The sequel to The Warrior’s Heart is on hold
I have some bad news to tell you. I’ve been working on the sequel to The Warrior’s Heart for over a year now, and I’ve only finished about a third of the images so far. At the rate I’ve been going, it’s not going to be done for a very long time.
I’ve learned a lot about myself over the last year. I’ve learned that I don’t work well when I’m alone. I need my partner to inspire my creativity, to give me images to create, and to drive me to work hard at creating them. Especially that last part. It's also been particularly frustrating for me to not be able to progress the way I should. In the last months I've been asking myself what to do; either continuing struggling in a sort of creative limbo or just move on to something that my creativity asks for. I've looked into other creators perspectives on the matter, what they do when they get creative blockage, either because ideas don't come or because they lack the proper discipline. Not only 3D content creators but also painters, writers, musicians. Most advice given points towards one direction: follow your creativity wherever it leads. Forcing yourself to create something that doesn't easily come only results in bad work and self-frustration. I know that this is a personal flaw of mine and I'm taking a stand: I don't want to stall and I want to move forward.
I’m putting this game on hold. I have no idea when I’ll get back to it. I’ve asked Tlaero to send me the script for the first few scenes of Chasing Beth, and I’ve started rendering those images. The flow has been totally different and I've been progressing in just a few weeks almost the same amount I've done for SW this whole time.
I know this is disappointing, and I’m sorry to have let you all down.
Mortze
Comments (18)
I know I am late to the party. I only just discovered " A Warrior's Heart. I echo the sentiments of the other comments. It can be maddening when one loses focus on the direction of a project but I dearly hope you can follow a thread back to the creativity that helped you produce Episode 1. You have here the beginnings of in my humble opinion, engaging layered characters. I'm a lover of villains and the duo of female antagonists were particularly fascinating to me. Believe me I feel for your difficulties but for purely selfish reasons on my part I hope you can find a way back to this endeavor. I would truly love to see how it turns out.
Just adding my +1 to the support Mortze. I'm a different kind of creator (I write scientific software), and I totally get the frustration that happens when you feel like you need to do one thing, and the inspiration for it just isn't there. I have to keep myself involved in at least three projects at a time to make sure that at least one of them inspires me to work on it. So do what you have to do to find your creative outlet. I can't imagine I'll be disappointed with whatever product is next to be released from you.
You can't and shouldn't force creativity! Would rather wait for a better product than get something you are not happy with. The Star Wars story was really fun, and I would love to see more of it! But I am happy to wait :)...
It's so great to see I'm not the only one feeling this way. I just want to add my voice to the others Mortze. Follow your gut. We'll be fine, we can all wait. We follow you because of your art, so focus on that. We got your back 😁👍
Mortze, I completely understand, and while I did join because of the Star Wars project (I really love Star Wars verse). I do enjoy the other stories that you have done. Plus I am very patient and hope you will get an inspiration to continue the SW story. Hang in there.
Don't beat yourself up, Mortze, you've let nobody down. The creative process is fickle. I always struggle with stuff that is important to me, but doing stuff for other people seems to come easily most of the time. I also find that by having multiple projects part completed, whilst it is frustrating not to finish things and move on, it allows me to progress one project when i stall on another.
Gotta be honest, as much as I liked the Star Wars project, that's not why I'm a backer. I'd much rather get a new entry in the Elsaverse and let the Star Wars fanfic happen when it happens.
I am with you for the long road , Mortze. Sometimes the creative well runs dry for a time. Set it aside and work on something else.
It's cool. You do your thing, I don't mind. I been a patron since 2019 and I'll support you guys regardless
No, you shouldn't be so self-critical. I'm sure this is just some kind of creative burnout! cheer up! You will succeed!
I agree with all of these comments, if you need a break, take one. We will be happy to wait. If a project never happens, well, that's ok. Not everything that gets started has to finish.
The reason it typically takes me two years to do a new game is I have to take breaks, sometimes months long. For me, creativity comes in cycles. When I'm drained creatively, I find enjoying the creativity of others as a good way to recharge. Read books, watch movies you haven't seen yet. Play some new video games, find a new obsession. Eventually I find myself wanting to create again, sometimes the project I left, sometimes I want to start something new.
Rare is the passionate artist who sees the need to take a break, recognizes it for what it is, and acts upon it.
Don't be too hard on yourself. You're not working in a factory, you create art. In the first mentioned, things sometimes must be finished, no matter what. In the latter, i'm not so sure. Might not be the right time for TWH right now and it may come later. Do something else, you have many options. For example - I personally, would like to see another Pandora game. This was how i discovered you many years ago after all. But as you said long time ago, it may come in the future. Or it might not. Seems similar to me and i think, this is how it works in art, provided you aim for the top results.
Others have already said it, but I do not feel let down. I am glad you were able to be honest with yourself, and honest with us. The passion you bring to your work is part of what drew me to become a patron in the first place. The quality of the work you have done to date shows how much care, skill, and passion you bring to the projects. I do hope you one day return to The Warrior's Heart, because the first part was excellent. The story was good, and the art was excellent, and the characters were interesting. But all of that was true because it reflected the passion you had for the project. So take your time with it. If you come back to it, do so because you are ready. Because the characters and story speak to you. Thank you for your honesty. I look forward to whatever you work on next. Not just Chasing Beth, but any project you work on.
Well, it happens! Everything will be fine! Yes, I think you should stop doing this for now. Good luck!
Mortze, It is far far far far better to put the project down (even if it means you never come back to it) than to force it forward to meet a deadline. That type of work isn't why we support you. You enjoy your creativity and passion and we want to see that in your work. So yes putting it aside right now is the right decision. Maybe in the future, you return to it, maybe you don't. Maybe you rewrite the whole thing and start over. The point is that you should keep creating and being passionate about what you are creating.
You've not let us down. Not that i know but it must be hard to find inspiration when you can't. This last year has been tough but better times to come.