For anyone out there thinks that creating a game or something bigger, a virtual world like Planet Postmoderna complete with educational historical sub-worlds, is just going to be all fun and “games,” think again. Not to burst anyone’s bubble, by no means, that is not my intent. I just want to paint a preparatory and realistic picture for you.

First off, let me step back to be positive and say yes, it is fun and you do meet a lot of neat people (I have met several great and very talented people from around the world) and meet new ones very regularly.

Yes, you learn a lot and can apply all your creative talents into something that can be really rewarding. Yes, you can build up a very valuable entry in your resume by volunteering or working on an indie project like ours. All true but, setting the fun aside, it is a business and has to be run like one. There are all sorts of details that need tending but let’s start with the fun stuff. Let’s look at the creative processes first.

You need to build your concepts from those very ideas that began in your head. You need to do this and, almost daily if not at least weekly. You need to iron out all the details of how your story and your concept progresses. You need to tie it all together and fill in the holes as they open up and, open up they do. It needs to make sense well, mostly.

You take one of your “many” brilliant-to-you ideas and communicate it properly to your artists (if that person is not you) so they can turn your concept into pictures. Then, these pictures need to be fleshed out and given more detail, color and texture so that your modelers can take those pictures and turn them into a 3D model or creature/character.

At that point, your texture artists work and fine-tune your texture maps and make the models “pop” with realism. If your models need to move, a “rigger” takes them and adds the components that an animator needs in order to create virtual life out of your model concept. After that possibly a compositor or shader specialist will need to add more details or effects to it. Perhaps even sound is added.

Now the model is added to the scene in your virtual world and tested. If it doesn’t look right, fix it. If it still doesn’t after that, start over. This is one model among possibly thousands you will put through this process. This process can have many sub-processes not even mentioned. All of this is made possible by a highly skilled creative team of artists, directors and producers. Without them? Try doing that yourself and see how long you can last in stamina and spirit.

It is fun though and visually rewarding, especially when you can experience your team’s creations and the fruits of your combined labors within the virtual world you are all working to build. It is even more exiting and dynamic when you add in the quests and actions that only your creative programming team can make happen.

What about behind the scenes? Managing the budget? What about the money you spend on the maintenance of your servers, software, hosting services, development services, etc.? Who pays for that? Are you paying for all of it? Do you split the expenses with partners or your team. Is your project collaborative? Are you finding partners, sponsors and investors? Surely, these things all add to your project responsibilities and your sleepless nights.

What about recruiting, marketing and community awareness. Well, you have to keep your project out there. You may need to promote it using social networks. Are you using Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn and the many others out there to promote your project? How are you staying on top of that? Are you promoting on artist and programming sites? Are you doing this all yourself or are you leveraging others? If so, are you paying them to do it for you or are you working through an in-trade or barter arrangement? Both work. Which are you more comfortable with or which works better for you?

You may need to talk about what you need and what your expectations, hopes and dreams are. Who do you need to talk to? Well, you can start by talking to your team. What are their hopes and dreams? How will your project help them achieve those? You need to find out what the community wants. What are their expectations? Are they realistic or far-fetched or too aggressive?

You need to talk to your investors and/or partners and sponsors. What are their expectations of you and your project?

What about these communications and outreaches: emails, blog posts, networking events? Answering team and community questions? What about looking for funding, maintaining your website, forums or the other community and marketing tools you use? Are you making money while you develop your project? Are you working a main job and career while you work your project? Are you a freelancer or are you already part of a large studio that has taken on your project and you are now in charge of managing it on top of all your other duties?

Now here’s the $100 million question….how are you managing the rest of your life (job, family, friends, church, etc) while you manage your project? This is very important and are you doing that successfully. Don’t let your project become an obsession and take you from what really matters.

It’s a plateful. An indie game or a virtual world project is a challenge at the least.

However, with every challenge is reward. Working your project and running it like a business all the while doing something you really enjoy is rewarding in more ways than just money. It is a great experience like no other…..even if it goes no where. But, who sets out on a great journey with the intent of going nowhere? Who starts a business intent on it not being successful? I know I don’t. I know you don’t.

Half the time we set out on some endeavor, some business, not really knowing where it will take us or if we will be successful. Admit it. Most of us don’t plan to fail. We just in most cases fail to plan. Hmmm. That reminds me of a financial planning commercial.

This is why we all should surround ourselves with the people that have skills and talents we lack and all the while blessing them with the skills and talents God gave us to share with them. It’s a win-win in this situation. We can’t lose when we help each other.

We learn about our craft and polish our skills. We don’t stop doing it too. It was once said that “death is when you stop learning.” I don’t remember who said it and, don’t make me look it up either. We know it’s true. Death in business, death in personal growth, death in relationships…it is all death and you go nowhere fast when you stop learning.

Power is in learning and maintaining a good team. There is always magic and power in numbers. Planet Postmoderna is one such model. We aren’t an “A-team” by any stretch but we have heart and we are sticking to our goal of building a one-of-kind virtual world where everyone wins: the players, the students, the investors, the team, and those we have not met yet.

It is my hope that if you are reading this and through all of our other material out there that you see our dream and vision for this project. I hope you will want to become part of our development team, invest in us or support our project or even if you just want to do so by being a member of the community. In any case, we all win. This is a project about trying and playing to win and if we don’t, we have a lot of fun along the way. Actually, I have to rephrase that. It really is about playing to win and having fun doing so. This is why I do all the stuff that is behind the scenes that most people don’t.