[game designer] i offer my experience and ideas Thread

Hello everyone!
This could sound silly, but I have no experience on developing. I do think that playing videogames since the age of 6 ( I am 28 now) I developed a keen eye for what are good mechanics and game concepts.
What I would like is to be given the chanche to express my ideas on your forming projects and see if you like them.
For me is a way to test my knowledge and creativity, for you a way to have a source of new points of view and ideas from a veteran player.
I played any kind of games. I am no big fan of sport games but great RPG lover.
I am very easy going and open to talk about your games on skype. If you think I can be useful for you just send me an email at laurent.capello@googlemail.com

Cheers!!

Laurent

I'd recommend you call yourself more of a QA tester than then a game designer, give what you've described.

Don't you think it is kind of weird to call yourself a "Game Designer" from the time you have no experience in actually making a game?
I am sure that this link would be really helpful for you: Urbandictionary.com

Edited by: Mistergeorge

I laughed a little... Is this an attempt at trolling?

I know it's not really my place but every reply has been a waste of time for this guy. He's offering expertise and you guys are being dicks. Just saying...

But while I'm here I figure that you may be able to give me help on something, so about a month ago I was playing castle of the winds (it's a classic, look it up) and I realised how much I love old games in particular text based ones, so I set out on the quest to develop one, I like to do my research so I bounced all over the internet looking for inspiration. I found a zombie game on these forums and thought I'd look at reviews and see what sort of problems people were having with that game and I found lots of people saying how they wished someone would do a zombie adventure game, me being a fan of all things zombie dived at the idea, and well a month later I am closing in on finishing a beta (I am right in the middle of exams so work has been slow). BUT... this is where you come in because I am running out of ideas, I had a couple of friends play and despite enjoying it everyone wanted more zombie types, and more skills (e.g. Lock Picking Skill or a skill that depicts gun accuracy), and I was wondering what you think are the most fundamental things every zombie game must have, just a question.

Have a good one.

Edited by: ricochetx

I'd recommend you conduct a full discussion in the appropriate part of this forum.

(i could say your the one who's potentially wasting time and a dick, since you've decided to try and hijack this thread with your small game/ observation that has no baring on this discussion, and that kind of behavior reflects your potential inexperience.)
The best advice I have for you is to beware of feature creep, this means people want more and more, as do the creator, and then you find yourself with something unmanageable and then your in a worse position.

Decide what you want, do it, and be done with it, don't let others eclipse your own vision, and know and understand what you can accomplish within a reasonable time period.
(if you decide to form a teem, that's a different story.)

As for the topic at hand,
I think I've been civil,
And no, I went to the trouble of sending him an email explaining what your about to read, and how he should improve.
It's like someone saying they're a a film maker, since they've been watching films since they were a kid.
This guy and others are falling into the most common pitfall of game development, just cuz you like to play games does not mean you like or know how to make them.

people don't usually say, oh I've been reading for years, and really enjoy them, despite having no formal English & writing experience, jump to the conclusion that they must be able to be a writer.

or
oh, I've been eating all my life, and have experience knowing what tastes good, let me come into your kitchen and your restaurant and share my ideas of what I think works, hey maybe you'll pay me....

The best thing the OP can do is what I suggested, (if he's actually been in alpha & betas for games)
as well as start writing down all his observations and experience in a formalized way, eventually in this kind of document:
En.wikipedia.org

If he's not at that point,
then he needs to go be an active part of a gaming community, either mod, indie or industry, and start engaging in discussions.
(that's how I got started, did it for ~3 years for the Command&conquer; EA forums, posting ideas, suggestions, mechanics, etc. before I took the leap to moding and now game design)

No serious team will entertain a member who just says the OP, and that's it.
In this world, you need to convince people that you are worth their time, and what the OP said, does not do that effectively at all. and in fact, discourages veterans to even post.

For me, one of the 1st thoughts after reading it was, "the guy's 28, and likely been a part of many gaming communities, he should know better"

Anyone can observe, have ideas, and notice patterns, and have comments, we want people who can draw solid workable conclusions and act on them effectively.

Being a game dev is very similar to being a scientist, social or natural, you need to be able to think critically, solve problems, or inspire people to do those things for you, in an organized, yet free fashion.
We're not being dicks,
we're trying to pass on our experience, (any half way experienced game dev will laugh and shake their head, and not even go through the trouble or time, to explain, because) we can do all the explaining we want, you can say you know, but you can not say you understand.)
game design, like everything isn't something you wake up one day and go, lets do it.
It's a long learning process with ups downs, and even times when you want to give up, but if you spend the time, and do your job well, you may one day have lasting success.

Being an artist of any kind is about making what you see and want a reality, ideas are not reality yet.
experience is.

Edited by: GeneralJist