Depression from envy
I've generally sneered at other game developers who've stopped working on their project when they've found something similar and/or better. But I'm having that experience myself and it's hard to carry on working.
I would normally tell the developer that their project is different because it's their design which comes from different experiences and their implementation which is unique; and while this is still true, it's hard to still go through all the challenges of implementing a game when you've seen someone else has already done it.
I don't know if this is just a hobbyist problem (or just me) where there's no financial or academic obligation/gain to continue, or if professional and student developers also have these moments.
You all know I'm working on Maharaja, a city building game, but in my research for my community talk I came across Heathlands which covers all the ideas I had regarding the original Impression Games series and includes a lot more I hadn't even thought of (seriously, check this game out if you like city builders).
I'm still going to continue working on Maharaja, but I wanted to share what I think is a common problem that hits everyone (I think) at some point.
Feel free to share your experiences and how/if you overcame them; or say that you've never had this problem.
I would normally tell the developer that their project is different because it's their design which comes from different experiences and their implementation which is unique; and while this is still true, it's hard to still go through all the challenges of implementing a game when you've seen someone else has already done it.
I don't know if this is just a hobbyist problem (or just me) where there's no financial or academic obligation/gain to continue, or if professional and student developers also have these moments.
You all know I'm working on Maharaja, a city building game, but in my research for my community talk I came across Heathlands which covers all the ideas I had regarding the original Impression Games series and includes a lot more I hadn't even thought of (seriously, check this game out if you like city builders).
I'm still going to continue working on Maharaja, but I wanted to share what I think is a common problem that hits everyone (I think) at some point.
Feel free to share your experiences and how/if you overcame them; or say that you've never had this problem.
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Then, about making something that you feel "has been done before"... I think personally whenever I stop doing something it's not because it's been done before, but rather I've hit a technical or design showstopper that I know I'm not capable of overcoming at this current moment, and whether I will go back to the same prototype in the future or not depends on... Well, other things, whether I have things I or other people might believe in stronger than that old thing. Statistically, because I'm always improving (we really all should be if we're making stuff), our new stuff are usually more likely to be better than older stuff.
So I dunno, I haven't really run into the exact same problem of "the game I want to make has already been made verbatim" - I put in "verbatim" because I think it's really difficult to hit on something that's "exactly the same" as one's own, as we make stuff from a personal perspective, and there are always variables that apply only to me. Theme? Mechanic details? Feel? Presentation? Are there unicorms? Who's the protagonist? They're all things that can be different. And I'm not saying "tweak your idea to be different" - I'm saying your point of origination is probably different already from that other thing that's already out there, you just have to decide on it.
p.s. tiny nit: Depression is very different to being upset/sad about something.
Increasingly, my motivation comes from considering other avenues of value, or "additive-ness".
A big one: does retheming a well-established set of mechanics make my game more accessible to new people? Angry Birds, whether you view it as cheapness, luck or genius, has unquestionably provided value to many people. It has enriched the gaming landscape in a way that, on its own, an "original" title never did. If I make a platformer or puzzle game for local kids who otherwise can't access such things, or provide a (slightly) more culturally-relevant touchstone than what already exists, I consider that "valuable" too, and it becomes easier to work on.
As for the 'long' term projects, I think my periodic 'depression' comes from the lack of motivation, especially monetary motivation, but it does include the lack of stimulus, mainly because I work alone. I find that working alone and part-time gives me basically no stimulus, something that is probably abundant in a team. The monetary factor is huge though, you work and you work and there is no payment for what you do, to make things worse having already released one game on Steam and the revenue didn't even cover the hours worked at my current income level.
At this point it's obvious that my indie endeavors are a hobby that doesn't pay for itself, but hey, it can be very satisfying from time to time.
Approached like this, I don't actually care if someone else has done what I've done, better. Since my goal's to learn (not to make a commercial product -- I do enough of this for my career), assuming a project was announced that did everything I did, but better, I'd use it as a point of comparison, see if my solving the same problems end up with the same solution (or modify the problem so that I can venture out into slightly more unknown territory). I do make sure I don't bleed months of time into it (my typical project lasts 1-2 weeks, though I'm told by people more experienced than me that some of my prototypes could benefit from my working on them for longer).
I think it'd be completely different if I was looking at something as a commercial title though, because then how I think I'd approach it depends. I'd take a look at how the other game was received. If it was overwhelmingly positively received, and it looked like players were hungry for more in the genre, I'd continue working on it while trying to differentiate myself from the other game by focusing on some of the things that I think are valuable that the other game didn't do that could still be talking/marketing points. If the other game's popular but not very well executed, then I'd redouble my efforts on working on my game, because I can do better than them. If the other game isn't very well received, and I don't see glaring problems in the game's execution, then perhaps the world's just not ready for this kind of game (as a commercial title anyway), and I'd use my time elsewhere. Basically, the existence of another game similar to mine doesn't have to be a bad thing; it just means I get a free set of data points for making guesses about my own project's commercial viability without having to invest all of the time that a complete development cycle might require.
And if my goal is to make games to be innovative, then yeah, if someone else has tread that territory already, I'd pivot and push toward stuff that's undiscovered, maybe building on their progress. (Like academic papers, I guess, reference and build on other peoples' work.)
When Broforce looked like this (and received less views on Youtube):
We felt a lot of concern about this. In the end we delivered quite a different product (though we didn't know at the time how different Mercenary Kings was), and things worked out well, but having a prominent metal-slug inspired action platformer in the marketplace before us by a more experienced studio made us feel like our position had been weakened.
Our approach was to just make Broforce better, there were plenty of other gun-happy action platformers before Mercenary Kings, so it actually wasn't ever going to change our position much, and even if it had been a lot closer to Broforce it still probably wouldn't have had a major negative affect (unless it had been much better than Broforce).
I've always felt that when developing a game you don't have the option of delivering an inferior product than your competitors. No-one wants a similar, but inferior, experience to a game they've already played, and there's no way to get traction from critics or just word of mouth if you're number 2 on a list of very similar games (like the way standing next to someone who looks like you but is slightly more attractive makes you look uglier than you actually are).
Lots of city builders already exist, honestly the marketplace hasn't changed that much with the introduction of Heathlands, you've got to be aiming higher than that in any case.
(And if you can't get higher than that currently with Maharaja, the way to get there is to spend lots of time developing these games and leveling up your skills in this area.)
(And we're all keen to cheer for you along the way).
However, if you're worried that you'll make something that isn't as good; then you're stuck with the same problem as the rest of us. Aka, how do I make a good video game? Comparing yourself to other games is tough because there are so many great games around. If you make something good enough, it doesn't matter what other games are out there. There's definitely an audience for good city-builder games.
When I started making System Crash, Hearthstone wasn't on the scene, Gwent wasn't on the scene, a host of other CCGs that have come out in the last 4 years weren't around. At Gamescom, I saw an indie card game that I felt really jealous of, it had some really great ideas and made me feel like SC was an unoriginal piece of crap.
And I've spent a large portion of my life savings making this game, so it hits you in the gut that much harder.
But, a couple of things.
1) Like people have said, even if your ideas seem similar to another product, those ideas will mutate when you try implement them. Unless you're blatantly copying, you won't arrive at the same place in the end.
2) Games (and media generally) are consumable experiences, don't forget that. Think back to your favourite games. Did you stop playing new games in those genres because you'd experienced that peak? People consume the experience and then want more of that, they don't just settle in and replay their favourite games forever. I picked up Pharaoh BECAUSE I loved Caesar and wanted more. People are going to buy Civ6 because they loved Civ5, Civ4, going back down the line.
A very similar game being on the market doesn't mean there won't be a market for your game. Not unless the market is saturated. IS it saturated with Impression Games-like titles? I don't think so, I love those games, I picked up and played a bunch of them, and I still want more.
No matter how much you enjoy a game, eventually it will get stale and you'll look around for something that's new. And, often, people want "new but the same", ie something that's like the things they already love, but different enough to feel fresh. Nothing wrong with giving them that.
Very few of my favourite games in the last few years have been particularly original. Honestly, originality is a little overrated, don't get too hung up on it.
3) Are YOU enjoying the process of making the game, and learning? I've found that the only way to keep yourself from falling into comparison-based despair is to turn inward, and concentrate on what you're getting out of the experience. Are you enjoying making it? Does the project stir your passion? Are you tackling interesting challenges?
Don't be completely blind to the external world, of course, but keep your primary focus inward.
4) Do you really want to be a game developer? If so, don't quit.
I know you said you're continuing working on it, but I just want to emphasize this, in case you're in danger of talking yourself out of it.
It's a hard truth, but if you actually want to be a novelist, you have to do more than just write an outline, you have to write a book. Same with game dev. You need to pick a project and commit, see it through to the end.
So you need to be honest with yourself - is this feeling once off? Or do you hit this point regularly? Is there always some reason that comes up why you keep abandoning projects, after that initial bust of passion in the start?
If it's once off, sure, quit and work on something else. But if this is a pattern, you need to recognize it, break the pattern and finish something.
Commit to finishing even when these feelings inevitably come up. Whatever happens, finish*.
A lot of apathy hit me in the end of SC development. Bug fixing and polish are boring, I'd been crunching for years and was exhausted, the exciting parts of development were long over, and the market is filled with stiff competition that I despaired of being able to compete with. Why bother continuing, a voice in my head whispered.
So one of the other ways I motivated myself was reminding myself that if I finished the game, no matter how it did commercially, whether people loved it or hated it, I'd consider myself successful. I'd have achieved a lifelong goal. I'd have made a game and released it commercially. I could call myself a game developer without any caveats.
That pulled me through. Commitment to an internal, meaningful goal can anchor you through these storms of emotion.
*Assuming you've been sensible in choosing a project of the right scope and match for your skills and assets, of course.
(Just mentioning because I think my post could sound like I don't think people buy similar games to the games they already play, and the example of wanting Pharoah because Caesar was rad is very much a thing that can happen)
@Nandrew We had our biggest concern when we knew "Rambros" existed. That game had exactly the same theme as ours, but I was confident our direction was better. In terms of feeling our game wasn't "original" enough in an ego sense, there's always been a bit at the back of my mind that the game is heavily indebted to Infinite Swat.
But I guess I don't view the importance of originality the way I used to (in that originality rarely can stand on it's own, so much comes down to execution). Broforce was released in a sea of action platformers, and while it had some good ideas, it's execution was exceptional. I guess "execution" here is interchangeable with "entertainment", when looking at our competitors, the content of Broforce in the moment-to-moment is more entertaining (than most, I think with the exception of Shovel Knight), not more polished.