[withheld] (theoddman) wrote in modcooperative, @ 2011-05-08 12:47:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | advice, general help, general questions |
Application Creation
Hey kids. I'm in the early processes of shaping my game idea right now. The premise and the conclusion of the game are all thought out, it just needs some structuring to be able to move from hypothetical to IJ. Thus far that structuring has been going slowly but steadily. Applications, however, are really beginning to make me fidget.
I checked the previous posts here to see if there was a dilemma similar to my own. There was. However the post was rather old and the responses, while helpful, haven't killed my anxiety. I decided to give the inquiry another shot to see if there were any new spins.
I'm worried also that I may be giving this matter more stress than it's worth. "Applications," I said while I was perusing my to-do list, "We'll do that early--applications will be easy." But since I've been debating with myself constantly. My main issue seems to fall somewhere along my uncertainty of what's necessary, what's superfluous, and what the hell is interesting.
See, I know my two big players: personality and history (I'm ignoring the small necessities like name and age--they aren't part of my problem). Those boys are generally necessary and they ain't going nowhere. But any time I think of additional sections that may make my application more interesting I immediately question their necessity next to those two. "Notable relationships?" I say, "well doesn't that kind of fall under history?" "Weaknesses? Wouldn't that flow better under personality?" I've had trauma from previous apps as a player, I think, where I would constantly get frustrated about having to repeat myself in many parts of the app. I don't want my players to come under that same frustration. I don't want to waste their time. But I don't want the app to be unforgivably boring either.
I know part my issue is my perception of how much of an app is read by other players. I eat apps up. Player or mod, I consume them whole. Ravage them like some demon fire. I'm a real weirdo that way. And while I do realize that not everybody does this, I still feel that my behavior is creating some bias in how I measure "app efficiency." My gut reaction is "only sections that are necessary," but it could be WELL argued that efficiency depends on how easily someone can locate useful information about the character.
So, if you can spare the time and the insight, I'm curious as to what makes and app interesting to you, and what makes it frustrating. As a mod, what kind of sections have you used that have worked really well and given really good insight? As a player, what's easy or difficult to complete, where do you have to repeat things, what is fun to think about? What do you like in applications? And generally, where have you seen a good balance between efficiency and fun?
Additionally, if you can link me to any other communities that have asked this question or that might help me with this I'd me much obliged for that as well.
-AJ