Insomniac Nightmares

A phrase that I feel gets a bad rap is “Good enough.” I’ve seen quite a few posts, Tweets, and comments that, when boiled down, essentially say “Good enough… isn’t.”

Horseshit.

I get what they’re trying to say, I think; don’t half-ass something and call it “good enough.” But they’re discounting a large group of obsessive, perfectionistic types – myself included – who will read that statement and end up never actually finishing anything… because they can only see “good enough,” not “perfect.”

There needs to be a distinction between “good enough” of the type that says “Eh, I did okay, and nobody can complain about it” and “good enough” of the flavor that says “I did all that I was capable of.”

The former is a sin. The second is what keeps things from building up in the “I’m tinkering with that but it’s not done” pile, because such things will never be done… as they will always just be “good enough,” to a certain mindset.

Of course, I am insane – certifiably, mind; I don’t swallow a handful of bitter pills every morning just for funsies – and may just be justifying my own garbage. But I still think there’s something worthwhile in doing something that’s “good enough.” At least it’s done. Better to have something done than trapped in eternal limbo, or so I think.

I’m having plenty of those moments as I work on Black Yard. I’m doing it with RPG Maker VX Ace, because it’s the tool I have. I can’t afford a newer one at this time. Writing code from scratch is not really an option (back in the dark days of DOS, it was; I was fairly proficient with C++ at the time, and could usually make BASIC comply; since the dawn of Windows, those skills are no longer functional.) I lack the talent and skills to draw or paint well, and lack the resources to hire someone else to do it, so I have to make do with the default textures and sprites. While I was at one point capable of playing piano, bass, and guitar, I never had much of an ear for music or the creation thereof; I was a mildly talented audiocopier, essentially. I also lack tools for creating music and sound effects, even if I had an ear and a mind for such. So the stock ones have to do.

Will Black Yard be everything I want it to be, everything it could and should be in the best of all possible worlds? Probably not. But will it be “good enough?” Yes. It will be the best I can make it, it will tell the story I want it to tell, and when I hit the “compile” button and generate an .EXE that is “finished,” I will be happy.

Then I’ll nod my head and say “Good enough.”