Hi all, I've been a failed game dev hobbist on and off since, well, high school

And I've had enough of trying and failing to go anywhere or complete anything.
So, here's what I'm doing: I want to take an idea, prototype it for a month with what freetime I have, and then post a dev log update per week. If the idea still seems to have legs at the end of a month, give it another 2 months, check again, and if it still seems good, try and complete something worth actually playing as a full game inside a year, dev logging each week to try and keep my bum focused and to try and get useful feedback.

If at the two checkpoints the game is rejected, package it and put it up for, I dunno, a small amount of cash or free (undecided at this point); at least then its finished and someone else might get a good idea from it.

So, my first idea to prototype is a space station game: you are the adminstrator of the first space station on earth that is attached to the planet via a space elevator - the primarily game style concept is to build facilities for manufacture, tourism, and servicing space missions (launch probes, ships, repair & refuel ships, etc) and keep the station in the green, eventually expanding it. Resources for manufacture can be imported via the elevator or later from passing spaceships.
My first aim to be dev logged next thursday is to have a basic station where you can plop stations which deduct from your account. Small step I know, but I don't have a good idea of how much time I can put into this per week yet, and I want to underpromise at this stage and over delivery if anything. Once I have a better idea of my available time I'll actually be able to set better goals.

I would like to get feedback on the concept and the idea of the dev cycle. I have to admit to being inspired to get into gear from Yahztee's dev diary series.

Sounds like you have a good plan lined up.

I think a better idea would be to start making smaller games. How about trying to make a game in 1 month? Spend 1 week on designing, then 2 weeks on the game itself, and 1 week for polish. If you start doing that, and make 4-5 games, you will get a far better idea of how to approach game dev, and possibly make something more fun.

I don’t know your current experience, this advice is best suited for people still learning game design. The numbers are random(ish), and depend on the amount of time you can invest into that. This exercise helps understand that games are not something with infinite scale, where features are being added endlessly for years.

I’m not sure why, but the idea of working on a game only for as long as people enjoy it sounds wrong, but that could be just me. Some games are late-bloomers.

I will admit that my approach to game dev is more art-based, similar to drawing on an empty canvas. My ideas possibly wouldn’t work for someone approaching game dev from a business perspective. It’s up to you what your aim is, and what you consider success. Don’t forget to have fun with it, users can see if the dev had fun making a game and would love to have fun with them :)

Ok, two things:

1) I saw that you can add optional donations for projects, so failed/rejected projects can go up for free with an option to donate if the person feels like making it rain on me (and not in the golden shower way).

2) Modified the idea to be smaller and more achievable I think -

Space factory - you get raw materials in via some kind of asteroid miners, and you have to produce the right products per-level for export - alittle similar to the Zachtronics games' but I think it different enough.