What to do next?

I have a problem. It’s a good problem, though: it is that I’ve got so many projects to get my teeth into that I don’t know what to do next.

I’ve got one game nearing completion, another at prototype stage and another two at the ideas stage (one of which I’ve been fermenting for at least 8 years, if not longer. Construct 2 has finally given me the ability to turn my idea into a game).

I’ve got the website to sort out, the Twitter account to finalise and the Facebook page to set up, should I want to.

So much stuff to do! I’m kind of torn at the moment between two things:

Pick a project (most likely Swarm or the website) and finish it off, then move onto something else.

Work piecemeal on everything all at once.

Each has its pros and cons; option 1 means I can get something finished and to market more quickly, but if I hit a dead end (creativity, logic, willingness) that’s it – kaboom. Option 2, on the other hand, means that I can keep my interest levels up and take what I’ve learnt from one game and apply it to another, but it does run the risk of me never actually finishing anything.

As this is, at the moment at least, nothing more than a hobby, the time I can dedicate to it is finite. I’m veering towards option 2 at the moment, for better or worse. How do other people tackle this?

It's a common issue with developers that they either start a too big project they can't finish, or they start too many small ones. I'd suggest you either finish the game that's nearly done, or if you feel like you need to take a break from it then go with the website.

Thanks — Useful advice there

finish first. then go to 2nd. i have a txt file of ideas... waiting to be resolved.. but i go 1by1

Thanks saiyadjin! Finish Swarm first it is

It's a common issue with developers that they either start a too big project they can't finish, or they start too many small ones.

I don't think it's an issue. I've had a lot of fun working on hundreds and hundreds of projects, even when 99% of them don't get finished it's at least been an enjoyable way to outlet some of passion/inspiration/creativity.

It's a common issue with developers that they either start a too big project they can't finish, or they start too many small ones. I'd suggest you either finish the game that's nearly done, or if you feel like you need to take a break from it then go with the website.

Yup, yup, yup, and yup. I have JUST cut my game in half, no, more than half. It was too damn big, it was gonna take a long time to develop it.

Now I took out everything that I think will allow me to finish it soon and I now can actually feel like there will be an end to this project. Best of all, I will add those thing that I cut out, after the game is released as updates.

I feel like such an idiot for thinking that I have to be hyper focused, dedicated, capable, and take on a project of epic scale. No. Something must be finished, and THEN refined.

All good advice, and it's great to hear that I'm not the only one in this boat!

Once I've ironed the bugs out of Swarm, and added the achievements, I can hopefully publish that to iOS and Android, and then start on my new game. Hopefully I'll learn loads from the processes involved in completing Swarm that I can then leverage for subsequent releases.