Winds of Change

Up until about 3 weeks ago, I was gainfully employed at a company called Metrostudy (www.metrostudy.com) working as a software developer. Our office was shutdown which left me to look for work. I was heavy in the job search for the first couple of weeks sending out my resume to pretty much every .Net developer job in the triangle area (Raleigh-Durham-Cary). I had a few leads, but no takers. I was left with too much time on my hands and few things (productive things) to do. So I began to think of things I could be doing while looking for a job.

Game development has always been a hobby of mine. Even before I was programming, I enjoyed thinking up game ideas. It wasn't until this last January though that I completed a game. I had been toying with different game ideas for a long time, but never really committed to anything. This is because developing a game is so time consuming and is difficult to focus on with work, family, and school. Not to mention, the technology changes so fast that whatever you are coding in can become obsolete half way through development.

So here I am with all the time in the world to make a game, but with no means to support my family. Sure, I have unemployment, but that doesn't cover what I used to make. It will also run out in about 6 months. I'm still applying for jobs, but who knows when that might be fruitful. All of this has led me to a scary thought: Maybe I should make a game.

Now I'm not talking about simple games like Bejewelled or Tetris. I'm talking about a game that is a bit more in-depth. I already have a little of the basic framework built which some of you may have seen on my development blog. However, the game I have envisioned will go far beyond that.

I began devoting 100% of my effort towards the game on Monday with a projected roll-out date scheduled about 6 months from now (no, that is not a coincidence). I've been working on story components and game world content and am quite happy with how things are going. My brother, William, has been somewhat helpful in brainstorming a few of the game details. I'm a bit worried about game art, but I'm hopeful I'll find some people who can help me.

So that's my world lately. I wanted to write it here I think because I was hoping for a little feedback. If you managed to get this far in reading, thank you.