*The bad:*
First off, I want to apologize to everyone waiting to check out this project. I missed the deadline, and the stress has affected not only my work on the game but also my regular job. Everyone needs to sleep at night, right?
I need a bit more time—until Sunday, to be precise. If the alpha isn't released by then, consider me dead.
Yeah, I know, third time’s the charm... I'm a complete newbie when it comes to game development. While I have some skills, this is my first time using them all together. And as a newbie, I've fallen into some typical pitfalls:
1. Assuming tasks you haven't done before will take a certain amount of time. They might, but what if something doesn't work correctly? What if you spot weird tearing or clipping in your renders? How does the scene feel once you put it together? It might be better in your head. All these things take time—unfortunately, way more than I initially thought.
2. Giving hard release dates. While setting deadlines is important, it only leads to unhealthy amounts of stress when those deadlines are unrealistic.
3. Stopping communication because of said stress. Thinking, "If I only crunch harder, I'll release it tomorrow, so no need to waste time on communication." Then you don’t, and patrons start to question things—rightfully so.
*The ugly:*
It feels really short. I won't be able to "glue" all the content I made and wanted to put together before the first release. So, I'll start with Day 1 and move Day 2 to another month. I'd suggest waiting until Day 2, but if you don’t want to wait and want to see if the game has potential, go ahead and play the first version. It won’t be the complete intro I've envisioned, but at least you'll get a feel for the project.
*The good?*
I talked to a more experienced dev, who was an inspiration for me to start building something I'd like to play, and I won't abandon the project even if the initial release isn’t as warmly welcomed as I hope. I'll treat any failure as a building block to improve in the future.
I think I've learned my lessons, so here’s how I plan to improve from this point forward:
1. No hard dates. While it would be cool to say I'll release an update every month or so, it’s not viable for me. I have a regular job that often requires overtime, so I have to prioritize: Work > Relationship > Game (which takes up about 90% of my free time).
2. Regular weekly updates. From now on, every Sunday I’ll post a small progress report, preview, and/or poll to keep you guys informed, give a rough estimate on how close to release things are, and take suggestions. Now that I have experience with how long the complete cycle can take, the information I provide will be more accurate than before.
3. Investing in a more powerful graphics card. A better graphics card means more renders in the same amount of work hours.
Thank you all for your patience and understanding. Your support means the world to me. I'm committed to making this project the best it can be, and I hope you'll stick around to see it grow. Stay tuned for regular updates, and let’s make this journey together!
Now, back to work!
*P.S.* Due to my fragile mental state, I won't be responding until Sunday, sorry.