You have a very "Can't Do" attitude towards most of it, which is going to stop you much more so than simple lack of funding will. Just because you're in Israel doesn't mean you can't work a day job and save money for something you want to do. Do that, for now. You can learn anything you put your mind to learning. It may take a while, but things like graphics and programmimg can be learned.

However, you didn't ask "Can I make this game, even though I have no drive?" You asked "What do I do next?"

1) After the design document is made, you need to pick out what engines, languages, hardware and libraries you will use. There are many discussions on the other forum areas here, as well as on IGDA.ORG. Using those and doing research, you will come to a decision about what's best for your budget and situation. Some graphics engines are open license. I suggest Panda3D; you won't be WoW, but it's decent quality and free. I suggest Python for the language; it's a powerful scripting language and CPU speeds will increase and by the time you make the game, most users will have dual-core machines.

(Before you grouse about not knowing any of the above, prior to November 2005, neither did I. Doing research is not a unique skill to the "game industry" and a useful thing to be able to do, no matter what you're doing.)

2) Get a spreadsheet (free one in Openoffice, see Openoffice.org), and figure out your budget.

(As an example of how you can be low budget, we got an old Pentium 3 Dell Poweredge 2500 with 2 GB RAM, 3 hard drives, 4 hotswappable fans and an internal tape drive for $600 on eBay. It won't run the MMORPG, of course, but will be fine for development where there's only 6-12 people on it.)

3) Assemble a team. There's a Help Wanted forum here, but most folks don't like to work for free. You'll also need contracts, so that what they work on stays yours. If your design doc is good, you could actually excite some folks into helping.

4) Get some kind of online way of realtime communcation for the team. Project Management software (I like basecamp, it's free and good), AIM has ways to multichat, and there's tons of free hosted forums.

5) Figure out the steps you will need to make the "demo" that you want to show to a "publisher". Then manage your team. Set the goals and milestones for doing so.


========
Your original post says "I wrote down an idea" and then goes on to tell us:
You can't do graphics
You can't program well
You don't know anyone with the skills needed
You don't know how to assemble a team willing to work for free right now
You have no business skills or knowledge

Bottom line:
You need to get some skills. You need to research, read, learn and do. All of it is quite learnable. I'm in the process of doing so, myself.

Shany wrote:

>I have created a Design Document for a game that I believe will be a very good one
>So, the question is: What now?

Olu replied:

>Go make something else.
>...put your brilliant design on the back burner and go build your credibility doing other games, independently or working for a noted publisher/developer.

That is the perfect, honest, and true best answer. Write MORE designs now. Read: http://www.sloperama.com/advice/idea.htm

shany wrote:

>But here lies another problam. I live in Israel, there are no game publishers/studios here. None.

Read: http://www.sloperama.com/advice/lesson64.htm

Let's examine a parallel. You, shany, have a brilliant idea for a new kind of interstellar propulsion, so humankind can travel to the stars as soon as your new drive is built. Only problem: you aren't an aerospace engineer, and there's no space program in your country. Well, I'm sorry, but guess what: it's going to require you to do a LOT of campaigning, a lot of traveling, and a lot of convincing, to get anybody to listen seriously to, much less put forth funding to develop, your new space travel invention. It would help a LOT if you would become an aerospace engineer, and/or rich.

We can't help you in the way you want. We've already told you what you should do.

Quote: Original post by shanytopper
(just for the record, I can't even learn graphical design... I am disgraphic, and therefore even with the best teacher and software my graphical disigns will just suck...)

Lazy. Disgraphic is not a real condition, and you know it. Anyone can learn to draw, and anyone can learn the basic principles of ideational graphic communication. Your brain is like a computer; you can reprogram it. If you can, then you are mentally deficient.

You're not mentally deficient, are you?

Quote: Learning programing, graphical design, and management: Right...there is a good reason why most (if not all) of the games who got developed by a single person are very lame. One person can almost never do all of those things and still make them good. (and usually the game suffer from poor graphics, poor playability, and/or alot of bugs)..let alone actually sell the game (even downloaded games are highly protected against crackers...which cost money)

Your demos obviously don't have to be for sale. Since they're not for sale, you don't have to protect them against being cracked. In fact, you can give away the source code if you want.

Plus, if you're working on the game alone, then you should realize that you have to scale down the scope/ambition of the demo so you can complete it. A side-scrolling shooter with a couple of levels. An isometric RPG hack-and-slash with one complete castle or forest. You should also learn how to multiply your effort, by using content generation tools, for example (map editors, tile editors, level editors), that let you turn out substantially greater amounts of content in less time.

So now that's lazy and uninformed.

Quote: I'm a game designer, Not a programer, a graphical designer, or a manager. And I can't see a reason why should I be anything else.

Dumb. You don't even know what a game designer is. You think it's just coming up with a highly detailed design document and handing it over to a team to make it, with intermittent consultations to ensure they are not deviating from your glorious vision. In truth, designers are producers. There are no designers in the industry who merely conceive great games and then wander off while other people do the hard work of making them work.

For one thing, design is an interactive process with implementation, where hardware limitations and technology/time constraints will cause the designer to have to make choices about what to leave out, what to modify and what to focus on. Further, a designer will often have to function as a producer, fighting to ensure that his team gets the resources they need to make the best game they can.

You're not willing to put in the effort to realize what you claim is your dream, and you're luxuriating in your ignorance. Might as well give up now.

Look, I'm not the most mothering of individuals. I'm very encouraging when I see people willing to do what is necessary, willing to take a chance and determined to accomplish their goals. I don't see that in you. Good luck in your future non-game-design career.

Quote: Original post by shanytopper
LOL

So basicly, what you are saying to me is : Don't do it.

No, that is NOT what I said. I said DO IT. If you want your game made then get on learning the skills needed to do it. Stop making excuses and stop expecting other people to do it for you. If you can't be bothered to make the effort then why should anyone else bother?

Game design is just having ideas, it is actually doing things (such as building levels in a level editor). If you want to convince people that they should spend their time making your game you will need to show them that you are going to be investing the same effort into the project by actually doing something. Programming, art, level building, music.... You don't have to do it all but you need to do something concrete beyond just having an idea.

If you really are "Disgraphic" then make a game using stick figures. If you are a mediocre programmer then get better.

Having a game design or even thousands of game designs is not going to get you a job or funding. Almost every single person working in the industry has their ultimate game design lurking away, that one day just maybe they'll get a chance of creating it. Probably every single gamer also has in their mind what would be their greatest ever game. Unfortunatly they don't get to make them. Ideas are ten a penny(Even ones that are carefully documented with supporting concept art and even playable demos)

Even if a publisher did take your design and say wow thats a great game idea we need to make it. After already saying you can't do graphics or program well they'd just take your idea and make it without you.

Game design is a multi-disciplined area. You need to be able to program, you need to be able to do concept art. You need to understand the technology that is available for making the game. You need comunication skills. You need to be able to manage people.

Walk before you can run.

Quote: Original post by shanytopper
But here lies another problam. I live in Israel, there are no game publishers/studios here. None.

I met a guy from Israel at Casuality (Europe), his company is in Haifa and they do multiplayer online games (casual stuff like board and card games). He told me that he has another company that does traditional software development. The gaming website is www.come2play.com

"Ludi" wrote:

>I met a guy from Israel at Casuality (Europe), his company is in Haifa

Sshh! Don't tell him that! He might actually start looking and find even more game companies in Israel, and start pestering them. Better he thinks there aren't any.

The OP has a negative and self limiting belief system, I wanted to make him aware of that.

* Beliefs as in NLP: "Subjective ideas about what is true and not true for ourselves and the world, developed through exposure to experience, and modified by perceptual filters of distortion, generalisation and deletion."

Edit: Deleted negative message :)

[Edited by - Ludibrium on November 26, 2006 5:28:16 AM]