Three things that inspired me to finish my game (Developing 8)

Developing is an on-going YouTube series, where I share the step-by-step process of making my first video game: Mind Over Magnet!

Since the last episode of Developing, three things have inspired me to stop messing around and actually start to finish my magnet-based puzzle platformer. Here's what happened.

=== Links ====

Thanks to Video Games Are Bad for playtesting

=== Credits ===

Music By:

License for commercial use: Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported "Share Alike" (CC BY-SA 3.0) License.

YouTube Audio Library

=== Subtitles ===

[remidupre]

As a developer I can firmly say that : spending time implementing something to finally discovering it is already an available tool is never completely wasted time. Then you know how the tool is made, what are its limitations and how it will perform in edge cases.

[IAmBael]

The only thing harder than actually making a game, is sticking with it long enough to see it finished.

[loreleiloriestone]

My immediate reaction to that stage transition was "Aw, I love that!" So I think you nailed it!

[godribbon]

What's cool about this series is that it started out as an academic insight into the process of development but now has me thinking "Hmm... I hope this comes out on Switch, I wanna play it"

[String.Epsilon]

That stage transition is very cute. I'd give the "plop" of the cork (?) a little more oomph to sell the suction a little more, but it's already really satisfying.

[tahini]

Seeing how Mark was inspired to finish his game has actually inspired me to get off my butt and stop procrastinating my goals

[Calyde]

Just seeing your “level end/level start” animation, it looks great! I’d suggest having different pipes for all the different magnets and your characters to pop out of. That way, if part of a puzzle involves having a magnet “trapped” at a different part of the map to be found and used on another part of the puzzle there’s be a pipe underneath it to show it was deposited there from the beginning. This would also keep people from wondering where one of their magnets went if it’s not at the beginning of the next puzzle but was in the last one.

[BONSMcCOY]

"I *am* future Mark!" Is legit inspiring/motivating, as someone who put off so much to be dealt with by my future self.

[Pellbort]

14:58 Ohhhh no no no, Mark---- Your parallax scrolling is backwards. Stationary foreground objects scroll FASTER than stationary background objects. The relationship between these speeds is directly proportionate to the relative distance from the viewer. In your clips, some of your background layers are moving faster than the foreground layers which is REALLY disconcerting. In general, each layer should scroll slower than the one in front of it.

[CheeseWithMold]

The stage transition isn't silly, it's BRILLIANT! Good job!

[bagorolin]

Those backgrounds look amazing!!! Wow! Thanks for sharing this. Also very well demonstrated in the video. Every new layer, color, and especially the animation makes it better! I'm in awe :)

[najakwarkle]

Nice work! This really does demonstrate how complex game design is. Imagine being alone without a community of folks supporting your progress forward! Can't fathom.

Also: That dead pixel on your camera sensor! :O

[fluffybunnyb]

A warning about the next goal you stated at the end: the content grind is real, especially for something like a puzzler where you need to have each level feel distinct. One of the ways to help this is by talking to people, not necessarily people on the internet, but people in your life that have a wide range of gaming experience. Another is don't be afraid to add mechanics when you need to, and don't wait until the well is dry before you do. Lastly, hold onto old ideas when you take them out of the game, as a lot of them aren't as bad or out of place as you think they are, but they may just need some more insight that you don't have until you're future you (I would especially hold onto those platforming levels, because with a couple introductory levels before them they can make great late-game content).

[lucbloom]

Mark: *runs this YouTube channel*
Also Mark: “I never made anything that evoked an emotional response in people”

[gaiance]

That stage transition is awesome; I love it.

Also, I've watched enough of your videos to know why you do subtitles, but thank you for continuing to subtitle your videos. It's so helpful for me.

[vitbull]

Me as a game dev hobbyist: wow, this is a really good work!
Me as a professional magnet designer: what the hell people think about how magnetic fields work?

[CaptBighead]

DUDE! That level transition is so cool!

[adamx]

14:57 Just to nitpick: the barrels in the foreground here move slower than the background objects. They should move faster for a proper parallax effect. And wait, is that the silhouette of an Aperture weighted storage cube?

[MikeG-nzgt]

The sound effects you added are very "clicky clacky" and satisfying! I really liked the thick outline you added and the level transition and entrance including the name of the level is all very satisfying! I'm excited to play this one day!

[StefanLopuszanski]

Completely understand. Being motivated to keep working is a key part of being a game dev. I regularly have to talk to interested people and their excitement for my game gives me a boost to work on the next milestone.

We'll be doing playtests soon and I'm sure having people enjoy the game and give feedback will keep us going to do even more.

Slowly but surely moving forward to completion!