Videogames are pyramids

As people here and there are reporting on their experiences with playing The Path, it strikes me once again how used we are to having videogames, how unsurprised we are by the fact that they get made. Having just gone through the entire production cycle of a 3D game has given me an enormous respect for game developers. The public really has no idea what an incredible achievement the creation of a game is. I think I understand why. It’s because the player is focused on what they do in the game, on their own creative activity of playing. And the better the interaction design, the less the player is going to notice it, because it will feel natural and allow them to be focused on the story, on the atmosphere.

I realize that my own experience of creating a 3d game like The Path with only 2 full time people and a handful of freelancers is on the extreme side of the spectrum. But still, as development teams get bigger and companies more corporate, their products tend to scale up accordingly. So the proportion remains intact. I tell you: the effort is monumental! If you know what goes into the production of these games, from idea development over asset creation, programming and management to marketing and distribution, each videogame is no less than a miracle!

Game developers are insane. That’s the only logical explanation I can come up with. No person in their right mind would do this to their life. Who in hell would say to his friends “Hey! I have an idea! Let’s all get together and drag these enormous rocks to the desert and pile them on top of each other to form a huge geometric shape! And let’s hire some guys to whip us in the process, so we don’t get lazy!”? Insane, I tell you.