Okay, let's get started by nailing down exactly what I'm trying to do here. See, like every good nerdy man-child, I'd love to make a videogame. The best way to do this is to take some classes, learn computer programming, find more knowledgeable people to work with and learn from, that sort of thing.
Instead, I'm doing this thing.
OK, seriously, I'm not coming at this totally from scratch. I actually have taken those CS classes, years ago. But the last complete program I ever actually wrote was on a TI-85. So while what skills I have are long since out of date and rusty, I'm at least aware of some basic principles, so hopefully this won't be completely idiotic.
This is Project Jumper. It doesn't have a good name, because it's not going to be a good game. I've got good ideas for good games, and I'm not going to waste them on this. Instead, this is going to be an exercise in learning as I go.
As the name might clue you in on, I'm going to make a platforming game. That's my entire design document right there. Proper design documents are for good games. Long term planning is a great idea, and I won't tolerate it here. Instead, I'm going to have a series of short-term plans. Basically, just a list of things I want to implement. As those things get implemented, I'll add new things to implement to the list. When I run out of things I want to figure out how to do, I'll shelve this thing and make something good instead.
I'm going to document this process as completely as I can. If you're reading this and you're the kind of person that actually does know what they're doing, I invite you to let me know what I'm doing wrong. If you're a curious newbie, feel free to ask for more information.
