How Long Does It Take You Guys To Build A Game

Discussion in 'Public Game Developers Forum' started by 1stSPIN, Nov 15, 2014.

  1. 1stSPIN

    1stSPIN Well-Known Member

    Nov 15, 2014
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    One you finished the artwork and logic how long on average doe it take you or your team to finish a game? Curious because I got a quote from an American company saying it would take them 30 to 45 days. We built the very same game in 4 days. Our team worked from 8 am to 11pm but we got it done.
     
  2. Rogue

    Rogue Well-Known Member
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    Feb 9, 2011
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    We have been working part time on ours for nearly 5 years... it varies
     
  3. pkMinhas

    pkMinhas Well-Known Member

    Dec 6, 2011
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    The time required depends on the game & the technology to be used.
    As for the quote you received from the company, they would have considered the cost of creating supporting documentation, flexible architecture & testing etc...
     
  4. Columbo

    Columbo Well-Known Member

    Sep 1, 2014
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    In general, quality requires iteration. You might be able to complete something simple in 4 days, but is it really as polished and balanced as it could be?

    Personally, I don't think I've worked on a project shorter than 6 months, but then, I've never worked on a project with a very small scope.
     
  5. Destined

    Destined Well-Known Member

    Aug 11, 2013
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    So you did exceptionally long days so lets says 4 people x 8 days = 32 days.

    Now if the company put 2 people on it as part of their jobs you could easily see how it could take over a month.

    The amount of time take will always vary depending on gameplay, graphics, QA, scope and so on. There is no magic number.

    Companies will also quote times based on their availability. For example I am getting some studio stuff installed at work and they said 2 weeks while is actually only going to take them a day and half but it took that long to organise workers and parts.
     
  6. 1stSPIN

    1stSPIN Well-Known Member

    Nov 15, 2014
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    Are you not concerned that the market changes too fast to take that long to develop a game?
     
  7. Destined

    Destined Well-Known Member

    Aug 11, 2013
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    doesn't seem to hurt blizzard
     
  8. 1stSPIN

    1stSPIN Well-Known Member

    Nov 15, 2014
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    Sorry I am new. Blizzard must be a big brand. I will check them out. Thanks again. :)
     
  9. OnlyJoe

    OnlyJoe Well-Known Member

    Sep 29, 2013
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    Is this sarcasm?

    Most of my games take a week or so, working 3-4 hours a day. If it is going to take too much longer I don't like to risk it, because the life of a game seems so short.
     
  10. Rogue

    Rogue Well-Known Member
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    Feb 9, 2011
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    We started thinking it would take 6 months. Scope changed dramatically, constant technology changes etc. We honestly don't think we can make enough money to justify a 5 year development life but the fact we worked in our spare time and kept our overheads low means that there is little risk. We just hope somebody enjoys it.

    Anyway my point is, dev time can vary. My favourite thing to tell people when they ask how long it takes to do something is "How long is a piece of string?"
     
  11. 1stSPIN

    1stSPIN Well-Known Member

    Nov 15, 2014
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    A lot of great games can be built in a few days. The big problem seems to be getting the first rush of traffic to get your first game off the ground. Once you round that corner you are half ways there.
     
  12. psj3809

    psj3809 Moderator

    Jan 13, 2011
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    What game was it you did in 4 days? Where's the link
     
  13. NewDawnSoft

    NewDawnSoft Member

    Nov 10, 2014
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    #13 NewDawnSoft, Nov 16, 2014
    Last edited: Nov 16, 2014
  14. 1stSPIN

    1stSPIN Well-Known Member

    Nov 15, 2014
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  15. 1stSPIN

    1stSPIN Well-Known Member

    Nov 15, 2014
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  16. Destined

    Destined Well-Known Member

    Aug 11, 2013
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    Which one is the one you had quoted. Someone could easily make one of those games in a week in general so it doesn't surprise me. I guess you are going for volume over quality.
     
  17. NAFNA GAMES

    NAFNA GAMES Well-Known Member

    Apr 9, 2013
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    do stuff during the day. indie developer at night.
    Barcelona.
    we are just three guys working evenings and weekends, time is not a consideration for us, our only metrics for "definition of done" is our vision of scope polish and quality.
     
  18. NAFNA GAMES

    NAFNA GAMES Well-Known Member

    Apr 9, 2013
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    do stuff during the day. indie developer at night.
    Barcelona.
    ja ja ja well, a bit longer than a stick ....
     
  19. 1stSPIN

    1stSPIN Well-Known Member

    Nov 15, 2014
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    Nice way to put it.
    When I was an artist in Canada people used to ask me how long did it take to make a painting. tat has relationship to how good the painting is. You can finish a painting in 30 minutes and it is better than the one you spent a month on.

    I feel the most important thing is that your are have the time of your life making your game.
     
  20. PikPok

    PikPok Well-Known Member

    Nov 26, 2009
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    Our games tend to take about 8-12 months to get to launch, and then generally get actively supported on an ongoing basis for a further 3-24 months.
     

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