When I first settled on Mobli, I felt sure that a subtitle would really help my game stand out. So my original title was going to be "Mobli: The Hope For Octopia".
The idea swam around my head for a while before I told my brother and father about it. To my surprise, they both liked the idea. They tend to be brutally honest with me, so their response made me feel like maybe I did have to make this game. I really wanted a project to undertake, and I was really getting into indie games on my Switch.
I think when I hired Jagger, an artist I found through my dad (he is a cartoon producer... I am very privileged in my life, but I just want to make clear that my dad is not actively helping me with this game. Financially, or otherwise.
However, I do have financial support from my partner of 9 years. I get the feeling that this is the part where a lot of you fellow "idea guys" will turn away and say, "I don't have that! He's just rich and I can't even pay my bills." I want you to know that in this blog I'm going to explain a lot, if not all, of the details of my process, as well as uncomfortable, but important truths.
Though I am not in the best position to judge, I firmly believe that anyone who has a middle class income, could potentially put away enough money in not that long of a time to do exactly what I am doing. What I've noticed is that on the budget I'm working with, every dollar not spent is a dollar that can go to my game. Which makes me feel better than spending the money anyway.
Below are the fruits of 8 hours working with Jagger, at a cost of $200. I would not be able to afford Jagger to work on any more of the game, as he was too expensive for me.
With the 8 hours that I booked Jagger for, I was able to make what I really cut to the heart of both my game ideas. We literally worked the entire 8 hours, with a very short lunch break. Though I'm not going to be focusing on it in this blog, I will post the second game design document we created that day.
The game, which I call Minecart Racer 2D, is a classic minecart style game, with the added mechanic of a dog that the main character can throw in the air to collect items and pull switches. I have to say that I have never been the biggest fan of the minecart gameplay, but one game I played as a kid, called Young Merlin, had a minecart section that never left my mind. That, and I, for whatever reason, got the notion that I could really hone the minecart mechanics, incorporate a really fun and dramatic story (thanks to Celeste... you must play Celeste!), and I could have a really fun puzzle oriented side scroller that might have a chance at standing out. I can't explain perfectly why I think this game would standout... I just saw in my mind's eye, a very fun and attention keeping game that I could create.
Honestly, I thought if I had these documents drawn up by a professional artist, I might have a chance of getting funding. However, after getting them done, and seeing the astounding talent I would essentially be competing with, these would mean next to nothing.
So, feeling impatient, I just decided I would cancel my yoga membership, stop eating out, stop ubering, etc and convince my partner to let me hire people to help me make Mobli. Just to reiterate one thing, I chose Mobli because it was the first idea I had. That was it.
Another thing I want to add, especially for other idea guys, is that I did not do a search for artists and programmers that might team up with me for free. It became obvious to me (and having worked on indie projects before, I already knew) that this would not be taken well by the community of indie developers. Additionally, because I knew I could scrounge the resources, I did not want to work with people who weren't being paid (no accountability) and also, I truly feel happy being able to hire people to work in the field they love. Supporting the careers and dreams of other artists and creators is always an awesome feeling and I will continue to do so for the rest of my life.
And after all that I mean to say... Even if you are just an idea guy, with a great idea in your head... And you absolutely cannot afford to hire anybody, my advice is to search as hard as you can for those people. Everybody has a different story to tell and a different story to write. I believe in possibilities and I believe where there is a will, there is a way... But admittedly, some ways may be harder than others.
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