Decultured

I have been working for the last week or so on a new project, and I am getting close to making my first release!

I have spent much of my life as a software developer, writing code for The Man. I have become very good at it, but for whatever reason, I have spent most of my development time on business-y pursuits. I've made corporate web apps, complex data visualizations, analytics, mobile apps -- basically stuff that makes me money. Well no more! (ok, so maybe a little more, I do need to eat...) I asked myself, "why the hell don't you build something just for fun for once?" and this project is the result.

I don't really have any expectations with this; the main goal is just to develop something fun and different, to go back to my roots as a developer and to see if pursuing a more creative project will help me get excited about development again. And, if I am lucky, this might become my job!

If it is not obvious with the image attached, I am writing a game, but I am not follwing the traditional process of game development. Instead, I am applying every lesson I have learned from my years working with and for startups to create a new game development process based on incremental releases, customer feedback, community building and design, and a minimum viable product (MVP). This isn't totally new, Notch of Minecraft fame, and the developers of Dwarf Fortress have proven that a simmilar path to game development can be a viable model.

Since this is a project for fun, I don't really have any timelines or specific goals, but I am getting close to my first release. Stay tuned!

I have long been opposed to the way many software and business process patents are granted and enforced. While my gut instinct says the only solution is to abolish the patent system, as a developer I can’t quite agree that there should be no protection for innovative ideas other than trade secrets and copyright. However there is clearly a problem with the system and something needs to be done to fix it. This quote from John Carmack, hero of game programmers everywhere, sums up the problem better than most:

The idea that I can be presented with a problem, set out to logically solve it with the tools at hand, and wind up with a program that could not be legally used because someone else followed the same logical steps some years ago and filed for a patent on it is horrifying. – John Carmack

This fantastic talk by Jesse Schell explores the current and future state of the game industry by exploring how games use the psychology of consumers and break through into the real world. A great watch for both game designers and new business owners alike.