About a third of that time was actually spent on the game.



-=-



Eight months of disregard and neglect - that's a while. I've learned a few things about how I like to make games, the kind of plots I like, and Ill Will doesn't line up with those newfound tastes 100%.

That doesn't mean Ill Will is going to change any time soon, though.

Changing the focus of a project midway through its production is downright stupid; much less changing it at Ill Will's point of completion. Just because Ill Will isn't a direct window to my soul or some such nonsense doesn't mean I have to mold it to my current state. IW has evolved into its own experience, and I'd have to be a fool not to recognize. There is a consistent tone and style that doesn't need to change. I'm certainly not going to come back three projects from now and update it to fit whatever my taste may be at the time.

That may be the biggest cause of the delay - I was daunted by the prospect of overhauling IW to better suit my "vision". As soon as I decided to simply sit down and work I realized a very simple fact:

Vision shouldn't change with time.

Sticking to the original goal is key here - while the malice and dread of scope creep has been discussed at great length, there's an even subtler sin - wanting your game to become something it was never meant to be.

Ill Will was never intended to be anything more than a crawl through dungeons; telling a simple tale about demons and humans; and perhaps drawing a bit of contrast between the two. Not a sweeping epic or a intricately tuned complex system - just a game, one that challenges the player a tad,and hopefully entertains them. It's so simple. It's so damn hard. You know what I mean by that; of course you do.

Don't expect Ill Will for Christmas, but don't expect it in March either.