Agile Development

A methodology of software development that encourages rapid iteration and review. The process is applicable to games because we want to quickly iterate game design and art to verify and validate the player experience.

The Process

Make a Task Backlog

• Starting with the first Milestone, list out all the tasks required to complete the Milestone.
• Note if a starting a task is dependent on completion of a previous task/s.

Select Tasks for Development

• Take some tasks from the Backlog and assign them to team members. Typically, 1 to 5 tasks per person.

Set a Sprint Deadline

• Set sprint to end in 4 weeks. If your team has faster velocity, set the sprint to end in 2 weeks.

Work on task

• Pick one of the tasks in your Sprint Backlog to Actively work on.
• Once you complete it, check it off and grab another task from the Sprint Backlog.
• Review work and verified it's been delivered.

Build and Playtest the Game

• Build the Game. Log any Build Issues in the Bugs Backlog.
• Playtest the Game. Log any Bugs or Issues in the Bugs Backlog. Note any User Feedback.

Do a Sprint Review

• Review Production.
• Make Adjustments to Schedule and Backlogs.
• Review Bugs and Feedback.
• Move any Critical Bugs from the Bugs Backlog to your Sprint Backlog.

Move to the Next Sprint with Bugs Backlog

• Repeat the Task Backlog process for the next Milestone.
• Create a new Sprint Backlog with a new task list.
  • If there are any critical or game breaking bugs, add them to the Sprint Backlog.
  • Edit, create, or delete tasks based on changes in Game Design.
  • Give yourself more or less task items depending on results from last sprint.

Move to the Next Milestone

• Repeat the Task Backlog process for the next Milestone.

Rinse and Repeat

• And you will eventually have a game.

Perform a Postmortem

Take the time to review your work and learn from it.

Ask questions such as:

• Did you finish you game? Why or why not?
• Does the game that was created match the original creative vision?
• Are players satisfied with the results?
• How was the game received by the audience?
• Is the team satisfied with the results?
• Did the team meet the original production schedule?
• Did the team have to Crunch?
• Was production within budget?
• What parts of the development process worked well? What mistakes were made along the way that could've been avoided?
• What processes could be changed or improved?
• Is there any work that was completed that can be reused for future projects?
• Does the team feel like they can continue working together on future projects?

Take what you learned and apply it to Future Projects.

Sources

Agile 101 - Agile Alliance What is Scrum? - Scrum.org

Resources