Work Tips: Working on a Team

Working on a team effectively requires a few things, as I've experienced last night. So the situation last night was that me and my cohort were talking about a jellyfish animation that she was making for our game. I pointed out a few things that was concerning to me because I wanted the jellyfish to move more closely to a real jelly, using videos on youtube as reference points (I'm talking about aurelia aurita btw). A couple of my suggestions were taken but everything else was rejected because of animation theory.

So in the end I did make a couple of changes, but not everything was changed. Looking back at it, a few important lessons were brought out of that.



Trust each other's talent - I'm not an animator, but I wanted the movement to look like the real thing. I know less about animation that my partner does, but I can watch things and point things out, which is what I was doing for our jellyfish animation. I had to trust my animator's judgement and expertise in the animation over my own because she's more knowledgeable in the area than I am. I want it to look more realistic with the movements, but they go against animation principles.

Learn from each other - She told me that it would be easier if I knew more about animation, which made me realize that it will be important for me to know it in the future. I told her that she would need to teach me along the way that way I have a better understanding of it for future reference, which will make future projects smoother and higher in quality.

You can't always get your way - Making games is a collaborative process. Everyone will influence the whole through whatever part they are working on. If one person got their way, not only will the project not be as good or as refined, but not everyone's work will show through. The talents and ideas of other people will not be injected into the game, which will produce a more creative piece in the end.

Discuss before working - This is exremely important because this is what keeps everyone on the same page working towards the same goal. This will save time and money during development, and it will keep everyone focused. This will involve working out the nitty gritty details as well as understanding how those details will affect or fit into the overall experience. 

In the end, it is important to collaborate and share and use everyone's ideas. I'm not saying every idea has to be used, but peer reviewing and refining, or even suggesting ideas that fit better into the bigger picture, can improve team morale and create something better in the end. This goes for most, if not, all, creative fields.