Thanks! I think we haven't quite worked out the right way to discuss our relationship with feedback and the audience. "They know the problem but not the solution" hasn't felt fully true to me either in recent years.
At some point I'm going to dive deeper into "Lie 6". I actually think that small companies are better-suited to launch new IP than big ones. Whereas big companies can often find ways to grow and nurture existing IP that aren't possible for small teams. EGG promotes staying small and agile in the prototype phase until you "find the fun" and de-risk the game loops.
Totally agree though on the small means "no management" fallacy though!
For point 4 I’d say this is true for industry workers, but for indie devs or people making their game on the side, I’d argue that passion is their most powerful tool.
The advantage to working alone or in a small group and not relying on your creation as a product to produce funds, is that you can make it as honest, telling and personal as you want.
In a way, how can you tell the artist to not rely on passion for their craft?
Nice post. I agree that listening to you audience isn't necessarily a great idea. Developers should make the game they want to make, rather than the one they think their audience might want.
They should also be careful about watering their game down after release because of player feedback. I've seen this happen most recently for Drova, and I think it has made the game worse. I've written more about this here: https://corerunner.substack.com/p/the-dark-side-of-modern-patch-culture
Thanks! I think we haven't quite worked out the right way to discuss our relationship with feedback and the audience. "They know the problem but not the solution" hasn't felt fully true to me either in recent years.
Well said Paul. An interesting read!
At some point I'm going to dive deeper into "Lie 6". I actually think that small companies are better-suited to launch new IP than big ones. Whereas big companies can often find ways to grow and nurture existing IP that aren't possible for small teams. EGG promotes staying small and agile in the prototype phase until you "find the fun" and de-risk the game loops.
Totally agree though on the small means "no management" fallacy though!
Thanks John! When to grow (or not) is a mega complex question and something I'm interested in exploring further
For point 4 I’d say this is true for industry workers, but for indie devs or people making their game on the side, I’d argue that passion is their most powerful tool.
The advantage to working alone or in a small group and not relying on your creation as a product to produce funds, is that you can make it as honest, telling and personal as you want.
In a way, how can you tell the artist to not rely on passion for their craft?
Nice post. I agree that listening to you audience isn't necessarily a great idea. Developers should make the game they want to make, rather than the one they think their audience might want.
They should also be careful about watering their game down after release because of player feedback. I've seen this happen most recently for Drova, and I think it has made the game worse. I've written more about this here: https://corerunner.substack.com/p/the-dark-side-of-modern-patch-culture