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开发者应善用一切有利于创造游戏的技能

发布时间:2014-01-15 16:41:31 Tags:,,,,

作者:Tobiah Marks

有些人已经开始制定新一年的努力方向了,即将日历的变更当成是激励自己的一次机会。我想建议你们将学习一项新技能添加到列表中——如果你还未做到这点的话。特别是在独立游戏开发领域。

如果你曾经考虑过成为一名独立游戏开发者,那么今天便是你的开始。

为什么是现在?

现在有什么特别吗?是否存在新的机遇?什么发生改变了?

答案有肯定也有否定。

肯定是,某些事情发生了改变,并且会继续改变。在实用性(游戏邦注:即开发和发行变得很便宜且广泛)和知名度(更多人在下载并购买独立游戏)上,独立市场都取得了很大的发展。

而否定的是,这并不是我认为现在是最好时机的原因。

之所以说现在是最佳时机是因为唯一的其它两个选择是“之后”和“从不”。

这是关于做任何你想做的事的理由,而不只是关于独立游戏开发。不管过去发生了什么,或者现在正在发生什么,当你想要开始做某事时,你的选择便只是“现在”,“之后”或“从不”。

反驳“从不”

我将从反驳选择“从不”的观点说起,因为这是最容易反驳的。

如果你跳过这部分内容而直接阅读“之后”的论点我也不会怪你。实际上,我还会鼓励你这么做。如果创造游戏始终都是你的激情所在,或者是你真正想要尝试的,为什么你会说出“从不”呢?

在过去成为一名游戏开发者的代价是很大的。你需要花费好多钱才能创造出一款游戏。你必须购买一些特别的装备,更别提需要花费人生好几年的时间去学习如何使用这些装备。然后你必须找到一个愿意花钱将其印在磁盘上,装进盒子里并发行到商店的发行商。然后你的游戏将在商店里待上一段时间,有些会被出售掉,而有些会被贱售,一段时间过后它们将离开商店,那时候就没人能够再买到你的游戏了。

而现在,这种情况不会再出现。任何人都可以开始自己的游戏开发业务。

工具

你必须从头开始编写游戏引擎代码。当存在像Unity,Corona,GameMaker Studio或Construct 2等免费(或廉价)的出色引擎时,你又何必自己费心去创造呢?

Unity_Logo(from gamasutra)

Unity_Logo(from gamasutra)

尽管GIMP,Inkscape和Blender不如Photoshop,Illustrator和Maya出色,但它们都是蛮有效的工具,并且学起来也不难,最关键的还是免费。

你甚至不需要特别的开发工具或高端的艺术机器。你可以在自己的手机上或网页浏览器上开发应用。任何半现代的家庭计算机或者你正在阅读这篇博客所使用的设备也能够用于应用开发。不只是PC或手机应用,XBOX One也能够转变成开发工具。

训练

在过去4年里我已经花了好几千美元在学校中学习游戏创造。但是如今却可以在网上找到我所学到的大多数知识,并且都是免费向所有人开放的。

像斯坦福等学校都会免费或以很低的折扣提供在线课程。对于任何可想象得到的主题,你都可以在YouTube上搜到相关视频。公共API和文档引用终止了我们对于昂贵的教科书的需求。你所需要开始的所有知识都在网上,你只需要轻松搜索便能够获得。

发行

如今每个主要的软件平台都是执行数字发行方式,并快速成为了我们购买和消费软件的主要方式。

完成开发与将应用带到消费者手中的时间被大大缩短了。应用可以在不到1周时间内便正式推出。那需要修改一个主要的漏洞怎么办?在一周内将修改内容传递到每个用户手上,它将提醒他们进行更新!

这些在线商店具有无限的库存。这意味着当应用发行后,它便能够长久地待在商店内,只要该公司愿意这么做的话。如此每一款应用便无需因为消纵即逝的好机会而担忧。甚至一些早前的游戏也会在几年后重新被用户发现并购买。只要应用市场还存在,人们就会有购买的可能。

利润潜能

无限的库存也有其它优势。不管你的应用多受欢迎或被冷漠,你都不需要为此支付额外的费用。你可以基于0单位成本卖出1份游戏,或者卖出100多万份。思考应用是否会变得更受欢迎?你不会因为库存过多而遭遇损失。你并不确定自己的游戏是否会受欢迎?如果市场需要你的游戏并且无需你投入更多工作,你便可以迅速扩大规模并实现数百万的下载。

你可以从应用上赚取的利益是巨大的。许多游戏每天能够创造出6位数以上的收益!甚至是一些没有数百万美元预算的小游戏也很赚钱。可以说开发成本与潜在收益间的比例是不容小觑的。

最坏情况

有人跟我说过:“好吧,Tobiah,这都是对的,但不是大多数公司都失败了吗?”这是对的。有可能你并不能创造数百万的利益。许多人只是关注于失败的风险,但却未考虑到机遇。

最坏的情况是什么?如果你选择成为独立开发者,并且未像自己所梦想的那样取得巨大的成功,那么降临在你身上的最糟糕的命运会是什么?

你将:

从你现在的游戏中获得谋生资本。

学到许多编程,图像,设计和业务的实践经验。

创造一份已完成的内容的组合,并在自己的简历上加上“企业家”这一项。

花时间做自己真正喜欢做的事,并且现在能够自豪地说你正在尝试自己的梦想。

是的,肯定也存在风险。我不反驳这点。但是在我看来,即使是最糟糕的情况实现了,即你失败了,别人仍然能够看到你为此付出的努力与时间。

反驳“之后”

“开始的方法比上年不再说话并开始琢磨事。”—-Walt Disney

大多数人不会选择“从不”做某事,相反地他们会说“之后”在做吧。

对于许多人来说这是一种默认的选择。人们认为他们不可能“现在”做,他们也不想说“从不”做,所以他们只会说要“之后”做,即等到有足够的时间和资源的时候。

似乎这对于大多数人来说是讲的通的,并且在几年前确实也是合理的。5年前,大多数人都没能力创建一家应用开发公司。就像我在“从不”的论点中指出的,现在不再如此。如今所有人都可以使用获得成功所需要的各种工具,教育和发行资源。不管你在之前有多少经验或知识,任何人都可能获得成功。

“之后”也并不总是坏事

现在,在我继续分析之前,我想说的是“之后”并不总是糟糕的选择。关于为什么你需要在别处贡献时间和能量存在一些正当的理由。我并不是说每个人都应该丢掉自己现在所做的而变成一名全职独立游戏开发者。人们都有自己的生活,家庭,对自己来说重要的事,甚至还有一些更加重要的兴趣。

而本篇文章自然不是瞄准这类型的人。我只是想要与那些认为自己想要成为独立游戏开发者的人进行交谈。

“之后”可能成为一种有害的心理状态

我会实践并变得富裕……之后。

我将完成长期被忽视的家务……之后。

我将为自己的孩子腾出更多时间……之后。

这些默认的“之后”很容易变成默认的“从不”。如果你真的想要做某事,如果你真心觉得这件事对自己很重要,你就不应该坐着等“现在”的到来。你必须决定就是“现在”!

你是否经常会听到有些人一直想要做某事,而突然时间表上出现一个巨大的空白,他突然空下来了,而这是否是他们开始做这件事的最佳时机?很少会这样,但却不是绝对。就像有人会赢得乐透。这种情况也是有的。

大多数情况下,当某人开始一个项目或兴趣时,并不是因为突然遇到完美的情况。而是因为他们创造出时间去执行它。本来晚上会花1个半小时去看电视,而将其缩短到30分钟以下。本来在玩MMORPG,而决定删除自己的帐号。本来是在上下班时间听音乐,而变成是收听指导/教育播客。

他们会为自己的激情腾出时间。

一切都是技能

除了时间,以下是我从那些想要开始创造游戏的人那边常听到的话,但却还未做到:

我想要这么做,但却不知道该从怎样的游戏开始。

我有一个游戏理念,但却还未具体化,所以我还未开始。

我正在阅读一本有关游戏设计的书,当我看完它就会开始。

之前我尝试着创造一款应用,但它却非常糟糕。

我知道自己想要创造怎样的应用,但是我却没有技能/时间/金钱去创造它!

这些都是可靠的理由吗?有些人可能会认为它们都有道理。但是如果我们稍微改变下环境,它们就都是无理取闹了。

假设你遇到一些想要成为画家的人,他们都很喜欢画画。他们有自己的帆布和绘画颜料,但是他们却给出这样的借口:

我想要画画,但是我不知道我应该先画怎样的东西。

我有一个绘画理念,但却还未具体化,所以我还未开始。

我正在阅读一本有关画画的书,当我看完它就会开始。

之前我尝试着画一幅画,但它却非常糟糕。

我知道自己想要画怎样的内容,但是我却没有技能/时间/金钱去创造它!

你觉得这些借口怎样?有点不大对劲吧?

游戏开发是一种艺术形式

美术家不会期待着自己在第一次接触到画布时便创造出美术馆里挂着的巨作那样的作品。

这是一种艺术。就像雕塑,音乐,3d建模等等,游戏开发并不是那种不去尝试就能学到的东西。艺术并不是听讲座或阅读书籍就能学到的,你必须通过真正去创造才能学到艺术。

游戏,以及从整体上看来的应用开发也是如此。你需要通过经历进行学习,了解什么是对的,而什么又是错的。你可以听有关技术的演讲,你可以阅读能够启发自己的书籍,但是你只有从实践中才能获得真正的学习。你可以通过开发游戏学习游戏开发。

简而言之,你必须进行涂鸦

涂鸦的威力

涂鸦,这是个有趣的词对吧?这是个较为“轻视的”词。你可以这么说自己的作品,但却不要用它去形容别人的作品。艺术家很少会将自己的涂鸦呈现给观众。但是我敢保证,他们一定会进行涂鸦。而且会涂鸦很多。

对于你所看到的任何让人惊艳的艺术作品,如果没有数百甚至数千次涂鸦,艺术家是不可能创造出这样的作品。

艺术家不会只思考几周就敲定自己的第一张作品,他们会非常认真地思考才最终画出第一笔。这只是开始。

有时候,草图并未符合其预想的效果,他们会将其丢掉。通过涂鸦,他们可以不断完善自己的技能。有时候,他们会画出一些无聊的内容。盒子,形状,手等等。这是在不断训练自己的技巧的过程,并最终创造出可行的作品。

不要害怕涂鸦。

学习一种新技能

nike-just-do-it(from gamasutra)

nike-just-do-it(from gamasutra)

耐克的“Just Do It”是我最喜欢的一个标语。自我怀疑是件很可怕的事。但“如果不好会怎样”是不去学习一种艺术的糟糕理由。你不可能一夜之间变成大师。特别是当你未去实践一些曾经创造出更好结果的事时。

太多游戏开发者甚至从未开始。他们总是担心着该做什么,如果这真的“值得”他们花费时间,他们便会被卷入一些并未真正重要的细节中。

不要思考理念好几周甚至好几个月。创造一个快速且丑丑的原型。看看它是否可行。测试它。

想出一个点子,但却不知道如何开始?尝试着重新创造一款你所了解的简单游戏,以此去锻炼你的技巧。

将开发当成一种艺术。只有开始实践时你才有可能做得更好。

大量时间

想要成为任何技能的大师你就需要花大量的时间不断进行实践。这些时间并不需要是连贯的。你不需要一天拨出好几个小时或掏出好多钱去实践。时不时抽出几分钟而不断累积便可。你所需要做的只是保持积极主动的态度并开始实践。

最佳开始时间便是现在。

所以开始创造一些游戏吧!

本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译,拒绝任何不保留版权的转载,如需转载请联系:游戏邦

Everything is a skill – Start practicing

by Tobiah Marks

Some of you have already started New Year’s resolutions this week, using the calendar change as an opportunity to motivate yourself. I would like to suggest that you add learning a new skill to your list, if you haven’t done so already. Specifically, indie game development.

If you ever considered becoming an independent game developer, today is the day to start.

Why now?

Is there something special about now? Is there a new opportunity? Has something changed?

Well, yes and no.

Yes, things have changed, and things will continue to change. The indie markets have exploded both in availability (development and distribution have become cheap and plentiful) and popularity (more people than ever are downloading and buying indie titles.)

But, no, that’s not why I’m saying now is the best time.

Now is the best time to start, because the only other two options are “Later” and “Never”

This is an argument for doing anything you want to do, not just indie game development. No matter what has happened in the past, or what is currently happening, when you want to start doing something your choices are simply “Now”, “Later”, or “Never”.

Arguments against “Never”

I’ll start with arguing against choosing the “Never” option, because it’s easiest to fight.

I wouldn’t blame you if you skipped reading this and went ahead to the “Later” argument instead. In fact, I’d urge you to. If making games has always been your passion, or has always been something you thought would be cool to try, why would you ever say “Never”?

Becoming a game developer used to be costly. It would take tens of thousands of dollars to make a game, if not more. You’d have to buy special equipment, not to mention take years of your life learning how to use it. Then you’d have to get a publisher who would spend thousands on printing disks, putting them in boxes, and shipping them to stores. They would then sit in a store for a short time, some might get sold, others would end up in a bargain bin, and a short time later they would be out of the stores and nobody would be able to buy your game again.

Now, that is no longer the case. Everybody can start their own game development business.

Tools

No need to code game engines from scratch anymore. Why would you, when amazing and feature rich engines like Unity, Corona, GameMaker Studio or Construct 2 are free (or cheap)?

GIMP, Inkscape and Blender aren’t as nice as Photoshop, Illustrator, and Maya… but they get the job done, not that hard to learn, and are free.

You don’t even need special development kits or high-end state of the art machines. You can develop apps on your phone or in a web browser. Pretty much any semi-modern home computer or device you’re reading this blog post on will work just fine for app development. It’s not just PC and phone apps either, every XBOX One is able to transform into a development kit.

Training

I have personally spent thousands of dollars on school for over four years with a goal of learning how to make games. Most of the information I learned is now available online, free and open to everyone.

Stanford as well as many other schools offer their courses online for free or at deep discount. For every subject imaginable, there is a YouTube video or podcast explaining it. Public API and documentation references end the need for expensive programming textbooks. All the knowledge you need to start is out there on the web, and just a quick search away.

Distribution

Every major software platform now ships with digital distribution, and it’s fast becoming the norm for how we buy and consume software.

The time between finishing development and getting the app in consumers’ hands has essentially eliminated. Apps can go from “Gold” to release in less than a week. Need to fix an important bug? Deliver it to every user within a week, and it will even alert them about the update!

These online stores have infinite inventory. This means that when an app gets released, it stays available for as long as the company wants to sell it. No more small windows of opportunity while a game sits on a shelf before it gets moved to a bargain bin. Old games are finding new life as people buy them sometimes years later. As long as a market exists for the app, people will have access to buy it.

Profit potential

Infinite inventory has other advantages too. No matter how popular or unpopular your app is, you never have to pay any extra cost. You can sell 1 copy, or 1,000,000+ copies, with exactly zero per unit cost. Thought the app would have been more popular? No loss due to overstocking inventory. Wasn’t sure it would be popular at all? Instantly scale up and let millions download if they so want with no more work on your part.

The amount of money you can make on apps is staggering. Many are making upwards of six digits per day! Even the little guys without the million dollar budgets are making money. The development cost to potential returns ratio is staggering.

Worst case scenario

I hear you. “Ok Tobiah, that’s all good, but don’t most companies fail?” That is true. Most likely, you will not make millions. Many people simply focus on the risks of failure, without considering the opportunity.

What’s the worst case? What horrible fate will befall you if you choose to become indie and aren’t as successful as you’ve dreamed?

You will:

Make exactly how much you’re making from your games now (aka: none)

Have learned a ton and gained practical experience with programming, art, design, and business.

Have created a portfolio of finished content and the ability to put “entrepreneur” on your résumé.

Have spent your time doing something you [hopefully] enjoyed doing, and are now able to proudly say you took a shot at your dreams.

Yeah, those risks are there. I won’t argue that. The way I see it, even if your worst fears come true and you “fail” you still come away with much to show for your time and effort.

Arguments against “Later”

“The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing.”
-Walt Disney

Most people don’t choose to “Never” do something, they instead tell themselves that they’ll do it “Later”.

It’s a default choice for many people. People think they couldn’t possibly do it “Now”, and they don’t want to say “Never”, so they tell themselves they’ll do it “Later,” once they have the time and resources.

That seems to make sense to most people out there, and was actually true a few years ago. Five years ago, most people could not have started an app development company. As I pointed out in my “Never” arguments, that’s no longer true. Everybody now has access to all the tools, education, and distribution resources they need for success. No matter how little experience or knowledge had before, anyone can succeed.

“Later” isn’t always bad…

Now, before I go further, I should say “Later” isn’t always a bad choice. There are some very valid reasons why you need to devote your time and energy elsewhere. I’m not saying everybody should drop what they’re doing and become a full-time indie game dev. People have lives. Bills to pay. Families. Important things. Even other hobbies that they get more enjoyment out of or are a higher priority for them.

This blog post isn’t targeted to that group of people. I want to talk to the people who only think they’re in that group.

“Later” can be a poisonous state of mind

I’ll exercise and get healthy… later.

I’ll finish that long neglected housework… later.

I’ll make more time for my children… later.

This default “Later” turns into a default “Never” far too easily. If you really want to do something, and if it’s really important to you, you can’t just sit by and wait for “Now” to come. You have to actively decide that “Now” is, well, now.

How often do you hear the story of somebody who kept wanting to do something, and then suddenly a huge time gap in their schedule opened up, they had nothing to do, and it was the perfect moment for them to start? Rarely, but not never. People win the lotto. It can happen.

Most of the time, though, when somebody starts a project or hobby, it wasn’t because the perfect situation landed in their lap. It was because they made the time for it. That hour and a half of TV they watched at night? They made that less than 30 minutes instead. That MMORPG they played? They canceled their account. That music they listened to on their commute? Swapped them out for instructional/educational podcasts.

They made the time for their passion.

Everything is a skill

Besides time, here are the most common statements I hear with people who want to start making games, but haven’t yet:

I want to, but I don’t know what game I should start with.

I have an idea for a game, but it’s not fleshed out yet so I haven’t started.

I’m reading a book about game design, once I finished I’ll start.

I tried making an app before, but it was really bad.

I know the app I want to make, but I don’t have [skill/time/money] to create it yet.

Do those seem like valid excuses? Someone must think they make sense. If we change the context a little, though, they won’t make sense.

What if you ran into somebody who always wanted to be an artist and they loved paintings. They have all the canvas and paints they need, but they gave you these excuses:

I want to, but I don’t know what painting I should start with.

I have an idea for what I’ll paint, but it’s not fleshed out yet so I haven’t started.

I’m reading a book about painting, once I finished I’ll start.

I tried making a painting before, but it was really bad.

I know the painting I want to make, but I don’t have [skill/time/money] to create it yet.

How about those excuses? Something seems off about them, right?

Game development is an art form

Artists don’t expect themselves to make art gallery quality pieces the first time their paintbrush touches the canvas.

It’s an art. Just like sculpting, music, 3d modelling, etc., game development isn’t some you can learn without doing. Art isn’t something that you can learn just from attending lectures or reading a book, you learn art through creating.

Games, and app development in general, are the same way. You learn from experience, you learn what works and what doesn’t by doing. You can listen to lectures on techniques, you can read a book that inspires you, but you learn by doing. You learn game development by developing games.

In short, you have to doodle.

The power of doodling

Doodle. It’s a funny word right? It’s dismissive. You can say it about your own work, but it’s not exactly nice to call another person’s work a “doodle”. Artists rarely, if ever, show their doodles to the rest of the world. But I assure you, they doodle. They doodle a lot.

For ever amazing piece of artwork you’ve ever seen in your life, there are probably dozens, if not hundreds or thousands of doodles that artist did before creating a finished piece.

Artists don’t think about their first painting for weeks, deciding what pieces they’ll show to the world before they even put pencil to paper for the first time. They simply start.

Sometimes, a sketch doesn’t work out, and they throw it away. Through that doodle, though, they’ve improved their skill. Sometimes, they sketch boring stuff. Boxes. Shapes. Hands. They’re practicing their technique. As they do, they figure out what works (and what doesn’t.)

Don’t be afraid to doodle.

Learn a new skill

Nike’s “Just Do It” is one of my favorite slogans. Self-doubt is a terrible thing. But “what if it’s not good?” is a terrible reason not to learn an art. Of course it won’t be good. You don’t become a master overnight. When has not practicing something ever produced better results?

Too many game developers don’t even start. They’re so worried about what they’ll make, and if it will be “worth their time,” that they’ll be caught up in details which don’t really matter.

Don’t think about ideas for weeks and months. Do a quick and dirty prototype. See if it works. Test it.

Have an idea, but don’t know how to start making it? Try remaking a simple game you know well to practice your technique. (Why do you think there are so many Pong/Galaga/Mario clones in the world?)

Treat development as an art. You won’t get better until you practice.

Ten thousand hours

It takes ten thousand hours of practice to become a master at any skill. Those don’t need consecutive. You don’t need to set aside multiple hours a day or lots of money to be able to practice. A few minutes here and there will add up over time. All you need to do is take the initiative and start practicing.

The best time to start, is now.

Go make some games!

-Tobiah(source:gamasutra)


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