I'm curious of how many other people have the same issue I do:
I currently have a 'projects' folder filled with a whole bunch of unfinished games that would probably be pretty decent if I ever finished them. Unfortunately, I usually work on a project for about a week which gives me just enough time to program most of the engine and general workings of the game, but nothing actually worth playing. Then I get bored, and either move on to another project which I will inevitably never finish or go on a DotA (Defense of the Ancients, a custom map on Warcraft III that is as addictive as crack) or WoW binge.
Does anybody else suffer from absolute inability to keep their attention on anything or am I just really really easily distracted?
ID:182007
 Mar 16 2009, 10:27 pm
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Mar 16 2009, 11:24 pm
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Hazman
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I have quite a few projects where I've come across a 'hard' problem or decision and I can't fix it/make up my mind, so I go do something else and forget about the project. Occasionally I'll boot up Dream Maker, look at the code, remember the problem/decision and promptly close it again.
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I constantly start and stop stuff all the time. But the cool thing is, each time I start a project I usually learn a little bit more and more. I have around 2GBs of half finished projects laying around. There are so many versions of Dragonball Elysium, Rebirth and Majins and Mystics Remastered they never did get it isn't even funny. I don't plan on ever publicly releasing them, since no one ever gave me credit for the originals to begin with, but I spent so much time on them, I don't have the heart to throw them away.
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Common developer syndrome; you're not alone.
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AJX wrote:
. . . then I get bored, and either move on to another project which I will inevitably never finish or go on a DotA (Defense of the Ancients, a custom map on Warcraft III that is as addictive as crack) or WoW binge. What I keep thinking is, somebody needs to work on a recreation of DotA without Warcraft. Think how easy it would be to bring new players to the game without requiring that they buy the Warcraft battle chest first... You interested? =D | |
AJX wrote:
I'm curious of how many other people have the same issue I do: As Hobnob said, it's usually when you run into something hard. I get through about 20% of a game then realise that I have to do something requires some real thinking, that thought is the reason of so many unfinished projects in my drive, we're all just real lazy. | |
AJX wrote:
I currently have a 'projects' folder filled with a whole bunch of unfinished games that would probably be pretty decent if I ever finished them. I'll do you one better; I have a "Projects" folder that has the following sub-folders:
-- total size so far comes out to about 336MB, and most of it is in unfinished projects. =] Then I get bored, and either move on to another project which I will inevitably never finish or go on a DotA (Defense of the Ancients, a custom map on Warcraft III that is as addictive as crack) or WoW binge. Ew, DotA. The guys in the section of the dorm that I live in play that constantly (I'm not joking, it starts at like 2pm and goes all day...until a couple hours into the next day). I'm actually one of three people in that section that don't play. As for me, my distractions are generally either life in general (work, etc.), starting another project, or playing go on KGS. Haywire wrote: As Hobnob said Hazman* it's usually when you run into something hard. Eh, for me it's usually when I run into something monotonous or not hard (the easy stuff gets boring as busy-work). Say, for example, I'm writing a Monopoly game. I would likely write the whole engine and stop around the time I have to fill in all of the property details (price, rent with n houses, mortgage, name, etc.). | |
I got the same exact same problem well not really exact since for me is pixel art, but you get the idea
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LoL. To tackle a game like that you'd need some serious experience in a real standalone language. I sincerely don't. I would LOVE to see a DotA that was standalone but I can't help to think that it couldn't really be done properly... Part of the feel of DotA is the WC3 controls, but they are absolutely TERRIBLE for what DotA is. So if you were to remake it, of course you would choose to use some varied control systems, but that would kill the feel of DotA.
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Usually once I start something it's because I want to see if I can do it or what I want doesn't exist elsewhere. After a certain point I have confirmation that I'm capable of doing something so I get bored and stop, or what I'm making does the job good enough for me so I stop making it better.
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Naturally, part of a remake would be to ensure that the gameplay has a very similar feel and spirit.
However, I'm not precisely sure what you mean about the controls. Obviously they are terrible by default, but every competitive player I know makes heavy use of mods like AutoHotkey to improve the controls. It's unfortunate that you don't have experience with standalone systems. I definitely hope to get going on a DotA remake at some point though... just need to find the time and motivation. (And ideally, I will make them server-compatible so that WC3 clients and free clients could play on the same servers!) | |
I start a lot of projects knowing that they will never be finished, some large, some small. The small ones usually get finished, but the large ones usually have near nothing in them. Of course, I've been better about this recently.
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THATS a lot to try to do...
Many many conflicts as well. (Talking about the free/WC3 interaction) Many many many many many conflicts. | |
DotA was made AFTER Hero Wars, and as a more eccentric version of it too. It's the same thing in my opinion, just less creeps and more paths to get to the enemy base.
Hero Wars and Hero Line Wars are my favorites whenever I play Warcraft 3. I don't play them for hours on end though >_> More like when I get bored doing the usual and end up wasting a couple hours of my life doing (never for more than 3 hours though). | |
Smoko wrote:
Usually once I start something it's because I want to see if I can do it or what I want doesn't exist elsewhere. After a certain point I have confirmation that I'm capable of doing something so I get bored and stop, or what I'm making does the job good enough for me so I stop making it better. That's my category. | |
I've got a ton of projects that I just never seem to get around to. Adam Savage of Mythbusters has a pretty good approach to the problem http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/ adam_savage_s_obsessions.html
I need to start really cataloging my ideas and resources related. Often times when I go back to an idea long after I started it, I'm missing most of my references, as they have long since passed into the ether of the web. | |
 Yeah...You aren't alone. | |
Current Projects: 238 MB
Projects [2007-2008]: 1063 MB Projects [2005-2007]: Unknown (and not bothering to check) Projects [2003-2005]: About 800 MB (some of it compressed, since I burnt it to two CD's) | |