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Create free accountMost Annoying Game Dev Mistake That Just Keeps Happening!
Key insights
5 takeaways- 01Developers frequently fail to apply known best practices like prototyping and iterative testing due to tunnel vision and emotional attachment once production begins.
- 02To prevent feature creep and over-scoping, developers must create a rigid pre-production roadmap that mandates specific prototyping phases and strict timelines before coding starts.
- 03Bridging the gap between theoretical knowledge and execution requires transforming abstract best practices into a structured, repeatable framework that governs the entire project lifecycle.
- 04External accountability acts as a critical check against scope deviation, whether through peer intervention in teams or by sharing project workflows with an audience for solo developers.
- 05Implementing a formal weekly review process using a checklist of core development principles allows for the early identification and correction of project course deviations.
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Transcript
here's the thing with game development in theory you know how to make a game you know you should start with taking your time doing some research creating some prototypes getting feedback you know you should pick a small scope and craft a generous production plan with a lot of additional buffer time you even know you should show your game of early do a lot of play testing and keep iterating your gameplay frequently however once I start making a game I simply forget all of that I go for the first idea that comes to my mind because it feels like the best idea ever I don't show my game of early because I just want to add one little thing before I do so maybe even one more I don't get any feedback because the game's not ready to be judged the scope of my game gets bigger and bigger because I constantly add new features that are supposed to fix certain design flaws and I don't even have a precise production plan so in theory you know how you should go about making again but as soon as you get started you stop listening to your
own advice is that just me or has that happened to you as well is there any kind of inconsistency between how you make games and how you think you should go about making games or are those two in sync for you for me personally this definitely seems to be a big issue because the knowledge you have about game development becomes absolutely utterly useless when you don't use it the issue definitely isn't resolved yet but at the very least I have a couple of ideas how I want to tackle this problem from now on if you have any ideas how to go about this please share them in the comments now because that would be of great use not only for me but also for other developers who struggle with the same issue solution well one thing you could do is write a very detailed plan how you think the workflow of creating your next game should look like before you get started because once your edit your internal vision mode and it's too late then after that during development just strictly follow your own guidelines for me personally they would probably
look something like this step 1 search for a ton of different game ideas and inspiration for we step to create at least 10 digital prototypes over the course of two weeks step 3 pick for two most promising prototypes and continue improving them for about one week each and so on this is not a discussion about what the best way of making your game is because there are a ton of different workflows you can use and they're not necessarily better or worse than each other this is just about getting your knowledge and sync with your actions and writing your knowledge down turning it into a couple of actionable points you can follow step by step might be a good way to achieve that I'm curious do you think this method will work and what is the step by step process you would use for making your next game solution - another way to get your knowledge isn't with your actions could be to find people that hold you accountable for your actions I've definitely noticed that whenever I work on a team the development process is a lot more structured and streamlined than in my solo projects when you're suddenly
super excited for an idea and want to dive right into coding the first level for example it's nice to have somebody who tells you hold on a second there are a couple of other things we should try first and later on when the same person wants to skip the play testing because the game isn't ready you can be the one who intervenes and says hold on we agreed we do this and they're still going to be a lot of useful Intel so let's go through with it this way it should be way easier to stay on track how can you do this when you don't work in a team though do you have any suggestions I'd say you should probably tell your audience or your friends about your values and your workflow so they can hold you accountable when your behavior differs from what you originally set out to do do you think that works what's the best way to go about it in your opinion once again curious to hear your thoughts solution 3 simply take some time to reflect on your actions every week a thing I might try is just sitting down every Friday for half an hour and thinking about whether
my actions are still in sync with my knowledge and if that's not the case I can try to correct the course in the next week once again I'm not sure how well that would work though maybe it would be necessary to write a short checklist that I can go through every week something like no feature creep check no over scoping check at least one playtest with somebody else when me check still in the time line check try different solutions for my design problems check and so on what do you think about this method do you think this would work which one of the three methods I suggested do you think is the most promising it's really surprising that this is a problem it's so stupid knowledge is supposed to make you smarter why does knowledge not make you smarter why this is Jonas and I document the entire journey to becoming a game developer feel free to subscribe if you found this video mentally stimulating and see you in the next one bye
Summary
Game developers frequently face a significant disconnect between their theoretical knowledge of best practices and their actual execution during production. While developers understand the importance of research, prototyping, iterative playtesting, and maintaining a realistic scope, they often succumb to tunnel vision once development begins. This leads to common pitfalls such as feature creep, over-scoping, and the avoidance of early feedback, rendering their professional knowledge effectively useless during the creative process.
To bridge this gap, developers should implement structured workflows that force alignment between intent and action. One effective strategy is the creation of a detailed, pre-production plan that outlines specific, actionable steps—such as mandatory prototyping phases and defined timelines—which must be followed strictly to prevent impulsive design changes. By codifying these best practices into a rigid roadmap before the excitement of coding begins, developers can mitigate the risks associated with emotional attachment to initial ideas.
External accountability serves as a second critical mechanism for maintaining discipline. Working within a team naturally provides a system of checks and balances, as peers can intervene when a project deviates from its established scope or when essential steps like playtesting are neglected. For solo developers, this accountability can be replicated by sharing project values and workflows with an audience or a network of peers who can monitor progress and provide objective feedback.
Finally, consistent self-reflection is essential for long-term project health. Implementing a weekly review process, supported by a checklist of core development principles—such as avoiding feature creep and ensuring regular playtesting—allows developers to identify and correct course deviations early. These combined strategies transform abstract knowledge into a practical, repeatable framework, ensuring that development remains disciplined and aligned with professional standards throughout the project lifecycle.
