Red Thumb Games One Year Anniversary

www.RedThumbGames.com

RED THUMB GAMES
ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY
ANNUAL REVIEW AND PLAN



Greetings to the community! This month marks the one year anniversary of my independent game development studio, Red Thumb Games. It has also been nearly that long that I have been involved with the Torque Game Engine and Garage Games community. I wanted to take the opportunity to introduce myself personally, look back on the year, and share my insights into what I have learned the past year "in the trenches" of if not living the dream then working hard towards it. The next time I write one of these will be at the end of year two.



=== INTRODUCTION ===

If you don't know me from around, I don't talk about myself too much in these plans but I'll take the opportunity to briefly do so now. My name is Joshua Dallman, I live in Portland, OR (a few hours from Eugene) and I am in my mid-20's. I write, produce, direct, and market the games I work on. I have a technology background and have worked for companies such as LSI Logic, Sun Microsystems, and Microsoft, in addition to freelance consulting and programming work. I have a day job as a contract employee doing technical work, but it's not engineering or anything so I don't make huge bucks. I enjoy non-traditional games best, rarely play FPS and RPG games, and never play RTS or MMO games. A few of my favorite games include Zelda (all), Tony Hawk, and Toe Jam and Earl (Genesis). Other things I enjoy include spending time with my girlfriend, taking my dog out, playing chess, and going to see classical ballet and classical music concerts.



=== THE TEAMS ===

Though heading this abstract thing called "Red Thumb Games," the studio would be nothing without the many contributors from around the world. They are independent contractors with defined tasks, be they programming or art. Their individual contributions have been enormous and I am lucky to have worked with such great people. A big thanks to them all!



-Shelled Credits-
ShelledGame.com



Lead Programmer
Russ Lunsford

Programmer
Josh Moore

Additional Code
Stephen Zepp

Modeling and Textures
Negru Sorin
Magnus Blikstad

Environmental Art
Timothy Aste

Graphic Design
Alan Kantz

Model Technician
Timothy Aste

Instructional Designers
James Hedberg
Alan Kantz

Character Animation
George Goldstien



-Nutcracker's Revenge Credits-
NutcrackersRevenge.com



Character Modeling
Nicu Ciobotaru
Magnus Blikstad

Animation Technician
Magnus Blikstad

Concept Artists
Chantal-Antoinette Parent
Duna Iulian
Milton Cadogan

Ballet Consultants
James Canfield
Candace Bouchard



-Shelled Arcade Credits-
ShelledArcade.com



Programmers
David House
Corey Martin



-Snappy Credits-
SnappyGame.com



Programmer
Matthew Langley



I especially want to single out RUSS LUNSFORD, JOSH MOORE, NEGRU SORIN (and his team), MAGNUS BLIKSTAD, and TIMOTHY ASTE for their particularly significant or outstanding contributions. Thank you!



=== WHY CONTRACT WITH RTG ===

"It truly has been (and will be!) a pleasure working with you on this project. ...with so much visibility, you're really doing well at keeping the interest level up. It's so hard to come up with such a simple idea that pulls people in so much. I can't make any 100% promises, but I'll definitely be open to whatever you come up with after..."

- Russ Lunsford, Lead Programmer

"Very good comunication. Very good deatils for the project. It made all our work very easy. A true safisfaction..."

- Negru Sorin, 3D Artist

"Great to work with - knows what he wants, and knows how to communicate it to you."

- Alan Kantz, Illustrator

"I'd certainly like to work with you again."

- Milton Cadogan, Concept Artist

"I'm really excited about this project. Its a total honor to work with Joshua on this. From his first set of plans I've been excited to see news on his projects."

- David House, Programmer

If you have skills related to any facet of game creation and are interested in contributing to a current or future project, please email me at joshuadallman@mailblocks.com with your information. There are always opportunities!



=== WHY RED THUMB GAMES ===

My motivation is best summarized on my profile page: "I believe that the surface for video game potential has barely been scratched..." I'm not just talking bigger, better, faster -- I'm talking about paradigm-shattering games we can't even imagine. Video games are more than just software, they are living, interactive art. They are an art form of the highest possible level of dynamics and complexity, the one that affords the most possibilities. I wish to make games that are fun, yes, but what drives me is the possibility of making games that are beautiful and artful in their own right, games that nobody before have imagined, games that don't just ask but beg to be made.



=== WHO I WANT RTG TO BE ===

I want RTG to be an independent game development house dedicated to making, fun, artistic, and educational games -- any or all of these traits. Some games will be made for fun (Snappy), other games may strive towards educational goals (Shelled!'s physics lesson), others may imitate or explore art (ballet in The Nutcracker's Revenge), or be artful in their own right. I'm looking for variety, not homogeneity, but within the framework of a specific vision -- my own.

I want RTG games to exhibit an overall quality of family friendliness and non-violence. That isn't to say I won't make an NC-17 gorefest sometime down the road as an individual exception, but on the whole that's not where I envision the studio. The decision is not so much a moral or ethical one as it is an artistic one. There is a classicism to certain work, a purity and universal appeal -- some Disney films (Fantasia), Balanchine ballets, the work of Monet, Gershwin. They're vibrant and celebratory of life, not destructive and cynical of it.

I want RTG to be always independent, never sell out -- no decision-influencing business partners, part-owners, investors... nothing. To me, independent means what I want to make, I make -- uncompromisingly.

I want RTG contributors to be always independent. I want them to take what projects they want and pass on the ones they don't. I never want an employee serving under me, nor ever an office to go to, no matter how comfortable.

I want RTG to eventually be in a place to be paying contributors what their work is actually worth, to help support their dreams and not just my own.

I want RTG to produce games of a quality level so high, nobody would ever guess that they were made on an indie budget.

I want RTG to balance commercially viable games with odd and experimental ones. I want to be known as a house that takes risks, even if it means failure.



=== WHAT RTG HAS DONE: ONE YEAR ===

- NUTCRACKER'S REVENGE

NR was merely an idea in my head one year ago. I had started attending classical ballet and got hooked, bad. After performances, I would come home and play Tony Hawk. With what the Spiderman and Wolverine characters and their special moves in the games, I pondered how cool it would be to have a ballerina special character and have her doing moves such as pirouettes in the air, and arabesque rail grinds. Then I considered, why not drop the skateboard outright and just have a ballerina running around and performing? From those beginnings that summer, a concept artist, and a couple of ballet consultants later, NR was off to a running start.

Slowly the 3d models for characters and enemies in the game came to be drafted from multiple artists' concept art, and the research and design phase of the game continued. By winter the game's development had stalled -- there were seemingly impossible design problems that had yet to be solved, and everything was too complex. The game had blown up and gotten too grandiose in its ambitions. It was trying to do and be too much on the budget I had, which was laughably next to nothing compared to even other indie game projects.

Mid-winter found a short break for NR development, during which Shelled! was kick-started. Shortly thereafter, development on NR picked up again, buoyed by a mantra of "keep it simple, stupid" with the design completely shredded and re-scoped to a manageable, yet still satisfying level.

Spring brought a quickly completed revision of all the NR models, a make-over that amped the models completely. That same person also cleared the benchmark hurdle of applying the first of dozens of ballet animations to our custom Torque model, and playing it successfully.

- SHELLED!

Shelled! was a game that I had on paper for a long time, almost as long as the idea for NR. When NR stalled, I decided to kick-start a smaller, simpler, more manageable and clearly defined project. It was enthralling to be able to write the design doc for the game in one day -- I knew exactly what I wanted. Contrast this to NR, where there was so much ambiguity due to the experimental nature of the game that a design doc didn't even exist.

3d models for tanks and artillery shells were rapidly developed from concept sketches, and the programmers quickly made progress on applying those models to the game. Ground texture and skybox artwork was finished once, scrapped, then completely re-done by one of GG's finest. Educational material for the physics lesson has been written. Game code is 1/2 to 2/3rds done, and the game is definitely fun. Once completed, it should be a blast.

- SHELLED MINI ARCADE

Shelled Mini-Arcade is a collection of four Torque 2D games using the Shelled! theme. The game will be a freebie to promote the Shelled! game. However, more than mere marketing tool, each game is being built with the highest care to ensure each game is darn fun in its own right. Two of the mini-games' code is nearly complete (by two different programmers), and a third programmer has been hired for the third. Art, logos, and everything is temporary, but some assets are already complete as they are being lifted directly from Shelled! (the 3D models in particular).

- SNAPPY

Snappy is another T2D game, but this one will be a full game for sale. The game features an alien comprised of two giant eyeballs and a connecting tissue between them. Each eye is controlled by an analog stick on a dual stick gamepad, and the buttons give the tissue different physics properties, such as bouncy, rigid, increase/shorten length, etc. The prototype of the main game character controls is being programmed, and already the dual sticks are working to control the eyeballs. Hard to believe, but even with nothing more than that the "game" is fun. I can tell already that this one will be a definite winner.



=== WHAT RTG IS CURRENTLY DOING, AND WHAT'S NEXT ===

- NUTCRACKER'S REVENGE

Next up for this game is getting two dozen or more ballet animations imported into the Torque game model, then polishing those animations to perfection. Once that's done, it's time to start programming -- an empty level with just the main ballerina testing the basic game controls. Once those are satisfactory, getting the enemies animated and in the game will be the next priority, followed by level and game elements (launch pads, keys/doors, etc). Finally, level clutter models (trees, bridges), music/sfx, GUI/HUD art, and bonus educational materials. Then the game will be ready to fully playtest.

- SHELLED!

The biggest urgency for Shelled! is still getting the tanks working. That will be the biggest hurdle. After that, full artillery and item gap filling and tweaking, GUI/HUD art, music/sfx, and bonus educational materials. Then this game too will be finally ready to fully playtest.

- SHELLED MINI ARCADE

The first mini-game needs to be completed, the second one needs to be ported and modded, and the third one will be started soon. A programmer needs to be found for the last one, and later, all four games need to be tied together, have their placeholder graphics polished up, playtested, then released.

- SNAPPY

Snappy is definitely a back-burner project, so there's not too much a game plan for it. Once main character controls are working and polished, it's time to build levels, then enemies and bosses. One of the last steps for this title will be the actual 2D art; placeholder art will suffice until the final stages of development. Since 3D art takes longer to create and has more problems than 2D art, I can afford (in time) to wait until much later to acquire art assets than some of the other RTG games.



=== WHAT LIES AHEAD: YEAR TWO ===

The first thing that will happen in this second year is that a game will be completed, and that game will be Shelled! I'm going to be dedicating the majority of my time and resources into making sure this happens before the end of summer. Shortly thereafter, Shelled Mini-Arcade will be released. Though not as ambitious a T2D game as Snappy, it will be a project in its own right and cause for celebration once it too is released.

Once the Shelled twins are out of the house, the two games in the oven will be Snappy and NR. Snappy we can expect to see finished by mid-winter, and NR I estimate will be out by next spring.

When I started NR I never thought it would be a two year project, but realistically (and on the indie budget I'm on) that's what I'm looking at, even with the feature and scope cuts already made. If I threw all that "other" stuff back in it could take 3-4 years, and that's just plain too long.


Around the bend, I know exactly which two games will be up next. First, another T2D game is planned, a platform game that teaches art history and education. This project will begin as soon as Snappy is complete, and will be a relatively small game in scope. Once it too is finished, another Toque game is planned, an edgy and unique sports/action game (in the vein of NR, but not ballet). The success of released games and overall budget situation will be the major factors in determining the speed and timeliness of these games being made. It is premature and ridiculous at this point to estimate when they will possibly be complete, let alone started.



=== COMMUNITY QUOTES ===

Some blog entry quotes from the development community about RTG and its titles:

"Here I see an energized developer making a lot of waves in the community and actually working hard to make his game. [...] Your work and enthusiasm is not going unnoticed. You are doing excellent work. I love the enthusiasm, and you have a good eye."

- Jeff Tunnell, GarageGames

"I too love your enthusiasm. You do get high credit for sharing your game dev. saga"

- Jay Moore, GarageGames

"Josh, always impressed with how realistically you're approaching the development. Plus, you've got a great team of people working together there."

- Josh Williams, GarageGames

"...this is a damned cool idea. As long as gameplay stays fun, this is going to be a serious winner!"

- Stephen Zepp

"This game just seems like it's going to be great fun!"

- Jeremy Alessi

"I've been following the development ... and can't wait to see the game in action... Great work!"

- John Kabus, Synapse

"...its awesome to see someone so excited about their work. Things are lookin good."

- Adam deGrandis

"Looking really good Joshua. Coming along nice. I think you have a winner..."

- Michael Cozzolino

"WOW. nice work!"

- Josiah Wang

"This is very cool. Keep up the good work"

- Robert Blanchet Jr.

"...beautiful work, I never tire of seeing the progress being made with your games."

- Chris Browning

"Wow so much done in so little time... how do you do it? Always amazed to see how fast you seem to get things done... well done."

- Joseph

"Joshua, you are probably the most busiest non GG employee I have ever seen on these forums"

- Charlie Malbaurn

"Joshua... watch out... don't get overworked! ... you seam to be the most active guy here around I've ever seen... you totally rock!"

- Alexander Bussman

"Amazing Work Josh! Keep it up!"

- Robert Janes

"Joshua, your my hero! I'm inspired everytime you post something. Just to see an indie going all out is so awesome. Keep up the good work and I can't wait to see this game in action."

- David House

"It's great to see someone really committing to a risky idea. Good luck with it!"

- J Lesko

"I'm impressed with the amount of design and planning here. Just based upon what I see here, you will have one of the most original games of the year."

- William Sims



=== THE RTG GLOBAL OFFICE: PORTRAIT OF AN INDIE STUDIO ===

I am pleased to bring you the portrait of a modern game studio -- indie style! The following represents office or workspaces of five people (plus myself) who have contributed to RTG titles. These photos are NOT intended to imply that this is the RTG office, as all of these people are independant contributors and not employees. The office is a metaphorical one. I hope you enjoy the photos, but in the larger sense, I hope you enjoy the visual point being made!

RTG HQ
Joshua Dallman Director (Portland, Oregon):





Magnus Blikstad Artist/Modeler (Uppsala, Sweden):



Matthew Langley Programmer (Phoenix, Arizona):



David House Programmer (Tennille, GA):



Timothy Aste Artist/Modeler (Eugene, OR):



Chantal-Antoinette Parent Concept Artist (Quebec, Canada):




=== TECHNOLOGY ===

Red Thumb Games is dedicated to using the Torque Application Platform, which includes the award-winning Torque Game Engine and newly minted Torque 2D engine. RTG believes in the cross-platform benefits of Torque, the stability and flexibility of the code, and the vitality of the company and community behind the engines. RTG is at this time committed to using the TAP exclusively.

The Torque Shader Engine is not being used by RTG at this time. TSE is still in Early Adopter Release status, it runs poorly or not at all on older to mid-range computers (due to the power it demands for impressive looking shaders), and it introduces another level of complexity to a game library whose goal is not to look "next gen," but rather to have gameplay and fun factor that's out of this world. RTG may embrace TSE in the future, upon its release, as average user hardware rises, and as RTG's development budget increases.



=== MAKING A GAME IN 10 EASY STEPS ===

So you want to make a game? Well, I regret to inform you that I'm the wrong person to ask about this -- I haven't made one yet! Not until the first game goes gold.

Nonetheless, "roadmap to attempting to make a game" just didn't have the same ring to it. Here's how I got my start, and some specific tools and resources I used.

1 - get a game idea and articulate it as clearly as you can, be in sketches or a formal design doc

2 - learn everything you can about game and indie game development; read garagegames, gamasutra, books... don't rush your "foundation"

3 - go to GG and purchase T2D, Torque, Synapse Pack, and ShowTool Pro

4 - get concept art done. I like this first to help visualize the project better. look for artists on garagegames, deviantart, rentacoder, conceptart...

5 - get your core gameplay prototype built. find programmers on garagegames, rentacoder...

6 - get your models/animations built. find modelers on garagegames, rentacoder...

7 - get your 2D art made (GUI, HUD, marketing material)

8 - get music and sound effects for your game. google "stock music" and "sound effects" for leads

9 - playtest, playtest, playtest

10 - market, market, market

See? It's just that simple. Why I don't yet have a game out there is no excuse!



=== JEFF'S AXIOMS ===

"I'll say it again, but it hasn't changed in three years:

- Right size your life.
- Don't quit your day job.
- Find a team of like minded partners to work with.
- Innovate.
- Create a portfolio of products.

You can achieve the dream, but it is more work than you ever imagined. However, there are people working hard enough to make it happen, and they love it."

- Jeff Tunnell, GG

Let's discuss these, point-by-point:

- Right size your life

Every dime I make is being put into these games. I could have taken that same money and spent it on vacations, tech gadgets, computer upgrades, video games or systems, eating out, new clothes, or my own apartment instead of shared living. But by being frugal and right sizing my life, I can afford to make games and work towards "the dream."

- Don't quit your day job

It's hard to go to work when you're not doing what you love, but sticking with it is helping move my games forward and is what gets me up every day (that and my dog whining for food).

- Find a team of like minded partners to work with

Everyone I work with has or is sympathetic to the indie spirit. RTG would be nothing without these people. Those motivated purely or primarily by financial gains are looking in the wrong place.

- Innovate

Ballet play mechanic. Creative use of dual analog sticks. Physics lessons. Turtle tanks. While not every game can (or should) innovate in some way, RTG strives to create new game experiences and not just recycled old ones.

- Create a portfolio of products.

RTG has three (almost four) games being independently worked on by separate teams of people.

"it hasn't changed in three years"

...and it won't change in the next three years, either. Though I don't consider these axioms "the bible," they are solid guidelines to follow, and they've kept me on the right track. Moreover, should I find success with these games, these guidelines don't go out the window; they are true for finding success, and they are true once you've found it. They are tips that every game developer should take note of.



=== FOUR THINGS RTG HAS DONE RIGHT ===

The following are the four biggest things I've done right in the past year.

1. Pick the right games to make

This is the foundation of everything else -- selecting the right titles to develop! There are many considerations.

First, you should be drawing from a pool of ideas ten times that of the games you're actually going to develop. From many lumps of coal will be that one diamond. If you develop the first game that comes to mind, there's a good chance it's not the right game, or that you could be developing a better one.

Second, make sure you develop a game that you can afford to do. If the game requires a lot of content, or is expansive, or requires knowledge you don't have, or requires special technical challenges, you should consider doing something else first.

Third, make a game you are passionate about. If it's merely a cool idea or a hobby for distraction, chances are you'll never finish it, if you even get as far as starting. If it's a game that sings to your heart, that (as put before) begs to be made, you'll have that much more motivation standing behind you to push through the difficult or slow periods and make sure it gets done, and done right.

Fourth, make sure you have or can find the people to work on the game you're considering doing before you even start. If the game requires too many people, or people that do such specialized work that you won't be able to afford them (i.e. if mo-cap is an integral component, for example) then wait to make that game and find something else in the meantime.

Fifth, find a balance between innovation and broad appeal. If it's merely another hapless remake/clone, it may have broad appeal but lack the inventiveness needed to attract talent and find a market. On the other hand, if it's so far out there (Extreme Monkey Lacrosse) that all but ten people won't want to play it, you'll also find it hard to attract talent and find success.

Current RTG games in development are 4 out of 30+ game ideas, are all scaled appropriately per my budget, are games I am passionate about creating, playing, and offering to market, are games that have no problem finding exactly the right people to work on them, and have a balance between originality and mass appeal.

2. Promote, promote, promote!

Don't wait until your game is finished to start promoting it. Don't promote it as soon as you decide to do the game, either. Follow the "show and tell" rule -- if you have something to show, then tell people about it. I cannot emphasize this enough: promote, promote, promote! You will attract interest in your game that will have consequences unknown, but it can only be good.

I have been diligent about documenting every step in the journey of the games in development, and much good has come from it. People have written me offering to join the team or make specific contributions that I could not have found if I was looking for them through traditional help wanted ads. I have had job offers, and offers to lead other promising projects (in all cases declined). I have built a reputation as someone who is good to work with, and with whom value will be created above and beyond financial remuneration. When the games are finally ready to be released, they won't appear out of thin air, but will already have a following, gamers who will champion the titles to other people and help spread the word. If you don't know how to promote your game, find someone who will do it for you. It's that important.

3. Find good people and keep them

Finding good people to work with is hard enough, but coupled with a shoestring indie budget and zero released games to back you up, it can be even harder. Nonetheless, there is no more crucial a building block to making your game than finding good people to work with; without a good team, you have nothing. The wrong person on your team can be anything from poison to dead weight. The right person will go above and beyond what you request and have a vested interest in the project; that they care will show through their every correspondence.

It is just as crucial to keep these people once you have found them. By that I do not mean owning them so they do not work on other projects, but rather keeping a relationship with them and building off each other's mutual success. If you fail to do this, you may release a game, but your second game will be just as hard as the first one because you will have nobody to leverage for its production, and will face all the same obstacles all over again. If you're only looking as far as one project with respect to your team, your vision is not large enough.

RTG has been fortunate enough to work with some wonderful people and has found nothing but success in this regard.

4. Diversify: sit on many eggs

This is echoed in Jeff's advice to "create a portfolio of products" and it couldn't be more true. Though I have only begun to follow this advice more recently, I have found it to be of great value.

Creating assets for games takes time. Coding takes time. Bug bashing, playtesting, polishing -- time, time, time. While one team is busy working on their respective tasks, you can twiddle your fingers and wait, micromanaging and worrying, emailing them every day for progress reports -- or you can start to hatch another egg. Maybe that second egg is just a game demo. Or not even that, but a player character demo, or a proof of technology demo. But with multiple plates spinning, you can float effortlessly between them, feeding each as it requests instead of over-feeding just one.

More eggs means that your chances are more for one hatching -- finding success as a game, and in the marketplace. The careful line to traverse however is not sitting on so many eggs that you're really not sitting on any. An egg is something with potential, and if you're spread so thin that you cannot give an egg the attention it needs, that egg is not going to realize its potential.

RTG has one game in development (Shelled!), one game on backburner development (NR), a collection of mini-games in development (Shelled Arcade), and a playtest demo being worked on (Snappy). I hope that all of these will hatch, but with many games I can worry less that at least one will find success.



=== FOUR BIGGEST MISTAKES ===


The following are the four biggest mistakes I have made in the past year.

1. Prototype

It's a constant echo on GG that you hear -- prototype your games, toss the ones that don't work, develop the ones that do. If your core play mechanic is fun, so will the rest of the game. I don't agree fully with this, and I don't feel that it applies to every game. That being said, it's still not something to be ignored completely, and one of the bigger mistakes I've made. If I put the resources I had put into art into just programming instead, I'd have one or two playable demos instead of one or two games that look great but don't play, or play buggy. It's also a risk -- I create art assets and plans for entire games that I don't even know for sure will be fun or not, because I've only played them in my head. I think I've got a pretty good head, but one of these days I'll be wrong, the play mechanic will be hopeless, and I'll have a stack of assets I can't use. Thus: more code, less art. I have learned the value of this already in having the prototype gameplay for Snappy programmed before any of the real art asset commitments.

2. Have a backup

Have a contingency for everything! Have a backup plan, a backup person, a backup game. It's easy to be optimistic before things get started, or while things are going well, but some preparation ahead of time will save you a lot of stress down the road. If a certain feature in your game isn't working, or is too expensive, or would take too much time, plan what you'll do in those cases before those cases arise. If that certain artist or programmer is rock-solid and turning in excellent quality work, have a person to replace them anyway when "life happens." Additionally, if someone's work isn't up to par, they're that much easier to replace if you don't dread the thought of having to find someone, because you already have a backup. If the whole game itself just isn't working, have that second game ready in the pipeline to start anew. I've made this mistake and continue to do so at the cost of time and stress. Whatever aspect or facet of game development you can think of, always have a backup.

3. Deadlines and accountability

If you don't set a deadline, it won't get done. If people are not accountable, many won't do the work. Have deadlines for projects, milestones, everything. Those deadlines won't be in stone -- all the more so due to your indie budget complicating matters, forcing you to be more flexible -- but they should be clear and present. When you work with new people, have deadlines written into the contract. If they fail to meet the deadline, they don't get paid and are dropped from the project. As you get to work with certain people more, or trust them more, you can relax this requirement, but even then re-instating it should always be an option. This is one of the bigger areas of failure on my part. The reason? I don't like deadlines or accountability myself, so it's hard for me to request or expect it from my team. I want to just chill out, have fun, and let the games develop on their own timelines. That's great if it's just a hobby, but if you have professional aspirations it just doesn't cut it. This will be an area that I'll be focusing more on in the future, though less so until my budget reaches the point where I can reasonably demand and push deadlines.

4. Don't do everything yourself

This was the very first mistake I made going into development. I was thrilled about the idea of making a game and had intended to do all the artwork and coding myself. I purchased the software, tools, and books I needed to do so, and took a month off work (I was working independently) to dig in. At the end of the month, I had... nothing. It was then that I realized that had I spent the money on independent contractors instead of living expenses, I would have been a lot further along -- and that was the moment I became a director (and went and got a full time job to pay for game development).

It's hard to let go when you want everything "just right," and as the saying goes "if you want something done right you have to do it yourself." But at the end of the day, there's only one of you, and there's only so much you can do alone. If you find the right people, and apply the right direction to the project, you'll find that yes your vision will be compromised compared to doing everything yourself, but you can accomplish more than you could ever have done alone. And on top of that, when you find some truly good people to work with, you may even find that your vision has been added to and made better in ways you could not have imagined.

The power of working with teams is two-fold: one, you get more done in less time, and two, you have the opportunity for value-added collaboration.



=== PRODUCER SKILLS ===

The following are the five most important skills I feel are needed to produce games, the ones that I have called upon the most in the past year. As skills, they can all be actively learned and cultivated.

1. Communication

This is hands down the most important skill to have as a producer. You need to communicate effectively to your team, and the importance of team communication is compounded when involved with a remote team. You need to communicate with your audience, both in the game (via gameplay and GUI) and outside the game (via marketing and PR). There are books and books on effective communication and I suggest you get some if it's not your natural strong suite.

2. Creativity

Video games are an art form, and the importance of creativity in any art cannot be underplayed. In a world of clones and sequels, what will set your game apart will be the creativity put into it. It's not just an important skill to have for the game's design, but an important skill for every step of production, from problem-solving to marketing. Creativity is a skill that can be learned just like any other -- there are none among us who do not have creative potential.

3. Team management

Without your team's active, quality involvement, your project will never get off the ground. Effective team management includes communication but includes so much more: finding not only the right people but aligning them for the right tasks; internalizing your vision to those in your team; sensing crises and finding ways to circumvent them; pushing the project forward, forward, forward. There are stacks of books on team management -- dedicated producers without a knack for management are encouraged to develop this skill.

4. Visual/art/design

You need to be able to critique art, in all its forms. You need to have a taste in what you like, what you don't, and why. You need to tell good design from bad -- from architecture, to gameplay balance, to level design. An education in art foundations is an essential skill to have. If you don't grasp the history of art, you won't be blazing its future.

5. Programming/tech

And of course, last but not least, you need to understand programming, game programming, and technology in general. Without this knowledge you will be at the mercy of your programmers, locking horns to ask them impossible things, or setting unrealistic features or deadlines. But once you understand programming, your game designs will come to be influenced by technology limitations and requirements and will fit naturally with the engine and platform you choose instead of a forced entry.



=== PRODUCER QUALITIES ===

The following are the five most important qualities I feel are needed to produce games, the ones that I needed the most in the past year. As qualities, they are more innate and less easy to learn, but can still be cultivated.

1. Passion

If you don't have it, stop now -- you won't succeed without it, and you're in the wrong industry.

2. Persistence

If you give up too easily, your project will never see light. There are so many obstacles ahead of you that you must have a dedication to being persistent before you reach a single one.

3. Patience

Games are complex. Complex things take time. If you try to rush things, or rush people, your game will be forced, or you will alienate yourself from your team.

4. Worth ethic

Writers are people who write every day, not people with published books. As a game producer, you must practice your art every day. Sketch designs on scratch paper, play with game engine technology, learn about the industry, marketing, QA. Playing games is important too, but daily practice of every area is the only way you will grow in your art. Similarly, once you have a game in production, you must find the time every day to keep it going. Games don't make themselves, and teams don't run themselves. It's hard work.

5. Organization

It's not a deal-breaker, but if you're not organized you're going to have that much harder a time managing things. Games need organization of people, art, code, ideas -- organization on every level.



=== FUTURE GOALS ===

There are many quantifiable goals I have for RTG's future. The first is to finish and sell a game. After that, I will have a goal of producing a certain number of games per year, perhaps two to three.

A definite goal is to have not just positive gamer reviews, but positive reviews by game websites and magazines. When I see my first game in magazine print, it will be frame-worthy -- even if it's not a glowing review. There's something about it, like being on TV, makes it real and grants legitimacy to all the work you have done.

Another future goal will be in the number of games sold, which goes hand in hand with how much money will be earned. Though I would love to be a game producer full time, I don't see that happening in the next three years. I would however like to be able to have enough in game sales to fuel the development of future games, so that it becomes self-running with respect to finances. Should my first game sell 1,000 copies in its first year I would be very happy.

A final goal I have is to enter games into festivals and conferences, and one day win something, anything. For now just having games entered would be an achievement. Specifically I am looking at the Indie Game Festival and Indie Game Conference as launch pads for getting word out on my games. Both are excellent platforms with much media attention.

Again, the biggest goal remains the first -- to finish and put to market a single, solid game.



=== RTG MISC ===

At present, I have little to no interest in branding or marketing RTG. I don't need a fancy RTG logo or website. What's important to me is the games, not the developer behind them. A certain level of visibility is desired, but the RTG moniker should shadow the games, never over-shadow them.

After the first game is released, I plan to make RTG a "formal" company with respect to a business license and taxes. It will be at that time also that I will apply to join the Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences and the International Game Deveopers Association (IGDA). I believe in the visions of both organizations.

Finally, in a big picture sense, I see RTG as fitting into a greater whole, and hope to create small production companies in the mediums of DVD's (animated and instructional movies), educational interactive CD-ROMS, books, and other media. Game making will always be a primary passion of mine, but it is not the only one, and I hope to expand into other areas in the future.



=== CLOSING ===

The intention of this annual review and plan are many. I wanted to talk a little about who is behind these games, and not just the games themselves. I wanted to show visually what a modern indie "game studio" looks like, i.e. individual workspaces around the world brought together collaboratively for a single goal. I wanted to share not so much my wisdom but my experiences; what I have done right and wrong, what skills I have leaned on or lacked. And finally, I wanted to take stock of the situation and get a big picture of my accomplishments and where I'm headed. It will certainly make for an interesting read a year from now to see what how these plans have changed or evolved.

I hope you have enjoyed reading this and look forward to the year ahead.

Happy gaming!

-- Josh

Joshua Dallman
Red Thumb Games