Lecture 1 Monday (3/2/25) – Project management talk with Paul MacGillivray notes :
- Breaking down variables into deliverables and tasks
- Deliverables > task 1,2
- Create new character > concept art > 3d modelling > rig/animate
- Examples task on Miro board
Exercise 1 – deliverables based on food meals
- Deliverable 1 – Make pesto pasta
- Task 1 – boil pasta
- Task 2 – Fry vegetables
- Task 3 – Mix it together
User Stories : https://slickplan.com/blog/user-story
- As a user role, I want what do you want? so that how does this benefit you/the business.
- As a new user, I want the option to limit how many emails I receive from this app so that I don’t get overwhelmed with junk mail.
- As a player, I want to solve the murder so that I can feel a sense of accomplishment.
Every single storefront tracks user retention
- As a game developer it is not only your job to entertain the user but to understand their pressure points and frustrations
- This gives a basis for you to communicate priorities to your teammates
- It’s a way to make sure that you play with your player rather than making unenjoyable art
Takeaways
- Empathy and attention to detail are how we take our games from amateur to professional
- These things take time
- You will always have to iterate but it’s easier to make minor tweaks
- than major changes
Group Work
Write out contingency plans for if each of your team members goes missing
- Which of their tasks will you cut?
- Which of their tasks will you simplify
- Which of their tasks will you give to other team members?
Write out a true minimum viable product
- What is the bare minimum you can give and still have a functioning game loop?
- Go through each of the parts of the design doc and figure out what you would cut in an emergency
Decide amongst yourselves what conditions need to happen to switch to a minimum product
- It is better to switch as early as possible
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