How do Devs feel about unasked for suggestions?

[Psycho_wolvesbane]

I'd love to get more feedback about my game Voretopia but then I also get useless feedback, or bug reports that literally just say that something vaguely wrong happened yet failed to followup on questions I asked about where and how because they had lost interest in the game altogether because apparently one bug in the whole game constitutes a completely unplayable one?

Gave the game a try.

Disabled disposal/scat...


Guess what? It still happened.

Yeah, very helpful and specific, and not at all rude, thanks.

[bees123]

One of the smaller reasons I gave up on my mod.

I like suggestions, but it just became overwhelming when people suggest things that are either impossible, already implemented, should be their own mod, or have been suggested 200 times before

General rule when suggesting something, please read the FAQs first

(To be clear: it wasn't a huge issue, just meant that with EA's "interesting" update policy and life in general being hectic, it was one of the many small straws on this camel's back)

[Journeyman]

Unasked-for suggestions represent a player's genuine interest and desire in the "thing" you've made or are making. I do have to remind myself of that on a regular basis
But it's true! In any game I enjoy, I inevitably wind up forming some head-canon, some mechanics alterations, and some imprints of imagined ideas onto whatever is actually happening. Sure, it's me wanting something different, but the existing work served as the scaffold on which I realized ideas I liked.

My opinion on widespread feedback about 2 iterations of a large and once very well-known game:
Original Knights of the Old Republic: "The areas you visit should be bigger" ... Translation: "I enjoyed everything there was to do in this area so much that I wished games were like this all the time"

SW:The Old Republic MMO: "There should be more to do at end-game" ... Translation: "I enjoyed the story-line I chose and want to continue it indefinitely; the 8 separate starter stories are more enjoyable than the shorter raid-driven end-game"

My own game here on the forum:
"There should be a mode where you *don't* eat the dealer and choose to save her and go on dates with her and she becomes your girlfriend" ... Translation: "The character dialog is compelling, realistic, and enjoyable"

"Can there be a mode where she says X, and then, if you play again, she says Y, and it's clear that she means Z?" ... Translation: "This particular character makes me fantasize about specific scenarios personally appealing to me"

"I want to support this game, but it doesn't have X type of fetish content, you should add that" ... Translation: "You've got a good game premise/mechanics--good enough that I imagine this kind of game being applied to my own interests"

Soooooo, I miiight be delusional! But, long experience has taught me to treat unsolicited change ideas as impulses to be translated into the framework of the game I've actually made. Basically, "what is it about my game that caused this comment." And that is a valuable reflection of the extent to which my ideas did or didn't come across and relate to people.

In the end, it's a bit like social media in the general sense. There's more opinions on offer than time in anyone's lifespan to read them, much less implement them. So, whern I get these, I supplant what could be a feeling of being insulted ( "Hey, nice game but why don't you make it completely different instead" ) with whatever insight I can peel out of it, or just ignore it.

[Death12345]

I've been thinking about this for a while. As someone who did a fairly extensive "What should I do next?" project for my Vore Days mod, I understand how much fun it can be to get a ton of suggestions for how to handle your game going forward. It gets the community involved and allows them to see their favorite aspects of the game explored further.

That said, unsolicited recommendations are a different story. I've seen people who will write out a long reply about what they think should happen, when the devs have not asked for suggestions. Personally, I find this a little annoying. I feel like you should let someone make the game they want, not try to push your ideas on them unprompted.

What do you guys think? I can be overly prickly about random stuff, so I wanted to see other people's takes.

I don't mind them. I've read tons of great ideas and some of them offer a small push just enough to give me a great idea of my own.

I personally don't understand why people hate this. You can just ignore it when it starts bothering you or come later when you're in the mood. 30% of the game is info about the community you're trying to make the game for IMO.

[Overmind42]

I have no problem at all with fans giving creative suggestions & input. Let them be fans, connect with each other, and have fun.

Toxic individuals can be ignored or flagged for Moderation. What happens here on the forums is only a headache for the Moderators, not me. Fans only care about the game update and news about the next release. My only care for moderation is in my own game discord.

There could be more weight for what fans say if you're making a collaborative effort between multiple devs because then you have more than one hear listening to critique. If you've asked for a poll/survey about what you should do next in development because that's on you reaching out for help, or if monetary donations are involved because you need money because then you are financially obligated to yield to donor input.

The artist's greatest weakness is critique, There's no more powerful critique than that of the artists. Devs just need a thick skin or find someone you trust to filter out what you don't like.

[GhostlyToddler]

I don`t mind suggestions, I think clearing up right from the beginning what the game will contain, what it won`t contain, and what it might contain helps alot. Too me most suggestions have been kind and people haven`t tried to push me around to make scenes or include stuff they want when I`m not interested. Suggestions are fine, demanding is not.

[umakeisee]

Soooooo, I miiight be delusional! But, long experience has taught me to treat unsolicited change ideas as impulses to be translated into the framework of the game I've actually made. Basically, "what is it about my game that caused this comment." And that is a valuable reflection of the extent to which my ideas did or didn't come across and relate to people.

That's a really interesting, and probably the healthiest, way to think about these types of comments.

[Creaturedude]

Take what I say with a grain of salt, as I am what people call and "idea guy" and have never actually made a game myself (I really want to, but neither have the knowhow or time to do so. See how frequently I post to my gallery and you'll see what I mean). That said...

If a game is in heavy WIP, and the developer has not explicitly stated that they are only looking for people to find bugs and/or have not stated things that they specifically will not include in the game, then the developer is essentially opening themselves up to any and all feedback, which includes suggestions. As some have said in this thread, those can merely be glossed over and largely ignored (but there may be a diamond in the rough regardless).

If a game is nearly complete, any sort of content suggestion really just shouldn't be made. Even if its just some "light padding" so to speak, the developer is most likely tired of working on the game and wants to see it finished more than anything else. At that stage they are ONLY looking for bug fixes, and nothing else.


All in all, it really depends on the context of the game state and whether the developer has explicitly stated any boundaries of any kind (in my opinion).

[Bitter]

Someday I'm going to make a sequel to FUbN, and it still won't have a grappling hook.

[SquishySofty]

As a person myself who's been working on silly prototype games on Godot Engine (3.5), I'm open to any suggestions or ideas. Of course, anyone gets the "bad apple" of the people who suggest things with overambitious suggestions that could stress the developer(s), and it can get pretty annoying because of it.

I keep having my expectations fairly low to avoid burnout, because... Well I'm pretty scared how my game will appeal to my target audience when it's released.

[Skittles209]

Simple answer. Requests.

Long answer. If something I am "developing" is geared towards something then yes a person could request an additional feature. But if what I am developing does not supoort said request. Then the request is best not asked and I will state such and be blasted for being a <insert word here> because I don't cater for something.

An example would be if I were developing a vore game but only geared towards oral, and micro prey only. And all the requests were for anal or cock or vaginal. Chances are the way I am making the game, those assets are more work. If I were developing something thag required programming and art asset and other small things that are needed to support something additional and innocent sounding as another type of death/etc.

Take a text adventure with art assets. The art assets are the hard part to get. It requires either me to draw the art itself,m and my art skills are lacking in detail and quality that others would desire. Or to go and find an artist who would help make art for said game. Most likely not for free and I am developing the game, most likely for free. Added costs that I'd rather use for a better program or computer so I could eventually start working on my own art assets for a non fetish themed game.
A text adventure without art is something I prefer. Doesn't mean others want that.

[umakeisee]

If a game is in heavy WIP, and the developer has not explicitly stated that they are only looking for people to find bugs and/or have not stated things that they specifically will not include in the game, then the developer is essentially opening themselves up to any and all feedback, which includes suggestions. As some have said in this thread, those can merely be glossed over and largely ignored (but there may be a diamond in the rough regardless).

Should a dev have to explicitly state they don't want suggestions though? Prevention is the best medicine, but shouldn't the assumption be that they have a plan in mind and don't intend to change their vision? Many have stated how suggestions can come across as demands or lead to burnout. While ignoring them is a solid solution, it feels like people should be asking if devs are open to suggestions first and foremost.

[h21it]

For free stuff I never give unsolicited input, but on stuff where I'm a patron I feel like I've earned the right to give a suggestion or two about the direction a project is going. Why would I continue to support a project if it's not developing in a way I like? In that way audience input is valuable for the creator

[Daichi777]

If a game is in heavy WIP, and the developer has not explicitly stated that they are only looking for people to find bugs and/or have not stated things that they specifically will not include in the game, then the developer is essentially opening themselves up to any and all feedback, which includes suggestions. As some have said in this thread, those can merely be glossed over and largely ignored (but there may be a diamond in the rough regardless).

Should a dev have to explicitly state they don't want suggestions though? Prevention is the best medicine, but shouldn't the assumption be that they have a plan in mind and don't intend to change their vision? Many have stated how suggestions can come across as demands or lead to burnout. While ignoring them is a solid solution, it feels like people should be asking if devs are open to suggestions first and foremost.

This. Even if you specifically stated you don't want demands etc you're still going to get demands. Not many give actual feedback or praise as it nearly all turns into a hidden request/suggestion/demand. And that's grown on people because you get so used to it after being years online and seeing it every game thread.

People are going to ignore or not read what someone writes in their first post and just post what they want to see regardless. But threads like this are good to educate people and let them know from the perspective they don't think or know about.

[Jadex]

Sure it's just one of those things where it depends on the person your giving it to, me personally i would never mind even if they wrote out a books worth of detail as there's always some value in that but, ya know, understandably if they kept pressuring me to change something for them that i didnt agree with I would be a little ticked off