Today, I finished the last remaining features for release 0.5.0.0 of Network Traders. When I defined this milestone more than one year ago, this was what I wanted to have for my Early Access or “Alpha” release. Well, I got impatient and went into Early Access in September already, but here it finally is: a major milestone on my long indie dev journey!
Continue reading Milestone “Alpha-Test-Ready” Reached! (DevBlog #29)Category: Project Management
DevBlog: Two Years an Indie Dev on Network Traders
Exactly two years ago today, I started working on Network Traders. The first revision in my repository dates back to January 3rd, 2021, as well as my first task in JIRA: “Setup project”. A lot has happened since – I will give you a summary of some milestones in this post. But most importantly, I published Network Traders in early access on Google Play, and people are playing it!
Continue reading DevBlog: Two Years an Indie Dev on Network TradersDevBlog: Books on Game Design and Production
If you think about starting a career in the gaming industry – be it as an Indie dev or in an established company – it’s a good idea to do some reading first. Here are a few books which helped me not only during my career in gaming, but specifically with my current project, Network Traders.
Continue reading DevBlog: Books on Game Design and Production
DevBlog: Major Game Server Rework
Any new technology you have not used before is a potential risk to your game project. One such risk in Network Traders was the transition of merchants from player to player via Bluetooth. I meant this to be a central mechanic, but tried it much too late, only to find out that it is not stable enough. So I had to reconsider, redesign, and rework the trading mechanism, relying much more on the game server. In a way I have now left the prototype phase behind with this major rework being finally done.
Continue reading DevBlog: Major Game Server Rework
DevBlog: My Flow Diagram
In my previous post, you saw a so-called Cumulative Flow Diagram (CFD) of Network Traders. It shows the number of tasks (features) that have been implemented over time. There is a lot of interesting stuff you can read out of it. So what is there to be found in my example, and why do I have one in the first place?
Continue reading DevBlog: My Flow Diagram
Check the Export Options
Keeping track of your tasks – even in a one-person hobby project – is a good idea. If you do not want to use Excel sheets but try out one of the dozens of project managements tools out there, here is one tip: check the export options first! Otherwise you might fall into the same trap as I did when I tried Favro and moved to Jira a year into the project. Continue reading Check the Export Options