The gaming industry is growing rapidly, and it’s no surprise that many games are developed by small teams. One such game is “Gollum,” which was developed by a group of independent developers in just two months. This article will take a closer look at the development process of Gollum, and how this short time frame influenced the final product.
Development Process:
The development process of Gollum began when the team came up with the idea for a simple puzzle game that could be completed in just a few hours. They chose to use Unity as their game engine because it was easy to learn and allowed them to quickly create prototypes.
The team then spent several weeks brainstorming ideas for puzzles and mechanics, before settling on a final concept. This involved designing a series of rooms that the player had to navigate through, each room containing a puzzle that needed to be solved in order to progress. The puzzles themselves were inspired by classic logic games like “Mind Games” and “The Mansion of Happiness.”
Once the concept was finalized, the team began coding the game. Because they were working with a tight deadline, they chose to use an Agile development process. This involved breaking the project down into smaller tasks that could be completed in short sprints, with regular check-ins and feedback sessions.
One of the biggest challenges faced by the team was time management. With only two months to work on Gollum, they had to be very careful about how much time they spent on each task. They also had to make some difficult decisions about which features to include in the game, as there simply wasn’t enough time to implement everything they wanted.
Despite these challenges, the team was able to deliver a finished product that was both polished and engaging. Gollum received positive reviews from players, and went on to sell over 100,000 copies in its first week of release.
Influence of Time Constraints:
The short development time for Gollum had a significant impact on the final product. One of the biggest changes was the game’s length. Because the team knew they only had two months to work on the game, they chose to make it as short and concise as possible. This meant that the game could be completed in just a few hours, rather than the several days or weeks that some games require.
The time constraints also influenced the game’s mechanics. Because there was only so much time available for coding, the team had to focus on creating simple, easy-to-understand puzzles that could be solved quickly. This meant that the puzzles themselves were more streamlined than they might have been if the team had had more time to work on them.
Finally, the short development time forced the team to make some tough decisions about which features to include in the game. For example, they decided not to include any multiplayer or cooperative modes, as these would have required additional coding and testing time. This meant that Gollum was a single-player experience, rather than the more social game that it might have been if given more time.
Summary:
The development of Gollum is a great example of how time constraints can influence the final product of a game. With only two months to work on the game, the team had to be very careful about how much time they spent on each task, and made some tough decisions about which features to include in the game. Despite these challenges, Gollum was a success, receiving positive reviews from players and selling over 100,000 copies in its first week of release.
