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[Kandiman]

First Time PM looking to build a game from scratch...

[Daeld]

Have you considered doing a "trial" ARG on your own? Doing a small one (eg 2-4 weeks) can teach you a lot about what works and what doesn't work and give you the feel for "PMing" (ie working with different time-zones, different media, etc). It might also give ppl a chance to get to know you and your style.

(Just my 2 cents)

[Kandiman]

I've considered it - I was going to put something together to kill some time for the Lost community before they decided to give us an official one. But I may well put together a small one just to make sure I have all my ducks in a row.

[konamouse]

For your first go at it, I would strongly suggest working with someone(s) who have done it before. Take your time, write out your plans and contingencies (cause players are not good at sticking to your script) and make sure you have lots of free time.

Check this section for other like-minded individuals who have some experience and volunteer to work on their team.

[Nighthawk]

[imbri]

I can't say that I agree with the above suggestions of doing trial run games and working with people who've done it before.

In my experience - shorter games are more difficult than, say, a 6 week long run. Everything has to be much more tight which leaves very little flexibility for when things don't go as planned (and they never go as planned - esp in your first game).

And, sure, working with people who've done games before can be helpful. But it's absolutely not necessary. Heck, most of the beloved PMs on this board went out and made their first games without anyone experienced.

The advice that I can agree with is to take your time - there is no reason to rush into things. Get a solid idea of where the game is going. Create a list of all the things that you're going to need and get a good start on creating them. Clear your calendar for a couple months. Prepare yourself for it being a lot more work than you expect and then get ready to have some fun

[Kandiman]

Wow, some really good, if conflicting advice here I think. I can see how running a short ARG could be problematic. When I sat and wrote the basic outline for what I want to do, my first thought was 'This is going to carry on for months' - which could be good or bad, depending on people's attention span - but writing a short one must be difficult.

I mean, do you make the story basic (While compelling and interesting, obviously) or do you just constantly fire information at people? For example, in the 8 day run you spoke of, Nighthawk, how did you know how complex to make it, how much information to give, that sort of thing?

[Daeld]

[Kandiman]

Since I posted this, I've actually had a few people interested in helping out, which is amazing. I've assembled a team of three (so far, more welcome) including a little bit of experience, which is great.

I think the best thing about it is that these guys seem to really like the idea and the plot I have in mind, which is really gratifying and means I can actually see my project becoming a reality.

I may still construct a smaller game for the experience, but I'm kind of excited to tell this story now.

I'm really enjoying reading all the advice though, it's giving me a lot of ideas.

@imbri: I know the flesh of the plot and the end game, so now it's just taking the time to build a team and prepare everything we need in terms of websites, phone numbers, etc.

[imbri]

[Daeld]

[Kandiman]

So it's better not to plan a short game at all, even if you intend one? I'm confused.

I'm currently seeking a web design guru to complete the team. Does anybody know of one that is looking for a project to work on? Nothing too strenuous involved... For now.

[Daeld]

[Nighthawk]

Let me clarify my statement above...

Looking Glass Labs ran for 7-8 days, and it was quite a learning experience, but the effort involved in running it was MONUMENTAL. Perhaps it was due to the nature of the game (a sentient computer system doesn't sleep), but it was quite a whirlwind and took a lot out of me.

The only reason I got through it is because I had a lot of tech on my side; I developed a lot of back end processes and administrative tools to help me manage the flood of content that was coming my way from the players.

Another thing is you cannot base a game on your opinion on how long any given puzzle may take. I've had several puzzles in my history that were solved in considerably less time than it took to make them. And I've had at least one puzzle that was never solved at all.

In my opinion, it's a bad idea to pick a timeline and design a game for that; I think it should be the opposite way around. The timeline is determined by the game content as well as your own pacing and ability to handle the game.

So my suggestion: plan your game out, then analyze it and compare what is necessary to accomplish it with your own abilities and the time that you yourself would have available for interactions. If your plan takes a week or a month to execute, whatever it may be, so be it.

[imbri]