Comment by Pfhreak
6 years ago
I think because most people dramatically underestimate the complexity of making games and overestimate the sales of games.
It's easy to say, "Just hire an artist" without understanding the complexities in finding that artist, negotiating a contract, ensuring they are delivering to your expectations, tracking their progress, ensuring they meet your creative vision, and recouping the money in sales to actually pay them.
Yep, for all it’s business know-how HN just doesn’t understand this one. He’s making games for people that value story and world building above all else. He’s making a relative pittance doing so — seemingly much less than a full time gig at a faang company.
He’s presumably happy, his customers are presumably happy, yet we insist on giving him obvious advice about a 25 year old venture. It’s honestly hilarious to see the immense amount of time collectively wasted armchairing over it!
"Yep, for all it’s business know-how HN just doesn’t understand this one." TBF his argument comes down to 'putting money into the company is too risky', which does go against the method of startups which is to pour huge amounts of into a company and take huge risks. Less poor know-how, more of failure to conceive of other ways of doing business.
I don't think there is a hockey stick to chase in game development. At least not the way Jeff is doing it.
those chasing the hockey stick are usually using VC money. He is not getting millions in VC to invest into his company.