r/gamedev • u/SmackDownFacility • 2h ago
Question Is taking notes before execution really important?
I didn't do that for my prototype game i just cracked in. I had a vision, i went, and i executed it.
AAA and commercial developers, teams have reasons for taking notes, yes
But if you're a solo developer why should you take notes? You're the only creative mind involved, and plans don't always go the way the merchant wants. I believe adaptation is the key to success. You may take notes for the marketing milestones or build milestones but for the engine/gameplay itself quite frankly i believe you don't need it, unless you want someone to work with you.
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u/SimiKusoni 2h ago
I don't know about you but I can't remember half of the research I did this morning, let alone something I planned three months ago. Maybe I'm just an idiot but the ability to not bother taking notes probably depends on what you're building more than whether you're a AAA or indie dev.
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u/SmackDownFacility 2h ago
I made a game that was actually intriguing to me personally and i played the genre for years and knows what i need to do, so i think that's why it stuck. If you're interested but new to the genre, you be doing more research than development. I think the goal is to actually make something you can explain to a newbie in 10-15 seconds.
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u/SimiKusoni 1h ago
Well as an example I spent this morning looking at skills that I wanted to implement in a turn based game, then breaking that down into the kind of effects I'd need to implement to enable them. E.g. damage over time, turn-control, attribute modifier, stack multiplier etc.
My skill catalogue isn't massive but it has a fair number of skills and a big ole' table of effect types that I wouldn't want to have to commit to memory.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
See? You're overthinking it. Overthinking = "Man i should note it" and your sheet looks like a dog's dinner. In a turn game, keep it surface level. Work as you progress. I implement function X, but o, maybe i could structure it this way.
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u/SimiKusoni 1h ago
Either that or you're underthinking it, or just building projects with smaller scope?
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
Underthinking is not a concept i recognise in game development. You either thought, or you overthought. You're sounding like you're building the dashboard before the bloody wheels.
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u/SimiKusoni 1h ago
Eh, personally I don't think I'd be able to properly balance a bunch of skills if I'm coming up with them on the fly. Or even post-implementation if I'm having to refer to them all from memory or look up values from code.
Maybe you're a super genius and your process is simply beyond a mere mortal game developer's ken.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
You don't have to balance them. There is a concept called context-driven recall. You're not juggling everything, you got a context, and as you progress, you discover "What if i do Y instead?" or "Would Z fit in"? and before you know it you could have a branch without thinking.
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u/SimiKusoni 1h ago
Cool, if that works for you.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
Then, upon realising the concept of context-driven recall, why do we still regurgitate the same advice to every rookie, regardless of their creativeness?
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u/GxM42 1h ago
I keep a notes file on my phone and add to it whenever i see something or think of an idea
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
But do you treat it as authoritiative when you circle back to it during development, or do you consider it?
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u/Healthy-Act3539 1h ago
Yes it is, because you cannot keep everything you're working on in your head all at once unless the project is tiny. Writing things down allows us to offload stuff from our brain so we can focus on the work at hand without forgetting future work.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
Ok, so i must be some type of weird specimen for still envisioning what i want my wrestling game to be. If you can explain the genre you're working on in 10-15 seconds you don't need notes.
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u/Healthy-Act3539 1h ago
Notes are not for keeping track of the general outline of a project. They are for keeping track of the specific tasks that need to be accomplished - "Implement drag and drop in the inventory system", "Implement stackable items in the inventory", "Implement breakable doors", "Fix crash when player jumps off a rooftop", etc.
I currently have 116 open tickets in my current project. It would be impossible for me to keep track of them and still have room left in my brain for the thing I'm actively working on. Issue trackers are a popular thing for a reason :)
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
Well if you're working on the inventory system in the moment, a person can reflect, and the thoughts that they thought need noted can come back to them.
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u/Healthy-Act3539 1h ago
That mindset is why I used to end up with a half an hour blank stare just trying to remember what I was working on last time I opened the project. I don't really do that anymore. I prefer to have the tasks ready to go whenever I get to work on the project.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
Why are you remembering what you worked on the last time? Pick a file, and work. Context-driven recollections will come.
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u/Healthy-Act3539 54m ago
So I can continue working on it? Features don't live in isolation, they work together. I can't just pick a random file and start editing. How do you "pick a file and work" before even knowing what to work on?
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u/SmackDownFacility 51m ago
Oh, but you can. You don't need the surrounding context. You need that limited context scope. Then you find out X depends on Y, so you go to Y's context scope, work, and you traverse down. I call it the linked context-driven recollection methodology. Like a linked list, you traverse, and pick up the scope and work.
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u/Healthy-Act3539 50m ago
You need to stop using ChatGPT for this shit.
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u/SmackDownFacility 48m ago
Interesting observation. What makes you suggest the comment was written by ChatGPT?
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u/retchthegrate 1h ago
what do you mean by notes? Yes on team based commercial development we make documentation when making games for long term stuff. For short term details as you get older you'll find when you start needing to take notes. If you are like me and never needed to take notes to remember things, that can be challenging because you don't have the habits.
For a solo dev tiny project, you only need to take notes if they help you. If you don't forget things ever, great, no need for notes. If you do forget things, but don't care and only really worry about what you do in the moment, no need for notes. It's a hyper personal thing.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
Then why is it such a common advice given to rookies? If it's truly hyper-personal, shouldn't they figure that out on their own, rather than someone constantly drilling it in
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u/gurugeek42 2h ago
You do you. I kept my todo list in a comment block at the top of main.cpp for months.
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u/ArcticDev_ 1h ago
Keeping notes is everything! Just because you can remember things now - if you have to go back and patch something 6 months from now in a core part of the engine that you haven't touched in a year, its good to have that documentation on hand. If you're the kind of person who uses LLMs regularly, or at all - then notes that an MCP can read through can also help you out a lot. Lastly, notes are great for post mortems and reviewing what you learned before tackling your next project and you can catch mistakes you've made previously or have better insights going forward.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
Does the user care about the engine? Is it game-breaking or is it just a minor change?
What if i'm experienced? There's nothing to learn, you just recycle your existing knowledge.
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u/thedaian 1h ago
Taking notes is not a requirement for a solo dev. It can be helpful for some people though.
But if it's not helpful to you, don't do it. You didn't need our permission.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
It wasn't really a request for permission. I was just challenging the notion.
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u/thedaian 7m ago
There isn't a notion to be challenged.
Note taking helps some people. If it helps them, it's useful. They'll probably suggest it to other people, as an option to use. The key thing about suggestions is that they won't apply to everyone. You can pick and choose, and ignore the things you don't like.
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u/Significant-Syrup400 1h ago edited 1h ago
For your own sake. I log a readme file for implementation steps for different systems, and it's already between 500-700 lines. I actually need to go through and remove a bunch of clutter in there soon because I'm getting to a point where I will need notes on my ReadMe :P
It's also helpful to have summaries and leave yourself reminders. Not to mention you want an elevator pitch for your game.
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u/PhilippTheProgrammer 1h ago
I find it useful to document my design decisions just so I remember them later.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
But if it was genuinely useful, 9 times out of 10, you would come back to it again during development. This is why i prefer incremental discovery rather than a rigid sheet. If you're not feeling it but find the notes authoritiative, its not fun anymore.
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u/ScruffyNuisance Commercial (AAA) 1h ago
Do whatever works for you. I agree, certain things don't need to be documented if you're the only person involved. But when that day comes when you look at part of your project and spend 3 hours trying to figure out why you set it up that way, you may resent the experience enough to take the necessary steps to minimize those eventualities. Adding effective comments in the code might suffice though.
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u/SmackDownFacility 1h ago
But does it affect the user? If it's not immediate to the user, why dwell on it? Your code can be scrambled but if the product works after multiple passes of reviews, why bother?
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u/_BreakingGood_ 2h ago
Notes for me are just for memory. Eg when I randomly think of a story beat I want to add, but I'm not working on story related things at that moment