3 replies to this topic

[Shane]

So with Rite of the Storm finally over and done with I can finally shift my focus back on Sanctuary Tree and another project I have in mind. The thing is however, I don't want to keep this project page up to date anymore. In fact, my desire to showcase anything that's related to my projects has completely diminished. I don't really want to get deep into the reasons but rest assured the quest isn't cancelled obviously. I found out during development of Rite of the Storm that I work much better when I don't show anything so that's what finally convinced me to come to this decision after so much debate with myself. I know it's something people don't want to hear but I think I should at least let people know what's going on. I'll at the very least show random screens not from projects in SotW and Screenshot threads from now on and I might show actual project progress on Discord chats (obviously including the quest's development chat) but probably not to a wider audience such as the entire forum. I think this will help Sanctuary Tree actually get completed in the long run so hopefully you can at least understand that. I'm sorry if this is a bit sudden and vague.

As for Rite of the Storm, we've took most of the feedback (mainly from streams and let's plays) and improved on it. It'll be on the database in just a few days. Also I'm really grateful that Sanctuary Tree won most anticipated and is being currently featured so in exchange I will be even more determined to complete this quest - at my own pace and behind the scenes from now on though, sorry.

 

And heck, I might update on rare occasions but that's about it. But I definitely am not going to update on every single accomplishment like previously. This is a decision I was deciding for months now and I finally came to the answer I feel is right.

[CyberGamer1539]

Though I am kind of sad that you won't be updating very much anymore, if you feel it is the right thing to do, then go right on ahead.

[Anthus]

I understand completely. Good luck.

[Lüt]

The thing is however, I don't want to keep this project page up to date anymore. In fact, my desire to showcase anything that's related to my projects has completely diminished. I don't really want to get deep into the reasons but rest assured the quest isn't cancelled obviously. I found out during development of Rite of the Storm that I work much better when I don't show anything so that's what finally convinced me to come to this decision after so much debate with myself.

I think that's the best idea, for a number of reasons.

 

When I used to do that with older projects, I found myself spending a lot more time on promotion and pandering for positive public approval than I spent actually working on the project. When I stopped that, I made much more progress - which should really be the goal, because in the end, people want to play it, not just look at it.

 

Next, more of a business thing, but, there's a value in scarcity. You know, it's not the CD or DVD that has a million copies in print that people pay hundreds of dollars for, it's the one that only ever had a few thousand copies printed that people get into bid-wars for when a copy finally shows up on the market.

 

Then, building off #2, you can exhaust people with excess updates. "Ooooh, a Sanctuary Tree update!" turns into "Oh, another Sanctuary Tree update." People who keep hearing about it but never get to play it start tuning out after a while. I mean, it's nothing to do with quality, it's just that even the coolest things can become average if you're around them long enough.

 

Finally, it's like the gaming equivalent of modern movie trailers. They show too much. People watch them and say, "OK, fine, now I don't need to see the movie anymore," and yet the marketers keeps turning out full movie summaries rather than proper previews. A number of mod makers do this in different scenes, but it's particularly prevalent around here because people can post entire maps, compared to FPS games where a "map shot" it just a top-down wireframe in the editor.

 

I mean, I do make somewhat of an exception in game dev scenes, because sharing with other designers who can offer helpful critique can be useful in guiding you to your best designs. But even if I were doing that, I'd either only post small segments publicly, or save it for a dedicated team of playtesters. I'm pretty surprised at the amount of full maps that get posted for everybody to see, because it removes the sense of exploration that people could have when they finally play the project.

 

Anyway, that's been my experience. It's kinda hard to step out of view when you're getting a lot of positive feedback, but I've always found it's for the best. So, good choice, and good luck finishing.