This morning I got a letter from my best friend who is going through a rather deep depression regarding the state of his company. See, last year they released a game which was bashed by critics and sold poorly on the Wii system. The critical reaction to it was EXTREMELY harsh and my friend believes that they did A LOT of things right for nothing. He invested all of his life savings into it and made a lot of personal sacrifices along with the rest of the development team.
This has caused him to be very depressed, draining the creativity out of him and he wants to drop out of his next project. Worse, he doesn't want to pursue any other creative endeavors because he feels that in the end what matters is not skill or talents but talent, and doesn't want to end up like his father who keeps dragging his company behind trying to pursue something that will never see fruition.
See, this concerns me a lot. I am of the belief that regardless of the success or failure of a project you should at least try to make it happen because once day you will grow old and realize that you feared failure so much that nothing ever happened, and thus your life was never lived. Basically resorting to a comfort life where everything is easy rather than chasing down a dream that might never happen.
Worse is that I KNOW he can do something in life. He has great talent, is very smart and can work a lot of things out. He has just been picking the wrong projects to participate in.
This is where I need your help... I honestly don't know what to tell him. Yeah I know it's none of my business, but here's the thing. He claims that I was an inspiration for this company. I can't live with the idea that I inspired him into failure and regret, so I feel its a personal responsibility to try and get him back on the horse.
Obviously, I've tried positive reinforcement and it hasn't worked, since he has ideas of giving everything up and not pursuing anything else. So I am thinking of using extreme tough love in hopes of getting a reaction out of him, like to stop being a whiny bitch, that far bigger men that him have faced worse and came out on top, something that gets a strong reaction, since at this point a person this depressed is being selfish and not thinking rationally.
So, what do I do? I will appreciate all the help I can get.
Need help with a friend of mine...
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ajmrowland
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Sounds like your friend needs to think about what would make him happier: Designing Video Games, or working at some dead-end job in a store.
Quite frankly, it's rather pathetic to shrink away from the profession you love just because a few people didnt like your game and it didnt sell. Walt Disney dealt with things like this.........only the critics were prepping his coffin *before* Snow White was released.
Your friend should hear any constructive criticism the game recieved, rather than the trash-talk your post implies. Then, at least he can get a general idea of any mistakes he made.
For the record, what game are we talking about?
And if it helps, throw in something about politics, and he'll see that he's got it pretty good.
Quite frankly, it's rather pathetic to shrink away from the profession you love just because a few people didnt like your game and it didnt sell. Walt Disney dealt with things like this.........only the critics were prepping his coffin *before* Snow White was released.
Your friend should hear any constructive criticism the game recieved, rather than the trash-talk your post implies. Then, at least he can get a general idea of any mistakes he made.
For the record, what game are we talking about?
And if it helps, throw in something about politics, and he'll see that he's got it pretty good.
The game was Gravitronix by Medaverse Studios for WiiWare. It was released on October 19 of last year.ajmrowland wrote:Sounds like your friend needs to think about what would make him happier: Designing Video Games, or working at some dead-end job in a store.
Quite frankly, it's rather pathetic to shrink away from the profession you love just because a few people didnt like your game and it didnt sell. Walt Disney dealt with things like this.........only the critics were prepping his coffin *before* Snow White was released.
Your friend should hear any constructive criticism the game recieved, rather than the trash-talk your post implies. Then, at least he can get a general idea of any mistakes he made.
For the record, what game are we talking about?
And if it helps, throw in something about politics, and he'll see that he's got it pretty good.
See, what he feels is that they know they made a good game and that tested very well and that they did everything as right as they possibly could. But the reviews for it were HORRIBLE. The Nintendo Life, in particular, is what I think drove him to depression, as the review pretty much ended with this: "Just because you can do it it doesn't mean you should". I mean it was a very horrible thing to say in a review, and it hurt me as well even though I am not involved in the game.
So, because he thinks everything was done right there's no way that talent, skill, and creativity is needed in what is basically luck. In other words, he is being the victim, a very common trait of people that are depressed. He wants the RESULT, something that is real that turns his life around, rather than ideas and comments, hence why I am asking for help because I've already said a lot of things to cheer him up and nothing seems to be working. Hell, I've ever sent him links to industry experts that explain how to survive in this world.
The only thing left to do is to try and find someone that KNOWS what is going on and convince him out of his depression.
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Escapay
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I checked out the Nintendo Life review, along with most of the comments that followed it, then watched a video online of how the game is played. Not being a gamer, I think the game does have promise, but there's too many things that seem to need fixing before it can really do well. Granted, the game's been out for a year now, so I don't know the progress since then. But it does show promise. However, critical reviews are more helpful than praising ones, which he needs to understand. People are quick to point out faults than they are to point out merits (and this applies to real life, too), which I think is essential for growth. You need to know what to fix before you can move on.
I honestly don't know what else to tell him without sounding too critical, and since I've never met him either online or personally, I'd feel out of place saying what I want to say. But truth be told, the guy needs to develop a thicker skin to criticism. Like ajmrowland said, Walt Disney dealt with things like this, and look where he ended up. Granted, businesses 70 years ago versus businesses today have very different practices, methods, etc. But the same thing holds true, which is to stick by your product/company/etc. if you believe in it, no matter what the naysayers say.
As Edison once said: "I have not failed 700 times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 700 ways will not work. When I have
eliminated the ways that will not work, I will find the way that will work."
It often gets reworked into the more popular "I have not failed 1000 times, I simply found 999 ways to not make a light bulb" or something to that effect. But it holds true: you remain persistent, you keep moving forward, you go at it until you find the way that works. If Walt Disney gave up after someone told him "Mickey Mouse" was a crude and derivative, what would have happened? Likewise, with Gravitronix, although the reviews are mixed-to-negative, they should not keep him from developing further projects.
I know he's an independent company without as many resources as the big ones, but that's what makes his case so much better than the others. He's got more to lose, and thus the most to gain when he does have a success. Remind him of that, that his success will outweigh his losses, when it comes. He can't just give up after one loss. It can be emotionally draining, but that's just the way life is. If everyone gave up after one huge loss, then what would be the point of living? You need to go on, to figure out ways to get back up again. It's a cycle, there's always going to be rises and falls, and he has to accept all of it. Otherwise, he might as well pull out of the game-design business.
Unfortunately, most of my comments likely won't do much good, since they're not the "Result" he's looking for. But it's food for thought. He can't expect a result to happen because people say nice things. He needs to take an active part in creating his success. Whether it be the development of his next game, fixing the bugs of his first, whatever it is. Mere words and pats on the back and shoulders to cry on will not be enough. Results are the product of action, and he needs to take some.
And if all else fails, pap, put him in contact with Brent. His success story surely can serve for inspiration.
albert
I honestly don't know what else to tell him without sounding too critical, and since I've never met him either online or personally, I'd feel out of place saying what I want to say. But truth be told, the guy needs to develop a thicker skin to criticism. Like ajmrowland said, Walt Disney dealt with things like this, and look where he ended up. Granted, businesses 70 years ago versus businesses today have very different practices, methods, etc. But the same thing holds true, which is to stick by your product/company/etc. if you believe in it, no matter what the naysayers say.
As Edison once said: "I have not failed 700 times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 700 ways will not work. When I have
eliminated the ways that will not work, I will find the way that will work."
It often gets reworked into the more popular "I have not failed 1000 times, I simply found 999 ways to not make a light bulb" or something to that effect. But it holds true: you remain persistent, you keep moving forward, you go at it until you find the way that works. If Walt Disney gave up after someone told him "Mickey Mouse" was a crude and derivative, what would have happened? Likewise, with Gravitronix, although the reviews are mixed-to-negative, they should not keep him from developing further projects.
I know he's an independent company without as many resources as the big ones, but that's what makes his case so much better than the others. He's got more to lose, and thus the most to gain when he does have a success. Remind him of that, that his success will outweigh his losses, when it comes. He can't just give up after one loss. It can be emotionally draining, but that's just the way life is. If everyone gave up after one huge loss, then what would be the point of living? You need to go on, to figure out ways to get back up again. It's a cycle, there's always going to be rises and falls, and he has to accept all of it. Otherwise, he might as well pull out of the game-design business.
Unfortunately, most of my comments likely won't do much good, since they're not the "Result" he's looking for. But it's food for thought. He can't expect a result to happen because people say nice things. He needs to take an active part in creating his success. Whether it be the development of his next game, fixing the bugs of his first, whatever it is. Mere words and pats on the back and shoulders to cry on will not be enough. Results are the product of action, and he needs to take some.
And if all else fails, pap, put him in contact with Brent. His success story surely can serve for inspiration.
albert
WIST #60:
AwallaceUNC: Would you prefer Substi-Blu-tiary Locomotion?
WIST #61:
TheSequelOfDisney: Damn, did Lin-Manuel Miranda go and murder all your families?
AwallaceUNC: Would you prefer Substi-Blu-tiary Locomotion?
WIST #61:
TheSequelOfDisney: Damn, did Lin-Manuel Miranda go and murder all your families?
Yeah, the game is already on the service and WiiWare doesn't allow for updates and patches like the PS3 and 360 do. However, the team has done enough to try and push the game...
- They exhibited it at the Penny Arcade Expo in Boston, complete with a tournament against the designer (which was my friend). Even if sales didn't pick up like they expected the show was a bigger success than expected with a lot of people showing interest and enjoying the product.
- Right now they are in the process of submitting a demo of it for the service.
- They are also working on their second game for both WiiWare and 360.
So obviously, they haven't been slacking off and have moved on with the efforts.
Albert, I agree with you about the thick skin thing. See, the problem that I see is that he put WAAAAAAY too much faith on the game based on a couple of testing sessions where the game was seen as a success. I've learned from experience that just because a group likes something it doesn't mean EVERYONE will like it as well. Critically acclaimed games and movies often have haters, and critically panned ones have a following.
That seems to be the factor here: he doesn't want to accept that the game had issues and is in denial that the test wasn't an indicative of the game's success.
That's why I am wondering if I should go down the traditional route of counseling or if to go down the tough love route, since the comments he made makes it look like he needs some perspective fast.
Albert, I was thinking of hooking him up with Brent since he too is technically on the same boat as him: young men pursuing a dream to various degrees of success and failure. Their dreams are certainly different, but the goal is certainly similar.
EDIT: Oh yes, forgot one important factor. The reason he seems so down in the dumps about this is because he is afraid he might end up like his father.
See, his family owns a communications company that he works on. The problem is that his father keeps pushing him and the rest of the employees towards a bigger promise in life, and has been doing so for years now.
His fear is that if he keeps trying with this he might end up like his father and end up pushing himself and even his family into something that doesn't work.
What I was thinking of saying that we are not destined to be exactly like our parents. Right now no one is depending on them, his father's company is so they can't drop it. Second, they are a creative company, not a corporate one, so things will be easier to handle. Third, he already knows the mistakes his father this, so if he works to avoid them everything will be fine.
- They exhibited it at the Penny Arcade Expo in Boston, complete with a tournament against the designer (which was my friend). Even if sales didn't pick up like they expected the show was a bigger success than expected with a lot of people showing interest and enjoying the product.
- Right now they are in the process of submitting a demo of it for the service.
- They are also working on their second game for both WiiWare and 360.
So obviously, they haven't been slacking off and have moved on with the efforts.
Albert, I agree with you about the thick skin thing. See, the problem that I see is that he put WAAAAAAY too much faith on the game based on a couple of testing sessions where the game was seen as a success. I've learned from experience that just because a group likes something it doesn't mean EVERYONE will like it as well. Critically acclaimed games and movies often have haters, and critically panned ones have a following.
That seems to be the factor here: he doesn't want to accept that the game had issues and is in denial that the test wasn't an indicative of the game's success.
That's why I am wondering if I should go down the traditional route of counseling or if to go down the tough love route, since the comments he made makes it look like he needs some perspective fast.
Albert, I was thinking of hooking him up with Brent since he too is technically on the same boat as him: young men pursuing a dream to various degrees of success and failure. Their dreams are certainly different, but the goal is certainly similar.
EDIT: Oh yes, forgot one important factor. The reason he seems so down in the dumps about this is because he is afraid he might end up like his father.
See, his family owns a communications company that he works on. The problem is that his father keeps pushing him and the rest of the employees towards a bigger promise in life, and has been doing so for years now.
His fear is that if he keeps trying with this he might end up like his father and end up pushing himself and even his family into something that doesn't work.
What I was thinking of saying that we are not destined to be exactly like our parents. Right now no one is depending on them, his father's company is so they can't drop it. Second, they are a creative company, not a corporate one, so things will be easier to handle. Third, he already knows the mistakes his father this, so if he works to avoid them everything will be fine.
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Phil Johnson
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Man, that's a tough one. I'm not a gamer at all, so I couldn't give any advice on the game itself.
But I am in the entertainment business. And that entails taking criticism and rejection on a daily basis. For myself, when I see a bad review of my work, I try to look at it objectively and see if there's anything I can learn from it and improve what I'm doing. Sometimes there is, sometimes they just didn't get it. And sometimes I'm defying the things they point out on purpose.
However, if your friend is that sensitive to bad reviews, he shouldn't look at them anymore. He needs to have someone else in his company monitor that stuff and simply bring him facts. Facts are easier to deal with. Opinions hurt.
I think the real question comes down to whether he can imagine doing anything else but that next project and still being happy. If he can, then maybe he needs to go do that for awhile and re-center himself. As many times as I've wanted to quit showbiz over the years, I can't imagine doing anything else. Trying to be someone else makes me ill.
I have a great mentor who's talked me out of pulling the plug on my career many a time. He works with businesses too. I'll be happy to get you his contact info for your friend if you'd like. Just shoot me a private message.
But I am in the entertainment business. And that entails taking criticism and rejection on a daily basis. For myself, when I see a bad review of my work, I try to look at it objectively and see if there's anything I can learn from it and improve what I'm doing. Sometimes there is, sometimes they just didn't get it. And sometimes I'm defying the things they point out on purpose.
However, if your friend is that sensitive to bad reviews, he shouldn't look at them anymore. He needs to have someone else in his company monitor that stuff and simply bring him facts. Facts are easier to deal with. Opinions hurt.
I think the real question comes down to whether he can imagine doing anything else but that next project and still being happy. If he can, then maybe he needs to go do that for awhile and re-center himself. As many times as I've wanted to quit showbiz over the years, I can't imagine doing anything else. Trying to be someone else makes me ill.
I have a great mentor who's talked me out of pulling the plug on my career many a time. He works with businesses too. I'll be happy to get you his contact info for your friend if you'd like. Just shoot me a private message.
Funny enough, he just sent me a message saying that after looking up at his stories, making edits and such he is beginning to feel better, and told me that in the worse case scenario they might just focus on iPad and iPhone development, which I hear is easier and it features less restrictions than Nintendo development.
However, I do plan to have a long talk about this, so all these ideas are really good and will keep them in mind.
I really like the idea of someone reading reviews and passing the comments along. With things like Rotten Tomatoes, IMDB, Metacritic and Game Rankings you don't even need to look at the full review to know if its good or bad.
I'm going to suggest that to him.
However, I do plan to have a long talk about this, so all these ideas are really good and will keep them in mind.
I really like the idea of someone reading reviews and passing the comments along. With things like Rotten Tomatoes, IMDB, Metacritic and Game Rankings you don't even need to look at the full review to know if its good or bad.
I'm going to suggest that to him.
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Phil Johnson
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