I’m so glad you had fun with this one too, even if it is just a demo right now!! ^-^
And very wise words there indeed! And as someone who regularly burns out like a silly bugger, words that I need to heed more often, haha.
The really silly thing is, though, that I had a bad habit of putting a lot of pressure on myself even if no one else was forcing it on me >.< It seems I’m a master at guilt-tripping myself for not being productive enough x3
BUUUUT, thankfully, after burning out repeatedly and never really knowing wtf to do in order to stop the boom and bust cycle that I seemed to be stuck in, I’m finally getting the right sort of help :3
And I now have the insight to realise the reason I felt the need to berate myself for failing to be as productive as other people was because I’ve been trying too hard all my life to live like a ‘normal’ person (relatively unsuccessfully x3), and measuring myself on a yardstick that wasn’t even meant for me since it turns out I’m autistic, haha.
Getting diagnosed was one thing, but then it’s like I was just kicked back out into the world with no real idea what that actually meant for me, or how to cope with life any better.
It’s taken over 2 years since being diagnosed autistic to actually come across appropriate help >.< Therapy just made me more depressed and frustrated, but now that I’ve got a place on a wellbeing and mentoring course (run by autistic people, for autistic people), I’m finally beginning to understand everything a lot better!
Honestly, the hardest thing has been learning to accept my limitations in terms of energy levels and productivity. I’m hoping now that I’m more aware of it all, though, I will be able to make more positive changes that allow me to continue working on projects at whatever pace I’m capable of at any given time, and, crucially, not beating myself up when things aren’t progressing as fast as I might wish they were :3
I always used to wonder how come I could go crazy during game jams and be super productive one month, then fall flat on my face the next month! Now I know why xD
When I look back on how I felt when I released the demo for this, I was on such a high that I thought I’d definitely have at least the code for the full game finished by the end of the year(ish). I didn’t anticipate what has now been a roughly 9-month burnout period >.< aheh.
But I guess the main thing is that I’m still hanging in there, I’m learning, and I’m not giving up :D
Sorry for such a long tangent ramble there x3 Your kind words and your patience are much appreciated :3
While I may not have made much in the way of progress on the project personally, Lazy Polar Bear has been storming ahead with her epic art :D And almost all of the voice acting is 100% complete and ready to be cut + edited.
There’s just a slight snag in that I may have to recast Erys, as I haven’t heard from the person playing masc Erys in quite some time, and they’re the only VA who hasn’t finished recording >.< I might have to give one more poke, but after that, I guess I'd better start looking for someone else. With any luck, it won’t come to that, cos I really don’t wanna have to cut all of Erys’ demo lines all over again T_T
But yeah, I’m slowly starting to come out of my burnout pit, and getting excited to work on this all over again :3 I know it’s gonna be a while cos I’m a bit stuck for time lately with all my own appointments to attend + having to escort my brother to his >.< But I’m itching to get stuck in as soon as I get more time to myself again, that’s for sure!
Thanks again for the support!! ^-^