Real-Life Decision Making -- Solution
You freeze the development of the game in order to bring it to market.
Speedy Sam has been slated for Christmas delivery and it has been highly
publicized. So you decide to freeze the development of the game in order to
bring it to market as promised.
Some members of your design team are disappointed, because they could see
the merits of the additional features. However, you know that if you don't
make the decision to freeze the development of a game at some point, the game
could conceivably remain in development indefinitely.
When Speedy Sam hits the stores in November, it's an instant top seller.
Given that response, you have to wonder if those additional features would
have made that much difference in the overall game.
"This is a real-life decision that must be made by computer game designers,"
says Keith Dundas, who works for a computer game company. But it's not
an easy decision to make.
"Artists, animators, musicians, engineers, programmers and countless others
who create our games have very high standards and are driven by a creative
impulse," says Dundas. "Consequently, the software they help create can always
be improved. Someone ultimately must decide when a game is finished. Someone
has to decide that the value of [small] improvements is less than the value
of bringing the game to market in a timely fashion."