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EVER FEEL LIKE YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU'RE DOING?
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CloseWhen I see some creation I really like, I have a 50/50 chance of being either incredibly inspired or feeling overwhelmingly inadequate. This happens a lot with games - I'll see a genius game, a beautiful game by someone else and work up a panic, wondering how I could ever make something a tenth that good. It's even worse if the person is younger than me, since then I feel like I've been wasting my time while some kid becomes a genius, like I'm some old guy and not 24... And I enjoy making games and want to get better at it, but I feel like I can hardly call myself a "game developer".
Do you ever feel this way in regards to games or whatever your passion is? How do you resist the urge to compare yourself to everyone else? Does this go away when you've made a lot of games, or something people consider critically acclaimed.
Thanks for listening :)
Do you ever feel this way in regards to games or whatever your passion is? How do you resist the urge to compare yourself to everyone else? Does this go away when you've made a lot of games, or something people consider critically acclaimed.
Thanks for listening :)
Xenomic
1752
Really, best thing to do is to not compare yourself to anyone. Otherwise, things like jealousy and self-pity will spring up very easily. Sure, it's GOOD to compare some things to another, but don't compare an entire game to another since your game is probably completely different from the game you're comparing it to, and you shouldn't be doing that even in the same genre. But that's my two cents.
As for me, I constantly question why I continue to work on my game when I'm not getting paid to and everyone under the sun seems to want me to quit working on it for the past 5 years (folks and friends here at home want me to quit because I'm not making any money off of it, several folks on the net, not necessarily here, say it because they think the game sucks or is terrible (to which I don't think they've honestly played it or are comparing it to other games elsewhere). Others think I should scrap it completely and rebuild it from the ground up, either in the current maker or in VX/XP/VXA). However, if you feel like the game or hobby or whatever is worth it and is fun to you, then you should continue doing what you think is fun or worth it to you and don't take anything else super seriously. Of course, if you still want to improve, you'll need to accept a good deal of any number of criticisms, regardless of how harsh some may be, but that comes with the job I suppose.
That's all I got to say on this right now I suppose. Probably not the best of responses, but I'm terrible at conversations. ^^;;
As for me, I constantly question why I continue to work on my game when I'm not getting paid to and everyone under the sun seems to want me to quit working on it for the past 5 years (folks and friends here at home want me to quit because I'm not making any money off of it, several folks on the net, not necessarily here, say it because they think the game sucks or is terrible (to which I don't think they've honestly played it or are comparing it to other games elsewhere). Others think I should scrap it completely and rebuild it from the ground up, either in the current maker or in VX/XP/VXA). However, if you feel like the game or hobby or whatever is worth it and is fun to you, then you should continue doing what you think is fun or worth it to you and don't take anything else super seriously. Of course, if you still want to improve, you'll need to accept a good deal of any number of criticisms, regardless of how harsh some may be, but that comes with the job I suppose.
That's all I got to say on this right now I suppose. Probably not the best of responses, but I'm terrible at conversations. ^^;;
Milennin
2060
Totally. I see projects made that are like 10x better than my stuff and I get jealous, lol.xD My very first abandoned project that I made when I was 18 looked like it was made by a 4 year old, totally embarrassing when I see people at that age making projects that are better than what I can currently do. Maybe I should look less at what other people do...xD
TDS
1453
author=slashphoenix
Do you ever feel this way in regards to games or whatever your passion is? How do you resist the urge to compare yourself to everyone else? Does this go away when you've made a lot of games, or something people consider critically acclaimed.
Thanks for listening :)
Yes, I usually go "What was his approach!?" whenever I see someone do something I've been wanting to do and have not succeeded in a satisfactory manner. Sadly, it rarely lives up to my expectations and it's usually a very butchered version of what it's supposed to be, but when someone does something with a script in a way I had never thought of before it just blows me away.
As for comparing myself to other people, I already know I'm far from a good scripter when compared to the people whose work I follow. I just keep working to improve my skills, and over time I've even had the chance to meet some of the people whose work I admire.
People rarely change, so even if you become really skilled you're pretty much still you. If you tend to compare yourself to others and put yourself down when you see something superior then that is still going to keep happening, even if your work is great.
Have to set up more a base of storyline, and what's going to happen later, rather then making it up, which I mostly do. But to know who the character are, should be easy enough to create. I'm always stuck knowing what dialogue or mapping to do.
All the time. You just have to accept the idea that you'll never amount to anything in life and wait until you die... ;P
Of course, you can always use the time in between to learn a thing of two. In fact, never stop trying to learn new things. You may never get rich, you may never become famous, but goddammit you won't leave this life empty-handed! (empty-minded?) And you will at least get way ahead than those fools who think they already have all the answers the very moment they start any "creative" endeavor because they believe "Art is expreshun!" or something like that, and there's no need to aim for more. - So, in other words: Just keep on trucking! It is probably a good thing that you feel like this. Think of it as a healing process of sorts. You know that saying: "What doesn't kill you..."
Of course, you can always use the time in between to learn a thing of two. In fact, never stop trying to learn new things. You may never get rich, you may never become famous, but goddammit you won't leave this life empty-handed! (empty-minded?) And you will at least get way ahead than those fools who think they already have all the answers the very moment they start any "creative" endeavor because they believe "Art is expreshun!" or something like that, and there's no need to aim for more. - So, in other words: Just keep on trucking! It is probably a good thing that you feel like this. Think of it as a healing process of sorts. You know that saying: "What doesn't kill you..."
Mr_Detective
60
Yeah, it happens. I envy those who have good mapping skills or can create their own graphics. But sometimes, I was fascinated with a few games, then I realize that they use parallax mapping. Well, I can't use parallax mapping so I couldn't do much about it. On the other hands, I constantly try to make the best out of the tilesets that I have so my game won't pale in comparison with the others. :D
I compare myself with people all the time, for competition and the sake of improving my skills. You could always try some different approach to make your game stands out from theirs. :P As for age, some people started earlier, and others started later. I doubt people care about that. ;)
But by the way, to say that "I have no idea what I'm doing" is a bit exaggerated. People can do better than you, but some might enjoy your game more than other games. Gain experiences, learn from your mistakes, and move on. :)
I compare myself with people all the time, for competition and the sake of improving my skills. You could always try some different approach to make your game stands out from theirs. :P As for age, some people started earlier, and others started later. I doubt people care about that. ;)
But by the way, to say that "I have no idea what I'm doing" is a bit exaggerated. People can do better than you, but some might enjoy your game more than other games. Gain experiences, learn from your mistakes, and move on. :)
author=alterego<- This.
All the time. You just have to accept the idea that you'll never amount to anything in life and wait until you die... ;P
I get overwhelmed all the time, especially just getting back into the community since...I think 2k3 had just become available...but, as always, the most important thing isn't really quality, but the ability to actually work on something. That's something I really struggle with and I constantly disappoint myself. I mean, I was messing around with RPG maker since you were in middle school or earlier and have absolutely nothing to show for it. I'm really good at making sprites people hate, lol. That's about it.
The point is not to get jealous, but rather say "what can I do better with my own game." Get ideas, tweak and refine them, and make the game better in general.
I have trouble with a key point in games usually (besides the fact that I have to borrow/edit resources, since I'm neither an artist nor musician). That would be coming up with character motivation and main purpose. Character personality is fairly easy, but this is much harder to form together, especially since in order to form a believable team, the characters need some reason to be together and each might have a different one. This is a higher level storytelling skill, and is usually what separates the good games here from the bad (but it's freaking hard to do well)
The villain or crisis drives the plot, but it always feels like the characters don't have a very strong drive toward what they are supposed to care about, if you don't have this sense. Saving the world? Nah, I don't usually make that sort of game (for one, nobody has saving the world as their primary motivation, and if they do, they're a whole hell of a lot more interesting than the average hero). So, the characters have to have something they very definitely want (besides money, which could be solved just by good grind/mechanting) that they are willing to make a quest for. In general, half the time a game is like "we just met, and now we're a team" with no discussion of different or possibly conflicting reasons for banding together. This is also why I like Tales of Legendia, it provides this sense that the party is a band of misfits with different goals.
I have trouble with a key point in games usually (besides the fact that I have to borrow/edit resources, since I'm neither an artist nor musician). That would be coming up with character motivation and main purpose. Character personality is fairly easy, but this is much harder to form together, especially since in order to form a believable team, the characters need some reason to be together and each might have a different one. This is a higher level storytelling skill, and is usually what separates the good games here from the bad (but it's freaking hard to do well)
The villain or crisis drives the plot, but it always feels like the characters don't have a very strong drive toward what they are supposed to care about, if you don't have this sense. Saving the world? Nah, I don't usually make that sort of game (for one, nobody has saving the world as their primary motivation, and if they do, they're a whole hell of a lot more interesting than the average hero). So, the characters have to have something they very definitely want (besides money, which could be solved just by good grind/mechanting) that they are willing to make a quest for. In general, half the time a game is like "we just met, and now we're a team" with no discussion of different or possibly conflicting reasons for banding together. This is also why I like Tales of Legendia, it provides this sense that the party is a band of misfits with different goals.
I think everyone has looked at masterpieces that came before at some point and felt a feeling of inadequacy, both in game making and every other type of creative endeavour. It's just important to remember that even the greatest designers once felt the same way.
I believe people learn best by doing, in an environment where mistakes are permitted. Before a person starts making any kind of game, it's important to have a plan and have some basic knowledge of how game design works (thankfully, with RPG Maker, many excellent tutorials exist). If you are a novice at game making, your finished product will likely feature some mistakes, which will be noted in peer criticism, which in turn will give you the tools you need to produce a better effort next time. Since your game is not a commercial product, there are none of the consequences for failure you would find in an environment where angry consumers would feel shortchanged by an inferior product, which means that a community like this one is perfect for developing one's skill set.
You'll risk failure with anything you attempt, both in your work and in your hobbies. Just remember that daring to try counts for a lot, and that you'll never become worse for your effort, only better.
I believe people learn best by doing, in an environment where mistakes are permitted. Before a person starts making any kind of game, it's important to have a plan and have some basic knowledge of how game design works (thankfully, with RPG Maker, many excellent tutorials exist). If you are a novice at game making, your finished product will likely feature some mistakes, which will be noted in peer criticism, which in turn will give you the tools you need to produce a better effort next time. Since your game is not a commercial product, there are none of the consequences for failure you would find in an environment where angry consumers would feel shortchanged by an inferior product, which means that a community like this one is perfect for developing one's skill set.
You'll risk failure with anything you attempt, both in your work and in your hobbies. Just remember that daring to try counts for a lot, and that you'll never become worse for your effort, only better.
LockeZ
I'd really like to get rid of LockeZ. His play style is way too unpredictable. He's always like this too. If he ran a country, he'd just kill and imprison people at random until crime stopped.
5958
Those other games aren't that good anyway. They have good aspects, that's all. You can do better than them.
This is a good conversation to have :) After sleeping on it, I think I can be a little more reasonable...
Anyone who makes something is going to fail a lot first, I think, but you learn from those failures, probably as much as you learn from the successes, and there's often little bits of success and genius in everything. I tend to believe (and then, of course, forget) that brilliance in art or anything else is not born, but made, built off the many oft-failed attempts of the past. Geniuses don't fall from the sky, they are well-oiled machines constructed from the countless lessons learned attempting and failing along the way. I think being a master at something - not perfect, but just very, very good - is an achievable goal for anyone who can keep trying and actively learn from their mistakes. So, I guess my take on this is to never give up and never stop learning, and I think you'll find that's how your heroes got to where they did as well.
Hoo, anyway, I'm glad I got that off my chest. It's nice to know I'm not alone in this feeling sometimes, and hopefully anyone who feels this way can turn it into a source of inspiration.
(Also, I remembered a very relevant quote/comic I read a little while back that I really liked.)
Anyone who makes something is going to fail a lot first, I think, but you learn from those failures, probably as much as you learn from the successes, and there's often little bits of success and genius in everything. I tend to believe (and then, of course, forget) that brilliance in art or anything else is not born, but made, built off the many oft-failed attempts of the past. Geniuses don't fall from the sky, they are well-oiled machines constructed from the countless lessons learned attempting and failing along the way. I think being a master at something - not perfect, but just very, very good - is an achievable goal for anyone who can keep trying and actively learn from their mistakes. So, I guess my take on this is to never give up and never stop learning, and I think you'll find that's how your heroes got to where they did as well.
Hoo, anyway, I'm glad I got that off my chest. It's nice to know I'm not alone in this feeling sometimes, and hopefully anyone who feels this way can turn it into a source of inspiration.
(Also, I remembered a very relevant quote/comic I read a little while back that I really liked.)
Dyhalto
7536
Just ask yourself what you're bringing to the community that's different.
Sure, we all start our gam mak career with a boy hero out to slay the evil king, but sooner or later you develop characteristics that are unique to you. This could be an art style, a storytelling narrative, a musical composition style, etc. Once you're sure you're not just making an inferior copy of Final Fantasy, you should be good to go.
It's people who do nothing but recreational activities (camping, movie-going) who I wonder how they live with themselves. What ARE you doing with your lives?
edit: I is late.
Sure, we all start our gam mak career with a boy hero out to slay the evil king, but sooner or later you develop characteristics that are unique to you. This could be an art style, a storytelling narrative, a musical composition style, etc. Once you're sure you're not just making an inferior copy of Final Fantasy, you should be good to go.
It's people who do nothing but recreational activities (camping, movie-going) who I wonder how they live with themselves. What ARE you doing with your lives?
edit: I is late.
Yes.
Honestly, sometimes I feel a little overwhelmed by so many of the great titles out there nowdays. I'll chip away at my own games slowly only to be inspired by something I see or think or whatever, then ruminate over the fact that my last game is still waiting to see the light.
Then I see someone release a game they started a month ago and feel like I've got no idea just what I'm doing here.
... But then I remember that I enjoy the process of game making and that I have finished some games and start the process over again. It's a vicious cycle.
Honestly, sometimes I feel a little overwhelmed by so many of the great titles out there nowdays. I'll chip away at my own games slowly only to be inspired by something I see or think or whatever, then ruminate over the fact that my last game is still waiting to see the light.
Then I see someone release a game they started a month ago and feel like I've got no idea just what I'm doing here.
... But then I remember that I enjoy the process of game making and that I have finished some games and start the process over again. It's a vicious cycle.
author=LockeZ
Those other games aren't that good anyway. They have good aspects, that's all. You can do better than them.
Yea, basically, they're fairly good quality in terms of being low on bugs, and high on features (since they have a team and access to CGI framing models allowing for 3d graphics).
But in terms of a quality story, in terms of that you can given time and talent, include more stuff, no you can do better. And the lack of filtering means that your game has the potential for a very interesting/weird plot.
Yeah, all the time. I can't help but feel a little jealous of amazing-looking projects, but then I realize that I we all have different ideas as to what makes a good game and I stick with what I have. I'm not discouraging you in playing those games, however, because they can serve as a good source of inspiration to POSSIBLY use in your own project.
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