awhile ago now, I had an idea for a modpack that reduces the power generation of the dynamos from Thermal Expansion. This is basically the same as taking a levelling system (just pick your favourite), but now each level needs 2 or 3 times as much XP - and that's the only change. Rewards and such are the exact same.
I quickly realized that it was a dreadfully awful idea because it didn't change the game at all. It was the same progression and systems, but now stuff takes longer to process.
and I try to be at least somewhat innovative/original with my modpacks, so I scrapped the entire project. Had only invested 3 or 4 hours of work into it though, so thankfully I didn't lose much.
so yeah, you reminded me of that time I pulled a homer.
haha, good times though yea? lol
@@Artindi lol yeah, and i still make modpacks every so often.
instructions unclear - I did all of this and accidentally became yanderedev
the more videos I see that mention "simple startup game ideas", the more I realize that even my "simple game" ideas are too complicated and need to strive for something even simpler 😭
Love the image at 0:44
Thanks! That was one of the easier ones because it was so descriptive, the harder ones to come up with are the more conceptual ones, sometimes I'm just staring at the screen... "How do I represent this idea with art?"
Yeah, scope creep is friendly right...right?
You betcha! So friendly everyone knows scope creep on a personal level! :D
This made me re-think about starting my game...
The thing that keeps me from starting is, to have a core idea which I want to implement and test on, but while thinking about it I get all sorts of different ideas, which I shouldn't focus on right now. But when I can't figure out the core basics, then where do I even start? Man the struggle is real. Just as the graphic about conceptualizing shows, the second step feels like is missing.
Lol, my first game ever was a brick breaker, nice video concept.
Dang, ive followed this tutorial before even watching it, really cool 😅
Brick breakers can be rather complicated. Thing a 3d one with floating castles, story and rpg elements.
Your first game should be something unique and complex like combining rts, moba and mmorpg together, and add a talent tree bigger than PoE, after all if it's too easy anyone can create it and players figure it out too quickly. You're no ordinary developer, you can easily create a game like that on your own, just have faith in yourself and never ask for feedback on anything, because your idea is so genious no one would understand your great idea anyways. Permadeath is also something you should put into every game, because having people start over from scratch adds a lot of playtime to your game. And always keep adding more shit, the more flashy lights on the screen the better and the more features the better. Btw don't waste time adding a tutorial, let the player have fun figuring out everything for himself.
Oh so that's how I fail! Love it.
Glad I could help. :)
It's a bit frightening for me that i find some of those relatable... Yet, good thing that im different and also the main character, therefore do good unlike the video said!
2:13 I CANT ESCAPE IT
your bad pixel art = the best video ever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Is it bad that I have so many ideas for my first real game that I've written down a good chunk of stuff that I want, but I haven't fully fleshed out the story and don't even have a name for it yet?
I havent started making anything yet, but I've got an immense amount of ideas I would like to slowly implement.
Nah, that's pretty common with creatives. Keep a notebook (or digital "notes") of all these ideas, start off with one that is truly simple/good-for-learning. Important thing is to take at least one idea to completion and get that set of skills/exp down. Then afterwards, you can go back to your idea-book, and pick the next idea to work on.
What appeals to you then, and is within your new skillset, will definitely be different that what you'd pick today.
this is gonna blow up
I realised by watching this that I've spent weeks making animations I'm not sure I'm even going to use...
Good tutorial, sadly, I failed way before watching it. But now I know the formula to failure, I can waste my time watching this to procrastinate further and fail bigger.
wow this is so helpful
I make 1st person games yet i still cant figure out how to make a brickbreaker or pong
my first game will be a reimagening of an old scratch game i made, it has pretty simple movement and enemies
This short is the biggest YandereDev burn I've ever seen
I mean.. Brick Breaker do be fun though. :(
brick gang
Hopefully the creator of Brick Breaker never watches this..... 0.o
@@Artindi Considering that it was Steve Wozniak... "0.o" is right.
@@KlausWulfenbach oh boy, yeah, better to not have the wrath of Apple reign down upon me....
Also, even people making brick breakers can add an original twist to keep people interested. Of course, this isn't true if they only want to fail.
The first tutorial series in which you dont have to do the instructions carefully
This is great :)
Thanks! :D
This is slowly making me realize how bad I am at making games
2:15 amon-
great i have my idea time to fail
Great!
Where have you been all my life😂
"Something small and easy like brick breaker and mario"
(I would love to know in what world he lives where making platformers like mario is "easy" lol.)
Making a full length game of ANY kind is hard. The easy part of making a platformer is referring more to setting up a single room or level to run and jump around in. The physics in these games can be made very simple if you just need to learn how to do it, and the level design process is simple enough at its core for Mario Maker to exist as a game
Some platformers are more complex than others to put together, of course: I’ve kinda shoehorned myself into platformer development hard mode by trying to make a game with Genesis Sonic styled physics. That means I need to spend time figuring out slope interactions, a reliable way to handle collisions, how the character gains and loses speed, jumping, all of those things. The bread that you build your platformer sandwich on is pretty simple compared to the number of complex systems you might need in other games, like Roguelikes or RPGs, but depending on what you add, that can be a spicy meatball sub
Again, making Super Mario Bros for the NES? That’s really hard. But making a Super Mario Bros 1-1? That’s a lot more doable.
That's exactly how Cyberpunk 2077 was developed
I succeced to make games by following your series and doing the opposite of it, Thank you :)
nice ;D
I’ll just stick to the never trying part I guess
well, i cancelled my first game so
i don't really need these tips but thanks anyways
2:29 *amogus*
But muh Gäme!
i don’t think bro likes brick breaker 😭
Where is fairlii?
Here he is: 1:09
I feel like I've accidentally followed too many of the advices in this video...
idk about brick breaker as dream game being a failure
arkanoid series is kinda fire and it's just brick breaker
AMONG US
Did you just descripe YandereDev?
Not having a religion is not a religion. Your logic assumes that not stamp collecting is as much of a hobby as stamp collecting.
Not an atheist necessarily, but the illogic gives my brain a bad tickle
that's fair, the comparison is only supposed to go as far as belief and opinion, Everyone has an opinion on which game engine is the best just as much as everyone has an opinion on what they believe religiously, and not believing in a religion is just as active a choice as choosing to believe in one. But perhaps my wording wasn't planned out well, so your point is still valid. :)