Comments on: Inside the Great Games Experiment

By: Tony

Tony — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 23:40:46 +0000

Wes – I’ve emailed you an invite.

And since the Great Games Experiment is pulling this whole gmail system of invites, I now have 7 more left.

By: Wes

Wes — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 23:14:11 +0000

I would like to have one of the invites if you still have one…

By: Tony

Tony — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 01:19:43 +0000

Well not so much publish as create a profile with a “download” link. Hosting and distribution methods are still left up to the individual developer.

Being searchable by skill sets is not very obvious. Using the search box for the exact string like “Programmer – Advanced” works, but one really has to know all such options before hand (which are quite general as well). The system is geared towards “top” developers – most popular, most experience, most kudo’d…

One issue I find is that developer’s games like Forces (congrads Adam) are listed next to fan entries for Spore and Halo 3. When I’m looking for tangible projects and developers, this just creates noise.

Throwing a bunch of gamers and developers together is a promising idea, but there needs to be a catalyst to promote inovation and learning. You don’t have to write all your own content, just provide a system for tutorials and resources. Maybe also something to facilitate cooperation between developers of similar skill levels or goals – some project team match system perhaps?

It just seems that for new and aspiring game developers, there isn’t much to be done. Where should they start? Though I realize that the Great Games Experiment is still in beta, so maybe some of the above suggestions will be considered. Thank you for asking.

By: Nate

Nate — Thu, 08 Feb 2007 18:04:36 +0000

I would be interested to know what you think could be done to improve the site for developers. Right now, you have the ability to publish your game prototypes through GGE and get a large base of users testing them. There are also a large number of developers on the site right now, most of whom are searchable by the skill sets they have. There are also various game developer’s groups (although group functionality is still limited right now). What about GGE is turning you off?

By: Freakman

Freakman — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 01:36:39 +0000

After checking this out, I am also not terribly impressed. This is seeming like a site where popularity is the main thing. For example, when you go to check out other developers, there are listings for four different things: Most Recent, Most Popular, Most Viewed, and Highest Rated.

I also have 2 invites if anyone else would like to check it out.

By: Tony

Tony — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 23:09:49 +0000

Ilya – thx for the link, I was indeed interested.

Freakman – You’re right, I wasn’t terribly impressed with this. One could probably find a new buddy interested in the same games, but it really seems lacking for video game developers. I’ve send you an invite, so you can check it out for yourself.

I have another one left for anyone interested.

By: Freakman

Freakman — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 22:58:48 +0000

Sounds kind of like an interesting project. Do they go into any more depth, ie. do they go past evaluating each other, and actually help/provide tools to programmers/gamers whatever? I get the impression that you were’nt all that impressed with this.

I wouldn’t mind checking this out firsthand, if you have an invitation to spare.

By: Ilya Grigorik

Ilya Grigorik — Sun, 07 Jan 2007 14:32:33 +0000

I just came across a very interesting article on this subject:
http://www.binarycreativity.com/2006/08/11/things-you-need-to-know-before-interviewing-for-a-game-programming-position/

Thought you may be interested.