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When do I stop designing/developing and start publishing?

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Mon, 03/11/2013 - 16:24
silasmolino
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Joined: 02/01/2013

The question is this:

When do I stop designing/developing and start publishing?

The answer should be: When you are done.

I wish it was that easy and here is the problem: I cant stop fiddling with the game. I'm currently developing a small scifi war game (see here: http://farfromhomeboardgame.weebly.com/) and the mechanics are solid. The gameplay is fun. The pieces fit and interact just right. But the tech tree I keep wanting to manipulate and add to. The Rule Book can always use more clarification and more illustration. I have revised it many times and can probably continue to do so.

So when do you stop and say enough is enough?

What is your experience in saying "this is it! Nothing more needs to be done."?

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Mon, 03/11/2013 - 19:36
#1
GrimFinger
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silasmolino wrote:The

silasmolino wrote:
The question is this:

When do I stop designing/developing and start publishing?

The answer should be: When you are done.

I wish it was that easy and here is the problem: I cant stop fiddling with the game. I'm currently developing a small scifi war game (see here: http://farfromhomeboardgame.weebly.com/) and the mechanics are solid. The gameplay is fun. The pieces fit and interact just right. But the tech tree I keep wanting to manipulate and add to. The Rule Book can always use more clarification and more illustration. I have revised it many times and can probably continue to do so.

So when do you stop and say enough is enough?

What is your experience in saying "this is it! Nothing more needs to be done."?

If you can't stop fiddling with the game, then that indicates to me that you remain unsatisfied with it. If it's not where you want it to be, then continue refining it. It's a judgment call on your part, but there is one or more reasons why you continue to work on it.

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Mon, 03/11/2013 - 21:40
#2
McTeddy
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Joined: 11/19/2012
GrimFinger wrote:silasmolino

GrimFinger][quote=silasmolino wrote:

If you can't stop fiddling with the game, then that indicates to me that you remain unsatisfied with it. If it's not where you want it to be, then continue refining it. It's a judgment call on your part, but there is one or more reasons why you continue to work on it.

In my professional experience, this never works out well. Creators have a tendency to aim for perfection... which being impossible... they never ship the title. Even worse, the creator often see's flaws with his own work that no one else would ever notice. A perfectly functional game never see's the light of day because the designer can't let it go. This is a sad thing... but far more common than you'd know.

As for the initial question... you ship it when it's ready.

The best way to find out if it's ready is simply to get people to play it. If the majority of the players enjoy the game you're in good shape. Get the artwork, do minor tweaks, but stop making any major changes. If the game works and people want to play it then its ready.

Video Game Devs have a saying "Save it for the sequel". This is because a game is never finished only shipped. But with a game on the market... you can STILL work with those mechanics. You can still tweak them to be better AND you can use actual audience feedback to judge them. Even if this title isn't perfect... your next game will be one step closer.

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Tue, 03/12/2013 - 06:40
#3
gabrielcohn
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Joined: 11/25/2010
Hard Call

It depends--is your fiddling adding to the game? Or is it just making it more complex unnecessarily? If it is improving game play, keep fiddling. If it is making the game longer, slower, more complex, then stop and backtrack.

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Tue, 03/12/2013 - 09:23
#4
Redonesgofaster
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Joined: 11/14/2012
All the extra fiddling I

All the extra fiddling I think is pretty dangerous. Your personal relationship with the game makes it very easy to make changes that reduce the accessibility of the game. Keep things you want to add/change available as an expansion, it lets you stay creative without muddling something that is crisp.

Let playtesting determine all the changes after the game is fully functional, test it in as many different groups as possible. Be sure to get initial and secondary responses to things. Test with a blind reading of the rules, and try to teach the game a lot also, it will help you word the rules in a more intuitive way.

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Tue, 03/12/2013 - 09:42
#5
Dralius
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silasmolino wrote: The Rule

silasmolino wrote:
The Rule Book can always use more clarification and more illustration. I have revised it many times and can probably continue to do so.

If you’re self publishing hire a pro to edit your rule book. It will cost a few hundred bucks but it will be worth it. So many self publishers figure they can save money and do it themselves. Whay they get is a game that is unplayable simply because you don’t understand how to play.

If you need I can give you contact info for an award winning editor.

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Tue, 03/12/2013 - 10:35
#6
silasmolino
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Joined: 02/01/2013
Thank you for the feedback

Dralius, I do not plan on self publishing (I've read so many reasons not to, cost being one of them). You can take a look at the rule book thru the link in the OP. I am currently looking for blind play testers to test the rulebook.

I like the idea of a sequel, as McTeddy mentioned. The game I have developed has a great back story I believe can be expanded upon. The rules I am fiddling with are minor (the core mechanics will not be touched) and add options to the game. There also appears to be no balancing issues that need to be corrected. You can check the developer journal here:

http://farfromhomeboardgame.weebly.com/development.html

In response to gabriel, I don't think the additional rules are making it more complex. It appears to be adding to the fun and improving game play.

I am however worried, as Redonesgofaster stated, that my personal relationship with the game will get in the way of keeping it simple and crisp. I need to keep in mind that no one else knows the rules like I do and referring to a rule book for every little thing does get annoying.

So the answers I am taking away from this are:
1. Play test for fun and complexity
2. Save it for the sequel (expansion)

Thanks guys.

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Tue, 03/12/2013 - 14:29
#7
MikeyNg
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Joined: 07/12/2012
Quick glance

A quick glance at your rules:

Type on "Create" on 1.1 (pool of 30 pennies)
It's not CLEAR that you make the pool of 30 and then pull 10 each out from there.

5.2: is the capital ship turning 45 degrees or 60 degrees? (one hex side = 60 degrees)
5.3: I assume that's "a PLAYER may spend AP to move a ship..."
8.4 is slightly unclear. I assume that depending on how much shield the capital ship has left, that determines how much AP it costs to repair.

I would stop tweaking the game and getting other people to play it. Find out if they have issues with the rules / if anything is unclear.
Then they need to see if they're having fun. Without looking at the map or the tech tree, here's my areas of possible concern:
Map - is the map too big/too small? How "bloody" do you want to make the battle? (Smaller = bloodier)
Are there "dominant strategies" from the tech tree? Is there an imbalance? (Could someone tech up to a victory, or does not teching up at all make sense?)

People need to try weird strategies - all fighters/all corvettes/no ships/no tech/etc. Just to make sure there isn't one weird thing that might be imbalanced.

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Tue, 03/12/2013 - 14:58
#8
silasmolino
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Joined: 02/01/2013
I agree

Thank you for the run through. I appreciate the criticisms and will make the changes.

Regarding the map: The design fits two purposes:

1. It fits on 1 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper.
2. It forces combat because there is not alot of room to escape.

Indeed, I need individual playtesters.

How do I market this and where do I market this?

Also, is a Print and Play format appropriate or do I need to create prototypes and ship them out?

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