I wonder these last few days how well the whole internet-gamedev-team works out. I know there are many out there, but very few seem to make it. Personally, as a programmer, am always looking to collaborate with artists in order to make games. My ideal situation would be a very small team of me and a couple of artists. I'm not dead set on realizing my own projects, it could be the artist's idea just as well. I just want to handle the programming. However, all of my efforts so far have fall short. It's really, *really* hard to find good artists/designers(real designers, not 'idea guys') that are interested to collaborate without immediate payment. I suppose this is partly expected, but where are all the people that just want to team up and make good indie games? One would think that sites like this would be heaven for wannabe-game developers, but in practice finding people to team up with seems impossible. And when you do find someone, it's always with this super-grandeur idea that you know has no chance in hell of being implemented by a team of volunteers.

So, to cheer ourselves up, let's here about some success stories! If you have had a good experience with a team you built through the net, talk to us about it! How did you recruited? What games did you make? Why do you think your team was successful? I think it will be interesting to hear stories like that.

So, to cheer ourselves up, let's here about some success stories! If you have had a good experience with a team you built through the net, talk to us about it! How did you recruited? What games did you make? Why do you think your team was successful? I think it will be interesting to hear stories like that.

I was part of one that was making decent progress while I was between jobs. It seemed like there was solid communication and a bunch of people actually doing stuff (this seems to be the biggest problem for online only teams). I then found a job that required me to stop working on that, so I dropped out and haven't heard about it since. For where we were though it was doing really well compared to a lot of the horror stories one would expect.

It is really hard to find someone you can trust over the internet. How can you be sure not to get ripped off? Contracts? This gets complicated when people are from different countries.

Additionaly there are too many idea guys. They have no experience at all, don't finish their projects, aiming far too big. Sorting these people out takes time.

Usually you have to pay people for working on a project that is not based on their own idea. For me as an artist I feel the most assured if a programmer/designer is paying me. Ideally he knows what he is doing, finished a few games, knows how to make money out of it, works with placeholder graphics and sets a exact schedule with multiple deadlines.

But I wouldn't mind to share a project with someone, sharing the revenue. It would be nice to work with someone in synergy for 2 or 3 months and selling the game afterwards for example on flashgamelicense.com. By the way, what is going on with flashgameart.com? I can't login since i signed in. I wrote a mail. The answer was vague, something about architectural changes which will take a few weeks.

So in the past weeks I wrote to some guys and received some inquiries but often enough these people just stop sending emails at some point and I have no idea what is going on. Have they found someone already, are they cancelling their project or did they die? I have a lot of experience and I am at a point where I have the feeling that I know exactly what I am doing. I also consider my rates reasonably priced for a freelancer.

When I worked at a company, making games together with professionals, sitting in the same building, getting a salary and so on, everyone was determined and behaving decently. No bullshit. But over the internet? I still do not know if it is the internet or the people but so far I feel somehow disappointed.

Well, I still hope to find someone to work with over the internet, building a trusting relationship and making financially sucessful games.

The Amnesia: Dark Descent team was entirely online based from what I recall - I met them in person and they mentioned that they've only met up as a team a couple of times. Seems like it requires a -ton- of dedication, although it certainly paid off for them!

Didn't Tripwire start out as an online based team making the Red Orchestra mod for Unreal? Or were they primarily a group of real life friends?