How to refine your game idea until it's AWESOME!

[@StarContract]

Talk to yourself out loud and pretend you "teach" your idea to a class of students. Best way to process something / learn / iterate is to pretend you're teaching / presenting it.

[@SamyakAgarkar]

Omega Destroyer yes..that is so true. Many a times you require best advice. And your best advisor is you yourself. Great thought🖖

[@gambar]

Interesting concept - I'll make sure to give it a go... once I kick everyone else out of the house :)

[@hypno_ibram]

I used to do that when I was coding lol.

[@Teabone3]

It does actually work, when you talk to yourself. Despite how crazy everyone around you may think you are lol I should practice this more when im alone :D

[@AngryhammerGames]

I love this guy. Straight to the talking points and well organized. Tells the hard truths that game dev people need to hear.

[@TorQueMoD]

That's a hugely beneficial tip for game designers... "Cut it down... you can always add it back later if you want". I always try to focus on the minimum amount of features I need to get the game functional and release a version for people to get their hands on asap. Then you can go back and add the extra bells and whistles in future updates.

[@ThrottleKitty]

"Let it sit" is amazing advice. It takes me soooo long to do everything, because I mull things over for a long time. Always. I could never have the deadlines of a serious AAA studio pushed upon me, it would destroy my creativity. But, I feel like the creativity and "distinctness" of my ideas are their major selling point.

[@TheArtist808]

I love the new format great pacing and timing

[@idklol4197]

i love the booty clap music in these old tim ruswick videos! bring it back!

[@BakaCertified]

The presentation & even the lighting is amazing! I loved how you refined your style! Great work!

[@BJBaye]

I haven't done much in the way of game development for the last few months, due to health issues (nothing serious - I hope - sore shoulders that I've always had and a throat issue that my doctor thinks might be acid reflux) making dictating and typing difficult. But I just had this idea that caught me and I've been thinking about almost nothing else for two days. Hilariously, I got to a point tonight where I thought to myself that I have to figure out how to organize these ideas, and how to figure out whether they are good or bad. Within an hour of thinking that, this video appears. I'm taking this as a sign that I should go ahead with this game idea, even if it takes me a lot longer than it might if my throat was better. :-)

[@lucasfranke3326]

So... How is it going?

[@lukelader]

So it's on the playstore now or not? XD

[@squally9149]

turns up 2 years later with Hollow Knight 2

[@Liammoz]

status update?

[@thenoseguy]

Let the people know

[@RuberSocks]

Great point about structuring the mechanical parts of games before they start to get big. OOP comes to mind.

[@PixelLeon-gl2ox]

Good choice of "muisc" for that video. Like that subtile training motivation Vibe to it. Great one.

[@warpzone8421]

You know, I was going to complain about how hard the background music is trying in your newer videos, but then I suddenly realized that this is a lot more watchable than your older videos without the background music. The editing is good, too. You really cut all the dead air. I'm not sure how it works, but I recognize that it is working. Good job!

[@percasy8989]

Is it just me, or does anyone else love the name change?? Love the channel improvements. Keep it up man!

[@SamyakAgarkar]

Percasy.. Tim seems to work more on personal brand these days. Game dev underground was a good name.. but "Tim Ruswick" talks more about the personality Tim is❤️

[@tim-ruswick]

Ahh thank you! I appreciate the kind words :)

[@bordakito1773]

Why you change the name again? @@tim-ruswick

[@SaniveK_]

That last blink was BOSS! keep up the great work =)

[@jerobarraco]

this video is actually pretty good (as compared with other channels). (the only thing i would nitpick is the music which distracts me). i also do that 'let ideas sit' i wish i saw this video before lol. i also came to do these things. thanks for the video !

[@snowconesolid]

Refining your game idea until it's AWESOME is easier than you think. You know, you should take this online refine your own game idea until it's AWESOME course on Udemy...

[@dustinfinamore9801]

hahahahaha Every time that commercial comes on I think I must be the dumbest coder of all time

[@Kappinski]

It is the only thing I regret not to see anymore because of my add block :D

[@HaydenTheEeeeeeeeevilEukaryote]

The video ended with that ad as I was reading this. You know? You should take this online spooky course on Udemy!

[@WastelandSeven]

I miss your jokes in other videos on game design LOL

[@vincentpoteet5975]

But that ad as the reason I got youtube red!

[@DINGOS30]

really enjoyed the energetic style of this video Tim way to go!😃

[@swiftgames5382]

Thanks Tim this helps a lot. I'm building a game which is pretty good, But has no Real Goal. so its inspired me to put something in my game for players to aim for at certain stages in my Game.

[@TylerPotts]

Awesome video man, you really help with motivation!

[@crashnblake1]

Thank you for another helpful video, will be following a lot of these tips along the way. working out some ideas and this is going to help me a lot i can tell. Thank you, have a great day.

[@MasterQuestMaster]

This is definitely solid advice! Thank you!

[@KABOOMANIMATIONS]

This video is very exciting and is edited very well

[@_BangDroid_]

Sage advice. Applicable to so many other areas.

[@morganbeebe]

I always let my ideas sit but I call it marinating. I started doing this years ago in the investment property business.

[@themerpheus]

Bad ass song dude :)

[@cybertryber.aka.samsamuro]

Very Nice and Helpful Videos Thank you Very much 😸🙏

[@Andrewspieces]

Hi Tim. Thanks for your content. It's very insightful and helpful. Peace

[@InvetorXD]

This video is very helpful. Thank you very much!

[@KDD0063]

I would say the second step right after dumping your ideas down, is to sort them into impossible / must have / nice to have / do not have. Then put reasons down as to why. For example you may rule out 3D right away because it is way out of your area of expertise, or maybe you rule out pixel art just because you don't like it. Either way, making restrictions for yourself right of the bat can make you focused, and give you ingenuity from adversity.

[@ilet2420]

My opinion in sharing or selling the idea is a tricky part because you can't come up with reliable feedback as the number of people contributed are few. And sometimes you find it difficult to explain what sets in your head.

[@ouroldhouse3674]

Good video. In-depth.

[@horusofoz]

Have you considered creating a checklist like document outlining this process. Would be a good augment to the video. Watch the video, start the checklist and click timestamps rewatch the parts of the video when looking for further details.

[@LoneWolf-tk9em]

Most important - have a small notebook & a pen, ideas can strike anytime at anywhere

[@zedgamedev]

Nice editing bro

[@benjaminbeltran7004]

I also let my ideas sit for as long as they need until they are fully formed. It's called "creative obsession" and it's a rather new psychological concept. Because obsession used to be always bad in psychology. Until they discovered "obsession" is a rather important part of creative thinking.

[@AngelEpinoia]

Good ideas, thanks for sharing.

[@mikaxms]

Tim is a -Game Dev- *word massager*

[@jamiegare1611]

I’m working on a game but I seem I don’t have a objective in it. I don’t want to save someone would love some ideas ?

[@warpzone8421]

I don't see any "link up above."

[@Drakmour666]

Thanks for the video. I already all this stuff, I have a 100 pages in Powerpoint about my game.))) And I cut and add something almost every day. :-) Some Ideas from the start are already lying on the last pages "for considering". The only things I don't do is I don't show it much to my friends cuz they always say "yeah, this is cool, I have nothing to add" and I don't have any pros in industry to ask them. :-) But me and my friend (that codes the game) will eventually make a demo and then it will be time to show and ask for a feedback. :-)

[@scalpingsnake]

Speaking of scope. From your experience and what you know what kind of game could 1 person make? (or at least code) and then on the other side what kind of games need a big team? Thanks.

[@Phoenix-gz9xb]

You have a link to your games?

[@snowconesolid]

On the topic of brain dumping. First, thank you for telling me what it's called. I never really knew that it was called "brain dumping". What I usually do is, I type down all my ideas in a simple Notepad on my laptop and I keep that notepad open and in my face on my desktop's screen until I get the idea done. I leave it as a reminder to do it and it's also an annoyance to have on my screen all the time. This encourages me to actually work out the idea as a functioning real thing. With that said, as a person who has brain dumped thousands of ideas and saved them in various locations all over my computer's hard drive, I actually don't like to brain dump my ideas anymore. Why? Because it makes me feel like, "okay, the idea is now saved forever and I can stop thinking about it now. I can go back to this whenever I want" - Often this actually makes me forget the idea or lose motivation to ever get around to doing it. I feel like if I keep my ideas in my head, I eventually get to them and do them because A) I want to create them and B) I am constantly thinking about them because I know it is an idea I don't want to forget. For me personally, writing my ideas down just gives me an excuse to forget it down the road.

[@TakingItCasual]

Samer Khatib Have you done this with all your ideas, or just most of them? If you do retain motivation for some, you could think of brain dumping as a way to forget about ideas you aren't as motivated to work on. Projects take much longer to complete than simply coming up with ideas. You're better off forgetting most of them.

[@AlexMRL]

Hey Tim and chat. What todo when you designed a game together with another person but we both have different ideas where we want the game to go. Any advice? @Tim Ruswick

[@VeryBlueBot]

another "gold mine" video... liked and saved for next title

[@WastelandSeven]

I think the focus and scope issues are huge. (pun intended) I've noticed they're connected.. Because I've seen even in polished AAA games is trying to be all things to all people, and becoming so muddied that nobody was really satisfied. The original Fallout was a CRPG. Period. Some of the later Fallout games were role-playing-first-person-shooter-looter-walking-simulators. The FPS players complained about the combat, the RPG players complained about the story (in some places the lack of story) as well as the dialogue wheel (which limits conversations) All of that plays into scope. Trying to please everyone's competing desires and expectations is impossible. It dilutes your focus and increases your scale drastically. Because scale is not just the size of the game, but, the size of the game and amount of effort to create the game. Thief 1&2 (particularly) are stealth games with role playing elements. But, you only got to play as one thing, as Garret the thief. It was a stealth game about being a thief caught up in events beyond his control. That was its story and they stuck to it . Been watching playthroughs as research and I'm struck by how well the story (especially in #2) worked. It was tight as a bowstring. Strat-Edgy put it this way, "Its as if they were trying to create a playable human" It is very very focused. And that paid off. Another thing is to find an under served portion of the market and go after that alone. A game that did that and did it well was Cuphead. It is a run-and-gun. Period. It is a run-and-gun with awesome art and animation, but, it is still a run and gun. Needless to say, that focus and curbing the scope paid off. I think Indies are better served by having our games scaled and focused to do one thing really well than trying to do 50 things half assed.

[@ValiousTV]

Thanks for the tips. You just made something that is complex into something easily understandable. Keep up the good lessons. -ps my first attempt at making a game was using little big Planet karting. I tried to create something different and unique. But the game itself couldn't handle the complexity. If you have the time, check out my Optimus prime project. Would like your opinion on it. Have a few models and 2 levels also. Thanks for your time.

[@Sinci1]

perhaps you can post it for a feedback friday or something like that?

[@ValiousTV]

Sinci1 - The videos of them I posted, a few years ago. When you could still use that game before they shut down the online features but I still have access to level construct. I'm trying to use blender to recreate some of it, but it's weird building in their for me.

[@VieneLea]

I'm not, like, too experienced at game design, but I couldn't disagree more with your point about sharing ideas with others. I used to do that in the past, but found it to be completely useless. The reality is that an idea itself is not really representative of the quality of the game: It's very easy to come up with one that sounds good, and I quickly found out that the "people like it/dislike it" depends more on the way you sell it rather than it's actual meritoric value. A lot in game quality depends on execution (mostly proper pacing & responsiveness) and you have no way of expressing all the game mechanics and how they play together in a way that'll make sense to a different person other than letting them play (otherwise we wouldn't need video games). So it's pretty much a waste of time and ego-stroking.

[@willreznicek4202]

I agree, especially so early on when prototyping an idea, and in this case at the very inception of an idea.

[@slowcreep6978]

Stephen King isn't a fan of keeping a notebook, believing that they're a good way to immortalize bad ideas. That being said, he does like to sit on ideas for a long, long time. He does this because, if an idea is good, it will stay with him, it will evolve and expand, and eventually, if he can't shake it, it becomes a story worth writing. Just thought it worth mentioning here.

[@craigjones4274]

Background music really kills it for me

[@brianmo2611]

So ya I have tried to join your discord and I'm still unable to join it...

[@CoversbyOleg]

Hey Tim, when are you going to review peoples games next time? Would appreciate if you could play my game and give me some honest feedback.

[@bluegoodev2085]

Awesome videos but the music is really distracting, the claps is overlapping your voice. Thanks!

[@GrumpyGameDev]

I'm glad u turned down the music but it's just the music itself I don't like

[@chiefcaptn1922]

U live up to your name lol

[@danroden830]

the best part is no part - elon musk

[@inputfunny]

5th