I’m really chuffed with how Dare the Monkey is shaping up. I’ve poured my heart and soul into the game’s visuals and generally speaking I think the effort has been worth it. However, I must confess to feeling the odd jealous pang when I look around at the amazing work being produced by other app developers. Many modern apps have artwork of the highest quality that’s truly inspiring to look at. Do I let this get me down and just throw in the towel? A few years ago I probably would have but these days I just let it go. I’ve learned to remain confident and motivated by focussing more on what I’m doing and a little less on what others are doing.
No matter how good you are there will always be others who are better than you. Better artists. Better programmers. Better level designers. Better audio engineers. Better project managers. Sometimes you simply can’t do anything about it and letting it get to you will only negatively impact your own work. Understanding that we aren’t all playing by the same rules can help. Some of the best looking games have massive teams and resources at their disposal. As an indie developer there’s just no way to compete with that and I suggest you don’t bother. Instead, look at what you have in terms of talent, experience, time, and resources and simply do the best job you can. Honestly that’s all that matters: doing the best that you can.
I’m fairly satisfied that as a lone developer with a full time job, a wife, a son, and a limited budget, that I’ve achieved as much as I can on this project. And as an added bonus I’ve gained experience that will help make my next project even better. Even the best artists and developers in the world are constantly looking over their shoulder because it doesn’t matter how good you are, there will always be someone better. So just relax, don’t worry about it, and just put out the best game you can.