...THREE posts in one day? As a wise ogre once said...

Two more weeks have passed, and yet again I have dropped off the face of the earth. I promise you (for real, though) that v0.3 is coming-- I've just been confronted with a lot of tough decisions that will affect how I spend my time in the near future. Some require presence, and others patience; essentially a lot of things that aren't too hard to do, but keep me away from this project for the time being. This post (originally intended to be the second of three) is about the interesting position I've found myself in and what the future of this project might be as a result.

---

I often get asked (with... variable predilection) what sort of career prospects are out there for someone like me, who is soon to have an MA in Game Studies to accompany my existing Honors BA in Game Design but has not yet left academia. The answer is frustratingly complex: as much as I'd love to tell everyone that there's a straight path towards a stable career, there really isn't.  This is such a new field with such varied interests that it is up to the individual to follow that path that best suits them.  There are a few distinct passions that I'm driven by, so it is up to me to pick one and stick with it for the immediate future. While none of my options would lock me out of the others, I work best when I can put all my focus on one task (controlled hyperfocus, for those who know).

Option 1: Academia

I've known deep down for quite some time that my heart lies away from the confines of post-secondary education; it was never a major consideration to go for a PhD at this point in my life. I'm barely in my mid-twenties, after all, but I'm also not a well-disciplined academic writer.  I much prefer short, digestible posts like this, where I can share my passion and insight with people outside the 'walled garden' of academia. With an MA, I could also get a job teaching game design at the Master's level... but in the aftermath of LevelUp, around the time I made my previous post, I realized that I need to be my own person for a little while. I had kept my eye on staff positions at a nearby institution and was actually approached by some current instructors at the event-- if you can believe it, I ended up being introduced to the Dean of their 'Faculty of the Arts' (actual faculty name omitted for privacy). If my heart was really in it, I think I'd have tried much harder to put on a good show for them, but 7 hours of standing alone at my booth, dehydrated and losing my voice, had left me on autopilot. I have no major regrets with how I handled the situation. Beyond that, I have considered getting involved with my institution's Knowledge Mobilization team, but I have yet to investigate further. If/when I do, that could be a post in and of itself.

Option 2: Freelancing

I've done my fair share of contract work over the past few years. There's not much to say on the matter that wouldn't bleed into a much longer discussion about how to get contract work, but the short version is that (in my eyes) sustainable freelancing requires a ton of passion and persistence (more p-alliteration!) as well as years of networking (I've been at it for about 6). I've started to be known locally as 'the guy who knows a guy', which is a great position to be in, but should not be confused with 'the guy who is known' (ideally, you want to be both). Once offers start finding their way to you, things get a lot less stressful, but I'm not quite there yet. If I dedicated all my time to it, I think I could make a living purely off of contract work, but I can't commit without a guarantee.

Option 3: Indie Dev

This path is the one I've aspired to since I was a kid, and it is the most difficult of the three by far. Making your own games and consistently breaking even is almost inconceivable without the right circumstances and a good plan-- as far back as I can remember, it has always been a matter of when, not if. The last thing I ever want to do is go for broke and find myself unprepared, especially if I have a team. There are a lot of funding opportunities, but pursuing them is costly and requires a ton of paperwork, as well as incorporation. While at LevelUp, I received word from a well-respected local developer that I might be able to get funding and publish the game under his label-- but as of this moment, I'm awaiting further details. I do trust him, though I'm being very cautious. 

As ever, my heart belongs to Option 3-- but none of that matters until my degree is complete. If I can go through with it, you'll be seeing a lot more from this project-- otherwise, development will slow down dramatically after v0.3 is released. It just seems too good to be true... but I should stand by my MO. "Calculated optimism", I call it-- it's the idea that no matter the odds, giving up all hope is never an option. Anything is technically possible, after all. I challenge you to prove otherwise!

'Til next time,

~Jack