独立开发者孤独综合症编辑本段回目录
作者：Javier Cabrera
并不是所有人都能成为独立游戏开发者。我们过着与作家一样的生活；完全依靠自己或与少数人合作，待在一间小小的房间或家庭式工作室，紧闭房门与外部世界隔绝开来。这是我们的亲身经历。因为不管是Carlos还是我都不能在旁人说话或发出其它嘈杂声响时专心工作，这也是我们为何总是选择在深夜，也就是等到整个世界都沉浸在睡眠中时开始工作。
如今，许多人都习惯在大公司工作，即周边围绕着各种各样的同事不断地提出各种新理念，并进行广泛的交流，但是大多数独立开发者仍然选择待在自己的房间或车库中安心工作（很多独立开发者都租不起一间属于自己的办公室）。而对于我们这些在家办公的人来说，总是很容易患上独立开发者孤独综合症。
不过请不要为此焦虑，我将在此分享一些有益的内容帮助你逃出这种心理深渊并回归人类文明。
Indie-Developer(from mygaming)
作为独立开发者，你总是需要拥有一个属于自己的独立空间。房间里装有各种设备，零食，啤酒，并大声播放着音乐以阻隔外部世界的干扰，并且任何家人都不能轻易接近这一房间。如此一切便准备就绪。但是2个月后，你便会开始觉得这种工作生活非常无趣。因为你每天只能在起床，工作，睡觉中循环着。
有些人可能在白天还会到别人的工作室上班，从而进行一定的社交，但是当他们回到家投入自己的独立创作时，一切又将黯淡下去。就像我有许多致力于IT，网页设计，3D图像等工作的独立开发者，他们总是连续好几天足不出户，从而导致整个脸色极端苍白，缺乏活力。
我们并不能一天16个小时只盯着电脑屏幕，这无疑是在找死。幸运的是我和Carlos拥有足够的资本能够将我们的办公室设在布宜诺斯艾利斯的市中心（从而拥有更多彩的休闲生活）。
但是尽管如此我们也很容易换上独立开发者孤独综合症。
所以以下我将列出一些克服这一病症的妙招：
养狗
猫也行。就像我们便养了两只小猫。它们真的非常可爱，我们甚至一天都离不开这两只小猫。如果你需要一直待在电脑跟前，你最好养只猫来陪伴你。但其实养狗更能击垮这种孤独的独立开发者综合症。猫可以一整天懒洋洋的待在家里，狗却不行，你必须带它们出去散步。而这便是帮助你与外界沟通的最佳机会！你可以趁此与别人交谈，到处走走，或买些杂志等。
也许你还可以认识到其他小狗的主任，并与之进行交流。并且千万不要因为这种交朋友的方式而大惊小怪！
也许与陌生人进行交谈并不是你所期望的，但这却能够有效地帮助你释放压力。
附：最好养只母狗。因为这时候其他小狗的主人就会主动接近你（让自己的小狗与你的进行交配）。
频繁地登录在线社交网站：使用Facebook与好友保持联系！
我敢保证即使是凌晨4点也还有人待在Facebook上。与别人交流是人类行为中非常重要的一部分，尽管面对面的交流难以被取代，但是Facebook却能够帮助我们与好友或亲人在休闲时保持联系。没有人会在工作时也使用Facebook。
在Facebook上我们可以找到独立玩家群组，美术人员群组，音乐设计师群组等等。你可以与各种各样的人进行交流，分享彼此的观点和理念，以此释放自己的压力。尽管Facebook并不是治疗孤独的独立开发者综合症的良药，但是你却有可能在此找到支持自己的想法，并愿意与你分享游戏开发经验的知音，你们甚至还有可能相约见面。
警示：远离IRC（游戏邦注：一种通过网络的即时聊天方式）。有时候这种方法也很有趣，但是这一平台上的人流变动很块，从而导致你需要不断寻找自己之前遇到过的人去维系交流。所以最好的方法还是待在同一个平台上（就像Facebook）。
尝试谷歌的HangOut功能
我认为这是对于孤独的独立开发者来说最有帮助的工具之一。你只要轻轻按压按键便能够将邀请函发给所有联络人。就像与好友约会但却无需亲自现身一样。我多次使用这种方法与好友“见面”。我们可以使用hangout工具分享啤酒和零食。就像是真正的聚会。
学习演奏乐器
没有什么比连续六个小时反复拨动琴弦来得放松了。13岁时我便开始玩吉他，但是直到去年，当我决定将摇滚巨星当成目标时，我才真正开始认真练习。尽管在整个过程中我们会感到各种沮丧，但与此同时我们也将获得各种鼓励，并从中掌握到一门有益的技能。你可以反复弹奏着，直到自己的肌肉真正得到放松，并享受着指尖自由拂过琴弦的休闲感。可见这是缓解孤独的独立开发者综合症的神奇方法。
当然了，练习乐器需要花费大量的时间，但是当你希望通过自己的努力去演奏一首歌曲时，你便会发现再大的压力也能得到缓解，因为你将会在练习过程中不断获得成就感。而当我们在致力于项目开发时，总会因为别人的期许，并企图超越前人而为自己制定大量不切实际的目标。
而当我们拿起乐器时，甚至只是想起一些基本的旋律时，我们便会感受到满满的成就。也就是较小的目标=较少的奖励=更多的成就感。
与好友聊天
我并不是指虚拟好友。你并不需将所有好友都汇聚在一个场所，而是只需要发一封电子邮件约他们出来喝喝咖啡吃吃饭便可。不得不承认的是，因为我所认识的大多都是企业家，所以我们见面的话题也总是离不开工作，但是至少离开电脑与自己认识的人相处个1，2小时就足够让我感到满足了。这与享受独立生活方式或回家发送CV是完全不同的体验。
（本文为游戏邦/gamerboom.com编译）
Working from Home: Avoid the Lonely Indie Developer Syndrome!
by Javier Cabrera
Being an indie game developer is not for everyone. We’re a a rare kind, yes sir. We live the life of a writer; working all by ourselves or with a small group of people for what seems to be an eternity in our little apartment/home office with the door shut and the world happening outside. I’m speaking for experience. Neither Carlos or I are able to concentrate while there’s people talking or making loud noises around us, that is why most of our work happens during the night or after long office hours when the world is a bit more quiet.
Now, many of us are used to work at big-ass companies where people are around us all the time contributing with new ideas and insightful conversations, but most indies are still in their bedrooms or their garages and some can’t afford the luxury of an office. Then its only fair to ask, what happens to those of us who work from home? We get the Lonely Indie Developer Syndrome, that’s what.
Don’t worry though, I’m going to share some ideas to get you out of the cave and back to human civilization.
Like everything you will read at indielife (our blog), the content of this article comes from our own past experiences as indie developers. If we haven’t tried it ourselves, then we don’t post about it. So go ahead, read on and find out how can you make things interesting while making your next game!
Alright, so you are working from your improvised indie bunker. You have your gear ready, snacks, some beers, a cool record loud enough to mute life outside your windows and the family has been instructed under penalty of death not to come close to your door. You’re all set. Two months later and life is boring. All you do is getting up, working on your game, then going back to bed and repeat. The perfect loop you say? Not quite.
Some of you may be lucky enough to have a job outside home at someone’s else office where you get to socialize, but if you work from home too (freelancer), things get nasty in no time. I have many indie friends who work on IT, webdesign, 3D art, etc and they don’t step outside the bunker for days. Pale skin and all.
We aren’t built to look at a screen 16 hours a day, that’s for damn sure. Carlos and I have the luxury of having our own office downtown at the most exclusive part of Buenos Aires (not really).
You can actually see our office the first couple of seconds in CYPHER’s trailer if you watch careful enough.
Makes no difference though, you get the Lonely Indie Developer Syndrome all the same.
Here are some quick ways we tried ourselves to overcome the lonely indie developer syndrome:
Fighting the lonely indie developer syndrome the right way: Get a Dog
Cats are cool too. We have two cats. They are really nice and you can’t live without them because they are so cute it hurts not to look at them all day. You MUST have a cat to keep you company if you work with computers, its a rule. But dogs are better to fight the lonely indie developer syndrome handsdown. They force you to actually use your legs in the traditional form of walking (a concept now long lost). Cats can do their stuff in the litterbox so you end up staying at home all day working on your projects, but dogs need to actually go outside to find a tree, see? That’s a good opportunity to socialize! Talk with people, walk around the block , maybe pick some magazines, etc.
It will get you going. It will make you socialize with other dogs owners too since most people need the urge to talk with the owner of the dog that’s trying to have sex with theirs. Don’t be surprised if you make some new friends along the way either, that’s what happens when you take the dog for a walk!
While talking with some random stranger may not be what you’re looking for, it will relieve the pressure of being in constant imprisonment.
Bonus: get a female dog. Everyone will be around you sharing some time.
Do more with your online social networks: Use Facebook to stay in touch!
It can be 4 in the morning and I guarantee you will still find someone to talk to on Facebook. Communicating with others is an important part of human behavior, and although face-to-face experiences are irreplaceable, facebook provides a good way to stay in touch with friends and family on their spare time. No one uses facebook at work. Well, no one is supposed to anyway.
You will find indie gamers groups, artists groups, musicians groups, and a hell of a lot more on facebook. You can even chat with all members at the same time and share thoughts or ideas to release some of that accumulated stress before its too late. While facebook is not the ultimate answer to the lonely indie developer syndrome, its certainly one of the best places to find people who share your own mindset and have great conversations about game dev, and who knows, maybe you end up getting together with them for a gamejam session or just a hangout.
Warning: stay way from IRC. While some are cool, most of the time people come and go and you will need to be constantly trying to reconnect with someone you’ve meet there to continue a conversation. Better keep everyone in one place (facebook).
Have you tried Google HangOut? We did.
This must be one of the best tools I’ve seen for lonely indie game devs. You push a button, and instantaneity you get your invitation sent through all your contacts. Boom. It is like going out with your friends without actually being there! I’ve used it a couple of times to hangout with my friend Gaston and others and the name really does justice to its service. Six beers, some snacks (depending on your appetite) and you have an instant hangout tool to share with friends and coworkers alike. Not the real deal but, close enough.
You need to learn How To Play an Instrument
There isn’t anything more relaxing than trying to play the same chord over and over for six hours in a row. I started playing with a guitar when I was 13 but never really got into it until last year when I decided to be a rockstar (still working on it). It is one of the most frustrating yet rewarding activities a person can have and a skill everyone should try to learn at least once in life. You relax and try over and over until your playing becomes muscular reflex and you can really sit there and enjoy your fingers do the music all by themselves. Fantastic way to fight the lonely indie developer syndrome.
Practice takes a hell of a lot of time but when you manage to play a song all by yourself… there aren’t enough words to describe how much stress can take from you because of the constant sense of achievement. See, when we are working on a project we set a very unrealistic amount of goals based on other people perceptions about us, our capabilities, and what others did before us in the field we’re trying to make a difference on.
But when we play an instrument… even coming up with the basic tuning for your instrument without some strange gadget can be rewarding. Small goals == small rewards == constant feeling of achievement.
Now imagine how playing a song you learned all by yourself on the right tempo feels. Fantastic.
Go talk with some friends and have fun!
And I don’t mean virtual friends. You don’t have to gather everyone in one place, just email one of your friends and ask him/her to have a cup of coffee with you at the local Starbucks for breakfast and take it from there. I’m not going to lie here: most of the people I know are entrepreneurs or work at startups, so all we talk about is work and more work, but at least its fun to get around the people you know and respect for a couple of hours outside the computer. It can be the difference between enjoying the indie lifestyle and going back to sending CVs.
So tell me, how do YOU fight the Lonely Indie Syndrome? (source:gamasutra)
