The Man in Black (YT Gaming Update)
Added 2016-09-22 13:49:23 +0000 UTCHello everyone!
I'm back at 100%! Feels good to... well, feel good. Thank you so much for the well wishes.
I wanted to take a moment to share a new development in YT Gaming. While I'd like to think I'm perfect, we all know I'm far from it. YT Gaming has come a long way since its inception in December 2014. Somehow, pledges have eclipsed $10,000 per update--a level that still amazes me. That so many people enjoyed my vision for a game is awesome, and only reinforces what I always believed. That 1) there is an English market, and 2) people are willing to pay for a quality game.
Anyways, as you know, in April, I shifted to part-time. I did so as I realized that it simply was not feasible to work on this game in my spare time. The game was simply too monumental an undertaking. If I had been smarter, I'd have narrowed the scope dramatically, and then it would be a doable "hobby" game. Yet, Aylia's Story would not be nearly what it is set to become if I'd taken that route. So, thank you!
Even with that change, I'm forced to accept that it is September, and Chapter 1 is still not released. I've said in the past that my goal is to get development to the point where I can release chapters in 2-3 months. That way, I can run a pledged update on a semi-regular basis and support myself financially. To achieve this goal, I'd like to introduce the "Man in Black."
Man in Black: "Hello."
Man in Black: "Now, quit wasting time and GET TO WORK!"
YummyTiger: "Yes, sir..."
You might be thinking, "What the fuck? Did YT develop a multiple personality disorder?" Don't worry, I know the voice in my head are just voices... I think... No, what I've done is brought in a project manager to help me get more organized and stay more disciplined. I'd like to think I'm fairly decent at writing, artwork, and fashioning an interesting game experience, but I've come to realize that I'm terrible at managing development, keeping myself on focus, and creating disciplined schedules. That's where the Man in Black comes in. He's going to help me stay organized and keep development moving. He has experience in game development, and while this will only be a small part time job for him, I'm honored to have his input.
What this means:
1. You might actually get a game in your lifetimes.
2. Hopefully, more accurate predictions on things (still no release dates until the game is in testing).
3. Less time wasting on my part (shit, what was I thinking...)
4. More frequent updates on Patreon, and hopefully a more professional approach overall. YT Gaming is making $10k an update, you all deserve that.
What this does not mean:
1. I'm not going anywhere. I'll still do all the posts, replies, etc. While I want things to be a bit more "professional," I don't want this to become an emotionless business. I want to interact, discuss, and occasionally just be silly with you all. This is Patreon, a donation system, and I want to keep it somewhat informal.
2. My vision will remain, and the quality will remain. I won't accept a half-ass product. Yet, the scope of the project should become more consistent and updates should not explode into humongous, unrealistic game chunks.
3. I'll still be doing the writing, artwork, game development, etc.
4. This WILL NOT turn into some money-grabbing scheme. Money has never been the primary motivation for this project, and it will never be. My passion is delivering a good hentai game, and that's what I intend to do.
Basically, I've realized that I'm not the most disciplined person in the world. Some people are CEOs, and some people are not. I'm not a CEO-type person, and I can be easily distracted. I'm hoping that having a partner will help keep me on track. He has extensive experience in taking these large projects and breaking them into manageable chunks, then keeping people on task to complete those chunks. In that past year, I've come to realize how useful that ability is.
In the meantime, the Man in Black is going to start tagging my older posts on Patreon. I noticed on another Patreon how helpful tags could be in navigating the old stuff. So, getting that organized will help you all browse. He's already put together a list of tasks and is immersing himself in the project currently. I'll be starting the weekly updates again next week. I want to get back to where things were in June/July, when I was posting a few times a week and keeping you all better informed.
Well, that's it. Please let me know any questions you might have, concerns, whatever. For me personally, I don't necessarily love creating a sort of "boss" for myself, but I recognize that I need one. I'm just too much of a procrastinating bastard!
YT
EDIT: In thinking about this some more, just wanted to add what I think is a good comparison. For those who've delved into academia, think of this like having a thesis or dissertation chair/adviser. For me, my chair was the person who kept me on task, who checked with me frequently to see what I'd accomplished, who offered advice to keep things progressing, who told me when I was being unrealistic, etc. Ultimately, it was on me to get things done, but that assistance was invaluable. THIS is what I'm aiming for here.
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Well, I kept telling myself that YT Gaming would "take off" once I did this or that, but I kept pushing the buck. This is me not repeating that mistake over and over. Beyond that, the Man in Black has contacts with some people who might ultimately help (I'm mainly thinking animators and sound). He will be able to negotiate that and save me the headache/time it would require. I think it will be a good change for YT Gaming.
Comments
Is MiB British? Whats with the British pound?
Nine Horse Hitch
2016-09-24 03:10:04 +0000 UTCThanks! I log into the website daily, but since the switch to discord, I've not been as active on the chat. I miss it though, got to get back in the groove of things.
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-23 15:41:20 +0000 UTCThank you, and I'll be messaging you some day to reawaken the red ink monster from its long slumber...
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-23 15:40:40 +0000 UTCThe lady is black would have been sexier, I'm sure.
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-23 15:40:01 +0000 UTCI could do worse... :-)
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-23 15:39:45 +0000 UTCNo, this should not delay anything further. I'm not doing extra work for this, I'm not creating unique builds for him, he's getting the working file to look over and that's it. I will spend some time discussing things with him, but I'd be spending that time planning anyways. Now, I'm just not doing it alone.
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-23 15:39:25 +0000 UTCThank you! There is a "coach" or "trainer" aspect to this, but more importantly, I'm hoping he can help me navigate what is worth developing and what is not when it comes to features. Plus, it is nice for me to have someone I can really have a back-and-forth with about the work over the past week or so. I could post more here, but then I run the risk of spoiling the final game. I don't want to spoil it, so I try to limit what I talk about or release here.
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-23 15:37:20 +0000 UTCThe Man in Black moniker was just something I came up with on the fly. He didn't care about what his name was, as he doesn't plan to be vocal. In fact, aside from hopefully seeing a more consistent approach to the project, you won't even realize he is there after awhile.
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-23 15:35:43 +0000 UTCFair enough. I'm not sure if you've ever tackled something monumental on y our own, but it can be exceedingly challenging. Take something like a dissertation. There is a reason you have a "chair" to help guide you. It's not because you don't WANT to complete it, and it's not because you're not focused or working hard, it is because two people can often get it done where one would fail. Now, apply this to YT Gaming. Do I want to release Chapter 1? Fuck yes. Do I work on the game every day? Yes, unless I'm sick or something comes up. Yet, looking back at how chapter 1 has developed, I've wasted more time than I'd like to admit. I've revamped artwork 3-4 times, I've added little "features" that probably were not worth the effort. I've spent time drawing item artwork, messing with sprites, tweaking backgrounds, editing and editing again, rewriting whole sections of dialogue, deleting quest lines that I didn't like and then re-adding them weeks later because they were suddenly appealing. Ultimately, this is wasted time, and are a indication of my piss poor project management. Bringing in a second set of eyes, and one with experience, will hopefully help me avoid these numerous pitfalls. And, if you think I'm alone, you're crazy. Look at almost every other indie h-game, and you'll see many of the same issues. You'll see scope-creep, you'll see redoing of already finished game chunks, you'll see lots of areas where time is just wasted, or at least used inefficiently. I'm hoping that having someone with actual experience offering me guidance can reduce that. I've got thousands of hours into Aylia's Story. Thousands. With the time I've put into this game, I should have chapter 1 released. A month ago, I took a hard look at things, asking myself, "Why?" Why don't have it released? What am I doing wrong? Is it merely that I am too nitpicky? Am I adding too much? Well, this was what prompted me to seek this individual out and ask for his input. We talked back and forth for a few weeks, and I realized that having him around would be a boon. He has experience in SFW projects, but none in h-game development. He's also never used the Man in Black name prior, in fact, he didn't really care about what his name was, I just came up with that on a whim. Ultimately though, it still falls to you to decide whether you can trust me. Whether this project is worth your money. I'd like for you to stick around, and I hope to re-earn your trust. I am constantly trying to find new ways to improve this whole thing and to improve my ability to get stuff done. I truly think this is a good change, and it is not BS.
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-23 15:32:48 +0000 UTCHonestly...I'm calling bullshit on this one. Wether this "MiB" is an actual person and not just one of your little jokes, if he gives his services for free or not...this is just silly. You could get all the time managers, secretaries, gurus and PTs in the world, but in the end it all comes down to your own work ethics. If you want YTG to be your actual job, then you only need to start treating it as one, and not just a "1 hour here, 1 hour there" hobby. Ready a small office/corner, decide upon a work schedule and breaks, and get at it. It works. It shouldn't be that hard for you to find a good reason to focus, seeing as you've got not only yourself to think about, but an actual family to support. ...'course, that's just my personal opinion, I guess.
Martin
2016-09-23 15:06:10 +0000 UTCI wonder where this Man In Black comes from. The only MiB I know of is some twitter user that has a hardline for Gender Fluid Dynamics. THis guy <a href="https://twitter.com/a_man_in_black?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://twitter.com/a_man_in_black?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor</a>
Vesle Triumphant
2016-09-23 02:28:19 +0000 UTCPersonally I think this is a good change. Staying on track and motivated is a difficult thing, a skill unto itself in many cases, and one that not everyone has time to cultivate while working on a project. Having a manager, director, coach, or whatever to help direct progress should help a lot. It's a lot like getting in shape. Getting in shape isn't particularly hard, but many people find a personal trainer helps light a fire underneath them so they actually get up and *do it*.
Ashiel
2016-09-23 01:33:26 +0000 UTCIs this going to put back on any of the goal content. (even if you say yes i'll still support you). So does that mean the Chapter one my the end of Oktoberfest?
Nine Horse Hitch
2016-09-23 00:21:52 +0000 UTCThis post finally did it. Ever since I started supporting YT, I started to see Bogwort's face instead of a tiger's face giving me all the news, and this post finally made me only see Bogwort. I apologize, YT, but you will be forever Bogwort in my mind. The way you two talk are so similar.
KaiserKei
2016-09-22 20:29:04 +0000 UTCShould have been a lady in black so we could joke about her whipping you into shape. Seriously though, I'm glad you've got help and hopefully things will continue to move forward. Having said that, I'm here for the long haul.
Darthjake
2016-09-22 20:20:31 +0000 UTCMan, I gotta get me one of these man-in-black fellas... anyone have Tommy Lee Jones' number?
JK
2016-09-22 19:49:22 +0000 UTCKudos indeed for taking steps to address a recognized issue! No island is a man, after all. I think. Unless volcanic eruptions are actually...never mind. So which one of you gets stuck parting the Red (Ink) Sea during that phase? Mwa ha.
2016-09-22 18:40:48 +0000 UTCThank you, I hope others agree. I was a little worried posting this, as I didn't want it misconstrued. Mainly, I'm tired of me being stupid about things. I can tell you, based on my conversations with him, he is far more realistic about things. When I start talking about revamps or adding this or that, he reins me in and gives me a better idea of just how much more work it is going to involve. My estimations are terrible.
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-22 17:01:10 +0000 UTCIf you ever need anything just drop by Discord, I can hook you up, even help with the procrastination issue ahahah xD Glad to see you doing well, some of those virus really get a person down.
Heaven Studios
2016-09-22 17:00:40 +0000 UTCHaha, you mean you don't want to support YouTube videos? What if I video myself walking around the neighborhood? Can I use that as a pledged update? Hehehe....
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-22 16:58:21 +0000 UTCThat would be hilarious. I'm not sure I could take him seriously enough though... that little poop monster.
YummyTiger Gaming
2016-09-22 16:57:40 +0000 UTCThat's awesome! To have the ability(and honesty) to realize where your problem areas are and find outside help is a great sign of maturity...even while making h-games. ;) I will continue patiently waiting for what I know will be an amazing game. The only part I find *sad* is the lack of recognition h-games receive compared to mainstream games. Some are setting up to become instant classics. Just know that you have at least one appreciative and dedicated fan.
2016-09-22 14:08:42 +0000 UTCDam my brain. Kept thinking YT was YouTube gaming. Was like why you spend pledges on YouTube >.
Matthew O'Donnell
2016-09-22 13:59:08 +0000 UTC
