Game development roadmap template

Game development roadmap template

A roadmap isn’t a promise of dates. It is a list of questions in the order you need them answered. The phases below are the ones most game projects pass through, whatever the size of the team. Rename them to suit you; what matters is that each one ends with something you can check.

Game development roadmap template: part 1

• Concept. Is there a game here worth making? Output: a pitch and the pillars.
• Prototype. Is the core loop fun with placeholder art? Output: something playable in a few weeks, thrown away if it isn’t.
• Vertical slice. Can you make one slice of the game at the quality you want to ship? Output: one level or one loop, finished.
• Production. Can you make the rest, at that quality, in the time you have? Output: every feature in the game, in rough form.
• Alpha. Is everything in? Output: all features present, a full playthrough possible, many rough edges.
• Beta. Does it hold up with people who aren’t you? Output: external playtests, bugs triaged, no new features.
• Release candidate. Is it ready to ship? Output: only blocking bugs get fixed.
• Launch and after. What do players tell you? Output: patches and updates driven by what they actually do.

Game development roadmap template: part 2

• # [Game title] roadmap
• Last updated: [date]
• ## Where we are now
• Current phase: [Concept / Prototype / Vertical slice / Production / Alpha / Beta / Release candidate / Launch]
• ## Phases
• | Phase | Question it answers | Done when | Target | Status |
• | Concept | Is there a game worth making? | Pitch and pillars written | [date] | |
• | Prototype | Is the core loop fun? | Playable, with placeholder art | [date] | |
• | Vertical slice | Can we reach ship quality? | One slice finished | [date] | |
• | Production | Can we make the rest? | All features in, rough | [date] | |
• | Alpha | Is everything in? | Full playthrough possible | [date] | |
• | Beta | Does it work for other people? | External playtests done, bugs triaged | [date] | |
• | Release candidate | Is it ready? | No blocking bugs | [date] | |
• | Launch | Is it out? | Live on [platform] | [date] | |
• ## Features by phase
• ### Prototype
• -
• ### Vertical slice
• -
• ### Production
• -
• ### Later / maybe
• -
• ## Milestones with dates
• | Date | Milestone | Owner |
• ## What could slip
• | Risk | If it slips, then | Buffer |
• ## Decisions we have made
• | Date | Decision | Why |

Game development roadmap template: part 3

• Plan the next phase in detail and the ones after it loosely. You know a lot less about Beta than you think from the Prototype stage.
• Add a buffer you don’t tell anyone about. Game projects take longer than planned. Plan for it rather than being surprised by it.
• Cut features, not quality. When a date is going to be missed, remove something from the list and keep the standard for the rest.