Why do people hack?

1. I do it to express my self. It fun doing something else that none of my friends are doing.

2. I mainly share my work because I like being told that I did a good job, or just showing off something that no one has done yet.

3. I like constructive criticism, but I hate it when people say something is alright, when it awful, and they don't want to hurt me.

4. Yes.

 

I did/(do...?) it for fun, and nothing else. Hacking isn't really a big-time hobby of mine, which is the main reason I can never keep a stable project. But sometimes it's fun to come up with simple ideas and implement them into the games. But it seems so easy to lose interest because of all you have to do to make the hack actually worth playing. "Well, time to tweak the layout, now let's play it to make sure it's clean. Uh oh, it sucks. Time to go back and do it again. And again. And again. And again." It gets so fucking repetitive and boring, the fun just seems to drift away.

I shared my hack with others to get their opinions on it and see what I could improve, and how to improve it (constructive criticism, basically), I guess. Most feedback I got was positive, and I got a couple of neat ideas, but since hacking isn't a big hobby for me, it doesn't really make much of a difference. Hacking isn't my life, and I only do it when I damn well feel like it. I may start another hack someday, just maybe, but there's no gurantee it will get that far. I'm looking at Sonic 2 - hacking Sonic 1 just bores me to death, and its successor has much more possibilities, even when it comes to the level design alone... But I don't like the sprites. <_<

It's so much to do, and if you have a "team", then you still have to put in a very substantial amount of effort or else nobody's going to give a fuck about the hack anymore and you'll just look like a lazy slavedriving jerk. If hacking's not a main hobby of yours, then it's really tough to stay tuned. I'd really rather get all, or most of the work done myself if I do decide to try again, I guess because it would feel better if I could take all the credit for jut a simple hack.

Criticism really depends on the hacker, though. I don't mind it because it helps me choose what belongs in the hack and what doesn't - what makes it better. But I can see how it could be really annoying if you're working your balls off and all you hear is bitching about "YOU SHOULD ADD <irrelevant character>!1!1!!! TEH GAEM IZ TOO HAAARD!1!1!!!shift" And then, there's still a difference between constructive criticism and just flat out bitching.

 

1) "simply a complex form of expressing creativity"

2) "just a way to "show off" and get attention"

3) Of course! See next question.

4) Yes, but I barely have much time anymore. So if the criticism is a request to change something I took quite alot of time working on it'll usually be scraped or put to the side. See: New background for GHZ in S2SMTP. :P


Though I must ask. Is anyone else getting deja vu from this topic?

 

1. Shits and giggles

2. Only if they like shits and giggles too.

3. If they offer things that make it more giggles and shits

4. No.

 

I'm more into Super Mario World hacking than Sonic hacking, but whatever.

1. Making games is something I've always wanted to do. It's enjoyable for me when I both know how to make it, and get to express some creativity when doing so.
2. Like Chimpo: to spread shits 'n' giggles.
3. Of course. For me, there's no point in making a hack if I can't get people to enjoy it (unless it's for self-educational purposes... on, y'know, learning how to hack). I don't want people to tell me what I make is awesome or pathetic when it really isn't. In fact, those who can't handle criticism are only sharing their hack to boost their e-dick, if you ask me.
4. I used to be affected by them, but I'm not heavily anymore. I was shot down on a Super Mario World hack I made about two years ago, and I felt sort of depressed afterwards, but it wasn't something I'd rather whine about. Still, I'm a lot more thick-skinned nowadays. All criticism seems to affect on me now is to "hurry up and fix it". I normally fix a bug or bad feature a month after it's pointed out... or more. You could call that time restraints or laziness, but I prefer to see it as a combination of the two. :p

 

Because I want to. I like to think I'm making the game more enjoyable for myself and a group of friends.

So people can get the same enjoyment I get out of it. (No sexual references, either)

Of course. Constructive criticism is the only way to achieving betterment. (Is betterment even a word?)

Yes and no. Depending on my personal likes and dislikes, as well as limitations, I may or may not be able to modify the hack to suit other peoples' needs. If people bitch, I will get defensive, because after all, I don't work hard on something, just to have some wanker belittle my efforts. (Except the original versions of my hacks, because they really did suck =P)

 

Because I'm bored :P

There's little sense to have it for me only.

Like I pay attention to it :P

No.

This goes for both hacks and fangames. So bad I can't show what I have of my Sonic 3D hack...

 

So, is there no one here who hacks solely for the sake of making the game more enjoyable? Of course, I can't in good conscience say that looking for personal amusement and praise is wrong, but this does strike me as disheartening- at the very least, all this more or less substantiates my concerns with the community, so I can rest easy now.

 

The games are already enjoyable. All we have to worry about is not making it suck.

We're hacking Genesis Sonic games here, not Deadly Towers.

 

1- Why do you hack?
- I don't have an straight answer.. It's just something I really, really love to do.


2- Why do you share your hacks with others?
- Because I want to show people what I'm capable of doing, and I want to hear what they think of my work.


3- Do you welcome constructive criticism?
- Hell yeah, as long as it's not anything retarded, such as "Wow. Someone who actually makes worse pallets than me". People can improve, but not by anything that isn't helpful.



4- Do you feel influenced by suggestions and criticisms that others provide after they have played your hack?
- Occaisonally..

 

1) Because I miss Sonic games being awesome fun, and it seems like the best way to fix it is to make new games on the engine that was awesome fun.
2) Because there is no point to making a fun game if noone can play it.
3) I like to think so, yes.
4) Absolutely.

Although, as I'm answering these, keep in mind that I have yet to do a solo hack, but these accurately represent my reasons and behaviors while working on megamix.

 

1- Because I enjoy a challenge, I actually enjoy crawling through code, trying to find what I'm looking for, and to fix problems, and the Great sense of satisfaction after getting something new working.
2- I like it when when other people share their hacks with me, so why not?
3- Always
4- Occasionally =P

 

1) Mainly to see what I can do with existing code, as well as find tidbits of leftover stuff that most people may overlook (ex: You can define a third animation for most enemies in Super Mario World to give them a turning animation, like the Koopa Troopas

2) To show off what can be done with existing games.

3) Absolutely! The only way to improve your work is to know what people want.

4) See answer to 3.

 

1- Why do you hack?
Well, I merely want to create my own take on Sonic 1. When this is done, instead of letting the skills I've learned go to waste, I'll be art and music monkey for other's projects.

2- Why do you share your hacks with others?
I haven't. When it's done, you'll all play it. When I have something worth showing, you'll all see it.

3- Do you welcome constructive criticism?
Well, what little I showed on the old Sonic Retro forums had some nice criticism, although I welcome stuff like "Tone down that purple to make the blue stand out more" over "Wow, this is great". It's just the kind of person I am.

4- Do you feel influenced by suggestions and criticisms that others provide after they have played your hack?
They haven't, and I probably won't. In earnest, what I'm making is for me and me alone. If anyone else enjoys it, that would make me happier, but I'm simply doing what I want to do.

Having said this, nobody who wasn't on Sonic Retro's lovely blue forums has seen anything I've done. Gimme a week or so to redraw some awful placeholder art and make layouts, and you'll have screens of a lovely new Marble Zone replacement.

 

Why do you hack?

It's certainly a lot easier for me to make a Genesis Sonic game with disassemblies at my disposal than it is to make one from scratch for a shitty OS like Windows. Besides, the Genesis kicks ass.

Why do you share your hacks with others?

There'd be no point hacking if it wasn't for someone else to play or watch. 'nuff said, really. That's also why I upload a lot of YouTube videos of versions of my hack before they're released.

Do you welcome constructive criticism?

Definitely. Having someone tell you what you need to work on makes it a lot easier.

Do you feel influenced by suggestions and criticisms that others provide after they have played your hack?

Yes and no. I'm usually quite definite on where I want to go with something, but if it's something I haven't even thought about, suggestions can make a lot of difference.