Have you ever felt like working on your game is as exciting as eating dry, stale bread? If you’re nodding along, you’re not alone. Many developers, including myself, experience burnout when working on long-term projects. So, how do you keep your game development process exciting and engaging?
Recently, I faced this challenge with my game, Dewdrop Dynasty. Today, I’ll share how I overcame it. Welcome to another Dewdrop Devlog—let’s dive in!
For those unfamiliar, Dewdrop Dynasty is a bug-themed Metroidvania game inspired by classics like Cave Story, Pikmin, and Super Paper Mario. You play as Poepo Lin, who, after a stormy mishap, loses his wings and must navigate various challenges to find his way home.
I’ve been developing this game for over a year, recreating it multiple times to achieve the right balance of fun and storytelling. However, I found myself falling into the trap of scope creep—adding too many features and losing sight of the core gameplay, which made the process less enjoyable.
Realizing the game felt stale, I knew I needed to inject some excitement into the project. Initially, the gameplay involved aimless wandering to find bosses, which wasn’t engaging. To spice things up, I introduced spikes and more platforming elements, which significantly improved the gameplay experience.
Yet, I still struggled with motivation. The key to keeping a game fresh lies in its core gameplay. For a Metroidvania, this means exploring, discovering new items, battling enemies, and defeating bosses. Without these elements, the game feels incomplete.
I wanted Dewdrop Dynasty to be more than just a Metroidvania; I aimed to create a game rich in humor and storytelling. Taking a step back to reassess my goals helped reignite my passion for the project.
I’m excited to announce a new game location—an underwater ruin. How does a bee breathe underwater? I’ll leave that to the botanists! This new setting offers fresh ideas for player interactions and challenges, making it a more intriguing area than my original cavern concept.
Games like Cave Story and Bobo Robot are engaging because of their compelling narratives. Inspired by my recent playthroughs of Paper Mario, I decided to infuse more humor and quirky NPCs into Dewdrop Dynasty.
I revisited the pits area, transforming it from a simple tutorial zone into a full-fledged location with lore and characters. Now, it’s a cheese mine guarded by mice prison guards called Rotos, adding depth and humor to the game.
To enhance the storytelling, I upgraded the dialogue system. Players can now choose voice options, arrow directions, and effects like zooming and camera shakes for each message. These improvements make Dewdrop Dynasty feel more like a complete game with a compelling narrative.
If your game feels stale, take a step back and revisit your original motivations. Consider reimagining locations or mechanics to breathe new life into the project. Flexibility in your creative process can transform game development from a chore into an enjoyable journey.
While I don’t have much to show in this update, most of my work has been behind the scenes. If you’d like to support my game development journey, I’ve launched a Patreon. Your support helps me create videos regularly and brings me closer to my dream of running a full-time studio.
If you have ideas on keeping a game fresh or suggestions for Dewdrop Dynasty, please share them in the comments. Thank you for watching, and if you enjoyed this devlog, don’t forget to like and subscribe. Your support means the world to me, and I couldn’t do this without you.
That’s it for this devlog. See you next time on another game development adventure!
Gather in small groups and brainstorm new game concepts inspired by Dewdrop Dynasty. Focus on creating a unique setting, character, and core gameplay loop. Present your ideas to the class and discuss how they could keep a game fresh and engaging.
Participate in a workshop where you will develop a short narrative for a game. Use humor and quirky characters, similar to the enhancements made in Dewdrop Dynasty. Share your stories and receive feedback on how to make them more engaging.
Choose a classic game and redesign one of its core mechanics to make it more exciting, as was done with the platforming elements in Dewdrop Dynasty. Present your redesign and explain how it enhances the gameplay experience.
Work in pairs to create a simple dialogue system for a game. Implement features like voice options, arrow directions, and effects such as zooming and camera shakes. Test your system with classmates and discuss how these features improve storytelling.
Write a reflective essay on the importance of maintaining motivation and creativity in long-term projects. Use examples from Dewdrop Dynasty and your own experiences. Discuss strategies to overcome burnout and keep projects fresh.
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the YouTube transcript:
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[Music] Does working on your game ever feel like you’re eating dry stale bread? You’re bored, tired, and in desperate need of some water. If so, then you’re just like me when it comes to working on longer projects. It’s easy to get burned out on your game. So how do you keep it fresh?
Well, I recently encountered this problem with my game, Dewdrop Dynasty, and today we’ll talk about what I did to overcome it. So welcome back to another Dewdrop Devlog, and let’s get started!
Now, for those of you that are new to the channel, Dewdrop is a bug-themed Metroidvania that I’m trying to make, inspired by games like Cave Story, Pikmin, and even Super Paper Mario. Basically, the premise of the game is that you’re named Poepo Lin, and on the way back from one of Poe’s missions, he ends up getting caught in a storm, injuring himself, and losing his wings. The point of the game is that you’re trying to make your way back home, but Poe runs into a lot of different challenges along the way.
I’ve been working on Dewdrop Dynasty for the past year or so, and I’ve recreated it a couple of times because it just wasn’t exactly how I wanted it. The goal of the game was to be a fun, story-based adventure Metroidvania, but I ended up making it too big and trying too many things. Recently, I found myself falling into the same boat again while working on the game. I just wanted to keep adding more features, leading to that notorious scope creep, and I found myself not really enjoying working on the game or even playing it. It was kind of boring, and I just didn’t know why.
Then I realized what I was missing: I needed to give breathing room for the project, even if it didn’t turn out the exact way I thought it would. Specifically, I was talking about the traveling mechanics and the interaction with the world. Wandering around aimlessly just to find a boss isn’t the most entertaining gameplay, so I thought, how could we liven it up? In the last devlog, you’ll notice I added spikes and a lot more platforming, which actually improved the gameplay significantly, and I found myself really enjoying it.
However, even with that, I found it hard to want to play through the game. What was the motivation for me to actually beat the levels and fight the bosses? Here’s where I think a lot of people get caught up, and where their games become stale: thinking about your core gameplay. For a game like a Metroidvania, the goal is to travel, explore, find new items, fight enemies, and battle bosses. If you just have a character that runs around and shoots a gun without those other elements of exploration, it will feel lacking.
As I mentioned with Dewdrop, I didn’t want to just make a Metroidvania; I wanted to create a small game that had humor and story elements. So, I took a day to step back and figure out what I wanted to accomplish with Dewdrop. After taking that time to think about the project, I felt way more motivated.
With that said, I would like to announce a new location in the game. It doesn’t have an official title yet, but it’s an underwater ruin. Now, how does a bee breathe underwater? That’s for all you botanists to debate down below in the comments! I thought it would be fun to shake things up instead of just having another underground area. This new location has given me a ton of ideas for how players will interact with enemies, locations, and bosses. I think it’s going to be a really cool area to explore, much better than my original idea of a cavern.
Going back to my problem of feeling a lack of motivation, I realized I needed more story elements. Games like Cave Story and Bobo Robot were fun because they had plotlines that pushed you to move forward. Maybe this is because I’ve been playing too many Paper Mario games recently, but I also wanted to add humor and funny NPCs.
With that in mind, I revisited the pits. Instead of being a micro-tutorial area, I thought, why not make it a full location in the game? I wanted to give it more lore and characters, rather than just a simple mechanic. So, I decided to make the pits a cheese mine because if Baxton’s going to be the Lord of Cheese, there has to be something in Cheese Guard to protect! I also thought it would be amusing to have bugs and other creatures as prisoners, with little mice prison guards called Rotos.
This led me to drastically improve the dialogue system. Now, for every single message, you can choose the voice, the direction of the arrow, and even effects like zooming in and camera shakes. For the first time, Dewdrop is starting to feel like a final game, with a story and something to work towards.
As always, I don’t want to show too much because I want to save it for when you actually play the game, but this has given me a great opportunity to write a lot of dialogue, and I can’t wait for you all to experience it.
If you’re still struggling and feel like your game is stale, what you need to do is breathe life into it again. Take a step back and think about why you’re making this game in the first place. If there’s a location you’ve been working on and feel has to be a certain way, consider thinking about it differently. I’m not saying to add more to your workload; rather, think about taking some away. Maybe if you think the next location has to be a jungle, what if it’s underwater? What if it’s on the moon? By allowing yourself that flexibility, it makes the project feel less like a job and more like a creative process.
I know I don’t have a ton to show in this update, and that’s because most of what I’ve been working on is behind the scenes. If you’d like to support me in making these videos, I just created a Patreon. Supporting me there helps me create videos regularly and get one step closer to my dream of establishing a full-time studio. If you want to see all the perks and rewards or read more about it, make sure to click the link down below.
If you have any thoughts or comments on how to keep your game fresh or features that could be added to Dewdrop, please leave a comment down below. I want to thank you so much for watching this video. If you want to see more, make sure to like and subscribe. I appreciate it so much; you all are amazing, and I couldn’t do any of this without you.
Anyway, that’s it for this video. I will see you next time on another game development adventure.
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Game – A structured form of play, often undertaken for entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool, especially in the context of computer programming and design. – The computer science course included a project where students had to design a simple game using Python.
Development – The process of creating, designing, and programming software applications, including games, from conception to deployment. – The development of the new educational app required collaboration between software engineers and educators.
Gameplay – The specific way in which players interact with a game, including the rules, challenges, and overall experience. – The gameplay of the new virtual reality game was praised for its immersive experience and intuitive controls.
Storytelling – The art of conveying a narrative or story within a game, often through dialogue, visuals, and gameplay mechanics. – Effective storytelling in video games can enhance player engagement and emotional connection to the characters.
Mechanics – The rules and systems that govern the functioning of a game, including player actions and interactions. – Understanding the core mechanics of a game is crucial for developers to create a balanced and enjoyable experience.
Dialogue – The written or spoken conversational exchange between characters in a game, which can drive the narrative and provide context. – The game’s dialogue was carefully crafted to reflect the personalities and backgrounds of its diverse characters.
Interaction – The communication or direct involvement with a game, often through user inputs and feedback mechanisms. – The interactive tutorial helped new players understand the basic controls and objectives of the game.
Exploration – The act of investigating and discovering new areas or elements within a game environment, often rewarded with new information or items. – The open-world design encouraged exploration, allowing players to uncover hidden secrets and side quests.
Features – Distinctive attributes or aspects of a software application or game that contribute to its functionality and appeal. – The latest update introduced new features, including enhanced graphics and additional multiplayer modes.
Motivation – The driving force that encourages players to engage with and continue playing a game, often influenced by rewards, challenges, and narrative. – The game’s reward system provided motivation for players to complete difficult levels and achieve high scores.
