A Difficult Decision
The Video Game Machine Patch Notes — May 17, 2023
Aggregated from Steam, cross-tracked with Battle.net coverage on GamePatchNote.
It's always amazed me to see how far Indie developers can get with positivity and excitement. Making a game is hard with a team, and even more so when going solo.
At this point I've put over 8 years into VGM, starting way back when it was a game about building your own game studio. Unfortunately, a lot can change in one's life over 8 years, and I'm faced with the reality that my free-time has dried up. I simply don't have the available energy to get The Video Game Machine over the finish line. The gulf between where it is and where it needs to be for a proper v1.0 release is substantial. Add in my general fears that AI could come and make VGM instantly obsolete, and I've made the call to end development.
At some point I will release Beta 2 as a final hurrah (for anyone that still wants to play around with the tools), but for anyone that is under the 2 hour playtime, note that the refund option is still available. I'm hoping this is most, since I saw a huge dip in engagement around the 20 minute mark.
Walking away from a multi-year project is always hard, but I appreciate the players that did give it a shot and had some fun with it. To any fellow dads, a huge part of this decision was to focus on quality family time, with my kids quickly growing up. Perhaps I'll return to game development once my wife and I have an empty nest.
In the meantime, I appreciate everyone that took the time to comment, play, and give VGM and myself a chance.
I had a lot of fun in the process…and isn't that what games are all about? 🙂
Take care,
-Scott