What's your motivation for creating adult games?

[zeboftw]

For the past few years I've been exploring the idea of getting into game development, especially adult games. I've tried a couple of times, with varying levels of commitment, but I could never find that spark to invest hours upon hours into development like I do for other hobbies (gaming for example).

I'm afraid that I've been trying to get into game development just to feed my porn addiction. So I was curious what motivates an actual developer to do this. What goes through your mind when you wake up in the morning and think about working on your game? What do you feel when you open your software of choice and start creating?

 

[Nicke]

If you don't think it's fun and don't have the motivation to put in a literal ton of hours, you should probably not bother.

Financially you're unlikely to ever see a return that makes it worth the time. Almost all the successful big money devs are on their second or even third game and had been at it for years before making noticeable money. Those that are on their first game and are making it big have probably been in developmeent for at least 3+ years. Plus they all have talent of course.

As for porn addiction, and this is just my opinion - Doing a game is terrible for it. It's hard (for me, anyway) to get much out of my own creations or even worse, my own writing. On top of that, it ruins other's games too. I spend more time noticing clipping and thinking about how the lighting in this and that scene was set up, than enjoying the game.

But I like creating. Especially messing around in Daz. And I enjoy the interaction with players.

 

[Tompte]

I don't think adult game development should be about feeding your own porn addiction. There are much better outlets than painstakingly making a game. If you instead do it for other people like yourself that you can relate to, that helps a lot. Think of players as people who you want to share your enthusiasm with.

I don't really struggle with motivation at all because I enjoy the process of making games. I enjoy the problem solving and coming up with ideas and making them a reality. Another trick I use is to keep a notepad with written down tasks, and I try to choose tasks that I want to work on on any given day.

 

[EchoFoxtrot]

If you don't think it's fun and don't have the motivation to put in a literal ton of hours, you should probably not bother.

Financially you're unlikely to ever see a return that makes it worth the time. Almost all the successful big money devs are on their second or even third game and had been at it for years before making noticeable money. Those that are on their first game and are making it big have probably been in developmeent for at least 3+ years. Plus they all have talent of course.

As for porn addiction, and this is just my opinion - Doing a game is terrible for it. It's hard (for me, anyway) to get much out of my own creations or even worse, my own writing. On top of that, it ruins other's games too. I spend more time noticing clipping and thinking about how the lighting in this and that scene was set up, than enjoying the game.

But I like creating. Especially messing around in Daz. And I enjoy the interaction with players.

Nicke hits it on the head

Development has consumed all other hobbies and all other free time honestly.

I rewrote my intro and synopsis several times, hell I tried to write my VN as a comedy at first
Suddenly though it hit on something and then the story started to grow. Since then I have not been able to stop.
While at work I play yt videos about subjects I'm researching and think through events that will one day become part of the story. It never stops really.

As far as my own stuff being sexy, I am pretty pleased with how the lewd event have played out and naturally I like my own LIs.
It is just different when it has taken hours to create 5 minutes of sex you know.

Nicke Your masturbation scene with Jessica (curly blonde) was very good and fun

Interaction with players is very interesting and fun. It can be hard, you can't get offended by dicks. By far though the fans and people appreciating your creation is a huge morale boost.

 

[Saki_Sliz]

No matter how much I worry about the fact I never complete a project, 2 things bring me back and 2 things keep me going.

1: the #1 thing that brings me back to projects or start projects is interesting character and story ideas. Usually the issue is its a specific scene idea I have in mind but that seen is <1% of the game, so ends up not being worth it much

2: just cool game mechanic ideas and exploration. I consider myself more of a technical artist than an artist, and I'm way more of a programmer than an artist, so I'll often start an idea just to make a working prototype cuz its fun and cool, as Nicke mentioned.

what lets me put hours in? To be honest that's something I've been exploring, not just putting in more time, but learning about myself and my work habits and developing a workflow that encourages me to be able to put more time in. for example, I know there are certain things I don't like to do (enviorment art) that really slows down my productivity and breaks my pacing and kills a project. some things I can work around... and some things I can't (I hate enviorment art... but I'm slowly making my own art asset for this, hopefully to set up scenes in the future), but once I get in the groove 2 things keep me going

1: now that I've gotten more comfortable with my character art skills, I have no issue playing around with character just because the process is now fun now that I'm skill enough and have the resources I need (custom made sculpts) that its no longer 'effort' to make characters

2: I absolutely love programming. Again, its one of those things where I put a lot of time into it to develop the skill so that its no longer 'work' to make code, I can just have fun... that being said, anytime I have to learn how someone else code works (ie using a framework or API) I avoid it because learning is scary and hard and I'd rather just code things myself because that's just what I'm comfortable with.

but none of this actually equals results, just cool demo's. another thing that motivates me is aiming for a certain quality as my skill improves, which again prevents me from actually completing a project. but, started working with others just to try and learn, and its started to help with making more progress.

 

[coffeeaddicted]

For the past few years I've been exploring the idea of getting into game development, especially adult games. I've tried a couple of times, with varying levels of commitment, but I could never find that spark to invest hours upon hours into development like I do for other hobbies (gaming for example).

I'm afraid that I've been trying to get into game development just to feed my porn addiction. So I was curious what motivates an actual developer to do this. What goes through your mind when you wake up in the morning and think about working on your game? What do you feel when you open your software of choice and start creating?

Oh ha, porn addiction.
I tend to agree, that won't solve your problem.
To make a game, you need lot's of time. Perhaps be alone because to commit to another person probably doesn't align.
I could rather image doing just single renders to get hot but not a game.

To be honest, making a game will suck life out of you. As arousing as it can be, you probably won't be successful, to feed your needs.

I don't like porn really but i like to fuck around DAZ or, now also HoneySelect. Wasting time goes really quick but for me, it has it's limits.

And things seen, can't be unseen. No matter how hard one tries.
Stay safe, dude.

 

[Deleted member 1121028]

You need that inner fire inside yourself. Else it's a complete masochist game.
If fact use your porn addiction to your advantage.

 

[coffeeaddicted]

You need that inner fire inside yourself. Else it's a complete masochist game.
If fact use your porn addiction to your advantage.

This may end with sticky fingers.
But yes, Fire but more a plan, a vision, determination.

 

[JoGio]

Some people have a creative spark where they get ideas, write them down excitedly, and begin planning their new project. That's the honeymoon period. But very quickly, the excitement wears off and the colossal amount of work it would take to bring it to fruition becomes clear. At this point, what you know for sure is that this is gonna be a marathon and you won't see the finish line for months, probably.

Game development is painfully hard work. It's a process of constant problem solving, and that's always stressful and intimidating. Sometimes it's just difficult enough to be fun, but at other times you feel like you're staring into the abyss when you reach a point where you have no idea what should be done next. Making games means creating abstractions in a space where the only real rules are that of hardware/operating system/engine limitations.

I guess what I'm saying is, when you're starting out and have to learn as you go, you need a certain amount of stubbornness. You'll need to be able to stick to your project even when you hate the work you've done so far because iteration will eventually bring out the good in your project. If not, then at least you'll walk away with some lessons for the next one.

If you're a perfectionist then you need to recognize that perfectionism is toxic. Do what you can right now, and you'll get better as you go along. No one expects your debut to be among the best out there.

 

[osanaiko]

On top of that, it ruins other's games too. I spend more time noticing clipping and thinking about how the lighting in this and that scene was set up, than enjoying the game.

This is a big factor for me - I enjoy playing games a lot less now that I know "how the sausage is made". Recognising a 3d-asset and thinking about all the other games that used the identical one - it really takes me out of immersion.

 

[Deleted member 1121028]

This may end with sticky fingers.
But yes, Fire but more a plan, a vision, determination.

What I mean was sex scenes may seems obvious for porn addict but it's not that easy say in a VN or more broad 3D context. Could be turn into useful skillset : what constitute a good sex scene with multiple points of references, camera angle and flow, and mostly brain muscle memory on small details (mostly body projection and so on) \o/

 

[EchoFoxtrot]

This is a big factor for me - I enjoy playing games a lot less now that I know "how the sausage is made". Recognising a 3d-asset and thinking about all the other games that used the identical one - it really takes me out of immersion.

I know man, I sent a render to a fellow developer the other day, a bathroom scene, a girl in the front touching her boobs. His single comment was: There is no shader on the toilet

 

[TheMagicalGurl]

For me, I love and loathe game development... but I think I am actually beginning to see people interact with my work and the good and bad of this. Interacting with my few patrons honestly feels like one of the most rewarding things ever and I truly enjoy every second. Honest to god. Some of my fellow devs have also been amazing to meet and get to know!

I loathe the people that feel entitled to things I have clearly said no to, like a male protag. I said no. "BuT tHiS wOuLd bE bEtTeR!" NO THE FUCK IT WOULDNT! Because I said so. "BUT!" But no... never... Not happening. Stahp!

THAT... is annoying. I accept it and deal, but I dont have to like that childish behavior... Dealing with other people's idiosyncrasies is tiring af.

Overall, I enjoy it though!! I have always wanted to make my own game and Mass Effect was the beginnings of this idea and Projekt Moon allows me to be an artsy fartsy director like FFC, Aronofsky or Scorsese... or a writer like Rei Hiroe, Lynn Okamoto, Stephen King or Anne Rice without their funding or clout. I just vibe and throw my ideas against the wall and see what sticks. So far so good...

As far as what motivates me is creating something different in a saturated market. Something unique that is explicitly ME and I can say yeah, thats me. Its not like anything else you can play... and completing my project. I never want to see abandoned on something I do. Thats a point of pride to me...

 

[Tompte]

For me, I love and loathe game development... but I think I am actually beginning to see people interact with my work and the good and bad of this. Interacting with my few patrons honestly feels like one of the most rewarding things ever and I truly enjoy every second. Honest to god. Some of my fellow devs have also been amazing to meet and get to know!

I loathe the people that feel entitled to things I have clearly said no to, like a male protag. I said no. "BuT tHiS wOuLd bE bEtTeR!" NO THE FUCK IT WOULDNT! Because I said so. "BUT!" But no... never... Not happening. Stahp!

THAT... is annoying. I accept it and deal, but I dont have to like that childish behavior... Dealing with other people's idiosyncrasies is tiring af.

Overall, I enjoy it though!! I have always wanted to make my own game and Mass Effect was the beginnings of this idea and Projekt Moon allows me to be an artsy fartsy director like FFC, Aronofsky or Scorsese... or a writer like Rei Hiroe, Lynn Okamoto, Stephen King or Anne Rice without their funding or clout. I just vibe and throw my ideas against the wall and see what sticks. So far so good...

As far as what motivates me is creating something different in a saturated market. Something unique that is explicitly ME and I can say yeah, thats me. Its not like anything else you can play... and completing my project. I never want to see abandoned on something I do. Thats a point of pride to me...

To be fair. It sounds like you love game development but dislike interacting with your Patrons. Those are two very different things. Running a Patreon is a whole 'nother can of worms.

 

[TheMagicalGurl]

To be fair. It sounds like you love game development but dislike interacting with your Patrons. Those are two very different things. Running a Patreon is a whole 'nother can of worms.

Interacting with my few patrons honestly feels like one of the most rewarding things ever and I truly enjoy every second. Honest to god.

No, because I literally said this. Randoms aren't patrons.

 

[Tompte]

No, because I literally said this. Randoms aren't patrons.

Ah, sorry. I must've misread. I think my disconnect was that you listen to randos at all. I wouldn't do that. XD

But to add to that, knowing which feedback to listen to can be really important for motivation. When I get feedback, positive or otherwise, I try to weigh it by how informed it is. Lots of people can get the wrong idea from a screenshot and almost everyone will project their own interests into it.

And allowing yourself to not please everyone is quite liberating. Patreons often take the kitchen sink approach, so I wrongly assumed that was where your frustration was coming from.

 

[anne O'nymous]

Putting aside those who expect to make big bucks, mostly because they generally abandon their game once they discover that it don't happen, it's generally the desire to share a story they have in their mind that motive creators.

It doesn't matter if is a great story or a cheap one, it's you who wrote it, and you want to share your enthusiasm with other people. And like some will see it through the story, you'll have a public.

Edit: It's better when there isn't a word missing... shame on me

 

[TheMagicalGurl]

Ah, sorry. I must've misread. I think my disconnect was that you listen to randos at all. I wouldn't do that. XD

But to add to that, knowing which feedback to listen to can be really important for motivation. When I get feedback, positive or otherwise, I try to weigh it by how informed it is. Lots of people can get the wrong idea from a screenshot and almost everyone will project their own interests into it.

And allowing yourself to not please everyone is quite liberating. Patreons often take the kitchen sink approach, so I wrongly assumed that was where your frustration was coming from.

Randoms can provide good feedback, however, some are bloody hilarious and/or annoying. Good with the bad ig.

 

[coffeeaddicted]

What I mean was sex scenes may seems obvious for porn addict but it's not that easy say in a VN or more broad 3D context. Could be turn into useful skillset : what constitute a good sex scene with multiple points of references, camera angle and flow, and mostly brain muscle memory on small details (mostly body projection and so on) \o/

My dummy me what say, if it arousing it probably good but most want animations which i would never do. Too much work for little gain.
But you are right, it could lead to something good. I would pay attention to "small detail" which usually distinguishes you from others. Though i hope he isn't addicted. That would be sad.

 

[zeboftw]

Thanks for all your replies guys. It's nice but it also sucks to have it confirmed that passion/joy is, indeed, the secret to progress in game development.

When I first got a taste of game development, I felt that spark. But I was a kid back then. Now, I can only remember it. It seems adult life has sucked out the enjoyment out of many things.

So I'll try to go back to that time, try to approach game development with child-like curiosity and focus on the things I enjoy rather than try to make the perfect game.