Archives
Archives
Production fragments. Notes, principles, constraints.
Why scoping comes first
The first line of code is the most expensive. Not because it is complex, but because it commits a direction. Scoping forces that direction to be chosen before the code chooses it.
Constraints create signatures
Zero external assets on Idle Orbit gave procedural audio. 72 h on a prototype force the right scoping decisions. The best systems are born from embraced constraints, not total freedom.
A batch is not a feature
A batch is a deliverable, testable block. A feature can stay half-done for weeks. Splitting into batches rather than features changes how delivery is thought about.
Economy first
On every game, the economy is defined before the first sprite. Not because monetisation comes first, but because economy structures game feel. A game without a clear economy becomes a sandbox with no direction.
80% coverage, not 100%
100% coverage tests things that don't break. 80% tests things that actually break. The time you don't spend on the last 20% goes back into the tests that matter.