2024 Review: Game Dev, Quitting Jobs and Reflections
Reflecting on 2024
Late December is my favorite time of the year. It’s the time to reflect, evaluate the progress (or lack thereof), set new goals, and continue onward with fresh hopes.
In this issue, I’ll take a look back at 2024 and see what kind of year it’s been. Let’s go!
GameDev’s Journey
This year on GDJ, I published 25 issues (excluding the one you’re reading now), with a total of 31,565 words. At the beginning of the year, the subscriber count was 159; as I’m writing this, it’s 326. Not bad at all!
Although the quality of my writing isn’t quite at the level I want yet, I can see improvement when I compare this year’s issues to last year’s. That’s what matters most to me. I had less time and energy to dedicate to the newsletter compared to last year, but I managed to raise the quality bar a bit.
Here are the three issues I’m most proud of this year:
I try to write about whatever I’m focused on in my own game at the time, which sometimes means covering topics that nobody else really cares about. I keep asking myself, “Was this too specific?” or “Was this too general?” after each issue. Still, I feel like I’m getting better at finding the balance.
In short, it’s been a good year for GDJ. A big, big thank you to everyone who subscribed. I hope our numbers grow even more in the coming year!
Herald of the Mists
I’ve made some progress on my game—not as much as I’d like, but not bad either. Back in January, the game’s identity was still taking shape. Now, I’d say it knows exactly what it is.
I added over 50k words of content to the game (unfortunately, a big chunk of it will end up being scrapped because I wasn’t happy with it). I also added combat, a magic system, tooltips, fishing, a market, and other features. Nearly everything I added last year had to be completely reworked from scratch. And I must’ve gone back to visuals 10 times, trying to improve them.
I also created a Steam page and a website. Neither is in great shape and outdated, and I plan to redo both soon.
As for marketing, things are looking bleak. Other than a few social media posts, I haven’t been able to do much. My wishlist count hasn’t even reached 200, and I honestly don’t know how to increase it. Next year, I’ll release a demo and assess the situation from there. Of course, I’ll share all my experiences here too.
Right now, I’m focusing on polishing the combat. (By “polishing,” I actually mean rebuilding it from the ground up.) My goal is to release the demo in March and have 90% of the game finished by the end of the year. Wish me luck!
Personal Life Updates: Quitting My Job
Another development that’s been occupying my mind lately is the fact that I’m leaving my job on the 26th of this month. Longtime readers might remember that I also resigned from a job last August. I started this one in March, but I’ve decided to quit again because I wasn’t happy. Neither the pay, the benefits, nor the opportunities for skill development were satisfying. Since I don’t have any responsibilities beyond myself right now, I decided to take this risk again.
I want to find a new job as soon as possible, but in the meantime, it’ll be nice to dedicate a few months entirely to the game.
Great Games I Played in 2024
Baldur’s Gate 3: It’s hard to say anything about this game that hasn’t already been said. What makes it special to me is how much it feels like Dragon Age: Origins, one of my all-time favorite games.
Starfield: Despite its many flaws, I really enjoyed Starfield. I have a soft spot for realistic sci-fi themes, and exploring its lore was delightful. The story was interesting, though I wish fewer main quests were fetch quests. My favorite part was exploring derelict ships in the depths of space, uncovering what went wrong, like entering a vault in Fallout.
Gothic 2: Somehow even more unforgiving than the first game, Gothic 2 was a highlight of the year for me. I’ll never forget returning to the map from the first game, now overrun by orcs and dragons, and swimming through lakes to avoid being caught.
Pillars of Eternity 2: While it didn’t quite live up to the first game for me, sailing from place to place and completing faction quests in PoE2 was still a lot of fun. The way the story leaves off has me even more excited for Avowed.
Oxenfree 2: I played quite a few sequels this year, it seems. Maybe I should write an issue about that. Anyway, while Oxenfree 2 also falls into the “overshadowed by its predecessor” category, its ending moved me enough to earn a spot on this list.
Great Books I Read in 2024
The Green Bone Saga: This series had been on my list for ages, but I never got around to it because urban fantasy didn’t initially appeal to me. This year, I finally read and finished the whole series, and now I can confidently say that I love urban fantasy. I won’t be forgetting the Kaul family from this Japanese mafia-themed series anytime soon.
The Magic of Thinking Big: A recent read that focuses on how our attitudes and thoughts toward ourselves, life, and our pursuits significantly shape their outcomes. It was quite eye-opening.
$100M Offers: One of the most useful books I’ve read about marketing. While not directly related to game development, it still taught me a lot.
Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow: A story about three friends founding a game studio. It’s packed with drama and bittersweet moments. While reading, I genuinely thought it was based on a true story. Learning later that it was fiction gave my brain a small Fight Club moment.
Stormlight Archive 5: Wind and Truth: It’s still early for me to include this on the list since I’ve just started reading it, but as one of my favorite series, it deserves a mention. The first 200 pages haven’t quite met my expectations yet. I had hoped for more focus on characters who took a backseat in the previous book. We’ll see how it goes.
Final Words
Once again, thank you all for reading, liking, and commenting on these issues. I hope you’ve had a great year. The next issue of GDJ will come out in the new year, so I wish you all a Happy New Year in advance.
Don’t forget to share the best games you played this year with me in the comments!