The Games I Want To Make
Added 2016-05-29 18:23:45 +0000 UTCLet's talk YouTuber's Life.
One of the ideas I was working on for a month or so was a YouTube game. You played as a YouTuber and had to make videos and rise to the top.
I had a billion problems with it and scrapped it. Here's some of them.
1. The pacing was impossible.
Do I exaggerate the numbers a video gets or use real ones? Real ones would mean the games start would be a sloooooooooog. Exaggerated ones means that the games doesn't feel like a victory. I like to play games where I feel that one wrong move will fuck me up for a long, long time. This game needed to be like that. However...
2. It was boring.
YouTubing is a boring subject. You get up, go sit at a computer by yourself, work all day and then go back to bed. That's it, on a loop, forever. Occasionally you collab but really it's a slow drudge to the grave obtaining bigger numbers on the way. Lesson learnt: Pick an interesting topic.
3. It was more fun as satire.
I enjoyed when the game eventually broke down to a cookie clicker style game with tonnes of upgrades and dumb things. Made it easier to actually say something with the game. However it really wasn't the kind of game I wanted to make so... bin.
4. I felt like it was a game that was gonna happen even if I didn't make it.
And I was right.
5. Being the best is boring.
An idea I'm playing with a lot recently is having multiple goals in a game. Not just "MOST NUMBERS", "LARGEST SWORD", "KILL THE BOSS" etc etc. I liked the idea of a game where you can run a small niche channel, get a constant viewerbase and win doing that while still having a fun experience. Again the topic came into play. YouTube just wasn't the right idea for that. I may come back to it later.
Anyway, attached is a variety of concept art that Rebecca made for the game. Glad people can finally see some of this stuff.
That's all for today. Class dismissed.
- Dan
Comments
I think one of your main issues is that your expectations for the quality of your first game (not including the couple of others) are too high. It's good to set yourself high standards, but just like with your youtube career it's better to spend some time doing stuff, putting it out and make mistakes which you learn from instead of constantly binning what you want. I would have said you should have just made the cookie clicker style one, just to get that creative idea out there. Then you can refine and improve as you go.
Mike Jones
2017-08-13 22:35:22 +0000 UTCYES
Enzo Cameli
2016-06-04 00:28:04 +0000 UTCThere's no point making it ultra-realistic, anyone who wants that kind of realism can try their hand at making their own channel (<a href="https://youtu.be/2bQ66tMJLpE)" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://youtu.be/2bQ66tMJLpE)</a>
Zoey G
2016-06-01 10:57:57 +0000 UTCTake a look at Software Inc. on Steam. It may give you an idea your looking for. It's a very cool Business / Game Dev style game with everything from managing your money, etc. :)
DougieBoy
2016-05-30 21:07:39 +0000 UTCThe above image is marked to be nearly a year old. My goodness.
Sandwich247
2016-05-30 18:19:26 +0000 UTCSomeone could make a Sims mod out of it ...
Stephan Ritzdorf
2016-05-30 07:18:49 +0000 UTC''An idea I'm playing with a lot recently is having multiple goals in a game.'' - I love this idea. Multiple goals in a game or completing the game using a different method are the things that will make me want to keep replaying a game.
Novill044
2016-05-30 00:23:58 +0000 UTCAs a dev, I certainly know the feeling. I keep a log of all the games I've tried to make, the point I got to, and why it failed, along with some outstanding good bits, just so you can pull a Darwin and keep some nice bits for future ideas. I would recommend this practice!
FlamingYeti
2016-05-29 23:40:45 +0000 UTCi like cake
2016-05-29 23:37:57 +0000 UTCThat's the kind of content I like to see here! Thanks!
Raphael Thoulouze
2016-05-29 20:45:25 +0000 UTCIt's a good idea just the finer details are a little crap
Jack Rathbone
2016-05-29 20:02:41 +0000 UTCI love the idea, but you were right in that the pacing would be screwed, but maybe you could use this youtuber sim idea in another game as a side quest or something, work on slaying the dragon, but vlog about it at the end of the day, I feel like a YouTube sim would make great bonus content to some other game, or atleast maybe a cool easter egg.
2016-05-29 19:56:32 +0000 UTCI love your ideas of what kind of game you're wanting to make, most games today are all the same and I think it's time for something new! I liked your concept for the YouTube game but I see why you decided not to do it. I can't wait to see what games you have in store for us in the future; I know for a fact that I will love them! Your attention to detail is the best!!!
2016-05-29 19:37:52 +0000 UTCI've always loved your knack for perfection, and I'm 100% sure from this post that whatever you make will be fantastic :) congrats to you and Rebbeca also, you guys are awesome and deserve the best.
2016-05-29 19:16:22 +0000 UTCI had an idea like this too. My idea involved doing small stuff on YouTube and eventually you would get big enough that you would get your own recording studio and it would evolve into a management game. But I wasn't skilled enough at coding at the time. But now that I've remembered it I think I might give it a go again.
rain
2016-05-29 18:48:46 +0000 UTCWas this the "Small game" you were going to tease a month ago on patreon?
James A Goodin
2016-05-29 18:43:00 +0000 UTCWhat I find vaguely amusing is that the game Yotuber Life is out now and it is, as you postulate in this post, very boring and just pretty much a slog. It has the multiple goals that you mention as well, they're just really badly implemented. I mean you can get married but it feels really hollow. Basically, You Tube is not the right way to go like you say. Justin TV however? Well. We may just have a winner.
Syphon
2016-05-29 18:38:37 +0000 UTCThat art and your thoughts are amazing. Thank you, both of you for the great stuff you guys and ladies are doing. Much love
Anthony
2016-05-29 18:35:23 +0000 UTCI think if someone made a super realistic game about being a YouTuber it would open people's eyes to the fact that there is a lot of stuff that goes into it; money, time, patience. So I think if someone was to do it realistically it should be aimed like an educational piece to make people learn about this strange little job that is an internet personality. Of course it would be pretty boring in practice, hell barely a game and probably wouldn't get the best reception but it would be an eye opener.
WritingInVerse
2016-05-29 18:33:55 +0000 UTCThat concept art is amazing
John Mahoney
2016-05-29 18:33:14 +0000 UTCIf Dan's putting this much thought into the games he makes, when his comes out they're going to be amazing. It's good to know that were contributing to a perfectionist.
Stan Collins
2016-05-29 18:32:02 +0000 UTC
