Blood, Sweat, and Pixels - 4 Takeaways
Blood, Sweat, and Pixels, by Jason Schreier, discusses the complexities of game development by diving into ten unique stories, from small teams to big studios, each with varying success. Told from those there, Schreier describes the highs and lows experienced working on such complex projects. Similarities appear from these various accounts, from publishers and planning to tools and testing. Four takeaways emerge that might benefit those involved in the game development process.
Understand the broader context.
Understanding the organizational structure within the studio will make navigating issues easier by identifying key communication points and critical stakeholders. Things to consider are:
Where does this team fall within the studio?
Who has authority in certain situations?
What external teams rely on our output, and what are our dependencies?
Developing a communication strategy to manage and monitor the project lifecycle is key to the project's success and alignment with stakeholders. Also, if applicable, understanding the relationship with the publisher is essential as they typically finance the project and have their expectations of the studio. Both internal and external relationships require ongoing project communication and status reporting.
Have a plan.
Preproduction occurs at the beginning of the game development process and is often considered the most critical phase. Preproduction seeks to answer fundamental questions related to the game's core gameplay mechanics and features. During this phase:
Designers can prototype potential game mechanics,
Programmers build tools to assist various functions, and
Other departments can make decisions to help their content pipelines.
These activities and outcomes help producers fine-tune scope and budget by identifying staffing requirements, feature milestones, and other related deliverables. Aligning stakeholders and the team around the deliverables will help everyone understand the scope and work required. Once identified, the team should work together to break down the deliverables into small, manageable components. These tasks typically take the shape of a product backlog and are managed based on dependencies and high-value items. Team members can use tools such as JIRA and Asana to help track the overall progress and manage their work.
Proper planning and alignment around deliverables help mitigate drastic adjustments later during the production phase, even though they are sometimes unavoidable.
Be agile when overcoming obstacles.
Despite all the time and attention allotted during the preproduction process, teams are unlikely to avoid issues during the production phase. Game design is an iterative process:
Designers will continue to test prototypes seeking to pinpoint fun and exciting mechanics.
Writers will produce multiple drafts of dialogue to ensure continuity with the rest of the story.
Programmers may encounter limitations of the current engine and need to explore solutions.
Focus tests give staff feedback about how the public might receive some mechanics, requiring adjustments if so determined.
Establishing processes and systems for responding to these changes is vital. Tools are often stressed so that rapid prototyping and iteration can occur to test the validity of those ideas. Based on feedback, designers can determine whether more refinement is necessary or whether the concept can work down the pipeline to art and engineering.
Agile planning can help accommodate the iterative nature of game development by approaching work in small increments that help reduce waste and rework by incorporating the following:
“The map is not the territory.”
Short feedback loops,
Frequent adaptation of process,
Reprioritization,
Regularly updated plans, and
Frequent delivery.
Although there will not be one solution for all of the obstacles that arise, exploring root causes help reveal strategies to mitigate the severity of these obstacles and manage risk.
Establish a shared vision.
The final takeaway is the importance of establishing a shared vision for what the team is developing. The successful studios that avoided significant rework during the production phase defined and committed themselves to the shared vision outlined during preproduction.
Overcoming disconnects as quickly as possible is essential to save both time and money. Several strategies align stakeholder expectations and give teams an understanding of the feature built by emphasizing its goals rather than fully specifying scope. These include:
Agile chartering, or creating a shared document outlining W5H attributes (Who, What, Where, When, Why, and How),
Creating a shared Definition of Done,
Modeling utilizing use case diagrams, data models, screen designs, or other various prototypes,
Wireframes, and
Personas
Blood, Sweat, and Pixels is a worthwhile read for anyone interested in the industry. From some of the most respected industry leaders and studios, the book lays bare the highs, lows, challenges, obstacles, and strategies used by seasoned teams in the high-stakes world of game development.
