Games Should Be Fun
Since this past summer I have been on and off again working on a video game.
It's very exciting where I have progressed in the game so far. The engine is largely done and now it has gotten to the point of play testing, creating new levels, and adding in new enemies and items as I see fit.
Last night I hit a major milestone in the development process. Things in my game have been cool, neat, or functional. I can walk around the level, I can shoot enemies, I can load a level from a file, I can collect items, my character animates as he walks, the enemies animate as they attack. Last night though, for the first time, I was playing and said to myself, "This is fun".
You can have all the fancy graphics and epic storylines and achievements to accomplish and online multiplayer modes but if your underlying game is not fun to play, it's all a wash.
A game is intended to be for the user's enjoyment. That needs to be the focus when creating a game and you must never lose sight of that or you will lose your target audience. You can have a great game with crappy graphics and storyline because game play is what matters (just look at how many classic games are still fun to play). No amount of great graphics or great storyline though can save a game with crappy game play.
I've already come to grips with the fact that I am not the best graphic artist so when I do complete my game, I don't expect it to make anyone's jaws drop. Nor do I expect anyone to be impressed by the depths of my storyline. But I do truly hope that when someone takes the time to sit down with my game, they enjoy it. If that happens, then I have succeeded.
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