Earlier quoted context omitted.
So “weirdo” means “not aligned with leftist politics”
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After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
191–200 of 451 posts
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#192Earlier quoted context omitted.
nit for 2. A fantastic game doesn't have to be visually stunning to be successful. It helps of course but visuals don't make/break an otherwise fun game. What does matter however is that the visuals need to make sense and be consistent. You can get away with "ugly" or otherwise unremarkable graphics but inconsistent or confusing visuals will interfere with gameplay and the game will suffer.
See Vampire Survivors for an example of a recent game with pretty atrocious visuals that's still done really well.
There's a whole genre of ugly fps right now, I don't even just mean boomer shooters, I can't recall the name but there's this one where your health bar is a little glass skull you hold, another hyper anticapitalist critique one, and I'm seeing gifs going around of some third one I haven't a clue about. Sorry this is a vague post I just think it's interesting these games are leaning heavily on non visual aspects and being rewarded with massively positive reviews.
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#193Earlier quoted context omitted.
This story sounds like luck. That isn't marketing. It's like hoping that Kim Kardashian will use my new face cream and tweet about it. Another idea: Bribe a popular streamer to play your game and tweet about it. I am sure it is common.
Bribe? It's just paying them. It's not like they have some duty not to take money or that its illegal.
> It's just paying them. It's not like they have some duty not to take money or that its illegal.
It is illegal in the context of radio stations that play music.
Legal in almost every other context; payola is one of the most obviously stupid laws we have.
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#194Earlier quoted context omitted.
Canada, like the US, has its own health care crisis. Wait times for medical care seem surreal. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/amp/canada/british-columbia/... https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/ottawa-paramedics-...
Is this a global issue now? Same in Germany.
Only in countries where there are people in power who stand to benefit from privatizating healthcare so as to turn it into the dystopian hellscape like the American healthcare system.
We don't have this issue in Taiwan for example. I'm sure other countries can pipe up.
Actually now that I think about it the devs could relatively easily get a gold card visa and emigrate here... From what I remember of their documentary they basically love to just code all day and go on walks, a lifestyle easily supported here. We also got FAT internet pipes.
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#195Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not trying to be glib but the single most important thing is to make the right game. 1. Before you start the project, do some research and ask yourself what is unique about your game? Why would someone play it instead of the leading competitor? Don't settle for an idea that doesn't have plausible answers. 2. Build the game really well. REALLY WELL. Amazing artwork, great style, a visual feast. Fun, snappy gameplay. D…
nit for 2. A fantastic game doesn't have to be visually stunning to be successful. It helps of course but visuals don't make/break an otherwise fun game. What does matter however is that the visuals need to make sense and be consistent. You can get away with "ugly" or otherwise unremarkable graphics but inconsistent or confusing visuals will interfere with gameplay and the game will suffer.
Trying to release a game with "ugly" or "unremarkable" artwork is playing on hard mode. Be ugly in a "visually stunning" way that's original. E.g. Cruelty Squad. I know there are counterexamples. Many of them are just plain lucky, like Flappy Birds. This very article is about a game that kneecapped its sales for decades on account of being ugly.
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#196Earlier quoted context omitted.
See Vampire Survivors for an example of a recent game with pretty atrocious visuals that's still done really well.
There's a whole genre of ugly fps right now, I don't even just mean boomer shooters, I can't recall the name but there's this one where your health bar is a little glass skull you hold, another hyper anticapitalist critique one, and I'm seeing gifs going around of some third one I haven't a clue about. Sorry this is a vague post I just think it's interesting these games are leaning heavily on non visual aspects and b…
I'd argue the opposite. They are executing their art styles very well. E.g. Cruelty Squad. Like you say, there's clearly something in the water right now. Kudos to folks making it work for them.
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#197So this happened to a guy that worked for me. Loved video games, super talented front end dev. Made a horror game in Unity at evenings and weekends with his best friend. Launched it on Steam. Very low sales. But he learnt a huge amount about marketing and game design based on player feedback. Designed a second game, put all the marketing learnings into it, 48 hours after launch the biggest streamer on twitch was stre…
The flipside is that it's a lottery. Steam is overflowing with new indie games every day, and many very good ones die in obscurity. You really have to get lucky and go viral But yeah, the entry fee for that lottery is at a historic low, which is still great (especially for hobby devs who don't care about the rest!)
Is it though? Show me a good Steam game that isn't selling well.
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#198Earlier quoted context omitted.
Healthcare and basic income are crucial for moving towards the next stage of civilizaiton. Like you said, I'm really glad it worked out for them but so, so many people don't get so lucky or are willing to take such a big risk. How many more dwarf fortresses could we have if we gave people the safety net to follow their dreams? Instead of worrying about basic necessities like food, shelter, and healthcare.
I agree there is a problem with high healthcare costs, and food costs especially now. However what we saw with covid stimulus and unemployment wasn’t the “everyone’s now an artist” outcome that is suggested with UBI. We definitely saw creatives able to express and build their visions into the world, thanks to the money and additional time. But we also saw, and still have ongoing, many people who choose not to work [0…
You seem to be connecting UBI to the "Do not want a job now" category, but I don't think there's any reason to think covid stimulus/unemployment led to much growth in those particular numbers. See https://www.bls.gov/cps/aa2004/cpsaat35.pdf for the same numbers from 2003/2004; they're certainly higher now (~100k vs ~70k, but population increased, so more like 100k vs 80k if we equalize) but not that much higher. And at a glance the biggest increase is in 55+ - so possibly it's largely older people retiring rather than substance abuse or whatever.
I do think UBI has risks, hopefully we can encourage useful pursuits, public works, etc.
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#199Earlier quoted context omitted.
Canada, like the US, has its own health care crisis. Wait times for medical care seem surreal. https://www.theglobeandmail.com/amp/canada/british-columbia/... https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/ottawa-paramedics-...
> Wait times for medical care seem surreal. Its due to the governments defunding public healthcare in order to 'strangle it then save it'. You defund it, make people say 'it doesnt work', then say that "We need to privatize it." Its de facto privatization method used since Reagan/Thatcher. Same method is being used in any country that ends up with a 'privatizing' government.
No, it isn't.
Public health is just difficult to fund. Especially on a shrinking population.
Re: After 20 years the Dwarf Fortress devs have to get used to being millionaires
#200So this happened to a guy that worked for me. Loved video games, super talented front end dev. Made a horror game in Unity at evenings and weekends with his best friend. Launched it on Steam. Very low sales. But he learnt a huge amount about marketing and game design based on player feedback. Designed a second game, put all the marketing learnings into it, 48 hours after launch the biggest streamer on twitch was stre…
After four years working on my retro game nearly full time, and several launches, I still don't understand marketing enough to understand what to do differently.
A lot of the advice out there is something like: "create a community" or "go join several communities" or "get to know other indie devs on Twitter". To me, this simply feels fake. I don't really participate in any online communities. I spend enough time in front of a computer for work and I prefer to socialize with my real life friends.
Besides, I simply have no idea how to get any kind of attention on social media. I created an eight-page booklet that recreates the first issue of Nintendo Power, except with my characters in place of Mario and Wart. It's an homage, because I developed a retro game. Somebody suggested that I post it on a retrogaming subreddit, where many others were posting fan art, and those people should recognize the magazine cover that I recreated. Well, I posted my PDF and it got about 4 upvotes. A simple photo, posted around the same time, of the very common TMNT NES cartridge got -- 800? 900? I stopped looking.
I understand that what I made is not going to be for everybody. I'm not expecting to be a millionaire. But damn if I can't figure out how to even get it in front of people. Everywhere I try just gets ignored.
The game is pretty substantial too. Mac, iOS, and Windows versions all done by me -- custom game engine -- 40+ hours of gameplay -- about a 5-6 hour minimum play time if you start from scratch and you know what you're doing (I was shooting for 3.5ish hours to equal Mario 3 or Mario World in "size" or "depth"). Lots of fun secrets. Nothing repeated. Challenging, but not as hard as Dwarf Fortress. Real life playtesters (not friends or family) asked me to reset the game so they could start all over again.
I just wish somebody else could do the social stuff. It all just makes me want to stop programming altogether. My brain just does not work along the lines of "how can I phrase this email to get this person's attention?" So I realize cold calling is a numbers game but I seem to be ignored no matter what I do.
I want to make great stuff, and I really don't care about attention/fame/money -- but what's the point of working so hard if nobody gets to enjoy it but me?