“Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day”

So often, developers delay the release of a functioning game because they’re hung up on the idea of what it could be. Ask them what the delay is, and you’ll often here, “Rome wasn’t built in a day”.

But what is “Rome”? Is it the reach of an empire? This certainly took countless years, myriad failed battles, and a cost few would have the stomach to bear on their own.

Is it the state, with it’s roads laid foot by foot, brick by brick, enabling commerce among the people both near and far?

Perhaps the city, with it’s high walls, complex government, sewer systems, and the farms beyond to sustain it?

Did it start when the first settlers chose the hill to build a home or a village?

Or is it the hill itself, that jutted from the land over millennia?

Every thing starts with some thing. Comparing what you have to what has already been built over years is comparing apples to oranges.

We do not build games, we grow them — we create an environment, foster them, and send them out into the world, and when they need it, teach them more so they can grow further.

So the next time you ask, “When should we release?” let go of the question. Release, take the feedback, and prepare to grow beyond any expectation. So long as you hold on to expectations, you’ll miss opportunities.