Mappers block?

[Anth]

Hey everyone, I haven't opened Hammer in weeks, I feel super uninspired and not motivated enough to want to work on any projects I was currently working on.

What tips would you guys have to help with this because it sucks not having the desire to do something I normally would enjoy doing so much. :/

[clankill3r]

Don't map for a a lot of years, worked for me

 

Did you playtest what you was working on? That might inspire?

[text_fish]

You probably just burned out. At some point it happens in all creative fields, to pretty much all creative people I've met. The best thing you can do is take a break -- you could work on something else creative, or just be a bit passive for a while. Maybe look through your steam library and find a singleplayer game you never completed and make it your goal to get through it. Eventually a spark of mapping passion will reignite when you're ready to pick up the hammer again.

[clankill3r]

I think the most important thing is to not force yourself to mapping.

[FrieChamp]

Show what you currently have to others and figure out if it's worth continuing. You'll either get a motivational boost to continue it or scrap it. Sometimes being freed to start fresh is motivation enough. Playing games and looking at other mappers work can work, too. But when the skill gap is too big you will likely get the opposite result.

[ESToomere]

Take part of competitions. A time limit of week to a month works like a charm when you've worked on a single map for three years.

[FrieChamp]

Or buy a fashionable item in the official MapCore store for +10 inspiration!

[clankill3r]

Or buy a fashionable item in the official MapCore store for +10 inspiration!

 

That is cool I will get the blue one with only the logo soon

[Vilham]

Just do something else. It will come back when you get into another game or get some great inspiration from something.

[D3ads]

Don't push yourself to do it if your heart isn't in it, there's nothing worse than feeling like you have to work when you're not up to it or your mind is elsewhere. The important thing is to have fun, if you're finding it a chore, stop and do something else. I recommend learning to texture if you don't already have experience with that, I find balancing between texturing and mapping keeps me focused.

[Steppenwolf]

I think the most important thing is to not force yourself to mapping.

 

I would say it's exactly the opposite. Sure if it's just a hobby for you fine. If it's your job or what you intend to be your job then you have to learn to stay productive even when you don't feel creative.

 

I usualy work on some technical stuff when i'm in that situation. Optimization, bug fixing, colissions etc. Or i look up some stuff that motivates me like other peoples work, cool art, architecture etc. Or i learn some stuff from tutorials.

Procrastination is the worst habbit for an artist or designer so try to fight that.

[will2k]

I wrote an article on this specific issue over a year ago

 

Overcoming Creative Block in Level Design

 

Hope this helps

[cashed]

I like to do the mundane when I feel the creative juices not flowing or there isn't work in the pipeline for a day or two. Cover, navigation, and tech stuff. (Depends on the game of course)

 

Something I've been doing lately is small sandboxes where I have encounters and fronts. To see how AI navigates and set up dynamically.

[Anth]

Thanks everyone, it's always awesome being able to ask others who might have been in the same situation I'm currently in. <3

[Xanthi]

I agree with Step. Also I noticed when I don't have inspiration it comes from thinking to complex. Sometimes by just starting on something with creating some basic shapes, the inspiration will kick in automatically.

Another thing that really helps is gathering reference, I'm always amazed how a small detail in a photo can end up in the inspirational spark you needed.

Edited December 17, 2014 by Xanthi