Wednesday 8 September 2021

Where to get original ideas

Lots of games and game concepts are very similar, very derivative. Partially that's because people make more of what's successful, which is sound business. But partially it's also because of a lack of inspiration, or taking inspiration from the wrong sources.

This is because most game creators get their inspiration from the same sources: other games, action comics, action movies and sci-fi/fantasy books. Thus many creators get the same ideas. To get truly original ideas, you shouldn't look at the same things as everyone else.  


What other things inspire you? Please share in the comments below!

For me, modern art museums are the biggest source of inspiration, especially early 20th century stuff. I don't like it all, but it often triggers my creativity. For example, this painting by Kandinsky was the main source of inspiration for Proun at the time.  


So let's play a little game. Look at the painting below, and try to imagine a game that looks like this. What would that play like?


(This beautiful painting is by Ludek Tikovsky and was exhibited in castle Groeneveld.)

Oh by the way, I'm trying a new format for my blogposts: super short and focussed on Twitter. I'll repost them here as well, as I'm doing now. Any thoughts on this new format, or tips?