Who talked about 'unfinished games? you asked..
Quote: "what defines the line between WIP and completed?
is it just when you say "im done" or what?"
I answered..
Quote: "a WIP is exactly what it says Work-In-Progress. It implies the game is ongoing in dev and has not reached what would be considered an Alpha or Beta Build. I would expect with the 2 and a half months given for this contest any entry should at the very least be at the beta stage. Meaning 'Playable'. Having code that loads all the graphics and sets up the game but has no 'function' is just what I would call 'initialization code' and does not constitute a game."
"In Development" and "Work-in-Progress" are essentially the same. During the development there comes a time when the game takes shape and is 'playable'. Now many aspects of the game might not be finalized, menus, extra levels etc. but the mechanics of the game are done and most of the logic. (this is where the game begins life) once the game is 'playable' it can be called an 'alpha'. Taking it a step further, the menus, extra levels, sound, and most of the graphics are done (which for this contest is not the important factor) and the gameplay has been tweaked and any mechanical or logic bugs have been for the most part squashed. At this point the game would be in what is known as the 'beta'. the beta version of the game has all the elements 'working' and is ready for the final polish. Some games at the beta stage are actually like 95% complete. heck some games 'get released' while in 'beta' and they 'plan' on the patch fixing any final bugs and polish the remaining 5% . In fact the first patch often is released at the same time as the 'official release'.
My head now hurts, why are you asking about "when a WIP becomes 'done'?" It was never said that the entries for this contest had to be 'totally finished' only that they be 'playable'. There is no 'Gameplay' if you cannot 'Play the game'. An Alpha build would be more than good enough for entry into this contest.
I don't know what else to say,
Cheers!
