sterckxe
Posts: 4605
Joined: 3/30/2004 From: Flanders Status: offline
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Hi, A couple of people on this forum - myself included - have indicated that at some point or other they either entertained the notion of making a computer wargame or even actually started a project. These all start of great and then get stuck in the mud somewhere. Why ? Well, I can't speak for the others, but for me at some point it stops being fun and it becomes work. Some will say that it's a character flaw - not finishing stuff you start and all that - but I don't think that's the case. I've got over a dozen finished private projects up at my website to attest to that. It's not technical difficulties either, no wall I've run into, it's even not the sheer size of the project which was quite modest compared to the stuff I do for a living. And even smaller than some projects I did finish. No, what I've found out - rather recently I'm ashamed to say - is that designing a computer wargame is teamwork. Not only does it require people with different talents (graphics, game design, programming, business, ...) but it also requires a constant feedback/bouncing back of ideas and for this your best bet to finish the project is a small team whose members mutually support each other both mentally and technically. So what about the Lone Programmer paradigm - the Norm Koger, Gary Grigsby, John Tiller, Hubert Cater type of guy. Well, the paradigm is wrong. Just take a look at the credits list for any game of the guys mentioned above - it's long - unexpectedly long sometimes. Wargames - even the ones we think were solo-projects - that made it to market were *all* made by teams. Ok - now all this begs the question : how to get yourself a team ? You might try the "help wanted" forum at http://www.gamedev.net - it's quiet full and lively and ideal if you want to make a FPS, RPG or any other of the more popular gametypes but for a wargame designer it's pretty much useless. But the format is right : it's a market with musicians offering to make original scores, some graphically challenged programmer asking for a low-polycount 3D model of a car, teams forming, feedback on "the teams that made it", etc. Great stuff. So this leaves the final question unanswered : why don't any of the popular wargame forums out there have a forum dedicated to "wargame design / help wanted" ? Must be something I missed, but what is it ? Greetz, Eddy Sterckx
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