One of the hardest parts of being a game designer is how slow the process is. What we often don't realize is that even the "simpler games" like platformers from the 80s took rough;y a year to release. The Spyro trilogy was finished within a three year span ONLY because the developers were under a constant crunch, hence why they named their brand Insomniacs. Cyberpunk 2077 was locked in development hell since 2010, and still had issues upon release. It's easy to call a game "lazily designed" because of glitches or poor game design. This could not be further from the truth. Even commercial flops take years of development to make. I could go into a rant about how executives ruin more games than anything else, but I wanted to go over how to stay motivated even if the process is slow.

I've been writing Philistine for over seven years. Even with me eager to throw the baby out with the bathwater, I still do not have the story's first draft complete. And it's not because I'm lazy. My later chapters have been over 20k words and they aren't even edited. So I start an insane crunch regiment where I write from dawn to dusk as long as I remain unemployed? Hell no, and I would never recommend anyone do that. Instead, I'll stick to my regimen of three hours worth of writing sprints each day. On average, I produce around 2,500 words a day, which is usually seven-to-ten pages in a book. Most of my chapters take roughly a week to create, sometimes two if I'm writing a fight scene. Could I invest more time into writing each day? Yes. WIll I? Only if I feel like it. Because I'd much rather produce better material at a slower pace than sacrifice my mental health to write diarrhea. I also have other matters to tend to. I still need to job hunt, I have to market and research marketing, I need to keep going to the gym, make time to play visual novels, etc. I'll have even LESS time once I get a job, but that's why we hire people. But until then, I'll follow my routine. Besides, ten thousand words a week is insane! Too bad it only adds an hour's worth of playtime…

I'd argue forging habits like mine are required to finish any game. Sure motivation and passion help, but there will be those days where you just want to stay in bed. What you should focus on is not the completion of goals, but acting by what you wish to be identified as. I want to be a writer, so I dedicate time to writing each day. If you want to be a programmer, you're going to want to make a programming habit. The problem with using goals to form habits is that goals need time to be accomplished, often a lot more than our phone-addicted brains can give. If being a writer meant having finished stories under my belt, I'd feel like a failure and then my motivation would tank. The inverse is true as well. Suddenly building discipline becomes less about duty and more about reward. And as you pursue the dopamine hits, your goals will naturally be accomplished. This reminds me of when I received my Master’s Degree last week. My autistic brain just saw it as a natural outcome for my dedication. Don’t get me wrong I was very happy, but I also knew that my studies weren’t over. I felt a similar way when I launched my prototype. Turns out, burning hours a day over a span of months will produce a game. Who would've thought?

A lot of this might seem obvious. And it is, but I know that some of us (myself included) need to read this. There's more to building a habit than just staying in a closet all day. Sure you might be able to develop under a crunch schedule for one day, but will you be able to do it throughout the week? Consistency is king! Let’s say you want to be athletic? Then you need to start working out dummy, but that’s not all. What days will you go to the gym, what reps will you do, and can this pattern be repeated? I’ve been going to the gym every monday and thursday for two months now, and it feels natural. That's the best part about habits, they eventually become second nature to you. I want to tell people I’m athletic, and telling people you workout does wonders for your confidence!

Moving back to game design, let’s try to form a habit together. I’ve always wanted to learn how to code and that programmer identity looks good on a folio, we’ll use that as our example. I want to make more VNs but with a stronger engine, so I will pick Unity since it has Naninovel to help me get started. The speed I will learn will be based upon my availability. Some of you might not have as much free time as me, but that’s okay! The goal here is to set aside a timeframe for the habit. Since I’m new to coding and the unity interface, I should make this timeframe short so it’s easier to fulfill. Thirty minutes should work, and I have thirty minutes after breakfast. Problem is mondays are my job hunting days and I have an interview friday morning. No sweat, I still have tuesday through thursday. Aaand done! All I need to do is three thirty minute reps of unity a week. I picked the morning because that is when I learn the quickest. And as I become more and more familiar, I might up the timeslot to an hour a day. Maybe two! This approach can work for other hobbies too! Yoru I know you want to get into writing, so dedicate thirty minutes to writing a day. You’re not aiming to be J.K. Rowling (please don’t…), you’re aiming to call yourself a writer! Same goes for drawing, voice acting, marketing, web design, etc.

In conclusion, habits > motivation. No seriously, motivation and passion are overrated and you'll never finish anything if you rely on them. Life isn't anime, there are a lot of boring moments we have to slog through. The genre's called Slice of Life for a reason, and we need to be able to be badasses even if you're working on a project that won't be finished til next year. Building habits to confirm your identity will cause your motivation to increase on its own. As you finish reading, I highly encourage you to reflect on what you want to become in life. What is your dream job, what does your ideal self do, and what do they have that you lack. Once you figure it out, try picking a habit that you believe will push you closer to your goal. 

If you enjoyed this blog, please leave a comment down below and tell me how awesome I am. If you'd like to support me, follow my itch and play my prototype here https://totalleeaweaomw.itch.io/philistine. Let's become better developers together!