What keeps you guys(indies) going?

[Zeustiak]

@swordfighter;507239

Hi all

For Me it just what i love. But what keeps me going on the bad days. seeing what you all are doing. Trying to match it (one day.) or sure pass it. (Prayer Prayer Prayer work Work Work)

I went to be able to play my dream game one day. and have other to play it. (hopefully having fun and loving it) and Like ambershee said “Money.” would be good too.

This is more of what I was getting at.

Most of us love designing games, and for those of you close enough to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, money is also a surefire motivator.

But for those of you who are deep in the tunnel with no light yet visible at the end, where do you draw the extra strength needed to keep going? You come home from work and just want to crash on the bed or veg out with a movie or game, but somehow gather the energy to push on with your project even if you have only a single hour.

I have been doing this for 2 years now. Apart from “moments” of weakness(Borderlands 2 and Fallout 4 binges) I put every spare moment into the project. I suppose I pull my strength from pure passion, but there are days where there isn’t enough energy left in the brain for even that to matter.

@MoHoe;507137

@Zeustiak Oh man I used to be so addicted to Civilization up until civilization 5(****)
Do you still play civ? civ5?

on the topic of motivation I think this is one of the most common causes of developers not completing their projects.
I started to get worried when I realised I had 4 projects that I couldn’t complete.

I realised that the game idea is the main issue, if you just convince yourself its a good idea then you’ll be in trouble later.
You must be sure that what you’re creating is fun. I look back at those ideas and think “what the hell was I thinking”… how did I convince myself that they would be fun. They’re totally ****.

However my current project is almost complete, only a few weeks away. It’s the only project that I havent become sicks of and lost any faith. I’m even more motivated now I’m so near the finish line.

My best advice for motivation is make sure the game is fun and quick to make. The more time you spend on it the risk of becoming sick of the sight of it.

Along with however many thousands of hours I have spent playing Civ, I also modded Civ 5 for the first 6 months after it’s release. Spent way more time modding it than I did playing it. There are things about Civ 5 that bring the series forward, but also many things that take an unfortunate step back.

I play civ now and then for research purposes, but try to limit gaming for fun as much as possible just so it doesn’t take up all my time.

I can see the advantages of taking on a project that can be completed in a sane amount of time, but fortunately or unfortunately that is not the route I have taken… Civ games aren’t exactly simple, but I don’t think my passion would hold with any other project in my current life situation. I can hardly imagine what the true finish line looks like at this point. I am basically planning on this project taking another 5+ years at the current rate, which I am honestly fine with. It is the little milestones that matter, and those times when I can grasp on to some spark of motivation that fuels me further forward in a few hours than the previous days of work.